The Fun Begins

"Alright everyone, let the fun begin." Charlotte said with a wide grin.

She hopped out the car and slammed the door shut, turning to the others to follow suit. Euna hopped out as well with playful enthusiasm, while Lyra gracefully stepped out with both her hands intertwined. Wendy fumbled with the car controls, struggling to turn it off while cursing under her breath.

"Oh miss driver's license! You good there?" Euna called out while waving.

"The car doesn't wanna go into parking. I think the lever's stuck." Wendy tugged at the handle before conceding defeat. "Someone help."

Lyra scurried over and started pulling at the lever as well. After much effort from both of them, the car level shuffled to the correct setting.

"We're heading over to the gym entrance." Charlotte gestured towards the back of the school. Euna quickly hobbled along while gazing at her surroundings.

It was a crisp autumn night with occasional cool light breezes. The trees were without leaves, bare and, well, stick-like. They had a wide trunk that got skinnier as you traced your eyes up. On the sides of the center trunk were scraggly twigs and branches placed in a sporadic manner. The trees peppered the edge of the paved walkway to the entrance of the school.

Wendy and Lyra didn't say anything and only followed after Charlotte to the entrance. Charlotte took for an obscure pathway down to the entrance littered with overgrown bushes.

"I swear, our school looks a lot scarier at nighttime." Lyra commented to no one in particular.

She turned back to Wendy to gauge her expression while Wendy merely nodded her head in agreement, carrying a concerned look in her eyes.

Their feet patted softly along the pathway as they rounded the corner. Charlotte's face lit up once she spotted the gym entrance. Everything was normal about their school, except for the fact that it was pitch black with no one around. In front of the gym entrance was the track field with equipment scattered about from earlier that day. While Euna, Wendy and Lyra eyed the track field, Charlotte dashed towards the entrance and pulled it slightly open.

"Are you ready?" She quietly called out from the door. "Once you go in, there's no coming out until we finish the dare."

Wendy shivered at the mere thought of being stuck in the school for reasons she couldn't quite explain. Lyra noticed and looked up at her, grabbing her arm and cuddling into it. Wendy broke into a slight smile and took her free hand to ruffle Lyra's hair. Euna spotted them and grabbed a hand from both of them, tugging gently. The three formed a line, all linked with each other. Lyra waved her free hand at Charlotte.

"You gonna join us?"

Charlotte smiled and walked over to her friends.

"So are we ready now?" She said, eyeing the school closely. Euna's grip tightened on both her hands as she spoke.

"More than we'll ever be."

Lyra gave Euna a few side glances of approval.

"Let's go in." Charlotte said as she started walking up to the door with the rest of her friends following in a link.

She reached for the door and pulled it open, revealing the pitch-black gym, illuminated only by the moonlight coming from the entrance they were standing at. With her free hand, Charlotte pulled out her phone flashlight and points it at the area in front of them.

"I advise you to turn on your phone's flashlight as well." Wendy, Lyra and Euna nodded as they began to reach into their pockets for their phones. They stepped into the building with Charlotte as the door closed, leaving only an escaped breeze in their path. Lyra jumped slightly at the shut door, clinging onto her phone harder.

"Euna, you know what we're here for. Go finish that dare - and here's your black marker." Charlotte pointed over to the doors leading to the hallway while passing Euna a permanent ink pen. "Remember, it's in the maintenance room."

"Don't worry, I remember. I'll meet you guys at this entrance once I'm done the dare." With those words, Euna took off into the pitch black.