The Other World

Whisper - Part 4

"That was a little too much." Sara pushed the VR headset out from in front of her face and sat herself upright in the chair. I need to ask Jace if mom knows about this game. I doubt she'd be okay with him playing something like that. I know I'm not.

Sara stood up and walked out of the VR room, down the hall, and past the front door. Around the corner was a small sitting area with a television and a couch. A window with the curtains drawn let in just enough of the last rays of the setting sun to light the room.

I'm surprised Jace isn't here waiting for me to be finished with VR.

Sara turned another corner and arrived in the kitchen. Still no sign of Jace. Well, while I'm already here. She opened the pantry and stared into the full shelves for something to snack on. Several moments passed.

"Jace!" she yelled. "Did you eat all of the..."

"Sara!" her mom yelled from the living room. "Come here."

Sara slouched. What did I do now.

Sara shut the pantry door and walked over into the next room. Sara's mother, along with Jace, were standing in the center of their living room. Both of them wearing augmented reality glasses.

"Look at the news. It's happening here in town." Sara's mom pointed to a stand holding several pairs of AR goggles in the corner.

Sara grabbed a pair and walked over to the center of the room next to Jace. She reached up and pulled one of the earbuds out of his ear.

"We need to talk," Sara whispered.

"Jeeze, Sara," Jace jumped. He lifted one of the lenses and glared with one eye from underneath. His harsh expression was softened as he noticed the seriousness in Sara's eyes. "Ok, but look at this first. It's happening now, like, not far from here."

Sara nodded and placed glasses over her head. The familiar faces of the local news anchors appeared in front of her. With the goggles on, it was as if Sara was standing in the studio in front of the news hosts. Annie grabbed one of the earpieces dangling from the side of the glasses and set it inside of her ear.

"... who is on the scene right now, as I understand," said Emma Aaron, one of channel thirteen's more popular anchors. The goggles went dark for a moment and the traveling icon — a spinning set of footprints letting the viewer know the scenery or location was about to change — appeared in the bottom of Sara's vi͏sion.

"That's right, Emma," said a male reporter as the location Sara was standing changed. A short man wearing a bright blue jacket with a large "13" emblazoned on the right side of his chest was holding a microphone. Sara recognized the familiar area of her hometown where he was standing. "We're here in downtown Easton at the corner of Cinnamon and Third street where, just over there, in the Morrigan Bank..." the reporter stopped and placed a finger over his left ear. "Hold on... I'm... we're just now receiving information that the hostage situation inside over."

A chill ran down Sara's spine that sent goosebumps running down her arm.

Sara's heart skipped a beat. That's not... there's no way that...

"We are getting reports that the individual that was allegedly holding around ten people hostage inside the lobby of the bank, has turned his gun on himself and ended his own life."

Sara's insides began to knot like a twisted rubber band.

"It does appear that, miraculously, no one was injured in the encounter," the reporter continued.

"That's not right. It's not possible," she said aloud unknowingly.

"What?" Said Jace, making Sara nearly jump out of her skin. "Isn't it a good thing that only the bad guy died?"

Sara tore the goggles off of her face. "Jace, what type of game did you buy."

Jace took off his goggles to see an almost frightened Sara standing in front of him. Her eyes were pleading for him to say something, but he had no idea of what it could be.

"Sara, are you ok?"

"What. Type. Of. Game."

"It was the new DG racing game," he replied. "Why?"

Their mom removed her goggles. "What's the world coming to," her blonde, curly hair bounced as she shook her round face. "At least no one was hurt. I guess I'll get started on dinner. What do you guys want tonight: chicken alfredo or chicken fried rice?"

"Chicken alfredo!" exclaimed Jace.

Sara's stomach lurched. "I..." her heart was nearly bursting out of her ribcage. "I need to finish my homework." Sara flung the goggles onto a couch against the wall and sprinted back to the VR room.

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Part one done! Hope it's been entertaining so far. If you made it this far, let me know what you think. Please? :P