Trade or Dead

It was October 30th, the night before Halloween. I was at my desk, finishing up my market analysis. The room was silent except for the occasional creak of the floorboards. As midnight approached, a notification flashed—a stock alert for a ticker I didn’t recognize: “GR1M.” My system flagged it for “unusually high volume,” though it wasn’t in any sector I traded. Curious, I clicked on it.

The chart showed a peculiar pattern—steep rises and drops, repeating in a heartbeat rhythm. It was hypnotic, almost as if the stock itself was alive. Then, a message appeared:

“GR1M now available for after-hours trading. Take the risk for once.”

I hesitated but entered a small position, hoping for a quick profit. The moment I hit “Buy,” the price spiked, and a thrill ran through me. But soon, the excitement turned to dread—the stock began plummeting fast. I tried to sell, but my order wouldn’t go through. My screen glitched, flickering erratically.

Another message flashed:

“The deeper you go, the darker it gets.”

I panicked as my account began bleeding, not just in this position but across my whole portfolio. I tried logging out, even shutting down my computer, but nothing worked. Then, the screen went black. Silence filled the room as my heart pounded. Finally, a message appeared on the dark screen:

“Debt has been collected.”

And then, it was over. My screen returned to normal. Every trace of “GR1M” had vanished, and my positions were untouched—except for the money that had disappeared.

To this day, I’ve never told anyone. But every Halloween, around midnight, I catch a glimpse of the GR1M ticker in the corner of my screen, daring me to try again.