King's Gambit

"Before we start, can you promise me something?" she asked, teeth chewing on her bottom lip. Dead skin already started to peel off.

"Depends on what you want me to promise."

"No mercy. No pity. Play seriously against me."

He gulped, silently scrutinizing her sorrowful expression. Under normal circumstances he wouldn't refuse to make a promise of this type. It would be a no-brainer to respect her wish in order to not strip her of her honor as an opponent.

Too bad their situation couldn't be considered normal in the slightest. As much as the professional chess player in him would like to agree with her demand, this was simply different.

"Please. I want it to be fair and square," she insisted after he didn't answer, almost begging him.

Ever since she was little, she knew how she could innervate his empathy by exploiting her puppy-eyed expression to get anything she wanted. Not only did it work on him, it had also worked on their parents when they were still alive.

He just silently nodded in defeat, "I'll give it my all."

In pursuit of one of the most aggressive techniques to start a game of chess – the King's Gambit - he took the white pawn and executed his opening move, placing the small figure on E4.

Just like he had expected, his sister replied with sending her pawn into a head-on battle with his own.

Black pawn. E 5.

Thanks to yearslong experience, he had the strategy engraved in his brain. Practice had made it easy to memorize and muscle memory executed his plan ultimately. Immediately, he shoved the pawn to its new destination.

Another white pawn. F4.

His sister's moves slowed down tremendously. Moments passed where she spent the time with burying her face in her hands. He observed how her tired eyes danced left and right across the board in between the gaps of her fingers, probably thinking of what would the next smart play. Waiting a bit before one's opponent made the next move was considered normal when playing chess, but she took a moment longer than usual. Despite having played against him a few times in the past, she was an amateur and it was painfully obvious.

"Do you need help with remembering the figures movements?" he asked carefully.

Embarrassed, she nodded.

"Pawns can attack diagonally if another figure is in front of it, right?" she whispered in shame, the question as audible as a breath.

Her struggle was real, which teased a slight awkward chuckle out of him. Voice soft and laced with affection, he confirmed, "Yes, go ahead."

Few moments passed, his eyes focused on the board in front of him, anticipating her next play.

"So this means I can ..." Hesitantly, she moved her piece across the board, the figure scraping slowly against the wood.

Another black pawn. F4.

His eyes widened. It had worked. She took the bait and copied his moves, which resulted in her capturing the decoy pawn he previously had placed on F4. Now he would -

A gurgling sound made him prick up his ears. Someone's stomach had growled and it for sure wasn't his, despite his hunger, which ate away at his ability to concentrate properly. He looked up to meet the gaze of his sister, face flushed red with embarrassment, mumbling a tiny "Sorry." In a swift motion, her hand slid to her stomach in an attempt to calm down the painful rumbles – to no avail.