Geometry Dash Story Collection

Story - The Bake Stall

Response to @jataly's idea (Xstep nearly cheats Hexagon Force of her bake stall)

*takes place 2 years before the bios*

saved sentence: I was caught in a trap, spun so thin and so strong that I could not tell where the walls begin and end.

Hexagon Force had never wanted it to get this bad.

It had started with a favor, a simple request from Xstep. One turned into many. Then came his apparent help to man her stall for her while she was busy (with his favours, in fact).

Now, she was being relentlessly bullied and harassed for supposedly stealing Xstep's bake stall from him and passing it off as hers.

So, how did it all go so wrong?

...

- Hexagon Force's PoV -

*After school*

"Hey Hexa! Would you mind helping me bring these files to Cody? I'm busy now." asked Xstep.

"I'm sorry, I have to rush home to quickly finish my homework." I replied, smiling. "I have a bake stall to run, remember?"

On hearing my words, I saw a flash of - is it greed? Excitement? - on Xstep's face. I blinked. His face was pleading and almost apologetic. Brushing it off, I turned and continued to pack my bag.

"But you can help, just this once, right?" pleaded Xstep. "I need to quickly get back home, too!"

I sighed. Helping others had always been in my nature, and I could hardly turn down a classmate's request. I nodded and took the files from Xstep, before running ahead of him to get to the staffroom.

...

The next day, as I walked past his seat to get to my desk, he waved at me and thanked me for my help. I smiled and thanked him back. It was only right to help a friend in need, after all.

However, Xstep's "needs" didn't end there.

Over the next few weeks, Xstep kept asking me for more and more favors, each taking longer than the last. At first, I didn't take notice, but as the requests grew more and more frequent, I tried to turn them down. However, I didn't expect Xstep to turn it into a shouting match, one of my worst fears.

After that, I stopped resisting him, afraid of what he might try to pull next. It was as if he knew me too well. It was really no use. Whatever I did, he would find a way back to me. It was like I was paralyzed, unable to help myself as my worst fears played out before my eyes.

When the errands I was sent on came every other day, I realized I couldn't continue to do them without seriously compromising my bake stall. I was scared. Too scared. I didn't know how to tell Xstep that. But when I did, slowly and carefully bringing up the topic, Xstep just... laughed.

"So THAT'S what you wanted to tell me?" Xstep giggled, as if I had told a joke. Is this some kind of trick to get me to lower my defenses? I wondered.

After Xstep stopped laughing, he turned back to me. "Hexa, I can help you man your bake stall. Don't worry, I have experience in selling things. I'll give you most of the profits, because it's after all your bake stall, not mine."

"Thank you!" I breathed. I really didn't expect this encounter to nn.   Tp go so well. Usually if I asked Xstep for anything, he would try to escalate the situation, turning it on its head till I didn't know if I was coming or going.

Now, it was like he was a different person altogether. Taking advantage of the situation, I quickly dashed off to run his latest errand, leaving the situation before he could escalate it again.

This new arrangement came as a relief, as I could continue to save up the bake stall's profits while keeping the peace with Xstep. Soon, the number of days I was free to go the the bake stall dwindled and eventually vanished. It was during that period where I was most grateful for Xstep's help. It seemed to go so well, but little did I know that this was just another strand of spider silk in the trap woven to catch me.

One day, when I walked into class, many heads turned to glare at me. Shocked, I quickly walked to my seat and sat down. The dirty looks and side-eyes followed me there. I was puzzled at why I was being stared at, as I was usually one to keep my head down and not attract attention. Why I was now the subject of contempt was beyond me.

I was soon about to get my questions answered. When I was finally in the canteen, I walked to my usual spot with the rest of the Science club. However, when I got there, I saw Electrodynamix stand up and walk over to me.

And this time, it wasn't to chat.

"Hexa, I'd have thought better of you." he spat. "Why you decided to steal Xstep's bake stall and lie to us about it is beyond me."

It was like an ice cube had slipped into my stomach. I tried to defend myself, but it was no use. Furthermore, Electrodynamix's shouts had basically broadcasted my alleged guilt to the entire cohort. From there, I knew I had lost. Knowing that I was truly no longer welcome among my closest friends, I turned to leave.

I sat at an abandoned corner of the canteen, crying as I ate my lunch. Just then, the person I least wanted to see appeared beside me.

"Hexa, I'm sorry about the rumors." Xstep smoothly apologized. "I swear, I had no idea how they came about."

"Really?" I sniffled.

"Yeah. Oh, and please don't get all emotional on me. Gross." Xstep laughed. "Anyways, it's okay. No one expected this to happen. I'm not mad at you."

"Thanks." I told him. At least I'm not alone, I thought.

We soon finished our lunch and returned to class. Now knowing that it was just some rumors, I could bear the taunts and looks. After all, rumors dissipate. Why rock the boat? Soon, however, things got exponentially worse.

Xstep's support grew more and more marginal, and the rumors just got more hateful. Soon, not only did Xstep's help vanish, so did the profits from the bake stall. I was left alone, isolated, with my savings cut off as well. I tried to ask for help, but everyone believed I was a liar and a thief.

I was caught in a trap, spun so thin and so strong that I could not tell where the walls begin and end. Each day was like a new strand of silk around my neck, coiling ever tighter, threatening to cut off my air supply. Through all this, I was still doing Xstep's errands for him, now completely forgetting they were once his.

Until... all of that vanished.

First was Xstep's help for the bake stall. Then came the lifting of the errands. Lastly, it seemed like the rumor mill was wiped clean. It was like everything had changed, in a good way. I could restart my life anew. And restart my life I did. I patched up my friendship with the Science club, who seemed willing to forget this entire thing even happened. I redid my bake stall, with help from Fingerdash and Clubstep.

And Xstep? He was too gone without a trace. He had weaseled himself out of trouble, and that was it. Aside from attending lessons as usual, he never really did anything else. He had escaped with a month's worth of profits, as well as avoiding exposure for what he had done. Although I hoped to see him punished, I knew that whatever I did would probably make things worse at best, or get myself caught back in the web at worst.

I can only say, I was lucky to get away with minimal injury.

(end)