Obnoxious, ear-piercing pop music blares from a speaker sitting on the first row of bleachers near the school's football field. A hand reaches down and taps the power button, killing the sound.

Paige turns away from the speaker and to her cheer squad, all of them sweating and panting like they had just run ten miles. Hell, with the way Paige works them they might as well have.

"Can we take a break?" Kira pleads, wiping sweat from her forehead.

"You don't deserve a break." Paige snarls. "None of you do! I don't think I should have to remind you, but cheer-offs are coming up. We need to practice our routines until they're perfect! Right now, we'd be lucky if they even let us play at the next game."

With her gym bag slung over her shoulder, Casey yawns as she walks out from between two of the sets of bleachers and approaches them nonchalantly. "Sorry I'm late." She apologizes, but her tone really says that she couldn't care less.

Paige rolls her eyes. "About time you showed up." She glances around and flings her hands at her side. "Ugh! And where the hell is Julia?! I texted her like five times."

Kira shrugs as she takes a sip from her water battle, watching as a frustrated Paige punches buttons on her phone.

Casey yawns again and wipes at her eyes, clearly not much of a morning person. She walks over to the bleachers and tosses her bag next to the speaker and digs out her pom-poms. She turns back to face her fellow cheerleaders.

"Hey sexy!"

She spins around, her eyes popping open like she had just felt a shot of adrenaline rush through her blood. A smile spreads across her face as her gaze leads to the top of the bleachers, where Riley kicks back comfortably at the top row.

"Hey. What are you doing here?"

"Well, I figured you like to often come to my practices and support me." He stands up and begins to walk down the steps between the two sets of bleachers, approaching her. "Why shouldn't I do the same for you?"

He stops at the last step and she stands on her tiptoes to kiss him. She pulls away to look into his eyes, now wide awake.

"Well, isn't that sweet of you."

He holds up his hand, a paper bag swaying from his clenches fist. Animated donuts are printed on the bag. "Oh, and I brought breakfast."

Her smile widens. "Now that's more like it!"

A few minutes later, the two are walking alongside the school building, approaching the water fountain near the gym doors as Paige tails them a few feet away, still texting on her phone.

Casey takes the last bite of her sprinkle-covered chocolate donut and covers her mouth. "Thanks for the donuts."

Smiling, Riley playfully tosses a glazed donut hole in his mouth. "Breakfast of champions."

She laughs and he notices a dab of chocolate on the corner of her bottom lip.

"Hey you got..." He gestures at her lip by pointing at his.

Standing still, she wipes at her lip with her hand but on the opposite side. "Did I get it?"

"Here, let me help you." Riley's smile turns menacing as he leans in, using the moment to his advantage, and kisses her softly on the lips. His lips suck on her bottom lip before he pulls away and he licks the chocolate from his upper lip. "Yum."

Smirking, Casey plays with the collar of his shirt. "Was that for me or the chocolate?"

"Hmm..." He plays, as if carefully considering his answer. "Good question. Well, I think we would have to combine the two one night and conduct a taste test."

"Oh yeah?" Casey pulls him closely in, ready to go in for another kiss. "Sounds like that could get a little messy."

"Okay, this bitch is really getting on my nerves." Paige gripes as she shoves past them, killing the mood instantly.

Casey eyes narrow as she glares over at her. "Excuse you."

"Have you heard from Julia? She's been ignoring my texts all weekend!" Paige continues complaining as she approaches the entrance to the gym. "I told her Friday we are having practice in the morning."

"Nope. Do I look like her keeper?" Casey shrugs, turning back to Riley. She shoots him a quick roll of the eyes, mocking Paige.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Paige stops in front of the gym doors and places her phone to her ear. Casey walks past her to get a drink from the water fountain.

Suddenly a distant phone ringing is heard, coming from inside the building. Paige and Casey shoot each other a confused look.

"Guess she got her early?" Casey says, more of a question than a statement. Julia... Early? Yeah right.

"Early or not, that girl needs to get her shit together." Paige walks through the double doors leading into the gym.

Casey glances over at Riley, her tone a playful British accent. "Well, good sir, thank you again for the exquisite breakfast."

"Anytime, madam." He leans forward and his hand pulls downward above his head, as if tilting an imaginary hat. He reaches over to lightly clasp onto her hand. "So I'll see you in class?"

She smiles, leaning in to give him another peck on the lips. "See you then."

Paige stands inside of the gloomy gym, dimly lit from the morning sun. She doesn't notice the sliced basketball, or what's left of it, in the center of the room, and slowly walks toward the locker room to follow the ringing, which echoes throughout the gym. She reaches up to cover her nose and mouth, her face scrunching up.

The door behind her opens and Casey steps into the gym. "I thought they didn't open the doors until eight thir—" She covers her nose too. "Oh god, what is that smell?!"

"I don't know." Paige's voice is muffled through her palm. "It's disgusting."

The ringing stops as the two, walking side-by-side, approach the locker room doors. They glance at each other before stepping inside and, the second the door swings inward, they both begin to gag as the smell intensifies.

They step into the room, both trying not to throw up at the smell of rotting meat. Dozens—if not hundreds—of flies swarm throughout the room, most of them circling the last set of lockers to their right. They exchange concerned looks underneath their hands.

"Oh god..." Casey mutters, feeling the breakfast she just ate churning in her stomach. She slowly begins to walk toward the lockers when Paige tightly clasps onto her arm.

"Where are you going?! It's probably a broken pipe in the shower or something. Let's just go!"

Casey glares at her and pulls her arm free. She has to see what's going on—if Julia's okay. She can't just pretend that they didn't hear her phone ringing from inside the building. "You can leave if you want."

She walks away, faster paced, toward the last set of lockers.

"Damnit!" Paige hesitates before feeling the guilt seep in and follows her.

As they approach the lockers they look down, feeling water splash their ankles from a small puddle, tinted pink from the infused blood, on the floor around them. They glance at each other again, then turn back to slowly wrap around the set of lockers.

Screaming, Casey backs up into the wall and almost slides down into the water.

Paige also lets out a scream and quickly turns around to vomit in the corner of the room.

Julia's lifeless eyes, gazed over with a dull thin sheet of grey, stare at them as her head is still pressed against the grating in the locker door. Her body is more visible in the light, burnt to a near black crisp and what few parts haven't been toasted are ghostly pale. Pieces of her skin are peeled upward, flaking off, as several maggots burrow through her flesh.

Casey continues to scream, tears flooding down her cheeks. She tries to talk, but it seems her voice has escaped her.

"CASEY!" A concerned Riley barges through the doors and immediately runs over to them, grabbing Casey and wrapping her in his arms. He looks over at the lockers, to follow the stench that is finally registering in his mind, and sees the corpse. "Oh my god."

Casey digs her head into his arm and sobs. "Julia—"

Distraught, Paige turns back to the lockers as she wipes at her mouth. She gazes into Julia's eyes as she stumbles backward into the corner of the room, feeling as if Julia is glaring back at her. A maggot slithers into her eye socket, disappearing underneath her sagging eyelid.

♫ ɢʟᴏʀʏ ᴀɴᴅ ɢᴏʀᴇ / ʟᴏʀᴅᴇ ♫