Ben stared at the chip selection. Why did they have so many flavors now? Deep dish pizza chips, Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup chips. Who buys this shit? Best to go with the classics. Salt and Vinegar and Barbecue. The snacks were for an upcoming get-away weekend at a cottage belonging to his girlfriend's friend. Four other couples were going, which meant Ben had to come out of his introverted shell and socialize. Not that he didn't like socializing, but the guest list left little to be desired.
First there was his girlfriend's sister, Stephanie and her meat-head boyfriend, Dalton. She was once the cheerleader and he was once the starting quarterback. They managed to carry their relationship into college, but Ben was waiting for the day it all fell apart. Dalton was a few years younger than Ben and trying to converse with him outside of sports was like talking to a wall. Stephanie was no better. Since high school, guys were pumping her with self-esteem over the slutty photos she posted, turning her into narcissistic monster. The only good thing was that she was too dumb to understand her full influence over men. Although both equally beautiful, Stephanie was nothing like her sweet, intelligent sister, Tiffany.
Trish and Mark, two stoners that Ben didn't mind hanging out with, were also coming. Mark was always good for a laugh, especially after a few hours of smoking. Trish was a female carbon copy which made them perfect for each other. Laurence and Elizabeth were the most successful couple. He was an engineer working on confidential projects and she was a medical doctor. The conversation with them often steered into a technical bore that felt equivalent to reading a research paper.
The last couple coming were Sally and Greta, two lesbians. Tiffany was roommates with Greta in college and kept in touch. When she came out of the closet and introduced Sally, Tiffany wasn't surprised. If they lived together any longer, Greta probably would have turned her too.
Ben and Tiffany set out on their drive with their favorite playlist on. He liked the long ride for thinking and conserved his energy for the socializing. All the parties went the same way. They'd show up, stand around awkwardly, eat, play drinking games and then pass out. That would be fun if it were with his friends. But it wasn't, which made it more work than play.
Ben and Tiffany were second last to arrive. Mark and Trish were always fashionable late because they liked to smoke up before coming. After putting their luggage in their room, Ben and Tiffany joined the party with a beverage in hand. Girls and guys separated, leaving Ben to fend for himself.
"What's up Ben." Dalton said.
He was a douche, but he liked Ben which made him friendly. The way he treated Laurence was the complete opposite, like he was subconsciously fulfilling the bully and nerd stereotype. Laurence took it in stride and never seemed bother. Ben made it a game to think of comebacks on Laurence's behalf since the guy had no creativity whatsoever. Once Mark showed up, Dalton laid off the chirps and talked sports and weed with Mark.
"Now that we're all here, I have a surprise for this party." Laurence said.
Laurence worked on confidential stuff, maybe he was allowed to test something.
"What kind of surprise?" Ben asked.
***
Tiffany circled her finger around her wine glass. Stephanie joined her with a glass of her own as they watched Elizabeth converse with Sally and Greta.
"Like I didn't think you and Ben would come... well mostly Ben." Stephanie said.
"He knows this is important to me." Tiffany said. "I don't get to see everyone like I used to.
"Who knows how long this will even last, there's like a lot of tension." Stephanie said. Her eyes narrowed on Elizabeth.
"Steph, they only dated for like two months."
"Yah. The two months that we took a break and from what I heard; it was nothing but a fuck fest." Stephanie said clenching her glass. "And now we have to come to her cottage where they probably did most of it."
Tiffany knew her sister detested Elizabeth, but the awkwardness didn't end there. Laurence had also dated Greta around the same time before she switched teams, leading everyone to believe it was his lackluster performance in bed that sealed the deal. This didn't comfort Stephanie because if Laurence couldn't satisfy Greta, then he surely couldn't satisfy Elizabeth, which made her flirty, promiscuous and ready to cheat. A recipe for a potential drama filled night.
Laurence entered the room carrying a fancy looking wooden box with the rest of the guys in tow.
"All right, can I have everyone's attention." Laurence said. "Tonight, we are going to play a new game being developed by the company I work for, Kollar Tech. I need you to download the app and I will give you the pass code to access the game in its full form."
Laurence opened the box and inside it had pairs of rings. Half of the pair were a black wedding band each accented by a different color and the other half were diamond engagement rings with different colors engraved at the bottom of the band. He explained that each ring was synced by color and that each couple would receive a pair of rings. Once they had the App ready, they were to enter their information and take a selfie of themselves to allow the App to connect each person with their ring.
Tiffany found the app called Transform or Dare. An obvious play on the popular game Truth or Dare, but what did Transform mean? Was this a role-playing game like Dungeons and Dragons? She entered her details and took the selfie with her patented duck face lips and bedroom eyes. The kind of pic that would get thousands of likes on social media.
Once everyone was set up, Laurence directed them to grab a seat in the living room.
"Okay, the game is called Transform or Dare and how it works is each couple will have to choose who does what. So for example, if I choose Transform, Elizabeth will choose Dare."
"What does transform mean?" Tiffany asked.
"That's a surprise." Laurence grinned.
"And what if we refuse?" Ben asked.
"I'm just telling you the rules. The App is smart technology, so it will decide what the consequences are." Laurence said. "Now if there are no more questions, once I hit begin, the game is on. Keep in mind anything that happens is permanent, so if nobody wants to play, now is your chance."
Tiffany and Ben looked at each other. Everything is permanent. He was trying his best to oversell the product. What could an App possibly do that would be permanent?
Laurence hit the start button and the App chimed.
***