Back at Square One (BEN Drowned)

23

I took one more glance at the cartridge before shoving it disdainfully in my pocket. I could almost feel my heart cracking.

No. This is what I have to do.

Browsing all the possibilities in my brain and scanning the cafeteria, I searched for someone who could be interested in something like this.
Taking a shaky breath, I approached Meghan's table where she was sitting. Alone.

I did feel bad, coming to her with this. The horrible part was I knew she would accept my offer, strings attached or not. But I had to do it.

She looked at me quizzically through mouthfuls of cup noodle as I took a seat across from her.

"Avery? Wearing a hoodie, in spring?" was her first question. I nodded. "I just felt kind of cold today."

"Really? Cause you were always kind of the, 'is it hot in here, or just me?' kind of guy."

Damn right I was.

"Well, I think I learned to chill out—"

"Ha."

"—a bit over the last couple of months. I don't really have time to explain." Sighing to myself, I covertly pulled out the cartridge and placed it on the table, like some sort of contract.

"You like L.O.Z., right?"

Meghan slowly nodded, almost like she was doubting herself now.

"And horror?"

Narrowing her eyes, she wordlessly pulled up her backpack and pointed to a Last of Us pin on the front pocket.

"Boom."

"Great. Then you might get a kick out of this." I slid the cartridge to her side of the table, and she snatched it up to inspect the damage.

The moment she realized the label was missing, she raised an eyebrow and let out a small chuckle.

"This feels like a creepypasta."

Funny that you say that...

"Wait..." she examined the shape and size of the cartridge carefully, and her eyes widened.

"Okay. Is this a prank? Because I know we all used to be obsessed with this when we were kids, but—"

"I-it's not a joke! Just...I played it, and I couldn't sleep for days. I thought that you might like it. Trust me, people would kill to have this copy."

She didn't glance at me once, but instead narrowed her eyes at the game, like deciding whether to trust it or not. Technically, I wasn't lying. Ever since I'd tried "playing" it that first time months ago, I really hadn't been able to sleep soundly for a long time.

"...okay. Fine. I'll give it a go." She smirked at me after a moment, dropping the cartridge in her backpack. "But if something weird happens, and my computer starts acting up, that's on you."

I raised my eyebrows. "Meg, you're honestly so nice to everyone, I'm pretty sure 'he' wouldn't do anything to hurt you."

—

Not only did my pockets feel lighter, I felt my conscience clear after the exchange. Ben was in the hands of someone who could actually help him. He could just forget about me, and how much of an asshole I had been whether he realized it or not. I was really just kind of stalling on actually doing anything to help; Meghan would probably figure out a way to set him free in ten minutes.

He's not going to hurt her. It's fine.

As I opened the front door, I noticed that it felt quiet. Way too quiet. An eerie, something terrible just happened kind of quiet.