M3RG3

Chapter 15

Friday

The alarm rang, the shrill scream cutting through my consciousness. Automatically my hands flew up to tenderly touch my probing jaw, instantly flinching at the probing pain. Gnawing on a sandwich while shoving on my sneakers, I balanced the Tabloid with my other hand as I rushed my way to Academic Studies.

"We'll be having a test today," Matthew announced, his lips stretching to a painful looking grin. "Your grades will be accounted for the final result before you become Merged, so take it seriously."

Nervous glances were exchanged between my classmates while some others smirked at the trembling bunch, feeling confident about their test.

"I'll be pairing you up in teams of two. You'll be entering a dangerous simulation world where you have to leave the simulation as soon as possible." He then opened his Tabloid and began scrolling through our name list.

"Lauren and Kyle." As Lauren smugly whispered something into Kyle's ear, the temptation to punch her in the face increased. She had to be whispering my humiliating downfall in her own dramatic twist towards Kyle.

"Elizabeth and Justin." I didn't know them well, but I knew that both of them were decent fighters and also highly competitive.

Matthew listed two more names before announcing mine. "Arista and Zachariah."

"Wait," Lauren interrupted loudly, her head cocking to the right innocently. "I think it's better if I swap with Arista."

My head snapped up in shock. She hated me. She despised me. Why would she request for a swap?

Matthew cocked his head curiously as Lauren continued her line of reasoning. "Arista's got a really nasty bruise, which I must apologize for. However, I know that Kyle is an excellent candidate to help Arista achieve her well-deserved score. Besides, it's not fair to put two of the top candidates in one team."

Lauren and nice didn't fit. There had to be a reason why she wanted us to swap.

"Very well," Matthew sighed and tapped a few buttons on his screen. "You will all be going through these tests simultaneously. Timing is pivotal. The faster you get out, the higher your score will be.

"So we'll only be accounted for timing," I confirmed slowly, the gears twisting and turning in my brain.

"Correct," Matthew nodded absentmindedly, clicking away on his Tabloid.

He first inserted the needle into Lauren and Zachariah first before moving on to the next. I was nervous about two things: One, the quiz. And two, Kyle.

"I'm sorry," Kyle mumbled just as Matthew reached for the syringe.

"I'm sorry too," I whispered back.

"Your turn, you ready?" Matthew inserted the needle into Kyle first before moving on to me.

The world spun and faded to black before revealing a thunderstorm, pouring rain, and a sinking ship.

"We have to get out!" Kyle was already drenched from head to toe as I choked on bubbles of laughter threatening to come out of my mouth. This hardly seemed like a test on our aim. Instead, it seemed more like a survival test.

Then, I couldn't help it. A bubble of laughter escaped, followed by a full blown giggle. My laughter was strangely harmonious to the thunderstorm, two melodies interweaving into one.

"It's not funny! We need to get out of here!" Kyle yelled, his voice desperate and overwhelmed. Perhaps this simulation wasn't mine to face.

It was his.