Dodge Mason // Mystery Boy

7

Fuck it!

—

*screeech* "May I have your attention!" We look over to see, and very much hear, Diggins yelling through a megaphone on a wooden platform over the edge of the lake.

"Welcome to Panic!" he yells again bringing a rise of cheers from the crowd. "My name is Diggins, and this summer, I will be your host with the most. This year, the winner of Panic is gonna take home the grand prize... of $50,000!" The crowd goes wild.

"Holy shit. That's the biggest pot ever," I whisper to Dodge. "Last year it was only 3o."

"You all know the rules. What happens at a challenge stays at a challenge. So I don't wanna see any posting, tweeting, or gramming about it. No exceptions. Anyone found in violation risks losing game privileges," he explains. "The first challenge... is the Jump," he says dramatically turning to face and gesture to the cliffs. "You wanna go out and down into the swimming hole. You miss it, and it's gonna be the rocks that break your fall. Take a jump from the Lookout and grab yourself 100 points. Let the games begin!" The crowd roars and Heather, Dodge, and I all look at each other.

We make our way over to the lineup on the cliffs and set off our flares.

"Contestant number one, announce yourself," Diggins calls out.

"You know my name, Diggins! Your mom screams it every night!" Ray Hall calls out getting a laugh from the crowd. "Okay, Ray Hall for the win!" he screams and takes the leap doing a flip on his way down. He hits the water and the crowd booms. We watch as the other contestants jump or reach the top and back out. Luckily we don't see anyone hit the rocks.

"Contestant number 9, state your name!" We see Natalie standing there just looking down nervously. I take a deep breathe and keep my eyes on her too scared to look away. "Look, you're gonna have to jump or get down because we got people who've got to get up there—"

"For fucks sake Diggins just give me a minute, okay?!" she yells back angrily.

"That's Natalie Williams, ray of sunshine," he says sarcastically to the crowd. They begin to cheer for her telling her to just go for it. I'm too nervous to even speak. Come on, Nat. You got this.

She takes a few steps back, pauses, and then runs and takes the leap hitting the water. When it gets to me I walk higher up going past the lookout to the High Point.

"Looks like we got a player trying for the High Point," Diggins calls out. "For all you virgins out there, a quick reminder: a jump from the high point will get you a 25-point bonus."

"How about a jump from Devil's Drop?" Summer asks to give the crowd an answer.

"And for anyone, uh, dumb or drunk enough for some questionable life choices, there's always Devil's Drop. A jump from there will get you an extra 50 points and immunity in a challenge of your choice."

I look out from High Point and then hear Diggins again.

"Contestant number 10, state your name!" A few seconds go by and Diggins gets no reply. "State your na—"

"Dodge Mason!" he calls out sternly. He throws his flare and takes the jump from the edge. I hold my breath and watch him hit the water away from the rocks. I let out my breath when I see him come back up. He swims over to me and stands to watch me and Heather. I make my way to the High Point.

"Contestant number 11, state your name!"

"Delilah Knightly," I call back. The crowd is absolutely silent. I look over at Heather and Dodge, below, and nod as they smile at me giving me a thumbs up. I let a small smile escape the side of my lip and back up a few steps. Fuck it! I run and take the jump. As I'm falling, it feels like I'm moving in slow motion and I can't hear a thing. I hold my breathe to prepare for the landing and I hit the water. I swim to the surface in relief that all I hit was water. When I resurface the crowd screams. I swim to the platform to meet Dodge. He hands me a towel as we wait for Heather's turn.

"Thanks," I give a small smile. "Were you scared?" I ask.

"To jump? no," he replies pretty quickly. "It's the landing that gets you in trouble." A beat passes as we look at each other. "You scared of losing me already, Doll?," he teases.

I roll my eyes, "Maybe," I smirk. He goes to say something but gets cut off by Diggins.

"Contestant 13, state your name," After a few seconds he gets no reply.

"Heather come down!" Natalie yells.

"Heather," Bishop calls out nervously.

I look over to see them standing together and then I look back at Heather. "You can do this!" I yell out.

"Come on, Heather," Diggins says impatiently.

She's standing up there and I just wish I could know what's going on in her head. She drops her flare and the crowd starts getting impatient. A few seconds pass and she picks up another flare and sets it off. She sets off past the High Point and begins walking to Devil's Drop. The crowd murmurs and Dodge and I look at each other.

"Are you sure you wanna do this Heather? No harm in turning back," Diggins tries to reassure. "Uh, ya know you've already made a real statement."

She stand there and we all watch in awe. The crowd begins to try to get her to come down. I tense up and feel an arm around me. I look at Dodge and he gives me a reassuring nod.

"Contestant 13, s-state your name,"

"Heather... Nill... Heather Nill."

She took a few steps back and ran out taking the leap.