“I mean, at least I think it slipped out of the attic.”
You all stood in a circle now, weapons on the ground, bent over and out of breath. You and the other six strangers, the fellow teenagers of this cul-de-sac, the magnets of madness, finally ended up back in your room on the third floor of your house. It’s been an agonizing two straight hours of unexplainable insanity. This day started out with a peaceful game of Uno on the highest level of the house and has degraded into water guns filled with rock-solid gumballs, armor made of a few busted tires, and that strange figure who let all hell loose off of that burgundy, leather leash.
Curly-hair is the first to talk, turning to you angrily, backside towards your open closet, “Are you… *huff* are you screwing with me? You freaking THINK!?”
Everyone else shifts uncomfortably, feeling the tension begin to rise. Curly-hair is about to do it again.
“Erm, well-”
“WE WENT THROUGH THE NINE PHASES. WE FED IT EVERYTHING IN OUR CABINETS. REX HERE NEARLY LOST HIS WHOLE LEFT LEG-”
“Yo, it’s chill-” Rex gently places a hand on her shoulder, just for it to be smacked off.
“WHEN IS THIS GOING TO BE OVER!? NEVER! AAAUGGGH!!!”
Just barely out of an earshot you hear scattering above you. Inside of the walls. Now besides you. It traveled through the entire left wall and proceeded to get louder and clearer in your dim closet.
“Oh no.”
You clear your throat hesitantly and try to speak up, “C.H., guys, I think I heard-”
“WHAT? THE SOUND OF MY VOICE? YEAH, I’M MAD NOW THAT YOU PUT US THROUGH ALL THIS!”
“No, listen! The thing-”
“-IS CLEARLY OUT OF YOUR REACH! YOU CAN’T HEAR IT WITH YOUR EARS, YOU CAN’T KEEP YOUR EYES ON IT FOR A SPLIT SECOND, AND IF IT WAS A GOSH DARN SNAKE IT WOULD HAVE BIT YOU RIGHT IN THE-” in the blink of an eye, it shot out the closet and latched right onto where the sun don’t shine.
“Jesus Christ-- shoot it!” Rex screamed.
You, Rex, Three-2, Bee, Jackalope, and Maggy pick up the weapons and attack at it with full force, but didn’t do much but waste the ammo. Curly-hair fell to the ground like a fly seconds after it nipped her. You all stood, starstruck, until it leaped suddenly and bit Rex next in the same spot.
He screamed out, “RUN! GET OUT OF HERE WHILE YOU STILL-” Thud.
You don’t hesitate, “QUICK! LET’S MOVE!”
You sprint out of the room with the remaining four close behind and nearly flew down the two flights of stairs. You didn’t know if they were dead… or passed out… or something got into their bloodstream… but you certainly didn’t want to find out. You hear a scream and whip around. Bee was a few centimeters away from your face and a few feet behind her you could see Three-2, Jackalope, and Maggy sprawled out on the stairs. The thing was now at the bottom of the stairs but you were tired of running, and Curly-hair’s words from just moments ago resonance in your head.
“What are you-”
“It’s time to end this, Bee.”
She runs behind you, shaking, as you lift and aim the water gun at it.
But it just chuckles and aims back, “But as you can see, it’s just getting started.”
Bee shrieks at the top of her lungs and in the blink of an eye--
You lose your footing on the attic stairs and slip down to the ground.