It was supposed to be just another typical night for Josh and Juicy, another late-night paranormal investigation to add to the growing list of spooky adventures they’d filmed. But something felt different tonight. The air was thicker with anticipation, and Josh couldn’t quite put his finger on why. Maybe it was the location: an old, abandoned mansion on the outskirts of town. Maybe it was the fact that they were meeting Sam and Colby, the YouTube duo who seemed to have a way of making even the most terrified people laugh in the face of danger. Or maybe it was something else—something that had been slowly building between him and Juicy.
The group piled into the van, their equipment scattered around the seats as they made the long drive to the mansion. Juicy was sitting beside Josh, his usual energetic demeanor replaced by an unusual stillness. Josh noticed how quiet Juicy had been all evening, his usual banter with the group absent, almost like he was lost in thought.
“You alright, man?” Josh asked, glancing at Juicy, who was staring out the window.
Juicy turned to him, his eyes meeting Josh’s for the first time that night. He gave a small smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yeah, just... thinking.”
Josh raised an eyebrow. “About what?”
Juicy hesitated, looking away again, and then back at Josh. “I dunno. Maybe about how weird it feels to be here. With everything. With us.”
Josh’s heart skipped a beat. His mind went racing, but before he could respond, the van hit a bump, and the group erupted into laughter as their equipment shifted.
“Alright, alright, enough of the serious talk!” Sam’s voice cut through the noise as he turned around from the front seat, his arm casually draped over Colby’s shoulder. “We’re about to get to the creepy mansion, let’s focus on *that* for a minute.”
Colby, smiling warmly at Sam, leaned into him, his fingers grazing Sam’s hand in a quiet but intimate way. There was a familiarity in their interactions now—an easy connection that had grown over the last few months. They weren’t just paranormal investigators anymore; they were partners. In every sense of the word.
Josh watched them for a moment, feeling an odd mix of admiration and something else. He had seen Sam and Colby evolve into something more than just friends, something deeper—and it made him think about his own relationship with Juicy. Was there something more there, too?
“Are you guys ready for this?” Sam called out, sensing the mood shift in the van.
“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Colby replied, giving Sam a playful nudge.
As they reached the mansion, the group piled out of the van and made their way inside. The air was thick with dust, the kind that settled into your lungs and made your skin feel sticky. The old house creaked under their weight as they set up their cameras and began to get situated.
Josh turned to Juicy as they unpacked their equipment, giving him a reassuring smile. “Whatever happens in here, we’ve got each other’s backs, alright?”
Juicy nodded, his eyes softening. “Yeah. Got your back, man.”
---
As the investigation started, the atmosphere shifted. The wind howled outside the crumbling walls of the mansion, and every creak, every shadow, seemed amplified in the silence between the group. They set up their EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) recorder, hoping to catch a whisper or a voice from the beyond.
Sam and Colby stayed close, as they always did. There was a comforting presence about them, a sense of safety in knowing they had each other to rely on. It was like their bond was something unspoken, but undeniable, especially in places like this.
