"I'll start," Emmett said, scooting closer to the bottle and tossing his long, golden locks to one side. It brought forth an unmistakable BO.

Jen wiggled her nose and pretended not to notice. She had other stuff to focus on, like the fact that Eric Riley was sitting right next to her. Their thighs touched, bringing forth a rain of butterflies.

With the flick of Emmett's wrist, the game began. The group held their breath as the bottle clinked and twinkled against the pavement. It slowed as it passed by Eric, then Ben, and landed on her best friend.

"Nina," Emmett addressed her. 

"Nora," Ben corrected, looking over at her and smiling. "Right?"

"Yeah." She raised an eyebrow at him before turning her attention back on the game. "I pick dare."

"Good," the blonde said. He eyed Nora carefully, then his eyes flickered toward Ben. Jen was sure she wasn't the only one to notice Ben's attentions toward Nora. A sly smile slipped into Emmett's mouth. He looked at the boy sitting beside Jen and said, "I dare you to kiss Eric."

She let out a little gasp, which only made Emmett break out in laughter. Nora and Jen shared panicked looks, her heart erratic.

"You're such a dick," Ben complained, rolling his eyes. 

Jen fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. It's fine, she told herself. It's just a kiss.

But then, her brain had the swell idea to play out every movie and book where the main characters fell in love with a first kiss. Jealousy painted her cheeks red.

Nora took a deep breath before saying, "A dare's a dare, right?" She leaned forwards and crawled toward Eric, her hips swaying like a prowling panther. When their faces were mere inches apart, she stopped.

Jen had to bite her cheek to keep from frowning, or pouting, or scowling, or anything that gave away that she absolutely hated what was unfolding before her eyes. Her stomach dropped when Eric smiled at Nora, his blue eyes holding a playful glint.

Just when Jen thought they'd lock lips, Nora raised her head and landed a soft kiss on Eric's forehead. She wanted to sigh in relief but settled for relaxing her shoulders. 

Nora stepped back to her spot saying, "Be more specific next time," and threw a subtle smile Jen's way. "It's my turn, then."

The bottle spun once more, twirling and twirling till it stopped, its tip pointed at Jen. "Truth or dare?" Emmett asked her. 

Jen played with the laces on her sneakers. Nora would never do anything to harm her, but she was reckless enough to make her kiss Eric or something if she picked dare. Of course, she wanted to, but she was terrified. What if she was bad at it and embarrassed herself? Nope. Not happening. "Truth," she settled. Nora would make sure to ask something that made her look cool.

"I'm not surprised," Emmett muttered. 

"God, you're annoying today." Eric clicked his tongue, his inky eyebrows furrowing. Eric's gaze was soft as silk when he turned toward her. She felt his warm hand on her thigh as he told her, "Nothing wrong with picking truth."

"Alright," Nora said. She tapped a finger against her chin as she seemed to think it over. "Miss Scott, have you ever stolen anything?"

Jen cringed. "I have, yeah."

A very shocked Ben gaped at her. "Really? What'd you steal?"

"I— Well, when I was a kid, my parents took me to their friend's house for Thanksgiving. There weren't any people my age around, so I was bored out of my mind. They were busy drinking wine and had left the liquor cabinet open. So, I stole a bottle of vodka and drank it in their backyard."

"And she got sooo drunk," Nora laughed. "She was grounded for forever."

"Oh, come on. Everyone's stolen their parent's alcohol at one point or another," Emmett was so kind to point out. Jen shrunk back and pursed her lips. What was this guy's problem?

Eric shrugged. "It still counts."

"Your turn," Nora said, rolling the bottle her way. 

Jen reached forward and flicked her finger against the tip of the bottle. It spun around three times before it began to slow down. Her nerves stomped hard against her heart when she saw it stopped on Eric. "Truth or dare?" she asked.

His earnest eyes poured comfort into her soul. He blew out a breath of smoke before he answered. "Truth."

Whether it was to put her at ease, or prove a point, she didn't care. She looked down, gathering up every speckle of courage she had to ask the question she'd been wondering since her freshman year. "Okay . . . Do you like anyone from Brookland High?"

She looked up at him from under her eyelashes. The edge of his lip rose up as he let out a low laugh and shook his head. Biting into his pink lips, he said, "No, I don't like anyone right now."

"Cool," Jen said, looking away when she felt her cheeks grow hot. 

Emmett huffed out a big breath and let his back fall against the cement. "This is getting boring."

"For you, maybe," Nora spoke under her breath. 

"This isn't how you play truth or dare!" he pointed out, raising his head and leaning on his elbows. 

Eric took the last speckle of his joint and smushed it under his sneaker. His eyes narrowed. "Well, how about you pick the next dare. Whatever you want."

His eyes went wide with amusement. "To anyone I want?"

"Yeah, if it'll keep you from being a drag."

"Alright, then!" He clapped his hands as he sat up. He turned his dark eyes toward Jen. A teasing grin appeared on his features as he said, "I've got a dare for Jenny."

✦✦✦✦✦✦

"Jen, you don't have to do this," Nora told her, casting nervous looks over her shoulder. "It's getting late."

The Ghost Factory towered high above them. In the light of the new moon, it looked darker and more uninviting than ever before. A howling wind blew against Jen's back beckoning her toward the front door. The lone slab of wood in the entrance smacked against the wall in a series of dull thunks. 

"We already made it this far, didn't we?" she said as she stepped toward the rusty iron gates. The black paint had long since chipped off. 

"You're actually going to do it?" Ben asked, cringing as he stepped behind Nora. "I wouldn't."

Her fingers were beginning to shake. It was terrifying, but that gave Jen all the more reason to do it. If tonight had taught her anything, it was that Jen had missed out on a lot by being cooped up in her house all the time. She had no crazy stories or anecdotes. She felt bland. Uninteresting. Invisible.

So, tonight she'd make a story to last her a lifetime. 

"Help me up," she told Emmett. 

The blonde eagerly stepped up to a stone column in between the gates. He bent over, his hands tied together. Jen placed her foot on his hands and looked up. The flat top of the column was a few feet out of her reach. 

On the count of three, Jen jumped and Emmett thrust her upward until she grabbed onto the stone edge. Jen grunted as she pulled herself up and swung her legs over the gates. Her heart shivered when she realized she was just a jump away from her biggest fear. So, before terror could anchor her courage, Jen jumped off, landing on a patch of tall grass. 

She laughed nervously. No going back now. 

Jen turned toward the gate and reached out for Nora to hand her the phone. "One photo of the basement, right?" she repeated the dare. 

"Yup." Emmett nodded. "Have fun."

Jen faced the tall building. As she stepped closer, she could hear the wood creaking inside like the slightest wind could blow the whole building away any second now. Something ran past her foot and she jumped back, biting back a scream. A shiver ran down her back when she saw it was a rat. 

"Jen, wait!" Eric called her. 

She looked over her shoulder and watched him jump down the stone column and jog toward her. "I'm coming with you," he said as he stepped next to her. "He didn't say you had to go alone."

Jen nodded, too nervous to feel excited at the prospect of being alone with Eric. They continued on their way, heading up the screechy front steps. The floorboards sunk with every step she took. Eric peeked his head inside the asylum before stepping over a fallen plank. He motioned for her to follow. 

The first thing Jen saw was the foyer, a large candelabra broken to pieces over the floor. A large desk was pressed against the wall on their right. Above it was a painting of the asylum's founder, ripped to shreds across the middle.

Farther back to the left, there was a staircase, probably leading to the patient's rooms upstairs. Jen cringed when she heard something rattling overhead. 

"Probably the wind pushing something around," Eric told her, walking toward the dark hall on the right. "Come on, I think it's this way."

Jen faltered, wanting to fold in on itself and disappear. Eric seem to notice and he looked over his shoulder. He extended an arm toward her. "Here, take my hand."

Her trembling fingers slipped into his, wrapping them in warmth as he steadied her. "Thanks," she whispered. 

He led her down the long hall to the left, stopping on the very last door. It was left ajar, leaving them to see a pair of steps before it faded to black. Eric reached into his pocket and turned on his phone's flashlight. "You ready?" he asked, tightening his grip on her hand. 

She wasn't. Not really, but she still answered yes. What good would it do to turn back now? They were so close. Their footsteps grew silent on the cement stairs. 

The flashlight lighted their way through the silent underworld of The Ghost Factory. Rows of benches were placed against the walls, with metal chains and handcuffs hanging above them. Jen gulped as they passed by a metal cart, covered in stained bandages and injections. A broken pocket watch lay just a few feet away; its time forever stuck on twelve o'clock.

"Take the picture," Eric reminded her, his tone revealing his nerves. "God, this place is creepy."

Jen fumbled to take her phone out of her pocket. She let go of Eric's hand and stepped forward, the room momentarily flashing white as she took a picture. 

"Alright, let's go," Eric said. "Wait, where are you going?"

There were more rooms farther back, all of them had heavy, metal doors. Jen stepped toward them, her phone pointed in front of her, the flash lighting over to a painter's room. At least, that was what she gathered. Paintings and drawings of screaming faces were taped to the walls or sprawled across the floor. She took a picture and continued further down. 

"Jen," he heard him call again, but she was far too amazed.

The next room pulled her in, her bottom lip trembling as the light flashed over a crib. Jen stepped in to look inside the little yellow cradle. A broken doll was left inside, its face seemingly punched in. A porcelain eye lay by a pillow, while half of its forehead was next to Jen's shoe. 

"My sweet girl," she heard a woman whisper over her shoulder. Jen whipped around, breath shuddering and—strangely—cold. Smoke appeared around her mouth like it was the middle of winter. There was no one around her.

"Eric!" she yelled, rubbing her bare arms up and down. 

"I'm here!" he yelled, running toward the room and peeking in through the doorway. "What's wrong?"

Jen began trembling like a leaf in wind. "I thought I heard something," she whispered. "I got scared."

He moved to grab her hand, but as his fingertips grazed her skin, he shuddered. "You're so cold." 

His hands rubbed at her shoulders, trying and failing to warm her up. "Does that help?"

She shook her head. "Not really. Maybe it's just this place."

"Let's go. This whole thing is stupid anyway," Eric said as he kicked a piece of the broken doll's face across the room. 

As soon as he stepped out, a fast figure tackled Eric to the ground. Jen screamed and ran to help him. She could hear the two of them struggling. When Jen got near the doorway, she saw it was Emmett. The blonde pushed himself up and away from Eric just to shove her back inside.

Jen twisted her ankle and fell on her side, crying in pain. "Wait, no!" she yelled when she saw Emmett reach for the door and slam it shut. Terror squeezed at her heart when she heard the lock click into place. 

Doing her absolute best not to put any weight on her left leg, she walked to the door and banged against the metal. She could see Emmett bend over with laughter while Eric hurried to the door to help her out. 

"Hold on," he said, pulling fiercely at the handle. "Emmett, shut up and help me. It's not funny."

His laughter settled down. He wiped the sleeve of his shirt against his eyes. "Fine, move over," he finally said. 

Her throat grew tighter and tighter as the two buys tried pulling and pushing the handle. It wasn't working. 

"It's bedtime," Jen heard the voice again. She looked over her shoulder. Again, nothing. The only thing that moved was the mist of her mouth. It was as cold as a fridge in here. 

"Please, hurry!" she whimpered. 

"Alright, move away from the door," Eric told her. 

Jen hopped to the side and slid against the brick wall. She could hear the metallic bangs as they thrust themselves against the door, but it wouldn't budge an inch. 

Something rattled a few feet away. Jen flashed the light toward the small cot on the far wall. The edge of the bedsheet fluttered as if it had been moved by the wind. 

There wasn't a window in this whole basement. 

Toward the right, she saw a glimpse of a white dress. Her flashlight followed it back to the crib, but never managed to catch what it was. "Hello?" she asked, her voice trembling. 

Something as cold as an ice cube slipped over her shoulder. Jen held her breath, her whole body shaking. Slowly, she lifted her light to her left and turned her head. 

A head stared back at her, its temples sunken in and its mouth left ajar. The deformed woman lifted a hand toward Jen's face, making her let out a blood-curdling scream. She watched the woman's long, thin hand as it caressed her cheek. Her whole body recoiled like her very soul was being expulsed out of her body. 

Jen's head lulled back and forth, the woman in white disappearing in a sea of black.

✦✦✦Author's Note✦✦✦
Hey, lovelies!
Hope you've enjoyed this first glimpse into the supermatural world.

Would you have gone in to the Ghost Factory?

What do you think of the characters so far?

I love hearing what you guys think!
- l i a n n -