“I dare you to cheat on Mr. Graham’s test next week,” Shayla whispered into the large dark room lit only by a long string of fairy lights. I laughed. “Done! That one’s too easy, I was already planning to,”
Shayla raised her eyebrows at me, and Ava swatted me with her pillow. “Rowan!” Ava hissed while Ashlyn burst out laughing. “Stop cheating on tests, you guys!” Ava turned her glare on both Ashlyn and me now. Ashlyn shook her head.
“You know that asking Rowan to do that is like asking a fish to fly. She’s built to cheat.”
Both Shayla and Ava laughed at this.
“Hey, that’s not true,” I said, rolling my eyes and trying to hold back a laugh. “I can not cheat on one test. Watch me.”
All three of them looked at me, and we all burst into giggles so loud we immediately started shushing each other. We weren’t supposed to be up this late. It was already 3 am, and we promised my parents, who were hosting this sleepover, that we wouldn’t stay up all night, but we were still planning to do so.
“Ok, I have a better one for Rowan, so everyone shush,” Ashlyn announced. “You still want a dare, right?” she asked me. I nodded, and she continued. “You know your creepy basement and that suspicious vent? Well, I dare you to go downstairs, open it and take a picture of what’s inside.”
I looked at her, squinting my eyes. There was no way I would pass up a dare, but I had feared that vent since I could remember. Our unfinished basement always terrified me. There were exposed wires, pipes, and strange fuzz all over the floor and ceiling–so much so that you couldn’t see where you were walking. It scared me with how creaky the entire place was and how it would make weird noises every now and then. The creepiest part of the basement was one specific vent. It always gave me the heebie-jeebies and I had no clue why.
Still, I wasn’t willing to back down. Ashlyn’s face, illuminated by the little lights scattered around the room, smiled a little at me as though she wanted me to turn the dare down. “Two can play this game,” I thought, then copied her smile and said, “If I’m going, you’re all coming with me.”
So that’s how all four of us ended up squeezing down the staircase, laughing and shushing each other, hoping my parents wouldn’t hear. We all had a flashlight since we usually brought them to sleepovers so we could tell scary stories holding them under our chins to dramatize them.
At the end of the staircase, I stopped and held my arm out to Ashlyn. “Your idea, so you get to go first.” She responded by giving me a light shove instead, laughing as she did so. “Nope, this was a dare meant for you. Your dare.” I gave her a look. “I’m not sure that’s how it works.”
“Well, I’m sure,” She replied. “Plus, you know this house the best, so you should go first.” I sighed and relented, stepping forward into the basement. The others followed suit until we came upon the vent. No air came out of it, but it felt vaguely cold around the area. I reached for the edge of it, thinking that we probably should’ve brought a screwdriver, but to my surprise, it popped right off, clattering onto a large pipe below, making all of us jump.
“Jesus,” Shayla whispered. “I swear my heart nearly fell out of my butt.”
“Shhhhhhh,” Ava whispered, but she looked just as shaken in the light of our flashlights.
I turned my attention back to the vent, and now I could feel a chill coming off of something inside there. I prepared my phone to take a picture and bent down to look. I screamed. Inside, surrounded by ice, was a dead body.
Shayla raised her eyebrows at me, and Ava swatted me with her pillow. “Rowan!” Ava hissed while Ashlyn burst out laughing. “Stop cheating on tests, you guys!” Ava turned her glare on both Ashlyn and me now. Ashlyn shook her head.
“You know that asking Rowan to do that is like asking a fish to fly. She’s built to cheat.”
Both Shayla and Ava laughed at this.
“Hey, that’s not true,” I said, rolling my eyes and trying to hold back a laugh. “I can not cheat on one test. Watch me.”
All three of them looked at me, and we all burst into giggles so loud we immediately started shushing each other. We weren’t supposed to be up this late. It was already 3 am, and we promised my parents, who were hosting this sleepover, that we wouldn’t stay up all night, but we were still planning to do so.
“Ok, I have a better one for Rowan, so everyone shush,” Ashlyn announced. “You still want a dare, right?” she asked me. I nodded, and she continued. “You know your creepy basement and that suspicious vent? Well, I dare you to go downstairs, open it and take a picture of what’s inside.”
I looked at her, squinting my eyes. There was no way I would pass up a dare, but I had feared that vent since I could remember. Our unfinished basement always terrified me. There were exposed wires, pipes, and strange fuzz all over the floor and ceiling–so much so that you couldn’t see where you were walking. It scared me with how creaky the entire place was and how it would make weird noises every now and then. The creepiest part of the basement was one specific vent. It always gave me the heebie-jeebies and I had no clue why.
Still, I wasn’t willing to back down. Ashlyn’s face, illuminated by the little lights scattered around the room, smiled a little at me as though she wanted me to turn the dare down. “Two can play this game,” I thought, then copied her smile and said, “If I’m going, you’re all coming with me.”
So that’s how all four of us ended up squeezing down the staircase, laughing and shushing each other, hoping my parents wouldn’t hear. We all had a flashlight since we usually brought them to sleepovers so we could tell scary stories holding them under our chins to dramatize them.
At the end of the staircase, I stopped and held my arm out to Ashlyn. “Your idea, so you get to go first.” She responded by giving me a light shove instead, laughing as she did so. “Nope, this was a dare meant for you. Your dare.” I gave her a look. “I’m not sure that’s how it works.”
“Well, I’m sure,” She replied. “Plus, you know this house the best, so you should go first.” I sighed and relented, stepping forward into the basement. The others followed suit until we came upon the vent. No air came out of it, but it felt vaguely cold around the area. I reached for the edge of it, thinking that we probably should’ve brought a screwdriver, but to my surprise, it popped right off, clattering onto a large pipe below, making all of us jump.
“Jesus,” Shayla whispered. “I swear my heart nearly fell out of my butt.”
“Shhhhhhh,” Ava whispered, but she looked just as shaken in the light of our flashlights.
I turned my attention back to the vent, and now I could feel a chill coming off of something inside there. I prepared my phone to take a picture and bent down to look. I screamed. Inside, surrounded by ice, was a dead body.
