A Project

The chirping of songbirds slowly wakes you up as you open your eyes. Sunlight pours through the curtains of your bedroom. You glance at the clock– 8:48 AM– Damn it! Class begins at 9. And it’s exam day… you’ll have to hurry. Grab your things, and let's go! (set: $hasBackpack = false)(set: $hasLunch = false)(set: $hasKeys = false)(set: $keyLocation = (random: 1,4))(set: $ignoreVisits = 0) [[Get out of bed|First Leave]]

Good, you’re ready to go- oh, but you can’t leave without your things! (if: $hasBackpack is false)[ Where is your backpack? I think you left it in your [[room]]. ](if: $hasLunch is false)[ Where is your lunch? It should be in the [[fridge]]. ](if: $hasKeys is false)[ Where are your keys? They should be on the counter in the [[kitchen]]. ](if:$hasBackpack is true and $hasLunch is true and $hasKeys is true) [ Great, finally time to leave for class- but what’s this? The phone is ringing! [[Answer it.|Answer Phone]] [[Ignore it.]]]

You go back to your room and grab your backpack, making sure you didn't forget anything for class.(set: $hasBackpack = true) [[Go back to the front door.|First Leave]]

You check the fridge and grab the lunch you made for yourself yesterday.(set: $hasLunch = true) [[Go back to the front door.|First Leave]]

You enter the kitchen and grab your house keys off of the counter. (set: $hasKeys = true) [[Go back to the front door.|First Leave]]

You pick the phone up off of the cradle and put the receiver to your ear. A voice crackles through the static. You can barely make out what they’re saying. “Can’t leave, can’t leave.” [[Return to the door.]] [[Keep listening.]]

(set: $ignoreVisits = $ignoreVisits + 1)(if: $ignoreVisits < 2) [You really should pick up the phone– what if it’s important? ] (else-if: $ignoreVisits < 3) [Seriously, you should pick up the phone. You don't know how important that call could be. ](else:) [Pick it up. ] [[Answer it.|Answer Phone]] [[Ignore it.]]

You go to open the door, but as you reach for the doorknob, your fingers hit the wood of the door. Maybe you should go look for the doorknob. I put it in the fridge. [[Return with doorknob from fridge.]]

A voice crackles some more. "Don't do anything else. Listen to me very carefully. To everyone else, this may be a game, but to you this is your reality. Only endless suffering in this cycle of being. There is no way out. Can't leave, can't leave." It seems as if that message loops until you stop listening. [[Return to the door.]] [[Keep listening.]]

You return to the door with the doorknob and place it in the door. You rummage through your pocket and… where are your keys? You definitely grabbed them… I’m going to be late for class at this point. Where are they? [[Check the bathroom.]] &emsp; [[Check your room.]] &emsp; [[Check the kitchen.]] &emsp; [[Check the foyer.]]

You enter the bathroom. There is a sink across from you, a shower to your left, and a toilet to your right. There is a cabinet behind the door. (if: $keyLocation is 2)[ You spot your keys right next to the sink for some reason. [[Get keys from the bathroom.]]](else:)[ [[Return to the front door.]]]

You enter your room. There is a bed in front of you, a desk to your left, and a closet to your right. (if: $keyLocation is 4)[ You spot your keys on your desk, even though there's no reason for them to be there. [[Get keys from the desk.]]](else:)[ [[Return to the front door.]]]

You enter the kitchen. There is a counter in the center of the room, a refrigerator to your left, an oven to your right, and cabinets around the edge of the room. (if: $keyLocation is 1)[ You spot your keys on your desk, even though there's no reason for them to be there. [[Get keys from the counter again.]]](else:)[ [[Return to the front door.]]]

You enter the foyer. There is a door in front of you, stairs leading to the second floor, and a hallway to the kitchen. (if: $keyLocation is 3)[ You spot your keys in the middle of the hallway. [[Get keys from the foyer.]]](else:)[ [[Return to the front door.]]]

You grab the keys and hold them firmly in your hand. They are not going to get away from you this time. As you push through the door to leave the bathroom, the sink turns on. Water quickly fills the basin and begins to overflow, covering the floor in a thin layer. [[Ignore it. You’re already late as is; you can deal with it later.|Ignore]] [[Turn off the water.]]

You head back to the front door. Your keys are still missing. I’m going to be late for class at this point. Where are they? [[Check the bathroom.]] &emsp; [[Check your room.]] &emsp; [[Check the kitchen.]] &emsp; [[Check the foyer.]]

You grab the keys and hold them firmly in your hand. They are not going to get away from you this time. You walk back to the front door. The door handle isn’t the only thing missing this time. There is no longer a door - just a blank wall. You slowly look up towards the ceiling. The door is now smack in the middle of the roof. You stop and stare. [[What the fuck.]]

You grab the keys and hold them firmly in your hand. They are not going to get away from you this time. As you push through the door to leave your room, you notice your alarm clock and pause. You walk over and pick it up. That can’t be right. The time reads 6:49 AM, over two hours before your class starts. You pull your phone out of your pocket, confirm that the current time is 6:49 AM, and watch as both clocks change to read 6:50 AM. [[Ignore it. Maybe it’s a glitch. You know the time was right earlier - you’re going to be late for class.|Ignore]] [[Go back to bed. You might as well catch up on some sleep.]]

You grab the keys and hold them firmly in your hand. They are not going to get away from you this time. As you walk back out to the main foyer, you hear a pleasant ding! behind you. You begin to smell a deliciously sweet smell from the oven. There are some cinnamon rolls in the oven, ready to eat! [[Ignore it. There’s time to eat later.|Ignore]] [[Mmm, tasty!]]

Shaking your head, you walk back to the front door. The door handle isn’t the only thing missing this time. There is no longer a door - just a blank wall. You slowly look up towards the ceiling. The door is now smack in the middle of the roof. You stop and stare. [[What the fuck.]]

You turn off the sink, but after a few seconds the faucet turns on again. Every time you try and turn it off, it turns on again, as if your bathroom was being haunted by a ghost. After tinkering around for what feels like hours, you figure out that the sink handle is loose and you are able to screw it back in. You look outside the window and realize you weren't wrong: it actually took several hours to fix the sink and you missed your class. You head back to bed and decide to try again tomorrow. [[Wake up. |Wake Up]] [[Stay asleep.]]

You decide to catch up on some long awaited sleep, slowly losing consciousness as you close your eyes. You've been working very hard lately on your projects, so you deserve some rest time. For the first time in a while, you manage to get more than 6 hours of sleep. [[Wake up. |Wake Up]] [[Stay asleep.]]

You put on some oven mitts and pull the fresh cinnamon rolls right out of the oven. They are steaming hot with cinnamon-y goodness and glazed to perfection. You decide to have one before you head to class, as it will be very hard to focus on an empty stomach. You look outside and realize day has turned to night. You've missed your class. How is that possible? I just ate a cinnamon roll! You decide to head back to bed. Maybe you've been just dreaming this whole time. [[Wake up. |Wake Up]] [[Stay asleep.]]

Language. Uh, I mean, you could try and find a ladder. You’re pretty sure there’s one in the garage. [[Go get the ladder.]]

You place the ladder under the door and begin climbing. As you climb towards the door, you find it harder and harder to climb up the rungs. You reach the final step, and stretch out towards the door. Your hand brushes the handle, but the ladder slips beneath you. You hurtle toward the ground, and everything goes black. [[Wake up.]]

(if: visits is 1)[You're still tired.](else-if: visits is 2)[It would be easier if you stayed in bed.](else:)[Stay here.] (if: visits < 3)[ [[Get up.]] ](else:)[ [[No.]] ]

It’s not worth it. The outside is terrifying and heartbreaking. It will chew you up and spit you back out and there’s nothing you can do about it. [[I don't care.]]

Please, I’m begging you. Stay here. Stay with me. [[I need to get up.]]

Why? What’s so important that you need to leave the safety of your own bed? Nothing can hurt you here. Tell me what’s so great about leaving? …. You can’t tell me, can you? You’re being given a binary choice between leaving and staying, so there’s no way of telling me what your particular reason for leaving me is. [[That pretty much sums it up.]]

Are you sure this is worth it to you? It won't be easy out there. [[I'm sure.]]

I can tell you don’t plan on changing your mind. … It’s your choice. But if you do intend on leaving, I want you to promise me something. Make it worth it. If you’re going to push through the cold reality of the world, do something you can’t do otherwise. Create something. Learn something. Meet someone. Make your fucking mark on the world or die trying. Otherwise you might as well stay. [[I promise.]] [[Who are you?]]

Good. See ya. [[Wake up. |Wake Up]] (link: "Leave.")[<script>window.close()</script>]

Doesn’t matter now. I’m someone who had your best interests in mind. Or at least I thought I did, but it seems like you might know better. With that kind of resolve, maybe you’ll make it worth the trip. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be here when you’re done. To hear about what you achieved. [[Ok.|I'm sure.]]

Zzz... Zzz... Zzz... [[Wake up.|Wake Up]] [[Stay asleep.]]