Prank Gone Wrong Chapter 16

Prank Gone Wrong Chapter 16

Trial day. Cook County Courthouse. Every seat was filled.

Local news and true crime TikTokers had blown this case up.

I refused to hide. I sat in my wheelchair. Facing the whole courtroom.

Connor sat at the defendant’s table. Ill-fitting suit. Unshaven. A hollow puppet.

The moment he saw me, he shut his eyes in agony.

Harper sat on the other side. Even in court, her legal team had dressed her up. Innocent victim. Helpless lamb. Desperate for the jury’s sympathy.

The prosecutor played the surveillance footage.

The courtroom went silent. The wet crunch of breaking bone echoed off the walls. Harper’s feral screams filled the air.

Gasps rippled through the gallery.

A juror covered her mouth.

Harper’s high-priced defense attorney stood. His performance was slick.

“Ladies and gentlemen. This was not intentional harm. In a pitch-black, confined space, confronted by a figure dressed as a horror monster, my client’s primal fight-or-flight response activated.”

“Temporary psychological break. Excessive extension of legitimate self-defense. She’s a straight-A student. Not a cold-blooded killer!”

My lawyer shot up.

“Objection! The video clearly shows the defendant screaming ‘Die, monster’ while attacking. After identifying the victim, she said ‘Oh, it’s Maya’ and smiled. That is not a trauma response. That is cold, calculated, deliberate assault!”

The gavel came down.

The judge asked if I wanted to give a Victim Impact Statement.

I stood. Gripped my walker. With the bailiff’s help, I made my way to the microphone.

The courtroom was dead silent.

“Harper’s lawyer says she was scared.”

My voice carried through the speakers. Clear. Steady.

“Then I have a question for Connor. When you zip-tied me to that chair, industrial grade, so tight it cut off my circulation—were you scared too?”

“When you used me as a human shield for your selfish prank, did you think about my fear?”

I faced the jury.

“In that school, they were the popular ones. The quarterback. The rich cheerleader. So they thought they were above the rules.”

“They thought a girl like me—no connections, no money—would just take it. Who else was I going to complain to?”

My voice shook. Just slightly. I forced myself straighter.

“I lost my face. I lost my chance at MIT. I lost a normal life.”

“I used to think if I was obedient enough, I’d earn friendship.”

“I was wrong. Forgiving evil is the cruelest thing you can do to yourself.”

I turned. Fixed my stare on the defense table.

“I don’t accept settlements. I don’t accept apologies.”

“I’m asking this court to give them the maximum sentence. Not for me. For everyone who needs to hear this—other people’s lives are not your toys.”

I walked back to my seat. Slowly.

Quiet sobs rippled through the courtroom.

Connor collapsed onto the table. Sobbing.

And Harper’s face finally turned to ash.