Tiramisu for the Postgraduate Offer

My roommate Sue Lynd had gotten addicted to the tiramisu that went viral lately, and always brought a box back to our room every evening. She always kept telling us how smooth and sweet it tasted, but I never cared for it, until the day before the announcement of postgraduate admissions. I was reviewing past exam papers when I saw the lines scribbled on the sheet. [Your roommate Sue Lynd will ask you to get her tiramisu tonight, and then she will leave the room in a hurry.] [The next day, the cops will arrest you for premeditated bodily harm, and you will be exposed on the internet for poisoning your roommate, drawing public outrage.] [You will miss your postgraduate admission interview, after which that spot falls to Sue.] [The cyberviolence won't stop, with even your parents losing their livelihoods, while you die from mental breakdown and severe depression.] I threw the sheet aside—must be seeing things since my stress had been building up. However, as evening arrived, Sue entered the room, asking in her melodious voice, "Can you get me tiramisu, Zoe?" My brain short-circuited for a moment—the scribble was actually prophetic?! As Sue smiled sweetly and leaned close, I felt the creeps because the most important part of those scribbles still weighed heavily on my mind: [You will miss your postgraduate admission interview, after which that spot falls to Sue.] She wants to destroy my life over a spot at postgraduate admission? My fingers clenched around my pen, and I replied, "Sorry. Can't do." Chapter 1 Sue's smile turned rigid, but she soon forced another—even sweeter this time as she leveled her twinkling, adorable eyes at me. "Come on, Zoe. It's just one box, and you're going that way." My fingers clenched around my pen—it was those eyes that once made me feel warm and happy, when in reality she intended to destroy my life for her own success! It was murder, and I wouldn't let her win! My palms turned sweaty and my tone turned stiff in reply, "It's inconvenient." Sue's smile stiffened again, and she hung her head, tugging on her own sleeve. "Really? I'm just a little tired and don't want to go by myself today…" She sounded so wounded I had to avert my eyes. I still felt angry and helpless, but I still couldn't link this Sue to the nutjob in the prophecy. But it proved eerily correct and I had to tread carefully now… Tiffany, our roommate, suddenly asked, "Weren't you going to the mall anyway?" She took off her headphones and dropped her pen on the book. Then, turning to face me directly, she watched me—not glaring, but her tone severe nonetheless, "The night bazaar is right beside it. Just drop by and grab one. Why dilly-dally?" I held her gaze. "I have other things to do. It's inconvenient for me." Tiffany frowned. "So what—" "It's okay!" Sue threw her hands up, smiling. "Zoe must be busy. I know you want to help, Tiff, but don't get so harsh on Zoe, okay? It's just a craving, and since Zoe really doesn't want to, I-I… I'll just have it some other day! Thanks, Tiff!" But as she finished, she turned to look at Tiffany with genuine gratitude and a smile. She then turned to me, but with a look of eerie calm. It was a look I had never seen before. I felt cold sweat running down my back right then, knowing the prophecy was true. It was all real! "Harsh, you say?" Tiffany mused, and suddenly chuckled coolly, glaring at me before turning to Sue. "You're way too nice, girlie. Why didn't she say 'it's inconvenient' when you shared your tiramisu with her just last night? And now, it's 'inconvenient' for her even though the stall is along the way back." I could feel a rush of blood up into my head. Somehow, in Tiffany's words, the cake shared with the whole room was only shared with me, like it was a personal favor meant for me alone. All four of us in the room ate it, and everyone thanked Sue for it. I even refused at first, if Sue didn't persistently make me. I was working on a past exam question, but I thought I was being nasty when I refused, so I bought her favorite snacks just to apologize. And yet now, here she was hanging her head, her voice almost too soft to hear, "I gave it to her willingly, Tiff. It's just that she's always so frugal, so she definitely never had a taste, and I wanted her to try… I didn't think that she hated it and refused to buy it for me." In other words, she was saying that I was ungrateful for not getting her the tiramisu. And somehow—just like Tiffany put it—the cake shared with the whole room was only shared with me, like it was a personal favor meant for me alone. Adding 'willlingly' on top of that, and it was all the more damning. I stood by my bed, watching her hang her head, looking utterly miserable. That was when Tiffany was clearly running out of patience, her headphones clattering loudly. "So are you going or not, Zoe Jackson?!" Chapter 2 I looked Tiffany in the eye as I said, "No." I thought Sue really liked me before and really wanted to be my friend, so I always gave her my notes, got her the good seats at the lecture hall and brought her along for competitions. But now, everything felt different about her—she didn't really have a heart, only endless plotting. And I refuse to be a mere stepping stone to her success! Silence ensued until Tiffany sprang to her feet, showing her chair backward and making it screech loudly against the floor. She stood up, crabbing her coat as she growled icily, "Fine. If you won't go, I'll go. Honestly, wasting so much time over something so insignificant—I was wrong about you. You really are selfish." As she turned to leave, Sue promptly ran up, yelling, "No! Tiff, don't go!" Catching Tiffany's sleeve, she said, "You haven't finished your assignment, and I don't want to trouble you… But Zoe will be going out anyway, so I thought I could ask her to help instead of you making the trip." Her tone was pressing but meek, and she was looking at me as she said she didn't want to trouble me. I felt a chill run down my spine as Sue insisted that the 'trouble' should only fall upon me. Tiffany stopped, but didn't sit down as she turned toward me in silence, her glare leaving me shudder a little. It was a look that said, 'See? Because of your selfishness and 'inconvenience', I have to do it for you even when I haven't finished my assignment. And Sue had to apologize for you too!' But my throat felt stuck, and I couldn't argue, leaving the room deathly silent until the door opened. Bobo Strauss, our other roommate, entered with her laptop, followed by two of her classmates. "Everyone! Shower me with your praise, for I have finished my project—" Bobo was beaming as she entered, but stopped halfway as she realized something was wrong. After all, Sue was sitting by her bed, teary-eyed. Tiffany stood by her desk, her expression dark, while I sat by mine, my expression cool. Bobo closed the door. "What is it?" "Heh. You see…" Tiffany promptly replied, "Sue asked Zoe to get a tiramisu when she goes out later, but Zoe refused, saying it's 'inconvenient'. I offered to help, but Sue won't let me." Hearing that, Bobo looked at me with surprise and disapproval. Her face virtually said, 'Why are you like this?' She put her laptop on her desk and walked up to Sue. "It's okay. I'll hand over my report to my lecturer, and get it for you later." "That's too troublesome," Sue quickly said, her voice cracking. "And you need rest after working…" As she spoke, she kept shooting me looks, so everyone turned toward me too. Bobo's classmates weren't leaving either, with the short-haired one whispering, "They all bunk in the same room. Is a favor like that really too much to ask?" The other classmate shrugged. "Every time I come, Sue is always greeting me warmly, while that one stays still like a log. No wonder no one likes her." Tiffany then chimed in, her tone nonchalant without even looking at me, "Only Sue tolerates her, but she still doesn't know what's good for her. Tut, tut… So what if she has good grades? Personality matters more. "That's why people prefer girls like Sue—good grades, good looks, and getting along with everyone… Unlike certain loners who don't care to socialize." Each word was clearly prickly and aimed at me, as if I was some weirdo who doesn't care about anything except my grades. She even lumped my refusal as jealousy and poor morals. I glared at Tiffany's cheek, my molars numb and clenched. On the other hand, Sue wiped her eyes and looked up at me tearfully. And everyone could see it from where she stood—not rolling down her cheeks, but not wiped away either. "Zoe…" She murmured like a wounded kitten forced to be obedient. "Please?" Everyone in the room was staring daggers at me right then—Sue, Tiffany, even Bobo and her two classmates. It's like the air was sucked out of that place entirely, but I suddenly laughed and stood up. "Sure. I'll get it for you." Chapter 3 In just twenty minutes, I was back with the white box marked with a logo, and I put it on Sue's desk. Sue looked up at me, smiling even though her eyes were still beady. "Thanks, Zoe." I said nothing and simply returned to my desk, picking up my bottle for a swig. Sue happily opened her box, scooped a spoonful, and chomped on it. "Oh, it's so good," she sighed, her eyes closed in utter bliss. Tiffany scoffed, "You're too nice, Sue. I'd have snapped long ago if I had to deal with 'that'." She really emphasized the word 'that', but Sue put down her spoon and turned to smile at her. 'It's nothing. We're all roommates and we all should get along. And she did buy it for me…" She then resumed eating, and suddenly slowed down after the third scoop, dropping her spoon with a clatter. She then closed the box, her fingers paling as she squeezed it. Tiffany asked, "What's wrong?" Sue didn't answer immediately. "It's nothing. I need to go, something urgent…" She then stood up and threw on her coat, still holding on to the box of cake. And with that, she was gone, slamming the door shut behind her. Tiffany muttered, "What the heck? It's very late, and it's dangerous out there." Bobo's eyes were on her screen as she replied casually, "What could happen anyway? She'd call us if there's trouble." I alone was silent as I took my phone and lay down in bed. It felt like every second since then slowed down, all the way until 2am. Every light in the dorms was out, with Tiffany's curtains pulled up while Bobo's bunk was dead silent too. Only my phone screen was still glowing, as I was sipping through my school group. Eventually, a new post with three images attached popped up. The first image was a dimly lit hallway in the hospital. The second was a toxicology report, with all the highlights marked in red. The third was a white box with a pink ribbon. The logo was blurred out with mosaic, but I recognized that box—it was the same box I had put on Sue's desk. And the caption of the image post was: [Midnight trip to the ER. Got sick from the tiramisu my roommate bought for me.] My fingers paused, my eyes apathetic under the screen's glow. I eventually swiped down to the comments section, which obviously blew up. [What?! Your roommate poisoned you?!] [Is the stall's tiramisu the problem? OP, please clarify!] [Learn to read. OP said 'the tiramisu her roommate bought'. It wasn't the stall.] [Who's the roommate? Please clarify!] [Whoa, OP is a candidate for postgraduate admission. Don't tell me…] [No censors! Never protect criminals!] [Zoe Jackson, foreign language faculty. No need to thank me.] The post was made an hour ago, but the comments had reached 3,000. The shares and reposts were still continuing, with the number of likes still climbing. [Bored of studying and wanting to try life as a criminal?] [She looks so down-to-earth too. Those types are the scariest.] [Rumor has it she was on bad terms with the victims. Probably just jealous.] [Elaborate on that, please?] [I was in the next room—the girls were fighting and they were all defending Sue, but Zoe doubled down. I kept swimming down. [The toxicology results were 'industrial alcohol'. That stuff leaves you blind—Sue is lucky to walk away with illness.] [Did you call the cops? You really should!] [Is OP alright? Is she alive?] Sue eventually replied: [Thank you everyone for your concern. I'm hooked up to an IV after dialysis. I didn't call the cops because I'm scared… Zoe was always good to me…] With the crying emoji attached behind, the comment section blew up again. [Call the cops! You have to!] [You'd be complicit in murder if you don't!] [No settlements! Who knows when she will do it again!] [@MontjieuEdu You have to deal with this.] Chapter 4 I opened my eyes, hearing the rush of footsteps down the hallway outside. The scrape of heavy leather boots was especially loud and relentlessly as it closed in. It was just 7 am, but the door was open and soon crowded. There were two police officers, our lecturer Ms. Zims, as well as Sue who was kept on her feet by Tiffany. Everyone knew, just as the prophecy foretold. And everyone was talking about it behind my back, never asking me about it and quietly agreeing I was guilty. No one thought to defend me as they all took Sue's side, backing her up to harass me. Sue's eyes were red and swollen, the toxicology sheet in her hand almost crumpling while she wobbled, half-leaning on Tiffany's chest. Seeing me wake up, she burst into tears, "Sue… It's just a spot for postgraduate admission, but you had to hurt me? Aren't we friends?" She was just loud enough that everyone in the middle heard and gasped. A spot for postgraduate admission? That was so true—Sue Lynd wanted to destroy my life over a spot for postgraduate admission! Did his woman even have an ounce of conscience?! I leaped out of bed, feeling the coolness of the floor against my bare feet. Ms. Zims was glaring at me, her bespectacled gaze judgmental as she growled. "You poisoned the tiramisu? I'm not listening—go talk to the cops yourself. Admin made it very clear that your spot for postgraduate admission is now revoked, and given to Sue Lynd in compensation." She paused, her lips curling downstairs as she finished, "Because nutjobs like you don't deserve it." Whispers echoed down the hallway, with the doors open and heads and phones poking out. The police officers strode up. "Come with us to assist with the investigation." They weren't even asking for my cooperation, but telling me to go with them. "It wasn't me," I said coldly. Sue promptly wailed right then, "I always ate from that same stall and never had any problems! But I got poisoned as soon as you bought one for me?! Who else can I trust? Who else could it be?! Tell me! Why did you do this to me?! Why?! Tell me, Zoe!!!" The whispers grew even louder from her outburst, clearly in agreement. "It's definitely her. Honestly, this is my first time seeing someone this terrible." "And she's so calm… Now that's some nerves of steel." I looked down the hallway, and the heads that were poking out promptly hid into their rooms, but their phones were still out, their camera flashes aimed at me and recording. Tiffany, still holding up Sue, shot me a look of utter disgust. "Always acting like you're above it all, but we all see who you really are now!" I wasn't watching her, however, as I walked straight to Sue, picking up the scent of medicine clinging to her body. Her hair was disheveled, her lips pale and her eyes red—the exact appearance of a tragic victim. Still, I looked into her tearful eyes as I asked, "You really think I poisoned you?" Her voice cracked as she shot back, "Or, what? Who else could it be? Tell me!" Her tears rolled down her cheeks too, at an angle where everyone could see. I simply held her gaze for a moment, and walked to my desk to pick up my phone. "Last chance, Sue Lynd. Are you really sure I poisoned you?"