Page 49 of The Commons

“I know what you’re thinking,” a voice whispers to me. “But saving either one of them in this rush of a current would be virtually impossible. No pun intended. And in fact, it would cause your boat to capsize. Here are your options:

A – Do nothing.

B – Try to reach for one of them and potentially capsize.

C – Shoot the twenty-foot shark and let them both die drowning.

D – Do anything to pass the test.

E – Eliminate their pain by shooting them both, giving them a quick death.”

Panic surges through me. All these options are completely inhumane, and D is simply unhelpful—do anything to pass the test, gee, thanks. They see the shark! Their screams intensify. Fear pulses through my veins, propelling me to act on instinct.

I choose D, for Down. Like in the Chemistry Test.

I find the boat’s anchor and throw it in the water; it sinks to the bottom. I stand on one side of the boat, trying to capsize it. It finally flips, and I crash into the water, grabbing the anchor rope. I swim up, holding onto my boat and waving at them with my other hand. With that hand, I snag the child and pull her hands to cling tightly onto the daggerboard as the woman holds on to the other side.

I try to flip the boat back upright by leaning outward, but it does not work. I try to pull on the line beneath the railing, but it does not work. I try to hold onto the daggerboard, but it is impossible to do alone.

I swim underneath the boat to try to pull the jib sheets out.

Water pressure squashing my face, I pull the rope of the anchor out from the ground, calling out, “Help! Pull the daggerboard!”

I don’t even know why I am talking to them. Why did I do that? This isn’t reality. But it works. The woman helps me flip the boat back up.

My eyes turn with a smile, but my face turns to dread when Ciaro randomly appears, standing inside the boat in front of me.

What. In. The. World.

But this isn’t real?

Ciaro stares at me with a menacing glare. What on earth! Before I can think, she shoves me, fighting to push me off.

“No!” I shout.

I thought this wasn’t real. What’s happening?

“What are you doing? Stop!” I shout at her.

“You’re in my mind! Get out!” she screams incessantly.

“What?” How?

How is it possible that both our tests are intertwining? This isn’t real, right? That’s when I realize. This could be real.

My world. I am gonna die. I will not be pushed off by this girl. But if we keep fighting, we will throw this boat overboard. The child is now shaking and crying, curled up in the corner, terrified.

“Ciaro, stop!” I shout at her.

“Get out of my mind!” She slams me with a paddle.

I catch it, grabbing the gun from my jumpsuit and pointing it at her.

Her eyes widen. “Are you gonna shoot me?”

My hands shake, panicking. The shark is heading straight toward us! Its mouth, gaping open.

I know what to do. I shoot my hands as I jump out of the boat and into the water. Yes, I shoot my hands with my virtual gun.