Sphinx of the Feed

Maya's iPhone buzzed for the third time in homeroom. She knew without looking—the_bull had struck again. Her stomach did that familiar flip as she caught the notification: a screenshot of her old Artstagram post with the caption 'try-hard alert 💀' reshared to the school's anonymous confessions page.

'Everything good?' Mr. Harrison asked, startling her.

'Fine,' Maya mumbled, shoving her phone deeper into her hoodie pocket. Outside, the Montana sun hit the pasture behind the school—she could see the actual bull, old Otis, lumbering along the fence line. Something about his stubborn, unbothered energy made her feel a little better.

That night, Maya couldn't sleep. She opened her phone and scrolled through a new game she'd downloaded—'Riddles of the Sphinx.' It was supposed to be this mystical puzzle adventure, but honestly? She just needed something to occupy her brain so she wouldn't check the confessions page again.

The first sphinx appeared on her screen, all pixelated wings and glowing eyes. *What has a face but never speaks, runs but never walks, and can capture moments but never keep them?*

Maya stared at the words. Something about it felt... familiar. The answer was so obvious she almost typed it out: *A phone.* But then she paused.

Because that wasn't the real answer, was it?

*Your phone captures moments,* she typed instead. *But YOU decide if they keep hurting you.*

The sphinx glitched. New text appeared: *Brave answer. What else disappears when you stop feeding it?*

Maya's thumbs hovered. *Attention.* *Fear.* *Power.*

She'd blocked the_bull by midnight. By Friday, someone else had become the new target—just like she knew would happen. But that was the thing about bulls: they only charged when you waved the red flag. Maya had learned to put hers down.

Her iPhone still buzzed sometimes. But now? She actually looked forward to seeing what was waiting.