The night had been arduous, plagued with crashes as Jimmy and I tried to fix them before the Executive Review the following day.

It was an exciting moment for me, as it was my first time leading a full game project—a Rogue-Lite RPG set in a universe I had crafted years ago. This was my golden opportunity to showcase something personal, something I wanted to do for years.

"It's almost stable now, no crashes so far," Jimmy uttered, exhaustion etched across his face as he held his head in his hands.

Yawning, he continued, "I hope this time it will succeed."

Glancing at my phone, the digits screamed 6:52 AM. The demo loomed at 10:30 AM, and by then, it better function flawlessly. The server needed propagation, the client required testing—it was a race against time.

As I watched the progress bar inch forward and logs populate the monitor, I opened my laptop to review my presentation. Jimmy rested his head on the desk, eyes shut.

"You should head home, my friend. I can handle it from here," I suggested to him.

Without moving, he replied, "All good, man. All good."

Refocusing on my computer screen, I marveled at my almost perfect presentation. "This is my chance," I murmured softly.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

About 30 minutes later, I finished polishing the presentation. It was perfect.

I turned to Jimmy, his head still cradled by his arm, gentle snores punctuating the silence. The monitor glowed with a comforting sea of green checkmarks.

"Jimmy!" I shouted. "I think it's up!"

He woke up abruptly, looking in disarray. His gaze shifted to the monitor, and he sprang to his feet.

"Alright, let's gooo! Everything's in order—no errors."

Then he turned to face me.

"Now we need to propagate the server and client and run some tests. It should be quick."

He yawned once more. Exhaustion was apparent in both of us. His stomach growled. I surveyed the room; we had subsisted on junk food and snacks throughout the night. It was far from healthy.

I tapped Jimmy on the shoulder and whispered into his ear, "What if I go and grab some coffee and real croissants?"

He turned toward me, eyes lighting up like a child on Christmas morning.

"Are you sure?" he asked, glancing at his watch. "Is the place open?"

"Francesco's is about to open—great coffee, fantastic bakery. Besides, we need to eat before the presentation," I replied.

Jimmy peered at the monitor.

"I can go. You take a nap while it propagates; you need your rest, you need to present the project to the Exec soon."

"Nah," I responded, "I'll nap later. You rest a bit, and I'll return with some goodies."

He nodded in agreement.

"Alright, can you drive?"

"I'm exhausted. I'll walk—it won't take long, and the fresh air will help," I pointed outside where the sun was rising.

"Cheese Danish," he said with a smile.

Returning his smile, I affirmed, "You got it."

As I left the building, Jimmy settled back at the desk.

As he resumed his position at the desk, I departed the building. Fatigue clung to my every step, yet a glimmer of triumph flickered within. The build succeeded.

Leaning against the elevator door, I closed my eyes, uttering words of self-encouragement.

"I've got this," I whispered to myself. "I'm gonna make this presentation awesome, I got this."