“Katie! Wake up!”

Cold hands gripped my shoulders as they shook me hard. I jolted awake, my heart thudding against my chest. Disoriented by the room—pitch black, except for a sliver of moonlight cutting through the sheer curtains.

_What the hell?_

My eyes darted around the bedroom before locking on Joy, kneeling on the floor beside me. Her brows creased with concern.

“What’s going on?” I grumbled, attempting to process reality.

“It’s Maggie,” she whispered, her breath shaky. “The power went out. She went to go check on it but… she hasn’t returned.”

I turned to Maggie’s now vacant bed. My stomach knotted as a sense of unease fell over me.

Where could she be? Why wasn’t she back yet?

My clammy hand fumbled around the floor until I felt my phone. Grasping it, I glanced at the time through narrowed eyes.

_3:00AM. _

My mind shot back to our _scary stories_ session earlier and the one Maggie told when it was her turn.

_They come out to play after midnight. 3AM, like clock work. They scour the hallways, leaving glimpses of shadows. Sometimes you’ll even hear your name being called, but you should never answer it…_

Now, I was left wondering if her story was just that, a story, or if it were something more.

Switching on the flashlight, I crawled out of my sleeping bag.

“Let’s go find her,” I urged. Joy gave a hesitant nod.

The door croaked open as we stepped out. The old, drafty house felt colder than before. Darkness stretched down the hallways. The silence thick and heavy.

“I’m freezing,” I shuddered, my arms crossed as goosebumps prickled my skin.

Joy flinched as gusts of wind outside rattled the windows. “I don’t have a good feeling about this,” she stammered, clutching my arm.

“We have to check on your sister,” I kept on moving. “Let’s go.”

We tiptoed down the hall. The worn, wooded floors creaking beneath our steps.

“Maggie?” Joy called out, her voice trembling.

A muffled thud emerged from the silence.

We both froze. It came from her parents room.

I turned to Joy. “I thought your parents were gone for the night?”

Her face grew pale. “They are.”

My lips pressed tightly into a line as I paused, staring her.

“…should we go in?”

I swallowed before creeping forward. Joy pushed the door open.

We peaked inside, illuminating the room. My gaze immediately landed on Maggie, who was sitting erect on the bed.

“There she is!” Joy whispered, attempting to approach her, only to be stopped by my arm holding her back.

“Something’s not right.” I warned.

There was something off about Maggie. Her face was pale, her eyes empty and lifeless. She sat still, staring ahead.

“What’s wrong with her?” Joy asked, swallowing hard.

I shrugged. We struggled to gain her attention. Physically there, but mentally absent.

Suddenly, she tipped back in a slow, stiff fall.

We stood, wide eyed.

“Oh my gosh,” Joy gasped.

A knock echoed from the hallway, startling us.

“What was that?” I whispered, silently hoping it was just a pet they somehow forgot to tell me they had.

We poked our heads out the door to investigate, when we heard the knock again.

“It’s coming from that closet!” I pointed towards the narrow door a few feet away from us.

“Katie? Joy? Its me.” A voice similar to Maggie’s was heard from behind the door.

My breath hitched in my throat as my knees weakened beneath me. How could she be in there…

When…

Glancing back over towards the bed, I noticed she was still laying motionless in bed, sending a shiver down my spine.

The knock was heard again, this time even louder. “Girls! Let me out!” The voice demanded.

“S-should we go open the door?” Joy asked.

“Absolutely not.” A wave of panic washed over me. “_She’s not who she says she is.”_

The knocking on the door quickly turned into pounding. The voice growing raucous.

“Joy?” They spoke in a singsong tone.

She quivered. “Yes?”

“Open the door,” they responded.

I shot her an apprehensive look. “Don’t do it.”

Suddenly, Joy stiffened, her arms falling limp at her sides. She had that same look on her face as Maggie.

She began scuffing towards the closet.

“What are you doing?!” I asked her, only to be ignored as she kept on moving.

I grasped her arm that now felt ice cold.

No… not you too…

A sense of dread washed over me as I watched her approach the door, opening it and disappearing inside.

“Joy, no…” I whispered with a defeated tone.

“Katie,” her moving figure grumbled.

“Joy?” I responded before realizing my mistake.

A sudden jolt of energy shot through me before feeling my muscles tense up and the blood draining from my face.

My body then began moving towards the door. Only, I was not the one moving it.

I attempted to fight back but it was like resisting the currents in water. My body was no longer mine.

Tears began streaming down my cheeks as I got closer to the dreaded door, knowing there was nothing I could do. My hand lifted up to the knob before opening it.

My pulse quickened as my eyes witnessed what was behind the door. Something I never thought I would see before my eyes. I knew it was over for me as my body was pushed in.

_Slam_.