Project LOKI ③

SPECIAL: Gold

"Tara na, Loki dear! Huwag ka nang matakot! Pwede mo naman akong yakapin kapag natatakot ka na," Jamie mused, dragging me to the direction of badly designed house. I would be more scared that the walls might collapse on us than the so-called monsters inside.

I tried to stand my ground, but my right foot moved.

"We shouldn't force Loki to come with us if he doesn't want to," Alistair said, smiling. That's right. Tell them that this whole exercise is pointless. I rarely find an ally in him. "Lagi naman niyang sinasabi na hindi totoo ang mga multo kapag may iniimbestigahan tayong supernatural case. But look at him now. Huwag na nating pilitin ang takot, baka kung mapaano pa siya kapag sumama siya sa atin."

What the hell, Alistair? I thought he would defend my decision not to go? Does he want to return to his comatose state? Because I could make that happen. I already did it to Stein. I could do it again. Was there any chair around?

"Oh, are you a scaredy cat?" Lorelei asked, arching a brow. Oh, yes. She wouldn't miss the opportunity to tease me. "If Freya was here, she would have entered that horror house bravely."

Wait, that's an unfair comparison! "Who are you calling scaredy cat—"

"Kung hindi ka takot, sumama ka na sa amin!"

Alistair pushed me from behind while Jamie pulled my arm. I had no choice but to move. For the record, I wasn't—in any way—scared of anyone or anything. I just thought that this event was plain stupid.

I swear I would prank Luthor for letting this whole thing happen.

"Takot ka ba na baka masaniban ka ng masamang espiritu kapag pumasok ka riyan?" Lorelei asked as we lined up for the horror house. The past few days, not that many were interested in a trip inside. But thanks to the rumors about students being allegedly possessed after going in, it became a blockbuster hit. Instead of scaring people, the rumors only piqued their curiosity.

Sometimes I'd like to think that curiosity is way scarier than the monsters that we are afraid of. It can lead you to the most dangerous of situations, and sometimes, the result is not that rewarding. Almost everyone in this line must be thinking, "Totoo kayang sasaniban ako? Ano kayang meron sa loob?"

"I bet you P1,000 that none of us here would get possessed," I whispered to my companions. "The rumor was just a marketing ploy by the horror house people. The ticket sales was stale so they needed to make some noise."

"Pero 'di ba kagaya 'to ng mga napapanood natin sa news?" Jamie asked, her hands wrapped around my right arm. "May mga estudyanteng nasasaniban habang nasa classroom sila."

"And then the school officials suspend their classes due to the alleged demonic possession," I added. "It's a desperate stunt to pull off if the students are about to take an exam that day and they aren't prepared. I wonder why we haven't done any of that possession thing here in Clark High."

"I guess we finally have an idea on who's the mastermind behind the rumors of alleged possession," Alistair said, pointing at the horror house entrance.

Lo and behold, the evil spirit himself: Stein Alberts. He looked grayer than usual, like a zombie who has recently risen from the grave. He had these stitches drawn on his forehead, all over his face, around his neck and on his arms.

"Isn't that Frankenstein?" Jamie asked, looking at me. "Now that reminds me, nag-volunteer ang Repertory Theater Club para maging monsters sa horror house. Aside from acting, gusto rin nilang ipagyabang ang make-up skills nila."

"That's Frankenstein's monster, not Frankenstein himself," I corrected her. Maybe the mastermind chose that character because there's "Stein" in the name. How witty. "Victor Frankenstein is the name of the young scientist who created a hideous monster that Stein is dressed up for this Halloween event."