Greetings, Author. 
Congratulations on making into our most amazing story in our Anthology event "Halloween and Autumn Get Togeter'24" 

Theme chosen: Halloween. 

PARTY POOPER

Should she knock?

Call?

Ring a bell?

She had never been to a party before, especially not as big as this one...

Vera's heart thrummed in her chest, the girl's breath fogging in the chilly autumn evening.

She should most definitely knock.

She couldn't turn back now... Not after going through the trouble of dressing up. She just hoped none of her black lipstick smeared across her braces. She couldn't afford to get embarrassed... Not at her first-ever party.

Suddenly, some rustling echoed from behind the door, causing the poor girl to jump. She hurriedly readjusted her black dress, feeling the glasses slide awkwardly down her nose.

The door clicked open before two dressed-up laughing girls stumbled through the threshold with red cups still in their hands. Vera's guts clenched unpleasantly, immediately recognising both of them. She pulled at the hem of her dress, nervous energy coursing through her veins.

The taller, angelic blonde paused at the sight of her, raising her perfect eyebrow at the sight of her. She looked her up and down, silently judging her costume.

"What are you doing here?" she mumbled, the fairy wings on her back bouncing as she spoke.

Vera readjusted her glasses, feeling her clammy hands slide across the plastic of the black ridges.

"Umm... I... Nina invited me..." she mumbled.

The fairy girl raised an eyebrow.

"Really? And what are you supposed to be? An emo chick-" she couldn't finish as her friend drove her elbow into her side.

Vera could easily hear her whisper "C'mon... It's Halloween..." to the fairy girl with a stern look on her face.

She hated it... She hated being treated like a mentally challenged idiot... Like she couldn't hear their whispers and see the telltale looks at school... She should have known the party wouldn't have been different.

The fairy girl rolled her eyes, seemingly convinced by her friend. She flipped her blonde hair onto the back, exposing her glimmering collarbones.

"Whatever..." she barked, pushing through Vera.

"She wants to come? Let her..." the fairy grumbled under her nose, pulling her princess friend behind her. She glanced back at Vera, silent apology clear on her face.

Vera shrugged, smiling awkwardly like she had done many times before.

The princess girl must have been from another school... otherwise, she wouldn't be so quick to defend her.

Nobody ever did...

"I am a witch..." Vera whispered, mustering her courage to grab the handle and pull the door open.

The music filled her ears, distant chatter suddenly overpowering the sound of the leaves rustling in the midnight breeze.

There was no turning back.

She stepped into the house, something crunching under the sole of her shoe. The floor was littered with stray pieces of food and confetti, glittering bats glaring at her from the red carpet.

The red lights were blinding, the music and chatter making her skin crawl.

She could still go back... She could still return home...

Her grip on the skirt of the dress tightened.

No... No, she was done being scared.

With her mouth dry and knees shaky, Vera made her way down the hallway, every step filling her with terror. Everybody was going to be there... Every quarterback, cheerleader or a class president... The meeting of the elites.

And then there was her... Vera...

She took a deep breath.

"Don't be scared..." she muttered to herself.

She paused right before the turn to the living room.

Deep breaths Vera... Take deep breaths...

She readjusted the straps of her dress, smoothing over the creases in the fabric.

Surely she wouldn't be the only witch, right? It should be fairly easy to blend in...

She stepped into the light, her senses getting assaulted with a cacophony of sounds and smells.

But... It wasn't the burning red light or the loud bass booming in her ears...

It wasn't the nauseating smell of alcohol, sweat and snacks either that threatened to make her knees buckle.

People... The room was filled with people...

One could say it was idiotic, downright comical, to be scared of a bunch of teenagers, but Vera knew better than to underestimate them.

Stuck between adulthood and childhood, even on days like Halloween, teenagers remained the most terrifying creatures one could encounter... And Vera just waltzed into a house full of them.

Boys and girls hung around the room, talking, laughing and drinking the night away, some already swaying and giggling dumbly.

Vera felt her face burn, suddenly feeling as if the dress shrunk on her. She was painfully aware of the skirt fabric touching the back of her thighs and how sweat trickled down her cleavage.

She could wear revealing clothes and smear her face with make-up.

She could take off her braces and glasses.

She could drink and smoke, maybe even kiss a boy.

She could do all of those things, but she knew she would never be one of them.

She was a sheep who had foolishly walked into the den of wolves, led by the promise of a better tomorrow. That things would be different after... But the second she stepped into the view of all of those people, Vera knew she could never be one of them.

She was destined to be alone.

It felt as if all eyes were on her, digging into her soul like maggots eating the dead flesh of her camouflage.

"You are not one of us..." they whispered.

"You are an outsider..."

"Pathetic..."

Her knees were threatening to give out under her.

Should she leave? But wouldn't leaving make things worse?

She could already see a couple of people pause their conversation to look at her, their eyebrows raised as if she shouldn't have been there...

And they were right.

She shouldn't have been.

She backed away, feeling waves of panic hitting her like a tsunami. The muscles of her thighs spasmed, hands tightening around the frilly finish of the black skirt. Her breath felt wet in the stuffy room, fogging up the bottom of her lenses, her whole body slicking with moisture.

She was about to run, to just bolt down the hallway and out of the door, never to be seen again. She wished she could just vanish in the mist travelling the roads outside. But just as she was about to turn around, her eyes met with a matching set of baby blues across the living room.

Nina stood amongst her girlfriends, surrounded by servants like a queen... And a queen she was. If Vera could become anybody in the world, she would want to be Nina Briee.

Nina was the most popular girl in school, worshipped by just about any social clique just to fall into her good graces.

Smart...

Charismatic...

And most of all, Nina was beautiful. Her golden locks fell down her shoulders in cascades, pearly white teeth were whiter than the angel wings decorating her back. Her skin was glowing despite the red lights, manicured nails drumming against the cup in her hand. Upon the first time seeing her, one could just fall in love with her and succumb to the spell of innocence that surrounded her.

But Nina was no saint...

Despite the warmth of the house, a chill ran down Vera's spine at the look Nina gave her, cold like the steel of an unsheathed blade.

Nina was no saint... She was the devil.

She nodded at her henchmen, pointing with her chin in the direction of Vera with an ugly grimace contorting her face, all eyes turning to the witch.

Her heart skipped a beat, mouth falling open as if to say

"No... Please... I didn't mean to..."

Too many times... Too many times had Vera uttered these words when she would get locked in a stall, or when somebody would trip her in the hallway. She would always apologise when her notebooks would get stolen only to be filled with scribbles, or when somebody would pour water on her.

Vera would do nothing but apologise... but she knew "sorry" wouldn't cut it. Not this time...

Because Vera came without an invite.

Her heart fluttered like a startled bird, the girl visibly flinching as Nina began making her way towards her, pushing through people like a charging bull. One of her friends turned the music up, screaming something to everybody as if to cover Nina's abrupt leave.

Vera's breath got stuck in her throat.

She needed to run.

She needed to run and avoid making a scene.

She glanced between the door and the girl, eyes jumping in panic all around the hallway.

Outside? Should she run out?

That must have been the answer.

A quiet cry escaped her lips, Vera stepped backwards. She hissed at a sharp stabbing pain in her back as her spine bumped against the railing of the stairs.

Outside! She should run outside!

But instead of running, her eyes were drawn to a bright light somewhere at the edge of her vision. Her head snapped to the corner of the living room, a block of ice forming in the pit of her stomach.

Videos... People were taking videos...

Suddenly, running outside didn't seem like a good idea anymore. There were windows... People watching... No, she couldn't let them see it...

Instead of running out, Vera turned, stomping up the stairs in a hurry.

"Where are you going?" she heard Nina yelling behind her.

She stumbled, tripping every few steps but eventually made it to the first floor.

Her chest was heaving, blood flowing to her cheeks.

She needed to hide somewhere, lock herself in some room. Her neck snapped left and right, trying to decide which room to choose. Which one was the bathroom?

Tears welled up in her eyes at the sound of high heels clicking against the stairs, Nina climbing right behind her.

Vera bolted ahead, ripping the first door she reached open.

"Come back here, you creep!"

She jumped in, her heart sinking at the sight,

No... This was Nina's bedroom...

She turned around, ready to flee but it was too late.

Nina's manicured nails shone on the edge of the door, pushing them open with force. Vera didn't even think about trying to wrestle with her, her meek nature taking over as she fled deeper into the room.

Nina pushed the door open, a storm brewing on her face. She stopped by the door, crossing her hands against her chest while she stared at the witch.

"What are you doing here?" she asked sternly, her voice hushed as if scared somebody would hear her.

"I... I..."

"Vera, what are you doing here?" she gritted out.

"I wanted to see you..."

Nina released a humourless chuckle.

"Great... Just peachy..." she muttered, before adding.

"I told you I don't want to see you. I don't want you anywhere near me, do you understand?"

Vera felt the sting of tears in her eyes.

"That..." she mumbled.

"That is not true..."

Nina gave her an incredulous look.

"Vera..."

"How could you do this to me?" Vera finally hissed out, choking on her tears. All this time... All this time she had endured everything in hopes that Nina would change her mind.

"How could you just leave me... Did you do all of this just to sleep with me?"

Nina stiffened, her eyes going wide as her cheeks heated up. She stepped back, her back bumping into the door.

"I... I didn't..." she muttered.

Vera's hands settled in her hair, pulling tightly.

"Why? Why did you do all of that? Why get close to me just to abandon me?!" she screamed, tears leaving burning trails down her face.

"Shhh! Be quiet!" Nina hissed, stepping closer.

She raised her hand like she was about to hit Vera.

"Be quiet... I..." She stammered out, fear slipping out from under the mask of anger.

"If you tell anybody... I... If you tell anybody I will make sure you are ruined, do you hear me?" Her whisper cut through the air of her bedroom.

Nina lowered her voice.

"If you tell anybody I will kill you..."

" You... You wouldn't do that-"

Nina grimaced, pulling her phone out of her bra before angrily typing. The woman inhaled sharply, seemingly mulling over something. Soon, she seemed to have reached a conclusion, biting her lip while she showed the screen to the witch.

Vera's mouth went dry.

There were photos... Intimate photos... Photos she didn't remember taking...

"I have never slept with you... I have never kissed or let alone talked with you... If you say anything, these will go public..." Nina didn't seem to believe what she was saying, her face blank while she threatened her.

Vera looked away from the incriminating picture, looking at the small golden cross dangling from the chain attached to the phone case.

She went silent, hiding her face away from the other girl.

"You... You said you loved me..." she mumbled, remembering the tender words spilling from Nina's mouth that one evening.

She couldn't help but be reminded of how soft she looked in the fairy lights of Vera's room... How infectious her smile had been... How her kisses felt perfect on Vera's lips...

Nina seemed startled, her face going red. She glanced at the photos by her bed, Nina's family staring at her.

"I... I lied..." she mumbled.

A quiet sob escaped Vera's lips.

Nina stood there, frozen in place with her hands hovering in the air. She didn't know what to say, shame colouring her features.

"I... This is so funny..." Vera whispered through her tears.

"All this time... All this time I thought... I thought it meant something..." the witch breathed out before continuing.

"I thought you would stop... That one day you would come back..."

Vera's hands reached to the buttons of her dress, undoing the very top one.

"I thought that all of the pain I felt... That you would stop them... Every time they tortured me, I hoped that you would say something..."

She reached for the second button.

"But you never did say anything..."

The third button was undone.

"My suffering was useless..."

Fourth.

The dress slid down her shoulders, making Nina's eyes widen in horror.

There, right between Vera's breasts and stomach, a carefully carved-out pentagram stained her pale flesh. The dark blood crusted around the edges of the star, the flesh around it bright red like on a fresh tattoo.

"W-what is that-"

"I came here to give you a last chance..." Vera looked up at her, bloody tears running down her face. Her fingers grazed against the wound, digging her nails into the flesh with a wet squelch, blood splattering onto the floor.

"You might have already killed me..." the witch gave her a sad smile, her hands digging deeper into the flesh. Soon, Vera's fingers were swallowed by the flesh of her stomach, tearing the tissues apart with a nasty, ripping sound.

Nina's hand travelled to cover her lips at the sight of Vera's innards spilling onto the floor.

Her blood thrummed in her ears, the sounds of a party downstairs gone. The world went silent.

Although her mind was screaming for her to move, her body remained still, fear controlling every fibre of her being. Saliva pooled on her tongue, eyes watering. She couldn't even force a scream out.

There... In the darkness of Vera's stomach, between all of the slimy organs, a pair of hungry black eyes stared back at her.

"... But, mark my words Nina Briee, I will take you to Hell with me..."

Nina heard the lock click shut behind her.