"You want me to go into the basement? Alone?"
"That's it, that's it. You like doing what I say, don't you?"
You shuddered. The stranger's voice always reached your ear in the worst way. And a basement? Really? Why not just walk into a graveyard next?
Pushing those sarcastic thoughts aside, you did as asked. Your situation hadn't changed in this agonizing time period that you've been connected to them- They still had you cornered.
However, you had to stop at the basement door. "There's a lock on it."
"It's open," They clarified. "It wasn't supposed to be."
When you twisted the doorknob and pushed it, you saw they were right. A steep downward staircase was revealed. They lead into a room with dim lighting. You checked behind you to confirm that you were still alone. The house was basically empty now.
You bit your lip anxiously. "What are you leading me into?"
"Something meant for your eyes only," They chuckled. "It was meant to be, anyway."
You rolled your eyes at the unhelpful comment and proceeded. You were cautious on every step, constantly looking around to make sure you weren't being followed.
"Surprise, Sidney."
You froze. At first, you thought the stranger said that, though it clearly originated somewhere in the basement. But when you reached the bottom of the steps, nobody was there.
The voice seemed to come from the old TV plugged up in the corner. Some kind of ancient movie was playing, where these two boys were cornering a girl in the kitchen. She was crying and drenched in blood, but it was nothing compared to the boy in front of her. The guy next to him seemed all too happy to be there.
A table and chair was set up in front of the TV. There was an open laptop with a camera feed on it. Each screen depicted a different angle of the house, except for a single static screen. The chair was pulled out as if someone had recently gotten up from it.
You began to slowly back away, silently trying to make some sort of connection. Just how were you supposed to interpret all of this? Did this specific movie mean anything? Why are there cameras set up and why weren't you informed about it?
Then it hit you. Your eyes shot open as you slapped a hand over your mouth.
This is where the killer was hiding all along.
It had to be. Why else would they lead you here? Why else would there be cameras to spy on their potential victims? Why else would such an appropriately gorey film be playing?
It was as much as terrifying as it made sense. They were literally right under your nose the whole time. If not, they were blending in with the crowd. You might have saw them. They definitely saw you. You might have even brushed shoulders.
Maybe you even know them personally.
Something squished underneath your shoe as you were backing away. Your heart stopped, throat closing up. You only peeked down as much as you needed to.
Puddles of blood with a gas mask discarded next to them.
Your hands started clawing at your face, which had a look of horror plastered onto it. Your gasps turned into breathlessness.
They weren't just puddles. They wrote something out. Your brain was refusing to process them. It couldn't bare to stress itself any more. But you forced yourself to. The movie suddenly seemed significantly louder, blaring like sirens in your ears.
"Why? Why?!" You stepped away, accidentally smudging the message in the process. "You hear that Stu, I think she wants a motive..."
Unfortunately, you could still make it out perfectly.
'This is how you make me feel.'
"Mask..." You attemped to conjoure up his image in your mind. You wanted to remember how he was when you last saw him. It was barely even an hour ago that he was sitting near you and bickering with your friend. Full of life.
You tightened your grip on your phone. "What did you do to him?"
"He saw too much." No further explanation than that. Your hand tightly squeezed, as if you had the stranger's throat in your grasp and you were planning to get revenge. And oh, you definitely did. You would in some shape or form.
It wouldn't have mattered even if they did elaborate, though. Because you couldn't imagine Mask alive anymore. You couldn't imagine him playing games, or fighting in battle, or commenting on a bad horror movie. You could only imagine the ways he possibly died. And if they told you the truth, you'd never be able to erase it from your mind.
"Don't get too caught up in it. He was on the list anyway. And you're still on the clock. It isn't over 'til credits roll."
Their reply was so fitting that it was like they read your mind. Of course they could. They knew your number, your friends, where you were- Why not violate your mind too?
Except they were already doing that. It was evident by the angry tears in the corners of your eyes. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm coming home tonight. Be good and welcome me with a kiss at the door."
They hung up before you could detest.
You were silent in disbelief. Their audacity completely took you off guard, because even though they had been mocking you all night, never would you have expected that.
A kiss at the door... They probably only want that so they can stab you right after.
That thought made your teeth bare in anger. You couldn't let yourself be insulted like that, especially not by them.
So you did the only rational thing and flung your phone across the room. You wouldn't have to listen to their disgusting voice anymore and you could focus your energy onto something useful- Clinging onto what was left of your loved ones and getting the hell out of here.
You went to do so. But the sound of a door slamming open made your heart jump. Someone was running downstairs.
"I heard a sound! Are you okay?!"
Before you could even find something to defend yourself with, you were caught. Fortunately, it was only by Aloha. Concern was abundant in his expression and his arms were wide open like he was ready to offer a comforting hug.
Unfortunately, he was holding something he definitely shouldn't have been.
When you leaned out of his grasp and sent a nasty glare his way, he shrugged obliviously. "What?"
You crossed your arms and narrowed your eyes on him. "Why do you have a gun on you?"
That accusatory tone made him lock up, though there was an edge of confusion in his eyes. He practically jumped when he saw the 52. Gal he was holding, as if he forget he had it with him. He put his hands in the air to show he was innocent.
"Woah, don't get any ideas! After you-know-what happened to Headphones and Goggles, I just wanted to bring this in case it happened again! And you-know-what did, so..."
His lips clamped into a frown. He seemed too embarrassed to look at you, meaning that he likely forced himself to shut up so he wouldn't reveal how upset he was. But it was only natural for him to be upset. One of his best friends died tonight.
You would have stepped forward to say something encouraging, if it weren't for the fact that you were the only thing preventing him from seeing what was left of his other best friend. Fuck, how were you going to explain this to him? Or to anyone else, for that matter?
Aloha began roaming the floor with a hand on his hip. The other still held his gun. You were tense simply watching him, both due to the ready-to-use weapon and the possibility that he would see the message. It wasn't even a possibility, it was sadly inevitable.
"Since when was any of this down here? Like, I was the one who helped rent this place, and I know it wasn't here before."
"I don't know. It was like this when I got here." Your reply was barely acknowledged, however, when he caught sight of the TV. The girl was in extreme distress as she was held in the arms of the bloody killer.
Then, he gave you a strange look. You didn't know how to respond to it, but he hunched over the computer before you could figure it out. His jaw dropped. "What the- Are these cameras around the house?!"
"You didn't know there were cameras?"
His eyebrows furrowed together in anger. "No! What kind of creep has been crawling around here?!"
That was a good question. There was no way a total stranger could have snuck all of this in without getting caught. They had to have help of some kind.
Your gaze landed back on Aloha. He was staring at the ground behind you with wide eyes. You mentally cursed yourself for not doing more to stop him, but there was nothing that could be done now. You moved out of the way so he could examine it. You awaited his reaction with bated breath.
"This is how you make me feel," He said out loud. You nearly cringed knowing that you were the only one meant to see this, and you would have been, if you hadn't stupidly thrown your phone across the room. How was he able to hear that from the upper floor, anyway?
Aloha picked up the gas mask with his free hand. He was rapidly blinking back tears, putting a hand over his mouth to stop himself from saying anything. His head hung low so you wouldn't see him so vulnerable, but you did. Just like how he saw this scene.
He shouldn't have had to, you reminded yourself. Neither should have Bobble Hat had to leave the house. Neither should have anyone else had to suffer on your behalf.
Because the killer's text messages dated months before any of the deaths occured, and as far as you knew, nobody else got any texts like that. So this wasn't some sadistic motherfucker deciding to take out their fantasies on an innocent group.
This was a revenge plot. You were the main victim. Your friends were only being picked off because they knew that would hurt you most.
Maybe that's what they meant by 'this is how you make me feel.' They made everyone else suffer because somehow, you did the same unto somebody else. But who? For the love of Cod, what did you do to deserve this?!
After a moment of silence, Aloha respectfully laid the gas mask against the wall. He slowly got up and turned towards you. Nothing was said as you gazed at each other, as if you were searching in the other for an answer.
The only answer he gave you was raising the 52. Gal near your head.
You froze. "Aloha?"
He tilted his head to the side, causing his visor to cover half of his face. His mouth twisted into a scowl.
Oh, shit. He thinks I'm the killer. He's going to kill me. He's going to-
"Get down!" He pushed you out of aim. You barely missed his shot. It hit the staircase instead, but he was aimming towards something else.
A figure in a black cloak and ghost mask. They dropped off the bottom step in order to dodge. Now they were faced towards you, pulling a hunting knife out. You could feel the intense glare beneath their mask. That was all you needed to know it was your tormentor.
When they lunged forward, Aloha took you out of aim again. He shoved you towards the stairs. "Get outta here! Go!"
Your legs ran on their own, though your heart ached to stay with him. The last you saw of him was his determined, protective expression.
× × ×
I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT. I FUCKING REFUSE TO BELIEVE THAT THE GUY WHO VOICES GHOSTFACE ALSO VOICES MOJO JOJO FROM POWERPUFF GIRLS. THE SAME PERSON. ABSOLUTELY NO WAY. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT UNLESS THE NEXT SCREAM MOVIE HAS MOJO JOJO AS THE KILLER.
(Unless Mojo Jojo is the killer in this story...?! Time will tell... The reveal is soon 😳)