Stand by Me

Ten

"Is that a-"

"A microchip? Yes it is. And guess what the fun part is?"

"What?"

"The chip was not connected to the phone. It was camouflaged within the battery. And these chips are bought only if you wanna hide something"

"Let's see what's in it..."

Mark instantly uses a chip reader and connects it to his computer. I hope I don't see what I'm expecting.

"There are hell lot of files in this."

"What kind of files?"

"Audio, video, documents and stuff"

"Um..Hey, Mark. Would you mind if I watch these videos in private?"

He raises his left eyebrow skeptically, posing a question through his expression. But, he gives in gradually.

"Sure. Why not? But don't do anything to the computer. Okay?"

"You got it"

He drifts off outside, constantly tapping his fingers on his phone. I nervously scroll through the files, with a tinge of fear that lingers, if I'll come across the video.

There are a bazillion files here. I obviously don't have the time and patience to go through all of them. But this thought immediately shifts when my eyes lock with a folder named 'Summer Fest'. This is the most recently updated file. I swallow a gulp of agitation.

My thoughts turn out to be true when I double click the folder. It was there. The videos and pictures were right in front of me.

My self-respect was one click away. The very existence of these files left behind a mark depicting the act which I considered a hineous crime. It was the dark side that was still in my possession. But, I warned myself, not for long. This is not who I am. At least, who I proclaim to be I am. It all happened so fast. So soon, that I didn't even realize that it became a fatal game of addiction. This is something which I can never forgive myself for. This is also the sole reason why I'm facing all these unwanted consequences.

I shake my head slightly, dismissing the train of thoughts. I take the opportunity to delete the files. Although, Mark said that they were also copied to another computer.

Crap!!

I look at the time. There are only fifteen minutes left before the internet connectivity comes back. What do I do? There wasn't actually any perks of shutting the connection down.

Think Jay! Think! Think before your whole life is doomed. That's when it hit me. Tit for tat!

I am lacking behind time. I needed to quicken the searching process. Maybe there's something in here that I can use against him, since he was being so furtive about the whole situation. I scroll and scroll, until my attention catches by something appealing to a devil's eyes.

'Confidential' , the folder read.

That was all I needed. I find scanned pictures of documents. After taking a thorough glance, a malicious smile crept on my face.

The documents are an evident proof of illegal purchase of minerals. Or should I say smuggling? Boy, did somebody play along and fool the government, or what? This is perfect for him to keep his mouth sealed. His family would be living in the streets if this document got out. I grab my cellphone and hit call. It went straight to voicemail.

"Now, if you're going on a trip to smuggle some other time, don't forget to invite your friends! That's right! I know your secret. You post that video, I'm going to leak these documents. Truce." , I leave this message and within seconds, he returns the call.

Well, I just love to mess with people. So, I put him to voicemail. I click to hear out the message.

"Truce"

_________________________________________

Hey there! Did you enjoy the story? Don't forget to vote and share.
:)