Record #183

World 183

User: Marlene Maverine

1987

London, Great Britain

As the sun began to hide its rays and the streetlights switched on, only few people were walking along the main street. This was nothing short of a normal occurrence. 

What was unusual, however, was that from a seemingly abandoned building, two women walked out acting as if they owned that place. One of them had a cigarette between her fingers while the other clutched a large bag in her hand. 

As they strolled across the street, the woman who was smoking said, "Today was a good day. Robbing that old geezer off his money makes my vagina tingle, heh heh." 

The other woman bristled at the brusque way of speaking. She watched as she took another drag from the cigarette. 

"Avery," she asked hesitantly, "why did you not let me play there?"

Avery continued taking a drag and blew smoke from her mouth, but the sudden tension between her movements and shoulders was very noticeable. She was clearly rattled by the question but forced herself to calm down lest the other noticed. And she did. 

Turning to the other, she spoke softly, as if talking to a dim witted child, "Marls, you know that you are not yet ready to jump into those games. Some more experience is needed."

Marlene frowned at her words but did not retort. Her mind, on the other hand, cursed her treacherous friend. For two entire months she had been saying things like "you are not ready" and even more outrageous, "I will let you bet the next time, okay." Many next times came and went but she was still not allowed to have her share of fun. 

On the bright side, Avery would share the money that they received after every win, so that was good. However, it also made her feel as if she was leeching off the other woman and that feeling was nothing short of an insect's. 

As soon as they reached home, Avery opened the bag and pulled out all the money it contained. She began to count the money in bunches. 

"10,000 pounds!" She exclaimed. "We are rich, Marls. Who knew that geezer had so much money in him? And to think that he wanted more makes me wish to punch him."

Marlene was the one who had the great urge to deck that girl. That urge did not subside after her next sentence. 

"Bet you are happy you have such a great friend like me, huh."

Of course she was. Of course she was grateful to have a friend who would take all her spotlight every time she stepped into a room. Oh wait, the spotlight had never been on Marlene the first place. At the very least, not since she met Avery. 

Feeling rather dejected, she switched on the television and waited for the static to fade. Behind her, the sound of water splashing could be heard in the entire flat. Each droplet sound felt like a ring in her head, making her even more irritated at the obnoxious woman. 

By the time the television started up, Avery had already come out of the bathroom. 

Washing her hair with a slightly dirty towel, she asked, "Watchin' the telly? Is there even anything good in there?"

Marlene did not deign to answer. Frustrated, Avery said, her voice considerably raise, "What is it, Marls? Every time I try to converse you never answer. What is it that I am doing wrong?" 

The mentioned girl pointedly stared at the screen of the television. There was nothing of importance; just some old man yapping about his long journey to success, yet she stared at it as if the man were announcing the rebirth of Christ. 

Seeing how concentrated she was, Avery simply sighed and left the room. She always knew when she lost, be it in the casino or in the small apartment they shared. 

Marlene glanced at the clock. It was 21:30 exactly. Avery's designated bedtime. 

Bored out of her mind, she switched channels to BBC. Once again there was nothing of importance. She switched once more to the third channel out of the only four channels their telly broadcasted. This one was just a mere black screen. 

Nearly growling at her throat, she was about to switch the television off when the screen suddenly started projecting some holographic words. 

To the avid watcher of our channel,

We know that you have grievances. You try to pretend to be alright but deep inside you bear resentment. 

The words made Marlene shiver as they hit right at home. Shakily, she got up off the sofa and headed towards the television. 

Grasping the black frame of the telly with her hands, she yelled at the lighted screen, "Who is this? How do you know me?"

As if mocking her, the words continued. 

Your hatred is strong and it fills your entire being however resentment is nothing short of a sin. Despite knowing that, it takes years for it to pass and the more you sweep it under the rug, the more it will pile up until the dam will burst and every one of your deepest, darkest thoughts will be revealed. 

Was this how Avery felt every time she ignored her futile attempts in conversation? If so, then she could not help feel some pity for her.

No matter how much you try to hide it, your thoughts are slowly but surely being revealed right now. 

"Who are you? Why are you showing these to me? Surely there are other people out there who deserve these words more."

From the bedroom, Marlene heard the shuffling of the blanket. She shut up instantly. It would not do good for Avery to wake up and figure out what was going on, even though she was doing nothing illegal. She was just yelling at a screen.

But there is always a solution and it is no different for you..... after all the best way to solve a problem is to erase the problem altogether. 

Marlene paused at the non sequitur. For some reason it felt as if she had skipped a huge chunk of words. But how could that be possible if they were being projected one at a time?

Since the words were still there, she reread them carefully but it did not seem like she missed anything. Still the screen clearly said to "erase the problem altogether". Where did that come from so suddenly? 

She gently placed her hand on the gap between the words. To her surprise, her action caused more words to appear on that spot. 

We are feeling generous today. You now have the power to vanish (the one causing) your problems entirely. Only you will be able to remember them. Are you willing to take the risk?

......

Perhaps she had fallen asleep. Perhaps this was all just a weird dream. She did not know that her mind was that capable of coming up with such a detailed and interesting concept. 

Magical televisions promising a gruesome way out of a person's problems. She should quit the urge to gamble and just become an author right now for at least that would mean that she was putting in the work by herself instead of relying on others. 

Just the thought of that brought a sour taste to her mouth. Avery. It was all Avery's fault that she was in this position. She had done nothing relevant in her life and it was all because she had relied so much on the other girl. 

If only she had not met her four months ago. If only she had not agreed to that odd but enticing offer. If only she had just turned up her nose and walked away, her life would have had some sort of meaning then. 

The words on the screen were pounding in her head in repeated rhythms. Are you willing to take the risk? Are you willing to take the risk? Are you willing....

Later she would try to convince herself that impulse was a key characteristic of a good gambler. And she was, despite Avery's beliefs, a very good one despite practicing by mere observations. That was the only plausible explanation to why she pressed the left option in the screen. 

[Yes] [No]

Thank you for your decision. We will ensure that the wish comes true. Now go to bed and have a good night's sleep. Everything will be better tomorrow :)