"That's a good trick." Kate said, still blinking fast.
Gen just chuckled.
"That was spooky! I didn't know you had that in you."
"Do you have faith in my now?"
"No. You're still a fat and ugly bitch."
Kate instinctively started moving and Genevieve threw her hands up defensively.
"Don't misunderstand. I really fucking like you. Like really. But you're unfit, admit it. And you saw the comments section before they were deleted!"
Gen said from the ground her hands still up.
"I beat Rachel."
"Which was so impressive! You have no idea. I was looking at that footage over and over again. You caught me by complete surprise. And you caught Riley by surprise too. Your adaptability is actually amazing. It's not enough!"
Kate frowned and retreated upon realizing that she'd been advancing upon her, sitting back down at the furthest edge away from Gen.
"Because you're fat." Gen said.
"I am not fat!" Kate yelled, up and moving again.
"Compared to the morbidly obese. Absolutely. But against Tiff's six pack, against Edna's? Hell against Riley's!?"
"But-"
"Yes, and I promise you on my life that if you tried that same move again, she'd snap you in half. Her Zenith is Competition."
Kate stopped advancing.
"I promise you, every second of every hour Riley has been thinking about what happened. I bet you earned money from her replay views alone."
Kate blinked, wrong footed.
"What?" Kate asked.
"Whatwhat?" Gen asked, genuinely confused.
"You mentioned money?"
Gen sat up like a proper human being for the first time and double puffed on her little stylus to make up for lost time, surely there must have been a deep haze around the room. Kate couldn't even tell, not that it mattered. The money had gotten her undivided attention.
Gen stared that weird dark eyed stare that proved to be a hidden skill.
"Are you a poor?" Gen asked and then grinned. "Oh no. Things just got worse for you. We were always gonna buy this stuff for you, that was never a question. But you'll be expected to take us out too. Otherwise you're just selfish. Your mom?"
Kate didn't have to say a word or pull a face to know she was likely giving away her horror. She was in absolute shock. The family wasn't working a plot so there was no access to starting capital. They were starting new. And because of that, even food proved expensive.
"So there's no chance of your mom backing you." Gen said with a smile. "You're in so much trouble."