“This is so fucked”

We didn’t move from the kitchen at first.

Veronica’s phone was still buzzing against the counter like it was trying to crawl away. Mine had gone quiet for a moment, but the notifications kept stacking on the lock screen every few seconds. I could see Mick’s name, then Jay’s, then a couple of the other boys. The group chat had clearly caught fire.

Veronica picked up her phone and unlocked it with her thumb. She didn’t try to hide the screen from me. She just angled it slightly so we could both see.

Her inbox was a mess.

Private messages from regulars. A couple from other streamers she was friendly with. One from her platform’s trust and safety team asking her to call them when she could. And dozens of notifications from the clip that was apparently making the rounds in a few discords and Twitter circles.

She opened one of the messages and let me read over her shoulder.

Holy shit V, was that real? That guy looked familiar…
People are saying it’s some warehouse dude?
You good? That looked intense.

She scrolled a little further. Another message from someone with a big tipper badge.

Didn’t know you did that kind of content. Hot as fuck though. Tip incoming.

Veronica let out a slow breath and locked her phone again without replying to any of them.

“Some of them are being normal,” she said quietly. “Some are being gross. A few are worried. The platform one is probably going to be a pain in the arse.”

My own phone lit up again.

Mick: Bro if that’s actually you in that video with the streamer girl you need to tell us right now

Jay: Mate the chat is going off

Dave: Is it you or not

I stared at the messages for a second, then looked at Veronica.

“They know it’s me,” I said. My voice sounded flat even to my own ears. “Or they’re about to. Mick’s not stupid. He’s seen me. He’s seen you around the house. It won’t take him long to put it together.”

Veronica nodded slowly. She didn’t look surprised.

“What do you want to do?” she asked.

I let out a short, humourless laugh. “I have no fucking idea.”

We stood there in the kitchen for another minute, the smell of burnt eggs and coffee still hanging in the air. Her singlet was still damp and stained, clinging to her in places. I was still in the same clothes I’d slept in. The whole morning felt like it had been hijacked.

Eventually she reached over and took my phone out of my hand. She set it face-down on the counter next to hers.

“We don’t have to answer any of them right now,” she said. “Not the mates. Not HR. Not my messages. We can take ten minutes to breathe and figure out what we actually want to say before we start reacting.”

I looked at her.

A few weeks ago I would’ve already been spiralling. Pacing. Snapping. Convinced the whole world was about to come crashing down because of one mistake. Part of me still wanted to do that. The part that had been grinding at the warehouse for years and was terrified of losing the only steady thing I had.

But she was standing there in a ruined singlet with coffee drying on her skin, calm in a way that didn’t feel fake, and it was making it harder to lose my shit.

I stepped forward and pulled her against me. She came easily, arms sliding around my waist, face pressing into my chest. I rested my chin on the top of her head and just held her for a moment.

“This is so fucked,” I muttered into her hair.

“Yeah,” she said against my shirt. “It is.”

Neither of us moved for a while.

My phone buzzed again on the counter behind her. I ignored it.

Eventually she pulled back just enough to look up at me.

“We should probably check what’s actually out there before we decide anything,” she said. “See how bad it is. Then we can figure out what to say to your mates. To HR. To my community.”

I nodded.

She gave me a small, tired smile.

“Breakfast is ruined anyway,” she added. “Might as well deal with the mess while we’re at it.”

I let out a breath that was almost a laugh.

“Yeah,” I said. “Alright.”

We left the phones on the counter for now and moved to the table. The eggs had gone cold. The coffee was a mess. But we sat down anyway.

For the first time since both our phones started screaming, the noise felt a little further away.

Not gone.

Just… manageable.

For now.