[ WP ] A fantastic new product just came out - when you drink it , you cease to exist for a day . Lately , some people drank it and came back ... changed .

“ Three B ’ s, Grace? ” 
 
 “ I mean, they ’ re hard classes. I ’ m pretty happy with it. ” 
 
 Her mom dropped the transcript to the floor. “ I don ’ t care if you ’ re happy with, you ’ re not the one paying for it. Christ Grace, do you realize how hard it is to get into med school? I... I can ’ t. ” 
 
 Grace stormed up to her room. *Well, this is as good a time as any. * She opened her dresser and found the Gone24 vial buried under some clothes. Without hesitation she uncapped it, tipped it back, and swallowed the concoction in one gulp. 
 
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 Grace woke the next day back on her bed. Her mind felt recharged but when she stood her body was aching a bit. She checked her phone and saw a thread of texts from her mom. The older ones seethed with anger but that gradually died down and by the end her mom was worried and apologetic. *Wow, great decision. * Grace responded to the texts in kind and drove back to her college. 
 
 As she walked to class she saw Dylan smiling and heading her way. 
 
 “ Hey Grace, ” he said. “ How you been? ” 
 
 Grace was one of the few people who always answered this honestly. “ Kinda lethargic. You know, I took my vial yesterday. ” 
 
 Dylan was shocked. “ You hadn ’ t taken it yet? You must ’ ve been one of the last to still have it. I could only wait a day or two, it sounded so fucking weird I had to try it! How was it for you? ” 
 
 “ Like nothing. ” 
 
 “ Exactly. Same for me. Is it weird to say I liked it? I ’ m sure once it ’ s actually released commercially everyone will try it. ” 
 
 *Could people get addicted to nothingness*, Grace thought, *because if so Dylan probably will*. “ It ’ s crazy that our college was picked. I mean, what are the chances? ” said Grace. 
 
 Dylan shook his head. “ It wasn ’ t random, the creator of the drink went to school here. He still keeps a house in our town. Anyways, I got ta go, I ’ ll be late for class. ” Dylan quickly lunged forward with his arms wide to give Grace a hug. 
 
 “ NO! ” yelled Grace. She had turned sideways and put up her hands in defense. Her eyes were closed, and when she opened them she saw many others staring back at hers. 
 
 Dylan backed away. “ I ’ m sorry Grace, I didn ’ t mean....I ’ ll just get going. ” He turned and jogged away. 
 
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 At lunch, Grace ate with Priyanka, DeShonda, and Kumiko. After they sat down she couldn ’ t wait. 
 
 “ Have any of you had your vial yet? ” 
 
 All three said some form of ‘ yes ’ together and nodded. 
 
 “ Did you feel weird the next day? ” said Grace. 
 
 Both Priyanka and DeShonda shook their heads, but Kumiko stared at her food. Then, “ I definitely felt weird, but to be honest I can ’ t place what it was. ” 
 
 “ Well, same, ” said Grace. “ Like, my body feels kind of strange, almost sore, and I ’ m pretty irritable. Just before class I completely snapped at Dylan for no reason. ” 
 
 DeShonda laughed. “ So the vial is making you have your period? ” 
 
 “ Funny. No, it ’ s not that, ” said Kumiko. “ Grace, the few days after I drank it, it was more than irritability. It was fear. I didn ’ t want to leave the house at all. I ’ m surprised you ’ re here, because if you ’ re experiencing what I felt I wouldn ’ t want to be on campus right now. Maybe you should go home. ” 
 
 “ Yeah, I think I will, ” said Grace as she got up from the table. “ I ’ ll see you guys later. ” 
 
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 Once home, Grace felt much worse than before. Her hands couldn ’ t seem to stop shaking, and the walk to the on-campus parking lot had taken much longer than usual because she went in circles trying to avoid a couple creepy men. Grace opened up Chrome on her desktop. She looked up Gone24 but the only two studies she found reported no side effects. However they weren ’ t conducted on humans, but monkeys. The only other data she could find was a brief article in the Huffington Post that stated the testing would continue in creator James Torrell ’ s hometown. *James Torrell. * Grace searched his name and, surprisingly, found no Wikipedia pages or biographies about him. Continuing down the results there was no substantive information other than his early career as a professor. Grace clicked on a link near the bottom and found his PhD thesis listed: “ Memory Nullification. ” All results associated with his thesis had been deemed ‘ pseudoscience ’ or ‘ non-replicable ’, and the actual thesis could not be found online. 
 
 *What the fuck is going on? * 
 
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 James Torrell was in his basement and he was sweating. Looking in the mirror he was satisfied with the physique he saw. He was 65 but could easily pass for fifteen years younger. He toweled the sweat off his shining pale body and grabbed the syringe from his bedside table before walking over to the equally sweaty, naked girl tied to his bed. He knelt down and whispered, `` I'll miss you Sofia. ” The girl squirmed and screamed when she saw the needle but quickly passed out after it entered her arm. Torrell untied her, clothed her, and carried her back to one of the transportation chambers, where she would remain until her 24 hours were up.
