the truth(15)
(The cafeteria is alive with the usual noise—students chatting, laughter echoing, and the clatter of trays and utensils. The scent of hot food fills the air. At one table, a group of friends sits together, reminiscing and joking, enjoying a rare moment of peace.)
(Michael leans back in his chair, arms crossed, while Ethan, Emily, Alex, and Marie exchange stories.)
Ethan:
"Man, it's crazy how fast this year is flying by. Feels like just yesterday we were stressing about finals."
Alex:
"Yeah, and now we're just coasting. Best part of the year, honestly."
Marie (grinning):
"Except for Michael. He always coasts. He barely even studies."
(Michael smirks, shrugging casually.)
Michael:
"Hey, what can I say? When you're a genius, studying becomes optional."
(Alex rolls his eyes, unimpressed.)
Alex:
"Yeah, yeah. We get it. You're 'Michael the Genius.' But honestly, even you have competition now. Lisa almost beat you on that last test."
(The mention of Lisa shifts the mood slightly. The group nods, smiling fondly.)
Emily:
"Lisa's honestly amazing. She's so kind, so hardworking. And she never brags about anything. Total opposite of someone I know."
(She throws a playful look at Michael, who scoffs, pretending to be offended.)
Ethan:
"Seriously, though. Lisa's just… I don't know, she's just a really good person, you know? Super sweet, never causes trouble. I don't think she even has a single enemy in this school."
Marie:
"Yeah, I wish more people were like her. She's just… pure, you know? Innocent. Unlike you, Michael."
(The table erupts into laughter, but Michael remains quiet, his smirk fading as a thought lingers in his mind. His fingers tap against the table, and his brows furrow slightly.)
Michael:
"I mean… yeah, she's a good person and all, but… for some reason, I feel like there's something off about her."
(Silence. The mood shifts instantly. The laughter dies down, replaced by confusion and slight tension. Ethan looks at Michael like he just said something insane.)
Ethan:
"What?"
(Michael hesitates but presses on, his voice quieter now, as if he's unsure himself.)
Michael:
"I don't know. It's just… I get this weird feeling whenever I'm around her. Like my instincts are telling me something isn't right."
(Ethan's face hardens, his easygoing nature fading for the first time in a while.)
Ethan:
"Michael, how dare you say that?!"
(Michael blinks, caught off guard by the sudden intensity in Ethan's voice.)
Michael:
"Whoa, whoa. Calm down, okay? I'm not saying she's evil or something. It's just a gut feeling. Maybe I'm just being paranoid."
(Emily sighs, rubbing her temples as if she's tired of this conversation already.)
Emily:
"Yeah, Michael, that's exactly what it is. You're being paranoid. Lisa is one of the nicest people here. She's not strange, she's not bad. You're just overthinking things."
(Michael looks around, seeing the disbelief on their faces. They didn't just disagree with him—they trusted Lisa completely. And for some reason, that only made the uneasy feeling in his gut stronger.)
(He exhales, forcing a small nod.)
Michael:
"Yeah… that must be it."
(But even as he says it, he doesn't believe it. He leans back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling, but his mind is elsewhere. Something about Lisa… it didn't add up. It wasn't logical, but it was real. His instincts weren't just paranoia.)
(His thoughts echo like a whisper in the back of his mind.)
Michael (thinking):
"No. No way. It's not just me being paranoid. Lisa… she's not what she seems. I need to find out the truth."
(The memory fades, dissolving into the cold reality of the dungeon. The fire flickers in the shelter, casting long shadows on the rocky walls. The group sits in silence, processing what they just witnessed. The weight of it lingers in the air like an unspoken question.)
(Liam breaks the silence first, his voice hesitant.)
Liam:
"So, Dakota… did you ever find out anything about this? About Lisa?"
(Dakota leans against a tree, arms crossed. His expression is unreadable, the flickering firelight making it even harder to tell what he's thinking.)
Dakota:
"Well… I mean, just keep watching the memories, and you'll find out."
(Mia leans forward slightly, her eyes sharp.)
Mia:
"But at that time, did you know anything? Or were you just suspicious?"
(Dakota pauses. The group watches him closely. Even Ava and Lucas, who had remained quiet, seem more alert now.)
(Finally, Dakota exhales, his voice low and measured.)
Dakota:
"I didn't know anything for certain back then. But… I did find out something."
(*The air grows heavier. They all knew that whatever Dakota had learned, it wasn't something small. It was something *big.**)
(The group leans in slightly, anticipation building.)
Ava:
"What was it?"
(Dakota's lips curl into the faintest smirk, but his eyes remain cold, distant.)
Dakota:
"Well… I'll show you in the next memory. So watch carefully."
(The world around them begins to shift again. The dungeon walls blur, fading into darkness, as the next memory prepares to unfold. The tension thickens. Whatever comes next… will change everything.)
Dakota thinking: ...the next memory will be shocking, I mean even I was extremely shocked when I found out. But it wasn't about her, no It was about her father and mother. When I found that out, I thought her parents were the evil one and Lisa was unaware that her parents did that... But I was wrong, she knew that her parents did that terrible thing, and she supported it. I thought because Lisa was unaware that her parents did that she is really just an innocent girl with evil parents... But man was I wrong, terribly wrong. That manipulative bitch, I will never forget the things she did in high school, never.
Dakota then sigh's and sites down in the void, watching Michael getting ready to investigate.
Dakota: "I look really funny don't I."
Henry: "oh yes you do, you getting ready to investigate like a detective is pretty funny."
The whole group just laughs.
Dakota thinking: I have a feeling this will be the last laugh we have... In a while.