Ava counted down, her voice shaking, "On the count of three. One... two... three."
Noah hesitated, staring at the stove like it was his worst enemy. His heart was racing, and his hand shook as he reached out. Then, with a burst of determination, he pressed his hand onto the burning-hot surface.
The cloth he had wrapped around his hand was supposed to help, but it was practically useless as the heat quickly burned through.
Ava's eyes widened in horror. "Noah, get it off now!"
Noah tried to yank his hand away, but to everyone's shock, it wouldn't budge. His voice was filled with panic. "It's stuck! I can't move my hand!"
The temperature on the stove seemed to shoot up out of nowhere, the heat now at full blast. The cloth ignited, flames licking at Noah's hand, and in an instant, his scream filled the room.
"AAAGGGHHHHHHH! MY HANDS ARE BURNING!"
Ethan's eyes darted to the stove. "Holy crap, we need to do something!"
Natalie, her voice almost breaking, yelled, "Chloe, help me pull him away!"
Both Chloe and Natalie grabbed Noah by his arms, trying desperately to pull him free, but his hand was stuck fast. The more they pulled, the more Noah screamed in pain.
"WAAHHH! MY HANDS!"
Ava quickly shut off the stove, and Lily rushed to the sink, grabbing a bucket of water. She threw it over the stove, and the flames died down.
Chloe and Natalie took the opportunity to pull Noah free, and they all collapsed on the floor, exhausted.
Noah cradled his severely burnt hand, his face twisted in agony. The blisters were already forming, and patches of charred skin were visible.
Lily's stomach turned at the sight of pieces of his burnt skin stuck to the stove. She gagged, looking away quickly.
Chloe rushed to grab ice cubes from the freezer and started rubbing them on Noah's hand. He winced but was too weak to protest.
"Stay calm, Noah," Chloe said, trying to keep her voice steady. "We've got you. You're going to be okay."
Noah nodded weakly, still sobbing, his body trembling from the pain. Chloe grabbed the first-aid kit, quickly applying silver nitrate to his burns before wrapping his hand in a thick layer of bandages.
"Don't let this touch water," she advised. "Or it'll hurt even more."
Noah's eyes were glazed over, the shock setting in. He just nodded again, barely aware of what was happening around him.
Meanwhile, Lily had completely lost it. She stood up, pacing the room.
"I can't stay here for another second!" Her voice cracked as she screamed and bolted towards the door.
Just as her hand reached for the knob, a bunch of cards suddenly fell from above, scattering across the floor in front of her. Lily froze, and everyone else turned to stare at her.
Ava swallowed hard. "Lily, I think it's your turn."
Lily's face drained of color. "W-what do you mean?"
She hesitated, then bent down to pick up one of the cards. Her hands shook as she read it aloud. "It's a dare."
Natalie stepped closer. "What does it say?"
Lily's voice trembled as she read the words, barely able to believe them herself. "Dare: Eat Noah's burnt skin from the stove."
The room fell dead silent. Then, all at once:
"What the actual hell?"
Lily shrieked, recoiling in disgust.
Natalie looked horrified but tried to stay composed. "Lily, you... you have to do it."
Jake spoke up, trying to sound comforting but failing miserably. "Lily, it's okay. Just... just take a small piece. You don't have to eat much."
Ava, looking serious, added, "Lily, you don't have a choice. If you don't do it, it's only going to get worse."
Lily's eyes darted around as if looking for some kind of escape. "I'm a vegan!" she protested, her voice almost pleading. "I don't even eat meat, and now you want me to eat someone's burnt skin? I can't do this!"
Ethan, always blunt, looked at her with a stern expression. "If you don't, something worse will happen. Look at what happened to Noah and Jake. You need to do it."
Natalie nodded quickly. "Your life literally depends on this. Just eat it, Lily."
The whole situation felt unreal. They all knew how disgusting and twisted the dare was, but after what had just happened to Noah, they couldn't afford to ignore it.
*****
Wait a minute...
Why are they following the script?
I mean, in every horror story, the characters don't follow the instructions of the unknown or just ignore things...
Then they face consciousness...
Well... either they are smart...
Or there is something suspicious...
*****
Chloe offered a small, encouraging smile. "You can do this, Lily. Just one piece, and it'll be over."
Lily, tears streaming down her face, nodded reluctantly. Her body shook as they all made their way back to the kitchen, where the stove still carried the pieces of Noah's burnt skin.
With shaking hands, Lily reached for a piece. Her stomach turned at the sight and the thought of what she was about to do. She glanced at Ava, who gave her a solemn nod.
"You can do it," Ava urged softly.
Lily nodded, tears streaming down her face. She brought the piece closer to her mouth, her stomach churning.
A few moments ago, she couldn't even look at it without feeling nauseous, and now she was about to eat it. She swallowed hard, forcing the piece down.
The moment it hit her stomach, she rushed to the sink and vomited.
"Disgusting," Lily managed to choke out, leaning over the sink.
Ava rubbed her back gently. "Shush, calm down."
Just then, the kitchen telephone started ringing. Everyone turned to look at each other, eyes wide with fear.
Natalie walked over to the phone and saw the wire was cut.
"It's not connected..." Natalie said, with a trembling voice.
"Then how is it ringing?" Ethan asked
"Dude, answer it now," Jake urged.
Natalie nodded, picking up the receiver with shaking hands.