A Fatal Dare

David was not stupid.

Don’t get him wrong, he had his moments just like everyone else but usually his mind is well put together. He stops, thinks, then acts. Compared to many other people, he is a very reasonable fellow.

Yet, David finds himself in a stupid situation caused by his own stupid decisions.

It had just been a stupid bet. After work, his closest colleagues had decided to hit the bar, have a few drinks, a good time, then go home to their respective partners. However, one particularly rowdy colleague had decided to elevate the fun even further with a game of truth or dare. He wasn't one for stupid party games like this but he was stupidly stubborn. So when it gets to his turn and he refuses to bend to their idiocy to then only be called a coward for backing out? It riles him up.

It was Martin who suggested the dare, his sworn enemy in the office. Martin would always assign work to him at the last minute, forcing him to rush through an ungodly amount of presentations, graphs and proposals for him to only complain that they were "not up to par with company standards” or whatever that meant. David despised the man.

When he proposed the dare everyone else had gawked and called him insane and he was inclined to agree. But that smug bastard had the most shit eating grin on his face, he could not let him have any sense of superiority in this situation. He was already David’s manager and he did not need another reason to feel like he was better than him.

That’s how he found himself here, balancing on a dangerously thin beam, over a dangerously tall height, doing a dangerously stupid thing.

Curse the alcohol in his system making rash decisions for him. All he had to do was attempt a handstand on this beam. Maybe, if he had been slightly more sober he would have realised how impossible this truly was. Surely no-one had expected him to actually take the dare, he could have laughed it off and moved on with his life. Unfortunately, David was extremely petty.

The pavement wasn’t even that far down, if he fell it would definitely hurt but there was a low chance of ending up in the hospital. Still, a feeling of unease swept throughout him. Something felt wrong. The ground started to move beneath him, swaying back and forth, or maybe that was him. He had quite a few drinks at the bar, he was not in the best state to attempt such a feat.

However, looking over to his group of friends made his decision resolute. Martin was standing at the front with his arm crossed, looking at him knowingly, like he had David all figured out. It made his blood boil.

With a new sense of determination, David steeled himself, glanced one last look at the ground below and then threw himself upwards into the air. Adrenaline rushed through his systems, sobering him up as he realised how much of a mistake this had been but he couldn't back out now. Finally, his hands met the solid beam and with all the strength he could muster, he hauled himself up and straightened his entire body.

After a few seconds, he peaked one of his eyes open, not realising he had screwed them shut in the first place. He glanced over to the group on the roof, who had all turned upside down, watching him. Martin’s face had an expression of deep shock, wide eyes and mouth hanging open, arms outstretched as if he planned to grab David.

He’d done it. David smirked at Martin, this would show that egotistical bastard to never challenge him again. He was giddy, it felt so good to put someone in their place. David would never let the man live this down. He had bested him at his own game. Oh how he had severely underestimated him, now he would never make the same mistake again. This was the best day ever.

Unfortunately, David had not thought about how he would stand back upright. Panic fluttered through his veins as he realised he had no clue how to reverse the jump. If he fell sideways, maybe he could grapple onto the beam and crawl back over to solid ground with the rest of his peers.

Yes, this was obviously his best choice.

He started to fall to the side, desperately keeping his hands stead, but his legs swung past the beam and his lower body fell past, causing him to lose his grip. Scrambling for hold onto the beam his hands flung out. Pain shot through as his hand clasped onto his only life-line.

David looked up.

He had only one hand clasped onto the beam, already feeling strained from holding him up. Sweat dripped from his forehead. This was not how he saw his evening going, dangling from a dizzying height while his colleagues shouted his name from the safety of the rooftop, pacing back and forth, deciding whether to risk their own safety to help or keep their feet planted on the very firm and comforting floor beneath them.

His palm started to sweat from the exertion of keeping his body from falling. He needed a stronger hold, he needed to swing his body up, he needed to be safe, he needed a clear mind, he needed comfort. Panic was starting to fog his mind. Helpless and scared, he decided to try and swing his body back up. He could do that right? He couldn't hold his weight like this for long, he needed to do something, anything, he couldn't let himself fall.

As his other hand lifted for the beam, his fingers slipped and he suddenly found it rising from his reach.

Terror clawed its way to his throat, releasing a pleading shout as he fell to the floor. Cold wind flew past him, rustling his hair and clothes. The descent was freezing, ice running along his spine. What once would have been a refreshing cool breeze was now marking the journey of his fall. His body tilted, legs raising above his head as he stared down the approaching concrete.

It was too fast, too slow. He couldn't reach his demise fast enough and he was rapidly gaining on it. There was no escape. One quick thought slipped his mind that he was going to hit his head, that this was bad, that he would struggle to survive that.

There was no life flashing before his eyes, just regret. He could have avoided this, not taken the dare, let someone else be right for once, be less stubborn. Every decision in his life would have led to this point in time. He’d sealed his fate just because he couldn't let himself be viewed as lesser. His pride couldn't handle it.

How pathetic was that.

David could not accept that this would be his final choice, his last decision in life.

Yet, the truth sped closer like a bullet, not caring whether David could accept it or not.

His body hit the ground.