"Dude, we should play another game!" Shawn yelled to John. He pointed his palm at the flat-screen TV.
John groaned and turned his head away. He replied with a threatening tone, "No."
Sophia felt a cold chill run down her body and a tingle creep up her neck. Why do I have to hang out with these weirdos? she thought.
"Guys, stop," she commanded. She shoved both of her hands between the boys' chests to separate them.
The TV still displayed the game they were supposedly playing at that moment.
"We are already at level ten. We should just finish this," John said while staring at the controller in his hand.
The game had become a sign of boredom to both Sophia and Shawn. They stared at each other because they knew exactly what the other was thinking. Sophia let out a loud laugh and tried to cover her mouth. She could not even look at John. His face was already turning red.
"What?" John asked.
"Nothing," Sophia said as she lowered her gaze to the floor.
"Tell me," he demanded.
Once again, Shawn and Sophia locked their gaze on each other. Finally, the silence was broken as the storm outside thundered. It made the three teenagers jump out of their wits. Shawn almost lost his balance on the couch where he was sitting.
"Scaredy-cat," John said. He acted as if he had not been struck by fear as the thunder grew louder.
"I am not a scaredy-cat!"
"Guys, stop already!" Sophia shouted. "It has been ten minutes and you two will not stop debating about the game or calling each other scaredy-cat. Get a life, you two!"
Then both boys started to laugh at each other.
Shawn's steps creaked as he climbed up the stairs and opened the door to leave the basement. John had told him earlier to get cookies from the fridge inside the kitchen where silence lurked.
Why did John have to give me chores like this? The thought crept into his mind as he stepped inside the kitchen. His eyes lingered on the fridge handle.
"There," he muttered.
The storm outside was still pouring heavily. He grabbed the handle and pulled the fridge open with a slight grip. The coolness of the interior dug into his skin.
"Where could the cookies be?" he asked himself.
His eyes searched the shelves. He found the cookies beside a carton of milk. Three cookies sat on the top of a clear plate like it was well-planned by fate itself.
"Gotcha!"
He grabbed the clear plate with three cookies. They were ready to be eaten by his cousins.
Then his eyes spotted something on the ground tucked partially under the edge of the kitchen counter. It was a rectangular shape with tape on it that read DONT PLAY ME. His stomach started to twist urgently though the cause was unknown. He shook his head and bent down to stare at it for a minute. Then he reached for it.
Downstairs, Sophia and John were stuck to their controllers. They clicked the buttons rhythmically with fast motions. Their eyes were locked on the screen as the sound of the game clashed and echoed through the basement.
"I am going to win this level!" John said.
"You mean we are," Sophia corrected.
The two teenagers were engrossed in the game as if their lives depended on it. Once the level was finished, John beamed with joy and his voice rose with excitement.
"Yes! We won!" he shouted.
Sophia put her controller down on the couch. "Good. We won."
"Yeah, we did!" John's eyes sparkled as they widened. "See? I told you we could finish this level. Now all we need to do is twenty more levels to finish this game off. We can do this today!"
What does he mean, do this today? Sophia thought.
"We can't possibly finish this game today," she said.
"What do you mean we can't?" John asked while staring at the flat-screen TV.
"I mean the twenty levels are impossible, you know," Sophia retorted. "And it is already seven o'clock. Mom is going to go ballistic when she finds out I am not home. She left around four-fifty earlier when we argued."
"Just call your mom," John said. "No, we can win. I mean, we always win because I am the only one good here."
Sophia's chest started to tighten. Her eyes went teary for a second but she focused on the positive. She had to act mature for her cousin and speak positively rather than negatively.
"Okay, John," she said. "If you say so."
The sound of the stairs creaking caught Sophia's attention. She looked up to see who was there and saw that it was Shawn. John had told Shawn earlier to get cookies from the fridge and he had been gone for about six minutes.
"Oh, hey Shawn. You got the cookies?" John asked.
"Yeah, I got them," Shawn replied grumpily.
He stepped toward them and sat on the couch. He placed a clear plate on the wooden table in front of the couch where Sophia, John, and Shawn were sitting. Shawn grabbed his controller while John reached for the cookies and took a bite.
Sophia raised an eyebrow. "Someone is hungry," she hissed as she also grabbed her controller.
"I am not hungry. I just have an appetite," John said.
Sophia knew her cousins well and she knew that John was lying.
"Guys, can I show you something?" Shawn asked.
The two teenagers stared at Shawn as if he were prey that was about to be eaten by a tiger.
"Sure," Sophia said.
Shawn pulled out the rectangular object with the paper pinned on it that said Don't play me. The atmosphere of the room started to shift.
"Whoa, what is that?" John asked.
He snatched the game from Shawn's hand. He stood up and walked fast toward the game console. He took out the current game and then placed the "Don't play" game inside.
"Let's see what this is," John said as he clicked the play button without hesitation.
He sat back next to Sophia and Shawn. Sophia felt that something was wrong. She started to sweat and so did Shawn. His eyes were widening for no reason.
"Guys, what is happening to both of you?" John asked.
"I do not know. I feel like something is going to happen soon. Bad things," Shawn said.
Then the screen started to display a brown screen and a harsh sound came out of it.
"What the..." Sophia whispered.
A black vortex started to materialize in front of them. Air swirled and swallowed papers that were flying around the room. It was like a tornado was swallowing them. All of a sudden, Sophia's eyes started to close and everything went black.