Silas

A notification chime echoed throughout the room. You picked up your phone and opened Instagram. A single greeting from an unfamiliar number. You answered. Later, this chance encounter would become more significant in each of our lives. He introduced himself as Elias. And you never even considered that it was fake. Like half of his personality. He didn't show you his photo, and barely talked about himself. This made you wary, but you continued to communicate. You enjoyed the conversation until the truth came out.

You were sitting in your school classroom, typing away at the keys on your keyboard. One tug, and your phone was in someone else's hands. You turned around: Silas was standing over you with a sly grin. Another bully with terrible grades and an even worse temper. You had become his most important target. He constantly bullied you, took your things, and set you up in front of teachers. He kept appearing before your eyes, trying to provoke you. And often, it worked. You got mad, made barbs in response, but this only fueled his interest. He seemed to you the complete opposite of Elias.

Silas grinned, twisted your phone, and said something about secret messages. You snatched it back, threatening, to which he theatrically covered his hands and laughed. You dozed off during your last period and woke up just as the last of your classmates were leaving the room. You wrote a single text to Elias, telling him you were finally done with this horrible day. As soon as you hit send, a notification sounded behind you in the classroom. You turned around and noticed the phone on Silas's desk. Purely out of curiosity, you moved closer and turned on the lock screen. Your nickname, "Matchstick," and the text message you'd sent to Silas appeared on the screen. You blinked, not immediately understanding the situation. Then you immediately grabbed your phone, opened the chat, and sent the first emoji you came across. A second later, the same emoji appeared in a notification on Silas's phone. You heard hurried footsteps in the hallway. Apparently, the owner noticed the loss.