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HELP ME

When the words pop up on my screen, I drop the phone as move back as if it was infected. "Who's doing this?" I ask, my voice trembling slightly.

"I think we should get out of here," Luke blurts, ignoring my question.

"Yeah," Michael nods and helps Calum off the floor as I stand, turning off my phone and sliding it into my pocket. As we're leaving the room, I glance back and spot a shadow just behind the window. Latching onto Calum's arm to make him stay back with me, I duck behind the door frame to watch what was happening.

The shadow twists, and I hear a squeal followed by a thud. "Ouch," a voice groans from inside the room. Calum's pulls me so I can't see into the room anymore.

"What the hell was that?" he whispers, alarmed. I shrug silently and give him a helpless look.

"Who's there?" the voice asks. It sounds feminine and soft, and not at all scared. Calum tugs on my arm and I turn to get away from the room.

"I know there's someone in here!" the girl speaks again before I hear light footsteps coming closer. I know I should move, but my feet stay stuck to the ground. "Oh hey." The girl speaks as if it isn't abnormal to meet someone in a old, deserted, hotel. "I'm Olivia."

She sticks out her hand as two other girls follow her out. I stare at the second girl, ignoring Olivia's hand. The second girls' skin is a deathly pale, just like Olivia's, except for the trail of dark bruises running up the side of her neck. Noticing my stare, she grins, revealing a set of perfect teeth. "I'd attempt to shake your hand, but I don't think you'd respond," she says. Her voice seems fragile as it leaves her mouth.

"Ash-" Calum starts.

"I'm Madi," she directs a grin at Calum, who grimaces and turns away. "And this is Grace." She motions to the third girl who stares sullenly back at me. 

Grace tugs at Madi's arm, revealing bruises on her arm. "We have to go," she says, her voice high pitched and tinkling. Madi nods.

"We heard voices while walking out front, so we decided to see what was going on," Madi says. "You know, ghosts and stuff." She laughs as if it was a joke only she understood.

I nod as if I had got it.

"Bye," Calum says from behind me as he pulls my arm. This time, I can move. I speed-walk behind him without taking my eyes off the girls. After a couple moments, they disappear back into the room.

What just happened?

~~~~

"Where were you guys? What took you so long?" Luke shouts as soon as Calum and I rush into the hotel lobby. "We've been waiting for you for the past ten minutes!"

"Sorry," Calum mumbles. "We just got a little hung up." Luke looks at me, and I shrug.

"I'd really like to get to Ash's house soon," Michael calls impatiently from his position of holding the door open. Luke and Calum nod before heading over to the open door. I follow, thinking about the three girls we'd just seen.

Lost it my thoughts, I look up just in time to see Michael fly backwards at the force of the door slamming shut.

"What the hell?" Calum mutters, breaking into a run to see what had happened to Michael. Luke stands by the door trying to push it open.

"Try breaking it," I say, dragging a ratty chair over to Luke. He nods before lifting it a few inches off the floor and ramming it into the door.

No luck.

Luke drops to his knees, holding his head. "What are we going to do?" he asks when I kneel next to him. His voice is shrill and panicked and it puts me on edge.

"We'll be fine," I mutter over and over again as I help him to his feet. "Let's go try a window or something." He nods, looking a little less panicked. Calum and a dizzy Michael join us as we leave the lobby, bringing up the rear. I flip on the flashlight, moving it so the light beam would light up the dark halls and scare away any rats or spiders.

"Let's go back to the room we were in," Calum calls from the back. "The window was broken in there."

I nod vigorously, hope blooming in my chest. 

Letting Luke go ahead of me, I shine the flashlight into the rooms we pass by, looking for any other exits.

Nothing. All the windows are intact.

"What?" Luke yells. I break into a run, catching up to him. He's standing in front of the room we were in at the start of the night. 

"What happened?" I ask as I come up behind him and grab his shoulder.

His panicked breaths abruptly slow, and I cautiously remove my hand from his shoulder. He turns around, and even without the flashlight, I can tell something is wrong.

His eyes are completely blacked out, the creepy abnormality making his eyes seem to glitter in the dark. I accidentally shine the flashlight in his eyes as I step backwards, but he doesn't even flinch.

"There is no way out." He laughs, the creepy sound echoing throughout the hallway. His voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard and it makes me cringe. "You'd might as well give yourselves up now before it's too late."

~~~~

a/n: what do you guys think? any ideas of what's going on? :P

please vote and leave me some feedback so i can make this better!

lazaruseffect xx


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