The Corner: Mosaic 852, Susan Bertolino and Temple University by Brian Hamilton

The Corner: Mosaic 852, Susan Bertolino and Temple University

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"The Corner - A School Project"

Use no scoring.

South Fayette Street is south of the Corner. "[if South Fayette Street is unvisited] You find yourself about to reach the place where Fayette Street and Monroe Street meet. It's a mean neighborhood; little kids and adults have the same hard stare - the very stare that's directed right at you.

But you can't stop now. You've gotta get your fix. You gotta find that little kid, De-something. He's got what you need. 

Scratching at the scabs on your arm, you spot the kid up ahead, northward, standing on the sidewalk where the two streets converge - on the corner, with a bunch of his friends. Your grip tightens on the small wad of cash you managed to scrounge up. [end if][if South Fayette Street is visited] You are back on South Fayette Street. The Corner is north of you.[end if]"

Player is carrying wad of cash. The description of Wad of cash is "You managed to save this little amount up by not eating and by taking some of it from your mother. You're not proud of that."




The Corner is north of South Fayette Street. DeAndre is a man in the Corner. "[if the Corner is unvisited] You hurry up to the corner, taking in a quick view of your surroundings. The buildings here are dilapidated - you can't remember what that word really means, but you know how it feels - and the people are even more worse off. There's a reason why people like you come here, and why people like them live here. 

That kid notices you, DeAndre, that's his name, and the little group - gang, you remember - gets quiet. You walk up to him, and the little guy looks you up and down. You nearly panic when you recognize the bulge of a gun in the kids pants, but you snap out of it when you here the kid's voice. It sounds annoyed. 

'I said, you got something for me, white boy? Or you just gonna stand there all day?'[end if][if the Corner is visited] You're back on the Corner. The kid and his gang talk, but they occasionally take a glance at you.[end if]"

Instead of showing the wad of cash to DeAndre:
	say "'Oh, so is that what you want? To bad you don't got enough, white boy'. DeAndre jerks a thumb to the east. 'Go get some piping from that ol' abandoned house and sell it to Jackie Z. Then come back with the cash and I'll give you want you want.'"

Instead of showing Jackie Z's money to DeAndre:
	say "You show the money you got from Jackie Z to DeAndre. He takes it, looks it over, and seems to approve. 'Alright,' he says, jerking a thumb over his should, 'head over west and find the find the house on the south side of the street. There'll be a guy - Fat Curt - waiting for you. Tell 'em DeAndre sent you and they'll let you in.' He goes back to talking to his friends, and you have the strangest itch in the back of your head, something remembered that you were supposed to say. But it's too late now - the promise of relief is nearly at hand, and the boy and his gang quickly fade from  your thoughts as you walk away."




East Monroe Street is east of the Corner. Jackie Z is a man in East Monroe Street. "[if East Monroe Street is unvisited] You're now on East Monroe Street. An abandoned house is on the north side, clearly ransacked by other fiends like you. A man on the opposite side of the corner, obviously Jackie Z, watches you without ever managing to look in your direction. When you try to approach him, he gives you a look that basically tells you to fuck off, right now.[end if][if East Monroe Street is visited]You're back on East Monroe Street. Jackie Z's got his eye on you.[end if]"

Instead of showing the brass piping to Jackie Z:
	say "Jackie Z looks down at the piping you've got. 'Dat for me?' he asks. You nod, and he takes the piping from you - the bulge of a pistol in his pants waist painfully obvious. He hands out another wad of dollars. 'Here. Take it and get the fuck outta my face, shithead.'"
		
In East Monroe Street is Jackie Z's money. The description of Jackie Z's money is "Don't try taking this unless you've got something Jackie wants. Seriously. Don't do it."




The Abandoned House is north of East Monroe Street. "[if Abandoned House is unvisited] You make your way into the decrepit house. It's pretty obvious this place has been picked clean. Your arm is itching like crazy, and it feels like the back of your eyes are screaming. You gotta get your fix fast. 

You almost jump when you hear a voice behind you. 'You looking for this?' You turn around to see an African-American man sitting in the corner, brass pipe sitting on the wall next to him. He gesture to it. 'You wanna sell this to Jackie, yeah?'

You find yourself nodding before you can actually think his question through. The man smiles, revealing rotten teeth. It's obvious that he was once a young man, future bright and body strong - a lot like you were, just a few months ago. The drugs he's taken have done a lot to the guy. 

'Tell me,' he asks, 'is that kid on the corner making you do this? DeAndre?' You tell him yes, and the smile disappears. 'It's sad, you know?' he says, his eyes getting misty. 'Kid had a bright future. So did I, you know?' He shakes his head. 'I fucked that all up. It's the drugs - they make you feel good, sure, for a little while. But after that,' he makes a feeble gesture,' after that, it's all downhill from there.'

He stops to think. 'You can have the pipe, but do me a favor?' You nod, and he goes on: 'Ok, I cheated. Two favors. One, try to get off this shit, ok? As soon as possible. For your own sake.' He stops again. 'And when you see DeAndre... tell him Greg said hi, ok?' [end if][if Abandoned House is visited]You're back in the Abandoned House. Greg's gone.[end if]"

Inside the Abandoned House is brass piping. The description of brass piping is "This should be enough. At least, you hope it will be."




West Monroe Street is west of the Corner. "[if West Monroe Street is unvisited]You're on West Monroe Street. The drughouse is fairly obvious: other fiends (like me, you think. Do I look like that? Pale? Sickly? Dying? Then the thoughts are gone) scurrying in and out of a semi-rundown pair of townhouses. Another African American man is sitting on the steps of the building, trading a few words with those going in and out.

Even from this distance you can tell he's just as sick as anyone else here. His arms and legs are bloated with rot and disease, and whenever he wants to move he's forced to use a battered old cane. You try not to grimace as you approach.

When you reach the man, you take a moment you get your arm to stop shaking, and then address the man: 'You Fat Curt?' 

The man looks you up and down and nods. 'I am. Who're you?'

'Nobody,' you reply. 'But DeAndre sent me.' The man looks to your left, and you turn to see one of the kids' gang members confirming this and then running back to his pack. 

You turn back to the man, who fixes his gaze on you. 'You know what you're doing?' he asks.

You let out a nervous little laugh and grip your arm tighter. 'Yeah. Not my first time, you know?'

The man - Fat Curt - shakes his head. 'Yeah, I do. Go ahead inside.'[end if][if West Monroe Street is visited]You're back on West Monroe Street. Fat Curt sits on the drughouse stoop, whistling a tuneless song.[end if]"




The Drughouse is south of West Monroe Street. "[If the Drughouse is unvisited] You enter the drughouse. Inside are a couple of dozen people strewn about in multiple states - the agony of sobriety, the ecstasy of intoxication, and all the highs and lows of in-between-ness. You spot one - a girl, no older than you, pretty once - with tears streaming down her face as she tries to find a vein that has retreated in a vain attempt to spare her. You know she'll get that rush sometime, though - someone else will help her.

'Help' has never sounded so ironic to you before now. 

You make your way the back, multiple items in hand - needle, bottlecap, rubber hose, plastic lighter from the gas station. And there, you see it.[end if]"

Inside the Drughouse is The Stuff. The Stuff is edible. The description of The Stuff is "You need it You need it You need it You need it You need it You need it You need it You need it You need it YouneeditYouneeditYouneeditneeditneeditneeditneedneedneedneedneed..."

After eating The Stuff:
	say "You heat the cocaine in the bottlecap, and you can feel that monstrous hunger in the dark corners of your consciousnesses rearing up to take control even as the saner portions of your mind scream at you to stop. The image of Greg, Curt, DeAndre, and the girl all flash through your head in rapid succession, and for a moment you pause. But your strength falters and your animal mind takes over - the rubber hose is tied, the needle filled, tapped, and then jabbed into the flesh of your inner elbow. There's a moment's pain and an eternity's regret, then the plunger slams home and you're gone gonegonegonegone flying, happy, content, everything's great, a-ok, fuzzy, warm, darkening, blackness... ";
		end the game in victory.