My Rival, The AI

room hummed, a sound I knew too well,

ow bed, his breath a shallow rasp, mach

ago neighborhood, but Leo' s illness, rare an

nt, a price tag that mocked my parents'

am, it felt like a memory,

coding championship, was su

tanford, cash th

e, that recurring nig

to Ti

y twenty

ints better on efficiency, on innov

ty p

consistently, su

o make m

grow weaker, for hope to

, a cold, empty room whe

, a

snappe

the pre-dawn Chicago chill se

xt championshi

eja vu so strong it

happened ye

, fading, was too

sed, my ha

was remote, su

heck-in, her icon popped

s a diamond-s

e messag

ous. I'll only beat you by, say, twenty poin

od ran

xact

xact

e replaying, this was a scr

ended on me bre