L3

Puke covered the walls, harsh odor penetrated the skin, grim on the floors made the place look smaller and more claustrophobic than before. Leah covered her nose with a handkerchief, glancing at the windows where the sun hardly entered. She walked cautiously into the run-down hospital grabbing a scalpel from one of the old tables that were beside the moldy beds. She quickly made her way outside, tired of the smell, and fled into the woods that led to an unknown adventure even for the most intelligent. She had regretted her decision in downloading the game but it had seemed fun and now she was fighting to find her true love. She wondered what would have happened if she hadn't downloaded the game. She would be reading a book or taking her friends to the movies, but here she was walking in the woods with a group of strangers trying to escape from the spirit that possessed many.

. . .

In life, love is seen as the most beautiful thing in the world. The thing that makes a woman go crazy, teens become sad and depressing, and men happy. Love wasn't a thing that Sarah needed nor a thing that Sarah found herself swoon for. She wasn't the type of person that liked the idea of flowers or gifts and she was grateful for that. She had heard many people describing love as a painful thing, a thing that would make you feel so lonely that it made you want to scream. So, the most logical reason was to stay away far from it. 

Sarah lived a lonely life with only a cat to call a companion and a tiny group of friends that chatted with her once in a while. She wasn't really an interesting person it seemed. She worked her days as a programmer, a programmer for the most ironic thing--a dating app. She would pass long hours in her bed, typing herself away with coding and algorithms that seemed tiring but at the same time the most interesting thing she had ever done. Sarah wasn't your typical heroine, and she didn't want to be, but nor was she really different either. She would feel distressed for bills or she would feel embarrassed when somebody complimented her. But sometimes, sometimes, she would appreciate herself and in those times she would feel grateful to live in a world surrounded by love. 

Her world, Dimension #7, was an awkward group of soap-opera actors and snobby businessmen who found love as a ‘trend’ and people without were seen as mundane creatures that were not human. Her being one them. They were called Single and categorized almost like the ‘peasants’ of the caste system. The highest rank possible in the caste system were the Husbands and Wives that were already selected for marriage. People that were still looking for a partner where the middle class and many friends laid in this particular section. Her friends were hungry for this so-called love and would do anything for it. This was possibly why Sarah hated love and the idea of it. Because in her world love wasn’t butterflies and cupcakes but a war. A war she didn’t want to fight. 

Sarah scratched her head. She looked at her screen and pushed her glasses upward. She was already frustrated with her programming situation; she didn’t need to have the surrounding world to bring her down. She started to write random algorithms, things that even the most skilled engineers couldn't understand. It might have been the sleep that was making her drowsy but Sarah felt as if she was losing control. Her hands typed quickly, to the point where she couldn't even decipher what she was typing. She was frightened by this, trying her best to pull away but some type of spirit possessed her.

She felt the time slowly ticking by but she was still working on her computer. It clock ticked towards midnight and her head collapsed towards the wooden desk. Her eyes closed and she drifted herself to sleep.

Sarah opened her eyes, witnessing the most surprising thing ever, and gasped loudly causing her cat to jump in freight. She opened her email which was filled with random promotions for her new app. The strange thing was Sarah didn't remember making any app. She clicked on the numerous emails only to discover one main fact: an app had been created. An app she, herself, didn't even know of.

" Many call the app, a horrifying sacrifice, but teenagers around the globe have become obsessed with the latest trend: L3." said a reporter when Sarah turned on her tv screen. She slowly descended onto her couch, mouth agape with her face painted in confusion. " The app creator is a Single woman called Sarah Jenkins."

By accident, she had created a game which possessed young teenagers into finding love. The game had become an overnight trend, mainly because of its theme, but also because it was known to be horrifying. She didn't know what had happened overnight but she was sure it wasn't good. She opened her phone, only to be flooded by thousands of emails that all stated the same thing: We want your game. The promotions all granted her fame and money, things that she couldn't have as a Single. She was excited for these promotions but she was still worried when the reporter had mentioned "horrifying". She answered to all of them, rejecting the offer until she found what she had actually created. She opened the app with a ding and was found perplexed by what she had created. The game was minimalist, something she hadn't programmed, with a singular button in the middle. The button palpitated like a heart and was surrounded by different features that weren't placed by her own hand. A map showed different continents and countries which showcased potential soulmates for the main user. The app glitched as she clicked the map, guiding her eyes to the rules of the game.

Sarah had discovered a portal to a inner spirit that could control minds of people which had happened to her last night. The game consisted of an alarm that ringed when close to your soulmate. This had been what Sarah had programmed, working perfectly, the only major difference was that if you didn't find your love, death was knocking your door.