Anne—who insisted everyone call her Drista five minutes after walking through the door—leaned back in her chair and stared at Karl and Nick like she was analyzing her next move in a chess game.

"So," she said, tapping her pen on the edge of her notebook, "what exactly is this club supposed to be? Like, are we talking ghost stories? Murder mysteries? Treasure hunts? I need specifics, or I'm gonna start thinking you just wanted an excuse to hang out in the library."

Karl grinned, finally feeling a little less nervous now that there were more people in the room. "It's a little bit of everything! Campus history is super weird, you know? There's this old legend about a professor who went missing in the '90s, and some people say his ghost still haunts the science building." 

 Nick, who'd been half-heartedly doodling in the corner of his notebook, raised an eyebrow. "You don't actually believe that, do you?" 

 Karl shrugged. "I mean, I'm not saying I do, but wouldn't it be fun to dig into the story? Find out what really happened? Stuff like that makes life more interesting!" 

 Drista smirked. "I can get behind that. A little mystery never hurt anyone." She glanced over at Nick, who looked unimpressed. "What about you, Hoodie Guy? You into this, or are you just here for the free snacks?" Nick snorted. "There aren't even snacks. False advertising." 

 Karl's face flushed. "I was going to bring snacks, but I didn't think anyone would actually show up." 

 "Rookie mistake," Drista said. "Snacks are, like, Club 101. Anyway, I think this could be fun. Especially if we actually do something cool and not just sit around talking about ghost stories."

 Karl brightened at her enthusiasm. "Oh, absolutely! I've got a bunch of ideas. Like, we could look into old newspaper archives, or—"

 "Let's keep it simple for now," Nick interrupted. "What's the plan for tonight?" Karl froze. He didn't actually have a plan. He'd been so focused on getting people to show up that he hadn't thought much further than that. "Well, uh..." 

 Drista raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Don't tell me you didn't plan anything." 

 "I planned a vibe!" Karl said defensively. "I figured we could brainstorm together!" 

 Nick groaned. "Unreal."

 "Hey, it's collaborative!" Karl said. "That's the whole point of a club, right? We're in this together!" 

 Drista leaned forward, propping her chin on her hand. "Okay, fine. Let's brainstorm. What's the most interesting mystery on campus right now?" Karl hesitated. "Well... there's the missing professor I mentioned earlier. His name was Professor Halloway, and he taught chemistry or something. He just disappeared one day—no one ever figured out what happened to him. Some people think he ran away, but there's this rumor that he was working on some secret experiment, and..." 

 Nick cut him off. "Let me guess. It went wrong, and now he's a ghost haunting the science building." 

 Karl frowned. "You're no fun, you know that?" 

 Drista grinned. "I like it. Creepy professor vibes. Let's roll with it. What else you got?" 

 Karl brightened again. "There's also this weird thing about the bell tower. Apparently, it rings at random times, even when no one's up there to pull the rope."

 "That's lame," Nick said immediately. "Okay, fine," Karl said, slightly deflated. "Then what do you suggest?"

 Nick leaned back in his chair, thinking for a moment. "What about the old tunnels under campus?" Karl blinked. 

"What tunnels?" 

 "You've never heard about the tunnels?" Nick asked, looking genuinely surprised. "There's a whole network of maintenance tunnels under campus. Supposedly, some of them have been sealed off for years. People say there's graffiti down there from, like, the 1980s, and no one knows how far they go." 

 Drista's eyes lit up. "Now that sounds cool. Creepy underground tunnels? Sign me up." 

 Karl hesitated. "That... could be dangerous, though. I mean, what if we get caught?" 

 "Live a little," Drista said. "Besides, what's the worst they can do? Give us a slap on the wrist? It's not like we're committing a crime." Karl wasn't so sure, but he didn't want to look like a buzzkill in front of his new club members. 

"Alright. Tunnels it is. But maybe we should do some research first. You know, figure out where the entrances are and if it's even possible to get in." Nick shrugged. "Fair enough. Where do we start?" 

 "The library," Karl said, gesturing to the shelves around them. "There's an archive section upstairs. I bet they've got maps or something." 

 Drista groaned. "Lame. I was hoping for a more hands-on adventure tonight." 

 "We'll get there," Karl promised. "Baby steps." 

 Nick sighed, closing his notebook. "Great. Guess I'm spending my evening digging through dusty old books."

 "Think of it as character building!" Karl said cheerfully. Nick shot him a look, but Drista was already on her feet, heading for the stairs. "Come on, boys," she said over her shoulder. "Let's go find some ghosts." 

 ---

The archive section of the library was quiet and dimly lit, with rows of tall shelves that smelled faintly of mildew and old paper. Karl led the way, though he had no idea what he was looking for. Nick trailed behind, hands in his hoodie pockets, while Drista darted from shelf to shelf like an overexcited squirrel. "Found something!" she called, holding up an ancient-looking book with a cracked leather cover. 

 Karl hurried over, peering at the title. History of Roclev University: 1880-1980. "This might have something," Drista said, flipping it open. "Check this out—there's a whole section on the original campus layout." Nick leaned over her shoulder, glancing at the page. 

"There's your tunnels," he said, pointing to a faded map. "Looks like there used to be an entrance behind the old theater building." Karl's eyes widened. "That building's still there! It's not even that far from here." 

 Drista grinned. "Field trip?" Nick groaned.  "You're kidding, right? It's like ten o'clock." 

 "So?" Drista said. "That's the perfect time for creepy adventures. Come on, Nick. Where's your sense of fun?" 

 "I left it in my dorm," Nick deadpanned. Karl hesitated. He wasn't exactly thrilled about the idea of wandering around campus at night, but he couldn't deny he was curious. And if Drista was this excited, maybe it would be worth it. 

 "Alright," he said, closing the book and tucking it under his arm. "Let's go see if the entrance is still there."