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5. 6. 22, Monday, 10:18
It is understandable to be nervous before an interview. It is also understandable to occasionally scream when nervous.
But it is not understandable why the mentioned screaming would be accompanied by a shattering, gasping and running footsteps.
Which was why Adonis, Denver, Leo and Julian all poked their heads out to go see what the fuss was about from the lounge.
“What the heck?” Adonis complained, until he saw it. The mess.
The corridor had a decorative porcelain vase by the side, on top of a carved wooden table. Not anymore.
Unless you counted the broken pieces scattered on the floor the vase.
Emma had her hands to her mouth, in the shape of a perfect ‘O’. Lana was repeating the phrase ‘It’s going to be fine, no one saw it. YET. OH HECK.’ Freddie was squatting down and sweeping up the bigger pieces, groaning audibly.
“Oh, you guys are in so much trouble,” Julian managed.
“What happened? Who broke it?” Denver demanded.
“Guys! Be careful! Don’t get cut on the shards! The cut’s going to be infected and then you’re going to wind up in hospital…” Lana railed.
“That…would be me,” Freddie muttered. “We were late, okay?”
“So we started running,” Lana admitted. “Maybe we chased her a little too hard, because when we got here she hit the vase and it fell.”
“Into a million pieces,” Emma finished.
“Oh dang,” Leo said. “You’re dead.”
“Hey, we won’t get booted out just because we broke an ugly vase,” Emma protested. “At most we’ll just have to pay for it!”
“Unless it’s one of those really expensive, rare and antique vases you can’t get everywhere,” Adonis pointed out. “Then what are you going to do?”
“Cry and die,” Lana said, no trace of jokes in her tone.
“Hey guys, it’s almost time,” Denver remarked. “Better clean up this mess quickly or you’ll miss out on Leith’s video.”
Leith Evans was Gwenda Shaw’s stepson and a YouTube influencer. He didn’t seem to be doing much to help the show like he claimed he was doing, but according to Damon Ashwood two days before he was one of their publicists. He had requested the seven to appear in his latest video, an interview to promote the latest episode.
“OH HECK WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S ‘ALMOST TIME’?!” Freddie yelled suddenly. “WE’RE GOING TO BE FIVE MINUTES LATE AT THIS POINT!”
“Wait what-?” Julian spluttered.
“Bro, we’re not going to help you pick it up, it’s your own mess,” Adonis said firmly, speaking for all the boys. Clearly written on their faces and their averted eyes, they didn’t want to get involved. “I’ll go tell someone, that’s it.”
“Okay, everyone calm down,” Lana said ‘calmly’. “Emma and I will just help to clean up later when we’re free. Since Leith’s using the lounge I doubt anyone else is coming this way. We’ll just go now- HOLY MOLY LET’S GO!”
Adonis, Julian, Leo and Denver hastily scrambled back into the lounge. Emma and Lana followed swiftly and panicky-like. “C’mon, Fred, get up and get in!” Emma called out.
Freddie didn’t answer. There was a scrap of paper among the shards, folded, yellowing and slightly torn at the edges. Huh, she thought, must’ve fallen out of my pocket. Maybe I should stop putting in so much stuff in them.
Stuffing it into her overall’s pocket, she hurried in.
***
Leith: Hey guys! It’s your favourite person in the whole universe here, with seven lucky contestants from my stepmom’s TV show, Room of Fear! If you’ve watched my past videos, you’ll probably notice my brother’s not here with me right now. He’s kinda sneezing with a flu today, but don’t worry, he’ll be back soon – there’s no way he’s abandoning me.
(Camera pans around to sofa)
Leith: Right, so, this is Emma, Lana, Winifred, Denver, Leo, Adonis and Julian. I’m correct, yeah?
Emma: Yup – but you can call her Mini-Fred.
Winifred: Shut up.
Lana: Mini-Fred…
Leith: Haha. So, anyways, you probably met my stepmom Gwenda, right? Wait, sorry, you did, since you have to submit the Combined Room form to her, right?
Leo: Yeah. Three days ago.
Leith: Cool. Which brings up why we’re having this interview: this season, in case you guys didn’t know, Combined Rooms are allowed for first-levels! It’s soooo awesome – I can’t believe Damon waited so long to do that. I mean, c’mon man! How could you delay something so amazing?
Leith: How do you guys feel about doing the Combined Room today?
Julian: Terrified out of our wits, obviously.
Emma: Incredibly excited. I heard that if you do a Combined Room, you get to the next level faster.
Leith: Oof, uh, I hate to break it to you, but it actually doesn’t work like that. Combined Rooms don’t get you to the next level faster, just lets you skip one day in a Room by yourself.
Winifred: I’ll take that.
Leith: So, have you guys received your instructions for the Combined Rooms yet? In the past seasons we only had like, what? Eight Combined Rooms in total. And in all of them, the how-to-escape was pretty straightforward.
Adonis: What? There were instructions? No one said anything.
Leith: Oh, that’s boring…but fine. For all the viewers and contestants, let’s just take a refresher course.
Leith: Basically before you enter the Combined Room, the crew or Damon or my stepmom would give you a set of cryptic instructions. I think once the contestants were given riddles? Something like that. Then you’ll enter the Room and try to figure out the puzzles and how to link them to the Room’s clues in order to escape.
Denver: Then…no. Like Don here said, no one said anything.
Adonis: Don’t call me Don.
Winifred: Exactly, and also don’t call me Mini-Fred.
Leith: Alright, Mini-Fred and Don. Well, as everyone knows your phobias here, do you have any idea what your Combined Room would have?
Lana: Obviously bugs, spiders, statues and water. But with my limited knowledge, I don’t know how they’re going to put in heights and wide open spaces, or how they’re going to put my phobia in.
Leith: Eh, they’ll figure it out. I remember there this one time they managed to put together the fear of flying and snakes just by renting a private plane and putting in fake snakes.
Emma: Wait, the animals in the show aren’t real?
Leith: Some aren’t. But the more dangerous ones are. At least I think so.
Winifred: What is that supposed to mean-
Leith: But to answer your question, Lana, I got this from a source that they’re going to blindfold you, so you can’t keep track of all your friends.
Lana: WAIT WHAT BUT WHAT IF THEY DROWN OR SOMETHING!
Leith: Anyways, I’ve been meaning to ask you guys. Have you heard of what happened to the other contestants who went to a Combined Room? Does that make you afraid?
Leo: Um, what now?
Leith: (spooky whisper) Didn’t you know? The last contestants that entered the Combined Room – Sazana Chiyako, Avery Huang, George Reeves and Judy Cooke, two of them met mysterious ends.
Lana: WHAT THEY DIED?!
Leith: No, that’s not what I meant. What really happened to Sazana and George, no one knows for sure. From what my sources say, George just seemed to have disappeared from existence and his family basically just declined any comment about it.
Julian: What about Suzy?
Leith: Sazana. Last anyone saw of her she was at an interview with the Hermes News Network. Then she was reported to be spotted at a private clinic. To quote the article I read about from, ‘Those who saw her commented that Ms Chiyako appeared to be pale and dishevelled, and always looking over her shoulder.
Winifred: Spooky. Were they sure that was Sazana?
Leith: Positive. In fact, I’ve heard more stories like this. You remember Christopher Geller from few seasons ago?
Denver: Yeah, what about him?
Leith: I heard that he was reported by his sister to be constantly muttering the phrase ‘He’s always watching’ every time he thought he was alone. Not only that, but this one – HEY WHAT ARE YOU-
***
Gwenda Shaw closed Leith’s laptop, breathing heavily. Glaring furiously at a flinching Leith, she said, “Just what do you think you are doing?”
Leith said nothing. He leaned further away, wide-eyed.
The Phobia Club made eye contact with one another. What was going on?
Gwenda faced them. “All of you can go for lunch.”
No one bothered pointing out it was barely twelve. All scrambled out of their seats and darted for the door.
Shouting spilled out from the room as they ran down the corridor.