“Okay, you really have gone too far!” Tiffani yelled, storming down the hall. Ophelia turned to see what the cause of the commotion was. “Don’t give me that innocent look!” Tiffani snapped.

“What did I do?” Ophelia asked, genuinely confused.

“This!” Tiffani snapped, shoving a piece of paper in Ophelia’s face. The paper had a picture of Tiffani with a pig snout and ears drawn on her, and the words “Oink oink” written below. “You think you’re being funny, you skinny b***h? I found this stuffed into my locker, in the opening.”

“I didn’t do this!” Ophelia responded, trying to remain calm.

“You’ve been trying to start trouble with me for a good while now. Well, it’s on now. Today, seven in the evening, in the park. The section hardly anyone goes to.”

“Why? What do you plan to do?”

“You wanted a fight? You’ve got a fight.”


“Elizabeth, is that my shirt you’re wearing?” Ms. Gibson asked irritably.

“It might be,” Elizabeth replied. “Why?”

“Liz, you have your own clothes. Stop wearing mine.”

“I’ll stop wearing your clothes when you stop trying to interfere in other people’s deaths.”

Ms. Gibson sighed and closed her eyes tightly. “Look, you're acting like a child. This is just getting stupid.”

“What’s stupid is how much you actually care about these kids. You shouldn’t become so attached to them. Tell me, is this your way of making up for not having kids of your own?”

“On the surface, it may appear that way, but trust me, there’s a lot more going on than you realize. What, do you think I’m playing God for interfering?”

Elizabeth smiled a little. “Playing God?” she repeated. “Gabby, in a way, we are Gods. Manmade Gods. Self-made Gods. And I say, let them die. People are vermin. Look at the damage they’ve done. You know firsthand the things it’s taken away-- your chances of having kids, for instance.”

“You’re really starting to scare me. You know that, right?”


Graham grinned at the crowd, then focused his eyes on Jade, who seemed to be glowing with excitement. “Thank you all for listening,” he said. “Before we’re done with our set, there’s one last song we’re going to do. I wrote it recently for special lady who’s in the audience tonight. So, uh, if you’re going to laugh, do it after I leave the stage.” The audience chuckled a little, and Jade smiled to herself.

Graham took a deep breath and picked up his guitar, and after nodding to his band members, began playing, and after a few seconds, he started to sing:

“I’ve seen the way he treats you
Acts like he doesn’t need you
And he’s got a new girl on his arm each night.
So I don’t understand why
You even stay around and try
To be with him, despite knowing all that.
‘Cause, see, I may not really be
As exciting as he may seem
But, baby, I can promise you one thing:
Not gonna handle things that way
I’ll just take this day by day
And let things come to pass as they will.
And, baby, if you want to be
Together someday with me
Then maybe it will happen if we try…”


“So, tell me,” Angela said, smiling calmly. “Have you made up your mind yet?”

“Shouldn’t you be at home?” Dunstan asked.

“Mom had to work late, and Jill’s babysitting her sister’s kids. No one will know I was ever gone.”

“What do you want from me?”

“Just say ‘yes,’ Dunstan. I ask so very little of you.”

“You’re asking a lot of me.”

“You only have a few minutes left, Dunstan. So, think quickly.”

“I’m not going to do it,” Dunstan said firmly. “And you can’t make me.”

“Is that so?” Angela asked.

“That’s right. I’m not giving you any money, I’m not paying for anything for you, and I’m not having any kids by you. So, forget it.”

“Then, you’ve left me no choice,” Angela sighed. She pulled the gun out from the back of her skirt, where it was tucked into the waistband. “You probably were wondering where you put this.”

“You thief!” Dunstan yelled, eying the gun nervously. “Not only are you trying to make me do this crazy stuff, but you’re pulling my own gun on me!”

“I’m sorry you feel that way,” Angela said calmly, pointing the gun at Dunstan, “but perhaps you’re just not getting what I’m trying to say. I’m not asking you to do this, I’m telling you.”

“When Charise finds out, you’re the one she’ll be angry at, not me,” Dunstan yelled, his eyes fixed fearfully on the gun. “Besides, you wouldn’t dare use that on me. They’ll put you away, and then your plan will be for nothing.”

“I’ll cry my eyes out on the witness stand and tell them every little thing you’ve done, and not just to me, but to Charise as well.” Angela smiled a little and added, “They’ll say I did a great service by killing you, maybe even make a movie about me. Jodie Foster could direct it…”

“You’re ****ing insane!” Dunstan gasped out. Angela smirked a little, pointed the gun, and then pulled the trigger.


“That was great!” Jade exclaimed, hugging Graham tightly.

“Thanks,” Graham replied. “I was a little nervous up there.”

“You could have fooled me. Really, you were amazing up there. And, by the way, it was really sweet of you to write that song about me.”

Graham shrugged, trying to feign nonchalance. “Well,” he said, “I didn’t like how he was treating you. I just didn’t think it was right, and… well… I started writing a song about it. Not my best work, but, then again, I’m not Shakespeare or any other great writer.”

“I liked it,” Jade responded. They were silent for several seconds. “Hey, Graham?” she said slowly.

“Hm?”

With a smile, she turned to him and kissed him.


“This is it,” Tiffani said calmly, smirking at Ophelia. “It’s all come down to this.”

“I don’t want to fight you,” Ophelia replied.

“Then you shouldn’t have done any of that stuff,” Tiffani responded.

“Do you really think fighting will accomplish anything? When it’s all done, will you really feel any better about any of this?”

“Somewhat.”

“Tiffani, you know I didn’t do that. And I know you didn’t spread those rumors about me,” Ophelia said pleadingly.

Tiffani turned a deaf ear to Ophelia’s words. She took a deep breath, paused, and then attacked.


“I don’t know what you think you are,” Ms. Gibson said, trying to sound reasonable, “but I’m nothing like you. If you have a God complex, that’s your thing. Not mine.”

“I don’t have a God complex,” Elizabeth replied. “I’m only seeing things are they really are. Tell me, why do you think people believe in God? Because they want to. It's not easy living in such an ugly and corrupt world. There is no certainty and nothing to hope for. People are lost, so they reach out. Don't you get it? God didn't create humans. No, it's humans who created God. Gabby, we made ourselves into Godlike beings. We are the closest thing to deities in this place. With our gifts, we could have whatever we want. And instead, you want to protect a bunch of kids who are going to die anyway.”

Ms. Gibson turned away, saying quietly, “I’m just watching a bad dream that I can’t wake up from.”

“Yeah?” Elizabeth replied, easing the knife out of her pocket and exposing the blade. “I’ll wake you up from it right now.”