Red Herring - PlayerxReader

"Weak Link"

   "Aaaand, I'm in."

   You leaned back in your chair and grinned as you saw on your screen a bunch of information, notes, and contacts—it wasn't like you were going to do anything with it, anyways. You deemed yourself a white-hat hacker, which meant you used your little quirks for good. You pulled up a security camera monitor and pressed the spacebar to unmute. As you spoke, a woman in an odd science-esque outfit looked around confused.

   "27 layers of encryption, and not one was strong. So, who do I warn about a weak link-!" Just as you were about to finish your sentence, your access to microphone controls was taken away. But, it wasn't by admin; it was by another hacker. Suddenly, your phone received a call from an unknown number.

   "Hello?" You waited for a response, and quickly received one.

   "I must admit, being able to hack through that firewall was impressive," a male voice spoke—he sounded young.

   "Are you with that organization," you asked, looking back at your computer to read the name. "V.I.L.E.?"

   The boy chuckled. "No, I'm not. However, the organization you just hacked is dangerous, and you should try to delete any trace that you were on their network." He typed something into the computer and you were suddenly forced out to the password page of the organization's network.

   "Holy shit, are they a terrorist group?" You whispered as if somebody was listening.

   "In a way, they are. Don't expect to be safe; that's not a threat, by the way," he clarified.

   "Wait! Before you hang up, who are you? What's your organization?"

   "Call me Player. You might see more of me since you dealt with these people, so consider saving this number."

   "Alright, I will." You gave him a grin that he couldn't see through this call.

   "Bye..." he took a pause. "Y/n?"

   Your face went a little pale. You hadn't ever heard that name outside of your home and school. "Er, you can just call me Piratica."

   He chuckled once more. "Alright. See you, Piratica." He ended the call, and you picked up your phone. You saved his number.

PLAYER

XXX-XXX-XXXX

   You smiled at your phone. You put it down and began to delete the tabs containing V.I.L.E.'s information, as Player had suggested. When you finished, you leaned back in your chair once more. Had you really just gotten involved with a terrorist organization as Player had said?

   You got up and began to pack your bag for school, since the day after this one would be the first day of high school—which was the WORST.

   You put in your laptop, your notebooks, and of course, your [favorite color] pen; you'd never go anywhere without it. Once you finished, you flopped onto your bed and sighed heavily as your computer monitor lit up the dark room.

   "Tomorrow is gonna be a nightmare."

...

   You slowly got up not too long after and opened your door to reveal your dog, who was scratching against the door. You chuckled.

   "Come on, Dory, let's take you out." You walked out your room with your dog in your arms and grabbed the leash and harness off the hook on the wall. As you stood up, your mom walked into the room and gasped as she saw you were still in your pajamas.

   "Y/n Harris, you aren't going outside in your pajamas, are you?" She smiled as she walked over and kissed you in the forehead. "Go change into real clothes, you can walk Dory then," your mom said softly. Dory barked happily.

   Rolling your eyes, you smiled and walked off back into your dark room and pulled some jean shorts and a white tank. Once you slipped those on, you hopped on down the steps of your house back to where your mom was with your dog.

   Your mom walked over and kissed your forehead once more, and you giggled. "I won't be long, mom." You grabbed your keys to the house and walked out the door, tugging on the leash which the small, white dog was trying to run off of(with failed attempt).

   Walking slowly, you breathed in the crisp Ontario air. It was fresh, a long needed break from the humidity of your room. You hadn't been out in a long time, as you worked as a white hat hacker for bigger companies over the summer, making some quick cash. It was odd they hired a 14 year old, but they didn't really know your age, so you had no complaints.

   You found yourself at the park. You entered the public space and sat on a swing as you took your dog off the leash, knowing Dory wouldn't run off—hopefully. You pushed yourself with your toes and glided carefully, not going to high.

...

   As soon as you knew it, time flew by and it was dark. You checked your phone, and it was already 8:30 pm.

   "Holy shit, it's been 2 hours!" You caught Dory over laying in the grass, and sprinted over to connect the leash. You picked your dog up and began running back home, hoping your mom wouldn't be angry.

...

   "I'm home," you announced as you shut the door behind you, with no response. You took off your tiny dog's harness and the pup ran off as soon as you did.

   You walked upstairs and got ready to go to bed. You spotted dinner on the table when you walked in, but you decided against eating it, you didn't feel like eating today, either. You did your entire night time routine and slugged back into your room, checking your computer for any final updates, and then going back to your bed.

   As you laid down, you let your eyes flutter closed, and your tiredness whisk you away. You felt at peace, but then a thought invaded your head:

Player.

   Would you ever meet him again? Or was his warning just a red herring?

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Words: 1004

Thank you so much for reading the first chapter! Please vote for this chapter, it'll really encourage me to continue this book. I'm really excited to continue this book, especially since there isn't a lot of Player x reader books that are completed. Stay peaceful y'all 🫶

-Pey❤️