My Livestream from the Police Station

I started a livestream in front of the city’s central police station. In front of thousands of online viewers, I picked up a brick and smashed thirty-eight shared bikes lining the street. As the comments flooded in—“She’s crazy,” “Someone call the cops on this psycho”—I smiled and held out my hands to the officers rushing out of the station. “Officers, arrest me. I can’t wait.” In my past life, I was the perfect scapegoat for my roommate and my boyfriend. They committed a massive fraud and theft that rocked our university, but they used my digital signature and fingerprints to make me the sole culprit. I had studied law for four years, only to become a victim of the very system I revered. I was sentenced to ten years in prison. My parents died of grief and shame. I thought I would finally see the light of day upon my release, but the day before I was due to get out, they arranged for me to have an “accident” in prison. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day they were set to spring their trap. Since they could fake evidence of my presence, I would create an alibi that the entire world could not deny. 1 I stood in front of the downtown police station, my livestream already running for ten minutes. The screen was a blur of scrolling comments: “This streamer is nuts,” “Somebody call the cops,” “This girl needs help.” I picked up a loose brick from the pavement and took aim at the neat row of shared bikes. The first hit dented a seat. The second twisted a wheel. The third sent the entire bike crashing to the ground. I kept going, one bike after another, my movements precise and brutal. The comments section exploded. People were trying to dox me, others were taking screenshots to report me. I smiled. This was exactly what I wanted. By the fifth bike, the sirens were wailing. I dropped the brick and flipped off the camera. “Remember this time: October 23rd, 2023, 8:00 PM sharp. This is Maya Lin, committing a crime.” Three officers charged toward me. The one in the lead tried to grab my phone. I cooperated by raising my hands, shouting, “It was me! I did it! Arrest me! I’m going to smash more!” A young officer frowned. “What’s wrong with you? Bad breakup?” “Breakup your ass,” I spat, wrenching free and making a break for the police car. “Just detain me already! I want to go to jail!” They exchanged bewildered glances, clearly having never encountered such an enthusiastic “criminal.” In the interrogation room, my attitude was pure defiance. I admitted to willful destruction of property, refused to pay for damages, and insisted on being detained. “Do you have any idea what detention means?” a middle-aged officer asked, trying to reason with me. I recited the Public Security Administration Punishment Law from memory. “Whoever intentionally damages public or private property shall be detained for not less than five days but not more than ten days, and may be fined not more than five hundred yuan…” He stared at me, stunned. I continued, “For more serious circumstances, the detention shall be not less than ten days but not more than fifteen days, and may be fined not more than one thousand yuan. I smashed five bikes, the total value is over two thousand. That counts as serious, right?” “Are you a law student?” “I am. Which is why I know exactly what I’m doing.” My parents, who had seen the livestream, called my phone. I hung up on them and spread my hands to the officer. “They can’t control me either.” The officers, exasperated, followed procedure and put me in a holding cell. I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. In my past life, at this exact moment, my boyfriend, Ethan, and my roommate, Sherry, were in the university’s computer lab, completing the final transfer of funds. They used my student ID to get in, my fingerprint to unlock the computer, and a pre-recorded voice clip of me to authorize the transaction. All the evidence pointed to me being at the scene of the crime. But right now, I was in a police holding cell. A government law enforcement agency was providing me with an alibi. Who could possibly refute that? I almost laughed thinking about my past life, in that courtroom, when the judge asked me, “Where were you at the time of the crime?” My answer had been so weak, so pathetic. This time, my answer would be: “In a holding cell.” 2 I hadn’t been in the holding cell for long when I heard the frantic sound of footsteps outside. My mother burst in, her eyes red and swollen. The moment she saw me, she lunged forward. “Maya!” Her voice trembled as she wrapped her arms around me, her whole body shaking. My father followed, his face a grim, ashen mask. “Maya Lin! Are you insane? Do you have any idea what you’re doing?” The officers watched our family drama with weary frowns. My father immediately bowed to them, a full ninety-degree bend at the waist, his voice shaking. “Officers, I am so, so sorry. My daughter must have been under some kind of stress. We’ll pay for all the damages, I promise. Please, just let us take her home.” My mother clung to my hand, sobbing uncontrollably. “Maya, come home with Mom. Whatever it is, we can talk about it at home. Just don’t stay here…” I looked at their desperate, heartbroken faces, and my heart felt like it was being carved out with a dull knife. In my last life, it was because of me that they had to live with such shame. My father sold our house to hire a lawyer for me. My mother cried every single day. They both died of grief before I was even released from prison. But this time, I had to stay here. It was the only way I could protect them. The police, seeing my parents, were already preparing the paperwork to release me. I shot to my feet and pointed to an empty corner of the room, screaming. “I’m not going back! I broke the law! I want to go to jail!” My voice was hysterical. It startled my mother, who took a step back. “He made me do it! He’s been following me! Can’t you see him?!” I pointed at the corner, my eyes wide with terror, my body trembling. “He’s laughing! He’s standing right there, laughing at me!” My parents froze. My mother covered her mouth, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. “Maya, what’s wrong with you? There’s nothing there!” My father was shaking with a mixture of anger and fear, his voice cracking as he spoke to the officers. “Officers, she must be having a mental breakdown! She’s never like this!” I seized on his words, yelling at the police. “That’s right! I’m mentally ill! I need a psychiatric evaluation!” My performance grew more frantic. I clutched my head and spun in circles. “They’re trying to hurt me! Everyone is trying to hurt me! I have to stay here! It’s the only safe place!” The officers exchanged uncertain glances. Procedurally, they had to follow my request. A young officer tried to calm me down, but I shoved his hand away and cowered in the corner. “Don’t touch me! I know you’re all in on it!” My mother completely broke down, collapsing to the floor in a heap of heart-wrenching sobs. “Maya, Mommy was wrong. I shouldn’t have let you live on your own. Let me take you home, we’ll see a doctor, okay?” Seeing her devastation, I almost gave up. But I couldn’t. I had to be strong. “I don’t know you! You’re here to hurt me too!” My father, enraged, lunged forward, trying to drag me away by force. I screamed at the top of my lungs. “Help! They’re trying to kidnap me! Help me!” The police had no choice but to restrain my father. The situation had spiraled completely out of control. In the end, they had to ask my parents to wait outside. Through the crack in the door, I saw my mother slumped on a bench, looking like her soul had left her body. My father chain-smoked, one cigarette after another, his back so stooped he looked ten years older. They were arguing about something. My mother kept shaking her head, and my father punched the wall in frustration. 3 My parents were asked to wait outside, but they refused to leave, keeping vigil on the bench just beyond the interrogation room. Through the door, I could hear my mother’s muffled sobs, each one a dull knife twisting in my gut. A young female officer brought me a cup of hot water, her voice gentle. “Here, drink some water. We can talk about whatever’s bothering you.” I swatted the cup away. Hot water splashed across the floor and onto her uniform. “It’s all a lie! You’re all trying to hurt me!” I huddled in the chair, shivering. The officer’s expression hardened, and she abandoned any attempt to reason with me. Wiping her uniform, she stepped back, her eyes now wary and resigned. My mother’s frantic voice came from outside. “Let me in! I need to see my daughter!” The footsteps grew closer, and the door flew open. My mother rushed in, my father trying to hold her back. “Maya!” she cried, her face a mess of tears as she lunged toward me. “Come with me, we’ll see a doctor, I’m begging you!” The clock on the wall read 8:25 PM. My heart hammered against my ribs. It was time. They would be starting the final phase of their plan. I shoved my mother away, hiding behind an officer and screaming, “Don’t touch me! You’re all bad people! You want to hurt me!” My father rushed in to help my mother, who had stumbled to the floor. He looked at me, his eyes filled with a raw, aching disappointment that hurt more than any blade. “Maya, what’s happened to you?” he pleaded, his voice trembling. “What have we ever done to deserve this?” 8:28 PM. 8:29 PM. 8:30 PM. The second the hand on the clock ticked over, I felt an invisible weight lift from my shoulders. The tragedy of my past life was replaying itself in another timeline. But this time, I wasn't there. I stopped screaming. My entire demeanor shifted. “Officer, I’m tired,” I said calmly. “I confess. Please, detain me.” The sudden change stunned everyone in the room. The person who had been acting completely unhinged moments ago was now terrifyingly composed. My mother stared at me, tears still clinging to her lashes. My father clenched his fists, the veins in his neck bulging. “Maya, what kind of game are you playing?” I didn’t answer. I just leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. The officers exchanged confused looks and ultimately decided to hold me for observation. “Sir, Ma’am, I suggest you come back tomorrow to handle this,” the older officer said, trailing off as he struggled to explain my behavior. My father helped my mother to her feet. She was crying too hard to speak. As they reached the door, my father looked back at me one last time. His eyes were filled with a bottomless despair and confusion that seemed to age him a decade in an instant. The holding cell was small, with just a hard cot and a toilet. The TV on the wall was playing the evening news. A business news anchor was saying in a flat voice, “Shares of Titan Technologies experienced unusual volatility today. Relevant authorities have begun an investigation…” I closed my eyes, and a silent tear slipped down my cheek. Dad, Mom, I’m so sorry. Just wait a little longer. It will all be over soon. I could hear the guards talking outside. “That girl just now… she was really scary.” “So young, how did she lose her mind like that?” “Her parents seem normal enough, but the kid…” 4 The next morning, the police station was swarming with unfamiliar cars. I was still groggy when they pulled me from the holding cell, but the sight of the stern faces in the interrogation room jolted me awake. “Maya Lin. Last night at 8:30 PM, fifty million dollars were illegally transferred from an Titan Technologies account.” The man speaking was middle-aged, his ID identifying him as the captain of the city’s economic crimes division. His voice was ice, a stark contrast to the gentle female officer from the night before. I widened my eyes. “Fifty million? What are you talking about? I just smashed some bikes!” The captain slammed a thick file onto the table. “Every transaction was completed using your personal authentication key and digital signature! The evidence is irrefutable!” My mind went blank. How was that possible? I was… Knock, knock, knock! The door flew open. Ethan and Sherry walked in, followed by my parents. My mother’s eyes were swollen like walnuts, my father’s face was ashen. They hadn’t slept. “Officer, we have an important tip to report!” Sherry said, her voice choked with sobs. She looked at my parents, her voice trembling. “Uncle, Auntie, I didn’t want to say anything, but… Maya has been gambling online. She’s in massive debt. Last night, she stole my laptop, and I suspect…” “Impossible!” my mother cut her off. “My daughter would never do something like that!” Sherry took out her phone and played a recording. “This is what Maya said two nights ago when she was drunk.” My voice, slurred and intoxicated, filled the room. “I’m gonna get a huge score… one big job and I’ll never have to worry again…” My heart leaped into my throat. When was that recorded? I had no memory of it. My father’s face went white. Ethan then pulled out his own phone. “Officer, these are my chat logs with Maya. She’s been asking about the company’s internal financial systems for a while now…” He showed them screenshots. The messages were clearly from my account, asking about company passwords. My name, my profile picture, but I had never sent those messages. “And this,” Sherry said, producing an encrypted USB drive. “We found this in Maya’s dorm room yesterday. It’s full of information on opening offshore bank accounts.” An officer plugged the drive into a laptop. The screen filled with code and bank documents I didn’t understand. “Maya, what were you planning?” my father whispered, his voice shaking. I wanted to explain, but my throat felt like it was clogged with cement. Just then, another officer entered and whispered something to the captain. The captain’s expression grew even more grim. “Mr. and Mrs. Lin, did you receive any calls from debt collectors last night?” My mother nodded, fresh tears welling up. “Someone called and said Maya owed them three million… I thought it was a scam…” Ethan shook his head with a heavy sigh. “Uncle, Auntie, Maya’s bizarre behavior yesterday… it was because she had a guilty conscience.” Sherry added, sobbing, “I never thought she would go this far… It’s all my fault for not noticing the signs sooner…” All the pieces of their puzzle fit together perfectly, pointing to one conclusion: I was the audacious mastermind behind the financial fraud. Hearing all this, my mother swayed, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted. “Mom!” I surged forward, but an officer blocked me. My father caught her as she fell, turning to me with a look of utter despair and disbelief. “Maya…” his lips trembled, “why… why would you do this to us?” In that moment, all my pent-up grief and rage exploded. “I didn’t! I swear, I didn’t do any of it!” But no one believed me. The captain stood up and gestured to his men. “Take her away. We’re opening a major economic fraud investigation.” Heavier, colder handcuffs were locked onto my wrists. I had gone from a petty vandal to the prime suspect in a fifty-million-dollar criminal case overnight.

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