The Haunting of Sunshine Girl

Chapter 65

So. Uh. They just heard footsteps upstairs.

She turns the camera around, showing everyone sitting in the living room, eyes upturned toward the ceiling.

"Shh, shh, shh," Gary shushes, turning the lamp beside him off.

"What are you doing?" Sunshine whisper-yells.

"I want to make them think it's night."

Lionel laughs. "He's a genius," he says in a hushed tone. "That's why I love this guy!"

Gary stands and everyone follows. "This is what we've been waiting for," he says, heading towards a glass door. Lionel follows, bag of chips in hand.

"You need the Doritos?" Sunshine asks, unamused, instinctively handing the camera off to Nolan.

Lionel doesn't answer, just digs into the bag, takes a chip, and crunches loudly.

Gary turns. "Shhh," he says, brows furrowed. He then begins heading up the stairs, walking slowly and quietly, glancing around the darkening room. Only a yellow lamp across the bed illuminates the open space.

The door downstairs slams.

Everyone jumps, Nolan most of all. He whirls on his feet and stares wide-eyed down the stairs, clearly caught off guard.

"Of course the door slams," Sunshine mumbles. Still, she doesn't really feel anything. There's no tug in her gut, no whispered words in her ear. It's weird. Still, she has to distract herself from her feelings with some amount of sarcasm. "Next the power's gonna go out."

Everyone stares at the lamp.

Nothing happens.
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Sunshine and Lionel are playing chess. She's white, he's black.

"You go up two and over one, or over two and up one," Lionel explains, sitting cross-legged across from Sunshine, wearing Spongebob pajama bottoms.

"Okay," she says, moving a knight. "Oh, no. Beat that. Your turn."

Gary sighs and slides from the gray chair, laying next to the chess board on his side. He has a stuffed animal clutched in his hands. "Guys, this is very difficult for me to watch. I was the treasurer of my high school chess club, so it's difficult for me to watch amateurs—"

Lionel moves a pawn sideways, capturing Sunshine's.

"You did that wrong," she points out.

"No, actually, that's right—"

"Mmm-mmm," she disagrees.

"—you can—you can kill on a diag."

"Kill is such a strong word for chess. You just take 'em," Gary says.

"Okay," Lionel nods.

"Just, like, capture them."

"Guys," Sunshine interrupts, realizing that a certain know-it-all isn't shoving his chess knowledge forward. "Where's Nolan?"

Everyone looks around. He's gone.

"Where is Nolan?" Gary frowns.

"Nolan?" Sunshine calls.

There's a low moan from... somewhere.

"What was that?" Sunshine demands. What the hell?

"Did you guys hear that?" Gary asks, voice quivering.

Lionel shushes them, placing a finger to his lips.

Another long, drawn-out moan.

"Okay," Gary jumps up, "all right, there's definitely something."