"When do we get lunch?" Hannah asked, shifting nervously.

"After I pick it up," Yuqi said casually, stretching like she had all the time in the world. "You guys wanna come?"

Brie shook her head so fast it was a blur. "No!"

Niki immediately scrambled to cover for her. "Well—uh—actually, we'd love to, but maybe we should, y'know, get familiar with your… house first? Before we, uh, leave?"

Yuqi grinned. "Oh, of course! Makes total sense. Plus, I ordered a ton of fried chicken."

Before they could even process that, an ear-splitting scream rang out from downstairs.

All three girls shrieked, clinging to each other in terror.

Yuqi laughed. "Oh, that? Yeah, that’s my cue to pick up lunch! Have fun, guys!"

And with that, she launched herself out of the room, full sprint, calling for Jigsaw on her way down.

Each one of them said out loud what they’d been trying to say all along.
“What is up with this girl?” they said in unison.

Hannah sighed. “I mean, she’s nice, fun, a little cute and all. But a girl like her isn’t normal.”

Brie shrugged. “Not normal at all. As if living with horror movies isn’t weird enough, she’s got that gothic hairstyle, a colorful winter beanie, a jean outfit, a black crop top, and a bajillion key chains. I mean, it’s cute, but a little unique, don’t you think?”

Niki rolled her eyes. “She’s like, what, sixteen? Does she even go to school? How did she end up here?”

Brie shook her head. “Maybe she was born here.”

Hannah sighed. “No way. She can’t be. Yuqi is just… something else. Maybe something happened to her, you know, before she did all this.”

Niki raised an eyebrow. “You mean like some kind of tragic backstory? Like she lost her entire family to a haunted VHS tape and now she’s just… like this?”

Brie snorted. “Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised. She probably watched one too many horror movies and decided to just become one.”

Hannah frowned. “I don’t know… I feel like there’s more to her. She’s so casual about all of this. Like, does she even see how weird her life is?”

Brie shook her head. “Nope. She likes it. She wants to be this way. That’s what makes her even freakier.”

Niki groaned. “Great. So we’re stuck in a house with a girl who treats Ghostface like a roommate, has Jigsaw as a band member, and thinks ‘survive the chaos’ is normal life advice.”

Hannah sighed. “The real question is… do we even want to know how she ended up like this?”

Suddenly, Yuqi’s voice boomed from downstairs, “LUNCH TIME!”

Hannah, Brie, and Niki exchanged a glance, their faces a mix of hesitation and curiosity, before they cautiously trudged downstairs.

Yuqi and the gang were lounging on the living room carpet, surrounded by piles of fried chicken, ranch sauce, fries, and an unsettling mountain of onions. Of course, because what’s a meal without the most random combos?

“Uh… Shouldn’t we be eating in the kitchen?” Brie asked, eyeing the mess but clearly out of her element.

Yuqi grinned widely, “Yeah, yeah, but Jigsaw came up with this genius idea to turn lunch into a game show. So now, we’re living in chaos. It’s fun, right?” She waved a hand dramatically.

Niki, eyes locked on the food, hesitated, “It looks good, but what’s with the onions and ranch sauce?”

Yuqi threw her head back and laughed, “Ranch goes with fried chicken, duh! 10/10, would recommend. The olives? Eh, that’s for Lillith and Lillico. Don’t touch those.”

Just then, Lillith and Lillico bit into their pizzas in perfect, eerie sync, like some sort of creepy twin ritual.

Hannah shuddered, “Okay, cool… So, what game are we playing?”

Yuqi tapped her chin like she was pondering the meaning of life. “Hmm... What games do you like? You’re the guests, you gotta pick! I’m just here for the chaos.”

Niki froze mid-bite of fries, “Well... back at the orphanage, we played Truth or Dare.”

Yuqi’s eyes widened in absolute excitement, “Oh, that sounds so fun! How do you play? I’m all ears.”

Brie raised an eyebrow, “You seriously don’t know how to play Truth or Dare?”

Yuqi shrugged nonchalantly, “I mean, I’ve played ‘Dare or Double Dare,’ but Truth or Dare? Never. I live for new stuff.”

“Well, it’s simple,” Hannah explained, taking a bite of chicken. “You ask someone, ‘Truth or Dare?’ and they pick one. If they pick the truth, you ask them a question, and they have to answer honestly. If they dare, you get to dare them to do something.”

Yuqi grinned wickedly, rubbing her hands together. “I love it. Let’s make this interesting. Can I go first?”

Hannah nodded slowly, feeling the tension thick in the air. 

“Okay… Truth or Dare?” Yuqi exclaimed.,

Hannah exhaled, playing it safe. “Uh… truth.”

Yuqi’s face split into a mischievous grin. “Biggest scare of your life?”

Hannah deadpanned. “Just now.”

Yuqi gasped dramatically. “REALLY?” She looked around at everyone. “Oh my gosh, guys! I’m Hannah’s biggest fear! I’ve made it!” She threw her hands in the air like she just won an Oscar.

Hannah sighed, shaking her head. “Okay, my turn over.”

Niki cleared her throat. “Alright, so I just… pick someone?”

Ghostface, eating silently this whole time, silently raised a hand.

Niki paled. “Uh. Okay. Uh. Truth or dare?”

Ghostface raised both hands.

Yuqi fist-pumped the air. “DARE! Let’s GO!”

Niki swallowed. “Okay… I dare you to do 50 push-ups.”

Before she could blink, Ghostface dropped to the floor and started ripping them out like an Olympic athlete.

Yuqi whistled. “WHEW! Look at him go! He’s like a murderous gym bro!”

Brie was still processing what was happening. “That was… fast.”

Yuqi nodded sagely. “Yeah, no, last summer, I almost DIED trying to outdo him. I think I got, like… 37 before my soul left my body.”

Ghostface finished with a flourish, standing back up like nothing happened.

Brie took a deep breath, steadying herself. “Okay, my turn. I’ll, um…” She looked around at the group of actual horror movie legends and immediately noped out. “Yuqi. I’ll ask Yuqi.”

Yuqi clapped her hands. “Ooooh! I feel special!”

Brie hesitated. “Truth or dare?”

Yuqi tilted her head. “I wanna say dare, but I feel like you’re still too scared of me, so… truth.”

Brie bit her lip. “Do you actually like living here?”

Yuqi blinked, like Brie just asked if she liked breathing. “UH, YEAH?? This place has everything! Food? Check. Cool stuff to do? Check. Besties? HECK yeah. Like, why wouldn’t I like it here?”

Hannah exhaled, finally relaxing. Maybe this game wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

Yuqi stretched dramatically. “Alrighty! My turn! I pick… Lillith!” She pointed at the twin girls with a flourish. “Whichever one of you that is.”

Lillith tilted her head in curiosity.

Yuqi grinned. “I dare you to get in the closet. And stay there for an hour.”

Without a second thought, Lillith strolled over and stepped in, closing the door behind her.

Oddly enough, Lillian didn’t follow.

Brie’s stomach twisted. “You’re not actually making her stay in there for an hour, right?”

Yuqi gasped dramatically, hand to her chest. “What do you take me for?!”

Brie relaxed.

Yuqi smirked. “I’M KICKING HER OUT!”

Before anyone could react, Jigsaw vanished from his spot and reappeared inside the closet.

A piercing shriek rang out from inside.

Everyone else screamed too.

Even Ju On blinked. And he was still on his first bite of fried chicken.

Yuqi cackled like a madwoman, nearly doubling over. “I HAD to! It was RIGHT THERE!”

Niki physically recoiled. “Okay. No. We are stopping this game. You didn’t even ask ‘Truth or Dare’ that time!”

Yuqi was still wheezing. “Come onnn! Give me one more shot! I promise I’ll behave!”

Niki groaned, rubbing her temples. “Fine.”

Yuqi clapped excitedly, scanning the room like a predator. Her eyes landed on Ju On. “Okay, Ju On! TRUTH OR DARE?”

Ju On, dead silent, raised both hands.

Yuqi practically vibrated with excitement. “Dare. Oh, you’re so real for that.” She pointed dramatically. “I dare you to finish that chicken.”

For a moment, the room was still.

Then, without warning, Ju On lunged at the chicken and devoured the entire thing in one bite.

The room erupted into screams.

Except Yuqi, who was losing her mind laughing.

Hannah, breathless, clapped her hands together. “Okay. GAME OVER. Let’s… let’s not die tonight, thanks. Let’s play a new game.”

Niki cleared her throat. “So… what do you guys usually play?”

Yuqi’s face lit up. “Our all-time favorite is ‘Go, Ju On!’”

Ju On’s head snapped toward Yuqi so fast it was like he just heard the worst gossip of his life.

Brie frowned. “Uh… how do you play that?”

Yuqi beamed. “We put Ju On in the closet and see how long he can stay in there with no emotion. He wins every single round!”

Hannah stiffened. “How’s that fun if he always wins?”

Yuqi leaned forward, smiling. “It’s fun to try!”

Hannah’s jaw dropped. “Okay. Any other games? Maybe something, I don’t know, more normal?”

Yuqi huffed, rolling her eyes playfully. “Pffft, fine. We play Hide and Jumpscare!”

Brie already knew she was gonna regret this but asked anyway. “And… how do you play that?”

Yuqi grinned, eyes sparkling with excitement. “Oh, you know. Classic hide-and-seek, BUT when you find someone, you have to jumpscare them. Bonus tip—don’t hide in the closets!”

Brie pinched the bridge of her nose. “Of course.”

Niki stretched and yawned. “Yeah, okay. No. I’m tired. We should sleep.”

Yuqi let out an exaggerated sigh, as if she had just been asked to run a marathon instead of going to bed. “Fiiiiine, let’s go.” Then she turned to Ghostface, pointing a playful yet accusing finger. “C’mon, Ghostface, and for the love of horror, don’t bring your instant eggs this time!”