Jen, a typical teenage girl who has been going through puberty, struggled to build her social skills. For her, it wasn’t easy to have regular conversations with friends and family. As Jen was spending her darkest and loneliest days, she came across an app called the Fortune Applier 44. The app granted 44 wishes, and it was for those who needed a change in their depressing lives. Although Jen doubted if the app would work, she decided to test it out by saying something random, for she desperately needed something to hold onto. She said, “I want a piece of cake.” Immediately, her parents brought her the cake on a 60% sale. After experimenting with it 40 times, she discerned three rules that the app adhered to:
- The Fortune Applier 44 makes all wishes come true.
- The more complex the task is, the more time it takes for The Fortune Applier 44 to get it done.
- When given a difficult task, The Fortune Applier 44 injures a nearby person.
Using up most of her wishes in experimenting, Jen felt stupid. Those three rules that she figured were meaningless — her life had no change, and she continued to struggle with building human relationships.
One afternoon, driven by a sudden spurt of anger on school assignments and a long-lasted burden of final exams, Jen impulsively asked The Fortune Applier to make her a valedictorian. As complicated as the task was, the Fortune Applier 44 pointed to level 3, which was high enough to hurt neighboring individuals. First, the Fortune Applier 44 asked, “The accomplishment of this task will severely injure your classmate, John. Is this fine with you?” Jen ferociously typed “Yes.” The Fortune Applier 44 answered, “John will plunge from the 2nd floor of your school in 05:00 minutes.” Immediately, the app began a 5-minute count-down. Looking at the count-down, Jen immediately knew she was wrong. Jen dashed to her teacher for help, but the teacher merely thought she was acting weird as usual. So, Jen ran out of class to investigate the 2nd floor where John might fall. As soon as the count-down turned to 00:00, she saw John falling from the window. Everything happened quickly for Jen. Thankfully, there was a thick mat on the floor, which saved him from death. After John’s severe concussion, she experienced an epiphany that she should change herself rather than wait for a miracle: if she does not change, everything remains the same.
By: Minjung Kwon