Viral Humiliation

Sophia's POV 

"You haven't seen the news opera? Your bashed face is all over the internet!" Cassy said, suppressing a light giggle.

Hot tears welled up my eyes and my mouth remained open in horror. "What?" I whispered faintly, the news draining out every strength in me. Here I was, tending my red cheek and hiding myself in the confines of this mansion, ready to stay till it all went off, only to go viral on the internet already.

"You can check it out yourself. Any hashtag you type in, anyone at all, can bring up your bashed face in a second", she jeered coldly. Switching instantly to a softer tone, "But you know," she continued. "It's not the end of the world. Things just happen for a reason, you never—"

I shut her crap up before she could go on, and on with her nonsense. My fingers typed wildly on my screen as I rushed to see things for myself. I clicked the opera news and just a hashtag typed in, brought a dozen news feeds and trending topics listed out. 

#hot_slap#

#crybaby#

#memorial_saga#

#cheeks_turn_to_redwine#

#swollen_face#

#please_slapme#

#I need a_redcheek#

#slap_challenge#

#hate redwine_love redcheek#

I clicked the first, #hot_slap#. There I was looking so miserable in the video. It started with me running my mouth at a faster speed, showing the video was definitely manipulated to make me look like a chattering parrot. Then came the slap and the video automatically gave me a very red patch on my cheek with comedic laughter and jeering as the background sound. 

A drop of tears landed on my phone. It was so humiliating seeing myself on the internet, not as the classy fashionista but as someone made jest of.

I clicked the second, #crybaby#. It opened to where I was, sprawled on the floor with an exaggerated effect of an ocean flowing from my eyes and I was manipulated in the video to crawl around the hall like a baby. I couldn't bring myself to watch anymore as the tears started streaming down freely from my eyes. The videos were innumerable, each update adding more fuel to the other. It seemed as if unseen hands were behind the scenes, manipulating the videos and making me look so miserable.

"Mum!" I cried out and stormed out of the room to find her. At this point, I was a crying wreck. The tears stained my face, wiping off the ointment I'd applied earlier. 

"Mum!" 

"And make sure you send my regards to them, it was awesome having them at the memorial. Thank you for honoring our invitation", I heard Mother converse on the phone. She was relaxed in the living room when I stormed in.

She turned at once on seeing me and a frown twisted her features. I wailed loudly, crashing on the nearest couch, and she immediately covered her mouthpiece to avoid her caller from hearing my screams. "Alright then, have a good night's rest" " she said quickly and brought the call to an end.

"Mum!" I cried out all the more. "Do you know what's trending on news opera?" I managed to ask, amidst the tears.

She shook her head, wide-eyed, knowing it must be something serious, to make me cry like this. "What is that? What's going on?" She asked curiously, coming over to sit beside me. I handed the phone over to her and allowed the video play from start to finish. The sound alone made me kick my legs in the air in frustration and I resumed another round of weeping.

I heard the sound of a stifled laugh. And to my bewilderment, Mum had her hands over my mouth to keep her laugh noiseless and suppressed.

"Mum?", I couldn't believe my eyes. "You too? How is this funny to you?" I asked sadly, already moving an inch away from her in annoyance. 

She shook her head, smiling as she gazed at the screen. "I'm sorry dear. But you have to admit it's quite funny how these editors do this thing. I remember you were sitting on the floor, so how did they get you crawling around the hall like a baby?". She asked, her lips broadening to a wide grin that turned to a full-fledged laugh.

I snatched my phone from her hands, "Why are you laughing mum? It's not funny!" I said in rage, my knuckles turning white as I gripped the phone intensely. 

"Bella is the cause of all this, and yet her face barely showed in any of the videos." I whimpered without restraint. "The bloggers intentionally wiped her face off, while I'm the only one to be mocked!" 

"You can't tell since you haven't watched all the videos", she argued, her eyes sparkling with impatience. I could see it, she was eager to feed her eyes with the sumptuous comedy. "Get your phone let's watch the remaining videos and—" 

"No, that's enough!" I protested, hiding the phone behind me, and she laughed loudly after failed attempts to keep it in.

I stood up furious, and narrowed my eyes, my chest rising and falling in wild rhythm. "I'm beginning to think, that Cassy brat has a hand in this".

"Cassy Greys? Why do you think so?".

"Because she is the only person that can do something so sly. I'm sure she paid those bloggers to make the video more humiliating". I blurted out, fuming. 

And the only thought in my mind was revenge. "Well, I guess as it stands, I will have to honor her invitation to the ball. She just wait. Maybe hers will be worse than a red cheek!" I sneered, lips pouted in rage.  

"Watch it, Sophia. That's the heiress of the L&B group. If not for anything, we still need her for business", Mother pointed out and returned her attention to her phone.

I rolled my eyes. That was a fact. But I am nothing less than whatever Cassy is, I too deserve some respect, and since she has touched the fire, she should get ready to be burned.

"But how do I take it down, mum? It can't last another day on the news opera!", At this point, My eyes were botched in fear.

Mother sighed and dropped her phone aside, shifting her frame towards me. "That's what I've been thinking about too, but that's not a problem. We just need to water the palms of those hungry bloggers, and they will wipe it off the internet in a second". 

I sighed relievedly. "But we need to act fast before it keeps spreading". I murmured, folding my hands. I couldn't even think of the humiliation, especially the daggers in the comment section. 

Mother sighed heavily, shaking her head, her eyes fixed to a spot. "Bella!" she said, stressing every syllable of the name. "She's biting much more than she can chew, having to think that she only came for the memorial to sabotage it. That riffraff". Her voice carried a void, the kind that swallowed every trace of warmth.

I too felt irritated, remembering how she was tightly looped to my brother looking pretty and parading the hall like a queen. And instantly, I remembered. A deal. Mother and I were just in time to hear them conversing about a deal. "That reminds me, Mum", I turned to face her. "Alex mentioned something about a deal at the memorial, do you remember? What could that be?" 

We stared at each other silently. Because now, our thoughts were aligning, taking us back to the memorial hall where we both stood behind Alex and Bella unnoticed as they discussed the so-called deal.

Our gazes were puzzled ones, and all we did was search each other's eyes for a hint, a suggestion, anything fitting as the closest answer to the question. 

"Alex was strange at the house too. He has never acted the way he did with Linda. Do you think, it has something to do with the deal?" I queried, watching Mother's expression turn indifferent.

"Alex loves Linda," she responded confidently. Then snorted. "Would he want to change his feelings for her, because of whatever games he is playing with Bella? Well, Linda is my daughter-in-law and the one I will choose a thousand times over Bella, because she deserves to be a Hayes. So whatever game they are playing, then he should get ready to explain to me what that deal is all about."