"Eight?!"
"You've got to be kidding!"
At the sound of the revelation, everyone's hearts began to race. Inside the dimly lit haunted house, where shadows seemed to creep closer by the second, all eyes darted around, searching each other's faces for answers.
"Where's the eighth person?"
"Everyone, calm down!" Liam, the self-assigned leader of the group, took out his phone, ready to check something. But before he could act, a metallic clinking noise came from down the hallway. The previously faint sound suddenly grew frantic and sharp, like chains being dragged across the cold, hard floor.
"There's someone here!"
Liam had barely unlocked his phone when, out of the corner of the corridor, a blood-soaked figure appeared, moving with unnatural speed.
As if anticipating their location, the creature emerged with impeccable timing.
"What the hell is that?"
Dressed in a bloodstained doctor's coat, the figure dragged a heavy chain behind it. In one hand, it clutched a sledgehammer, its surface dripping with dark, crimson liquid.
Tension filled the air. The students, all forensic science majors, had lost their academic composure, standing frozen. Only Liam managed to maintain some sense of control. Ignoring the warnings from earlier, he did something no one should ever do inside a haunted house: he turned on the flashlight on his phone.
A beam of white light pierced the darkness, landing on the creature.
The moment the light hit it, the figure slowly raised its head, and the room's temperature seemed to drop several degrees.
What they saw was enough to make every hair on their bodies stand on end: the creature's face wasn't just one face—it was a grotesque patchwork of countless male faces stitched together, their skin pulled tight and uneven across its skull.
As if triggered by the light, the monster suddenly let out a guttural roar and charged at them, the sledgehammer swinging wildly, leaving bloody streaks in the air.
The sound of its chains echoed off the walls as its feet pounded heavily on the floor, its frenzied figure closing in fast. Fear overtook them. Someone—none of them could say who—stumbled back, setting off a wave of panic.
In an instant, the group scattered, fleeing in all directions.
Some students rushed into the nearest rooms, others scrambled up the stairs to the second floor, and a few fled downstairs toward the first. The hallway became a chaotic mess of muffled screams, stomping feet, and the ever-present sound of the chains following behind them.
Amidst the chaos, Sarah found herself by the stairwell, unsure which way to go. The fear of the monstrous figure sent her into a state of shock. Before she could think, the man beside her made a dash downstairs, and without a second thought, Sarah followed, her only goal being to avoid the creature at all costs.
She didn't notice when she dropped her phone. The carefully constructed façade of calm that the group had maintained earlier was completely shattered now. All that remained were their primal instincts.
Sarah's breaths came out in ragged bursts as she ran through the narrow halls of the haunted house, her eyes wide with terror. The eerie background music that played throughout the haunted house only added to her growing sense of dread.
They reached the first floor, the screams of their friends still audible from the upper levels. Sarah's heart pounded in her chest, the metallic scrape of chains growing louder as the creature followed them into the stairwell.
She quickened her pace, locking her gaze on the person in front of her. In the darkness, this stranger had become her only hope.
"Stay together," she whispered to herself, trying to steady her nerves. "As long as we stay together, we'll be okay."
She couldn't bear the thought of being left alone in this twisted house of horrors. Desperation overtook her. She pushed herself harder, closing the gap between her and the man. When she caught up to him, she grabbed onto the back of his shirt, gripping it tightly. Her fingers trembled, but she refused to let go.
Behind them, the chains dragged nearer, each metallic clank sending a shiver down her spine. The man in front didn't speak, but he led her to a small room on the first floor, motioning for her to follow him inside.
"Is this a dead end?" Sarah hesitated at the door, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath.
But the man didn't hesitate. He slipped into the room's closet, pulling the door shut behind him.
With no other options and the sound of the monster approaching, Sarah quickly followed, squeezing herself into the narrow space beside him.
The closet door clicked shut, sealing them in darkness. The air inside was thick, oppressive. In the cramped space, the only comfort she had was that she wasn't alone.
Sarah leaned against the back wall, her breath shallow as she tried to calm down. Her makeup had smeared, and she could feel the tears threatening to spill. She pressed her hand to her mouth, afraid of making any noise. Through the thin slats of the closet, she could see the dim hallway.
A metallic sound scraped against the floor, and there it was—the blood-drenched doctor, standing in the doorway, sledgehammer in hand. The sound of the chain dragging behind him sent chills down her spine.
He raised the hammer, tapping it rhythmically against the doorframe, then stepped inside. His face—stitched together from the flesh of others—peered into the room, the shadows casting an eerie glow over his disfigured features.
Sarah squeezed her eyes shut, mouthing silent prayers. "Don't see us. Please don't see us."
Perhaps her prayers were answered. The creature paused for a moment, as if considering the closet, but then it turned away, dragging its chains back into the hallway.
Sarah let out a shaky breath, her entire body trembling. She reached out and lightly touched the man beside her. "I think it's gone. Let's meet up with the others now, okay?"
Silence.
She frowned, nudging him again, harder this time. "Hey, did you hear me? It's safe now."
Still, there was no response. A cold sense of dread began to settle in her chest. Something wasn't right. Slowly, she turned her head to look at the man beside her.
It wasn't the person she thought it was.
His face was pale, deathly pale, as if drained of all blood. His eyes, wide and unblinking, stared straight ahead.
Sarah's heart skipped a beat, her mind racing back to what Liam had said earlier: "There's an extra person in the group."
Her hand instinctively went to her pocket, fumbling for her phone. She pulled it out, the faint light from the screen illuminating the small space.
Her breath hitched.
The face staring back at her from the shadows wasn't someone she recognized.
It wasn't human.
Her phone slipped from her hand, clattering to the floor. For a brief moment, everything went silent. Then, a piercing scream tore through the air, reverberating inside the closet.
The next few seconds were a blur. Sarah recoiled, slamming her head against the back of the closet in a desperate attempt to get away, but there was nowhere to go. Her body trembled uncontrollably as she realized the horrific truth: she wasn't hiding with a friend.