Welcome to the Games

Inside the chest, right on top of everything else, was a portable DVD player- you know the ones you have on planes and kind of look like laptops? Those.

I raised my eyebrows and looked at everybody else who looked a combination of confused, intrigued and even scared. I myself bit my lip as I opened the player and pressed the play button- wondering if there was enough battery or even a DVD in there.

And indeed there was. The screen flickered to life and out of the darkness I could define three figures- all hooded, and all exceptionally creepy. Unfortunately, they kept their hoods up while talking… and used voice morphers.

“Congratulations,” said the middle figure, “you’ve found this. Though that’s not impressive- it isn’t miserable either.” The figure laughed as we all looked at each other worriedly.

“They may just hold up,” said the figure on the left. The other two nodded. I gulped.

“The goal of this is to get out alive,” continued the middle character- waving a hand in front of the screen, displaying a ring that seemed to trigger something in my memory. Where had I seen that ring before? “You may have already guessed.”

“The exit you seek is near,” said the one on the right in a sing-song voice, “if you don’t find it, you’ll be stuck here. You may think you’re brave, but you may just end up under a grave.”It was said with as much ease as if it were as simple as a children’s nursery rhyme.

The screen went black after the rhyme as I gulped again. Everyone was silent; almost as if we broke it we would ‘end up under a grave’.

“Well that’s…,” started Taylor. “That’s… I don’t know what to say.”

“Me neither,” I said, looking up at him- into is dark brown, almost black, eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I think it has something to do with the rhyme,” he said. “It’s got to be a code or riddle or something.”

“That’s what I was thinking-” I said, or began to say, because Nick cut in.

“I think that we should keep looking through the chest,” he said, a slight edge to his voice. I turned around to look at him, and he was staring angrily at Taylor.

Though I was confused, I had to agree, “You’re right. Come on.”

I closed the DVD player and put it down gently next to the chest and then went back to its contents. There were lots of plastic bags, and as soon as I took one out I saw they had our names written on it- I handed that one to Miley and began to hand out the rest.

I opened mine and, though it was big enough to fit the journal, it only held a pen with a piece of paper coiled around it saying ‘An Extra’. I looked around at everyone else’s prizes; Kevin held a locket, Joe with glasses while Taylor and Selena seemed to have matching necklaces. Taylor was holding a leather necklace with her name on it, Miley a small ring and Liam with some lip balm. Nick held a couple of small medication looking boxes.

He looked up at me and raised his eyebrows; I just held up the pen- surreptitiously crumpling the small piece of paper and slipping it into my jeans’ pocket- and did the same to him. He walked over and sat down next to me.

“It’s insulin. I… I think I’m diabetic.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, though I didn’t really know what to say. “Do you remember how to take it?”

“Yeah,” he said, sticking a needle in himself before taking it out again. “I do. I’m just wondering why these… these killers would care about my health.”

I nodded. “Maybe there’s a ransom involved and they need us alive.”

“That makes sense… and what was the deal with your pen?”

I gulped again. “Uh… um, maybe it has a hidden meaning- I don’t know what though.” Nick just nodded like he understood as everyone quieted down. I took that as a sign I should continue emptying the chest.

Under all of those bags were ten bottles of water and ten packs of the Nature Valley Oats and Honey Bars (granola bars). I rationed them out to each person and, after searching it for anything else, closed the chest. It seemed as if the guys went to check out the room as I went to join the girls’ circle.

“What’re you guys talking about?” I asked, settling down and putting my food and drink on my lap.

“The guys,” Demi said with a big smile.

“As I was saying,” Miley said, “Liam is wonderful- it feels like I’ve known him forever!”

“That’s the feeling I get with Kevin, Joe and Nick!” Demi said. “I’ve only known them for a few hours and they already feel like best friends.”

“I know what you mean,” said Selena, “That the way it is with Taylor and Swifty here. Even you, Demi.”

Swifty nodded. “Exactly. Weird thing is, it also feel other things- like whenever I’m around Joe I feel awkward.”

Miley nodded quickly. “That kind of feeling where the air and tension is all weird?” Swifty nodded. “I get that with Nick.”

“Me too!” Selena chimed in. The four girls looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to talk about the five boys.

“I’m sorry, I don’t get that feeling,” I said, “I don’t know any of you.”

“Not even Nick or Taylor?” asked Swifty, her eyebrows raised.

I shook my head. “No, why?”

“It’s just that, it looks like you’re… you know, with Nick,” said Demi. I felt my cheeks grow warm.

Miley nodded. “Same with Taylor.”

“I don’t know,” Swifty said. “He looks more like he’s with Selena.”

Selena blushed crimson as Demi laughed. “What are you laughing about, Demi? It looks like Joe was really into you,” Selena said with a teasing glint in her eyes. It was Demi’s turn to look embarrassed. We were all laughing when Kevin’s voice cut in.

“Hey… girls!” He said as we all looked his way, seeing him waving us over. “We think we found something!”

I was the first one on my feet as I ran towards them. I noted that the child’s body had been rolled up in the carpet and on the floor, under where the carpet had been, was a trap door.

With three very small locks.