Illusional

Truth Hurts

After examining everything, I've come to the conclusion that... this is all Bill's fault! He was the one who set up those cameras in the first place! I honestly would believe he would betray me, betray all of us, like this...

    It's 4 PM, we're still trapped, still out of electricity, and still at each other's throats. Bill shut the door to his room (and locked it) so I couldn't do anything about this whole situation at the moment. At least the cameras were working like they're supposed to, I guess...

    I plopped myself on the sofa, and silently cried to myself. I feel so betrayed that Bill would do this to us.

    Fortunately, the walkie talkie activated, and Jenny's voice came on. I was a little lightened up at this, because it's no picnic suffering in silence and isolation. While the conversation happened, John was passively listening.

    "Hello? Is anyone there?" Jenny called out.

    I grabbed the walkie talkie and quietly called back, "Hey, it's Mason."

    "Hey, Mason! How are things going at the cabin so far?"

    "Well, Bill just tried to kill me, literally."

    "Oh, I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

    My voice raised, "Not that bad?! I'm being serious! Bill just almost tried to choke me to death!"

    "Oh, no... are you okay?!"

    "No. I want to get out of here. I can't stand this place anymore..."

    "I'm so sorry to hear that..."

    "And there's more... someone in our cabin actually died."

    "What?!"

    "Yep... he was riddled with lasers..."

    "How d- how did lasers get in the cabin?! I don't remember installing them."

    "No... they were Bill's. He installed cameras around the cabin that started to shoot out lasers not too long ago."

    "Did he mean to hurt any of you?"

    "No, Stella told me it was just a couple of viruses or so, but even then, Bill was the only one that could even download the virus into his computer."

"Well, we're still doing everything we can to get y'all out of that cabin and back on the road. I don't want y'all to suffer any more than y'all have to..."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Anytime, kiddo. Say, where are the other kids? Are they with you?"

"No, they aren't. Only John is with me. The others are currently mourning about Phillip's death. I'm still shaken up about it. He was like a brother to me..."

"Aww... I'm so sorry..."

    "No, no... it's not your fault... it's Bill's fault."

    "Well, I have to go now, but please try to remain calm. Worry isn't good for you, especially in a time like this, where you're still trapped."

    "Okay, thank you."

    "Anytime, kiddo! Have a nice day!"

    I dropped the walkie talkie beside me in despair. I was super upset that this might be the first Christmas with a broken family.

    After a few minutes, Stella and Marleigh walked into the room, asking me if we all could talk.

    "Sure," I replied, "just make it as quick as possible; I prefer the silence right now."

They sat down on the sofa on both sides of me, Stella on the left, Marleigh on the right.

"Do you regret anything at all?" Marleigh tiredly asked me.

I thought for a moment. Marleigh was patient enough to wait for an answer. Eventually, I responded, "Not in the slightest."

"Well, what about Phillip's death? Or what about what you said to Mr. Yemmingham?" Stella asked.

    "I believe I did everything I could to make sure we were all safe. And I certainly don't regret anything I said to Bill. And until he somehow—-or, let's be honest, miraculously changes—I will mean every single word of what I said to him."

"Well, he's still a little broken up about it. I just asked him about it a minute ago." Marleigh said with a sympathetic voice.

"Oh, he is?" I asked. Marleigh nodded her head a bit, after which I blatantly blurted out, "Good." They both looked at me with disbelief on their face, but I was otherwise unaffected.

"Mason! He's really hurt."

"I'm sure he is..."

"I'm telling the truth, Mason."

"No, if that's what he said, I believe you. I just have a hard time believing that fact that he actually feels that way, and is simply putting on a pity show."

"Well, he did raise you for a long time." Stella butted in.

"Yes, and it was some kind of brutal..."

"Okay, Mason... do you actually hate Mr. Yemmingham?"

"Can you guys just stop asking me these kind of questions?"

"Just answer, please..."

"I don't hate him, per se... I just don't like how he raises me, and how he treats me compared to y'all, and he's always trying to ruin my life in one way or another..."

"So... you hate him?"

"Well, maybe just a little..."

"A little?"

"Okay, okay... but can y'all blame me? I mean, how would y'all feel if you had to suffer with him?"

"Honestly, I wouldn't like it..."

"Like?"

"I wouldn't stand it..." Silence arose about the cabin. "Hey! Why don't we talk to Mr. Yemmingham about this?"

"No... way..."

"Okay... if you wish..." Marleigh responded, not feeling much hope.

I must've not said a single word for hours after that. Before I knew it, it was already 9 PM, and I didn't find a good reason to stay awake any longer. I just went to bed, hoping this, too, will pass and I could just forget everything that happened today.

    But, of course, I kept in mind that anomalies occurred every time we sleep, so I had to keep watch throughout the night. I trusted that Marleigh would be better at staying awake than me, so I told her to keep the night watch for 1 hour, after which she would wake me up. She agreed to it, so I went to bed and waited for my shift.