By the time the sun had come up, Tori had disappeared back into the woods. She was moping again, fuming over Becky’s fucking stupid logic. Nobody’s that much of an idiot. The allure of making it home alive shook everybody’s core, and people wanted it more than anything. Her classmates all wanted the same thing: go home, continue on with life. Before she could think further, Announcements came on and told her about how 5 of her classmates had passed.
“Becky Long then ... okay, this one is going to require a little mental gymnastics. She kicked Erin Underwood onto something sharp. Sharp enough that it didn't end will for young Erin. I'll leave you to put two and two together.”
Tori smirked. Unlike Carlyle’s explanation, it sounded like cold blooded murder for Becky. Ha, that stupid bitch’ll be branded for the rest of her short life. Either feared or targeted, Becky won’t be finding any alliances soon. A smile crept up on Tori’s face. Smug as she was, Becky was in deep shit. No friends, all enemies.
Gwen, Erin, Dan, Yumi, Stella. People Tori vaguely recognized from school, but never really knew. It still stung her that more people died here. Nobody deserved to.
Before she knew it, she was longing for the old days. She began to fantasize about her senior year, college and family life. Soon enough, she remembered the day she started urban exploring. It was a tender memory, one she held dear.
---
16-year-old Tori Gavlik was rocking out to some country music CD her parents had left in, driving along some bumpy back road in southern Wisconsin. She was currently listening to some old song that boiled down to “I’m faithful, you better be faithful too” except sung by a crazy woman. It was the dead of night, and not the best conditions for a newly licensed driver to drive through, but she was a teenager. Despite all the hatred between the races in America, all teens boiled down to the same thing: reckless, rebellious and extremely cranky in the mornings.
“If the ties that bind ever do come loose
If forever ever ends for you
If that ring gets a little too tight
You might as well read me my last rights”
Tori was never a fantastic singer, but she could sing better than a majority of her peers. Good enough to be considered good, but not good enough to get into choir or something like that. She thumped on the steering wheel a few times in correlation with the beat and belted out the next line.
“And let the stone say:
Here lies the girl whose only crutch
Was loving one man just a little too much”
This was a great song. So much zeal and emotion, but the threatening undertone made it chilling and exciting. The Filipino-Russian girl had no love for country music before this, but this one song managed to wedge itself into Tori’s mental list of best songs ever.
“If you go before I do
Gonna tell the gravedigger that he better dig two!”
---
Beep.
---
Before the next line could start (Heavy stone right next to mine/We’ll be together ‘till the end of time) she’d come to her destination: an abandoned two-story cabin somewhere in the woods. Tori had seen word of it floating around the internet, but people never did pay attention to it. The grandeur of abandoned summer camps and hospitals outweighed the allure of this place, but it seemed interesting enough to merit a weekend trip. Apparently it was some family’s getaway cabin before it was eventually forgotten and left to deteriorate in the middle of the Midwestern woods.
One thing Tori hoped to find was treasure: maybe a diary of sorts, or a letter or postcard. Anything that would’ve been preserved in the living time capsules these places were. It was interesting to see how places like these fared after being abandoned, and if it still held memories of its past.
It looked like any regular house, except made purely out of wood and bathed in shades of brown. Tori jumped out of the car and grabbed her backpack fumbling with it until she managed to get the flashlight out. Shining it towards the door, she slung her backpack over her shoulder and entered the house.
---
Beeeep.
---
Contrary to any sayings you may have heard, it was as easily done as it was said. The door gave away with a pathetic creak, and she entered. Tori found scenery gorn beautiful, but this was amazing. The dilapidated kitchen appliances, the broken windows, it was breathtaking!
Tori pulled out an old Polaroid and began snapping photos, eager to show these to Louisa and Maxim at school Monday. It was a shame they couldn’t come, though. It’d look better in person. She began to move from the kitchen to the living room, from the living room to the bathroom and from the bathroom to the base of the stairs, snapping photos all the way. When she got to the stairs, she began to think. This was a pretty old building, and who knows how sturdy these stairs are? A lot of sites urge you not to go up stairs like this, especially when you’re a beginner. While Tori didn’t want to break her legs, she wanted to go up so badly. Tori eventually decided to up the stairs, and made her way up.
---
Beeeeeep.
---
The stairs creaked ominously as Tori took her first steps, but it seemed to hold her up. Satisfied, Tori decided to trek onward. As she took those steps, the stairs began to creak louder and seemed to give way under her. She didn’t stop, Tori kept walking, speeding up as she went. She was worried. Very worried. God, what was she thinking?! Oh well, she thought. I’ll go through with it.
As she reached the 15th step, it gave way. Yelping, Tori plunged into the hole, the ground of the basement rushing up to he-
---
BOOM
F18: Tori Gavlik- DECEASED
29 STUDENTS LEFT
29 STUDENTS LEFT