You couldn't have chosen a better time to conquer your fear of horror movies.

It had to be at midnight on Halloween. Your inner voice mocked you. You squirm at the sight of blood. Reading spooky stories leaves you traumatized. You even fainted in a haunted house once. You'd be the first person to die of a horror movie.

You're going to prove it wrong. You're an adult. A silly film won't hurt you.

You're at your desk, hand hovering over the laptop trackpad. Your finger pushes the cursor to the horror movie you've handpicked. You've done your research, read the reviews, and even saw the spoilers. It's not that scary. You can handle it.

Click. It starts.

You're anxious. "It's just a movie," you remind yourself. "It's not real anyway."

Then you spend ninety minutes squirming, screeching, and gasping. It's scarier than expected─blood gushing from butchered bodies, an endless string of jump scares, and ghouls galore. You start cursing internet strangers for their misleading reviews. You're pretty sure you've gotten multiple heart attacks during the first twenty minutes.

At last, it ends. You head to bed and turn off─no, you keep the lights on. You've poisoned your imagination. Pitch black is a perfect canvas for painting the most fearsome portraits.

You lay in bed and close your eyes. The blanket cloaks you but gives no warmth. Your body tenses as you brace for the onslaught of nightmares. After a while, the tension leaves. You fall into slumber.

"AAAH!"

You jolt upright. Though alert at first, you relax. It's probably just the neighbors, you suppose.

You pause. You have no neighbors.

You look toward the door. White eyes stare back at you.

"AAAH!"

You cower to the corner of your bed, back against the wall. Standing opposite you is a translucent little girl.

You plead, "P-please don't hurt me!"

She gives a confused look. "Why would I hurt you?"

"I-I don't know. J-just leave."

She tilts her head. "I've always been here but you never shooed me away."

Your eyes widen upon realizing that you've been living in a haunted house. You scrutinize her; she appears harmless. You remain wary. After all, looks can be deceiving.

"Anyway, sorry for disturbing you. The movie you watched scared me and I can't sleep."

"Oh, sorry. I also got scared."

She raises an eyebrow. "Why would you scare yourself to death?"

"I, I wanted to prove that I'm brave."

"To who? Your friends?"

"Yes."

She looks down. "I don't have any friends."

Pity enters your heart. If there's anything the film taught you, it's not to trust ghosts. But she seems fine. Besides, she's been living with you for years. She would've hurt you already if she were malevolent.

"I can be your friend."

She smiles. "Thanks. No ghost has wanted to be my friend before."

You raise an eyebrow. Ghost? No, that can't be right. You're a living and breathing human. Unless...

You look toward your desk. You scream.

You're dead.