In the Dark 2/2

DONT READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T READ PART 1, for obvious reasons

In the Dark, part 2/2 

30 minutes left till midnight

« Oh my God what was that?? » Chris said, panting.

I checked outside through a dirty window but all I could see was an empty playground.

« I.. I don’t know. I didn’t get a good look at it…»

« We should’ve taken the rose petals. I told you something bad was gonna happen! »

I snapped my head around. « Well maybe if you had kept quiet instead of shouting all the time, it wouldn’t have found us! »

He crossed his arms and looked away.

Silence fell between us.

Then someone started whistling.

My heart skipped a beat when I realised it was coming from behind me. I turned around half-expecting a monster or deformity or whatever to be standing behind me, but all I saw was Alex. He was crouched on the ground, hugging his knees close to him and quietly whistling to himself.

« Alex what the hell! Stop that! »

He pursed his lips.

« Now that I think of it, » I said slowly, « You were whistling before too, back when we were walking down the street. No one in their right mind after just escaping certain death would go ‘ooh now’s the time to start whistling!’ »

He stayed silent.

« Well you HAVE been acting strange since this evening, Alex.. I mean, you were always the most excited to go, always talking constantly and tonight you’re just.. so distant, » Chris shook his head. « I feel like you’re an entirely different person, Alex, »

Alex got up suddenly and steadied himself.

« Guys! What are you even talking about?? I’m still me, I’m whistling because- well, »

« Because of what?? Say it already! »

« I just, I can’t- » he exhaled deeply. « I’m scared out of my mind, okay? I don’t know how y’all manage to keep your cool, but I just can’t with that thing chasing after us and the darkness and the monsters around..»

He looked at us and noticed we were both avoiding his gaze.

« I’m scared okay! That’s what you guys want to hear!? I’m scared! Yes, I’m a chicken, yes, I’m scared shitless by the dark! I only came cause I figured this would be the last time! »

Chris looked at Alex with pity and was about to tell his friend to knock it off, but shook his head. Alex would’ve never admitted so easily to being scared, this seemed almost desperate.

Chris’ voice hardened: « And what about the salt, huh? You were the one holding onto it, and what an awful awful coincidence that it somehow flew out of your hand without you noticing JUST when we needed it. Such a convenience, wasn’t it? »

« The rose petals.. » I murmured.

« That too! YOU were the one supposed to bring the rose petals this time, YOU were the one who was in charge of finding them, »

Alex opened his mouth then closed it.

« Nothing to say? You planned all of this out so perfectly but you didn’t expect us to catch onto your little game so fast, didn’t you? »

Alex sniffed. « What are you insinuating,»

« I think, » Chris said, closing the distance with him, « that you aren’t really Alex, »

He scoffed. « What the hell do- »

« Let me finish! I think you aren’t Alex, and that somehow on our last excursion in the Dark Hour, something took a hold of the real Alex and you’re now pretending to be him. I mean, last time was a mess, we brought the flashlights and it attracted It and I think somehow it got to you.”

Alex gave an unamused laugh. « That’s the most insane thing I’ve ever heard. »

He looked at me and I turned away.

« No.. Don’t tell me you believe the bullshit he’s saying?? This is just a huge misunderstanding guys, you’ve got to believe me! »

« I mean, » I said hesitantly « There’s just too much for all of this to be a coincidence. Your behaviour, the whistling, you not talking to us for a week and how you ‘accidentally’ lose the two most essential materials for our survival.. »

« It’s an honest mistake! I wasn’t paying attention and they got lost! »

« And the whistling? »

« I told you! It’s how I deal with stress! »

« And the not-talking-for-a-week and acting like we’re strangers and purposefully sabotaging this evening? »

« I- »

He turned his head to face me and when he buried his eyes into mine I was taken aback by the expression on his face. I saw an entanglement of fury, of desperation and of.. was it pain? He looked hurt like I had just stabbed him. Like I was the villain here. I clenched my teeth.

« What should we do with him? » Chris said softly.

I shook my head. « We can’t let him run around freely, he might try taking us out. »

Chris nodded.

« Let’s lock him up somewhere. If it’s actually Alex, he’ll return with us the moment we end the ritual, and if it isn’t him well, then we’ll know, »

Alex looked at us wide-eyed. « No no.. this can’t be happening.. have you all lost your minds??! »

« Listen, we just wanna make sure that it’s you or not. If you’re actually Alex then you’ve got nothing to worry about, » Chris said as reassuringly as he could. Alex tried to say something but was trembling too much to do anything.

« If you just follow me, we’ll lock you in the school basement and-»

Alex jerked his head up.

« Not in the basement. I’ll never go in the basement. »

« Then we’ll make you, »

His eyes jumped from me to Chris, then Chris to me, and sensing only hostility towards him, he darted for the corridor like a cornered animal. Reacting instantly, Chris bounded after him and knocked him out cold.

My eyes lowered to this friend I had known for years and an icy feeling clawed at my heart.

« We had to do it, didn’t we? We had to,» I murmured.

Chris nodded. “We did the right thing. Alright now, let’s move him in the basement, »

20 minutes left till midnight

I heard the sound of a rusty lock clinking then a loud clang as it fitted into place, soon accompanied by the loud steps of Chris approaching.

« It’s done. »

« We need to finish the ritual, » I said without looking up. « We need to return home and finish the ritual otherwise we’ll be stuck here, »

Chris shivered at the prospect. « We can’t leave Alex here, though. »

« We can’t stay here either, »

« Then I’ll stay here while you run back home and finish the ritual, okay? »

« Alright. You stay here and I’ll go finish the ritual. »

He took out an extra candle from seemingly thin air and placed it in my hand.

« Take it, you only have one candle left and that’s not gonna last, »

I mouthed a thanks before lighting it. I looked at him. I couldn’t bring myself to leave, I couldn’t go outside and face the darkness all alone.

He looked at me and smiled in understanding. « You’ll be fine. Now go! We only have twenty minutes left, »

« Right right, »

I opened the entrance door, looked over at him one final time, then stepped out into the darkness.

15 minutes left

Shit shit shit shit

The night had started off so amazingly.. if I could go back in time and tell myself how this night was about to spiral into a nightmare, I probably wouldn’t have believed myself. No way this is happening, this can’t be real. But the biting breeze in my face, the stones digging into my feet raw from running- no, this was very much happening. And the people following me were very definitely real.

Hordes of them, waves of them.

At first I only saw them in the distance, they looked like stars at first, lots of stars piled across the horizon. Then as I continued walking to my house, I saw the stars getting closer and closer, until I could make out what these « stars » actually were. They were smiles. Hundreds and hundreds of smiles, teeth gleaming in the darkness which were fixed on the deformed faces of people I knew. I started quickening my pace, and they followed. They closed in from everywhere, from my right from my left from behind me, only the path right in front of me was free of these creatures.

In the distance, I saw the candle of my house burning brightly which renewed my courage.

I kept running and running and running, only hearing the rapid tap tap tap of my steps on the pavement and the soft swishing sound of these deformities shuffling behind me.

The candle Chris had given me kept them at bay, but for how long would it? I looked down at the candle and right at that moment my foot caught on a rock and I tumbled over.

The candle flew out of my hand and rolled away. I stared at it in horror and could only watch as it flickered one final time then was snuffed out.

I scrambled to my feet and struggled for the candle I kept in reserve, cracking a match which didn’t light. I tried another, but again, it snuffed out. I kept my back to the creatures, I didn’t want to see where they were, I didn’t want to see how close they were getting to me. My hands were trembling violently. I bit my lip, hard, trying to steady myself. I tried another match running it across the box again and again and again until I felt it literally turn into splinters in my hand. I threw it away and took another match.

« Come on! Fricking light yourself! »

I cracked one of my last matches which caught immediately and I spun around to see where the deformities were. My heart stopped.

Smiles. Everywhere. A crowd of them, smiling, standing still as statues, so close I could reach out and stroke their faces. So close I could see the flicker of the candle gleam on their pearly white teeth.

I took a step back.

They didn’t move, only stared at the candle, following it with their eyes.

I took another step back and bumped into something. I turned around and fell to the ground as I saw a tall, well, I wouldn’t call it a man. A tall creature looming over me, grinning.

Thankfully, they didn’t move, only stared at my candle that swayed dangerously in the breeze.

I cupped my hand around the flame to protect it from the wind, and mustering what remained of my courage, I pushed through the crowd and stepped unsteadily in the direction of my house.

I turned around and, seeing how they still weren’t following me, I decided to break into a sprint.

5 minutes left

Finally! I could make out the doorway to my house. I checked my watch and noticed there was five minutes left until the Dark Hour- the worst hour of my life- would end.

I arrived at the doorway and didn’t lose any time trying to catch my breath. I took the candle we had left on the doorstep and approached it to the doorway. The threshold immediately caught and soon the door was engulfed into flames. The warm heat was a welcome change from the frisky air. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

Just one more final step and this horrible nightmare will be over,

I opened my eyes and took a few steps back, trying to calm down my heart pounding violently in my chest. But it was no use. It wasn’t easy to turn your natural instincts off to throw yourself into a burning door. It wasn’t easy the first time and two years later it wasn’t any easier.

« You’re gonna be just fine, just pass through the door and everything will be back to normal, » I repeated over and over like a mantra.

I squeezed my eyes and exhaled deeply, but before I could make a run for the door, I heard my name being called from behind me.

« Who’s there?! »

« It’s me it’s me, chill, » Chris said as he ran up to me.

« Oh gosh you scared me, » I sighed trying to ease the panic coursing through my veins. « I’m almost done with finishing up the ritual, I just need to- »

« I know. I came for something else. »

I looked at him, confused.

« Come on.. you know what I’m talking about, don’t act dumb,»

« I don’t know what you’re talking about, »I said cooly.

« One year ago, day for day.. It was our anniversary today, actually. Still doesn’t ring a bell?»

I sighed. « It was an accident.»

« You’re lying, » he hissed.

« I saw it happen, Chris. She wandered away and her candle snuffed out. There wasn’t anything I could’ve done, Chris. This was a year ago, I know she meant a lot to you but she’s gone now,» 

« Stop fucking lying! I saw you I saw you I saw you, you and Alex, you both were whispering to each other before we left, you were planning it! You gave her a- a shorter candle than ours! A candle that wouldn’t last the full hour! And you chose me to put the salt on the pavement so that I wouldn’t be there when it happened!»

I stood there in silence.

« I know you did it.. I had a year to think it over and over, Alex was bad enough but you were worst, you were right next to her and you let it happen- »

« Chris. Where is Alex. »

He grinned.

« Chris what the hell did you do ?! Where is he ! »

« He didn’t even see it coming, » he said, his eyes lost in a trance. « In the dark, all alone. I didn’t kill him mind you, all I did was give him one of my personalised candles and then just, opened the door to let It in. I made him live through what she did. He deserved it. For what he’s done.»

I backed away from him. « You’re mad. Entirely mad.»

« Maybe, but I want to hear you say it. I want to hear you say, ‘I, I killed Audrey one year ago, day for day,’ and when we return to the real world, you’re gonna go right up to the police and admit to everything you’ve done,»

« Alright alright, calm down, I'll say whatever you want, let's just all relax, but, you’re wrong about one thing, »

He got closer, eager to hear me say it.

« You’re wrong about one thing,» my voice softened. “Alex wasn't the one who killed her » 

His head jerked up in shock but before he could react I shoved him and he fell backwards on the pavement.

« You, you- I knew it! » He spat.

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t even look at him as I lighted the “personalised” candle he had given me, the candle laced with whatever substance he mixed in it, and threw it at him. As it rolled at his feet, a flash of recognition passed over his face and his eyes widened in horror 

He wasn’t able to do anything as the smiling crowd circled him. He barely was able to stand up before, without warning, they lunged at him.

I stepped through the doorway and heard one single, piercing shriek, before everything went dark.

Midnight

I was back in my house. Everything was so quiet I almost thought I had failed to leave the Dark Hour.

« Hey, what are you doing in the doorway? Where is Chris and Alex? » A familiar voice said

« Hey Dad, » I murmured softly. « They’re gone. »

« Alright then, » he yawned. « Go get some sleep it’s midnight already! »

I gazed out the window and relaxed at the sight of the moon glowing outside. I sighed. My friends were gone alright and there wasn't anything I could've done to stop it.. If only he'd done what I told him to do and forgotten about her, then none of this would have happened. Chris and Alex. Alex and Chris. I had to remember their names. I couldn’t let them fade away in my memory. 

Three friends ventured out to the other side and only one made it out, but that night, three people had died.