Crowd: A Dystopian Social Network Thriller (Final Draft)

HE returns

The next day, Rain penned a voice report. She admitted her mistakes, incorporated the advice from her partner Sasha and analyzed her conversation with Graham.

Sasha remained right.

The guy tricked her like a joker. Pretended to be clueless. Acted like a victim whom the algorithm had punished unfairly.

She needed to separate the emotions from the facts and focus on the case as objectively as possible.

Graham's reactions looked studied and too calculated for someone suffering from an emotional collapse. In retrospect, Graham's act looked like a role from a soap opera.

Damn.

During the break, Rain wrote a text message to Quinn whom she hadn't seen since the graduation. Maybe a little visit with her best friend would up the mood. It would allow her to cool her brain cells which had taken a beating today.

Ten minutes later, Quinn accepted her invitation and picked a bar.

Rain eyed the terminal and wondered if she was allowed to go. Sasha sat on the other side, gazing at his terminal like an author lost in the last act of his manuscript.

"You can go," he said matter-of-factly.

"Are you sure?"

"It's four past five. You did your report and the community event."

Rain nodded, grabbed her thin jacket and headed for the door.

"Think about the Graham case," Sasha said from his desk.

"Couldn't think of anything else."

"Good."

The second Rain left the office, Sasha too, stepped out and hurried toward the section chief's office. Was he going to tell her how much Rain had screwed up today? The chief probably already knew.

Outside the building, Rain summoned a civilian fleet car to meet up with Quinn. He had suggested the Commoner, a cafe which wasn't affiliated with Crowd. An odd choice, since it meant neither Rain nor Quinn would be able to get discounts.

Despite the tough working day, she looked forward meeting her college friend again. Quinn had sounded gloomy over the comm call, and Rain feared her best friend would drown in self-defeating thoughts that would lead to worse. As a newly-appointed special advisor, it was her duty not only to safeguard Crowd but to also help her loved ones.

Rain walked around the boardwalk and found Quinn inside the cafe, near the corner, tilting his head like a puppet with a broken neck.

"Quinn."

Rain opened her palms and raised her chest to show she accepted a hug, but Quinn settled for a slight bow instead and kept an arm-length in distance. He eyed her from ponytail to boot.

"No uniform?"

"Not required. We're advisors."

Quinn's face stayed stern. He sacked down opposite at the round-shaped table and swiped the digital menu. "I had enough time to memorize the menu four times in a row."

Rain cringed. She checked her interface for the current time and realized she had arrived only four and a half few minutes late.

Still, late was late.

"I'm sorry."

Quinn nodded but focused his eyes on the menu in her AR vision. When the waiter came, Quinn ordered a small soy decaf with slumped shoulders and the expression of someone who had overslept a century. The small soy decaf was the cheapest item on the menu.

"I can put it on my tap," Rain said.

"This cafe has no deals with Crowd."

"Then I pay the full price."

"It's okay."

"Whatever works best for you," Rain said as she observed her best friend's emotionless face.

What had happened to Quinn, the flaming rose from the college? Extinguished over the past week.

Flattened like a pancake with zero fat.

Rain dreaded the question, but she sizzled with curiosity. "How's your new position?"

Quinn looked up and squeezed out a smile. "Grrrreat. I'm meeting dozens of lovely people, spend ninety-nine percent of my time indoors, squeezed in-between mazes of office walls."

"I'm sorry."

"You keep saying that."

It sounded like a standard response, but Rain meant it. Quinn must have realized that too because he disarmed his voice and put down his cup. "It isn't your fault. It's just, you know me. I want to take the skies."

So much, his nickname used to be Quinn Skywalker, inspired by an ancient movie series that Rain used to watch many years ago. It hurt to see Quinn down like that. But his life wasn't melted into metal. The Crowd algorithm allowed for changes. Rain refused to give up hope on her best friend.

"If you excel at your position and rank higher, maybe you can demand a repositioning?"

"Yeah, maybe I get to be the General Secretary."

"I'm just trying to help."

Quinn kissed his cup and snaked his fingers around the grip. He threw empty glares at his surrounding maybe daydreaming of a better life.

Or at least a simpler one.

"It's just...maybe it was all a mistake."