Whispers in the street as she tightens her hood. Hiding her face from the crowd.

“Isn’t that the girl who choked on her tea?”

The words make her tense up, she was indeed that girl. A five second clip of her choking and spluttering over a cup of tea went viral after her friend posted it to her public social media account.

The clip misses out the part where she glanced down and saw the dead wasp in her cup.

Without context the girl comes across as someone who can’t swallow tea, and in a world full of drama lovers anything even remotely associated with tea is sure to be an instant hit.

All she can do now as she makes her way to school is that it all blows over and people stop seeing her as the girl who spilled the tea.

Rowan was just a 15 year old boy who liked playing fortnite. It wasnt an obsession or anything. He didn’t play Fortnite 24/7. It was just a simple pastime he indulged in every now and again while he balanced his school life and home life.

One day Rowan decided to post one of his Fortnite clips just for funnies. Unexpectedly, the video gained mass popularity of an inconceivable caliber. The spectacle received one billion views in under 20 seconds. Rowan was an overnight sensation with his Fortnite commentary and unmatched gaming prowess. The whole world wanted to know Rowan’s secret.

A few paparazzi sprinkled into Rowan’s neighborhood. They started taking pictures of his house, and when Rowan went outside to investigate the commotion, the flashing photography only got worse. The incessant camera shutters sent Rowan into a queazy daze.

He shouted from the rooftops and saided what needed for him to be said: “Please stop taking photos of me! I am just a boy!”

The paparazzi did not comply, nor did they conform to the societal standards of being functioning citizens.

Rowan had had enough. He started throwing punches into the crowd of paparazzis. One landed on a man by the name of Conway Dornham, who was instantly knocked out cold. It was later confirmed that he died 2 minutes after receiving the knuckle sandwich.

Rowan mercilessly beat the crowd to a bloody pump without a morsel of forgiveness, one punch landing after another onto the unsuspecting ne'er-do-wells.

20 deceased and bloodied bodies laid strewn beneath Rowan’s feet. He stood atop the pile and vigorously shouted, “come at me, you cowards! I’ll kill you all!”

And Rowan did in fact kill every last person on Earth. The end!

My name is Yash, and I became an overnight success for proving that reincarnation exists. As someone born and raised Hindu, I always believed that the soul of any living being would begin a new life after physical death, cycling through an eternal samsāra. But like anything that cannot be proven, no matter how strongly and powerfully you believe, there will always be people who disregard it. Therefore, I made it my life’s work to prove that reincarnation exists. And merely twenty years into my bioengineering profession, I developed a device called the Recall Device that allowed people to access memories from their past lives, effectively proving that the samsāra cycle; reincarnation existed.

“So would anyone like to sit in this chair, and access their past memories?” I called out to the seated audience at the local science fair. “Obviously, if I demonstrated it to you all myself, I wouldn’t be very credible.” The chair next to me was a recliner chair with a large headset attached to it.

“I would,” a young woman got up from her seat and raised her hand.

“What is your name?” I asked.

“My name is Suhasini,” she said.

“Alright, Suhasini,” I responded. “Aside from my lab partners, you will be the very first person to access the Recall Device.”

She beamed as she walked over to the stage and sat in the chair. Then, she put on the headset.

“Now that you have the headset on,” I said. “You will need to configure exactly what past life you want to see and when. You will see questions in front of you that will help configure for you. You can answer via your voice.”

“Alright,” Suhasini said. “Okay. Random. Oh, man or woman? Hmm. Would be interesting to see a Man. Area? Southeast Asia. Random memories. Yes.”

“Be warned that viewer discretion is advised,” the headset started talking. “Please remove the headset if you begin to experience head pain, dizziness, or light-headedness. Also, remove the headset if you feel triggered by anything you see. COUNTDOWN WILL BEGIN NOW. 3 … 2 … 1 ….”

At first the woman was still. But then in an instant, she started gasping.

“Oh my god,” the woman cried. A little while in, Suhasini screamed in horror and removed her headset.

“I saw memories of me being a male soldier in the Bangladesh Liberation War,” Suhasini cried. “And I saw my death there!”

Afterwards, several people volunteered to see their past lives. Some were amazed. Some were disgusted. Some were traumatized. Others were indifferent. In any case, someone recorded the entire science fair and it went viral. I got a Nobel Prize, and my device sold millions upon millions of copies. I became a billionaire rather quickly. I also started a documentary series called Past Recall with Yash, where I’d interview people using my device, which also became a hit online.That was how my overnight success started. But with this newfound fame and glory, I was never prepared for the absolute hell that would soon befall my personal world.

∞ Shortly after I became a success, a popular YouTube streamer named Viorware from America contacted me, asking me if she could be on my show. I gladly agreed and gave her the device.

At the studio, with all cameras on her as she was sitting on the chair with the headset, I gave the headlight for her to start.

“Be warned that viewer discretion is advised,” the headset spoke to her. “Please remove the headset if you begin to experience head pain, dizziness, or light-headedness. Also, remove the headset if you feel triggered by anything you see. COUNTDOWN WILL BEGIN NOW. 3 … 2 … 1 ….”

Viorware stood still, and then she started saying “oooh.” But then her amazement and color drained from her face almost instantly. She let out a loud gasp, and then subsequently a scream. After a short while she threw the headset off.

“Are you ok?” I asked her. “Saw anything triggering?” “It was kinda bad, yeah,” Viorware said. “But it is fine. I don’t think I want to be on your show anymore. I’ll leave.”

A day later, I received a call from Viorware where she explained in detail what happened. Why she reacted the way she did, and why she didn’t want to be on the show anymore. Viorware saw herself as the infamous Ted Bundy himself, and personally witnessed him gruesomely murdering a victim. I deeply apologize to Viorware and compensated her with hundreds of dollars, and offered to pay full price for her therapy.

But no matter what I offered her, she disappeared entirely from streaming, and was never heard from again. I tried not to fear the worst, but ever since that day, I always harbored guilt that I ruined her career. Shortly after the Viorware incident, more data cropped up about the true consequences of the device.

An estimated 3.8% of the population worldwide experiences depression. But ever since I introduced the device, that percentage has become 11.4%. People’s mental health was devastated when they realized that in a past life they were rapists, sex traffickers, murderers and more. Some people’s mental health were also unsettled when they saw memories of themselves being victims of said crimes in past lives. There was also people who were already severely depressed, who deemed their current lives so awful they committed suicide upon learning reincarnation was real. Thus suicide rates also tripled.

As a result, I went from an overnight success to a controversial “businessman.” I was an amoral man who designed a device responsible for putting several people in therapy and causing the spike in suicide rates. My device was banned in over ten countries and heavily restricted in most other countries. But, the person who most hated me … was likely myself.

I was the first person to try this device, and I learned that my past self was Eli Whitney, a man who had tried to help hasten the end of slavery by inventing the cotton gin. Unfortunately, as history knows it, the cotton gin only prolonged slavery for a long time to come. When I first saw this vision, I didn’t think much of it, since I knew that in all my past lives, there had to be at least a few where I was a “villain.”

But after everything that happened, Eli Whitney’s story hit me closer. Just like my past life I also invented something that I ultimately had good intentions for, but became the catalyst of suffering. History was repeating itself again … all because of me.

∞

Decades passed and the device was banned worldwide. My show was canceled and my business was in ruins. But due to smart investments, I still had a sizable fortune. But, no amount of money could erase what I have done. 

In my late forties, I laid on my couch, watching a show. I was feeling lightheaded from the amount of alcohol I had drunk recently. But I was used to this feeling, since I got myself drunk often. Suddenly, someone called me. 

“I do not have time for this,” I yelled at the phone, my voice slurred. “If you’re here to hate on me, just know you’re the millionth-”

“Hey Yash. It’s me, Jay.”

Jay was my former marketing partner, and a former friend. I was surprised that I haven't spoken to him in years.

“Huh? Why do you call me? What's up?” 

“I know this is weird,” Jay said. “But, as your friend, I know that you have been very closed off from the world for a while. I also heard that you are in therapy.”

“Great,” I yelled angrily into the phone. “So you call me to tell me you’ve been digging into me.”

“I’m calling as a friend,” Jay said. “I’m truly sorry for not talking to you in a while. I called you because there was an old face that wanted to talk to you at a cafe.”

“Who wants to talk to me?” I yelled.

“Trust me, Yash,” Jay said. “I’ll send you the address.”

Begrudgingly, I decided to drag myself out of the house and go to the cafe. There, I saw a face I’d thought I’d never seen. I sat next to a woman who looked similar to Viorware all those years back.

“You’re Viorware?” I asked. “You disappeared. I thought you-”

“Yeah, I disappeared as Viorware,” she said. “My real name is Elaine Christoph. I heard through some little birdies how you were withdrawn, and I wanted to say, "I apologize for all the hate you’ve gotten.”

“What?” 

“You clearly invented something and didn’t expect the disastrous consequences of it.”

“But why are you apologizing?” I asked her. “I traumatized you with that. You learned you used to be Ted Bundy! I thought you-”

“Yeah,” Elaine said. “I was very depressed due to this, and needed intensive therapy. But I learned this. If you feel guilty and miserable about something, no matter if it is your fault or not, the best thing to do is to do something that will surely help others. For me, I changed my college major from computer science to law, and started a law firm. For my law firm, I mainly aim to help people who have been sexually assaulted or abused, especially women. I know this won’t even begin to atone for what Ted did, but for me, Elaine, this has helped with my guilt and shame.”

“You’re telling me that I need to help others to absolve my guilt?” I asked her. “Everytime I help others - in whatever lifetime I was in - I hurt others more.”

“Do something that you know won’t have major consequences,” Elaine said. “Help a lady carry her groceries down the street, or anything small. Good small acts build up, and eventually you’ll feel better for it.”

Suddenly, Elaine had a phone call. Then she told me, “I have to go. But this was a great chat. I hope you live a great rest of your life.”

She walked out. As I walked home, Elaine's words echoed in my mind. "Do something that you know won't have major consequences. Help a lady carry her groceries down the street, or anything small. Good small acts build up, and eventually you'll feel better for it."

Her advice hit an emotional cord with me, and I realized that maybe it was time for me to shift my focus away from self pity and instead look for ways to make a positive impact in small ways. The guilt and shame I carried would likely never go away, but perhaps I could find solace in the knowledge that I was actively working towards redemption.

Over the next few months, I started to make deliberate efforts to help myself and others. I joined an alcohol support group and volunteered at local charities, lending a hand to those in need. I donated a significant portion of my remaining fortune to various causes, supporting initiatives aimed at mental health awareness, suicide prevention, and rehabilitation programs for victims of crimes.

As time went on, I began to feel a glimmer of hope and purpose returning to my life. The small acts of kindness I engaged in didn't erase the past, but they allowed me to see that I could still make a positive difference in the world. The guilt weighed less heavily on my shoulders as I focused on the present and the future rather than dwelling on the mistakes of the past. Years passed, and my notoriety as the controversial inventor of the memory device slowly faded away. People started to remember me for my philanthropic endeavors instead. My name became associated with the positive impact I was making rather than the unintended consequences of my invention.

While I could never undo the pain and suffering caused by the device, I could strive to prevent similar mistakes in the future. I used my remaining resources to establish a foundation dedicated to research and development in bioengineering ethics. I funded scholarships and grants for scientists and engineers who were committed to conducting their work responsibly and with consideration for the potential consequences. Through these efforts, I hoped to prevent future innovations from inadvertently causing harm and to ensure that progress was made with the well-being of humanity at the forefront. As the years went by, I found solace and redemption in my commitment to helping others. The guilt that had haunted me for so long began to fade, replaced by a sense of purpose and the knowledge that I was actively working towards a better world.

While I would always carry the lessons and scars of my past, I knew that I could use those experiences to guide me and prevent others from falling into the same traps. My journey had come full circle, from a quest to prove reincarnation to a realization that the true power lay in the choices we made in the present.

And so, I continued to live my life, striving to make a positive impact one small act of kindness at a time, knowing that true redemption came from the genuine desire to make amends and create a better future for all.

It’s been a while since I’ve written in here. Frankly I feel like a child for even starting this out with ‘dear diary’ but I need to do this. I need a place to release my thoughts to..a place where, if I’m careful, no one else can gain access to.

Who am I kidding? With this level public interest they’ll probably find this diary. Heck, you’re probably reading this from a random Reddit thread right now where my stalker/hacker/armed robber or boyfriend posted a photo of this entry. It’s so.. how I do I put it? I feel like I’m an animal at a zoo.

My parents raised me better than this. At the beginning of every prayer we start by saying thank you. This entry is a prayer.

I’m thankful. I’m so grateful that my song covers are getting so much attention. I won’t pretend that I never imagined that I could get this much attention from them. That’s a lie. I know that I have a great voice. My parents paid a lot of money to make sure of that, and I’m grateful for them too.

What I didn’t expect is all the other things that came with it. I like that people love my song covers, that they are inspired by me and they’re even making tik tok dances to the songs! But the negative comments… the very personal insults.. the level of interest on who I’m dating… I didn’t realize how bad that could get.

Just the other day I watched a 20 minute video speculating on the plastic surgery I’ve gotten over the years. They had only like 5 photos of me that they were using as evidence.

Today morning I saw photos of me on a date on a random Instagram gossip page.

And I know this is just the beginning. The higher I rise the worse this stuff will become. I’m honestly not sure I want to endure this for the rest of my life… but I want to continue getting attention for my music, and eventually become a successful touring artist.

Lord help me

One Night that’s all it took for me, an average teenaged girl, to become a social media sensation. I only made one post on my new Instagram account about how the world needs to find their own voices again. Lately, my family has been struggling financially and I was trying to find a way that my brother and I could help. Then it snapped, create an account on Instagram to spread awareness about how much financially struggling kids go through. I mean look at my little brother, Isaac, for example, who has to go to school, get bullied because he has autism, come home, listen to our parents fight, and repeat everyday. I mean, I feel bad for the poor kid. Also, before you ask, Isaac said it was okay to use his story as the caption to the post when I was making it. Anyways, I made that post about 6 hours ago and it already got 9.5K likes and my account 6 Million followers. When I showed my mom this morning our idea she got furious ,like I’m grounded now furious. I don’t understand what the big deal is about the post. Now I have to go to school tomorrow with out my phone and I have to ride the bus! Ugh!

When I got to school everyone was staring at me. I dunno why though. Did I forget to brush my hair?! Oh… I know now they all saw my post and since I am the “quiet girl”, everyone’s wondering on what I have to say. I really hope Isaac isn’t having to go through this. Then I got called to the principal’s office and everyone in there had a look of pity in their eyes. “ Yes Sir?” I said as I sat down. 

“Melody, do you know why I called you in here today?” “No Sir, why did you call me in here? Am I in trouble for something?” “Oh sweet heavens no, Melody, Your mom called in and told me about what happened yesterday morning. I was wondering if there is any way my staff or I could make your life easier during these tough times?” “ Oh I’m fine sir, but, you see I am worried about my little brother who goes to the middle school, you see he’s getting bullied because he’s autistic, sir, and I made that post to spread awareness about how words could hurt more than sticks and stones contrary to that saying “ Sticks and stones can break my bones but your words can’t hurt me.” So therefore I was wondering if you would be a dear and tell the middle school principals about the matter so my brother will stay safe, please.”

Starchy fabric scratched at her neck. Sweat tickled from her neck down her back making her blouse and pinafore damp. Blossom squirmed in her seat. She checked to see if anyone noticed her fidgeting and caught Beverly’s glare. Plastering a syrupy smile on her face, Blossom froze.

Momma and Father were talking to the reporter lady. They were all smiles and laughter, little shared touches. They were even holding the twins, Blake and Blaze, which they never did at home. Good thing Brenda gave the toddlers Benadryl so they look like sleepy angels.

There were so many lights in the tv studio. Blossom looked up and around. She had never watched television but she wondered why so many people were needed for one tv show. She wondered why if tv was so bad why Father wanted to have a tv show. Blossom wondered a lot.

Branden poked her hard in the ribs. She must have been fidgeting again. Blossom made a fist and showed it to her little brother. The reporter lady was asking their momma a lot of questions about cooking and housekeeping. Blossom snorted. The daughters did the cooking, the cleaning, the shopping, and all the childcare for the littles.

Blossom wished she didn’t have to wear tights and shorts under her dress to keep Bobby from stumbling. All the girls had to. Blossom wondered why. She scratched her side.

“So you’re Blossom right how are you liking your first trip to New York City?”

Blossom froze in mid scratch forgetting her line, I love the country. I miss my home. Instead she wiped her damp forehead and said, “NYC is the town for me! But it’s damn hot.”

Blossom wondered why everyone got so quiet.

When Elle used to work for the radio station on the other side of town, she absolutely loved it. She enjoyed bringing good music and the news to people that listened to their channel. However, she knew times have changed. people certainly still listen to music and the news, but most people have streaming services. They didnt listen to the radio that much anymore these days, so it wasnt really a shock when they were forced to let her go and close down the station. Elle thought things over later that night after leaving the station for the last time with her little knick-knacks and doo- dads that she had put up over the years. Since she had worked there her entire adult life, it was all she knew. what could she do to utilize the skills she pocessed? She thought she could apply to work for a news network, but Elle wasnt interested in being on tv or handing over her stories for someone else to read. she worked hard for the news that she brought to her listeners. Thats when the idea hit her. “What a genius idea!” She thought, quickly grabbing her laptop. Elle was going to make her very own podcast.

A Few Months Later

She obviously had to pay her rent, so Elle got a job working at a flower shop with a nice lady that she knew her entire life. It was a good job but, if she was being completely honest, it bored her to pieces. When Elle was home, she worked tirelessly on her new podcast. She had a nice amount of followers already. Everyday she added new stuff and posted the new music for different genre’s most recently released. Elle shared it all over and urged her followers to do the same. before she knew it she had over 10k followers. Then, it seemed like overnight she gained over a million followers.
What she didnt know, was that one of her followers was a little brother of a famous singer. That singer was the lead vocallist for one of her favorite bands. Upon being told by his little brother how much this woman really loved his band, that she was always promoting their music on her podcast. Even though she only had a few thousand followers he appreciated it. To show his appreciation, he asked his whole band to post a promotion for her podcast. They did, and overnight each member generated about 100k followers by the end of the week. 
By the end of the month, Elle’s podcast really took off. She absolutely loved it and, she was able to quit working at the flower shop. She made a bunch of money doing her show. She was getting calls all day about features and shout-outs from other artist’s managers. Soon Elle’s Show had over 15 million followers, and was one of the top listened to shows on several social media platforms. 

6 Months Later

Although she really did love her show, it was really beginning to wear her down. Elle had virtually no time to herself. between interviews, research and show recordings, she was barely able to find enough time to shower and sleep. She was invited to appear on a live show, and broke down into a panic attack. Elle hated the idea of being on live TV. She called back and politely declined the invitation. 
Later that night, Elle pondered deeply whether she wanted to keep doing her show. She didnt wantto disappoint her listeners and the people who believed in her and gave her a chance. Plus, She was making really good money now. She decided to hire someone to help her with research, started going to therapy, and writing a journal to organize her chaos.
In just a few weeks, Elle noticed a huge difference. When looking in retrospect she is proud of how hard she worked. Now, she makes sure to take time for herself, and advocates on her show for others that are tired and feel like quitting. Today she is not just successful, but healthy too.

There was a young woman named Sarah who lived a quiet life in a small town. She worked as a librarian and spent most of her free time reading books and taking long walks in the nearby woods. Sarah was perfectly content with her simple life, but little did she know that everything was about to change.

One day, Sarah posted a picture of her latest read on social media, and to her surprise, it quickly went viral. People from all over the world started following her, commenting on her posts, and sharing her content. Sarah had become an overnight sensation, and she was completely unprepared for the sudden influx of attention.

At first, Sarah was excited about her newfound fame. She loved the attention and the validation that came with it. But soon, the pressure started to build. She felt like she had to constantly be "on" and engaging with her followers. She was bombarded with messages from people wanting to connect with her, and she felt like she had to respond to every single one.

Sarah's sleep suffered, and she found herself constantly checking her phone for notifications. She started to neglect her job and her personal life, and she felt like she was losing control. She didn't know how to handle the pressure and the expectations that came with being a social media star.

Eventually, Sarah realized that she needed to take a step back and find a balance. She started to limit her time on social media and set boundaries for herself. She focused on her job and her personal relationships, and slowly, she started to feel like herself again.

Sarah learned that while social media fame may seem glamorous, it can also be overwhelming and exhausting. She realized that it's important to stay true to herself and not let the opinions of others dictate her life. And while she still enjoys sharing her love of books with her followers, she now does so on her own terms, without the pressure of being a social media sensation.

Maybe being famous is good? Maybe, but for me, no. I was just robbing a bank. I didn’t expect it to go viral, just doing my normal thing. Life isn’t fun if your not constantly hanging off a cliff. It was a successful heist and after I got a great night of sleep, but woke up to not so great information. Someone recorded us, and we had to go into hiding until my friend said that our video was down. We were very close to being arrested, but the woman who posted the video for some reason got arrested. We are back up into civilization with our kids and we are happy that we have friends like that, hopfully it doesn’t happen again…

I didn’t mean for this to happen. I didn’t want to go viral, especially not for this. I don’t even know why I posted the video, even with my friend’s incessant convincing. I woke up the other day and found that a video my friend had convinced me to post in a drunken haze had over 3 billion views. “Shit”, I thought to myself. “This does not bode well for me and my job. Fuck fuck fuckity fuck shit. I’m gonna get fired”. I tried to call Julie, my best friend, coworker, and lifelong accomplice, but she never picks up her phone. Damnit. There is no way to get out of this one, I might as well walk up to my boss and say “Fuck you” right to his face. Fuck this man. All of a sudden, my phone lights up. Julie called, finally. “Matt, what the fuck?! You called me like a thousand times you asshole!” You can tell she’s annoyed. “Julie, check the company Instagram.” “Well that’s not good. You are so fired for this, man.” “You are too, you made me post this!” “Nah, I am in no way implicated in this fiasco. This is all you, and as soon as I have had enough of you, I’m getting John to deal with these phone records. No stone unturned. Kay, bye Matt!” She rushes to hang up She’s right though, I’m the only one with access to the company accounts. You see, in my line of work, having anyone be able to choose what you post is a VERY bad idea. I had so much media management training before even being considered for the position of “social media manager” for Mr. Jon’s Hired Help. Normally, going viral would be fine if it were any other video, but this one is not good. It’s a video of me doing my other job. See, Mr. John’s Hired Help isn’t a normal odd job company, it is a hitman agency. I manage the company’s public image, so no one figures out what we really do, but I might just be the next victim once my boss finds out.