CHAPTER TWO: THE DISEASE

"What?!" Everyone exclaimed. They all stared at the flustered brunette as she gasped for air.

"She can't be dead," Selene gave a half laugh. She shook her head harshly as tears spring to her eyes. "Diana, you better be joking. This is such a sick joke."

"I'm not joking, Selene, go look for yourself!" Diana screamed at her. Evanora appeared by Diana's side, rubbing her back with a concerned expression.

"Di, it's okay. Just breathe," Evanora shot Noah a look and he held onto Diana. Selene kept her gaze on the brunette, anger settling behind her eyes. Diana gave her a similar stare, her body heaving with dry sobs.

Selene walked past Diana and her posé, brushing past Noah and making sure her shoulder hit his. Her path was straight for the front office.

"Wait, Selene, no," Diana ran after the blonde. Sure, she didn't like Selene but that didn't mean she wanted her dead. "Selene!"

The crowd in the community hall filed out and followed Diana down the side of the pool.

Selene opened the side door to the office which was now unlocked. The sight before her as she stepped in was enough to make her want to vomit.

A scream rippled throughout the club, chilling to the bone. The rest of the employees picked up the pace and scrambled to get to Selene.

They all flanked her as they stared at Sydney's butchered body lying by the far door. Selene fell to the floor, tears steaming out of her eyes. Her sobs vibrated throughout the office.

Diana bent down to hold Selene up. Everyone's faces were horrified. Sierra clasped both hands over her mouth and nose, eyes wide. Teddy stood next to her, mouth agape and eyes the same size as his friend. Leland and Zara were behind them, both frozen in fear. Jackson held Stevie to his side as she buried her head in his shoulder, unable to look on.

Evanora kept a tight grip on Max, but he stalked forward as if he were in a trance. He looked down at what seemed to be his coworker. As he examined the scene, the group looked on to watch what he would do.

Suddenly, a flash blinded Max. Everyone turned to look at Sierra with her camera near her eye. She lowered the camera to see everyone staring at her.

"Um, why the hell are you taking pictures right now? We're in a life threatening situation and you're taking fucking photos," Evanora scolded the redhead. She turned away and held her head in her hand. "Great. Just great."

"Nora, give her a break," Jackson said quietly from Stevie's side.

"Oh I'm sorry, there's a fucking killer on the loose, that's why." Sierra walked past Evanora to take more photos of the crime scene.

"Sierra's right," Max nodded. "We need— we need to understand the situation."

Max struggled to get the words out, looking at Sydney on the ground.

"Aren't you supposed to be immune to this?" Noah asked Max, sensing his uneasiness.

"It's one thing to see this shit on a screen and another to actually be in a fucking horror movie," Max said quietly.

"Speaking of which, we probably shouldn't stand around like sheep," Stevie reasoned.

"It's been awfully quiet," Zara commented, her eyes fleeting across the club in the dark.

"Yeah, are we sure Diana didn't kill Sydney?" Selene turned to the brunette.

"Hey!" Evanora exclaimed.

"Think about it!" Selene reasoned. "Diana was the only one to witness Syd's death. And I haven't seen the so-called 'killer' anywhere—"

"Well duh," Max scoffed. Selene rolled her eyes.

"Cough it up, Princess Diana," Selene spat the old nickname. Diana seethed and walked up to the blonde.

"I did not kill her." Diana straightened her back when she realized that everyone thought she was a killer.

"Alright, alright," Noah pushed the two girls away from each other with his arms. "Either this witch hunt can continue or we can try to survive."

Both girls were quiet. After a beat, Selene turned away. "Just keep her away from me."

The kids ran out of the office and towards the front gate. It was shut and Diana's stomach dropped.

Noah and Jackson tried to pry the gate open with their hands, struggling against the weight of the metal.

"Guys," Max walked up to the padlock on the gate's chains. It was smashed in, making it impossible to pry the lock open.

"So we're stuck here?" Stevie's voice quivered.

Leland ran forward, jumping on the gate and trying to climb it. After a second, he jumped down.

"I can't climb it," he sighed.

"Oh my God," Selene gasped, holding her head in her hands. "Oh my God, we're all going to die here."

"No one's dying," Sierra spoke up. There's a back way out, right? By the trash route?"

"No way," Max shook his head. He pointed to where the entrance of the trash route began deep in the club. "Look, it's too far away and in the dark. We'd all be dead."

The back way loomed ahead. The longer Diana looked at it, the further it seemed. Her eyes scanned for any movement of the killer, any evidence to point it away from her.

Nothing.

"Anyone have a portable?" Evanora asked. "We should call the police."

"The only people who have a portable are drug dealers," Max snickered. Everyone looked at Evanora and Jackson.

"Don't look at me, I'm the one who asked." Evanora scoffed.

"I'm not a drug dealer, I'm the one who buys the drugs," Jackson mumbled as he shifted uncomfortably in his place.

"Okay so no one has a portable?" Max looked at the group. They all shook their heads.

"Great, just great," he nodded.

"I say it's every man for themselves," Selene said bluntly. "Obviously the killer is Diana, but no one is taking this shit seriously."

"I'm sorry, did you not see me sprint back to tell you all that she died? I was face to face with the killer, it stared at me right in the eyes!" Diana tried to defend herself.

"If you saw the killer, then who is it?" Selene crossed her arms and tilted her head.

"I— I don't know," Diana said quietly as Selene scoffed. "They had a mask on! I couldn't even see their eyes."

"Did you see anything that could identify them?" Zara spoke up. Everyone looked at the shy, quiet girl as if she grew antlers. She shrugged. "This concerns me too."

"No, I didn't. They were also wearing a black robe," Diana sighed.

"That's just rich. You claim it's not you yet any inkling on information about the killer completely slips your mind! I gotta tell you Diana, I never pegged you as a killer," Selene taunted. She pushed Diana back with her hand. "But I hate to break it to you, your 'perfect' image is breaking."

"Don't touch me!" Diana pushed the blonde back with more force. Selene stumbled back against the gate. 

Selene lunged at the brunette, tackling her to the ground. She tried to hold Diana's head against the ground but the brunette fought back.

"Fuck you!" Selene spat. Diana pushed her off and Selene stumbled near the pool, deeper into the club.

The two girls continued to brawl by the water, completely unaware that the lights shut off around them. The group that watched the pair gasped in horror as they were stuck in the dark. The only light that illuminated their path were the glowering red of the exit signs by the exits and entrances.

Selene pinned Diana down, tears falling from her face. The red of the light bounced off of her beautiful features, chiseling her cheekbones.

Diana thrashed from under her. Blood trickled from the back of her head where Selene had pushed it down on the ground.

"You don't understand the pain of seeing your only friend dismembered," Selene sobbed. "You don't understand..."

Diana stopped moving, looking at Selene who was completely broken. She felt the blonde's emotions deep within her and she thought of Noah and Teddy and Max and everyone else. She understood her pain.

"I'm..." Diana gasped out. "I'm so—"

A scream sounded as Selene was ripped from Diana. A splash next to the brunette snapped her out of her trance and she got up to look at what happened.

Two figures struggled in the water. A black, masked person choked Selene and held her head under the water as she struggled to come back up.

"Selene!" Diana screamed as Selene was held under the water. The killer pulled out a long, sharp knife. Just like the one that killed Sydney.

Diana looked around for something to throw at the masked murderer. She noticed that everyone but Noah and Max ran away.

There was nothing around her.

Diana watched in horror as the killer ran the edge of the knife along Selene's throat, allowing the blood to escape the blonde at an alarming rate. Selene still fought as the life drained out of her. The blood and pool water began to mix as Selene grew eerily still.

The killer's head snapped up and looked at Diana. They started to walk forward slowly in the water.

Noah yanked Diana away from the edge of the pool and grabbed onto Max's arm to pull them to safety.

The killer stalked forward, unfazed by their attempt to get away.

The trio burst through the office doors and ran down the hallway towards the community hall.

Diana fell behind a desk on the right side of the room. Noah and Max followed suit, scrambling to hide themselves from the killer.

Diana forced herself to calm her breathing so that the killer couldn't hear. Her hand found Noah's and she squeezed it tight. He reciprocated with a squeeze of his own.

When soft footsteps sounded right behind them, Diana shut her eyes tight. She could see herself die. At the end of a knife, to the stomach or a simple slash. Or maybe she'd drown like Selene. Or she'd get skewered and chopped up like Sydney. Or, the killer has something truly painful and horrific planned.

She could feel herself tearing up as her mind raced with creative thoughts. She could feel her grip on Noah's hand tighten even more as they all held their breath when the footsteps stopped.

After a beat, they could hear the killer walk out of the hall and back towards the office. The trio carefully let out a sigh of relief.

Diana started to peer over the desk when Noah quietly pulled her back down. He kept a hand on her shoulder, keeping her in place as he checked the surroundings himself.

The three were about to get up when the overhead system screeched on. At the noise, they all fell back down and plastered themselves against the wooden desk.

"Attention all employees..." The killer mocked the script the employees used for announcements. "There has been an infestation of sinful teenagers at our beloved club."

The killer's voice was distorted to a chilling robotic sound, just like how they talked to Sydney.

"I, The Doctor, have bestowed the honor of ridding this disease to myself." The Doctor's voice dropped. Diana felt tears spring to her eyes when she realized that this psycho thought that Sydney and Selene were diseased. Yes, they didn't get along with Diana but their endings were something that she would never wish upon them.

"Think of your friends. All of the relationships you have built, they all meant nothing. They are nothing. You are nothing. Oh, and Sydney and Selene?" The Doctor paused to let out a small chuckle. "Now that was just fun."

The system switched off and Diana clamped a hand over her mouth. Tears streamed down her face as she thought of Noah and Max being slain before her. She grabbed Noah, bringing him closer to her.

He held her head to his chest and softly kissed her head as she quietly sobbed. Her tears soaked his blue textured long-sleeve. He felt something warm against her head and pulled his hand away, staring at the blood that donned his hand.

Anger settled behind his eyes as he held his girl closer. People are going to die tonight, but he'd be damned if she would be one of them.

a/n: sooooo i've been gone for like a year but tbh this is a spooky season story so writing it in the springtime isn't really exciting. i'm hoping to finish this story this year lol