The $100 Bride:

As a recent college graduate, I was struggling to find a job that would match my qualifications. It had been months since I graduated, and the bills were piling up. Every morning, I would sit in front of my computer, scrolling through job listings, hoping to find something that would finally end my unemployment.

One day, while I was browsing through social media, I came across a post that read: "I'll give you $100 if you tell my mom I'm unemployed." I was intrigued. It seemed like an easy way to make some quick cash. I messaged the person, and we agreed to meet up to discuss the details.

We met at a coffee shop, and the person explained the situation. He had been unemployed for months, but he didn't want to tell his mom. She was constantly pressuring him to find a job, and he didn't want to disappoint her. He offered me $100 to call his mom and pretend to be his employer. I would give her a fake name and a fake company, and I would tell her that her son had just landed a job. It sounded easy enough, and the $100 would come in handy, so I agreed.

That night, I called the mom, pretending to be the person's employer. I told her that her son had just been hired and that he would start working the next day. She was overjoyed, thanking me repeatedly for hiring her son. I hung up, feeling guilty but also relieved that I had made some easy cash.

Days turned into weeks, and the person who hired me continued to pay me to keep up the lie. It was starting to become a routine. I would call the mom every week, pretending to be her son's employer, and she would be happy to hear about her son's progress. Meanwhile, her son continued to live his life as an unemployed individual.

As the weeks passed by, I started to feel worse about what I was doing. I was deceiving someone who trusted me, and it wasn't worth the $100 I was getting paid. I decided to confront the person who hired me and tell him that I couldn't continue with the lie.

I met him at the same coffee shop where we first talked about the job. He seemed agitated and asked me why I wanted to stop. I explained that it wasn't right to deceive someone, especially someone's own mother. He pleaded with me, saying that he couldn't tell his mom the truth because he didn't want to disappoint her. He begged me to continue with the lie, but I refused.

I left the coffee shop, feeling guilty but also relieved that I had put an end to the deception. A few days later, the person who hired me called me again, apologizing for his behavior and thanking me for being honest with him. He told me that he had finally landed a job, and he didn't need me to pretend anymore.

Looking back, I realized that the $100 bribe wasn't worth it. It was a desperate attempt to make some quick cash, but it ended up making me feel guilty and ashamed. I learned that honesty is always the best policy, and that lying to someone, especially a loved one, can have serious consequences.

In conclusion, my experience with the $100 bribe taught me a valuable lesson about the importance of integrity. No amount of money is worth sacrificing your values and principles. It may seem tempting to take shortcuts, but in the end, honesty and hard work always pay off.