Page 5 of Ready Or Not

“Oh, sorry!” She giggles.

Her arm is sweaty, leaving a wet swipe on my shoulder. Immediately, I want to claw my skin off. The girl is probably in her early twenties, with an odd expression on her face. I blink, trying to look chill.

The girl’s eyebrow quirks up. I still can’t tell what she’s feeling, so I laugh awkwardly. “It’s okay.”

Immediately, her other eyebrow goes up, making me laugh more uncomfortably.

The girl continues giving me a look, then turns back around with her friends. They laugh again, and shame heats my face.

I laugh when I’m uncomfortable. People tell me it’s not the proper reaction, but it’s compulsive in social situations—I can’t stop. I laughed when Karen made a complaint about me today, and my boss yelled at me.

I wish Cali was here.

Give me nature and animals any day of the week. Or monsters. It’s easy to tell what a monster wants from you. There’s no guesswork. Which makes my life so much easier. It’s probably why I’ve always found comfort in Halloween. That, and I’ve always loved the costumes.

I realize I’ve wrapped my arms around myself, and the pit stains are back. I force myself to unwrap my arms and, instead, pick the skin around my nails.

I heard this place has absolutely no contact. Which is perfect.

Halloween music plays over the speakers as I get closer to the entrance. It grounds me and sends a wave of nostalgia through me. There’s a scarecrow at the beginning of the maze with tattered clothes and an angry, white mask. It glowers at me as Iwait. The electronic tones, the recorded screams, and the smell of sun-baked straw makes me suck in a deep breath.

The group ahead of me laughs. It sounds mean, and I catch one of the girls looking at me.

Despite myself, my face flushes. Thank god their group is next to go.

As I scan over the maze, I catch sight of someone in the corn maze staring at me.

It’s a woman in the last row of corn. She’s in a full law enforcement uniform, with a half mask pulled up over her nose. She’s tall as fuck, I would guess almost six feet, and holds her vest with both hands, staring at me.

I swallow.

The woman’s dark eyes burn into mine. A tingle runs through me. I’ve never seen a scare actor with this kind of costume on. She looks like a real cop. Wait, maybe she is?

I glance around for a cruiser or another cop, then back at her. Only, she’s gone. There are just empty rows of corn.

Goosebumps prickle down my neck, and suddenly, I’m up next. I didn’t even realize the other girls had gone through. The person manning the line tries to bunch the people in line behind me with me.

“No,” I clear my throat. “I’m alone.”

Please let me go alone. I need to go alone.

I don’t know those other people. I don’t want them touching me. Crowding me.

The employee rolls his eyes but motions at the other group to wait.

The maze is dark. Occasionally, lights flash, and there are distant screams. I suck in a breath, pulling in the energy of the air around me. I wish I could take my shoes off and run through this barefoot. I want to feel the hard, dry dirt and ground myself. But I don’t. People would yell at me.

The man jerks his head at me to go.

I move forward on my toes, too jacked up to fully touch the ground. The corn grew tall this year, and the stalks tower over my head, dry leaves rattling in the wind. Smoke hisses on my right, and I jump. An automated voice cackles: “Ready or not, here I come.”

As I round the bend, a clown jumps out at me. I can’t help a scream as tingles wash across my skin.

The clown leers down at me, laughing. “Lost, pretty girl?”

I skirt past him, flying down the path and immediately being forced to take another turn. A chainsaw starts up with its loud rumbling. I whirl, trying to spot it, when the sound gets louder behind me. I dart away.

As I round the bend, something reaches out and snatches my arm, yanking me to a halt.