Chaotic Electronics.

I look up at the clock on the wall, the second hand ticking. I squint my eyes trying to make out the numbers, too blurry I think. I reach out to grab my phone except it’s not where I left it. I look around before finally asking a coworker what time it was. “1:30 pm” came the reply. Time for lunch, I better grab something before I have to get back to work. I smile when I see my favorite lunch tray in the cafe. I quickly pay for it and skip back to my desk. “Where is my phone?” I mutter to myself. “Under your desk Marie, Where you always leave it.” My office partner replied chuckling amongst himself. I sigh, pop a Fri into my mouth, and bend over to pick my phone up from the floor. “Hey, Marie? Could you help me with this?” My coworker asks, I turn around and look at his computer screen, “there’s nothing there? What’s the problem.” He looks at me puzzled, “It’s a math problem, you cant see it?” I raise an eyebrow. “No? You can?” He shrugs and asks the pair ahead of us for help instead. “I’m not sure how to do this Dave. Ask Marie she’s good at math.” Dave turns back around and looks at me. I look past dave towards Kathy and frown. She shrugs before returning back to work. I hurry to finish my lunch, grab my phone and text my best friend.

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ME: liza smt been ‘goin on @ wrk?

ELIZA: wdym?

ME: dave has this math prblm he needs hlp with and I can’t c it… 

ELIZA: gurl u need 2 chill! Its probs an office prank.

ME: yea, yea, I gtg ttyl!

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Smiling to myself I really think about what Eliza said, maybe this is just an office prank. Though why? Why is the whole office pranking me? My desk phone rings I look behind me and see Dave reaching for the phone slightly nodding in my direction, I pick up the phone and listen in. “High Tech agency, this is Dave Nicker speaking.” ... “yes” ... “Mmhm, she’s on the other line ill hang up from here.” Dave shrugs and hangs up his line, “Marie Garcia, who am I speaking to?” “My dear, dear, Marie.” .... “Sir? I dont understand, who am I speaking to?” I ask again. “Marie dont play dumb with me. You KNOW who I am.” The man on the other line presser further, I dont have the slightest clue who this creepy man is nor why he’s calling me during my work hours. I clear my through, “Sir Im going to have to get back to work, thank you for calling High Tech Agency.” I expand my hand out to place the phone back in its little stand when I hear the man scream at his phone, “MARIE YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOUR DOING. YOU WILL PAY, YOU WILL!” I slam the phone down quieting my office space, Dave reaches out and places his hand on my shoulder, I flinch. “Marie?” I look Dave in the eyes and start to cry. 

It’s been a few weeks since I got the call. I flinch each time my office phone rings, and hesitantly check my personal phone when im getting a text message or phone call. Ever since that call all these weird things have been happening to my computers, laptops, PCs, Im not exactly sure what or why these things happen but they do and it needs to stop. I can hardly work on my work assignments because my computer wants to rebel against me, ill code it not to do this and it does exactly that. I want it to shut off, it falls asleep. When I try to turn it on it stays shut off. I spin around in my chair one day and finally ask Dave if these things are happening to him as well, he shrugs and shakes his head. I ask him to come do a check-up on my work computer he turns it on, codes it, commands it with perfection. It listens to every command Dave gives it. I squint my eyes and chew on my lip. Reaching out to turn the computer on it makes a violent sound then does the complete opposite from what I told it to do. Figures, it’s rebelling. It’s a teenager that just got her driver’s license and isn’t listening to anything me the mom says. Grunting I walk away from my computer. I snatch up my phone to text my manager about the whole computer fiasco. Typing something in slowly, I dislike the way it looks so I delete every letter. Sighing and putting my phone down I walk over to the employee coffee machine, making a black coffee I sip it while walking back to my phone. Picking up my outdated phone I see two things, one: a reply from my manager to a message I never sent, and two: a notification from something eerie looking. I quickly open my messages and see that the whole little paragraph I had typed was sent even though I remember deleting it there it was, staring back at me. Taking a deep breath I ready myself to read the reply I’ve gotten, ‘I understand where you’re coming from Marie, but you should know this isn’t the first time something like this has happened in my office before… A few years back actually I had a male in his early 30’s text me about the same thing and when it started happening. He told me he had got a strange phone call from a man whom he did not know. I shrugged it off at the time then it happened again. I looked more into this weird phone call, turns out the man calls every 2 years always to the same office booth, always asking for desk #30 to do something for him. If they had refused he would make it so your most-used everyday electronic device worked against you. I am so sorry this happened to you, I should consider getting rid of desk #30 altogether to make sure no one has to go through this again.’ My eyes are as big as saucer plates when I finish reading this message, I let out a ragged breath before opening the other notification. It brings me to some unknown site I’ve never seen before, in big blocky letters right in the middle of the screen it says, ITS ALL OVER, THANKS FOR PLAYING MY GAME.