Black Shark

Gabe paused the video, the bright screen of his phone nearly blinding him in his dark room. He glided his finger along the cool glass, appreciating the effort behind re-watching the video. It began replaying and satisfaction rolled over him. On the screen was a shark, dragged onboard a commercial fishing boat. The shark thrashed slightly, prepared to bite with its massive mouth and seemingly surprised at the weight of its own body out of the water.

It could thrash all it wanted but nothing would stop the terror about to beset it. A Japanese fisherman stepped close, coldly evaluating the creature. With a practiced hand he deployed a knife that cut through the cartilage like butter. One fin gone, the shark’s eyes remained black and shiny but a new understanding had entered them. The shark didn’t show its pain, only its intelligence. It knew what had happened and what would happen. The other fins came off quickly. Gabe wondered what shark fin soup tasted like as he watched the crew push the giant beast back into the sea to sink.

This, he knew, was what he wanted to do to Amelia. She was so smart and so beautiful. She would give him the cold, knowing look he needed as penitence when he vanquished her. The sheer helplessness she would endure as the world went to work finishing her off. She was his shark. Her fins were easy to see. Social media was the boat she had already boarded. He needed to cut her fins off and let her sink into the sea of negativity, or worse, silence. She would struggle and suffocate. She would try to hide her fear and despair just as that shark had. Gabe quickly masturbated, imagining her tears, then set about planning until his tired brain drifted off to oblivion. His revenge would manifest itself, he was certain.

The next day he researched deep fake programs. He determined he had enough footage on his own phone to begin his project. He accessed a darkweb site and quickly made contact with Hei Sha. Hei Sha would do as he was asked and only wanted to keep the deep fake creation for his own purposes. Gabe assumed it would be porn and happily agreed. He paid in crypto.

The result was astounding in its realness. The edges of Amelia’s mannerisms were a bit choppy but the overall effect was on point. Gabe spent a night watching her and remembering when they were happy together. He debated asking Hei Sha to make more of her, give him access to any of the fantasies a stranger had made her perform in. In the end he slept with his phone clutched near his heart.

Gabe was nervous as he walked toward the school. This was the day he got to see her look at him like a shark with its fins being severed. He entered the school grounds and opened his social media apps. He picked the deep fake Amelia files and began uploading them. He was too nervous to make eye contact with anyone. A sense of relief and also exposure washed over him as he filed through the front door.

Gabe had barely sat down in first period when the principal arrived at the door and informed his teacher that he would be leaving class. Gabe gathered his belongings, steeling himself against potential interrogation. The principal, Mrs. Sloane, was silent as she led him to her office. As they entered the room the two waiting occupants stood up. Gabe’s mind went quiet and numb. They flashed badges and he declined to answer any questions. His parents were called to pick him up, as he was suspended pending a criminal investigation. As he waited, trying to pinpoint what had gone wrong, the school bell rang. Students joked and jostled each other as he watched them from a small nondescript door window. As the second bell rang to signal tardiness, one last figure appeared in the window. Amelia. She looked directly at him and was wearing a black long sleeve shirt with white lettering: “Hei Sha.” Black shark.

Amelia watched Gabe’s eyes as they transitioned from shock to understanding. Watched the intelligent knowing that passed into them. Now he understood and there was nothing he could do. His fins were gone and he knew what came next.