The Calculated Risk

Chapter 1 Part One

Go up to a stranger, say that you recognize them from your t****k or i********:, and take a selfie.

The night before Toya’s departure, Lacey threw herself into a frenzy creating the perfect bon voyage party for her. Her best friend deserved the most popular company in the school, the most coveted refreshments and entertainment.

Lacey knew with her overzealous stepmother and busy, unattached father, her house would be parental-free.

The backyard was a kaleidoscope of fairy lights and laughter. Lacey had transformed her patio into a summer wonderland. Streamers in every color of the rainbow crisscrossed overhead, and a playlist of their favorite songs pulsed through the speakers. Friends spilled out onto the lawn, clutching paper cups filled with lemonade.

Lacey, the effervescent hostess, flooded through the crowd, ensuring everyone had a full drink and a smile. Toya couldn't help but feel that her classmates were more impressed with Lacey’s ability to throw a party than her academic achievements.

It was here that Lacey convinced Blaine to make whispers of their silly game, a test trial to see how many people would actually invest interest in their idea.

Lacey greeted them, using a karaoke mic set. “Thanks for coming to my party. It means the world. Congrats to everyone on surviving the school year!” She smiled cheerfully, her almond eyes appearing to be further apart.

“WE LOVE YOU LACEY!!” a voice from the lawn called out. Lacey, bashful and charming as ever, smiled, “Aw! I love you guys too! Ya’ll are the best.” She addressed the crowd with a heart shape she manipulated with her hands.

“Let’s give it up for LaToya Castillo, who is going to New York to represent our school in a very prestigious summer STEM program!” Their closest friends, Mari, Blaine, and Sarah, clapped for Toya. The rest of her classmates that were spilled out on the lawn looked behind them then toward one another. Lacey cleared her throat, “She’s right over there people. This party is for her.” The students in the lawn looked at Toya then politely resounded in applause. Bashful, Toya thanked them.

“Think about it. This time next year, we will all be on different walks of life.” There was a sobering moment in the crowd, and everyone looked at one another. “BUT!” Lace cut through the sobering thought. “As of right now! We are manifesting a summer we will never forget!” Her classmates cheered again.

Mari, Lace’s most loyal supporter, spoke quietly, “Man, the crowd is like putty in Lacey’s hands.” “No.” Blaine chimed in with a husky tone, “YOU are like a putty in Lace’s hands.” She punched.

“Drink up! Stay safe this summer. Thanks for coming again!” Lacey stepped off the patio into the crowd. The four felt the picnic table buzz, and the Discord logo popped up. With one swipe, Toya’s pulse quickened. Sarah exclaimed, “Damn! Blaine, you work fast!” Notifications of students joining their Discord link were occurring by the minute.

Blaine: By now you all have received the “dares”/ risks Lacey and LaToya have given one another. If you join this link, you have VIP access to their summer game. okay voting is OPEN 👀Give points to the contender you think will have the most impact on their first challenge.

Ava: finallyyy. don’t be shy, people 😌

Jordan: what’s the max again?

Bot: 🤖 You have 20 Dare Points available today.

Jordan: /give @Lacey 20

Lena: nahhhh team, it’s Lace all the way

Lena: /give @Lacey 20

Mia:/give @Lacey 20

Sam: I’m going neutral just to cause chaos

Blaine, calculated, snatched Toya’s phone from her hands. She looked up, a glare carrying both impatience and letdown. She tried not to let it bother her. “You’ll be busy curing cancer, anyway.” Sarah touched her hand in pity and the gentle southern voice cut through the music. A roll to his eyes, Mari spoke “I can’t believe you agreed to this chaos. Lacey is going to be hard to beat.” Mari said. “Well,” Toya responded, refusing to feel defeated, “it’s a good thing I rarely lose.”

The next day, with an early morning breakfast celebration, LaToya’s parents sent her away with proud embraces and tender kisses.

Her stomach flipped with a mixture of dread and anticipation. The enormity of the situation crashed down on her—leaving home, navigating New York City, and facing the pressure of a prestigious program for elite minds.This summer program wasn’t like other summer programs. It was a pipeline, a pressure cooker to turn teens into professionals before they knew themselves.

Then there were her Discord notifications. Chat exchanges about Lacey dominating the competition swirled in her head. The lack of support bothered her.

She was the one going to New York City; she was the one on a real adventure, and soon enough all those people at the party would see that.

If she did risk number one first, everyone who put dare points on Lacey would regret it. The first dare, as she promised, was harmless. Anxiously she scanned the bustling airport crowd. Listeners donned headphones. Others focused on mobile devices. Nearby, friends shared chuckles while enjoying Starbucks.

Straight ahead in front of an airport trinket shop, she spotted a contendent. She had bright pink shades around a fashionable messy bun. Toya noticed her nails, or rather what appeared to be claws, typing away like tiny weapons. With 1K or more followers, she’d make an excellent influencer.

Bracing herself, grabbing her phone, she wandered over aimlessly. They were still in the shopping corridor, far from security, where noise swallowed everything. Gripping her cell phone for life, eyes gleaming with mischief, she bounced towards the girl, her phone held up as though a selfie stick. “QTwithabooty?” she shouted. A handle she had scrolled passed previously.

The young girl, with a bewildered expression, did not know what was about to hit her. " I recognize your face!" La’Toya lunged into her personal space. Before the poor girl could stammer a reply, she already shoved her face next to her, the phone flashing obnoxiously.

The resulting image, a chaotic blur of forced smiles and wide, panicked eyes that perfectly captured the sheer awkwardness of the encounter.

Toya’s heart was outside of her sternum when she put her phone down at her side, proceeding to book it. “Are you Delulu? Who ARE you?” Her voice was high pitched. Yes indeed, LaToya had become delusional. Snatching her cellphone, nails pinching Toya’s hand, she tapped the right-hand corner and deleted the evidence in a quick flash. “That is a disgusting selfie! Not only is it blurred, but you're not in portrait mode. The ambiance in the back is depressing. You have GOT to be an amateur at this.”

Reaching into her bag the overconfident girl pulled out the only contraption every influencer owned besides a working cell phone. A selfie stick with a ring light.

She shifted Toya to the right. “You want to grow your page using MY platform, get MY good side. First, being in front of a Starbucks is extremely relatable; everyone loves Starbucks. Plus, the hashtags are endless. Next, she tapped the ring light on. The light caused Toya’s eyes to melt. “Lighting is everything!!! Now head down, eyes inviting and ONLY smile IF you have good teeth.” Within seconds, the phone flashed, a head nod of approval and she returned Toya’s phone.

Clutching the phone unsure but only after glancing at the million-dollar shot that made her look like she knew someone with real influence, the influencer asked, “So what's your handle?” “My handle?” she uttered, thinking about the 500 followers she currently had.

She fakely grinned, pulling up her handle. The influencer fired a request. “Your page is private.” The influencer noticed. Accepting the request and tapping on the influencer’s platform she thought, what an airhead. But she was more popular than she assumed. Her existence revolved around t****k and trendy phrases, but she now held evidence to incite discussion in the group chat.

La’Toya 1, Lacey 0.

“Totally. Thanks. Yeah, I literally just got an i********: and my parents won’t allow me on t****k yet.” Toya overexplained. She had i********: for many years, she just couldn’t grow a following.. “That’s okay. Tag me!” Waving goodbye as though she was a dream she disappeared into the crowd.

One swift tap to the chat,

Latoya: Boarding my flight to NYC and just ran into greatness 😳✨ potential can be anywhere your feet land.

Discord fired off.

Ava: WAIT—who just posted this?? I know her👀

Lena: That’s Castillo fam?? That posture??

Chris: That’s what I’m saying. She doesn’t walk, she arrives.

Maya: Who IS that girl she’s standing next to? I think I follow her platform. She looks like she owns a company or something.

Ava: Or runs a whole city, She’s a successful content creator 😭.

Lena: She looks like she belongs in a magazine.

Jordan: I’m giving points for the association alone.

Jordan: /give @LaToya 25

Lena: Nah, I’m adding to that.

Lena: /give @LaToya 20

She didn’t wait for her points to increase, she simply posted the selfie with the same caption on her socials for her close friends to see. She didn’t bother tagging the influencer, that was a fun moment never to be shared again.

Blaine: Total Points. LaToya -125, Lacey -100

And just like that, Toya put her hat into the competition.