Have Mercy ♱ JesBible ♱

The Game Begins

Bible wanted to slip away to get some sleep, but Fuaiz wouldn't let him go. "Just play one round," he begged, pouting.

"Don't force him to play, Fuaiz," Natty said, clearly not wanting Bible to be dragged into the game.

They sat in a circle of about ten people, all gathered around the golden bottle, ready to start. "Natty, you can join too," Fuaiz said, wiggling his eyebrows and glancing at Bible. She blushed, only considering it because of Bible. The others began to cheer, "Let's play! Let's play!" and Bible found himself wavering until he finally gave in.

"Fine. But just one round," he said reluctantly.

"Yes! Let's go!" Fuaiz yelled, spinning the bottle. The rules were simple: either complete the challenge or down a vile drink they'd prepared.

The bottle spun, everyone holding their breath each time it landed on someone new, with people doing the most ridiculous things as Bible counted down the moments until he could finally go to bed.

Challenges ranged from calling an ex to kissing a random person, licking someone's neck, swapping shirts, or giving a lap dance.

Bible silently prayed the bottle wouldn't stop at him.

But... fate had other plans. When JJay spun the bottle, it landed squarely on Bible. Fuaiz grinned, leaning in to whisper something to JJay, whose eyes widened.

"What?!"

Everyone was buzzing with excitement to hear the challenge.

"Drink... or go to Mr. Jespipat's tent and lie down for five minutes," JJay announced with a mischievous grin.

Bible froze, shooting Fuaiz a withering look. "You can drink instead if you don't dare," Fuaiz said, batting his lashes innocently. You're dead, Bible thought. No way—this was impossible. What if Mr. Jespipat wasn't asleep yet, or worse, what if he woke up?

Everyone was watching Bible, eagerly awaiting his decision and cheering him on, making him feel even more nervous. Natty was clearly annoyed, glaring at Fuaiz, but Fuaiz was buzzing with excitement, waiting for Bible's answer.

"Fine, I'll do it. But only for five minutes—and you all better be quiet, okay?" Bible said as everyone stared, wide-eyed, while he stood up and headed toward Mr. Jespipat's tent.

He was so dead. So, so dead.

But he didn't want to lose face in front of everyone by being the one who backed down. Mr. Jespipat's tent was set slightly apart from the others, at the edge of the camp. He could still see the group, though they were a bit farther off, all watching to make sure he actually did it.

His hands started to sweat as he gulped, feeling like he was stepping into a lion's den.

The tent was small—a single-person tent. He didn't even know how he'd fit next to Mr. Jespipat without waking him up. But then he remembered that Mr. Jespipat had slept deeply back at the apartment.

Let's just pray, he thought, taking a deep breath.

Slowly and quietly, he unzipped the entrance. Every slight sound sent a chill through him as he glanced inside. Mr. Jespipat lay facing the opposite direction, the tent so dark that Bible couldn't quite see if his eyes were closed, but there was no movement, so he convinced himself that he was asleep.

There was a small space on the left side, so Bible crawled onto the mat, closing the tent quietly behind him, and lay down on the side, facing the tent wall with his back to Mr. Jespipat.

His heart was pounding so loudly he feared Mr. Jespipat might hear it. His breath was shaky as he began counting down the minutes, slowly calming as time passed. But time seemed to stretch endlessly.