[Soclin Timbers University; Time: 8:02 ZM]
The bell rang two minutes ago. You're late to class again. "That's the fourth time you're late, Ms. Virum," Mr. Vixon says. "Because of this, I need a word with you after class." You take your seat as the lesson continues.
Your name is Sally Virum. Nineteen years old, pursuing in Latin literature, hoping to be an author. You're usually on time for your classes, but after the death of your stepbrother Smith, it's been hard on the family lately. Sometimes when you're half asleep, it's like you can hear him screaming in a form of purgatory. You can hear him now. You fall asleep.
The bell rings. "Valete class." Mr. Vixon says to the class. After everyone but you leave, Mr. Vixon approaches your desk. "How are you holding up?" he asks. "Not well, but I appreciate you asking." you lie. You know he's trying to be a good professor, but it doesn't really matter to you. "Now as someone who also lost someone important, I understand it's hard for you to move on. But as a professor, I'm wanting you to get to class on time. You're on your last warning, Sally. I would let it slide if I was allowed to."
He makes his way back to his desk to prepare for next class. "The only advice I can give you is memento mori. Death is bound to happen, so just move on." You don't know if this advice would work, but you keep it in mind.
[STU Cafeteria; Time: 0:16 AM]
You eat lunch with your friends. "...and that's when I found out blues music was more purple than yellow." Nico says. "You're such a doofus, Nico. Only you would be colour blind to music." Agatha says. Nico Evergreen has been your friend ever since he somehow helped you in tech class last year. It's obvious he's interested in you, but you ignore his advances. Agatha Wincox has been your friend since high school. She's smarter than Nico and wants to pursue in chemistry.
"What do you think, Sal?" Nico asks, snapping you back to reality. "I'm sorry, what?" you ask, clearly in a different head space. "About going to that party everyone's invited to." Agatha says. "Do you want to go?" You think about it. Maybe this party will help keep you from grieving. "Probably. I don't know yet." You say, unsure if you should do this. "Especially with what I'm going through."
"You said you still hear him, right? So what did he say recently?" Nico asks, genuinely interested and concerned about you. "Evergreen! That's rude." Agatha exclaimed. "It's fine, Agatha. He's just curious." You explain to them how Smith's description of his purgatory is polytheistic with other religions. Jesus turning his blood into wine, getting struck by Zeus, getting Loki'd–not the MCU kind–by Loki, it's always different.
"As an atheist, I call bullshit. As a friend, I respect it." Nico said, confused by your explanation. "Anyways," Agatha chimes in to change the topic, "I think you should have a little fun, Sally. You've been grieving for a couple of weeks now." Nico nods in agreement. "Yeah. You had fun at Agatha's brother's graduation party last year, so why not give it a chance?" You consider it a little more, reminiscing the past. You finally ask, "When's the party?"
[Dorm Room M5; Time: 10:48 PM]
It's almost past curfew, Latin assignment almost completed. "Just a few more sentences." You write:
"Si res non mutatur, vita alia post mortem est? Pendet in prospectu."
Your roommate Rhett Connor enters from his room, tired and in need sleep. "Do you always have to write in Latin at this hour?" You sigh, knowing that Rhett's just a jerk at night. "Don't worry about it, I'm just finishing up." Rhett leans against the door frame. "And this is why I'm not going to that party. And besides, I heard rumors that Dolla is a cancer of a person. If she runs the party, she rules the party."
"Well, they're just rumors. And I'm just doing my assignment this late because I write interesting when I'm sleep deprived." You begin to put your things away, but something catches your eye. "What are you holding?" He hands you a small canvas with Smith on it.
"I had a feeling you'd be awake at this time. You dropped an old photo of Cottonball before, well… the tumor. So I decided to paint you a miniature portrait of him as a gift of condolence." You examine the portrait. It's Smith. Nerdy glasses, messy hair, healthy skin. Rhett adds, "Look, I may be a jerk at times, but I'm not heartless." Speechless, you do something you never thought you'd do. You hug him with appreciation.
[Dorm Room C4; Time: 2:32 BM]
You're at the party. Your friends couldn't make it. Agatha has an exam in the morning and she needs sleep. And Nico… You assume he got lost.
Since you haven't been at a party in a year, you decide to start with a drink, stand in a corner, and avoid anyone who's trying to get lucky. Minutes go by. "Come on Sally," you say to yourself, "you're here to have fun." So you have fun.
You dance with people you've only seen in the halls. You play beer pong, passing the drink of course. Your first hangover was so bad, you've been sober since. You end up becoming friends with Brad the goth jock. You didn't even expect him of all people to be here.
Despite having fun, this makes you think. What's this party for? Is it someone's birthday? No… that seems childish nowadays. Maybe someone is celebrating a relationship? You wouldn't know, you never had one. What kind of party is this? Why is everyone invited? Could it be that someone is pulling off a Jay Gatsby? Whatever the reason, you continue to party with everyone else.
Somehow, you find yourself playing a non-sexual game of spin the bottle, as STU doesn't permit the original for obvious reasons. There's tension from the guy next to you. You feel the tension too, like there's a spectator watching you five play. You look and see Dolla Heathers, the one who started the party.
The guy next to you finally spins the bottle. It was a good spin, but not good enough. It lands on himself. His face turns pale white as he pulls a rope from his pocket. He's scared, but it's the rules of Piñata Man. The guy heads to a different room in the dorm as the next guy eagerly spins the bottle, seeming like he wants to get picked. Disappointment crosses his face as it lands on the guy next to him.
That guy heads to Dolla for something. She hands him a baseball bat seemingly stolen from the sports club. The guy from before returns with the rope around his neck, ready to accept his fate. The other players get ready as you watch in horror. Piñata Man finds a place to hang the rope. Once the rope is set and secure, he kicks the chair. They cheer as the guy hangs himself. The one with the bat prepares to swing.
Time slows down for you. Seeing Piñata Man hang there immediately reminds you of Smith. The depression you thought you temporarily got rid of returns violently, too much to fully comprehend.
You fail to look away in time as you see blood from the Piñata Man slowly seep through his clothes. With each blow, the more bruises show as the body sways around. When the final blow lands, guts start pouring out. The players act like children taking candy from the piñata.
Brad Lennedy is a goth jock who becomes friends with you at the party. He's not too important to the story, this is a censor in case the human piñata is too much for the story.
Traumatized, you decide to leave before they play Pin The Knife On The Heart. Before leaving, someone rests their hand on your shoulder. You hear a heavy chain-smoker like voice.
"Manere, Sally. You're missing out on all the fun." Dolla Heathers says. She looks ten years older than she should. Judging by the excessive powder under her nose, you finally understand why her nickname is Crackhead. "Sitio? How about another drink?" She gestures to the bottles of red wine.
As you look, you see some people cutting their wrists and filling the bottles with blood. You feel the urge to vomit. You realize you've had more than you can drink, which now you assume was from the concoction of blood and wine. Then the room starts shifting. The walls change color and dimension in which seem impossible, people looking reminiscent to what they did a moment ago but more fucked up and dead…
"Dead… no… you can't be dead…" you think to yourself. The urge to vomit becomes clear. You've been drugged. You try to vomit. Nothing. Something is preventing it from happening. You see something coming from your mouth. It feels rubbery. It feels disgusting, like the texture of a leech when it clearly isn't. It's Smith's tumor.
The last thing you see are what look like Brad and Nico. You black out.
[Time: 3:26 BM]
You finally find your way to dorm C4. "I really need a campus map. I hope Sally's having a good time." You enter the door. "Sorry I'm late, this campus is like a ma-" Before you can compare STU to a maze, you see Sally on the ground, drowning in vomit. You immediately rush to her and put her in the recovery position and tell someone to call 911, the person coincidentally being Brad. Everyone was too busy partying to notice Sally choking until you showed up. You hope you're not too late.
As you keep her in the recovery position, you realize that Sally–the person you really care about–caused the death of the party.