MidReal Story
Viral Conspiracy: Unraveling TikTok's Downfall
Scenario: TikTok is destroyed
Create my version of this story
I woke up on an average Tuesday, ready for an average day.
Little did I know that my life was about to change—and not for the better.
I don’t know what woke me up that morning.
It sure as hell wasn’t my phone alarm.
I reached over and slapped my phone screen, my thumb pressing the notification from my clock app that said “Is this the time you want to wake up?”
I grunted and pressed the OK button, then tapped the screen to silence the alarm.
I didn’t roll out of bed, though.
I opened my phone and scrolled through my notifications, checking my blog stats and social media account notifications from the night before.
My tech blog had a decent following, mostly from people Alex and I had met at tech conventions and a few random followers along the way.
My TikTok account, on the other hand, had taken off a couple of months ago when I posted a funny video of a robot that played the violin.
Since then, all my videos went viral with hundreds of thousands of views.
I was still a little bitter that a cat who painted with his paw beat me out on follower count, but I was slowly catching up.
Alex was still in the lead for most followers of someone I knew in real life, but I was determined to catch up with him and pass him.
I had even started collaborating with other tech bloggers to get more followers and views.
When I finally reached the end of my overnight notifications, I rolled out bed and stretched my arms over my head, hearing my back crack.
My blog reminder popped up as I tossed my comforter over the bed and headed into the bathroom to get ready for the day.
It was going to be a good one.
As I brushed my teeth, I checked my phone one last time before setting it down on the counter, then picked up my electric toothbrush and put it in my mouth.
A few minutes later, I set it down again and checked my notifications one more time before heading back into my room to get dressed for the day.
I was still scrolling through everything when Ryan walked into my room carrying his laptop.
Dude, you have got to see this,” he said, setting his computer down on my desk.
I didn’t even look up from my screen as he crossed over to me.
He leaned over me, trying to look at what I was looking at, but I pulled my phone closer to my chest and turned my body away from him.
“I have a blog post to write,” I said, then clicked on my WordPress app and started a new post.
A few minutes later, Alex walked in eating a bowl of cereal, milk dribbling down his chin as he took a big bite and the sound of his spoon scraping against the bottom of his bowl filled the room.
“Dude, gross,” Ryan said, wrinkling his nose and leaning into the chair I was sitting in so he could get closer to Alex.
“Sorry, I’m hungry,” Alex said, setting the bowl down on the desk and wiping his face with his forearm, leaving a streak of milk on his cheek.
“What’s up?”
I asked, finally looking away from my phone as Ryan grabbed my shoulder and shook me.
“What have you been doing all morning?”
he asked, his voice rising in pitch as he waited for an answer.
