Overwhelming Fear

"Then I'll keep going." Natalie said, steadying herself as she continued down the corridor.

It wasn't long before she spotted a wooden door at the far end. From the way it looked, it seemed to lead outside.

"Huh? Guys, this door looks like the exit. I think we can get out of the house from here!" Natalie sounded hopeful.

She really didn't want to stay in this dark, hallway any longer.

Picking up her pace, Natalie hurried to the wooden door, swung it open, and dashed through.

Then she froze, eyes wide.

She was standing right back in the same corridor. The same dim lights. The same claustrophobic hallway.

"Fuck, I'm back at the start!"

"Damn, is this a loop?!"

"No way out, huh?"

"Looks like you're trapped! This game isn't just scary, it's got puzzles too!"

The chat exploded, and Natalie was just as stunned.

Suddenly, the door behind her slammed shut on its own.

"I swear to god, what kind of messed up game is this?! It's looping?!"

Natalie cursed as she slowly made her way back through the hallway that had already given her goosebumps once.

She soon passed the familiar sights, the clock stuck at 11:59, the radio playing the same message, and realized it was all starting over again.

"Alright, guys, I'm not scared now, I know this area now. It's nothing. No big deal!" Natalie declared, trying to sound confident.

Acting tough, she strolled ahead, past the corner, past the bloodstain. But just as she passed the bathroom door again, the audience began chiming in.

"Natalie, try opening the bathroom again! Maybe it's the key to ending the loop!"

"Yeah, check if it's unlocked now!"

"Go for it! Could be the trigger!"

Natalie hesitated. She really didn't want to mess with that bathroom. The idea of what might be inside was enough to make her really nervous.

But...

"Fine, fine! I'll do it!" she said, trying to sound brave.

Taking a deep breath, Natalie walked up to the bathroom door and placed her hand on the doorknob.

That's when...

BANG BANG BANG!

"HOLY SHIT!!!" Natalie screamed like she'd been electrocuted, her whole body jolting as she jumped back in terror.

"Jesus Christ, I spilled my drink!"

"Bro I almost peed a little!"

"SOMEONE'S KNOCKING FROM INSIDE?!"

Even the audience freaked out. The sudden pounding had caught everyone off guard.

"Nope nope nope, I'm not opening this! Something's in there, something awful!" Natalie shouted, completely shaken.

The knocking stopped after just three hits, but that was enough. Natalie had no intention of staying.

She spun around and ran.

She bolted down the corridor like her life depended on it, all the way to the wooden door that supposedly led outside. She grabbed the handle with both hands and yanked.

Nothing.

"What the hell?! This door's locked now too?!"

Natalie tugged and twisted the handle desperately, but it was useless.

"Seriously?! I'm trapped? Don't tell me I have to open the bathroom door..."

Just as she was venting her frustration, a soft creak echoed from behind her.

Skzzz...

In the silence of the corridor, the sound was chillingly clear.

Natalie's eyes went wide. Slowly, she turned her head.

The bathroom door, the one that was definitely locked just moments ago, had opened slightly.

A faint light spilled out, and a few cockroaches crawled from the dark gap.

Natalie's heart nearly gave out.

"My god... the bathroom door opened by itself..."

"There's no way it was unlocked before!"

"Whatever's in there... it opened the door..."

"It's baiting Natalie in, forcing her to enter!"

"This is insane! My heart can't take it!"

"Man, even I'm scared now, and I'm a grown dude!"

"This tension is wild!"

"Whoever made this game is a madman!"

The chat went wild again. The door slowly creaking open on its own was no coincidence.

It was a prompt. A silent message to the player.

Go in. Now.

The game was building that dreadful anticipation. You knew something horrible was waiting on the other side, but you had to look.

This was horror done right. No cheap jump scare. Just heavy, suffocating atmosphere and it was more than enough to terrify anyone.

Even if nothing had shown up yet… the fear was already overwhelming.

"Don't just stand there, go take a look!"

"Yeah, what are you waiting for?!"

"There's no other way forward, you've got to check it out!"

Her chat was relentless.

"I swear, you all just want me dead faster!" Natalie snapped, her back already drenched in cold sweat.

At this point, she seriously regretted ever agreeing to Tony's suggestion to stream this game.

This wasn't the kind of kiddie horror game she'd imagined at all.

No, this was the real deal. She felt like she'd become the protagonist in a horror film, the kind who could get killed off at any moment.

But just then, a few rockets floated across the screen, major donations from the viewers.

"Look at that, Natalie! Big donations, go check it out!"

Natalie felt torn. In all honesty, she'd only been playing the game for a few minutes, yet she'd already made far more than usual streams.

As the saying goes, "People die for money, birds die for food."

"Fine! I'll risk my life for the viewers today!" she shouted, psyching herself up as she inched toward the bathroom.

Normally, when watching a horror movie, Natalie would close her eyes during the high-tension scenes. But in this game?

It was a thousand times scarier than any horror movie she'd seen.

And now she didn't even dare close her eyes, because the immersion was so intense, it felt like if she blinked, a monster might actually pounce on her.

She was terrified she'd die without even knowing how.

"It's fake, it's fake, it's all fake! Don't scare me!" she kept muttering, trying to hold herself together.

She didn't go up to the bathroom door immediately.

Instead, from a distance, she leaned forward, eyes locked on the crack that had opened earlier. She wanted to peek through the door before getting too close.

But the game developer had clearly anticipated this.

Inside that crack, there was nothing to see. Just pitch black.

"Damn it... the fucker is forcing me to go in," she muttered bitterly.

Left with no choice, Natalie slowly tiptoed toward the bathroom.

"Alright guys... I'm opening the door..." she whispered, her voice trembling.

Her hand reached out for the doorknob, shaking.

And then it happened.

From the crack in the door, a ghostly pale face suddenly appeared!

"Hehehehe…"

It wasn't even a full face, part of it was missing, and yet it wore a twisted smile as it suddenly slammed the bathroom door shut!

BOOM!!!

"FUCK FUCK FUUUUUUUCK!!!"

Natalie screamed like she'd been struck by lightning. Her whole body convulsed with fear. She felt her soul almost leave her body. Her heart literally skipped a beat.

"NOPE, I'M DONE! I'M FUCKING DONE!! WAAAHHH!!!"

Natalie screeched, slamming the game shut and yanking off her extra sensory suit. Then, crying loudly, she disappeared from the stream.

And in that moment, nobody in the chat thought she was faking it.

"Dude, that ghosts face made me completely freeze up!"

"I legit screamed out loud, haven't been this scared in YEARS!"

"That jump scare was next level, I'm not even in VR and I nearly died!"

"This game isn't horror, it's psychological warfare!"

"Wait, why is Natalie not back yet?"

"I think she actually cried… I heard her sobbing!"

"Can't blame her… That shit was terrifying. I've got chills all over."

This time, no one was teasing her. Everyone watching had been equally horrified.

If watching the game in a stream was already this terrifying, imagine playing it in full immersive VR, with sound, haptics, and first-person perspective.

Natalie wasn't watching a horror movie. She was the main character in one.

And that made all the difference.

---BREAK---

Meanwhile, Natalie burst into Tony's room, still wiping away tears.

Tony had been watching the stream the whole time. He was already standing at the door, waiting.

The moment she saw him, Natalie balled her hands into fists and started pounding on his chest while crying.

"You bastard! What the hell kind of game is that?! You almost scared me to death! To death!!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Tony said quickly, letting her fists land weakly against him as he hugged her and tried to calm her down.

"I told you it was scary, you were the one who volunteered to try it…"

"How the hell was I supposed to know it was this scary?!"

Natalie kept sniffling and wiping her tears on Tony's shirt.

Tony didn't even bother reacting. He just said lazily, "It's fine, sis. You don't want to keep playing, then don't. No one's making you."

He knew better than anyone how horrifying the game was. The psychological toll it could take.

There was no way he would ever force her to keep playing.

Not after that reaction.

1502 Words.