Charlie woke up on the pavement to the sound of his phone buzzing.
It had hit the ground and slid across the gravel. The screen was cracked.
What now? he thought. Another video? Another taunt?
Instead, it was a question:
Do you love your dad? Y/N?
Charlie felt anger surge through him. He typed back:
Is that a threat?
No! Good News!
A pause, then:
Y/N?
The answer was obvious. Of course he loved his dad. Even Alex loved his father.
And yet …
Where in that stupid Y/N was the betrayal—falling apart when Mom was sick? Disappearing into his work? Leaving the groceries to Charlie? The pills and damp cloths for her forehead? And even now, his newest midlife crisis? The crazy restaurant and blowing Charlie’s college fund?
He loved his dad, but it was no Y/N question. It was muddy as fuck.
Except now, to the Game, it was binary.
Well then, the answer was Y. It had to be. Charlie reached to push the button and felt a zap of pain in his shoulder from the fall. He winced, then pushed through.
He put his finger over the Y and felt it hover there, ever so briefly, as if the phone were a lie detector about to call bullshit on him.