𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 | Tara Carpenter SCREAM VI/VII

•SIX

After the morning spent with Tara, Anika's lecture upon my return to the dormitory and a long sleep, I decide to stretch my legs with a jog through the streets of New York City just minutes from the university.

Headphones wrap around my ears, the song Renegade accompanies me. A few drops of sweat slide from my forehead down my cheeks, my breathing erratic as I pick up the pace. My eyes follow the sidewalk, the usual path I take to run today is strangely empty and silent.

Okay. It's creepy.

A park lies near me and the sky grows darker as the minutes pass. I remember Tara's words perfectly: Once you face it ... you never come out. But maybe I'm not that important to these crazy people. Maybe I'm just a third-rate character? Even though part of me knew that getting close to Tara would put me in danger, another part hoped she was just overreacting.

The phone rings interrupting the music.

I slow my pace, trying to chase away the negative thoughts Tara had put in my head. I stop and pick up the phone, a look of confusion painting itself on my face.

An unfamiliar number.

I run an arm over my face wiping away the sweat and accept the call by clicking on the green icon. "Hello?" I ask with a strange uneasiness, my heart still pounding from running.

"Hello, y/n," says a robotic voice.

My blood freezes in my veins and my eyes move frantically, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. Is someone following me? A stalker?

I frown

"Who is this?" I ask in a trembling voice, anxiety growing every second.

"An old friend you met at the store. It's a pity he didn't kill you," he murmured with amusement. The robotic voice pierces my ears, making me realize the gravity of the situation.

"Ghostface," I reply, terrified.

"That's right," he confirms.

"What do you want?" My voice trembles, terror grows inside me. But beneath the fear broods a growing anger at having received this call.

"Finally, a smart girl," he says sarcastically. "I want you to stay away from the Carpenters and their friends. You had nothing to do with it. Stay out of it and you won't die," he insists, his robotic voice annoyed that I have ruined his meticulous plans.

I bite my lower lip nervously.

Tara's eyes and smile flashed through my mind and a warmth expanded in my chest. She had confided in me the terrible past she had faced, shown me the scar, thanked me for saving her life.... She had even cried in front of me! I could not let her down, I could not abandon her, even though we have only known each other for a short time.

The truth is that something attracted me to her.

I was an extremely shy girl, nervous and stammering when too many eyes were on me. My best friend puts up with my foibles: my passion for horror, video games and my being so antisocial.

And clumsy.

But it was time for a change.

A pride I didn't know I possessed swells in my chest, and a determined expression paints itself on my face. "Go fuck yourself," I hiss coldly, my hatred for this guy who embodies Tara's fears igniting me with rage. "Leave Tara, Sam and their lives alone," I mutter wrathfully, clenching my jaw tightly.

Silence

"I gave you a chance," the robotic voice replies, before hanging up.

Out of the corner of my eye I catch sight of a figure emerging from an alley and stop, backing away a step. My blood freezes at the sight of Ghostface's mask.