May 21 202X

12:02

@sansan4ever: Guys guys! Did you see today’s news?? Sandra got mentioned. It’s that thing with the politician? Like from months back??

@mr-drake: that piece of old news? what kinda shit they say now? link pls

@sansan4ever: Oh right lol. Forgot to send the link. Here you go: www.timestoday.com/politician-denies-allegations-with-singer-slut.html

12:05

@mr-drake: man they calling all her sorts of shit. i kinda pity her. no wonder she ain’t in town anymore.

@sansan4ever: I know right?? *cries* And that politician isn’t helping things at all.

12:13

@kai: He’s covering his ass, protecting his job. Is it true though? About their affair?

@sansan4ever: There were pictures but it’s hard to tell? Like with all these deep fakes and fake news? I don’t know.

12:16

@modthebod: Sandra would not betray us like that. Those motherfucking reporters should go die.

12:17

@sansan4ever: *sobs* I just hope she’s doing okay now.

@modthebod: We’ll make sure she’s fine.

@sansan4ever: ? How?

@modthebod: I don’t know yet. But we’ll figure it out.

~ ~ ~

Will sighed inwardly as he studied the pudgy teen slumped in the armchair opposite him. Sessions with Percy were always difficult. As much as he wanted to help, it was hard when the teen refused to open up. Kids like Kyler were much easier with a push in the right direction.

“So I heard your phone was confiscated again?” Will kept his tone light and conversational.

Percy shrugged in response. Elbow propped on the armrest, his hand cradled his round, smooth face as he stared out the window in boredom. There was nothing to see, save for the tall tree that grew close to the building, but the teen steadfastly avoided eye contact with Will.

“Want to tell me what you were doing on your phone during class?”

The teen shifted in his seat, his free hand fiddling with the belt that sat uncomfortably on top of his small belly. He looked down at the carpeted floor, his muddied sneakers digging into the center of the pattern. Will noted the scuff on his collar, the small bruise on his neck - the result of another tussle during recess.

He knew some of the other boys picked on Percy. They were smart enough not to take it too far, lest they earn a black mark on their record or worse, be expelled. But the fact that Percy’s mother was a policewoman didn’t stop them, and that itself was cause for concern. He could only make an educated guess that Percy’s mother was the type who believed in letting children fall so they learned to get up by themselves.

Will leaned forward in his armchair and placed his arms on the table. Employing a different tactic, he said, “You know I could give your phone back now if you cooperate with me.”

That got the teen’s attention. Percy’s gaze drifted upwards and he eyed Will with distrust. He licked his thick lips before asking tentatively, “Is that for real?”

“Yes. I’m a man of my word.” Will flashed a disarming smile. “But that deal is on only if we have a proper conversation.”

Percy bit his lips. After a moment’s pause, he gave a curt nod. “Fine.”

“Great!” Will beamed. He locked his fingers together, studying Percy over his owl-rimmed glasses. “So mind telling me what you were doing on your phone?”

“Just checking Facebook and stuff,” Percy mumbled.

“Ah, Facebook. Lots of posts to read there.” Removing his glasses, Will folded its arms and placed it on his desk. “I like browsing Facebook too, you know. Following up with what my friends are doing, laughing at jokes people post.”

He watched Percy roll his eyes like what most teens did when an older person claimed to be “cool”. At least he had gained some reaction out of the teen. Relaxed him a little, Will hoped.

“What kind of posts do you read?” Will asked.

“Normal stuff. Memes, videos..” Trailing off, Percy’s gaze wandered around the threadbare office.

“Those posts don’t get updated that often, right? You could check it once in the morning and then once during recess, and you won’t miss much, I suspect.”

“I guess.”

“So maybe you don’t need to check Facebook during class, Percy?” Will put the suggestion across in a gentle voice.

With a contemptuous huff, the teen shook his head. “You won’t understand.”

“But I want to understand, Percy.”

The teen eyed him with pursed lips and held his silence.

Will dropped one hand to the desk drawer, opened it, and took out a phone. He placed it face down on the table, the lime green phone case a stark contrast to the table's white polished surface. Percy’s eyes widened at the sight of his phone.

The corner of Will's lips turned upwards in a knowing smile. “Please help me understand, Percy. I would like to know.”

The teen huffed. With great reluctance, he forced out, “There are some people I follow on Facebook and… I want to know what they’re up to.”

A clearer picture formed in the counsellor's head. The kid had a crush on someone that wasn’t from his class. It’s not like Will didn’t understand the urge to know where a crush was or what they were doing. He had done similar things in his youth - peeking out the window when cars drove by or taking the long way home on purpose so he would pass by a girl’s place.

But times had changed. It was so easy to stalk someone with a few clicks. Anyone could find out where you had been, who you were with, what you had eaten… the list went on. And to such a fine-grained level of detail too.

“Percy,” Will ventured cautiously. “Have you watched the anime Mirai Nikki before?”

The teen’s face scrunched up in puzzlement. “Yeah… why?”

“Oh just curious.” Will waved off the question. It was unorthodox but he knew referencing older movies wouldn't work. Most kids he knew watched anime - it was the new fad. So if he wanted to make a point, what better way than to use lessons taken from such trendy series?

“I recently binge-watched it,” he lied, having watched the anime years ago. Leaning forward in his seat, he cupped his cheek in one hand. "I thought it was interesting."

He regarded Percy with a laid-back expression that hid the intensity of his scrutiny. “What do you think of the girl, Yuno?”

His question was deliberate. Yuno, the female protagonist, was the famous archetype of an obsessive, possessive stalker. Given what Percy himself was doing, Will wanted to know how he related to the character.

Percy gave the question careful consideration. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to discern the trick up the counsellor’s sleeves. Finding nothing, he huffed and threw up his hand in annoyance. “She’s cute?”

Chuckling, Will agreed. “Yes, she is.”

“What about her actions though?” he added. “She loved Yuki so much that she found out everything about him, down to the last detail.”

He paused, letting the words sink in. Then, “Do you think that was okay for her to do?”

His piercing gaze made Percy shift uncomfortably. The teen averted his eyes and looked to the floor. His legs moved restlessly back and forth across the carpet.

Will pushed a little more. “Would you mind if someone who loved you did that to you?”

Percy sighed and shook his head as if to rid himself of the invasive questions. “I guess it might be creepy, I don’t know. They do it because they love me after all.”

Holding up a finger to emphasize his point, Will nodded. “Right. But you would find it creepy?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“So let’s flip this on its head. You’re on Facebook checking up on people. Constantly.” He emphasized the last word. “You don’t think maybe they would find it creepy too?”

Percy’s head jerked up, his eyes wide and ablaze with contempt. “Are you saying I’m a crazy bitch like Yuno??”

Will lifted his hands, palms facing outward in an attempt to soothe the furious teen. “No, no, of course not. What I’m trying to say is it’s normal to be a bit.. obsessed with someone.”

He watched the corner of Percy’s eyes twitch. Will offered a smile. “I’ve been through that myself. So I definitely think it’s normal.”

Seeing the tension in Percy’s shoulders subside, Will dared to continue. “But sometimes you have to try to rein it back a bit. Understand that the other person might not be comfortable with it.”

“Whoa. What I’m doing is-” Percy frowned and shook his head with stubborn vehemence. “Completely different.”

“I’m only looking at Facebook. That’s like information which is already out there.” The young teen argued. “Anyone can see it.”

“Yes it’s public information, I understand.” Will tented his fingers, with his elbows planted on the desk. “But it’s this need of yours to check on people all the time. I’m just saying it is bad for you in the long run.”

“Bad?” The teen scoffed, the corner of his lips turning upwards into a smirk. “You haven’t seen the real obsessed people.”

The real obsessed ones? Will frowned. He made a mental note to return to this point later on.

“I’m only concerned that your actions may come across as a little extreme to the people you love. And I don’t think you want them to think of you in that way, do you?” he pointed out in a gentle tone.

Will watched Percy mull over his words. The young teen had not protested to what he said, which was a good sign. He simply jiggled his legs in agitation, his eyes flitting over the floor as he worked his jaw back and forth. Moments passed by in silence.

Will noted with a sigh that he was unlikely to get anything further from him. He went off on a tangent instead. “Just wondering by the way. Who in your opinion are the real obsessed people?”

Percy relaxed in his seat but the jiggling of his legs continued. “Uh duh. Ray?” His words dripped with sarcasm.

Ray. Will recalled that name popping up during his session with Kyler. Young, impressionable Kyler who had a crush on the boy. A frigid cold settled in his chest. He gulped but retained his calm demeanor.

“What makes you think he’s obsessed?”

A shrug. Then a simple “I’ve seen stuff” followed.

“Who do you think he’s obsessed with?” Will pressed.

Percy met his gaze. His lips curved up in what seemed like a sly smile before it vanished. “See for yourself.”

Will cursed inwardly. The teen had figured out that he held valuable information. Percy withheld his knowledge on purpose and lorded it over him, knowing that Will couldn’t do much about it.

The smug teen exhaled and got up from his seat. “So can I get my phone back now? I have to rush home.”

Will let the boy stand for a couple more awkward seconds before nodding. “Yeah, I guess you’ve earned it.”

He took Percy’s phone, subconsciously tapping the corner of it on the desk, and handed it to the teen. “But let’s continue this conversation more, shall we?”

“Whatever,” Percy mumbled as he grabbed the phone and stuffed it into his pants pocket.

“I’ll see you next time, Percy,” Will called out as the teen shuffled out of his office.

He had much to find out and people he wanted to see. Pulling out his notebook from the drawer, he wrote down two names in a neat cursive - Kyler and Ray. They needed guidance and he was sure he could help with that. There was still time.