TWs: NONE

CWs: NONE

A/N: This is my first dual POV  project, as well as my first co-authored project. Jaime Jordan is my character, so I'm writing all chapters from her POV. Melinda "Mel" Garcia is my co-author Christina's character, so every chapter from Mel's POV is written by my co-author. All other characters, such as Ava Everly, Karynn Everly, and Charlie Anne Everly, are shared. I'll be including Trigger Warnings and Content Warnings before every chapter. Enjoy!

"Welcome to Salt Lake City, Utah!" the flight attendant announced over the intercom. "The local time is currently 8:45 PM, and the temperature is 81 degrees Fahrenheit. Thank you for flying with us!"

Jaime Jordan sighed. She'd heard that speech at least half a billion times.

I still can't believe I'm here! she thought. I can't wait to see the Everlies again. It's been so long since camp last year. And I'm honestly grateful they're making the drive out here. Karynn said it was, like, four hours.

She grabbed her backpack and strutted down the aisle once it was her row's turn. Jaime hummed snatches of "Tomorrow" from the musical Annie. Thanking the flight attendants, she confidently strutted into the main airport.

Her phone buzzed. It was a text from Karynn Everly, welcoming her to Utah and letting her know they were waiting for her. She brushed a couple strands of stray dark brown hair that had come loose from her half up, half down, and texted a reply to her friend.

"Well, now I just have to find them," she muttered.

That was quickly resolved. Four people stood waiting for her with signs that read, "WELCOME TO UTAH JAIME!" She grinned.

"Jaime! Hi!" The youngest member of the welcome party, a girl in her early teens with shoulder-length black hair and gray eyes, ran over and tackle-hugged her.

"Hey, Charlie Anne! It's so good to see you again!" Jaime returned the hug.

"Welcome to Utah, Jaime! I'm so glad you're staying with us for a month." Mrs. Ava Everly gave her a genuine smile that reached the corners of her eyes. "Well, we should go find your baggage. I think you're at Carousel Four, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

"So, Jaime, tell us how life has been lately," Karynn said.

"Oh, it's been pretty exciting! Let's see: I turned sixteen last October, started writing for a teen newspaper, started a blog, survived and passed my sophomore year in high school, completed and published my major works in progress, and finished two theatrical productions. Last Saturday was closing night for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."

"Ooh, how'd it go?" Charlie Anne asked. "Who'd you play?"

Jaime's whole face lit up. Theater was one of her passions—so much so that she sacrificed a large chunk of her summer to participate in her first community theater production.

"Oh, it was amazing! We were sold out and got standing ovations every night. And I played Matilda—she's one of Charlie's friends—and an Oompa-Loompa." She smiled slightly, remembering the thrill of the curtain opening for the first time and the bittersweet moment of her final bow.

"Wish I could've gone to see you. I bet you were great," Charlie Anne sighed.

"You said you were writing for a teen newspaper. How is that going so far?" Karynn wanted to know.

"It's going pretty well, although it's a lot more overwhelming than I thought at first. I've done a few stories, but nothing major. I'm hoping that they'll give me my first real assignment this summer now that I've written for them for about six months."

The group reached Carousel 4 and waited for Jaime's luggage to appear. Once it did, she grabbed it with the practiced ease of a frequent traveler.

"Come on, girls. Let's go find the car," Mrs. Everly announced. "I bet Jaime's exhausted. That jet lag is going to kick in very soon."

Right on cue, Jaime yawned. It had been a long day, and she was ready to crash on a soft bed.

She thanked her friend's mother. "Thank you so much, Mrs. Everly, for picking me up! I get that it was a super long drive for you. Wasn't it, like, four hours?"

"You're welcome, dear. I'd honestly make the drive again. It was completely worth it just seeing Charlie Anne's reaction." She nodded. "Poor girl's been oddly quiet and moody recently. She wasn't like that just a few months ago. I was worried she was getting...overwhelmed. And please, just call me Ava. Or, if you must, Ms. Ava."

Once they'd found the car and everyone was buckled in, Ava began the long drive back to her home, where Jaime would be staying for the month.

~~~

About four hours later, they reached the Everly home. Charlie Anne could not wait to help Jamie settle in.

"You'll be sleeping with me!" she explained. "I've got a bunk bed, so you'll be fine."

"Thanks, Charlie Anne," Jaime mumbled, very much half-asleep.

Karynn helped carry Jaime's luggage, which consisted of a black suitcase with wheels and a light blue backpack. Charlie Anne's room was the perfect size for both girls to share comfortably. On the wall was a framed The Fellowship of the Rings movie poster. Jaime smiled at her friend's good taste. As she scanned the room, her eye fell on a bulletin board covered in pinned newspaper clippings, Post-it notes, and printed-out photos. Strings of bright red yarn haphazardly connected Post-its with the clippings and photos. It reminded her of a scene right out of a detective novel or crime show.

"What's that?" she wondered aloud.

Charlie Anne beamed. "My detective board! I'm a bit of a conspiracy theorist and amateur detective around here."

"A conspiracy theorist and amateur detective?" The older girl wrinkled her nose in confusion.

"Yep! See, Hurricane has an interesting past—murders, a resident serial killer, ghost stories, rumors of the undead, creepy robots, abandoned pizza places—you name it!" She pronounced "Hurricane" like "Hurriken." "I've got some pretty crazy theories about what happened. Crazy enough for them to be labeled conspiracy theories. And for the amateur detective bit, I'm trying to find out what really happened here. Fazbear Entertainment isn't exactly...helpful." She sounded oddly chipper given that she was discussing topics straight out of a horror film.

Boy, is this going to be an interesting month. I might be left questioning Charlie Anne's sanity, but other than that, I honestly think I won't be bored.

"Cool," was all Jaime managed to say after a long, awkward silence. "Anyway, we should get ready for bed. It's, like, one a.m.

"Yeah, we should. Mom won't be happy if we stay up even later than we are right now. I'll be happy to tell you more about my detective work tomorrow, though. You like mystery books, right?"

"Uh-huh. Now, because I'm older than you, I order you, by the power vested in me, to quit talking and get ready for bed. I'll be in the bathroom."

Once the girls had finished their nightly routines, they returned to the room. Right before they went to bed for the night, Charlie Anne insisted on searching the room and bathroom for what she dubbed "suspicious things." Jaime thought her behavior odd, especially since she hadn't done that while they bunked together at camp last year. However, she decided to let it slide.

I honestly don't blame her. If Hurricane is anything like she described it, I'd be conducting a nighttime search before bed, even double-checking under the bed and in the closet. Well, that's assuming I'll even be getting any sleep. Charlie Anne's made of tougher stuff than me. She could probably play horror games or watch horror movies well into the night and not get a single nightmare.

"I'm finished!" Charlie Anne announced, interrupting Jaime's thoughts.

"Great. Now, I'm assuming I'm sleeping in the top bunk, right?"

"That's right. Mom made sure to put bedding and all that stuff, so it's already ready."

Jaime climbed the ladder to access her bed. After she told her friend good night, she was soon fast asleep.