Chapter 3
I snapped back to reality and kept scrolling through my feed.
Commenter: [Hey, got a suggestion for you.]
Commenter: [Does she have any guys crushing on her? Find one who's hot but a total jerk, and talk her into dating him.]
Commenter: [Even better, if you can get her to marry that loser, her life will be wrecked for good.]
I frowned, couldn't help but feel grossed out.
What the hell was wrong with those comments?
These people were seriously messed up. The bestie in this story hadn't even done anything bad.
All this just because they were jealous? They actually wanted to mess up someone's entire life?
OP: [Nice idea, but that's not exactly easy to pull off.]
Commenter: [Listen to me. Just borrow money from her.]
Commenter: [Keep borrowing small amounts so she won't feel comfortable bringing it up.]
OP actually considered the suggestion and replied.
OP: [That trick won't work on my bestie. She's super generous and honestly couldn't care less about money.]
OP: [Whenever we go out to eat or have fun, she's the one footing the bill like nine times out of ten.]
I couldn't even.
What a total snake. Thank God Jenny wasn't like that.
I was usually the one picking up the tab when Jenny and I hung out, but she would find a way to pay me back, whether it was treating me to something or surprising me with a little gift.
When we moved in together, she was short on rent, so she even wrote me a legit IOU, totally formal about it.
And she always took care of all the housework, no questions asked.
Whenever I got home late from work, she'd whip up all sorts of delicious late-night snacks for me.
Man, the bestie in that post really got the short end of the stick.
Good thing that was not me.
*****
Commenter: I've got a great idea.]
Commenter: [Deliberately break something important to her. It doesn't have to cost much, as long as it matters to her.]
Commenter: [She'll feel too awkward to ask you to pay, but it'll eat her up inside.]
Ugh, I couldn't even with this anymore.
Totally grossed out, I locked my phone and got up to get changed.
Just then, the door burst open.
Jenny came barreling into my room, looking totally freaked out. Her face was pale, and sweat was breaking out on her forehead.
"I accidentally spilled Coke all over your laptop, and now it won't even turn on," Jenny cried, her voice trembling.
"Oh my god, what do I do? You saved your presentation, right?" she stammered, panic all over her face.
I spun around, suddenly feeling a little suspicious.
Wasn't this way too much of a coincidence?
I marched into the living room, my face dark. There were tissues everywhere around the laptop, and sticky Coke was still splattered all over the keyboard.
Jenny had been dieting lately. She hadn't gone near the Coke in the fridge for weeks.
Why'd she suddenly go for a Coke?
Seeing my face darken, Jenny looked like she was about to burst into tears.
She twisted her fingers anxiously, apologizing nonstop.
"Claire, I'm so sorry, I swear I didn't mean to," Jenny stammered, her voice shaky.
"I just wanted to check out your presentation. The boss is always raving about how good your work is, so I thought maybe I could pick up a few tips," she blurted out.
"I didn't know... I just didn't know it'd turn out like this," she choked, almost sobbing.
"I'm so embarrassed. I can't even look at you," Jenny whimpered, hiding her face in her hands.
"This is the company's laptop. If it's busted, the boss is totally gonna freak out on you," she said, her voice shaking.
"I-I'll just put it on my credit card and buy them a new one, okay?" she blurted out, panic in her eyes.
"Even if I have to starve next month, it's whatever," she sniffled.