The Twitch chat erupted with laughter.
"Everything's fine when I leave, but I come back and my towers are toast!"
"Yin's gotta be reeling."
"Dude's eyes popped out like a cartoon!"
"Lily could've owned this."
"Kids' game? More like chaos mode."
"Classic WindyPeak madness."
"Here they come! Zombies at the door!"
"Today's the day Yin's house falls!"
Chat was relentless, every viewer turning into a comedian.
Yin was freaking out. Two zombies were inches from his virtual doorstep.
Ding!
He scrambled, clicking sunlight on the screen. With 100 points, he could plant a Pea Shooter.
Yin dragged it toward the lawn, aiming to block the house.
But a zombie stepped onto the final grass patch, ready to barge in.
Brrrm!
A lawnmower at the garden's edge roared to life, charging forward. The zombies crumpled, dropping a sunflower card.
"What?" Yin gasped.
Level cleared?
The panic vanished. He slumped in his gaming chair, arms and legs splayed. "That's it? Thought this was gonna be brutal. I could've napped and still passed!"
Chat flooded with question marks.
"No way!"
"Calling in the lawnmower squad?"
"You cheesing this?"
"Did you drop cash for that?"
"Lawnmower's pay-to-win, huh?"
"You hacked the kids' game!"
"It's one-and-done, right? Use it and it's gone."
"WindyPeak's going soft with this kids' stuff."
Just as Yin bantered with chat, a sweet voice cut through: "Dad, what're you sneaking around for?"
The stream went wild.
"Lily's here!"
"He didn't pay for cheats, he got his kid to sub in!"
"Lily's taking over!"
"Fire Yin, hire Lily!"
"Kids' game needs a kid player!"
"Lily would've smoked that level."
"Step aside, short king, let the real streamer shine!"
It was Yin's six-year-old daughter, Lily, the perfect age for Plants vs. Zombies's E rating.
Her surprise appearance lit up the stream. Fans loved the chaos and demanded a Lily takeover.
Yin, still frazzled, gave her a puzzled look. "Lily, homework done?"
"Yup!" she nodded. "Mom said to check what you're up to."
"Sneaking? I'm live, kiddo. Totally legit."
Yin adored Lily. He pulled over a gaming chair, letting her hop up. "Chat wants you to stream. Wanna take Dad's spot?"
"Okay!" Lily chirped, clueless about "taking over" but thrilled to play with her dad.
Her energy sent chat into a frenzy. Then, super gifts lit up the screen.
[Zoey Parker sends Super Gift x12]
Chat paused, then exploded.
"Holy crap, Zoey's here!"
"Big spender alert!"
"Zoey's lurking in Yin's stream?"
"The boss lady's in the house!"
"Lily's pulling CEOs like it's nothing!"
Before anyone could recover, more gifts dropped.
[Gus Harper sends Super Gift x12]
The stream went wild.
"The man himself!"
"Gus and Zoey, both here?"
"They're always a package deal!"
"Lily's got the WindyPeak CEOs on lock!"
"Stream's number one on Twitch now!"
"Poor Yin. Years of streaming WindyPeak games, zero gifts. Lily says two words, gets twenty-four."
"How's that feel, Yin? (lol)"
"Lily's the main character now."
"@Gus Harper, get back to A Way Out! No slacking!"
"Seconded! Zoey can chill, but you, Gus? Work!"
"Poor Gus, catching strays even after dropping gifts."
Chat was hyped, comments flooding the screen.
Yin was floored. WindyPeak's president and chief director dropping in? This stream was a banger.
It wasn't just the gifts' value—big bucks, sure—but the clout. Zoey Parker and Gus Harper were gaming royalty. Their presence sent viewership through the roof.
"Thanks, Zoey! Thanks, Gus!" Yin said. "Lily, say thank you to your VIP fans."
"Thank you!" Lily's tiny voice rang out, sparking cheers and more gifts from fans.
Yin didn't kill the vibe. He slid Lily's chair to the computer, stepping aside to coach her.
The stream turned electric. Lily, a natural like her dad, dropped meme-worthy moments left and right.
The Shovel Threat:
"What's this, Dad?"
"Sunflower. It makes sunlight."
"It's so slow!"
"Plant more… Why're you waving the shovel over it?"
"To make it work faster, or I'll whack it!"
"Who taught you that?"
"Mom! When I dawdle on homework, she glares, and I speed up."
"Okay, I need a word with Mom… who always wins."
The Nut Wall Defense:
"Lily, you planted wrong. That's a nut wall, not a front-line zombie-killer."
"But it's so small and goofy. Shouldn't it hide in the back?"
"It protects other plants. Short but tough."
"Like you, Dad? Short but keeping us safe?"
"Kid, I'm not sure if that's sweet or savage…"
The Lawnmower Obsession:
"Why aren't you planting?"
"I wanna see the lawnmower."
"It's one-time-use."
"Then restart so I can see it again."
"We'll never beat the level!"
"It's like homework. I just wanna finish and see the lawnmower…"
"Fair point. Let's watch it roll."
From level 1-1 to 1-8, Yin and Lily bantered like a comedy duo, keeping chat roaring. Sunflowers, cherry bombs, nut walls, potato mines, ice pea shooters, and piranha plants unlocked one by one.
The levels were tricky but fun, fueling player hype. With more plants unlocking but only six card slots per level, strategies diversified.
Players could go classic: nut walls, pea shooters, sunflowers. Or add ice peas for a freeze-out. Swap peas for piranha plants for a chomp-fest. Or go wild with sunflowers, cherry bombs, and potato mines, yelling "art is explosion!"
Plants had variety. Zombies weren't pushovers either. Some wore buckets, others carried doors. Some pole-vaulted, others danced to summon backup.
Players had to adapt, tweaking setups to counter special zombies.
Gus threw in mini-games too: nut bowling, tombstone whack-a-mole, plant slot machines. A "Zen Garden" mode eased gaming fatigue.
Plants vs. Zombies was near-perfect—balanced, fun, a global hit in Gus's past life, dominating defense games for a decade.
By 10 p.m., Lily waved goodbye, reluctantly leaving. Zoey and Gus sent another round of super gifts, pushing the night's haul to big bucks.
Gus was all-in. Catrio's viral moment—"Get out of my computer!"—owed much to Yin's streams. Streamers like him turbocharged WindyPeak's rise. Gus didn't flinch at the cost, whether thousands or more.
Past midnight, Yin kept battling dancing zombies, pushing through the dark.
Zoey, though, was fading. Her eyelids drooped, head bobbing like a sleepy bug. "I'm done… gotta crash," she mumbled, tossing her blanket over Gus's head before heading to wash up.
"You're not sleepy, you're just being a gremlin," Gus said, pulling off the blanket, deadpan.
"Keeping your head warm!" Zoey grinned, pleased with her prank.
"Only my head needs a blanket?" Gus rolled his eyes, folding it neatly.
As they prepped for bed, Zoey's phone buzzed.
She froze. "Who's calling this late?"
She glanced at the screen, her face tightening. Gus frowned, stepping closer. "Who is it?"
Zoey showed him the phone. "My dad?"
Gus's eyes widened. Midnight call from Walter Parker? Could be trouble.
"Pick it up," he urged.
Zoey tapped the screen, voice cautious. "Dad?"
Walter's voice boomed, full of pep. "Hey, you're up! Quick question: how do you beat level 2-9? What mushroom do you use? I've tried everything and I'm stuck. Ask Gus—he made the game, he'll know!"
Zoey blinked, stunned. "Seriously?"