(Extra TW: Nathan)

"Oh noooo, I never guessed that would happen..."

I stare at that stupid wheel that Gabriella was forced to spin after being the sole person to get a question wrong.  The wheel has large, colorful slices labeled 'DEATH', and small white slivers separate each colorful slice.  Yes, those white slivers indicate her chances of survival.  Now that the wheel has stopped in the dead center of a death slice, though, her chances of survival are non-existent.

Sasha, who had remained relatively composed for a majority of the game as if that would really do anything besides make her look cool, is now a sobbing mess, begging for [REDACTED] to not kill Gabriella.  Gabriella is crying too, and the two girls are hugging as they both cry.  It annoys me how they didn't see this coming and are acting like they could've survived this together.  That's some stupid optimist bullsh*t right there.

I don't see how Gabriella dies, but I see the aftermath.  There's a green doll with a rope tied around its waist lying limply on the floor, its plush head somehow dented in.  And motionless next to it is Gabriella's lifeless body.  Sasha is still in tears, trying to fan at her face to get herself to calm down.  Her makeup is dripping down her face as she tries to steady her breathing.  She looks like she just got dumped right before Prom.  

So that's it.  It's just me against her.  A laser-focused brain versus a broken heart.  There's no doubt who wins here.

"One last question ought to do it.  What nut is used to make marzipan?  One, almonds, two, walnuts, three, cashews, or four, peanuts."

I don't think Sasha even heard him.  Even if she did know the answer, her board is blank as [REDACTED] announces that time is up.  I smugly display my board with the number one on it.

"Alright, this is a game called 'Memory'." [REDACTED] shows both of us a six-by-six wooden grid with blood smeared on some of the tiles. "Remember as much of the pattern as you can.  You-" he points at me- "are playing too.  If you do better than her, she dies."

Sounds easy enough.

My memory is excellent, if I do say so myself.  So when [REDACTED] flips the board over and tells us to recreate the grid on our whiteboards, I easily find where to shade in the tiles.  And needless to say, Sasha couldn't remember half of it.  I suppose I'm doing her a favor by putting her out of her misery.  

All I hear is a sickening snap, and Sasha drops to the ground.  I look at [REDACTED], who holds a one-eyed purple doll in his hands, the doll's neck twisted all the way around.  He uses a needle to hold the twisted neck in place, and blood begins to drop from Sasha's neck.  The doll is then carelessly tossed next to her body.

"Nathan.  Take a walk with me." [REDACTED] gestures for me to follow him.  Caught off-guard by him using my name, I oblige, feeling a surge of pride as I walk alongside him down the hallway.  It's only me and him.

"You did it.  You're the only one left alive," the serial killer says.

"I am," I nod.

"Of course, that doesn't mean you've won yet."

"I- what?" I stop in my tracks.

"Welcome to the final round, Nathan.  I hope you haven't wasted your trivia-solving skills just yet." [REDACTED] snaps his fingers, and I'm now able to see that at the end of the long, dark hallway is a single wooden door marked 'EXIT'.  

"Here's the deal.  I'm going to be giving you a category as well as two answer choices.  Select all the choices that fit the category and write them on your whiteboard.  You get to move forward a space for every correct answer." [REDACTED] taps his foot on the ground, and I see that the floor has large tiles that I assume represent spaces.

"Oh, and remember that I still have this, so don't try anything." He holds up the blue shark doll, and twirls a sharp needle in his free hand. "Anyways, here's your first category.  German car manufacturers.  Aston Martin and Mercedes-Benz."

Well that's an easy one.  I write down the number two and show him my board.

"Great, you can move two spaces," [REDACTED] instructs.

"Is this... really all this is?  No plot twists or shenanigans?" I raise an eyebrow.

"No plot twists.  Oh, except for this one." [REDACTED] snaps his fingers again, and suddenly, I can see a line of transparent figures a few tiles behind me.  Sh*t.

"Hope you didn't think you'd be let off the hook that easily.  Ghosts can still win my little game if they get past you!  And better yet, they get a third answer choice as well.  Also, they can use whiteboards, because that's just how the ghosts in my games work, so don't ask."

I turn around again, choosing to ignore the fact that standing behind me are all of the people that I'd had to go through to end up here.  Right now, I need to focus on winning and getting the h*ll out of here.

"Instagram filters.  1977 and Walden.  Ghosts, your third option is Brannan."

I'm embarrassed to say that I didn't get this one correct at all.  But one glance behind me tells me that Sasha and a few others certainly did.  And that group includes Eryn.  I grit my teeth, turning back around and telling myself that I will not let the ghosts distract me.

"Phases of the moon.  Full Moon and Waxing Gibbon.  Ghosts, your third option is Lonely Moon."

I get it my two options correct and get to move forward two spaces.  But a tingling sensation down my spine tells me that I'm not the only one to be doing well.  I feel the ghosts getting closer.

"American Girl Dolls.  Addy Walker and Kit Kittredge.  Ghosts, your third option is Lydia Deetz."

I thankfully get one correct, but I know that I don't have much of a strong lead anymore.  Suddenly, I hear a loud whispering noise, and I glance over my shoulder to see that the other end of the hallway is encased in shadows, which seem to be creeping closer with every second.

"Sorry, I forgot about this second plot twist!  Are you afraid of the dark?" [REDACTED] laughs in a slightly deranged manner.

I have to keep my lead.  I answer the next question.  I get only one right.  I keep going.  It becomes a routine.  Answer a question, hopefully get it right, continue on.  But before I even know what hits me, a cold sensation shoots through my body, and when I look down, I can see through my hand.  I look back up, shocked to see a very alive but rather blood-stained Cody Crenshaw standing there, also astonished at what he's seeing.

"Yes!  A life force swap!" [REDACTED] cheers. "Oh, and Cody, this means that you have only two options now.  Nathan, you get promoted to three."

I guess that's an upside.  It makes it much easier to get past the stupid little junior standing in my way.  

"Countries that border China.  Kazakhstan and North Korea.  Ghosts, your third option is Russia."

Too easy.  I get all three correct, and am relieved to see that Cody missed Kazakhstan like the idiot he is.  I pass him by two tiles and feel a rush of warmth enter my body again.  I look towards the exit, still a few yards ahead but certainly closer.  All I have to do is keep getting everything correct and I'm home free.

...Which is unfortunately easier said than done.  Because not even seconds later, I feel the warmth leave my body as Gabriella regains her physical form.  Despite having seen what happened with Cody, she can't seem to believe that she's alive.  She looks over towards Sasha, who's a little to close to me for my liking.  Sasha forces a smile.

All the way behind me, I see that the shadows are getting much closer.  I need to hurry if I want to make it out of here alive.  The life force swaps between me and Gabriella, then me and Sasha, then Sasha and Cody, and finally, I regain my life force again as I hear a scream.  I turn around just in time to see Kat's ghost get consumed by the darkness.  Tyler and Maddie are only a few feet ahead of where Kat just was, and the shadows are closing in too fast for them to outrun it.

"This is what I like to see!  I love drama!" [REDACTED] says.

I mess up on the next question, only scoring one correct answer.  I hear Maddie scream somewhere behind me, and I know that she's gone for good now too.  I'm only a few feet from the exit- I can't fall behind now.  But my body is drained of warmth once more, and I feel my stress levels rising.  I look ahead of me and lock my eyes on a set of hazel ones, with unevenly sized pupils.  Eryn.

He stands almost right next to the exit.  If he gets any right now, it's over for me.  I open my mouth to try to compromise, to convince him to let me live, but I know that it's far too late for that.  My manipulation tactics won't work on him anymore, and they certainly will never be useful to me again.  Instead, I grit my teeth and snarl, "You happy now, Daniels?"

Eryn holds my gaze for a long moment, struggling to find the words.  Before he can say anything, [REDACTED] gives us the last category.

"Hercules's Labors.  Write a song, steal some apples, and for ghosts, sink Atlantis."

I suck in a breath, silently thanking our history teacher for having covered this just a few months ago.  I know I've gotten them all right.  

But so did Eryn.

And he's right at the exit.

With a shaking hand, he reaches for the doorknob.  [REDACTED] lets him.  Eryn doesn't look back as he stumbles out the door.  I stand there, stunned and brimming with fury.  Then, I hear the whispering noise grow louder as I turn around to see the shadows closing in on me.  

"So close, but not close enough," [REDACTED] laughs.

The shadows then consume me whole.

(1698 words)

Extra long chapter to cover the final round as well!

Just wanted to say that this story is only this short because the game never goes past ten questions, so I couldn't do much to extend it.

Well, all that's left is the two-part epilogue :)