Spierfeld Week

Spooky/Ensemble

BRAM

Why oh why did I sign up for this?

And who's idea was it to go to a haunted corn maze? Who even knew those were a thing?

The whole gang's going: Simon, Nick, Leah, Abby, Garrett, and I. I think it was probably Nick's idea to invite Garrett and I, as neither of us talk much with the rest of them.

I met Nick and Garrett in soccer the summer before my freshman year, after moving to a new town and a new school in an entirely different state. I was originally from Oregon, where it rained buckets and buckets every season besides summer, and even then there would be days like that.

On the first day of high school I must have looked so awkward looking for a place to sit that Nick invited me over to his table. And that's where I met the most adorable person in the history of forever.

Simon Spier.

SIMON

I have no idea why I love haunted houses when I'm absolutely terrified of them. But here I am, at a haunted corn maze on Friday the 13th. I don't think Haunted Carter's Farms usually opens this early, but I guess they couldn't miss the chance for more business.

The place is packed with high schoolers, jostling to get in, but I can already tell it's only going to be more as the night gets darker, and I'm glad we decided to come before sunset.

We make it to the entrance just as the sun dips below the horizon. I stare at the swirly entrance of corn stalks and spiderwebs, a sudden fear gripping at my heart.

The actor at the entrance seems to sense my fear, and gives me a feral smile. "It's now or never," he says, shaking his lantern at me. "Turn back while you can."

BRAM

What the proper fuck. I swear we've been in here for less than five minutes and we already had three people jump out at us.

A man wearing clown makeup is standing off to the side of the path, but when Nick, who's leading our group- probably so he can get out of here as fast as he can- steps forward, he pulls out a chainsaw and it roars to life.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WHAT THE FUCK?! WHAT THE FUCK!!" sreams Nick as he barrels past the clown-man, leaving the rest of us in the dust.

"OH MY GOD," Leah is screaming, and the clown says something that probably took months to memorize, but I can't hear it over the sound of my friends' blubbering.

Another actor that I can't see grabs my shoulder from behind me, and I let out a squeal that sounds like a child's and grab onto the arm of the person closest to me, who just happens to be the wonderfully awkward Simon Spier.

"Holy fuck, why is he touching me? Why is he touching me?" I screech.

Simon laughs. "What did you think 'full contact horror experience' meant, Bram?"

The action has slowed down somewhat. There aren't any actors around, anway. I hear Nick mumble inintelligible swear words under his breath from ahead, and Leah is blubbering about the clown.

The group slows to a stop at a fork. We all look left, then right.

"This is great," Abby says, and she might be about to say more, but just then another actor runs out of the left turn of the corn maze. He is screaming unintelligibly, and he grabs onto Abby's shoulders and shakes her violently before turning and running down the path we came from. She seems shocked, her body rigid, like she just came face to face with her biggest fear. I notice her shoulders are covered in fake blood from the actor's hands.

"Maybe we don't go left," Simon says carefully as more screams erupt from the groups behind us.

"Yeah, maybe we don't," Abby agrees, her voice tremulous. We slowly begin to turn right.

"Maybe it's a trap," Nick says, his eyes flicking around in paranoia. "Maybe they send the actor from left so we'll all go towards the worse thing on the right."

Garrett scoffs. "C'mon, Nick, don't be ridiculous."

My knuckles have gone white around Simon's arm. Embarrassed, I let go of him.

He gives me a strange look. "Is it just me, or are the lights getting farther apart?" I look around, and it's true- the themed creepy torches are becoming few and far between.

"Yeah," I say nervously. Maybe Nick was right. Just as the thought crosses my mind, a low, creepy moan echoes through the corn maze.
"Guys?" Abby sounds nervous. "We just passed the last light on this path."

"Maybe we should turn back," Leah says- at least, I think it's Leah, I can't see shit, I'm going totally off voices here- and we all make noises of affirmation.

A man in full prison gear stands behind us, at the last flickering torch. "There's no turning back now," He says, and the torch flares brighter, revealing a sickly toothless grin and the manacles chaining his wrists together. They lead to a large cannonball. It drags on the ground with a horrible scrrrrrrrrrrrape as he takes a step forward. I don't know who starts screaming first, but soon we all are. I feel a hand slip into mine, and suddenly I'm being pulled along as whoever had grabbed onto me ran, sprinting away from the actor and down the path.

"Holy fuck! Holy fuck! Holy motherfucker of all that is holy we're all going to die oh my god oh my god oh my FUCKING god I HATE YOU ALL," a familiar voice screams- it's Nick, definitely. "I'm never trusting you again, Simon! This is not fun! I AM NOT HAVING FUN!" Nick is yelling, and suddenly we are all standing on the outside of the maze.

"I'm going to kill you, Simon," Abby says breathlessly, inspecting her shoulders.

"That was not fun," Nick reiterates.
"We all heard your childish cries the first time, Nick," Garrett says, rolling his eyes and panting.

"That is the last time I go along with one of your "Simon Says" jokes," Abby says. "This is gonna stain!"

I mean to say something, but my brain stops working the second I realize who's holding my hand. '

It's Simon.

He grins. "Happy Friday the Thirteenth."

"That was in no way happy."

He squeezes my hand. "I'd say it's fine, once you get past almost being killed and Nick screaming."

"Hey!" Nick yells. "I heard that!"

Simon grins this stupidly ginormous smile, and I can't help but fall completely and utterly in love with it.

I squeeze back. "Maybe you're right."