First Game Cleared

[You have chosen - Grab The Wire]

...Oh god. Is this really the right decision? What if everyone else let go? Then... then he's going to die.

[Jacob grimaced as he pulled himself back up into his seat. His mind was frazzled by all the electricity. It hurt him badly, and he really didn't want to continue any longer. In fact, right when he got up in his seat, he lost all motivation.]

Wait, what? H-Hold on, you can't give up just yet!

Jacob: ...Oh, really?

U-Um, well I guess I can't stop you but... y-you can't give up right here man!"

[At first, Jacob felt urgent. An urge that told him that he needed to get up and hold onto the wire once more. However, he couldn't help but think about how unfair it was. He was the only one continuing to persist, while everyone else was beginning to let go. At this point, he wouldn't doubt that he would be the only one that held onto the wire and ended up dying for it. He looked at the wire in front of him with uncaring eyes.]

Jacob: ...At least two people need to hold onto the wire to stop everyone from dying.

E-Er, yeah.

[The corner of his lip turned up as he muttered to himself]

Jacob: But... do I really want all these other people to survive?

W-What the heck? When did you become so cruel? Did something happen to you?

...Well, I guess now that I think about it, yes that electrical shock probably jumbled a lot of things up.

[As he leaned back into his chair, ready to pass with complete certainty, he saw someone looking at him from the corner of his eye. It was Leah.]

Jacob: ...Did you hear that?

[Leah smiled bitterly and gave a small nod. It looked a little strange considering the blood dripping down from her mouth, but that reminded Jacob of the pain she was experiencing. Now that he thought about it, Leah had held on to the wire the entire time.]

Jacob: You... why did you even keep holding onto the wire?

Leah: ...

[Leah shrugged her shoulders, like she was completely clueless herself. But the smile remained on her face. Any other day, when there wasn't blood on her shirt, or when her hair was messed up from the shock, she would've looked beautiful. But being in such a mess spoke to Jacob more.]

R-Really?

Jacob: It was already so unfair for you... but you still held onto the wire the entire time. Even when you were shocked, you still held on, and you're still holding on now.

[Leah opened her mouth, causing a bit of blood to spill out]

Leah: I just... don't want... to die...

[All of her words were incredibly slurred, while her expression twisted as she got those words out. It was obviously very painful to say all of that, but she said it clearly. Jacob looked at her silently for a few moments before slowly nodding.]

Jacob: ...Ok.

[Jacob turned to look at the wire. He reached out a hand to grab it, but was afraid. It wasn't coming just yet, but even just looking at it made it feel as though he was being shocked.]

Jacob: Everyone.

[Out of nowhere, he spoke up quite loudly, getting everyone else's attention]

Jacob: Before we came to this freak game show, I didn't know a single one of you guys. And I'm sure that's pretty much that's the same for all of you. Sure, we told each other our names and all that, but in the end, we're still strangers. We don't know a single thing about each other.

[He took a deep breath]

Jacob: There's no time to fix that in just a minute, but if it means we will just be a tiny bit closer, I will tell you about myself. I am a person that was mediocre in everything. I always heard stories about people putting in the effort and work getting huge success and thought that maybe I could be one of those people too.

...

[A small smile formed on his face]

Jacob: And... I didn't become one of those people. I don't even know if I could've. Because I gave up. I just didn't have the motivation to continue on and stopped trying like the failure I was. Now I live on my own in a flat because I refused to live with my parents, and I'm already in debt. There's not much waiting for me even if I survive, but... I still want another chance at life.

Hm... honestly, giving up is probably the smarter thing to do. I've already wasted so much of my life trying. It's just not worth it.

Jacob: Honestly, I can't promise you that if I do get out of here alive, I'll work my ass off to live a better life. Frankly, I think the chances of relapsing into my bad habits are far more likely. But still...

[He took a deep breath]

Jacob: I want to live. And the only way that's going to happen, is if multiple people grab onto the wire. There's nothing I can do to make you believe me for sure, but I want you all to know that I'm going to be grabbing onto the wire.

...Wait, but if they believe you, then all of them could just let go and let you take the shock for them, then you'll die!

Jacob: Of course, since you know that I'm going to be holding onto the wire, the rest of you could just let go and let me die. I get that we're just strangers, and you don't owe anything to me. It's not like I'm your mom, or your boss, or even your teacher. But... I just hope that at least one other person can hold onto the wire with me.

[With a trembling hand, he slowly wrapped his fingers around the wire in front of me]

Jacob: I just... don't want to die.

I... guess that's normal.

[After those words left Jacob's mouth, the timer counting down only showed that there were three seconds left. But he didn't look at them. He simply kept his head down and closed his eyes, waiting for it to come.]

...He isn't going to die, is he?

[Then, the shock came, and it reached Jacob. When it came, the first thought that came to his mind was the possibility of dying. With how the game worked, so long as one person was holding onto the wire, not everyone would die. Meaning if someone proclaimed that they were holding onto the wire no matter what and the others believed that, they could just let go and face no consequences. That was how the game was designed.]

Jacob: AHHHHH!

[But after just two seconds, the shock stopped. Though he couldn't breathe for a few moments, the air that came into his lungs told him that he survived. Tears began falling from his face as he realized that he survived.]

Evian: Damn! Damn! My hair! What happened to my hair? Did it really have to choose me?

[While Jacob was basking in relief, Evian who was also shocked, began spewing out curses and complaints about being shocked once more and having his hair messed up. Leah looked over at Jacob and gave him a small smile.]

Wow, everyone survived! I really thought that someone was going to die there with how things were going.

Jacob: ...We're all alive.

Announcer: And it looks like the game is finally over! If everyone trusted each other and held onto the wire, then not much would've happened. The start was a little slow and boring, but then one of you passed out from the shock!

Jake: ...You didn't plan for that, did you?

Announcer: Anyway, after that, people started to get more unsettled as more were shocked! As the game continued, people kept letting go of the wire, until only five people were holding onto them! Then came the last shock. Could everyone trust each other?

Daylin: I... didn't trust you guys at first. I was going to let go, but after hearing that from you Jacob, I decided to hold on. Even if it was only the two of us that would hold onto the wire.

Announcer: Exactly! And with one grand speech, he was able to get everyone to hold onto the wire together! That is, everyone that was awake. Congratulations to all participants, you have completed the first game! If you continue down the path, you will be brought back to your dorms and can await the next game that will start in two days!

Katie: Ah... it's finally over.

Announcer: Phew, I didn't expect every single one of you to survive! Oh... wait a minute...

[After saying that, the announcer disappeared, without explaining any further]