Helltown

A window to a new reality

Tiff watched mesmerized at the glowing screen. As they waited for their father to come back from work, her son 14-year-old son was typing something while her daughter watched in the same state as her mother. The dog, a golden retriever they got three years ago, sat next to his stationary owners. With his tail apprehensively thumping, he let out a high-pitched squeal, wondering what made them this way.

"And when I type here, everyone can see," John said as a ‘Hello!’ popped on the computer screen. Replies dinged immediately, with seven or eight popping up on the small screen window.

"Awesome!" Nicky grinned staring.

"Yep, Josh showed me how to use it. It’s called a chat box," the boy said proud.

"How do you know who these people are?" his mother asked.

"You don't know."

"What do you mean you don’t know?" Tiff frowned.

"Well, you see, they don’t have to give their real name. Just a username. And you can add whoever you want."

"Sounds incredibly unsafe," his mother muttered.

"It’s not, it