The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)

A Text-Based Game

Previously: "Gossip Girls and Jumpy Jacks" 

"There something you want to talk about?" Patterson asks after he's caught you studying him speculatively.

"No," you reply after a fractional hesitation. "Only— Does Patterson know about Brendan Tummler?"

His gaze freezes and sharpens. "What about Tummler?"

"Does Patterson know he's— Thinks he's— Gay?"

"No." All the muscles in his face tighten. "Why?"

"Just curious."

"Do you think I—?"

"No."

"How do you know what I was going to say?"

You shrug. "Just a hunch. But what were you going to say?"

He glowers at you, then says, "Never mind. Patterson doesn't pay much attention to the squad except when they're on the court. He—" A light shudder ripples through him, and he relaxes a little. "He just doesn't care."

"Huh. Okay, I'm sorry, I guess I'm just being nosy." You eyeball him. "What's it like for you, man? Being there?"

He shivers again, harder. "Like having spiders crawling all over me."

* * * * *

You didn't tell Jack about your talk with Brianna because you didn't think it would do any good, and it would just give him something else to worry about. But you get to talk about it with someone else. Laura MacGregor texts you just before supper, saying that she heard about your talk with Brianna. You would just ignore her except that she closes her text with a frantic Don't do it! So after supper you text her back to ask what she meant.

She replies by calling you direct. "They're trying to set you up with Brendan!" she breathlessly informs you. "Brianna and Leah and them!"

"Really."

Something in you tone must have rung funny, because she seems to catch herself. "Are you interested?"

"I haven't thought about it."

"Pfah! That just means you're not ready to tell anyone that you— I don't think you should." There's a squirm in her voice.

"You don't think I should ask Brendan out?"

"Look, it's your business, Jack. Maybe I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, go ahead. I wanna know what you think."

"Well, as long as you don't listen to me." She hesitates. "I just don't want you to jump into anything. You're too careful for that."

"If I'm so careful, why are you worried?"

"I'm worried you won't be careful."

"What is there to be careful about?"

Her reply is interrupted by a chime from your phone—an incoming text—and all you can make out is "—don't know Brendan, do you?"

"Uh, not really." You drop the phone from your ear long enough to squint at the text, and jump a little to see it's from Clover Mystery.

"Well, I'm just thinking," Laura says, "that if you tried talking to him to get to know him, it would look— Oh, God, never mind! Suddenly I sound weird and crazy!"

"What? I don't even know what you're trying to say, Laura."

"That's what I mean. Look, just forget I said anything! I just think— Oh, I'm just being selfish!"

"What?"

"Never mind. Now I'm all embarrassed and I'm hanging up now!" The line goes dead.

You drop the phone to stare at the screen. Laura has always been a little flighty, but that aborted talk is some kind of new record for her. You start to send Brianna a text asking if she's talked to Laura about Brendan, then erase it when you realize you're just procrastinating from dealing with Clover Mystery, but then retype it and send it anyway. Whatever is eating at Laura, she was probably more direct and open with Brianna and the other girls.

Then, with sinking dread, you turn to the Mystery text.

* * * * *

So u think abt my question? Clover Mystery wants to know. What question? you reply.

Lol who u want be not urself.

I want to be myself. I want all of us back to normal.

Lol ur no fun. You're typing in a tart reply when the followup comes: If I put Jack and Steve back will u be someone else?

You chew on the question, but it confuses you. If you put them back I have to be myself.

Pls play. Roleplay lol.

You groan. Ok, I be u.

Lol no.

I want to be me.

No. But I make Jack be Jack and Steve be Steve. U have to be someone else tho.

That's still bewildering, but also frightening somehow. Who be me?

Whoever u be. I make u them and them u.

A jolt runs through you, and it's not only because your phone has chimed again with an incoming text. I don't want that. As you wait for the reply, you check the incoming text, and see it's a wall of words from Laura, which you push aside to return to Clover Mystery.

Lol fine then I leave you all like this.

Stop hurting people.

Not hurting people. Don't u like being Jack?

There's no good answer to that question, so you deflect it. I don't like being someone else. Jack hates being Steve and Steve hates being me.

Lol Steve deserves it why I did it.

Do Jack and me deserve it?

No just having fun. I fix Jack but not Steve. U want be Steve?

You stare in horror at the screen, but Clover keeps texting: Or u be Steve Jack be u n Steve be Jack. Or Jack be Jack n u be Steve n Steve be u. Or Jack be Jack n u be someone new and they be Steve and u be new guy. What u think?

You're crazy. You could've added "And evil," but you don't want to risk pissing off this psychopath.

If u want fix Jack u have play. Pick new u. Steve stays u new guy is Steve.

You want to vomit, but you put Clover off with a tepid, I'll think abt it. Then you follow with, U still want help with that dirt thing? Not because you want to help, but just to keep the line open a little longer.

Lol no got someone else help.

Who? you ask without hope.

Lol no cheating.

You've no answer to that, and Clover sends no follow up, so after a hateful minute you switch to glance over Laura's text. Your eye takes it in, but you're hardly interested in it, and dismiss it with a grunt:

I have this nightmare where u try with brendan n its a disaster because he freaks out. That not fair I shouldn't say that u probably have same nightmare and I make it worse. That why I not want talk but I want u know I worry for you probly someone should talk to brendan first about u don't u think?

But while you're reading it you get a reply from Brianna: Why u want know abt Laura? You reply with a curt Never mind, which provokes a string of question marks from Brianna, but that's all.

* * * * *

You toss and turn for an hour after going to bed. Clover refuses to change Steve Patterson back into himself (and part of you ambivalently sympathizes with Clover's desire to hurt him) but they at least sound willing to change Jack back into himself. But they also refuse to let you change back to yourself.

Does Clover hate you, like they seem to have Steve? It doesn't sound like they do. All they do is keep prattling on about "playing" and "having fun." But it's sadistic fun, so maybe they do hate you. But who? And why? You can't remember ever having hurt anyone.

But eventually, before you fall asleep, you are forced to come to grips with the choice that Clover seems to have forced on you: Are you willing to make a deal with Clover to return Jack Li to his old self, even at the cost of continuing yourself in a different identity?

It seems like a question that you should put to Jack. Or maybe not. You have the sinking feeling that Jack would nobly renounce the chance to return to his old life if neither you nor Steve got to return to yours. If you were to make a deal with Clover, Jack would have to know nothing about it.

And, of course, neither would Steve.

You pass the night in an exhausting sleep full of strangling nightmares that you mercifully don't remember when you wake.

* * * * *

It's with a heavy sense of dread that you drag yourself to school the next morning. There are so many things to think about, and you don't want to think about any of them. Your mood isn't improved when you get a text from Brianna: What u say to Larua? she wants to know. She's skipping today too embarrassed to see u. Kristina notices your air of preoccupation, and asks you if anything's wrong, but you shrug her off. To Brianna you text, Just stupid thing between her and me.

But Brianna won't leave it alone. During fourth, when you and Parker and the girls are in the library, she comes in to ask about you and Laura again.

"It's nothing," you sigh.

"It's not nothing. She says she'll probably never be able to look you in the face again."

"Drama people," you mutter under your breath.

"What?"

"We were texting last night about—" You dart a quick, sidelong glance at Parker and the girls. "That thing we've been talking about. And she got embarrassed."

Brianna's eyes narrow. "How?"

"Because she was giving me advice about something that isn't her business."

Brianna's eyes narrow even more. "Did you yell at her?"

"No!"

"Well," says Brianna, "she says she's never coming to school again." You roll your eyes. "Talk to her, Jack!"

"How? You say she doesn't even want to look at me."

Before she can retort, Melanie Saxon comes sliding in. "Oh my God," she giggles. "Did you hear about Rebecca and Chelsea Cooper?"

"No, what?" Brianna asks, though she continues to glare sharply at you.

"Well, it just happened, so—" Melanie giggles again. "But I saw it. Rebecca just went up to Chelsea at her locker and started whanging at her with a hairbrush!"

Next: "Suspicious Sightings" 

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"Table of Contents (Vol. 2)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)"