jospaghettios

[jospaghettios]

MARIA

The campus was especially quiet tonight. Everyone on campus had gone home for the winter, except Maria. She sat at her desk, the computer monitor illuminated her face with a blue hue in the otherwise pitch black room.

(gif credit: https://onlineresize.club/2021-club.html)

In one swift motion, she cleared her cluttered desk and swept everything onto the floor, leaving a bag of spicy Doritos behind.

“I’ll tidy later…” Maria mumbled.

Maria opened her favourite battle royale game and put on her headset. She reached her hand into the bag of chips, the crinkle of the bag and the loud crunching sounds emphasised the silence of the dorm. When her avatar popped up on the screen, she wiped the red dust from her fingers on her grey hoodie. She navigated to her favourite map, selected “duo mode”, and clicked start.

Bing!

Maria had been matched with another player who introduced himself as Nick. There was a robotic quality to his voice, but Maria didn’t think much of it, lots of gamers use voice altering softwares to hide their identities. The game began. A small map appeared on the top right corner of Maria’s screen, her avatar was represented with a blue dot and Nick’s a red dot. The two decided to split up.

(audio credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SardSMw4N-s&t=6s&ab_channel=AudioLibrary)

The two dots moved apart in opposite directions.

Maria's back was hunched and her eyes were glued to the screen in deep focus. In less than twenty minutes, Maria had killed six opponents.

“Wow you’re good!” Nick exclaimed.

Maria awkwardly thanked him for the compliment and continued searching for the next victim. She reached for some Doritos. Nick’s voice boomed into her headphones.

“I love Doritos.”

Maria was caught off guard, “yeah… How did you know I was having Doritos?”

“The crunch.”

“Oh. Fair enough. You wanna come meet me at point 4?.”

Nick agreed.

The red dot moved closer to the blue dot.

Maria continued snacking on her chips as she waited for Nick to arrive, casually wiping the dust on her hoodie again.

“That’s so gross Maria, you better hope that doesn’t stain.”

Maria freezes. What the fuck? She looked around her room, she was alone. Nick laughed on the other end. Maria’s breathing got heavier as she started to panic. She threw her headset off her head, got up her chair, and checked outside her door. The hallway is empty. She was alone.

(gif credit: https://support.blinkforhome.com/en_US/using-mini/2279381)

She glances at the blinking camera attached to her computer monitor. That must be it, she thought. Maria marched back over to her computer and ripped the attachment off. She put her headset back on, though she stayed standing. “What the hell? You some kind of sick pervert or something? What’s wrong with you?” she shouted into the mic. “I’m not a pervert. Why don’t you sit back down?” What the actual fuck? Maria grabbed a pair of scissors that she had thrown onto the floor earlier and cut the wire from the camera attachment. Nick laughed. His chilling, low pitched chuckle sent goosebumps up Maria’s arm.

The red dot was now next to the blue dot, but Nick’s avatar was nowhere to be seen. Maria heard a rustle from outside her window, she inched toward it gripping her scissors tightly in her hands. She slowly reached for the curtain and flung it open. a man was standing outside her window smiling at her.

[jospaghettios]

MASIE

Masie laid in bed, eyes wide open staring at the ceiling. She moved her hand aimlessly next to her pillow until she felt the clock, she held it up and squinted– 03:00. She has to wake up for work in 4 hours… Masie groaned at the thought. She rolled over and looked in the mirror, and she saw a shadowy figure sitting at the end of her bed.

Masie sprung up and looked at the end of her bed, but there was nothing there. She grabbed her glasses from her bedside desk and looked again. Masie stared at the mirror and furrowed her eyebrows. The shadowy figure was still there. She peeled her blanket off her warm body and shuddered when the freezing air grazed over her skin. She walked towards the mirror, convinced that the shadowy figure was her imagination running wild.

She stood in front of the mirror. The shadowy figure had a face and was smiling at her.

“Well that can’t be right…” Masie muttered.

She reached for the light switch and flicked it on.

The shadowy figure was Masie, or rather it was something that looked exactly like Masie. Masie gasped and violently turned her head back, still nothing on the bed. She looked at the figure in the mirror.

“Hello…? Can you hear me?” Masie called. 

The figure in the mirror smiled and nodded. Masie wasn’t afraid, perhaps because it was entrapped in the mirror.

“So what are you? My subconscious or something?”

“Something like that.”

Masie was taken aback. She didn’t expect it to speak. “Oh… Should I be trying to get rid of you or…” 

It interrupted, “why don’t we talk about 2014?”

Masie’s expression darkened at the sudden subject change.

The figure continued, “why did you drive away?”

Masie begged the figure to stop, and to leave her alone.

The figure’s face started to morph into another face. Blood streamed down from it’s eye sockets as it started to cry. It continued to shriek, “you left me there to die. I had family, and friends, and a partner. I had a life, and you left me there to die.”

(audio credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOVkmm_6y38&ab_channel=SFXandSoothingSounds)

Masie was hyperventilating. She could hear her heartbeat echo in her ear. She kneeled down on the floor sobbing as cold sweat dripped down her forehead. 

The figure now resembled a man she saw once in 2014. A man that appeared on the news as a victim of a hit and run. The figure stands up and walks over to Masie. Masie could no longer tell what was real and what was in the mirror, as the two worlds seemed to merge into one big nightmare.

Masie could no longer stand looking at the man who’s blue eyes are tinted red with blood. His torn up purple sweater, his blood stained jeans, his silver engagement rings. Masie picked up a mug from the table next to her and hurled it at the mirror.

(gif credit: https://gifer.com/en/Jde)

Her blood curdling scream echoed in the room and suddenly it was silent.

The bedroom floor was covered in shattered mirror shards and pieces of grey ceramic from Masie’s mug. In the mirror shards was a reflection of Masie with her face in her hands, forever frozen in a realm that is neither space or time.

[jospaghettios]

ALEK

Alek had been grounded for the summer because he stole two packs of gum from the grocery store. His grandparents thought it was a little harsh, considering Alek was only a kid, but his parents thought an 8th grader should know better. Alek stayed entertained by playing board games with his sister until his family left for a road trip. His mom kissed his forehead at the door.

“Be good Alek, Sabrina will be here tomorrow. Microwave the pasta in the fridge for dinner. See you Friday!” she says. Alek mumbled he didn't need a babysitter and his family left.

As soon as the door slammed shut, Alek ran to his sister’s room– he was never allowed in her room so that was his chance. To his disappointment, there was no big secret hidden in her room. Although he couldn’t find any leverage on his sister, Alek was determined to leave with a souvenir. He took an orange marker, ripped some pages out of a new notebook, and sprinted to the living room to get started on a short comic about his favourite superheroes. He was ten minutes and three panels in when he got bored and gave up�� this was going to be one long weekend. Suddenly, Alek’s lips curled upwards into a mischievous grin, as Alek remembered his parents said he wasn’t allowed to play with his friends, but nothing about making new friends. Alek also remembered seeing the moving company move a new set of furniture into the apartment down the hall. 

Alek grabbed a sheet of paper and wrote “I’m alek, your neibour. What is your name?” He took his carefully crafted note and hopped down the hallway. He sits cross legged behind his new neighbour’s door. The tall, oak door framed Alek in a way that made him appear even smaller than he already is.

(image credit: https://www.redbubble.com/i/notebook/Young-boy-in-front-of-a-door-digital-painting-by-Shirt-Touch/145728175.WX3NH)

Alek slipped the note under his neighbours door and started counting to pass the time. When he reached 73 the note was returned from under the door. He eagerly picked it up, reading the response scribbled in childish handwriting, “I’m Tony. I am going to Hart elementary school after summer. What about you? P.s. it’s neighbour.” Alek celebrates silently, finally a neighbour his age. He wrote back, “I go to Merryl elementary. Nice to meet you Tony!” He drew a tic-tac-toe grid with an “O” on the centre, and slipped the paper back. 

( audio credit: https://freesoundstock.com/products/marker-scribble-writing-sound-effect-2)

The paper was soon covered with tic-tac-toe grids and back and forth conversation between the two boys about their hobbies. An hour had passed, Alek felt pins and needles in his legs from sitting on the floor. He stood up, knocked on the door and asked softly, “Tony, can I come in please? My legs are tired.” Alek stands next to the door and cups his hands around his ear, Tony speaks. 

“No, I’m sorry Alek but my mom said I can’t talk to strangers… So our friendship can be our little secret, okay?”

Alek stumbles backwards and his eyes widen in horror as shivers run down his spine. The voice from across the door is gruff and raspy, and is one that definitely does not belong to a child.