Chapter 3: No More Jokes
No one spoke for a second after the man said it.
The fire cracked loudly between them, like it was the only thing brave enough to make noise.
Weston was the first to recover—of course he was.
He let out a small laugh, raising his drink like this was all part of the atmosphere. “Okay… I mean, that’s a strong opening line.”
The man didn’t smile.
“You need to leave,” he repeated.
Up close, he looked worse than Grace-Lynn expected. Not just older—worn down. Like he hadn’t slept right in years. His eyes didn’t move much when he looked at them. They stayed fixed, scanning, like he was checking if something was missing.
Or if something extra was there.
Octavious stepped forward slightly, calm but firm. “Sir, we’re just camping for the night. We’ll be out in the morning.”
The man shook his head once. “That’s what they all say.”
That made the air shift again.
Leighanna crossed her arms. “Who is ‘they’?”
The man ignored her. His gaze drifted past them—to the tents, the cars… then slowly to the lodge.
His jaw tightened.
“You see anything in that house?” he asked.
No one answered right away.
Grace-Lynn felt Cashmere glance at her.
Weston scoffed. “It’s boarded up. There’s nothing in there.”
The man snapped his eyes back to him. “That’s not what I asked.”
The tone shut Weston up.
A beat passed.
Then Cashmere spoke quietly. “We thought we saw something in the upstairs window.”
The man went still.
Completely still.
For a second, even the fire felt quieter.
Then he let out a slow breath through his nose. “You hear anything yet?”
Theodore forced a laugh. “What, like ghosts?”
The man looked at him.
“No,” he said. “Like people who aren’t there.”
That landed.
Hard.
Regan shook his head. “Okay, this is getting weird.”
“It’s supposed to be weird,” Weston said quickly, trying to regain control. “It’s Halloween. This is like—peak experience right now.”
The man stepped closer to the edge of the firelight.
“Listen to me,” he said, voice lower now. “If you hear someone calling your name from the woods tonight—don’t answer.”
Grace-Lynn felt her stomach drop.
“Doesn’t matter if it sounds like your friend,” the man continued. “Doesn’t matter if it sounds hurt. You hear it—ignore it.”
Octavious frowned. “Why?”
The man hesitated.
For the first time, something like fear crossed his face.
“Because it won’t be them.”
Silence.
Nobody had a joke for that.
The man looked at each of them one more time, like he was trying to memorize their faces.
“Pack up,” he said. “Leave now while you still can.”
Then he turned, got back in his truck, and drove off into the dark.
The headlights disappeared faster than they should have.
Like the woods swallowed them.
⸻
For a few seconds, nobody moved.
Then—
“Okay,” Weston said, clapping his hands once. “That was… a lot.”
“Weston,” Leighanna snapped.
“No, seriously—think about it. That’s exactly what locals do. They scare people off. It’s like a tradition.”
“That didn’t feel like a tradition,” Cashmere said.
“That felt like a warning,” Grace-Lynn added.
Regan exhaled hard. “So what, we just leave?”
No one answered immediately.
Because no one wanted to be the one to say yes.
Octavious looked around at the group. At the fire. At the gear they had just set up.
“We stay,” he said finally. “But nobody wanders off. Nobody goes near that house. And we keep eyes on each other.”
That felt like a compromise.
A bad one.
But enough.
Weston seized on it instantly. “Exactly. Thank you. We’re fine.”
Theodore raised his drink again, weaker this time. “To not answering creepy voices.”
A few of them half-heartedly echoed it.
The mood never fully recovered.
They tried.
Music came back on, but quieter.
The jokes returned, but thinner.
The laughter didn’t last as long.
The woods felt closer now.
Like they had leaned in.
⸻
About twenty minutes later, they started another round of drinks.
That’s when Weston got an idea.
Which was always dangerous.
“Alright,” he said, standing up suddenly. “Game time.”
“No,” Grace-Lynn said immediately.
“Yes,” Weston said. “It’ll loosen everyone up.”
“We don’t need to be loosened up.”
“We absolutely do. Everyone’s acting like we’re about to die.”
“That’s because—”
“Relax,” Weston cut her off. “Trust me.”
Grace-Lynn didn’t trust him.
No one really did.
But they played anyway.
Because that’s what people do when they’re uncomfortable.
They distract themselves.
⸻
Weston grabbed a notebook from one of the bags and tore out pages.
“Secrets and fears,” he announced. “Everyone writes one of each. We mix them up. If your name gets pulled, you either reveal the secret or face the fear.”
“That sounds like a terrible idea,” Leighanna said.
“That sounds like content,” Theodore added.
Cashmere tilted their head. “What kind of fears?”
Weston grinned. “We’ll find out.”
That should’ve been the second warning.
⸻
They wrote.
Folded the papers.
Dropped them into two separate cups.
The fire burned lower.
The woods got darker.
The game started.
At first, it was harmless.
Theodore admitted he once lied about being allergic to avoid a date.
Regan revealed he had a fear of deep water.
Leighanna refused to answer one and took a dare instead.
They laughed again.
It almost worked.
Then Weston reached into the secrets cup.
He unfolded a paper.
Frowned.
“Okay… which one of you wrote this?”
“What?” Octavious asked.
Weston held it up. “It says… ‘One of us wasn’t invited.’”
The laughter died instantly.
“That’s not funny,” Leighanna said.
“I didn’t write it,” Weston said.
“Neither did I,” Regan added quickly.
One by one, they all shook their heads.
Grace-Lynn stood up slowly. “That’s not from us.”
The paper looked different.
Cleaner.
Thicker.
Not from the same notebook.
Cashmere reached out. “Let me see.”
They turned it over.
No handwriting they recognized.
No tears from the page.
Just a message.
Simple.
Cold.
Real.
Then—
A soft buzz came from behind them.
Everyone turned.
Grace-Lynn’s duffel bag.
She frowned. “My phone’s dead.”
The buzzing came again.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Octavious moved first. “Don’t touch it.”
Too late.
Weston had already unzipped the bag.
Inside was a phone.
Not Grace-Lynn’s.
Old.
Black.
Cracked screen.
The notification lit up.
Weston stared.
“Okay…” he said slowly. “This is messed up.”
“What is it?” Grace-Lynn asked.
He turned the screen toward them.
A photo.
All eight of them around the fire.
Taken from behind the tree line.
Close enough to see their faces clearly.
Close enough to know—
Whoever took it was still nearby.
Below the image was a message.
LET’S PLAY FOR REAL.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
Then—
A faint sound came from the woods.
Not loud.
Not rushed.
A single step.
Grace-Lynn’s voice came out in a whisper. “We need to leave.”
Octavious nodded immediately. “Now.”
But Weston—
Weston stepped forward instead.
“HEY!” he shouted into the trees. “REAL FUNNY! COME OUT!”
“Weston—” Grace-Lynn started.
Too late.
A sharp WHISTLE cut through the air.
No one even saw it coming.
The arrow punched through Weston’s chest with a sickening force, driving him backward.
For a split second, he just stood there.
Confused.
Looking down at the black shaft buried beneath his collarbone.
Then the blood came.
Fast.
Too fast.
Leighanna screamed.
Theodore dropped his drink.
Regan staggered backward.
Cashmere froze.
Grace-Lynn felt her entire body go cold.
Weston hit the ground hard.
Choking.
Gasping.
Hands clawing at the arrow like he could pull it out and undo it.
Octavious dropped beside him instantly, pressing down on the wound. “Stay with me—stay with me—”
“There’s too much blood,” Grace-Lynn said, her voice shaking.
“There’s too much—”
From the trees—
Movement.
Fast.
A figure slipping between shadows.
Grace-Lynn saw just enough.
Tall.
All black.
Face covered.
Watching.
“THERE!” she screamed.
Regan took off toward it.
Luther followed without thinking.
“STOP!” Octavious shouted.
They disappeared into the trees anyway.
Theodore backed away, shaking. “No, no, no—this isn’t real—”
Weston made a horrible wet sound.
Then another.
Then—
Nothing.
Octavious’s hands were covered in blood.
Weston’s body went still.
The fire crackled beside them like nothing had changed.
But everything had.
The game was over.
The night had just begun.
And now—
they knew they weren’t alone.
Cast Members :
MarieEve Grace-Lynn She/Her
Cinnamon Octavious: He/Him
YanderTron21 Weston: He/Him 🔪❌
Rain Regan: He/Him
RobbieRIOT Leighanna: She/Her
hwest14 Theodore: He/Him
Envious Luther: He/Him
Justini Cashmere: She/They
Chapter 4 tomorrow :) Hope you all enjoyed the first death ! :)