Road

Brothers
They say brothers stick together. We were so close that the people around us could get claustrophobic. Funny how the last thing he wanted to do with me was play Roblox. Such a silly game. I was a kid at the time still struggling to tie my shoes. At that time, I probably thought a square root was a cubed potato. Kids who play Roblox are not known to be the smartest. The brains come from the developers, so my brother, he was something. Smartest guy I knew.

We used to create racing games. I owned the account that held the development of the games, so if he ever needed to update the game, he would log onto that account. Nobody plays anymore, and he didn't really either, but if he saw me playing then you'd see him too. He could make a script that's as long as the dictionary in a heartbeat, but the last thing he did on Roblox was play. Not because of his stupidity, but because of mine. His potential was wasted thanks to me. He told me if it was too good to be true, then it is. I should've listened. I chose "friendship" over brotherhood. I've only known the snake for only a week, and I let him play me like fiddle. My brother was in the same game as that snake and I. He was trying to convince me not to be fooled. Just like that, all the funds from the games were gone.

My brother left me after the incident. He wasn't angry. Just full of disappointment. We were poor, and we wanted to expand the game, so we could make real money. The snake took all the funds on the account, but he left the game up which was the final punch. He didn't even keep the account to run the game. He left it to see that we can't make any money from it as it thrives. You should've seen it. From what I remember, my room was flooded from tears, but that flood turned into a tsunami after he was gone.

He wasn't like that though. Never would my brother leave me for getting screwed over. It was a true brotherhood. Although the last thing we did together was play Roblox, the last thing he did was drive. As an act to cheer me up, he went out to buy ice cream to calm me down. He knew I loved mint flavored. It was the only thing that could calm me down in an extreme situation. But as he was driving home, a drunk driver ran into him. The man was bankrupt after using up all his money for his dying son, but he lost everything he valued that day, and so did I.

Of course the men that killed my brother are still alive. The driver survived and was the one who got the most sympathy from the papers. That snake is still thriving off of other naive and foolish kids probably. And I just graduated from college, and I'm still as foolish and naive as I was as a kid. I don't know how to drive, for I don't want to end up like my brother. And I don't know how to handle my money, for I don't want to make the same mistake. The last thing my brother did with me was play our games, so that's the only thing I can feel like doing now. Not that I enjoy Roblox, but so I remember what caused my biggest mistake.

If only he saw how far I've got, but how low I've dropped.

Fool's Game
Nobody's playing. As usual. It's usually just me racing by myself. So really there is no race, but the race is not the reason why I'm playing this useless game anyways. You and I already know why I do. So what is the point of me just driving on this track? The track is just a loop. Well all tracks should be like that, but this is just a circle. There were no cool parts of the track, just a circle. I could never model something or script something like my brother. I haven't played on my brother's tracks ever since his crash. Perhaps that's saying something, but I don't understand. Most likely I never will. I was never good at understanding, but I've made that clear already. I don't understand why I need to repeat things. I don't understand anything.

Somebody joined the game.

Just something to add to all the things I don't understand. Why would somebody play this after years of nobody playing. It's not one of my "friends" that I added since I was a kid. I don't even have too many friends currently either. To my surprise, the player started flying. It had to be a hacker. What is he doing? Is he going to some how hack and ruin the one thing I care about? Is he going to some how get the game deleted or banned? I know what hackers can do. They are one of the smarter people on this platform, but nothing like my brother. They are one of the snakes. The ones who do nothing but ruin everything for others. Something else I don't understand.

The hacker flew towards me, and he said my name. My REAL name. Perhaps my younger self, such and idiot, probably put my real name somewhere on the platform, but from what I recall, I never did. My brother wouldn't have allowed it, but from what I also remember, the last thing I did with him was not obey him, so who knows. I don't know how skilled this hacker is, but he knows my name, so maybe he has control of my cameras and microphone, so if that's so I try not to act scared. The only people who truly scare me are the snakes, and this guy is one of them. I pop a mint in my mouth, and I hope for the best.

He types in chat, "Another mint? I have been watching over you for awhile. You've always been addicted to those."

I start choking on the mint because I swallow it by mistake due to my panicking and clumsiness. I cough it out before I could suffocate. How could I possibly be calm in a situation like this. This snake is even worse than the one before. This one has been stalking me. I have to know this person some how. I don't know any reason someone on Roblox would be stalking me, but all the people I know currently don't know how to hack or play Roblox. The only person that did was my brother, but he only used his skills and played for programming, and he's gone.

I know I'm a fool. I should've left the game by now and turned off my computer, but I want to understand what's happening. At least I can try to change, but even when I do I look like a bigger fool than before.

The snake types in chat again saying, "Don't be afraid. I can't stay for long, so just please listen to me. Let's race."

Maybe I can get my answers if I listen to him, but I don't want to fall for a snake again. I don't want to make the same mistake.

I reply to him in chat, "First you tell me who you are. Then I will race."

"While we're racing, I'll tell you as much as I possibly can."

I may be an ignorant fool, but I'm not that stupid. Nobody can type while racing. He is trying to trick me into doing something, but he doesn't seem harmful. Even if he doesn't seem harmful, the snake that got my brother killed also didn't seem harmful.

I ask the hacker, "How can you chat while racing? With your hacks?"

"No, please just listen to me. I have limited time to spend with you."

I can't believe how much of a fool I am, but fine. I guess I'll play with him. Just going to make the same mistake as before, but it's not like it matters anymore. Just one last race with a real person.

Track
As I agree to the race, he creates a new track. It's like nothing I've seen before. It looks like it would take a long time to create. It's almost like he planned this for a long time. Perhaps he doesn't mean any harm, but he is looking through my cameras and knows my real name, and he probably has tracked down where I live. He is still a threat to me, and I don't know his intentions.

As we get into our blocky cars, the countdown begins.

3...

2...

1...

Go!

I would think that I would be way better than the hacker considering I've been doing practically nothing but play our old racing game for years, but he's already gotten ahead of me. Maybe it's because I've only been going in circles or it's because of his hacks. I doubt that it's because of his hacks. My brother was great at the game, and the hacker is driving just like how he did, so it's just his skill.

The player is still ahead of me, but he hasn't won yet. This track has to be the longest I've seen because it's been 10 minutes. There are tons of obstacles like spikes, lasers, and walls. The design of the track reminds me of my brother's tracks but just longer and more planned out. I haven't played a real track in the game for years. I begin to tear up because of how much it reminds me of my brother's tracks. I go over to grab a mint, but I begin to sob and feel numb. It's happening all over again. My room is beginning to flood like it did ever since I got fooled, and when my brother passed. But this time it's different. It's almost the complete opposite. I start trying to wipe away tears, but you can't move an ocean. I'm losing the race, but I could care less. I see my screen flash with a message.

"Hey what are you doing bro! Don't stop now you're halfway through!"

I try my best to hold in my tears, and I see I'm right behind him. He stopped to let me go past him. As I continue to race, I see that he isn't moving. He wants me to win. I watch as he gets out his car and starts flying again making sure that I finish the race. After about another 10 minutes, I see the finish line, but I stop for a bit. I don't want to leave him behind.

"Go on. Finish!"

As I read his message, I pass the finish line, but I'm not truly finished. I just started, for the start of a track is the same as the finish.

I don't know how long it's been since I truly smiled, but I'm glad I could have one final race. I know who has been watching over me.

I understand now.

I truly understand.