Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

You snap to attention, jerking away from the furry hand waving in front of your face instinctively. Blinking rapidly, you try to regain your bearings, taking quick stock of your surroundings. White walls, red ribbon decorations, a Christmas tree in the corner…

…Right, you were in the kitchen of Noelle’s house. You had come here to walk to school with her, the same as you had done every other day for the past few years. Just how lost in thought had you managed to get to forget even that? Focusing your attention back on the deer monster in question,  you can see the concern written across her face as clear as day.

"Are…you okay? You seemed pretty out of it there; I was calling your name for ages." Noelle tilts her head, blonde hair shifting against her antlers at the motion, “You aren't getting sick, are you?”

“No! No, I’m…fine, really. Just got lost in thought.” You flash a smile, toying with the cuffs of your striped sweater. “Thanks for, uh, checking in, though. I appreciate it.”

Noelle furrows her brows, looking at you sceptically. “Just…promise you'll tell me if something is wrong?” She reaches a hand across the table, letting it rest atop your own, offering you a gentle smile.

Retracting your hand from under hers, you swallow down the thick lump in your throat before responding. “…Yeah. Um, thanks. I’ll…be sure to keep that in mind.” A heavy silence settles over the kitchen area, guilt gnawing at you for brushing off her kindness so quickly, though you make no attempt to alleviate the now awkward atmosphere. You don't think you could, even if you wanted to; you hadn't exactly been paying attention to whatever it was Noelle had been saying, so resuming the conversation was out of the question.

"Well, we should probably head to school, right?" Noelle offers an out, one you desperately grab a hold of.

“Yeah, that…that sounds good.” The sound of chairs scraping against the tiled floor seems much too loud against the quiet of the kitchen. You shiver involuntarily as you stand, the kitchen feeling much cooler than it should be, even with the typical frigidness of the Holiday household.

Noelle busies herself around the kitchen, grabbing snacks and a bottle of water, placing both in her usual schoolbag. An urge to say something eats away at you, the weight of unspoken words sitting heavy at the tip of your tongue.

… Angel, you hated this weird mood you had been in for the past week. Always distracted, mind wandering at the slightest opportunity. To say it was driving you mad would be an understatement. It was constant, a deep longing for the past eating away at your every waking moment.

Frustrated, you scrub your hands down your face. You had to pull yourself together, and fast. Staying like this wouldn't do anyone any good, especially with so much to look forward to in the coming weeks.

Removing your hands from your face, you open your eyes to see…a banana? You look up to meet Noelle’s eyes, staring blankly at her. She only waves it slightly before outstretching the fruit even further. “...What?”

“It’s for you. Just in case you were hungry.” Noelle states it as if it were obvious. You can’t help the ghost of a smile that works its way onto your face at that.

“Only you, Noelle, would think to give someone a banana to cheer them up.”

Her reaction is immediate, and an embarrassed blush dusts her cheeks. “Y-you don’t have to take it! I just thought—”

You cut her off by taking the offered fruit, making quick work of peeling it, and taking a bite. “Nah, I appreciate it, see?” You say around the mouthful of food, making Noelle cringe away in disgust, smiling all the while.

“Eww, do you have to be so gross about it?” Noelle pushes your shoulder gently as you swallow the bite, grinning widely.

“Oh, come on, I’m not that bad. Besides—” You take another bite. “Kris is way grosser. At least this is something actually edible.”

Noelle giggles as she grabs her bag, the two of you leaving the kitchen and heading out into the hall. “Speaking of Kris…how are they doing?”

You shrug. “Same as usual, for the most part. They’ve been sleeping more, but nothing noteworthy.” Some part of you was concerned they were getting sick, but only time would tell if your worry was warranted.

Noelle grins, her shoulder knocking into yours as you sling your bag over your shoulder. “Think they’ll be late to class today then?”

“Oh, definitely.”

And with that, the two of you are outside, the door shutting behind you with a soft click. It’s a beautiful day outside, the sun shining down on you both with an atypical brilliance for this time of year. As you begin the short walk to school, eating the last of the banana and making friendly small talk with Noelle, the worries of minutes ago seem to melt away.

Just maybe, everything will turn out okay.

Chatter spills out of the classroom the second you open the door, the familiar sound washing over you like a breath of fresh air. Just a normal day at school. You could handle this!

“Noelle!~”

…On second thought, you could not handle this.

Berdly saunters up to the two of you, barely letting you take a step into the room before blocking your path. You so badly want to wipe the cocky smirk off his face, despite him having done nothing to deserve that (yet, at least), so you just force a smile and give a halfhearted wave.

“Hi, Berdly. Is…something the matter?” Noelle asks, the bird in question simply scoffing, pushing his glasses up with a single feathered finger, like a bad imitation of some anime character.

“Not at all, my dear Noelle. I was simply concerned when you didn’t arrive punctually, as you usually do. Though, now I can tell it was clearly the fault of our third-rate classmate here.” Berdly looks you up and down, and you grit your teeth, keeping the same fake smile on your face. “You really should take care to be more punctual. As the top students, it is our job to be good role models for our classmates! Even if you are one of the less capable students in the class.”

You don’t even realise just how hard you’re biting your tongue until the bitter taste of iron floods your mouth. Taking a deep breath in, you try to regain some sense of calm. “Can we please just sit down?”

“Oh, of course! I, for one, am not one to place any kind of hindrance on people’s learning, unlike—” You don’t wait for Berdly to finish his sentence, taking the opening and pushing past to your desk, collapsing into the chair like it was the first time you had sat down in weeks.

Talking to him was exhausting. How Noelle could stand to stay around him, you couldn’t fathom in the slightest; even politeness had its limits; limits Berdly managed to exceed all at once. His commitment to being annoying was almost commendable.

“G-good morning, class!”

You turn your attention to the front of the room, the rest of your class letting out a chorus of similar greetings to your teacher, your own delayed by a beat. Scanning the seats around you, it seems like everyone had arrived, though Susie and Kris were noticeably absent from their places behind you. It wasn’t uncommon for the former to be absent, often skipping class, but Kris would never normally be this late. Maybe your earlier concerns of them being ill weren’t so unfounded.

Bouncing your leg to abate some of the nervousness caused by their absence, you decide to pay attention to the lesson for now. Mom would be home with them if they were ill, so it’s not like they were in any danger or anything — though, that line of thinking doesn’t really alleviate any of the nerves their absence caused.

“O-okay, everyone!” Comes the nasally voice of your teacher, Miss Alphys, effectively quieting any lingering conversations. She scans the classroom, her gaze lingering on you, or, more likely, the empty space just behind you. “Oh, i-is Kris not coming today?”

“I’m…not sure.” You smile apologetically, Alphys nodding.

“W-well, I’ll mark them as a-absent…” She turns to her computer for a beat before looking back up at your class. “A-alright! T-this month, we’ll be working on group p-projects!” There’s a mixed chorus of both groans and cheers as the room devolves into chatter, everyone rushing to find project partners, though you stay silent yourself, face twisting into a grimace. You couldn’t complain too much, however, given you had a guaranteed partner in Kris most of the time. Only…they weren’t actually here for you to make them your partner.

Time for a backup, you suppose. Turning to Noelle, you go to ask if she’d be willing to partner with you—

“Heh, slow to the draw yet again!”

—only to be interrupted by him. Berdly smirks at you, annoyingly smug, as he continues to lay deeper into you. “Not a surprise, from a middle-of-the-road plebeian like yourself.”

“...You know I have the third-highest grades here, right?”

“Exactly! You simply cannot keep up with my intellect, as it far outranks your own.” He continues to gloat, your fingers digging into your palm, every bit of willpower going toward not punching him.

With a resigned sigh, you leave the bird monster to his boasting, instead looking towards Noelle. “I’m sorry, he asked, and well…”

“It’s fine.” You wave off her apology. You knew as well as anyone just how persistent Berdly could get, especially when it came to Noelle. And, you knew just how much of an issue she had with refusing him most of the time.

“Oh, but I can ask Alphys about making a three? I, um, think there’s gonna have to be at least one group of three this time…” She trails off, staring past Berdly at Temmie, who seems to be talking to an egg sat on her desk. Seems like she and the egg already had partners.

While you would like to group up with Noelle, you didn’t think even her presence could abate the annoyance caused by Berdly’s presence. Plus, leaving Kris without a partner would force them to do the project with Susie. You wince at the thought, shaking your head. “I’ll…just wait to ask Kris. Thanks, though.”

"So, does everyone have a…" Before Alphys can even finish her sentence, the door to the classroom slams open.

“Oh…K-Kris…! We thought you weren’t coming today!” You perk up, smiling as your sibling enters the room, shutting the door quietly behind them. “We're doing group projects this month…uhhhh...so, walk around and find a partner, ok?”

They nod, almost imperceptibly, turning to face the rest of the classroom as your classmates devolve into chatter once more. Grinning, you watch as Kris makes a beeline to… Temmie’s desk?

Your grin falters, overhearing snippets of them asking Temmie to be their group project partner. It wasn’t that you would be against them choosing someone else to be their partner for the project — even if you didn’t particularly want to be partnered with Susie, you would be able to make the arrangement work. But, the two of you hadn’t ever not been partnered for group projects. Why were they suddenly intent on asking other people to group up?

Absentmindedly chewing on the soft flesh of your lower lip, you watch as they proceed to ask Monster Kid to be their partner. You certainly couldn’t fault them for asking around for a different partner; it would probably be good for them, even, to try and make some more friends other than just Asriel, you, and sometimes Noelle. They could even just be asking to make sure Alphys didn’t try and force you two to split up for this project, something she had tried to do a few times before.

Yet, you can’t help but be quietly relieved when both Monster Kid and Snowy reveal that they already have partners for the group project, and Kris makes their way to your desk.

“You wound me, Kris – trying to replace your own twin with someone else? Alas, it seems like you’ll be stuck with me yet again, despite your best efforts.” You tease as they walk up, Kris’s lips twitching slightly at your theatrics. “At least, I’m pretty sure everyone else already has a partner.”

Glancing around the room, you can’t help but notice Alphys’ intense staring at the two of you. “Though…I guess it wouldn’t hurt to check around the room some more; it’d probably stop Alphys from giving us crap for always sticking together, at least. Just let me know when you’re done, yeah?” You murmur, Kris nodding and moving on from your desk to talk to Jockington.

With a partner now secured for yourself, there isn’t much left to do but wait for Kris to finish their lap around the class. And, as…colourful as the personalities of your classmates could be, eavesdropping on your sibling’s conversations with them didn’t seem like the most entertaining pastime. So, you reach into your pockets, looking for anything mildly entertaining to pass the time with.

Pen, loose change, gum, ew—lint ball, pencil sharpener…

Aha! There it is: the saving grace to the troublesome curse that was boredom. Your phone, looking a bit rough around the edges, with the case looking particularly worse-for-wear, but yours nonetheless. And a lot better off than Kris’s matching one, which had to be barely clinging on to life at this point.

You barely manage to set your phone down on your desk before—

“What are you doing?” Berdly hisses out, staying surprisingly quiet for once. “You are aware that using your phone during class is an act of truancy, correct?”

“Catti is literally on her phone right now. Alphys doesn’t care.” You deadpan. “And besides, what does it matter to you? I thought I was just a 'third-rate classmate’?”

Berdly splutters, before glaring at you again. “Just because you are not one of the top two does not mean you can slack on your duties as a role model to the rest of the class!”

“Um…what are you two on about now?” Noelle asks, letting out a nervous chuckle.

“I was simply reminding them that use of mobile devices during class time is strictly prohibited.” Berdly explaining, returning his attention to you in a flash. “Really, such behaviour is unlike you. Perhaps Kris’ bad habits are rubbing off on you?”

You glare at the bird, mild annoyance quickly giving way to anger. “Leave them out of—”

“Of course that is it! Fear not, our dear friend; Noelle and I shall lead you back to the righteous path, as is our responsibility as the top two students!” Berdly continues, unbothered.

“Berdly, maybe we should let them—”

But Berdly pays Noelle no mind, raising his wing. “Ms. Alphys!”

“A-ah, yes, Berdly?”

“I have a rather pressing question, Ms. Alphys; Noelle and I were wondering if we could form a group of three?”

You cast a panicked glance to Kris, who stands by Noelle’s desk. “Ms. Alphys, really, it’s fine, Kris and I were gonna—”

Berdly turns to face you again. “Nonsense! You should be grateful that the top two students are willing to help you!”

“I-I can’t understand you all w-when you all k-keep talking over each other…” Alphys cuts in.

“U-um, Ms. Alphys, I think Kris wanted to partner with…” Noelle mumbles, clearly embarrassed.

“Noelle, can you please speak up?!” Alphys yells over the noise of the class as the door slams open, the entire class falling silent at the presence of the newest arrival.

Susie.

The atmosphere seems to thicken with tension; unsurprising, given the monster’s reputation around school – and Hometown in general. She was the delinquent, the stereotypical bully, terrorising everyone around her without a care in the world. You had never cared to interact with her much since her arrival in town, something that had saved you from being one of her many victims; not that Kris had been so lucky, getting targeted by the girl many times already. Not that you had seen any of the altercations, which was probably for the best. You wouldn’t hesitate to try and help Kris, and anyone picking a fight with Susie was practically begging to be torn to shreds.

You never once thought that you would be grateful to see her in class, yet you can’t help but be thankful for the distraction her entrance caused.

“H…Hi, Susie...” Alphys nervously greets her.

She takes a few steps into the room, leaving the door wide open behind her. “...am I late?”

“Ohh, n-no!” Your teacher stutters out. “You’re fine! W-we were just, uh…”

Alphys looks around the room, shifting from foot to foot. “Ch-choosing partners for the next group project, and…ummm…”

Her eyes land on you.

“Um, you, Kris and Susie can form a three!”

Damn it. There goes your lucky streak of not interacting with her.

Susie looks between the two of you. “...great.”

Your teacher shuffles around idly, met only by swollen silence and blank stares from you and the rest of your classmates, everyone just as unaware of what to do in this situation as each other. “U-uh, well…” Alphys starts before taking a deep breath, seemingly composing herself. “N-now that everyone’s here, I’ll write the assignment!”

Alphys walks over to the large, green chalkboard, her nervous, erratic breathing painfully obvious in the quiet of the classroom. Your gaze flits between her, Kris and Susie, neither of them making any effort to move towards their seats behind you, seemingly content to just stand awkwardly.

So much for today being a good day, in any case. At least now, between your group project and having to work with Susie, of all monsters, you wouldn’t have any time to worry about anything else. Silver lining, and all that.

After a beat, you realise that Alphys hasn’t actually started writing anything, your teacher instead just standing and staring down at the board. Eventually, she turns, looking nervously around the class.

“Uh…H-has anyone seen the chalk? This is the third time it's gone missing, and…y-you all know I can't start class without some!” Alphys lets out a nervous little laugh, beginning to sweat.

The classroom stays silent, each awkward second that passes punctuated by the tick of the clock. No-one seems willing to own up to the missing chalk, as has been the case the past several times it mysteriously disappeared.

“H-how about this? If no one speaks up… e-everyone gets in trouble!” Only silence meets her again, and you can’t help but feel pity at the slowly dawning look of defeat on your teacher’s face. “A… Anyone? P… please?”

Noelle takes pity on her, finally speaking up. “Hey, there might be a box in the supply closet…” The deer smiles, perking up. “Miss Alphys, why don't Susie and I—”

“G-good idea, Noelle!” Alphys interrupts, Noelle visibly deflating as your teacher turns to face the purple monster. “Susie, s-since you came in last…why don't you go get it for me?”

Susie shrugs, not bothering to look at anyone before turning around, mumbling a quick “...whatever.” before exiting the classroom, slamming the door shut behind her.

The tension seems to dissipate immediately at her exit, Alphys turning to Kris with a nervous smile. “And... K-Kris, can you go with her and make sure she… um, actually gets it? And, um, stays out of trouble…?”

Your sibling nods, making their way to leave the classroom, a pit of dread growing in your stomach with each step they take. “Thanks Kris! See you later!” Alphys smiles as they exit the room, the classroom finally returning to its normal chaos, chatter erupting once more.

“Hmph, they really should have listened when I said to arrive earlier! Maybe then they wouldn’t have had to escort Susie of all people.” Berdly says, as you stare intently at the door, leg bouncing rapidly under the desk.

“Berdly…” Noelle starts, “Susie isn’t, um, that bad…”

Your head snaps towards the deer. You knew she had a not-so-tiny crush on the purple monster, but was she really that delusional? “Noelle, you’ve seen how Susie treats them. It– it’s not a good idea sending them two off alone.” you sigh, nerves settling deep in your stomach like a rock.

“W-well yeah, but I’m sure Kris will be fine! It’s not exactly a long trip to the closet.” Noelle smiles placatingly, Berdly scoffing in indignation.

“I hate to be agreeing with the third smartest student over you, Noelle, but this time they are correct. If Kris is lucky, they might only end up with a minor concussion!"

You raise an eyebrow. “I thought you had stopped with that crap? Why the heck were you trying so hard to get me to join your group if you're still against me being the third smartest?”

“That was simply out of the kindness of my heart!” Berdly places a wing to his chest as he boasts. “If you had taken the offer, then you wouldn’t be stuck doing the project by yourself, as I’m sure Kris will be in no state to help after—”

Your hand shoots up as you block out Berdly’s rant. Alphys barely has time to acknowledge you before you’re asking, “Ms. Alphys, please can I use the bathroom?”

It was an excuse, and an obvious one at that. But you couldn’t just sit by idly while Kris could be subjected to any number of cruel fates by Susie. As much as you loathe to admit it, Berdly was right; you knew as well as anyone else in the class just how likely they were to get hurt. And if you had a chance to stop it, then by the Angel, you were going to take that chance.

Plus, you just could not stand being around Berdly any longer.

“O-oh, sure! Just d-don’t take too long, alright!” Alphys says, but you pay her no mind, your stomach in knots as you all but rush to leave the classroom, stepping into the empty hall.

The door shuts behind you, and you’re left alone in the quiet, empty hall. It’s almost uncanny, after the energy of your classroom, to be somewhere so calm and empty.

Well, almost empty. Turning to your left, you barely manage to catch a glimpse of Kris walking down the main hall before they disappear, and you make quick work of jogging over to them.

“Hey, wait a second!” You call as you round the corner, coming face to face with Kris and Susie, both of them turning to face you at your shout.

“Great, another freak. Must be my lucky day.” Susie sneers, her glare barely visible through her bangs. “The hell are you doing out here, anyway? Did Alphys need to dump another babysitter on me?”

“No, but maybe she should have,” you snap back, “given you two aren’t even at the supply closet yet. What’s taken you so long, anyway?”

Kris stays silent as Susie scoffs. “Not my fault someone isn’t used to walking without holding their mom’s hand. Hey, maybe Kris will actually walk faster now there’s someone here to hold it for them.”

Your retort dies before you can even open your mouth as Kris looks at you, shaking their head subtly. “Let’s just…get this over with.” You sigh.

 “And who made you the leader?” Susie snarls, but still turns to face the closet again. “Whatever. Don’t want Alphys to send another babysitter out here, anyway. Let’s go, freaks.”

You roll your eyes, but follow her down the hall, Kris following behind you. It doesn’t take long for you all to arrive at your destination, Susie huffing out a laugh. “Well, here’s the closet. Too bad…we were just starting to have fun.”

Fun certainly wasn’t how you would choose to describe the experience.

Susie takes the initiative, grabbing onto the handles of the closet, wrenching them over with far more force than was necessary, as the doors slam into the walls with a bang. “Do you really have to be so—”

The rest of your sentence trails off as you stare into the darkness facing you. You hadn’t expected the closet to be well lit, but the inky blackness of the room beyond seems inherently wrong, almost unnatural in nature. It looks more like a void than anything, actively swallowing up any light that may leak into it, the darkness spilling out and dimming the surrounding hallway.

Instinctively, you shift backwards, a shiver trailing up your spine. “What the hell?” you mutter, equal parts confused and terrified.

The three of you take a step back.

“Hey…is it just me, or…is it really dark in there?” Susie looks between you and Kris, and, swallowing thickly past a tongue that is much too dry, you nod.

“Yeah, it’s…pretty damn dark.” You squint. “I…can’t even see anything in there from here.”

“Then why not head in there, dumbass?” Susie retorts, harshly nudging you, sending you stumbling forwards a step.

Glaring, you whirl around to face her. “What the hell, Susie?!”

“Just giving you a helping hand, jeez. If you’re too scared, just say so, wimp.”

“I don’t exactly see you jumping at the chance to head in there either.” You refute, crossing your arms.

“Well, I—” Susie cuts herself off as the two of you notice Kris shuffling backwards another step, further distancing themself from the closet. Susie huffs. “Fine! If you’re both going to be wimps, then I’ll…!”

She pauses, looking at the closet again, before turning back to you and Kris.

“We’ll all go in at the same time!!”

You nod, letting Susie barge past you into the closet, taking the lead. Kris steps in next, their figure quickly being swallowed by the void beyond.

Taking in and releasing a deep breath, you harden your resolve, willing yourself to not turn tail and run like every instinct is screaming at you to do, and you follow them both into the closet.

Things didn’t get any easier to see inside the closet, either. You can barely make out pages scattered on the floor and the forms of Kris and Susie ahead of you. It’s as if the darkness swallows everything, even the sound of your own footsteps, the only audible noise the beating of your own heart in your ears.

It’s a suffocating, never-ending, all-consuming void of nothingness.

Susie and Kris keep walking ahead of you, the former acting entirely unbothered by the whole situation. A facade, if you had to guess; not that you were any better, rubbing your arms up and down to try and soothe yourself.

Or, to try and stave off the chill that crept in, despite your sweater. Seriously, why was it so cold all of a sudden?

“See? Why are you two so scared? There’s nothing in here but old papers.” Susie says, her voice muffled and distant.

Scoffing, you roll your eyes. “Don’t pretend you weren’t scared too, Susie.”

You hear, more than see, Susie turning around ahead of you, her jacket rustling with the action. “Shut the hell up, and just help find a light switch!”

Kris moves ahead in front of you, following Susie deeper into the closet, and you venture after the two of them, albeit much slower. Instead, you focus on stretching your arms out to where the walls should be, trying to feel for a light switch as you go.

Yet, your hands brush up against nothing as you walk, no matter where you try to reach. Every nerve thrums with nervous energy as you desperately feel around in the darkness, trying to grasp onto anything in the void you found yourself in. The closet wasn’t that big, from your memory; it wasn’t like you made frequent trips into it, but it was just a small supply closet, lined with cupboards and shelves to fit as many spare supplies as possible. There’s no way it should be this big, especially since it’s flanked on both sides by classrooms.

There’s mumbling up ahead, Kris and Susie’s forms already swallowed by the darkness. If you didn’t know any better, you could have tricked yourself into believing you were alone in here, surrounded by nothingness on all sides.

You shiver at the thought.

“Hey, you found anything yet?” Susie shouts from further in, the sound of someone else soothing some of your worries.

“...Nope. There’s nothing on the walls…or, any walls at all. I can’t feel a thing.” You respond, turning back towards the stark light that is the entrance of the closet, if only to reassure yourself that it’s still there.

“There’s nothing up here, either.” Susie calls back. “It’s, uhhh…kinda big for a closet, right?”

Looking deeper into the closet, you squint, trying to make out where Kris and Susie are, exactly. But the darkness swallowing anything that wasn’t exactly two steps in front of you rendered them practically invisible.

Nothing about this place feels right. It seems far too elaborate to be some practical joke, and you knew there hadn’t been any expansions to the school recently; Mom would have said if there were.

“…Yeah. I don’t think it should be this…big.” You eventually respond. “I…don’t think we’re going to find a light switch around here. Or chalk, either.”

“Yeah, I think this closet’s uh…broken.” Susie slowly gets louder, her and Kris’ silhouettes slowly becoming visible as they get closer. “Whatever. We’ve worked hard enough. If Alphys wants chalk so bad, she can get it herself.”

You find yourself reluctantly agreeing with Susie. It had been long enough; she’d probably be wondering where you were, anyway, especially since you were only supposed to be taking a quick trip to the bathroom. Not that Alphys would care, really; she was almost too lenient, at times.

“Well,” Susie and Kris finally make up the distance to you, and for the second time ever you find yourself thankful to see Susie. “Let’s split.”

The three of you make your way towards the blinding white of the entrance, your nerves easing with each step closer to getting the hell out of this place.

Until the door suddenly slams shut in front of you.

In an instant, all light is extinguished from the closet, the heat from the other’s bodies the only way to tell you weren’t completely alone in this hell.

“Wh–what the…?!” Susie growls, banging incessantly against the now-shut door. “Hey, this isn’t funny! Let us out!”

From your position behind Kris, all you can do is stand idly as Susie continues her efforts, slamming her fist against the door over and over, to no avail. You desperately want to help her, and have many colourful words you want to yell at whoever’s sick idea it was to trap you three here, but you find yourself frozen, as the ground beneath you starts quaking.

“...Hey, guys?” You say, hearing rustling as the others presumably turn to face you. “The floor, it’s–”

“What the–” There’s no time for Susie to finish talking, before there’s the horrifying sound of the papers beneath you falling, rustling as they get swallowed by the darkness beyond. You can feel Susie and Kris backing up, their bodies hitting your own, as you desperately press together, backing up away from the rapidly crumbling ground.

Inevitably, you lose your footing, the ground caving beneath the three of you. The feeling of falling overtakes you, your eyes darting left and right as you search for something, anything in the darkness.

Nothing meets your gaze, and you are left falling in the deep, dark abyss, the darkness fully consuming you and your consciousness with it.