Mara did not go home.
She could not.
If she went home, the system could use her mom again. It could use "helpful" calls. It could use calm words. It could use fear that felt like love.
So the club hid in the only place that still felt quiet.
Theo's garage.
It was messy and dusty and full of old boxes. It smelled like oil and cardboard. Theo's dad's tools hung on the wall like silver teeth.
Theo shut the door. He turned off the lights. He only left one small lamp on in the corner.
Mara sat on the floor with her knees pulled up. Nina sat beside her, stiff and shaking. Jace stood near the door, arms crossed, watching the window like he expected it to blink.
Lark stayed near the back wall, holding their phone inside the foil pouch. Theo called it a Faraday bag. Lark still looked scared, like the phone could bite through metal.
Theo set his small camera on the table. He played the video slowly.
The Regret Ledger.
Names. Items. Owners. Redeemable dates.
Mara watched her own name again.
Mara R. — "Future Regret" — PENDING — 48 HOURS
Her stomach turned every time.
Nina stared at Eli's line. Her face was white.
Eli P. — "Sibling Bond" — DUE SOON
Jace's jaw clenched like he wanted to break the screen.
Theo wrote on paper and held it up so no one had to speak:
WE HAVE PROOF.BUT PROOF DOESN'T STOP THEM FAST ENOUGH.
Mara nodded.
Her "non-person" label was already spreading. She felt it in her bones. The way the guard couldn't focus on her. The way the world wanted to slide past her like she was a shadow.
Nina wrote back, hand shaking:
Eli is getting worse.He sent a message to Mom.He asked "Who is Nina?" again.
Mara's chest hurt.
Theo turned the camera off and put it away. He looked smaller now. Tired. Like the night had taken pieces from all of them.
Jace pulled his phone out and showed the group. He did not type. He only showed the screen.
PROXY STATUS: ACTIVEPenalty queued: 2Next task pending
Jace's face looked hard. But under it, Mara could see a thin crack of fear that he did not know how to feel.
Mara took her notebook and wrote one line.
We need a key.
Theo nodded. Nina nodded. Even Lark nodded, slow.
They had tried to escape without a key. They had paid anyway. They had lost anyway. They had learned one thing for sure.
The system loved doors.
And doors needed keys.
Mara's phone buzzed on the floor beside her.
She froze.
Everyone froze.
Mara did not touch it right away.
Then the phone buzzed again. A slower buzz. Like tapping a finger on a table.
Mara picked it up carefully.
The screen was not black.
It was a normal-looking message screen, but the sender name was not normal.
Unknown Device
The message was one line.
REGRET MARKET — BUY BACK YOUR LIFE.
Mara's blood went cold.
Theo leaned in and filmed the screen with his camera. Not a screenshot. A real lens.
Nina's hands shook. Jace stepped closer, eyes sharp. Lark's face went pale.
Mara opened the message.
It was short. Clean. Like a party invite.
MEMORY AUCTION // VIP ENTRYBring proof in person.No names spoken.No screenshots.Payment is regret.
Mara's throat tightened.
A Memory Auction.
So the black market was real. Not just a forum. Not just whispers.
A real place.
A real room where people sold pieces of themselves.
Theo wrote fast on paper:
THIS IS WHY THE LEDGER EXISTS.THEY SELL IT.
Nina wrote back:
RICH PEOPLE BUY LIFE LIKE IT'S FOOD.
Jace wrote, tight:
IT'S A TRAP.
Mara stared at the invite again.
It felt like a trap.
But it also felt like the only path.
Because the system never offered you help for free.
It offered you a deal when you were desperate.
Mara's phone buzzed one more time.
A second message came in, like the first was only a knock.
Your item is reserved.MARA R. — FUTURE REGRET (48 HOURS)
Mara's breath stopped.
Her hands shook so much the phone rattled.
Theo's eyes went wide. He filmed the words. Nina grabbed Mara's wrist to steady her.
Jace leaned close, reading.
Lark's mouth opened in shock, but no sound came out.
Reserved.
Like she was a product.
Like her pain already had a buyer.
Mara's chest hurt so much she thought she might throw up.
Then her screen changed by itself.
A listing page loaded, like the system had decided to show her what her life looked like on a shelf.
At the top:
AUCTION CATALOG — UPCOMING
Below were items like they were normal:
First LoveChildhoodSibling BondTwo YearsSix Months of Joy
Mara's eyes blurred.
Then she saw it again, in clean text that made her skin crawl.
MARA'S FUTURE REGRET — RESERVED
Nina covered her mouth with her hand.
Theo's shoulders shook.
Jace's face went flat and cold.
Mara felt one clear thought hit her mind like a bell.
If she didn't go, someone else would own it.
If she did go, she might lose more.
Mara wrote on paper with a shaking pen:
We have to go.
Theo swallowed and wrote back:
WE GO SMART.WE GO QUIET.WE GO TO STEAL KEYS.
Nina wrote one word, sharp and full of pain:
Eli.
Jace wrote, slow:
IF WE GO, THEY WILL TRY TO SPLIT US.
Lark wrote under it:
AND THEY WILL ASK FOR CONFIRMATION.IN PERSON.
Mara looked at all of them.
They were tired. They were scared. They were missing small parts already.
But they were still here.
Still together.
Mara nodded once.
Then Mara's phone buzzed again.
One final line appeared under the listing, like a clock turning.
Check-in window opens: 24 hours
Mara's timer ticked in the corner of her lock screen.
53:41:09
Two clocks.
Two traps.
One path forward.
To be Continued
© Kishtika., 2025
All rights reserved.