Chloe's ghost??

Ava, shaking, crept toward the edge and peered down. Chloe's body was lying there, still, crumpled on the cold, hard ground.

Ava gasped, her voice barely a whisper. "She's... she's dead."

A letter appeared on the wall, written in what looked like blood: "You Die If You Cheat."

*****

Didn't I tell you?

You can't outsmart a ghost. Not when he's watching your every move.

She had a chance, without the rope, but you guys... you sealed her fate.

And now she's gone.

*****

Time skipped...

The hospital was eerily quiet as Chloe's body was wheeled into the morgue. Ava and Lily sat in a small, sterile room, desperately trying to explain the situation to the police. But their pleas fell on deaf ears.

"They think we're lying," Ava sighed, frustration etched on her face. "They think we're just making up a story."

"So you're saying they aren't listening to you," Natalie said, her voice hollow.

"They're going to rule it as an accident," Lily added, shaking her head.

Natalie's eyes blazed with anger. "So everything that happened was an accident? What about Noah and Jake? And for God's sake, Chloe is dead!"

"Do you think people will believe us?" Ava's voice broke.

"That we were playing Truth or Dare, which turned into a real game? And now some evil spirit is forcing us to do horrible things that we can't refuse? If we refuse, we die. It just doesn't make any sense."

Jake, his face bruised and bandaged, leaned back in his chair. "So that's it. They're not going to do anything."

"They're saying we were drunk, which we weren't, and that things got out of control, leading to someone's death," Lily said, her voice tinged with disbelief.

Noah let out a bitter laugh. "Great."

"What do we even expect from these people?" Lily sighted

They all fell silent, the weight of the night's events settling heavily on their shoulders....

.....

Next morning...

The sun was up, shining through the windows like it had no clue about the chaos that had gone down last night.

Normally, on a holiday like this, people would be sleeping in, relaxing, maybe making breakfast.

But today? Yeah, not happening. The whole house felt heavy like some invisible weight was pressing down on everyone, making it impossible to escape what had happened.

Natalia was in her room, lying on her bed, curled up around a photo of Chloe. She held it so tight, her knuckles were white. Chloe's bright smile from the picture seemed to mock her now, a painful reminder of everything she had lost.

Fresh tears streamed down Natalia's cheeks, and her chest felt like it was about to cave in.

"Why did you leave me, Chloe?" she whispered, her voice barely more than a trembling breath.

"I miss you so much... I can't live without you."

She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, trying to calm herself down, but it was no use. The room suddenly felt colder, like someone had left a window open, but all the windows were shut. She shivered, and as she blinked away her tears, she froze.

There, sitting at the edge of her bed, was Chloe.

Or, at least, SOMETHING that looked like Chloe. Natalia's breath hitched in her throat, and her whole body went stiff.

The girl she had loved, the girl she had cried over for what felt like forever, was just... there. But this wasn't the same Chloe. This one looked wrong.

"Ch-Chloe?" Natalia's voice cracked, her lips trembling.

The thing in front of her smiled—no, it wasn't a smile. It was a twisted, evil grin, one that sent a shiver down Natalia's spine. Chloe's face and clothes were covered in blood, soaked in it, and her eyes... they weren't Chloe's eyes anymore. They were cold and lifeless.

"Come with me, Nat," Chloe's voice was flat like there was no soul left in it. The sound of it felt like someone dragging nails down a chalkboard.

Natalia scrambled backward, nearly falling off the bed. Her heart was pounding so fast she thought it might explode. "W-what the hell, Chloe? What's going on? You're dead!" she stammered, panic rising in her chest.

Chloe tilted her head to the side, still wearing that awful grin. "Oh, I know," she said casually as if being dead was no big deal. "But I'm still here, aren't I? Aren't you happy to see me, babe?"

Natalia's blood ran cold. This wasn't Chloe. The real Chloe was gone. The thing standing in front of her was some kind of nightmare, a sick joke.

She stared in horror as the creature got up and walked over to the wall. She couldn't tear her eyes away, even though every part of her was screaming to run.

Chloe started writing on the wall with her fingers, smearing what looked like fresh blood. Natalia felt the panic rising in her throat, but she couldn't move. She was glued to the spot, heart racing, her breaths coming in short, frantic gasps.

This was something straight out of a horror movie.

"Go on, look behind you," Chloe's voice was sickly sweet like she was mocking Natalia.

Swallowing hard, Natalia slowly turned her head to see what Chloe had written. But then, Her stomach dropped. Scrawled across the wall, in large, bloody letters, were the words: "You're next."

Natalia's mind went blank. "No! No way!" she screamed, whipping around to face Chloe. "How... how is this happening? Completed the game! You're not real!"

Chloe's smirk grew wider, more twisted. "Oh, babe... you don't get it, do you? This game isn't over. It's never been over."

Natalia's heart skipped a beat as she watched Chloe step back and point to the ceiling. Slowly, Natalia looked up, dread building in her gut. A rope was hanging from the ceiling, swaying gently. It looked worn like it had been used a thousand times before. Natalie found it familiar, it was the same rope Chloe used.

"Just hang yourself for one minute," Chloe said, her voice casual, as if she was asking for something simple. "Then we can be together again."