Night Games Chapter 5

 Chapter 5! Just click "Read More" to read the latest chapter.

CHAPTER 5

      A shrill scream pierced the night as darkness enveloped the room. Paul fumbled with the lantern, shaking it with one hand while the other covered his ear. The small bulb inside the lantern flicked back on, illuminating the room once again and revealing Fred as the origin of the scream. He opened his eyes and the scream quickly trailed into silence. “… Sorry.” “Jesus Christ, dude,” Paul said, shaking his head, “is everyone OK?” The group murmured affirmative replies. “I’m sorry, it’s an old lantern and the batteries come loose sometimes. We should probably light a candle in here or something because it could happen again.” “… You actually brought candles?” asked Sean. “No, Sean, I didn’t, alright? I wasn’t really packing for a romantic evening out here in the abandoned rest home,” said Paul sarcastically. 

      “Whoa, ok, maybe we should cool out a little,” Jennifer said as she crossed the room to squeeze in between Paul and Sean on the floor, “I didn’t mean to scare everyone. I was a little freaked out even before what happened in there, and I probably was just seeing shapes in the dark because Paul’s story was so specific about seeing a man in the darkness. Plus the room was really weirdly lit for the shoot so it was probably just my imagination, OK?” Paul rested his hand on Jennifer’s shoulder, saying, “It’s fine, really. I-““You know what?” Liz interjected, “I think Paul did it. He’s acting just a little too smug right now. Hannah, Sean, are you sure Paul was in there the whole time?”

      Hannah looked at the ceiling and squinted. “Hm… actually, you know what? He did leave!” She stood, pointing at Paul. “He left about halfway through to ‘go grab a water’ and came back a few minutes later!” Sean’s jaw dropped in exaggerated surprise. “Oh my God, that’s right, you did leave! What the hell, Paul? This really isn’t cool. We’re already scared just being here. You don’t have to take it to the next level.” “Are you kidding me?” Paul said, his voice growing in volume with each word, “I left to get a bottle of water and while I was out I looked around a little to see how the rooms looked at night. I was here earlier, remember? I was just curious to see if there was a good location I might have missed.” Liz squinted. “Pretty convenient there, bro, and you seem a little too defensive, so… sorry, but I still think you did it. And OK, it was a good scare. Very subtle; but really we’re here to do some work and you can’t be screwing around like that.” Ann stroked her chin with an exaggerated “Hmm, yes, quite subtle. Excellent trolling, 9/10!” Paul stood, incensed. “Guys. I’m not fucking with you here. I didn’t do anything! I’m not that big of a dick! I know how creepy this place is. The only reason I’m ok walking around alone is that I’ve been here a couple of times before so I’ve gotten used to what a goddamn creepfest it is in here. I was not in A hall with y’all. I’m serious.”

      “Ehh, it’s gotten a little desperate now,” Ann said, still stroking her chin in faux-contemplation,” I’m lowering my official score to 6/10. Should’ve quit while you were ahead, sir.” Fred stood, saying, “It doesn’t matter! We’re wasting time here. It’s getting late and we still have a lot of stuff to do so why don’t we just agree that Paul will promise to stay with whichever group he goes with the whole time, OK?” He nodded towards Paul. “OK?” “OK! Fine! I solemnly swear to stay within 10 feet of you guys the whole time so I don’t get blamed for any other random crap that goes on.” Jennifer stood, clapping Paul on the shoulder, saying, “Works for me! Besides, if you scare me again I’ll probably just kill you with my ninja dicks.” Hannah laughed so hard that she snorted. “Yeah, don’t mess with Jennifer’s ninja dicks, they come out of nowhere!” The room erupted in laughter, and even Paul couldn’t manage to stifle a giggle. 

      “All right, all right, Fred is right,” Sean said, standing up, “it is well after midnight and we need to get going on these group shots. Which room are we going to?” Liz grabbed the shot list and scanned it. “Uh… Looks like A7. Is that over by the kitchen thing? That part of the hall’s even creepier than the one we were in,” she said, laughing nervously. “We should check out B5, actually,” Paul said, “part of the closet wall was torn off for some reason and it looks really post-apocalyptic.” Sean set down her water. “Well I think we should stick to what we’ve already decided on, just to keep things nice and simple and avoid a bunch of location switches and stuff.” Paul shrugged. “Fine, no worries. Let’s get going.”

      They gathered their fake blood and camera bags and filed out of B11. Spirits were high after having debunked Jennifer’s sighting and the group chatted and giggled as they walked. Liz and Sean hung to the rear of the group while Fred and Paul went first at their own insistence. “So what was all that about?” asked Liz. Sean looked at her quizzically, “What was what about?” “That little thing with Paul about going to see that other room. You seemed kind of pissed off.” Sean shrugged and looked out of the glass walls that lined the hallway connecting A and B halls. “I don’t know, I’m just frustrated. It seems like we act very professional we we’re planning things like this but then when we actually get there we turn into a bunch of high school kids. I’m mad at him for scaring Jennifer like that. I guess it came out a little when I said that. Sorry, did I make things awkward?” “Oh no, not at all!” Liz said, her eyes wide,” I just thought it was a little harsh so I figured I’d make sure everything was OK.” Sean stepped over a pile of books as they passed through the A hall open reading area. “No, no, everything’s fine. I was just a little irritated, that’s all. Thanks for checking on me, hon.” They hugged briefly and entered room A7 behind the rest of the group.

      “Wow this room is badass! Have you seen in here?” Ann asked from the ruined bathroom. Tiles had been broken off in many places and pieces of plaster littered the carpet in front of the empty door frame. She entered the main room again with a smile, shaking plaster dust from her hair. “This is going to look so awesome, I’m so excited you guys! Hey…” Her smile faded slightly as she looked at the rest of the group. “… Where’s Paul?”