The Test

I slumped down onto my chair. I stared into my computer screen which showed my sleep-deprived nineteen-year-old face in the reflection. I glanced at the clock, 3:51 am. Maybe one more game, I thought. I stared up at my roof. What has happened to me? I was thriving in school, straight A's pretty much. Now I've dropped out of school to do God knows what. My mother keeps scolding me, saying "Lucas, what are you doing with your life, you jobless swine". My answer is always the same; "something will come up". However, deep down we both know that that's not true. I rubbed my eyes. I guess I should go to bed. I was leaning down to shut down my computer when I heard a ding. I looked back up to see a notification on my sss app. Huh? Thats weird. No one ever emails me, especially at this time. I got back up onto my chair, clicking on my sss app. Then I see a message. It reads: Hello, this is a one time offer for a test to see what job you would be PERFECT for. Click this link below to begin the test! I chuckle. One time offer? Test to see what job I'm perfect for? This is a pretty low effort scam. I stare at the message for while until I click on it again. It's just a test, not like it's gonna take my credit card details. Even if it did, it wouldn't find much. Plus, if it turns out to be real, then I get a perfect job for me! What's the worst that could happen? I click onto the link and it brings me to a sketchy looking website. It has a black background with THE TEST written in bold red letters. I look closer, I'm confused. Usually these websites are riddled with ads and scam websites, but this one is minimalistic with a creepy screen. But what is really weird is the yes or no buttons, because there is no... no. It just says yes and yes. There's also no close browser "X". I take a deep breath. I swear to god if I have to restart my computer because its locked me into this stupid website, i'll kill myself. I lower my hand down and press the first yes button. It takes a few seconds to load into another screen. Its a question box with a 1-10 answer. I look up at the question and read it through. It reads, "On a scale of 1-10, how aware are you of the person standing behind you right now?" I shudder. What does that mean? I know that it's dumb, but I turn around to see if anyone was there. But, like I was expecting, there was nothing. I type in 1 because I know for a fact there is no one behind me. The test immediately takes me onto the next question which reads "How close is the nearest Police or/and Emergency Service? There are 3 answers this time - 20 minute walking distance, less than 20 minute walking distance or more than 20 minute walking distance. I began to breathe heavier. What the hell are these weird questions? Why on earth would they need to know that? I look at the time, 4:03 am. I shut down my computer and do a full restart, hoping that that creepy test would be gone when I wake up. I walk slowly to my bed and flop down, let's get some sleep. It's 6:44. I haven't slept a wink. That stupid test is still stuck in my head. I glanced over at my computer. I know that I shut it down, and that the test still shouldn't be there. However, something in the back of my head says it's still there, waiting for me to log back in. Arrgh, screw it. I throw off my cover and wobble over to my computer, sitting down sleepily on my chair. I started up my computer, hearing the slow start up sound. Then, it opens. However, I don't see the usual sign in screen. Instead, like I had prayed for it not to, a black screen with red writing was immediately opened. My heart skipped a beat. How did it bypass my password screen? Did I not restart my computer correctly? No, I remember the light flashing off. That means... It's survived my restart and has figuratively taken over my computer. I take a deep breath and look at the message on my screen. "Did you think a shutdown would get you out of this one Lucas? No, no it wouldn't. I expected you to run away from this like you run away from all of your problems. Now, finish the test and I will think about giving you your computer back :-)" I fell to the floor, gasping for air. How did it know my name? This isn't some sort of scam, this is malware that has done its research on me. I pushed myself back onto my chair. I have to finish this test. It seems that that's what it wants. Maybe then it will give my computer back and there won't be problems. If it doesn't, I can call the police and report them for stalking and blackmailing me. Yes, then they can track this person's IP and will be able to arrest them. I get up smiling. They really should of put more thought into this. Suddenly, the screen flicks to another page. "Why are you smiling, Lucas? Do you think you have outsmarted me? Do you think you have the power to stop me? No, you do not ... now then, press the enter key to continue with the test :-)". I scoff. Of course it's taken over my webcam. I reach into my drawer to grab a roll of duct tape to put over my camera when I stop. This malware could probably destroy my computer, or worse, track my home address. I think it's better to not do anything it might not like. I look down at my keyboard. I take one last deep breath and pushed in the enter key. thank you so much for reading to the end of my first story chapter ever! next chapter will be out ASAP goodbye! (^ o ^)/