19 7.3: Seven Deadly Riddles- Part One (1/2)
`Stop ignoring what your soul is telling you to do`
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”Okay, hold on-” Tobias says, breaking my train of panicking thoughts that are mercilessly bombarding with every empty corner of my mind. ”So this is an app that pays people money for ruining other peoples' lives?”
I'm in so much shock, I can't even speak.
”And like Sierra is Tina Thompson?” Tobias continues with his chain of unanswered questions. ”Is it like a fake name? Or is it Tina's phone and not Sierra's? Because, you know, it's weird to have two phones-”
But all I'm doing is staring at the screen. Staring at the words and trying to understand how could any human being agree to do this.
”It's Sierra's-” I rasp faintly. ”She has all our pictures.”
Tobias doesn't say anything for a while and all I can hear, meanwhile, is the teachers' nonsensational bickerings.
”Select it-” Tobias requests. ”Let's see if it's what we're all thinking about-”
I select 'Ruin one of your closest people in seven, progressively worse steps worth $500 more than the previous step each', and a white screen with seven numbered sections appears in front of us. I randomly select the first section, mentally preparing myself for the worst. The white screen turns black again and slowly words appear one by one forming a whole sentence in red.
1. Self-confidence is all one needs until someone finds the fear he feeds- $500
I look, puzzled at what the sentence means and how it relates to me until I scroll down and find my answer in green. 'Six uploaded media files', it says. I immediately select it and clench my shaky hand into a strong fist as six pictures load. There are pictures of very familiar pink sticky notes with vulgar language scribbled on it, and I instantly remember them.
I remember starting my school day with them, and I think that this is how it all started. I didn't just wake up one day and decide to kill myself. It was a long series of painful events that started by insults decorating my locker, insults in different handwritings from 'supposedly' different people about how I should keep a mirror in my bag to constantly 'remember who I am and my place'.
Back then I didn't understand why would anyone tell me this when I was being very nice to everyone. Back then, life was nice to me. My parents weren't getting divorced, Joshua was always there for me, and I lived like I owned the whole world. I lived afraid of death.
”So those are-?” Tobias trails off, and I snap my head back to him and Benji who's looking at teachers over Tobias' shoulder.
I blink at him and feel myself deflate at what this means. At how Sierra truly and so heartlessly betrayed me and willingly took my hand to my grave in seven steps.
”She left them in my locker-” I say quietly, so quietly, scared that maybe if I'm too loud it would become too real. I look down and exhale shallowly. ”I just- I-” I shake my head and hold his soft, hazel eyes. ”You know, she'd search with me for evidence. Question people with me as if she was innocent-” I pause and feel a sting behind my eyeballs. ”As if she actually cared about me-” I say heavily and Tobias' eyes seem to only get softer.
”Maybe she didn't hate you, Rosey-” Tobias suggests gently. ”Maybe she just loved money more-”
And it hurts to know that, you know- is what I want to tell him as I look into his eyes, questioning my existence. It hurts to know that the person you see as worthy of your life values money more than your well-being. It hurts to know that she could stand seeing me bothered, distracted, sad even and not stop causing further damage.
Instead, I just speechlessly look down at the phone's screen on which a tear fell and continue scrolling through the pictures until I find the one with me standing next to the locker with a furious face expression, with the same pink sticky note in my hand and with Sierra on my right.
And I wonder, who was taking the picture. I shut my eyes, feeling too weak to accept such a great revelation, such immense pain. At the very bottom, I can see that there are 753 comments from different players, I suppose, who must be condoning her actions and encouraging her to ruin me.
I select the return button at the end of the page in disgust and thoughtlessly select the second section on the white screen which is supposedly worse than the first section. The screen turns black and the words dance in red around the screen before organizing themselves into another sentence. Another sub-challenge about how to make Roseline hate her life more and more.
2- Roses are red, violets are blue, but unlike every time, everyone should see the colour through- $1000
”Alright I love riddles and all, but those sound quite malevolent-” Tobias remarks from behind me and I turn to him, lost in thought. ”And that's a lot of money for a teenager-” He continues. ”What would Sierra need that money for? I mean, besides buying two phones?”
”Do you think this app knew me?” I ask him. ”I mean, do you think those challenges were specially designed to fuck me up?”
Tobias gulps, tilts his head, doesn't really look at me and then sighs. ”I think not, Roseline-” He looks up at me and I falteringly lift a brow. ”I think she knew exactly your weaknesses and she played on them-”
I subtly shake my head, vigorously and mirthlessly, searching my mind for any reason to deny what he's saying. But truly, there's no way an app can know about any random person, can know about me and my insecurities.