a few days later

A few days later, Jake found himself at Mike's place, lounging on the couch while Mike played a game. It was a typical hangout, but the strange feeling still lingered in the back of Jake’s mind. Not enough to bother him, but enough to make him feel a little off. He had paid for Mike's coffee earlier without thinking twice, and now, as they sat together, he was working through some of Mike's assignments like it was completely normal.

As they relaxed, Mike glanced over at Jake with a mischievous grin. "Hey, man, how about you let me use the app again? Just one more time."

Jake froze for a second, feeling a familiar knot form in his stomach. He didn’t want to give the app back to Mike—he knew that much—but the thought of outright saying no seemed harder than it should’ve been. "I don’t know, man…" Jake said, his voice trailing off as he looked away, trying to focus on the homework in front of him.

Mike leaned in, his tone light but persuasive. "Come on, Jake. Just a quick test. You’re still learning, right? Maybe I can figure out something new for you. I’m not gonna mess with anything big."

Jake shook his head, a bit more **** this time, but there was a strange pull. “It’s just… I feel like we should be careful. I mean, we don’t even know how deep this thing goes.”

Mike shrugged, keeping that same friendly pressure on. "Yeah, but that’s exactly why we should mess with it. Test the limits. You wanna know how powerful it is, right?"

Jake sighed, feeling that knot in his stomach loosen just a little. He knew he should push back, but it felt exhausting to argue. "I guess one more time wouldn’t hurt…"

Before he could finish, Mike had that sly grin again. "Awesome. Hand it over."

Jake’s hesitation lingered, but it was fading, his resistance slipping away as he handed Mike the phone. The uneasy feeling gnawed at him, but somehow it felt easier to ignore, like agreeing with Mike just made everything simpler.