Ten Days Til I Die

•Chapter Four

"Chloe?" Devyn called, her voice echoing throughout the cold air. She peered her head around the corner, seeing if anyone was there. Which there wasn't. "Chloe, I'm here. Where the hell are you?" She called out, in hopes that her friend would finally come out of hiding.

"Someone else is here?" She heard through the group of muffled voices down the hall. "Chloe, I can hear you. You know you've never been good at whispering." Devyn sighed. When Chloe didn't respond, Devyn grew concerned. "Chloe, are you there?" Devyn felt a gust of wind blow through the hall. Not much, but just enough to let goosebumps crawl up her skin.

The sound of a door slowly opening alerted the girl, causing her to spin on her heels. "Hello? Is anyone there?" She asked. "Chloe, this isn't funny anymore. I will go back to the dorm." Devyn turned to leave before she heard a voice talk back.

"You can leave. Hell, if you can find the exit that is." Devyn peered over her shoulder to see where the voice had come from. A group stood in the shadows at the end of the hall. She couldn't make out their faces, let alone how many there were.

"Who are you? And how many are there of you?" Devyn spoke, a slight stutter erupting through her voice. "Well, there's nine of us, for starters. And now, you're the tenth." A heavily accented man spoke from the shadows. "But I'm Mark." The voice added on.

As if on cue, the lights turned on, allowing Devyn to see the group more clearly. "Why are you all here?" Devyn asked, skeptic of the mysterious group.

"We were all invited here by our friends, who didn't show, mind you. Your friend must've done the same." Devyn looked at the group, perturbed. Before she could respond, another member of the group spoke. "All our friends texted us, saying to meet them here, all at different times. But when we went to find the exit, it was gone." She said.

"Like it just disappeared," one added on. "So Chloe isn't here?" She asked. They all shook their heads. "But why would she text me not to leave and go to the second floor if she wasn't here?" Concern seemed to flow through them. "What are you talking about? Show me," Mark spoke, giving her no time to comment. She opened her phone, ready to show the stranger the weird messages, but noticed something was off; the messages were different.

Chloe: skipping school tomorrow, going to the party. You should come too

Chloe: **** ** *** ****** *****

Chloe: **** *****! ** ****** *** *** *** *** :(

Devyn: *** *** **** *** *** **** * *** ***** ** *****?
         not delivered

Chloe: ****, **** ********! * ***** * ******** ****!

"What the hell is that?" Mark asked. "I-I don't know. I swear this wasn't what it said." Devyn concentrated on the new messages. "Well, another question I've got is how did you even get in?" One of the other boys piped in. 

"The entrance. How else?" She asked, giving the boy a weird look. A silent chuckle fell from the crowd. "Well, where is this 'entrance' then? We obviously can't find it. It's like the doors disappeared." One of the girls spoke.

Devyn laughed her sassy laugh. "The doors disappearing? Please, you all ought to live here talking like that. This place," Devyn paused, motioning around the building with her finger. "Isn't a maze." The sound of someone running through the halls filled the cold, dense air once more. "Do you hear that?" Devyn asked, just barely a whisper. She watched the group step back in a rushed manner.

"Yeah, we tried to see who it was, but whenever we looked, no one was there. We need to leave." A girl spoke, stammering on her words. "Follow me. I'll show you the way to the Disappearing Doors." Devyn chuckled to herself.

Devyn glanced around the corner before pulling her head back. "You alright?" Mark asked, looking at her. "Just fine," she said, looking up at the boy. "This way." Devyn walked towards the door.

"What the hell?" Devyn felt the wall. "It's gone," she said, questioning herself. "Told ya so," a girl whispered. "Do you have something to share with the class?" Devyn asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. She lowered herself to the grimy floor, with help from the wall.

"Well, we all told you there was no way out, yet, you didn't bother to listen." The snotty girl spoke up. "It's kind of hard to believe you when I find you in this place." Devyn said. "Just find a way out of here." Devyn groaned, laying her head onto her knees.

"Well, if we're going to work together, we might as well get to know one another. I'm Mark." The thick accented man spoke, introducing himself once more. "Lizzie," the snotty girl spoke, acting as if she ruled everyone there. "A snotty name for a snotty girl. Terrific," Devyn mumbled, a hint of sarcasm spiking in her voice.

"Excuse me, bitch?" Lizzie snapped. Devyn pulled herself up with the help of Mark's arm. "You heard me. I mean, unless your ears are about as gross as your hair." Devyn sighed as she watched Lizzie fight the boys away from her.

"Well, I'm Jacob. But you all can call me Jake." One of the boys piped up in the back. Going around the group, names were spat out of one another's mouth, almost as if they meant nothing.

With the names, Devyn kept them bouncing throughout her mind, trying to remember them. She chanted them over and over, like a prayer...Debby, Ryan, Kyle, Kelly, Baylee, Ty, Jake, Mark, Lizzie...

But she couldn't help but remember all these names-these faces-from somewhere. She just can't remember where.