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𝙑𝙊𝙇𝙐𝙈𝙀 𝑰. ── CASUALTY OF YOUR DREAMS!

❛ 𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒅𝒚 ❜
─── chapter five! ❫

005. ╱ ✹ ⠀⠀ ❝ green flags turned red
from all my bleeding. . . i fell quickly
for words, misleading. ❞

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     THE SOUND OF A PHONE RINGING IN THE DEAD QUIET OF THE MORNING MADE KYNLEE MANRAL INVOLUNTARILY FLINCH. Stirring awake, she slowly peered one eye open, immediately wincing at the beam of sunlight that hit her square in the face. The yellow and orange curtains in Mindy's room hadn't been fully closed the night before, leaving the two of them to be victims of the sun's harmful rays.

     "Is that my phone or yours?" Mindy mumbled, burying her head into Kynlee's back.

     Grunting, the black-haired girl squinted, still unable to see. "Yours. Judy still has mine," she answered groggily, blindly reaching toward the nightstand. She slapped her hand around, searching for the stupid phone. Without warning, the sound of glass breaking and water spilling echoed. The tips of her fingers had accidentally hit one of their drinks.

     "Kynzie," the twin whined, dragging out the girl's name.

     Tempted to give up, Kynlee huffed. "Shit. My bad," she muttered, finally grabbing the device and pressing the 'accept call' button. "¿Aló?" Turning onto her back, she readjusted so her left arm wrapped around Mindy's shoulders.

     "Kynlee?" Amber Freeman's voice came from the other end, confused.

     Eyebrows furrowing, she replied, "Amber? Why are you calling so early?"

     "It's ten in the morning. Why are you answering Mindy's phone?" Amber questioned.

     "'Cause Judy has my cellular device and I stayed the night. What's up?" she breathed, feeling herself gradually waking up more.

     Mindy snatched her phone from Kynlee and put it on speaker with her eyes still shut. Then, she placed it on Kynlee's chest before snuggling back into her side. "Hey, Amber," she uttered sleepily, wishing the girl hadn't called until much later.

     "Hey," Amber greeted blandly, sighing. The tone she spoke in caught the pair's attention. Something was wrong. "Wes and Kynni were right. Ghostface is back."

     At that, both of them sat up abruptly. The phone fell from Kynlee's chest and into the comforter.

     Gasping, Mindy was now wide awake. "I knew it! I fucking knew it!"

     Jaw slackening, Kynlee groaned dramatically. "Goddamit, no. It was just a joke! I was only joking," she lamented, covering her face with her hands.

     Amber's response to the two was muffled by the blankets and Mindy had to dig her phone out. "—wants to talk with us today. Can everyone meet at your place, Mindy?"

     "Can you repeat whatever you just said? We didn't catch that," the curly-haired girl hit the back of her hand against Kynlee's arm excitedly.

     Kynlee's nose scrunched up in distaste at her friend. She truly was enjoying this far too much. It was concerning.

     Another sigh came from the opposite end of the call. "I said that you were also somewhat right, Mindy. The news of Ghostface returning came out after the first killing."

     "First killing?" the Manral girl repeated, stomach dropping. "Who the hell was killed?!"

     "That sketchy Vince dude Liv used to sleep with. He was stabbed outside Sunrise Sunset last night. Apparently, he died like, an hour after we left or something. I found out while the Sheriff was questioning me. Also, Sam was attacked at the hospital."

     It was then that the mood dimmed and Kynlee found it hard to breathe for a moment. Sam was attacked. First, Tara. Now, it was the oldest Carpenter. Whoever was doing this was targeting them specifically. They had to be. Coincidences like that didn't happen in Woodsboro without meaning.

     Swallowing harshly, the black-haired girl cleared her throat. "Is Sam okay?"

     "Oh, yeah. She's fine. A little spooked, probably," her ex-girlfriend responded, not at all concerned for the woman. "She wants to talk with us today. Can everyone meet at your place, Mindy?"

     Mindy shrugged, bringing her hair into a ponytail. "Sure. Who's everyone?"

     "Our group, Sam, and Netflix."

     A beat of silence passed.

     "Netflix? Who's Netflix?" If that was a nickname for someone, Kynlee didn't recognize it.

     Amber let out a third sigh. Clearly, she was in another one of her moods "Richie. Sam's boyfriend. Supposedly, he was watching Netflix when she was attacked."

     "Interesting," Mindy hummed, making an 'mm' noise. She was choosing to overlook Amber's attitude. "If any Stab has taught us anything— never trust the love interest."

     Unable to help herself, Kynlee rolled her eyes. "You and those fucking movies, I swear." At some point that day, she knew that Mindy was going to go off on another inevitable movie tangent. It was her specialty.

     "I'll text Liv and Wes. Does noon work?" Amber asked.

     Exchanging nods of agreement, the girls answered in unison, "Yeah."

────

     DI MI NOMBRE WAS STUCK ON A PERPETUAL LOOP IN KYNLEE'S HEAD FROM LISTENING TO IT IN THE SHOWER. Mindy had let her use her phone to play music. El Mar Querer by Rosalía was one of her all-time favorite albums. Tara had introduced it to her years ago and ever since, she'd been hooked. Now, every time Rosalía released a new song or album, she and Tara would have listening parties. It was something she was able to bond with Tara over since she was her only friend who spoke Spanish fluently and was also Mexican.

     Kynlee couldn't wait to visit her at the hospital again so she could cheer the injured girl up with a singing party. Despite Sam and Richie being there, Kynlee could only imagine how alone Tara might still feel.

     Hopefully, she could go later that day.

     "Y átame con tu cabello, a la esquina de tu cama. Que aunque el cabello se rompa, haré ver que estoy atada." Kynlee sang the pre-chorus softly, swaying her hips to the beat of the song while she headed to the kitchen. "Que aunque el cabello se rompa, haré ver que estoy atada."

     Twirling around in circles, she approached the fridge. "Ay, alí, alí, alí, alí, alí, alí, yalí, ya. Ay, alí, alí, alí, alí, alí, alí, yalí, ya." Earlier, Martha had informed her that the woman had made her infamous pancakes for the kids. Ever since then, Kynlee had been craving them. Pancakes were one of her favorite foods.

     As the black-haired girl sang, she failed to notice that Chad was standing at the sink washing dishes. A grin of adoration was stamped on his face as he watched. Most people were unaware that Kynlee Manral could sing. Like, really sing. It wasn't something she went around advertising, but she wasn't shy about it. At least not around him, his family, or hers. Her voice, whether she was singing or not, remained Chad's favorite song. Especially when they would go on their drives and scream songs together.

     "Di mi nombre, pon tu cuerpo contra el mío." Opening the fridge, Kynlee grabbed the Tupperware container of pancakes and the butter. "Y que lo malo sea bueno e impuro lo bendecí'o. Ya me abrazas sobre tu cuerpo en la esquina de tu cama..." She shut the fridge and did a one-eighty. At the sight of Chad staring directly at her, she almost jumped. "Fucking fuck. Jesus Christ, Chad."

     The jock held his soap-covered hands up in defense, laughing at her reaction. "I'm not the one who was spaced out," he said, reaching for a dirty plate. "But, please, don't stop singing on account of me."

     Kynlee rolled her eyes and placed the containers on the counter. "Such a creeper," she muttered, giving him a playful side-eye.

     Grinning, he stretched his leg out and poked her calf lightly. "Admirer," he corrected.

     A bright pink dusted her cheeks and she just shook her head at him. "Have you eaten already?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

     Chad nodded. "Yeah. I woke up early this morning at the smell of bacon and came down minutes after Dad left for work. Mom said he's bitter because school got canceled for us due to "public safety concerns," aka Tara's attack, but he still has to go to work."

     Snorting, Kynlee cracked a smile. "That sounds about right. I'd be fucking bitter, too." Eyes lighting up, she stood a bit taller as she remembered what he just said. "Wait, there's bacon?"

     "Was bacon," he replied sheepishly, shrugging innocently.

     At those two words, her face dropped and she glared at him. "Man, fuck you." Chad's chuckling filled the space and she flipped him off. Well, there goes her hope of having bacon. Sighing, she began walking around the kitchen in search of a plate, utensils, and syrup.

     While she moved about and fixed a late breakfast, Chad continued to wash the dishes. There were hardly any left. And by hardly, that meant two. If he truly wanted to be done with the chore, he would have finished at least five minutes ago. He hadn't, though. Instead, his attention was on his best friend and the internal battle he was fighting. For so long he'd been fighting his thoughts and feelings, but it was getting harder for his mind not to spiral.

     It wasn't until a set of fingers snapped in front of him that he snapped back to life. "What?"

     Creases broke out along her forehead and Kynlee tilted her head to the side. He'd spaced out again. It wasn't out of character for Chad to zone out at times, but he was beginning to do it much more frequently these days. And most of the time, it was when they were together and he was staring at her. Like he was right now. Kynlee wasn't sure if it was something she should be concerned about or not.

     "You're staring again," she stated matter-of-factly, pointing a fork at him. "What's up? Do I need to be concerned? Is there somethin' on my face and you're being a bad friend by not telling me?"

     Shaking his head, Chad cleared his throat. "Nah. No. All is good, I'm good. Don't worry, and there's nothing on your face."

     Her eyes narrowed; she didn't believe him. Well, she believed the part about nothing being on her face. He would have definitely told her and made a joke in the process. However, what he said prior to that was a blatant lie.

     "Are you sure?"

     "Yeah, totally."

     Pressing her lips together, Kynlee was unconvinced. "You know I can tell when you're lying, right?" She shoved a forkful of pancakes into her mouth. The plate was almost empty.

     Chad knew where this was going and he gave her a look. "Kynz, really, I'm good." There was no way he could talk to her about what he was feeling. It wasn't right or fair to her or Liv. He needed to figure this out on his own. That, and he highly doubted his best friend felt the same way.

     "I don't believe you, but I'm here if you wanna talk," she offered, giving him a half-smile after swallowing the food.

     He returned the gesture, nodding. "I know. Thank you."

     "Hey, losers," Mindy interjected, poking her head into the kitchen. "Liv and Wes just got here. Quit flirting."

     "Mindy, dude, the commentary isn't necessary," Chad exclaimed, throwing a hand out to the side. Water splashed all over the floor and the girls darted their line of sight from the puddle to him. Groaning, he shut his eyes. "Dammit."

     Snorting, Kynlee shook her head pitifully at him. "Beauty and no brains sometimes, I swear."

     "All right, there's no need to be mean now," he protested, grabbing a towel.

     There was a knock in the distance and Mindy sighed. "That's probably Amber," she murmured, leaving them alone.

     "Since you're taking your sweet time washing those two dishes, you wanna wash mine?" she raised an innocent brow, giving him a sweet smile.

     Chad glanced at her plate, not even surprised that she'd already finished eating. "Yeah, sure. Give it."

     Handing the plate and fork over, she grinned. "You're the best. Thank you," she sang, rubbing his shoulder for a moment before walking out. When she entered the living room, she spotted Liv first. "Hey," she greeted, "Chad's in the kitchen."

     Liv sent her a double thumbs-up, smiling kindly. "Thanks, Kyn!"

     While she went off to find her boyfriend, Kynlee went toward Wes' approaching figure. "Long time no see," she remarked, chuckling at the playful middle finger he flashed her.

     "Hilarious. Here, Kyn." Wes pulled something out of his back pocket and held a phone out to her. "I charged it last night for you."

     She gave him a crooked grin and ruffled his hair. "You're the best. What would I do without you?" Kynlee took her phone from him and the lockscreen opened at the movement, revealing that she had missed a few texts from Tara and Pa.

     Brushing her touch away, he playfully rolled his eyes. "Walk to school every day and have nobody to play Monopoly with."

     "Damn. Way to tell a girl she's lonely without telling her she's lonely," she scoffed, feigning hurt.

     Laughing, the blonde was reminded of something. "By the way," he began, looping his arm with hers, "my mom said that those calls were coming from Modesto."

     "Modesto?" Kynlee didn't know anyone from Modesto, California. Maybe it was just a spam caller. That idea didn't sound or feel right either, but that was the story she was going to stick with. It wasn't like she could call the blocked number back and ask who it was.

     "Mm-hmm." Wes hummed, leading them to the couches. "Other than that, the police didn't find anything else."

     Tilting her head to the side, a default pout tugged at her lips. "Well, that's good... I guess."

     The pair sat on the right end of the orange couch with Wes in the middle and Kynlee curling up in the corner. Their arms were still locked and Liv and Chad joined soon after. Not a minute later, Amber arrived and positioned herself on the couch to the right of Chad.

     Now, they were only waiting on Sam and Richie.

     Kynlee's phone buzzed, and her ears perked at the distant noise. She looked down at her phone to see that she'd received a new text from Tara. There were a few missed texts above the most recent one, but she didn't bother to read those yet when she saw the question Tara sent.

     Hey! Can you stay at the hospital with me tonight? <3

     Eyebrows furrowing, Kynlee quickly sent a reply.

     yeah, ofc! <3 did something happen with sam and richie? is that why they're meeting with us?

     Sam dropped a bombshell on me last night and I don't really want to be alone with her or Richie. He's weird. I think Sam is meeting with all of you to tell you what she told me.

     A bombshell? Bigger than returning after years of no contact and no explanation? Well, shit.

     oh fuck. should i be scared or something lmao

     Tara's next message made Kynlee's heart pause.

     Maybe.

     "How do you know so much about Stab?" The sound of Sam's boyfriend talking floated through the first floor and into the family room. It caused the chatter amongst the friends to simmer down.

     Shortly following Richie's inquiry was a voice some of the teens hadn't heard in years. "Runs in her family."

     Disregarding the uneasy feeling Tara's text gave her, Kynlee locked her phone and slid it into the pocket of her jeans. Hopefully, the Carpenter girl was just exaggerating. That wasn't likely, though. Tara Carpenter wasn't one to exaggerate or overdramatize things. Liv was most likely to do that out of all of her friends. Mindy, too, if she was on one of her pop culture tangents. The rest of them, including the tattooed girl, were a little more level-headed.

     "Here comes Netflix," Amber grumbled, shifting on the small couch she laid on. Prior to showing up, the black-haired girl had texted the group chat, alerting everyone to the new nickname for Richie. Most of them had found it funny.

     Chad and Liv snorted at the nickname.

     Nearly shaking with excitement, Mindy led a small group into the room. Behind her came Sam, Richie, and then Dewey Riley, the former Sheriff of Woodsboro. It'd been a long time since anyone had seen or heard from the man. To most people's knowledge, he still resided in the town but on the outskirts in a trailer.

     "Randy was our uncle. RIP. " Mindy pressed her index and middle finger together and kissed them, then held them up to the painted portrait of Randy Meeks that was hung over the fireplace. "You said to bring everybody."

     "Ooh, suspects!" Martha Meeks gasped, scuttling in with a tray full of snacks. "My brother would be so proud!"

     Instantly, Kynlee's lips turned upward at the woman's kind gesture.

     Martha was one of the most considerate people she'd met. She was always doing something to help others, to make their day a little brighter, or to make them feel included. Not everyone was so kind and gentle to others, but Martha Meeks was and those around her loved her for it.

     At the sight of Randy's younger sister, a winsome smile spread across Dewey's lips. Over the years, he remained loosely in contact with her. Keyword loosely. Following the divorce with his ex-wife Gale Weathers, he disconnected from everything and everyone. Part of him was regretful for not regularly checking in on the Meeks-Martin family.

     "Hey, Martha."

     "Dewey! Hi!" Martha exclaimed in surprise, going for a hug after she put the tray on the coffee table. "You look..." Her eyes ran up and down his rugged and worn appearance, and she just nodded.

     Dewey nodded along with her. "Yeah."

     Clearing her throat, she asked, "How's the wife?"

     A visible grimace crossed Dewey's face and Chad unknowingly came to his rescue. "Okay, Mom, we're good. Thank you." He formed an O-shape with his hand, hoping she got the hint.

     Luckily, she did. "All right, kids, have fun." Martha jokingly darted a finger between her eyes and her children. Chad gave her a thumbs-up for catching his underlying message while Mindy flopped onto a bean bag next to Amber.

     Stepping forward once the woman was gone, Sam released her boyfriend's hand. "I asked Mindy to call everybody here, because..." she inhaled deeply, gathering the courage to say the words that brought her to this point, "there's something I have to tell you."

     Kynlee held her breath, thinking back to Tara's texts.

     The group watched in a mixture of curiosity and apprehension as the eldest Carpenter grabbed the Blu-ray DVD of the original Stab off the coffee table and the TV remote. It'd been left there from last night's Stab-a-Thon. Loading the movie disc into the DVD player and turning on the TV, she motioned for Richie and Dewey to go sit. The menu for the movie appeared and Sam went to the Bonus Material! section. She clicked on the Based on a True Story video and muted the audio. Then, she fast-forwarded the footage until a picture of Billy Loomis was shown and paused it.

     "When I was thirteen I found out that Billy Loomis..." Sam sighed, brushing her hair behind her shoulders. "He's my biological father and I think the killer could be in Tara's friend group."

     A dumbfounded speechlessness coated the room and Sam watched as an array of emotions were reflected back at her. None of these kids had known she was going to say that. At least it came across that way, but she couldn't trust their facial expressions. The previous Ghostfaces were all master manipulators and had people fooled. Any of them could be faking it right now.

     Sam went and sat between Richie and Dewey on the couch to the left of the teens. It was going to take a minute for everyone to collect their thoughts.

     Discreetly, Kynlee drew out her phone and unlocked it. Hiding it behind her pulled-up thighs, she clicked on her text conversation with Tara.

     your sister is the fucking DAUGHTER of billy small-dick loomis?? you're JOKING

     Tara replied instantly.

     Yeah, apparently. Mom hasn't answered my texts or calls yet to confirm it though.

     Biting down on her bottom lip, Kynlee suppressed a sigh. At least it made sense why the Carpenter sisters were being targeted now. Someone clearly knew about Sam's biological father and was using it as an excuse to hurt innocent people.

     we're fucked

     A shadow cast over the phone screen and Kynlee glanced up to see Wes being nosy. His eyes scanned over the texts, slightly nodding in agreement with the black-haired girl's sentiment.

     I figured.

     yeah i'm worried now lmao

     "Same," Wes muttered under his breath, keeping his volume low enough so only Kynlee heard him.

     In response, she only leaned further into his side and locked her phone. An underlying feeling of anxiety and restlessness was itching at her and she began fiddling with the phone case. Too many thoughts were clouding her mind right now and she didn't like the route some of them were taking.

     "So let me get this straight," Chad was the first to break the stunned silence. "You're saying that you're the daughter of Billy Loomis, and, what, that one of us is the killer?"

     "The killer told me he knew my secret." Sam shared, running her eyes across the teenagers. Any one of them could be the killer, hiding in plain sight. She had to keep reminding herself of that. "He attacked Tara to lure me back here."

     In unplanned unison, Wes and Kynlee swept their eyes up and down Sam's slouched posture, her forearms resting on her thighs. Her facial expression conveyed concern and desperation. She appeared genuine, but they were skeptical.

     Everything happening right now was new to the group and Sam Carpenter had been gone for a long time. As much as Kynlee and Wes missed and cared about her— the long-haired girl had been a monumental part of their childhood— neither could ignore the glaring red flag here. Sam skips town years after learning the truth about her father being a serial killer, ghosts everyone, including her own family, and then conveniently returns after Tara is brutally attacked?

     Even though it pained Kynlee to consider it, Sam could be the killer. None of them knew who she was now or what she was like. Not really.

     Chad was skeptical, too. "But then why immediately go and murder some douche-nozzle that was stalking Liv?" he questioned, not seeing how that asshole was connected to Sam or any of this.

     "And why does it have to be one of us? What about Deputy Dewey here?" Wes added, glancing at Chad and Liv. "Maybe he's the killer." All attention went to the retired Sheriff and he sat up. "No offense."

     "None taken, but what's my motive?" Dewey asked, eyebrows pinching together.

     Wes leaned forward to mimic Sam's stance. "You got stabbed a billion times, got dumped by your famous wife, and crawled into a bottle. I think it's safe to say you're on the suspect list."

     "Well, maybe you're the killer..." Dewey responded, inhaling sharply, "because that cut deep."

     Kynlee almost laughed, but quickly caught herself.

     "That douche-nozzle is connected," Amber spoke, glancing up from her phone screen. "I googled him. His mom is Leslie Macher. Stu Macher's sister."

     Liv's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Who's Stu Macher?" The name wasn't familiar to her.

     "He's Billy Loomis's accomplice. A real loony tune." Dewey answered, leaning forward so the pink-haired girl could see him.

     At that information, Sam straightened out her posture. "Okay, okay. So the first three attacks are all on people related to the original killers." All right, they might be getting somewhere.

     "Oh, my God. He's making a requel!" A look of recognition registered on Mindy's face and she moved into a seated position.

     With a slight squint, Dewey tilted his head to the side. If that was a commonly used word nowadays, this was his first time hearing it.

     "A what?" The Carpenter woman was asking what everybody else was wondering.

     "Or a legacyquel," Mindy added, wearing a prideful expression. "Fans are torn on the terminology."

     Rubbing his forehead, Chad groaned. "God, please speak English."

     Mindy swung her feet off the bean bag and got ready to stand up. "Remember the Stab movie that came out last year?"

     A few people nodded.

     "Oh, yeah!" Liv let out a quiet gasp, proud of finally knowing what the curly-haired girl was talking about. "The one the Knives Out guy directed, right? You know what, I actually really liked that one."

     Pure, bitter distaste radiated from the Meeks-Martin girl. "Of course, you did. You have terrible taste."

     Liv's joyful demeanour vanished. "I hate you." Immediately, Chad went to console her. He pulled her to his side and placed her legs over his.

     "The point is," Mindy continued, "the hard-core Stab fans hated it. You go on 4chan and Reddit, all they're talking about is how Stab 8 pissed on their childhoods. How they crammed in social commentary just to make it elevated. How the main character's a Mary Sue."

     "What's a Mary Sue?" Richie was struggling to keep up with all the new terminology.

     Blinking, Kynlee stared at him, unimpressed. Even those who weren't super into movies or TV shows knew what a Mary Sue was. It was a common term and character trope. Why didn't he? Where did Sam find this dude?

     Wes shook his head, waving a hand dismissively. "You really don't want to know."

     "What's wrong with elevated horror?" Amber asked, seeming to take offense. "I mean, Jordan Peele fucking rules." 

     "Uh, obviously," Mindy said, wholeheartedly agreeing with her, "but that's not Stab. Real Stab movies are meta slasher whodunits, full stop!"

     She couldn't be serious...

     Sam rolled her eyes, unconvinced. "Come on, it's just a movie."

     Pressing her lips together, Kynlee massaged her temple. Sure, it was a movie, but for some people, it went much deeper than that. Most people had at least one movie or TV show that meant a lot to them that they resonated with for a multitude of reasons. For her, it was the original Trigun anime series. There were only twenty-six episodes but she loved each and every one to bits.

     "No, it's not," Mindy argued, growing passionate. "To some people, the original is their favorite thing in the world. The movie that made them love horror. That Mom or Dad showed them when they were ten that bonded them together, and God help anyone who slightly fucks with that special memory. Who makes a movie they think disrespects it." She was now standing at the front of the room. "It sounds like our killer is writing his own version of Stab 8, but doing it as a requel."

     Burying her head into her hands, Kynlee sighed quietly. She couldn't tell if she was more annoyed at herself for understanding every word her friend was saying or just dreading the lengthier monologue she knew was coming.

     Dewey raised an eyebrow, still not getting it. "Which is?"

     Yup. Here we go.

     "See, you can't just reboot a franchise from scratch anymore. The fans won't stand for it. Black Christmas, Child's Play, Flatliners... that shit doesn't work." Mindy was waving her hands animatedly. "But you can't just do a straight sequel, either. Uh, you got to build something new, but not too new, or the Internet goes bug-fucking nuts. It has to be part of an ongoing storyline, even if the story shouldn't have been ongoing in the first place. New main characters, yes, but supported by and related to legacy characters." People glanced at Dewey before sweeping their gazes over everyone else.

     "Not quite a reboot, not quite a sequel. Like the new Halloween, Saw, Terminator, Jurassic Park, Ghostbusters... fuck, even Star Wars! It always," Mindy grabbed the original Stab Blu-ray, "always goes back to the original!"

     Sam stared blankly at her for a moment, processing what she was being told. "Are you telling me that I'm caught in the middle of fan-fucking-fiction?!" she finally snapped, growing more irritated by the second with her current circumstances.

     "Not just in the middle, Sam." Mindy sat on the coffee table, staring directly at the woman. "You're the star."

     A tense stillness settled over the space. No one knew what to say next and none of the teens were looking at the other. They were too busy caught up in their own thoughts on the matter.

     Leaning forward, Liv pressed her palms together and pointed at Mindy. It looked like she was going to have to be the one to break the silence. "So, not to put too fine a point on it, but, according to requel rules... Who's next?"

     "Going by the pattern," the curly-haired girl leaned back and placed her palms on her knees, glad someone asked, "whoever it is has to be connected to someone that came before."

     Gradually, every head in the room spun in Dewey Riley's direction. He was the only one who was an original survivor of the first round of killings.

     "I'm starting to regret coming here," he muttered, shifting uncomfortably under everybody's stare.

     "Yeah..." Kynlee trailed off, giving the man a visible grimace. "You should've stayed home."

     Face dropping, Dewey stared at her pointedly.

     "Jesus," Wes gasped, eyes widening. "My mom was a character in one of them."

     "No one cares about the shitty inferior sequels, Wes. You're safe," Mindy told him apathetically; her words did nothing to make the blonde feel better. "With Randy as our uncle, though," she glanced at her brother apathetically, "you and I are probably screwed."

     Blinking, Chad did a double-take. "Wait, what?"

     "Yeah, what?" Kynlee exclaimed, jaw slackening. That was something she'd thought about but hadn't realized could become a reality. And she'll be damned if anything happened to the twins.

     For the first time since he walked into the house, Richie spoke up. "Or you're the killer," he scoffed, "and this whole, what, elaborate monologue is just to cover your tracks."

     Mimicking his scoff, Mindy rolled her eyes. "I think it's pretty clear who the killer is at this point."

     Dragging her stare away from her boyfriend, Sam blinked. "Who?"

     "You."

     All right, so Kynlee and Wes weren't the only ones thinking that.

     "It makes perfect requel sense."

     Chad had to take his twin's side on this one. "That actually does make a lot of sense," he said, and many of the heads in the room nodded in agreement.

     "Yeah." Liv lightly cringed at the offended expression on Sam's face.

     Looking at Dewey to defend her, Sam's jaw slackened when the man shrugged wearily. He wasn't quite sure what to believe, but he couldn't deny that the young woman being Ghostface made sense. It was a possibility they had to consider.

     All right. She's had enough.

     The brown boots she wore slammed hard against the floor. "Fuck this." Sam stormed out of the house, more hurt than she thought she'd be. Richie quickly apologized before going after his girlfriend, leaving Dewey with a set of teenagers he either hadn't seen in years or met.

     "Well, that went fucking horribly," Kynlee remarked, pushing up from the couch and stretching. "Thank you, Mindy, for possibly planting a larger target on our backs."

     "Oh, shut up."

────

     KYNLEE MANRAL HAD RUN MORE IN THE LAST SEVENTY-TWO HOURS THAN SHE HAD ALL YEAR. The first two times had been of her own accord. The third? Right now? Practically against her will, but Wes had preached that it'd be safer if he went on a run with someone. There was strength in numbers when a killer was roaming free.

     It had been nearly two hours since the rules and requels speech Mindy had given, resulting in Sam walking out, pissed as hell. Shortly after, Dewey exited the Meeks-Martin household and offered Richie a ride back to Richie and Sam's motel since Sam had taken his car. The rest of the friend group trickled out behind him with only Liv staying to spend time with Chad.

     On the drive home, Wes had convinced Kynlee to go on a run with him. She begrudgingly agreed and now they were approaching her house after doing nearly three miles. A fact that Kynlee was going to be wheezing and bragging about for months to come.

     "Aren't you glad you came?" Wes grinned, coming to a stop on the driveway.

     With her palms pressed to her thighs, Kynlee panted. "G-Glad? Wes— fuck— s-sleep with... one eye... open..."

     Breaking into a fit of laughter, the blonde wiped away the beads of sweat on his forehead. "Well, I'm gonna head home and shower. I think my mom is getting takeout for dinner. Your dad is working late at the shop tonight, right?" Kynlee nodded weakly. "You wanna join us for dinner? My mom won't mind and you'll be extra safe."

     It took almost everything in her to shrug. "Yeah, sure. I'll come over after showering. So, probably in an hour. I'm gonna head to the hospital after to see Tara, though." A small smile spread across her lips. "It's sweet, ya know? Your concern for my safety."

     "I'd be a shit friend if I wasn't concerned for your safety," he replied, kissing the side of her head. "You know I love you."

     "I do and I love you," she said, giving him a salute.

     Wes returned the salute, walking backward. "See you later, then."

     "See you later, apuesto."

────

     EVEN THOUGH SHE'D SHOWERED FOR THE SECOND TIME THAT DAY AND HER LEGS STILL FELT LIKE JELLY, KYNLEE BROKE INTO A SPRINT WHEN SHE SAW FLASHING RED AND BLUE LIGHTS DOWN THE STREET. Given the current climate of Woodsboro, the presence of those LED lights wasn't a good sign. Especially since they seemed to be positioned in front of Wes's house.

     Propelling forward quicker, a sense of urgency fueled her movement. A pit of dread settled in her stomach. Her brain couldn't help but jump to the worst possible conclusions. Tara and Sam had already been attacked, and Vince was dead... Any of them could be next, but she was praying it wasn't Wes or Judy.

     When she got closer, her suspicions were confirmed. The police were, indeed, responding to an incident at the Hicks' residence. Police tape lined the house and half of the street. Neighbors, reporters, and strangers who'd been driving by were trying to get a sense of what happened.

     In the front yard of Wes's house, there was a concrete footpath leading to the porch. There, in the middle of it, lay Judy Hicks' butchered and bloodied body. That pit of dread Kynlee felt only strengthened and tears came to her eyes.

     Wait... where was Wes?

     Oh, God.

     "Wes? Wes!" Kynlee shouted, going under the yellow police tape. The level of panic she felt at that moment exceeded any other time in her life. If anything happened to him, she didn't know what she'd do.

     Immediately, a cop intercepted and grabbed her by the upper arms. "Miss, you can't be here."

     "What? No, no. T-That's my best friend's mom." Kynlee protested. Her feet moved underneath herself as she was being steered away from the crime scene.

     "I'm sorry." The man apologized, placing her on the other side.

     Listening was never Kynlee Manral's strong suit and it certainly wouldn't be today. With a scowl, she tried to duck around the cop, but he stopped her again.

     "Miss—"

     "I need to see him." Kynlee cut him off, not caring how rude she came across. "Is he safe? Is he inside?"

     Another apology was given. "I'm sorry."

     "Miss, you need to step back." A second cop stated, inserting himself into the conversation. He'd been watching the interaction from a few feet away.

     Darting her stare between them in confusion, her eyebrows furrowed. "W-What? Can you at least tell me if he's okay?" It was a simple request. It was a yes or no question.

     In unison, they said, "I'm sorry." Matching sympathetic expressions covered their facial features and the weight of those two words sunk in.

     Judy Hicks's body was covered by a tarp moments ago and there was no sign of her son. Nobody was looking for him. That must mean that—

     "No..." Kynlee breathed, shakily covering her mouth. No. They had to be lying... There's no way. She just saw Wes not an hour ago.

     The first cop grimaced at the devastated teenager. "I'm sorry."

     "I-I just talked to him... H-He... We..." A sob tumbled from her mouth and her shoulders shook. Who could do this to the Hicks family?

     Taking pity on the tattooed girl, the cop ducked under the tape and led her over to the sidewalk. It was off to the right side of the house. He sat her down on the curb. "I have to get back but stay here. Do you have someone you can call?" he asked, lowering himself to her level.

     "Uh, m-my dad," she whispered, gulping.

     "Call him, all right? And stay here. You're safer with the police around."

     Kynlee coughed out a scoff. "T-The Sheriff was just murdered. N-Nobody in this goddamn town is safe."

     The cop's face fell and he sighed. Those words weren't a lie. "Just... stay here."

     When the man finally let her be, she let out a gasp. It felt like her chest was caving in on itself and she blindly reached for her phone. It was as if Kynlee's heart had been ripped from her chest and fed to Ghostface. Hot and angry tears blurred her vision. No. This couldn't be happening.

     "Hey, Conejito." Andi Manral's voice echoed from her phone and she flinched. The grief contorting her mind had distracted her from the fact that she'd FaceTimed Pa.

     "C-Can you come home?"

     The camera was lying on a flat surface and showing a beautiful view of the dark grey ceiling and white ceiling fan in the tattoo shop. At the wobbly tone in his daughter's voice, Andi's head poked into the frame. "¿Qué sucede?" It sounded like she was crying, but he couldn't be sure. Especially when he could only see the top of her forehead.

     Kynlee swallowed harshly, clueless as to how to tell him that one of his closest friends, Judy, and Wes, one of her best friends, were dead. She didn't even know how to handle it. "Ghostface really is back."

     Andi laughed. "Ghostface... What a goofy-ass alias." His daughter swung the camera down, bringing her into view. Tears were streaming down her face and she was glowering at him. "Hey, don't stare at me like that! I said the same thing in ninety-six! But I'm taking this seriously. Keep talking."

     "Wes and Judy are gone."

     It was then that all amusement disappeared and he took into account the waterworks. His face blanked. "Huh?"

     There was no more beating around the bush. There was no other way to put it delicately.

     "They're dead, Pa."

     "Wait, what?!" At this news, Andi stood and picked up his phone.

     Kynlee nodded, sniffing. "I-I think Ghostface killed them."

     "Chiquita," the man was rushing about the room, gathering his belongings, "where are you right now?"

     "On the curb... next to their house."

     "Are the police there?"

     "Can you not see the flashing red and blue lights?!" Kynlee snapped, gesturing to the red and blue rays bouncing off the street sign above her. There was a mass in her throat and she coughed, trying to clear it without crying further.

     Andi motioned for Malik to come with him. "All right, stay there. Don't leave. Malik and I are coming to get you. I'll have Ibrahim run the shop."

     Nodding, the black-haired girl wet her lips. "O-Okay."

     "Stay put. Stay near the police, do you hear me?"

     "Y-Yeah. Got it."

     "Te amo tanto. I'll see you soon."

     "Te quiero también, Pa."

     The call ended and Kynlee slid the device into her pocket. Biting on her lip, she bounced her knee up and down insistently. It was taking everything in her not to lose it in front of her neighbors, the cops, and the reporters. She didn't want to draw any attention to herself. She just wanted Pa and Malik to get there and hold her.

     In the distance, Sam Carpenter had arrived on the scene and was speaking with Gale Weathers. Once Sam's conversation with Gale was cut short, she noticed Kynlee sitting alone on the curb. Shit.

     "Kynlee?" Sam called, slowly approaching the heartbroken girl. Tears stained her face and she had her arms wrapped around her torso. Her feet were tapping against the pavement anxiously as she rocked back and forth in an attempt to self-soothe. "Kyn?"

     At the nickname, Kynlee managed to avert her eyes upward. Once her line of sight landed on Sam Carpenter, she became confused. Why was she there?

     "Hey..." the long-haired girl said, giving her a sympathetic look. "I'm so sorry."

     Nodding absentmindedly, the Manral girl wiped her cheeks clean. "What are you doing here? I-I thought you ran off."

     Sam ran a hand through her hair. "I saw the sirens and pulled over," she motioned to Richie's parked car across the street. "What are you doing here?"

     "W-Wes and I..." Kynlee inhaled sharply, feeling the words getting trapped in her throat. She just saw him. This couldn't actually be happening...

     "We were going to have dinner with Judy," she finally forced out after a minute, unable to see the oldest Carpenter wince through the tears. "I-I live down the street. You know that." Sam grimaced as she realized how insensitive or accusatory she likely came across. "I was walking over and saw the cops."

     The conversation between the two died down. Neither knew what to say because what could they say? Someone they both knew and that Kynlee loved was brutally murdered, as well as his mom. There was nothing anybody could say to make this better or hurt any less.

     Nothing.

     Suddenly, the silence was broken when a thought came to Sam's mind.

     "Didn't Mindy say the killer didn't care about the sequels?" the woman questioned, frowning at the tears still in the teenager's eyes. The kids she babysat and watched grow up didn't deserve this. None of them.

     Kynlee shrugged at the inquiry. "Yeah, I guess. I-I don't know." Sniffing, she wiped her nose with the sleeve of her sweatshirt. "Maybe... Maybe this is more of a Greatest Hits type of shit, where the killer's cramming in every previous movie connection they can find, like in Halloween Kills." Sam stared at her oddly for the horror movie reference. If a comment like that were to come from anyone, it'd be Mindy.

     "One of my best friends is obsessed with horror movies and forces me to watch them," the black-haired girl defended herself, swallowing harshly. "I'm too qualified, knowledge-wise, to even be in this goddamn requel. Whatever the fuck this twisted game is. Wes didn't deserve to die." Those last five words were muttered under her breath as her vision became muddled again.

     God... How were the rest of her friends going to react? How was she supposed to tell them? Was she even the right person to tell them?

     The sound of Sam abruptly gasping softly stopped Kynlee from falling down a rabbit hole she was sure to drown in. Looking up, she let out a heavy sigh.

     "Or maybe it's a diversion..." The teenager merely blinked at the suggestion. The grief residing in her heart was so heavy that she was struggling to engage. "You know how in movies, sometimes the killer does something to draw attention away from their real plan, which is happening on the other side of—"

     Fuck. All right, now she was fully paying attention. 

     "Tara." The name slipped off Kynlee's lips almost breathlessly. Sam could be right about this... and if she was then that meant Tara would be the next target.

     No. There was no way Kynlee was losing another loved one.

     In her peripheral vision, Kynlee saw that the officer who was supposed to be stationed at Tara's hospital room was talking to other cops. "You've got to be motherfucking kidding me," she grumbled, pushing off the curb and marching over. "Hey! Asshole!"

     Noticing the same, Sam followed.

     When the two reached Deputy Vinson and the cop he was speaking to, they asked in unison, "Who's at the hospital?"

     The cops shared looks of confusion and Vinson furrowed his eyebrows. "What?" He'd completely forgotten about where he was supposed to be.

     "Who's watching my sister?!" Sam yelled, panic etched into her tone.

     Deputy Vinson's mouth opened and closed. He appeared to be struggling to respond. "I-I just heard about the sheriff," he explained. "They needed me here!"

     Scowling, Kynlee shook her head at him disgustedly. "If something happens to Tara, it's on you."

     Vinson went to say something, but he was cut off.

     "Fuck this," Sam stated, backing away from the police tape. "Kyn, let's go."

     Raising a middle finger in the air, Kynlee gave the deputy the harshest glare she could muster. Vinson's eyes widened and he tried to say something, but the girl didn't care. There wasn't any time to be wasted now. They needed to get to Tara before it was too late.

     Yards away, Dewey watched from beside Judy's Sheriff cruiser as the pair ran to Richie's car. Squinting in the sunlight, he took into account the presence of the stunned deputy staring at them and the urgency with which the girls were hurrying off. Clearly, the encounter wasn't great and something was going on.

     "Where are you going?" Dewey shouted, grabbing the oldest's attention.

     Sam briefly glanced over her shoulder. "My sister's in trouble!"

     For a moment, Dewey hesitated in going to join them. Should he? His gaze briefly flittered over to Gale and he frowned.

     "Dewey... Whoever this killer's after, I'm glad they have you to protect them."

     Yes. Yes, he should. This was his chance to do good on Sydney Prescott's comment that morning on the phone and help another generation of kids whose lives were inevitably going to be wrecked by Ghostface.

     As Sam and Kynlee were buckling up, they almost jumped at the sound of the backdoor to the car slamming shut. They turned around in their seats to see Dewey sitting there, putting on his seatbelt. Looks of surprise crossed their faces.

     "What are you waiting for?" Dewey asked, acknowledging their prolonged staring. "Drive! Come on, let's go!"

━━━━━━━━┛ ✶ ┗━━━━━━━━

❝ you were on my 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅 all the 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆. . .
𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 out a 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 for 𝒕𝒘𝒐. . .

what i'd 𝒅𝒐 in a room 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒆, only 𝒎𝒆 and 𝒚𝒐𝒖! ❞

╭⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀╮

¿Aló? ━━ Hello?
Apuesto ━━ Handsome
Conejito ━━ Bunny
¿Qué sucede? ━━ What's happening?
Chiquita ━━ Small, petite
Te amo tanto ━━ I love you so much
Te quiero también ━━ I love you too

╰⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀╯

     rip to wes hicks... you were a beautiful piece of art that will never be forgotten. i love you dearly. you will always be famous to me.

     kynlee + wes' friendship is so important to me and i'm going to miss writing scenes of them together so much. their dynamic is so sweet.

     this is such a long chapter and took forever to write, but there's a much longer one coming in the future! i'm so excited to get to the ghostface reveals.

     NOTE: one: for anyone wondering why i've added moments of amber acting bitter toward richie, it's foreshadowing amber's second motive for donning the ghostface costume! two: the bit where sam is talking about sequels toward the end is from the original scream 2022 script! credit for those lines goes to the scriptwriters.

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˒⠀𝑹𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑵𝑫𝑬𝑹. . . ▬⠀⤸

Thank you all for taking the time out of your day to comment on this story. It means a lot and helps the story be spread to a broader audience &&& allows me to grow as an author. All I ask is that people vote on each chapter, please. As a creator, it takes time to write and develop stories. So please, vote on every chapter. It means a lot more than I could ever express.

Don't forget to vote & comment!

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˒⠀𝑪𝑶𝑷𝒀𝑹𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻. . . ▬⠀⤸

❝ All Rights Reserved.
No part of this publication may be
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photocopying, recording, or other
electronic or mechanical methods,
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by copyright law. ❞

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