"What's going on?" Clover asks.
I look over at her.
"I don't know."
Then back at the door, and count to three in my head.
"Here goes," I mumble.
I push the door, and it opens.
A gust of wind blows, hitting us.
The gym was dark.
Darker than normal.
We step inside.
I walk over to the light switch, then flip it on.
Click.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then a couple of lights flickered on, lighting the room up just enough to see blood on the floor.
"Are you guys seeing this?" Ken asks.
I start to walk towards the blood.
"Yeah."
The blood wasn't just a random puddle.
It was shaped with purpose.
Words.
The blood wrote the words:
"Wish granted."
The same words the puppet said to me after Layla died.
I stand there staring at the writing.
"That's messed up," Adrian said.
Ken kneels down.
"Is this Bryan's blood?"
The lights flicker, the air feeling more stale than before.
"We need to find Conner," Clover said.
She was right.
We still didn't know where he was.
Another light comes on.
Conner was standing in the now illuminated part of the gym.
"Conner?"
I call out, then start to walk towards him.
He didn't react to my words.
He stood as if he was in a trance.
The light around him was faint, and it faded out into darkness.
I didn't remember the gym ever getting this dark.
I made it over to him and stick my hand out to grab his shoulder.
I saw something shine for a moment.
It looked almost like a spider web.
My hand made contact with him.
There was a faint snapping sound.
It was barely audible.
Then Conner snapped out of whatever he was in.
He looked confused, like he was just woken up from a nap.
He didn't remember taking one.
"Where am I?" he asked.
We all stared at him like we had seen a ghost.
He looked even more confused now.
"What? Did something happen?"
Chills ran down my spine.
He didn't know what happened.
But how is that possible?
"Where did you go, man?" I asked, trying my best not to actually sound scared.
"I ran into an empty classroom to get away from those footsteps. Then the next thing I remember was being here," he said.
The room was making a weird sound now.
It wasn't loud, but still audible.
It sounded like a humming noise.
"Guys, we can talk later. We have to go," Clover said.
I nod.
We all start heading back to the door.
We were moving as fast as we could without running.
We make it to the door, and I grab the handle.
It doesn't budge.
I keep pulling, but nothing.
All the lights went out.
It didn't happen slowly.
It was all at once.
Everyone is scared, but is trying not to show it.
A light comes on.
It's right over the fire exit.
I pause for a moment.
There isn't supposed to be a light that would shine on the door like that.
The humming sound had gotten louder.
"Everyone get ready to run," I whisper.
"Three… two… one."
We all break out into a sprint, headed straight for the fire exit, unable to see anything else in the darkness.
The sound of our footsteps filled the room.
But there was something else.
It was more like a clicking.
Like the sound of wood or plastic on a gym floor.
We speed up.
Something else was in the room.
We make it to the fire escape, and I slam into it, the door busting open.
We all fall through and onto the ground.
The sun was shining right on us.
All the cop cars were gone.
I sit up and look back into the gym.
All the lights were on.
It looked like nothing had happened.
"What the heck just happened?" Adrian said.
"The puppets…" Conner whispered.
No one talks for a moment.
Ken stands up.
"I'm going home," he said.
Then starts walking off.
No one stops him.
Adrian was next.
He left without saying a word.
He just got up and started walking.
"I'm leaving too," Conner said.
It was just the two of us left.
We sit there in silence.
I stand up, and she does the same.
I start walking off, and after a moment, she follows me.
We walk back to my house, not saying a word to each other.
Once we make it to my house, she waves.
"I'll try and hang out with Layla tomorrow," she said.
I nod.
Then she walks off towards her house.
I walk inside and see no one's home yet.
I head upstairs and take a shower.
I get out and lay on my bed, starting to doze off.
Next thing I knew, four hours had passed.
I look out my window and see cars in the driveway.
My family was home.
I sit back down on my bed for a few more minutes, letting myself fully wake up before I head downstairs.
"What a crazy day."
I get up and walk downstairs, where I see my dad sitting at the table.
I walk past him.
"Joel," he said.
"We need to talk."