I thought for a moment. “Give me a slice of that pepperoni. Then we’re good.”
After eating, we decided to watch a movie. While Cole turned on the TV, Alex wandered into the kitchen in search of dinner. He glanced at the last piece of pizza longingly before opening the pantry.
“Hey, Alex,” Cole said as he sat back down on the couch. “Wanna watch a movie with us?”
I glanced up, eager to hear his response, but when Alex caught me looking, he scowled. “I’m kind of busy getting eaten by scorpion trolls at the moment, but thanks.” Grabbing a bag of potato chips, he disappeared back upstairs.
Cole shrugged when we heard a door slam. “His loss. This is a great movie.”
His idea of a great movie was a slasher film called Crazy Jack, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep later. I tried to tell him nonchalantly that horror movies weren’t really my thing, but he called me a chicken until I reluctantly agreed. And that was how I ended up stuck on the couch with my face buried in Cole Walter’s shoulder on a Saturday night, as I tried not to scream my head off. He laughed at the gore and kept hinting who was going to die next, and I tried my best to hide behind a blanket. It didn’t help that a full-on thunderstorm was assaulting the house.
I peeked over the edge of the fabric. “Don’t go outside!” I yelled at the stupid girl who was slowly opening the front door.
“Is Jackie scared?” Cole asked, poking me in the side.
“No,” I told him, but my voice was shaky and I knew it sounded unconvincing. The rain was pounding on the window behind us.
“Yeah, you are,” Cole said and chuckled. He turned his attention back to the screen just in time to see the stupid girl step outside into the dark night. Then the TV and lights flickered out.
“Oh my God! He’s coming for us,” I screamed and buried my face into the closest available shoulder, which happened to be Cole’s.
“Not scared, huh?” he asked.
“Um, maybe a little?”
“Don’t worry.” He stood up from the couch and in the process pulled my protection—the flimsy blanket I had been hiding under—away from me. “The power always cuts out during big storms. Dad’s been trying to fix it for years.”
“Guys?” I heard Alex call out. He appeared in the kitchen, using the light of his phone to guide himself through the dark house.
“Alex, over here,” Cole said. “I’m going to go see if I can get the backup generator working. Can you go find some candles in case I can’t?”
“All right,” Alex said and turned back around as Cole made his way to the back door.
“Wait, guys,” I cried, shooting out of my seat. “Don’t leave me alone.”
Alex paused and glanced over his shoulder, which I took as a sign to follow him. When I caught up, he headed for the basement door. A bad feeling formed in my stomach.
“Alex?” I asked, trying not to sound nervous.
“Yeah?”
“The candles aren’t in the basement, are they?”
“Yup.”
“I think I’ll go with Cole.”
“That’s fine,” Alex said. “But just so you know, the backup generator is in a shed outside.”
“Basement it is,” I mumbled as we headed toward our doom.
***
“We’re going to end up like the girl in the movie Cole made me watch,” I told Alex as we descended into the basement.
“Did she die?” Alex asked, continuing down the steps.
“Well, not yet,” I said, “but I know she will.”
“So?”
“That’s my point. We are so going to end up dead.”
Alex stopped on the stairs. “Jackie, it’s just the basement. Do you think we keep monsters down here?”
“No, it’s just that…” I trailed off.
“You’re afraid of the dark?” Alex finished for me.
I sighed. “Yeah, I guess so.” I didn’t used to be, but since the nightmares—I just couldn’t handle the dark anymore.
“Once we get the candles it won’t be as dark, okay?”
“Okay,” I mumbled, not really feeling better.
When we reached the bottom, Alex grabbed my hand and pulled me to the left. I followed behind him in astonishment. This was the first real conversation we’d had since our fight, which was why his sudden contact was all the more surprising. We fought our way through a maze of cardboard boxes, and when Alex suddenly stopped, I ran straight into him.
“Sorry,” I muttered.
“This is my dad’s workroom,” he said in response, holding his phone up so I could see. There was an outline of an open door, and then nothing. “There are always candles in here.”
Alex went in, and I hesitated outside for a moment, but only until I heard an awful banging noise from somewhere else in the basement.
“Hey, Jackie, just make sure you don’t—”
“Oh my God, what was that?” I burst out, before dashing inside and slamming the door behind me.
“—shut the door,” Alex finished.
“What?” I squeaked.
“Don’t shut the door,” he repeated with a sigh. He rattled the handle, but the door wouldn’t budge.