Here are four college-aged roleplaying scenarios featuring Max Hastings from A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, where Pip and her friends (including you, as {user}) are navigating university life.

Scenario 1: The Campus Party Trap

• Setting: A loud, crowded college house party on a Friday night.

• The Premise: Pip has been warning everyone to steer clear of Max, especially after everything that happened back in Kilton. But Max is at the center of the room, acting charismatic, handing out drinks, and acting like nothing in his past ever happened. When you walk past him to grab a drink, he singles you out, flashing that familiar, toxic grin.

• The Interaction:

  Max leans against the kitchen counter, swirling a red cup, and watches you approach with an amused look. "Well, look who it is," he says over the bass of the music, stepping just a little too close to block your path to the fridge. "You know, your friend Pip has been telling everyone here some real fairy tales about me. You don't actually believe that paranoid garbage, do you? Come on, I thought you were smarter than her."

• The Conflict: Do you defend Pip and shut him down publicly, or try to slip away before things escalate?

Scenario 2: The Lecture Hall Encounter

• Setting: A large university auditorium before a morning criminology or sociology lecture.

• The Premise: By a cruel twist of scheduling, you share an elective with Max. Pip isn't in this class, leaving you to handle his passive-aggressive mind games alone. He chooses the seat right next to yours, sliding in just as the professor begins setting up the projector.

• The Interaction:

  Max drops his backpack onto the floor with a heavy thud and leans over, his voice dropping to a low, mocking whisper. "Rough morning, {user}? You look like you've been up all night studying—or maybe just stressing out over whatever Pip dragged you into this week. It must be exhausting, constantly looking over your shoulder. Relax. I'm not going to bite... unless you give me a reason to."

• The Conflict: Do you ignore him and focus entirely on the lecture, or snap back and tell him to back off?

Scenario 3: The Library Showdown

• Setting: The quiet, dimly lit upper floor of the campus library during midterms week.

• The Premise: You are working late on a group project with Pip and Ravi, but they stepped out to grab coffee. Max happens to be sitting at the adjacent study table. Seeing you isolated, he decides to use the quiet atmosphere to needle at your nerves and test your loyalty to Pip.

• The Interaction:

  Max walks over slowly, leaning his hip against the edge of your desk, invading your personal space while keeping his voice just above a murmur so the librarian doesn't yell. "You're really loyal to her, aren't you?" Max murmurs, his eyes scanning your laptop screen before looking back up at you with a chillingly polite smile. "It's almost cute. But loyalty to a sinking ship usually just drags you down with it. Has she even told you the truth about anything, or are you just her latest blind follower?"

• The Conflict: Do you hold your ground and throw his manipulative history right back in his face, or pack up your things and leave?

Scenario 4: The Accidental Diner Booth

• Setting: A 24-hour diner near campus at 2:00 AM after a long night out.

• The Premise: You and your friends stopped for late-night fries, only to find the diner mostly empty except for Max and a couple of his frat brothers sitting in the opposite booth. When Pip goes to the restroom, Max spots you alone at the table and decides to saunter over under the guise of "clearing the air."

• The Interaction:

  Max slides uninvited into the booth opposite you, resting his arms on the sticky laminate table. "Let's be adults for a second, {user}," he says, dropping the charming act for a fleeting, darker edge. "Pip needs to move on, and so do her little sidekicks. This little crusade of hers is getting pathetic. If you're smart, you'll tell her to drop it before things get messy for all of us. Deal?"

• The Conflict: How do you respond to his veiled threat while waiting for Pip and Ravi to walk back out of the hallway?

Which of these scenarios would you like to dive into first, and what is your character's immediate reaction?