Last Chance to Win (Mirstie)

22

I jerked up out of my nest of warm blankets aand yanked on a sweater, shoving my phone into my pocket and pulling on my boots with every step. But before I managed to run out the front door, Olaf bounded from where he was sleeping next to the living room couch and started barking. I tried to shush him but with no avail. Finally I gave up and ran out of my house into the chilly night. My feet pounding on the sidewalk, I took out my phone and called Mitch.

"Mitch!" I yelled into the phone. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Oh my gosh Kirstin you have to hurry up she's coming get Scott hurry hurry hurry!!!" Mitch sounded panicked.

I barely knew where I was going as I sprinted through the quiet streets of the city. I was thankful Scott lived not so far from me so I was able to reach his house soon. He was waiting in his car when I came. His face was more scared than I had ever seen him. He barely greeted me before I jumped into the seat and we screeched off into the night.

"What's wrong? Is Mitch okay?" I demanded, buckling my seatbelt and adjusting my sleep tousled hair.

Scott jerked his head to check for traffic in the oncoming intersection before answering. "That's what I'm trying to figure out. Mitch randomly called me and asked me to come over, and I guess he called you too. I'm really scared, he hasn't called me at this hour- let alone this urgently before!"

A scary silence stretched between us as I considered the possible situations that could happen to him, shoving each one away. The only noises were the sounds of the car and the occasional chirping of the GPS.

"Have you been to his house before?" I asked Scott. He was clearly unfamiliar with the directions. I watched in confusion as the scenery passed by. We were heading toward a more run down and less well kept part of Arlington. Scott turned off the main road and we were speeding down a narrow road. The GPS beeped and he braked to a stop in front of a rather weathered looking-

It was barely a house. Just a smallish square of wooden planks, it's white painted walls peeling, the porch slouching from years of neglection. Scott jumped out and called for me to do the same. Before we reached the door, he grabbed my arm.

"Be careful, Kirstin. Keep 911 at hand. You don't know what you'll see. I don't know either." He bravely ran on ahead, and I had no choice to follow, my heart pounding. The door was wide open, and Scott grabbed my hand as we stepped inside. The reek of liquor and cigarettes hit me straight in the house and I choked back a cough. Scott started feeling around the wall for a light switch and flipped one. The living room lit up, and I flinched. The stench was thick. The room was littered with beer bottles, used cigarettes, dusty looking plastic bags, and clothing.

"No, no, no." I whispered. "This is a prank."

Scott grabbed my hand again, and we heading into the hallway and looked into a room before tiptoeing in.

"Kirstin, come in here." He whispered. I was about to investigate a dusty pile of magazines, but turned to follow him, and slipped on something. I swore under my breath as I caught myself with a hand.

"Kirst, you okay?"

"Yeah, I just slipped-" I stared at my hand. In the dim light, I saw a red smear on my hand. With shaking fingers, I drew out my phone and turned on the flashlight.

"BLOOD!" I screamed, and as I dropped the phone I saw a whole trail of it leading farther into the hallway. Scott didn't need to be told twice. He dashed down the hall, yelling for Mitch.

"MITCH!" He shoved open a door, leading into a bathroom. He kicked open another one, and a cluttered room full of junk like the living room came into view. "I can't see anything!"

Thinking quickly, I darted to the bathroom and groped around for the light switch. I flicked it on, and it bathed the hallway with a eerie bluish light. I soundlessly pointed down the trail of blood. It led to the last door farthest to the right. I opened the door first, and gasped.

"MITCH GRASSI!" Scott yelled, grabbing the figure lying on the bed. Mitch! He was curled up in a fetal position, unconscious with a bloody looking cut on his head. My heart thumped in my chest as Scott hoisted him up in his arms. "Grab his phone." He told me. I grabbed the shining device from the floor and we ran back to his car.

Scott dropped him off in the backseat. "We're taking him to the hospital."

Suddenly my eyes shot up. "My phone!" I ran in to grab my phone lying on the hallway and cringed when I felt it was slightly slick with blood. I ran back out, just as a battered car pulled right up next to Scott's honking it's horn angrily as a formidable feeling crept into my stomach.