Collab Start - A Voice I Recognized Too Well

POV → Yuna

I hadn’t streamed for 2 whole days.

For most people, that wouldn’t mean much.

For me, it felt like waiting for an earthquake that might or might not come.

3 days since the hospital.

3 days since my body reminded me that I wasn’t unbreakable.

And 2 days since my boss’s messages:

“Why aren’t you live yet? People are waiting.”

“What’s going on? Why aren’t you live? You know how important consistency is. For you. For US.”

Messages like that were enough. Polite on the surface, but heavy underneath.

A reminder.

A warning.

But tonight, I couldn’t afford to skip another stream.

Today was the big collab. The tournament for ChonkyWonky, the game I’m really good at.

The whole streaming scene awaits me. I’m the special guest. Not showing up wasn’t an option. I know I shouldn’t put my body under this kind of stress. The doctor made that perfectly clear. But there’s just no other way. I have to. Whether I liked it or not, today was happening.

At least I wouldn’t have to stream late in the night today. The tournament starts at 15:00h.

“Everything will go smoothly.” I told myself as I adjusted my mic.

“Act normal.”

Normal. Whatever that meant.

I caught my reflection on the black screen before the monitors lit up.

Long hair tied up.

Baggy shirt stretched a little over my belly.

Face tired from too many thoughts. At least I ate good today. I have to thank Ren for that again. Actually his mom. But I’m not good with people. I don’t think I’ll be able to make a good impression.

My hand drifted over my stomach.

“You’re okay.” I whispered.

“I’m okay too. We’re fine.”

I didn’t know if that was true. But it made me feel better.

A notification pinged on my phone, making my heart jump before I even saw who it was.

Not him… Not my boss.

Instead: “Tournament collab starts in 45 minutes. Lobby link attached.”

Right. The event.

Big names.

Big audience.

Big pressure.

I exhaled as my avatar powered on. Her bright blue eyes… so different from mine… blinked at me.

Today, she’d have to carry me again.

—--------------------------------------------------------

By 14:55h, chat was already exploding.

Chat:

“LUNAZERO IS FINALLY BACK LET’S GOOOO”

“YO SHE’S EARLY”

“TOURNAMENT TIME.”

“LUNA STREAMING BEFORE MIDNIGHT??”
“WE MISSED YOU.”

“ARE YOU FEELING BETTER?”

I forced my voice into it’s bubbly, slightly higher tone.

“Fufufu~ Hello everyone! I’m alive! Barely! But alive!”

I kept my smile in the voice, even as part of me trembled.

“I missed 2 days because I wasn’t feeling well. Did you miss me? I’m streaming earlier today, just for the collab~!”

The chat spammed hearts.

If only they knew. I didn’t let myself think about what he would say about the missed days. Not now.

At 15:00h, the event organizer’s voice cut into the call.

“Welcome, everyone! Thank you for joining the ChonkyWonky tournament, sponsored by Mastroso. We’ll start by drawing teams!”

My heart skipped.

I hated random draws.

They reminded me of school group projects.

I was always the one nobody wanted.

The one everyone prayed wouldn't get drawn into their group.

The quiet girl. The strange girl. The one people whispered about.

Even now, as thousands of fans screamed my name daily… group assignments still made my palms sweat.

“Alright!” the host announced. “Team 4: LunaZero… and…”

“...Renno!”

Chat exploded.

Chat:

“NO WAY LUNA X REN LET’S GO!!!”

“THE LEGENDS UNITED.”

“POV: WINNER TEAM.”
“COLLAB OF THE YEAR???”

I stared at the screen.

Renno.

The name echoed in my head.

I’d heard his name a thousand times. Number 1 gaming creator in Japan. Everyone knew him. And yet, I never really watched any of his content.

But for some reason, when the announcement was made, all I could think about was Ren. His name kept swirling around in my head. It had been doing that a lot the last couple of days..

I’d hoped to be on a team with someone I knew… Now the spotlight would be on me even more…

The team voice channel opened.

A mechanical beep. A tiny delay.

Then…

A voice I knew too well.

My chest tightened before my brain caught up.

“Uh… hey. Nice to meet you. Looking forward to the games. Let’s win this!”

I went completely still. I couldn’t move.

That voice.

That voice.

The exact voice that knocked on my door, carried me to the hospital, scolded me for not eating, told me to rest... and spoke gently to me when I was crying.

Ren.

My neighbor Ren.

It couldn’t be.

“Luna? You there?”

I couldn’t focus.

Because every syllable he said confirmed it. It was him. My neighbor. The only person who had genuinely helped me in years.

My mouse moved on it’s own. Before I could stop myself, I opened another tab.

Renno’s stream.

His face filled my screen.

Ren.

Under high quality lighting.

Wearing the exact hoodie we bought yesterday.

Hair still messy in the same way. Eyes focused. Expression calm.

My breath caught.

Seeing him like this felt illegal.

My heart thumped painfully.

He was…

He was really handsome.

I already thought that yesterday, secretly, when he stood in the hallway offering me food. Actually, maybe even at the hospital. But seeing him on stream… confident, glowing under the camera…

“I think she hates me guys…” Ren’s voice suddenly cut in through my headset.

“O…Oh! S-Sorry! Fufufu~! I’m here!” I chirped in my VTuber voice, too high, too squeaky, too fake.

Hold it together.

Hold it together!!

“I, uh, was adjusting my settings!” I added.

“Oh, no worries.” he said, laughing a little. “Just making sure you didn’t disconnect already.”

“Fufu~ Don’t you worry! I won’t leave you!”

WHY DID I SAY THAT.

Why am I like this.

Chat spammed:

“SHE WON’T LEAVE HIM????”

“#LUNAREN.”

“THE ENERGY…”

“Alright Luna. Let's try not to embarrass ourselves in front of the entire country, yeah?”

“Yes!” I said automatically.

But inside, my mind was screaming.

Because another thought struck me.

A dangerous one.

…Does he… already know?

Does he know I’m LunaZero?

No.

He couldn’t know.

He would’ve said something. Or acted weird. But maybe his sister...

No.

I forced myself to breathe and looked at my avatar.

Her bright blue eyes blinked cheerfully.

I envied her.

She didn’t panic.

She didn’t shake.

She was everything people wanted…

… And none of the things I actually was.

“Let's do this!” I said, almost to myself.

Then louder, in my LunaZero voice:

“Let’s win this Renno-senpai~!”

Chat exploded again.

Ren chuckled on the call.

“Senpai? Really?”

“Fufu~! It fits, doesn’t it?”

“Not sure about that, but I’ll take it.”

I swallowed.

My throat felt too tight.

This was real. This was happening.

And as the countdown to the first match appeared on screen, one truth hit me hard:

I wasn’t prepared.

Not for the tournament. Not for this team.

Not for him.

And definitely not for the feeling growing softly, slowly, quietly, dangerously inside me…

Something I shouldn’t be allowed to feel for anyone.

Especially not for the neighbor living right next door.