REESE

- 4 -

"I'm worried about the girls!" Randy blurted. "What if that maniac goes after the girls!?"

Billy sighed, "The girls are staying with Officer Riley."

"But!"

A bout of paranoia had buried the town of Woodsboro following the murder of Casey Becker and Steven Orth at the hands of a killer known as Ghost Face earlier in the week, but none of the residents seemed to take It as hard as Randy Meeks; Randy was a mess and a half. It reached a point where the man in question reached out to Billy and Stu -- um... -- and asked the pair to a meet at his home to discuss a plan that he had come up with that morning!

Of.

A chorus of screeches, courtesy of a flock of annoying gulls, filled the air, but Billy and Stu paid it no mind, instead giving their undivided attention to their host as said host rambled on and on and on about the girls and how it was up to the guys to protect them at all costs from Ghost Face. Billy and Stu... were dumbfounded... to say the least. Randy... you idiot.

All.

To sum it up, the plan was to have The Gang all take shelter in one house until Ghost Face was no more, with Billy, Stu, and himself acting as guard dogs of sorts for Reese, Sidney, and Tatum. Simple, but effective?

The.

It felt like a month had passed by the trio before Randy finally, finally put an end to his rant and Billy and Stu fought the urge to cheer, to scream, to laugh at Randy for effectively, effectively signing his, Sidney's, and Tatum's respective death certificates via. his paranoia. Thanks, Randy, you idiot.

People.

Instead of using words, Billy and Stu simply used gestures to provide Randy with their thoughts, the two giving a thumbs-up in unison. Randy let out a sigh of relief and thanked Billy and Stu for giving their consent to be part of the plan, all the while beaming like the idiot he is. It was settled. Stu peeked at his watch before gesturing to Billy that it was time to get a move on -- how long had they been at Randy's? The three soon after parted ways, with Randy heading inside while Billy and Stu made their way to the car, their smiles plastered in place.

The gulls were nowhere in sight, probably having left for a nearby beach to heckle beach goers -- Billy had a sudden urge to go to a beach in the near future. Was it because Billy wanted to go for the Hell of it? Was it because Billy wanted to take a life there? Was it because Billy wanted to see Reese in a bikini? I mean, it wasn't like Billy hadn't seen Reese in her birthday suit before, let alone in a bikini, but... well, whatever it was, it was what it was.

* * *

Reese, Sidney, and Tatum linked arms, raised their glasses for a toast, and burst into a fit of giggles before quickly covering each other's mouths in an attempt to keep from being caught in the act by Tatum's older Brother, Dwight "Dewey" Riley, who would go nuts if it was revealed that Tatum and her friends were drunk! As the sheriff of Woodsboro, it was in Dewey's best interests to keep the peace, to stomp-out discord, to maintain a safe and secure environment... especially at the Riley Estate. <Come on!> Tatum downed the remnants of her glass in a single gulp. <Arrest us!> Reese and Sidney followed suit, prompting Tatum to pour another round and initiate another toast!

The radio on Tatum's vanity filled the room with the familiar beat of some Christina Aguilera song -- what was it? -- and prompted the girls to abandon their glasses, leap from the bed, and dance across the floor, singing along to the best of their ability. It was time to unwind, to let the stress of this past week melt away into nothingness. Honestly, between Becker and Orth's murder and Randy and a majority of the residents of Woodsboro going in a panic, the girls needed a break from it all, even for just one night.

It was a shitshow.

Clad in pajamas, the girls continued to dance like there was no tomorrow... only for Tatum's phone to ring, startling all three in the process! <What the Hell?> Reese reached for her glass, her eyes locked on Tatum, who stumbled towards the phone while Sidney casually, casually piled her hair into a messy bun before plopping onto the bed. The phone continued to ring. Tatum, having finally reached it, snatched up the phone and jammed her thumb nail into the correct button, the aggravation clear in her voice as she angrily demanded to know the identity of the caller. Reese joined Sidney on the bed, trying to listen-in on the call -- what? Reese was curious. Drunk as all Hell, but still curious none the less.

As the minutes ticked by, it became increasingly, increasingly obvious to Reese that something was wrong; Sidney draped her right arm over Reese and pulled her close to her chest as if to try to protect her from the caller. Tatum seemed to grow, grow increasingly, increasingly aggravated, frightened, even, but continued with the call -- Reese and Sidney shared a knowing glance.

Sidney whispered to Reese, "Can you make out who it is?"

Reese whispered back to Sidney, "No, can you?"

"No -- I can't."

"It sounds like a guy."

"Stu?"

"Could be St -- TATUM!? What is it?"

Without saying a word, Tatum whipped the phone across the room, just barely missing the bottle of Whiskey on the vanity, took a deep, ragged breath, and proceeded with a rant about... a prank call? Reese and Sidney shared another knowing glance. What was it about? It had to have been bad for Tatum to react the way that she did, but... Tatum wasn't budging.

What was the prank?