No one spoke.
Not at first.
The phone lay on the floor between them, its screen still glowing like it didn't understand the damage it had done.
Taye couldn't take his eyes off his sister.
She hadn't moved.
Not really.
Her body was there, collapsed on the floor… but everything else?
Gone.
"T… this isn't real…"
Her voice cracked.
Soft.
Broken.
Like she was afraid the truth would hear her.
Their mother slowly stepped closer.
"Give me the phone."
No one moved.
"I said give me the phone," she repeated, firmer this time.
Taye bent down and picked it up.
For a second, he hesitated.
Then he handed it over.
She looked at the screen.
And in that moment…
Everything in her face changed.
Not shock.
Not confusion.
Recognition.
She turned it off immediately.
Too quickly.
Like she couldn't bear even one more second.
"Everybody go inside," she said quietly.
"Mum…" Taye started.
"Inside."
This time, there was no arguing.
His father helped his sister up gently.
She didn't resist.
Didn't speak.
Didn't even look at anyone.
She just followed.
Like someone walking without knowing where they were going.
That night… the house changed.
No laughter.
No arguments.
No sound from the TV.
Just silence.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Suffocating.
Taye sat in his room, staring at his phone.
Messages kept coming in.
Notifications.
Mentions.
Forwarded videos.
He stopped opening them.
But they didn't stop coming.
Kola: Bro where are you??
Unknown: Omo this your sister??
Group Chat (23 messages)
Group Chat (51 messages)
Each vibration felt like a slap.
He clenched his jaw and turned the phone face down.
But even then… it still buzzed.
From the hallway, he could hear voices.
Low.
Tense.
His parents.
"We need to do something," his father said.
"What do you want to do?" his mother replied quietly. "It's already everywhere."
"Then we take it down!"
"And how do you plan to do that?"
Silence.
Taye stood up slowly and moved closer to the door.
Not opening it.
Just listening.
"We report it," his father said, but there was uncertainty in his voice now.
"Police. The platform. Someone"
"And tell them what?" his mother cut in.
"That our daughter is trending for something like this? You think they don't already know?"
Her voice wasn't loud.
But it carried weight.
The kind that presses down on your chest.
"She's just a child…" his father muttered.
Taye's chest tightened.
"She didn't deserve this," his mother said.
"No one does."
A pause.
Then...
"How did this even happen?"
That question hung in the air.
Unanswered.
Taye stepped back.
His mind was racing now.
Not with panic.
Not with fear.
But with something else.
The video.
He had only watched a few seconds.
But it was enough.
The angle.
The background.
The voices.
Something about it didn't sit right.
It didn't feel random.
It felt…
placed.
Deliberate.
His hands clenched into fists.
Who sent it first?
Who recorded it?
Why her?
Why them?
A door creaked open.
Taye looked up.
His sister stood at the end of the hallway.
Her eyes were red.
Not from crying.
From trying not to.
"Taye…"
Her voice was small.
Too small.
He walked toward her slowly.
Carefully.
Like she might break if he moved too fast.
"I didn't…" she started, shaking her head.
"I didn't send anything to anyone, I swear…"
"I know," he said immediately.
"I didn't even know that video was there…"
"I know."
She looked at him.
Really looked.
Searching his face for doubt.
For judgment.
For anything.
But there was none.
Only something else.
Something darker.
"…they're saying things," she whispered.
Taye swallowed.
"Don't listen to them."
"How?" she asked, her voice cracking.
"How do I not listen when it's everywhere?"
He didn't have an answer.
Because she was right.
It was everywhere.
"I can't go outside," she said.
"I can't even open my phone…"
Her breathing started to shake.
"They're sending it to me, Taye…"
His chest tightened.
Hard.
"Even people I don't know…"
She covered her face with her hands.
"I feel like… like everyone is watching me…"
Taye stepped forward and pulled her into a hug.
At first, she didn't respond.
Then slowly…
She broke.
Her body shook as quiet sobs escaped her.
"I didn't do anything…" she cried softly.
"I didn't do anything wrong…"
Taye held her tighter.
His jaw clenched so hard it hurt.
"I know," he whispered.
"I know…"
But inside…
Something was changing.
This wasn't just shame.
This wasn't just gossip.
This was destruction.
And it didn't happen by accident.
He pulled back slightly, looking at her.
"Did you tell anyone about that video?" he asked.
She frowned, confused.
"What video?"
"The one… before this one."
She hesitated.
Thinking.
Then slowly…
Her expression shifted.
"…there was something," she said.
Taye's heartbeat picked up.
"What?"
"I didn't think it mattered…"
"What did you see?"
She swallowed.
"I was out with my friends that day… and I was recording something…"
"Recording what?"
"I don't know… just random stuff…"
She paused.
"…but I think I captured something in the background."
Taye's eyes narrowed slightly.
"What kind of something?"
She shook her head.
"I didn't even watch it properly. It was just… there."
"And now?"
"I can't find it."
Silence.
Something clicked.
Not loudly.
Not obviously.
But enough.
Taye stepped back slowly.
The pieces weren't complete yet.
But they were forming.
And what they were forming…
Wasn't good.
Not good at all.
He looked at his sister again.
At her shaking hands.
Her broken expression.
Then at his phone.
Still buzzing.
Still spreading.
Still destroying.
His fingers curled into a fist.
This wasn't over.
It had just started.
And somewhere out there…
Someone knew exactly what they were doing.