I wake up in an attic. A light from another room seeps in, and I feel myself bound. I also note my purse is gone - that is, of course, until I see the person sitting there, holding it. And fear surges through me all over again.
But then I realize it's Vinny.
"Vinny?" I ask, my voice a hoarse whisper. My mouth is bone dry. I never knew what that meant until now. I never knew how it felt. But now I know true fear as well.
Yeah, because meeting Habit in the freaking woods behind my house was a good idea?! What was I thinking?
"Hello, y/n. It's nice to meet you." He sounds dead inside.
Maybe he is.
"What the hell is going on? Why am I here? I supported you guys! Cried with you! Hell, I didn't even know you were real people until that damn video!"
"We told you it was real and it was happening to us."
"Really? "I told you so" is what you're saying?" I scoff.
"Well, what do you want me to say, y/n? That it'll all be okay? That this is just a dream? Sorry, but I can't make those promises and this isn't a dream."
"How many more bodies are you going to let pile up? How many people, innocent people, are you gonna let him kill? You don't even know me! I used to think that you were strong enough to draw the line somewhere. What happened to you?!"
"What hasn't happened to me?!" he explodes. "I've lost damn near everyone I care about! I'm not happy with this, I'm just trying to stay alive!"
"At the costs of the lives of others? Don't you remember Jeff, Alex, Stephanie?"
"They're seared into my brain! I watched my friends die. I was there when they killed Alex. They are never going to leave me alone, not even for a night."
How many lives have you lead and spent?
"How much more blood is gonna be on your hands? You used to be so strong, but now I see that you are just doing this to further yourself. My blood is on your hands."
"Okay, kiddies," says Habit. He swaggers into the room and smiles at me, then to Vinny, he says, "Don't hurt y/n's feelings. This is not a game of who-has-it-worse. This is another type of game."
He walks over to me and I stare him down, refusing to close my eyes in fear. He smirks when he sees me staring at him. I don't waver. I don't bend and break. I just stare at Habit's dark eyes, wondering if Evan is even still alive in there. Wondering what he is feeling right now. Now that he's about to be my killer.
Habit pulls out his machete. And the blade comes down on me.
