Writing Prompt Short Stories

Chapter 1 - Plan?

Word to the wise, never make bets with guys named Sam who have sadistic tendencies. My friend Alex and I have fallen into his trap with abet that seemed doable. It wasn't. We bet to see who could get Sam's ATV up the steepest hill in town, or, at least, who could get it farthest up the hill. I should've stopped right there when I realized who's ATV it was. WHY DIDN'T I REALIZE THE HIGH PROBABILITY THAT SAM HAD ALREADY MASTERED THE ATV WHILE IT WAS ALEX AND I'S FIRST TIME ON ONE!!! Since neither Alex nor I caught that little loop hole, we kinda deserved the punishment we got. All of us agreed to spend the night in the creepy abandoned house down the street as punishment. We would decide the date after we knew who the victims were and how their schedules lined up with the other's. Alex got on the ATV first and made it about 3/4 of the way up. Next was my turn and I did a little better than Alex--about 4/5 up. Finally, it was Sam's turn and SURPRISE SURPRISE! He made it all the way up, leaving us at the bottom with the full effect of our decision setting in. All I could do was laugh and die a little inside and just keep my head down in embarrassment. Lifting my head after a few minutes, I turned to see a half-lidded and very unimpressed Alex which made Sam and I burst out laughing.

--FLASH FORWARD--

As Alex and I walked through the nightmarish, abandoned hallways of our wager, we realized that something wasn't quite right. We tried to shake the feeling and move on, but something refused to let us. While we walked the rest of the disturbing floor plan, the foreboding and eerie feeling only continued to badger us in our journey through this hell-hole. We eventually grew tired of the disembodied eyes staring at us and the hair on our necks constantly standing from shivers of fear and tried to find our way out of this godforsaken place, but the desolate hallways seemed to only lead us farther into the limbo of unknown. Despite turning around and retracing what we thought were our tracks in the dusty corridor, we came to realize that neither of us were wearing boots. Assuming it was Sam, I tried to call out to him.

"Ha ha ha! You got us! Time to come out now, Sam!"

No response. I looked around trying to spot a flashlight, when I heard a loud thud from upstairs. Shaking, I looked to Alex who had the same alarmed expression on his face.

"Okay, Sam! You can stop now! This isn't funny anymore!"

As soon as the words left my mouth, I recalled Sam's camera and how he had told us to record the whole night we were supposed to spend in the local "haunted house"--which was really just a normal abandoned house--to prove to him that we really did keep our end of the deal. I turned to Alex who hadn't quite realized our predicament yet and tapped his shoulder, gesturing to Sam's camera. As horror took over, it took all we had to keep each other from screaming and trying to run away in a panic. Horror movies have taught us to shut our mouthes if we want to survive.

Another loud thud could be heard and I tried to signal to Alex that it was time to go. The very second he turned to me, I could see the dread that painted his face in a way I'd never seen before, but he wasn't looking at me. I soon followed with my own portrait of terror when I realized what he was transfixed with. Down the hallway opposite us, I could see the cracked bathroom mirror that had once held my gaze of bewilderment and wonder, yet now holds it with horror and panic. I could see a figure I'd only imagined in my nightmares in the room behind me. I slowly ripped my terrified stare from the mirror and back to Alex who hadn't moved an inch. Terrified to make any sort of sound or movement to alert the unknown figure, I tried to whisper to him and get his attention as fast as I could.

"Hey! You still with me?"

"I-I... What the hell is that thing?!"

Neither of us had moved in the last few minutes. The only things we could hear was the shuffling of the figure, our rapid breathing, and our hearts beating in our ears.