While Lea pours the barbecue chips into a bowl, I reluctantly follow Casper and Nick to the living room, then watch them remove the VHS cassette tape boxes from the stack.

"Damn, Cass," Nick remarks, grinning. "You have a good taste in horror movies."

"What can I say?" Casper brags with a massive smirk on his face. "You taught me very well."

In the meantime, I peer at his movie selection and ask, "Are you sure you're comfortable watching Candyman, Cass?"

"And Sleepwalkers?" inquired Nico, lifting a cassette tape box from the pile.

Casper snorts a laugh and tells us not to worry - that he can handle one scary movie.

"Are you sure?" I press, looking away from the stack of tapes. "Because the last time you watched IT with Lea, you refused to shower for three weeks."

Lea shoots me a look. She lifts the bowl of barbecue chips, goes over to the coffee table, and growls, "Oh, for fuck's sake. It was just a harmless dare. Cass bragged that he had watched Stanley Kubrick films back-to-back!"

"So, you dared him to watch a fucking Stephen King movie?" Nick snorts, raising his left eyebrow. "That's kind of stupid."

"So's that Buzzcocks shirt, Nick." Lea retorts. "But that didn't stop you from wearing it with those overpriced jeans, huh?"

Nick bitterly lifts his hands in his air. "Okay, seriously, what's your guys' deal with the Buzzcocks? Did they steal your lunch money or something?"

Draping my arms behind the back of my head, I trudge back to the couch and then sit in the middle.

"I don't think the Buzzcocks suck," I point out. "Back in New York, I have a shitload of their cassette singles."

Nick's eyes brighten. He turns to me and asks, "Wait, you're into the Buzzcocks?"

"Yeah, I am." I answer truthfully. "Honestly, I'm surprised there are still some fans here in Louisiana. I thought I was the only one who likes them."

"Me too," Nick admits, smirking for the first time. "The moment I grabbed their album off the shelves, my mom made me get rid of it because she believes that punk came from the devil."

I burst into laughter.

"Believe it or not, that was the same response I got from my mom when I asked her if I could go to Nirvana's first concert." I tell Nick. "But every time I bring it up, my mom would shut me down."

In my town, it was abnormal for a black girl to be listening to punk music. If a white guy listens to The Clash or Minor Threat, it's fine; but if I dance to a song from the Sex Pistols, people would label me as a charity case who's too good for Queen Latifah or Brandy.

Honestly, I think stereotypes are overrated. I mean, if Vanilla Ice can rap, then I can listen to something that's raw and honest than that 'puppy dogs and rainbow' crap Mom loves.

Leaning his elbow on the couch, Nick asks, "So, what's your favorite Buzzcocks album?"

"Well, Love Bites is my favorite," I explain. "I think I have their cassette tape in my bag. I can show it to you if you like, but in the meantime, we should probably watch a movie with no monsters."

Lea swivels her eyes to the ceiling. "Oh, says the girl who's obsessed with Pulp Fiction."

"Yeah," I snort. "That's because it's an action movie—"

"—with blood and guts in them," Lea finishes. "Look, we kill fucking monsters every day, Reese. It's not my fault Casper couldn't handle a stupid clown or those Chuck-E-Cheese robots, for that matter."

"Fuck you, Lea!" Casper answered back angrily.

"Hey, you two," Nick said sternly. "How about we just watch some movies and go to sleep, alright?"

Lea folds her arms. Casper sits between me and Nico, then searches for the remote until he finds it lying on the floor.

"Alright, whatever," Lea huffs. "Anyway, did you rent In the Mouth of Madness, Cass? I know it came out two years ago, but I still haven't watched it yet."

Casper removes his beanie from his head and crumbles it into an orange ball.

"Nah, sorry," he says. "Some asshole beat me to it."

"Aw, come on!" Lea groans. "This is bullshit! I was seriously looking forward to it."

Sitting on the living room couch, Nick looks at Lea and Casper, then says, "Don't worry about it. Come on, let's watch Candyman and get some sleep. Is that cool with everyone?"

I shrug my shoulders. "Sounds good to me."

Pushing the videotape into the player's slot, I take the remote from Casper and then turn on the TV with the remote while an eager Lea squeezes herself beside Nick on the living room couch. I fumble with the remote until the opening credits come on. Casper and Nick lean forward with curiosity, whereas Lea gobbles down her popcorn and hums to the opening song.

*****
Throughout the movie, Nick refills his glass of soda.

He places his feet on the floor until he hears a loud Crunch! under his toes.

Nick stretches his eyebrow. He lifts his feet off the floor to see cracked popcorn pieces. A confused look remains on his face until Nick turns to Casper, who's been unknowingly spilling his snacks on the floor.

Looking at the mess, Nick wants to say something to Casper when I nudge his shoulder with my elbow.

"Calm down," I reassure him. "We'll clean up after the movie."

Nick snickers until Casper groans, "Get a room, will you? I'm eating over here!"

Examining the kernels and greasy popcorn on the floor, Nick grunts, "Yeah, you're eating up a storm, alright."

Sliding on top of the couch's arm, Nick takes the bowl off the table and then eats the popcorn. Salt and butter paint his dry tongue. He drinks one round of Pepsi and focuses on the movie.

Placing my bowl of popcorn on my lap, I chew until a painful sensation stabs me between my back molars.

I cringe. I put my pinkie into my mouth, scratch the kernel, and drain my glass of fizzy orange soda.

Lea's teeth tear through gummies, chocolate M&Ms, and Twizzlers within a minute. Her feet tap anxiously on the floor, annoying the crap out of Nick. Still, he slides his greasy hand into Lea's and squeezes it tight until she stops fidgeting.

The atmosphere is cold. A black aura surrounds the three teens, but their only light is the glowing television perched on the plywood table. I grab a handful of milk chocolate M&Ms from a brown packet, then lean my head on Casper's left shoulder.

When Helen Lyle and her friend chant "Candyman" in front of the bathroom mirror, Nick's eyes are glued to the scene. Lea, on the other hand, grimaces. She places the cup on the table and points out how stupid the scene is.

"What kind of fucking idiot chants the dude's name five times?" she asks aloud. "I bet you ten dollars that white chick dies at the end."

"How the fuck do you know that?" Casper asks in disbelief.

"Because in movies like this," I point out. "White girls always get stabbed at the end."

"Really?" Casper scoffs. "Name one movie that-"

"Shush!" Nick hisses in frustration. "Just let me watch the movie!"

Casper rolls his eyes. He got up from the couch and told the others that he would use the restroom.

"Okay," Nick roars. "Just don't block the screen."

Casper nods. He moves behind the massive couch and heads upstairs.

Heavy rain aggressively taps on the windows. The wind howls in the sky while trees tumble into the road. But despite this, we have a relaxing night. No one disturbs the boarding house or its inhabitants. Popcorn greases our fingers. But as soon as the rain stops, it seems the apartment building has been plunged into darkness. A sinister fog appeared like a soft cloak, suffocating the windows, landscape, and parking lot.

Scratching his nose, Nick watches the movie's end when his Motorola cellphone buzzes inside his pocket.

"For Christ's sake!" he groans.

Nick angrily hits the STOP button on the remote, pulls his phone from his pants, pushes the ANSWER button, and hoists the phone close to his ear. I, on the other hand, finish my popcorn bowl. Patiently, I wait for Nick to finish yelling at someone, then rest my head against the couch cushion.

"Wren?" he asks urgently. "Is everything okay?"

Suddenly, Nick stops pacing around the living room and hangs his head.

"What do you mean Kenzie has gone missing?" Nick exclaims, getting up from the couch. Calm down, please-"

I spin my head around and watch Nick staring at his phone.

"Shit!" Nick yells.

He closes his flip phone, shoves it back in his pocket, and asks Lea if he can borrow her car.

"Uh, no?" Lea replies slowly. "I already told you my older brother's borrowing it."

"What's going on with your sister?" I ask him.

"My sister Kenzie left the house and Wren to go to a fucking party," sighed Nick. "So, I might miss out on movie night."

"No worries, we can use my car," I tell him. "Candyman was a shitty movie, anyway. Maybe Lea and I will come with you."

Lea, who sits next to Nick, narrows her eyes at me. "Oh, fuck no. Count me out of his family bullshit."

"Really?" I snort. "You're happy to leave a teenage girl at a drug-crazed house party?"

"Trust me, Reese," she tells me. "Once you meet Kenzie, you're going to wish you ditched her."

Nick clenches his hands and reopens them. "You don't want to come? That's alright for me. Hey, Theresa, can you lend me your keys?"

"Don't worry, I can drive you," I reassure him.

"Really?"

I cross my arms. The corners of my lips lift into a teasing smile as I lean towards Nick's irritated face.

"What?" I snort. "You don't think I can handle your little sister?"

"Kenzie has this ability to annoy the ever-loving crap out of everyone, Teddy," said Nick. "But if I don't find her, my kid brother Joey and my grandma will freak out."

"Come on, Nick! We'll bring Kenzie home as soon as possible," she beams. "I'm sure she wants to see her monster-slaying big brother again. I'll ask Casper if he wants to come with us."

"Okay," Nick huffs, leaning against the oversized couch. "I just hope tonight goes well."

******
Fishbone's "Servitude" plays from the car radio as I steer my green Volkswagen Beetle on the highway.

Nick sits next to me. His right foot props on the edge of the gray chair as Nick stares silently at the road. His black backpack thumps against his left ankle.

Meanwhile, Casper slumps in his seat, listening to music on his CD player. Although Nick and I bonded over Buzzcocks, I don't know much about him.

Stroking my slightly wet hair with my brown fingers, I decided to break the ice by asking Nick about his family.

"I don't know what's going on with my family," he tells me. "I haven't spoken to them in two years."

"Do you ever call them or send them cassette tapes? You know, to see if they're okay?"

"No, I'd rather have them scream in my face than watch them die. It's safer that way," Nick claims softly. "Besides, since my mom's at work, I must focus on getting enough money for Kenzie's school tuition."

My smile vanishes. As much as I get where Nick's coming from, I don't like him avoiding his family without an excellent reason.

Now, do I want anything to do with my parents? No, but I care about Audrey like any other worried aunt should. I put her extra money in her account, stressed Audrey about getting good grades, and became her nanny when Andie went on her weekly trips.

Even though I don't plan to become the next Laurie Windslow, I don't want Audrey to grow up hating herself like I did.

Casper shifts his Rubik's Cube, then shoves it inside his backpack. He plays with his dreadlocks, then leans against the dark cushion, closing his eyes.

"Are you okay, Cass?" I ask him. "You're pretty quiet back there."

"I am doing fine," Casper yawns. "I don't mind staying up all night. It's just that I am having problems with-"

"Esmeralda Swan?" Nick guesses, his teasing smile stretching from ear to ear.

Casper sets his jaw, whereas I raise my left eyebrow in curiosity.

"I am sorry, who's Esme Swan?" I ask.

"That girl who works at her father's theater," said Nick, wearing a huge grin. "And Casper's favorite customer."

"Shut up!" Casper whines. "I don't like her that way!"

"I don't know," Nick teases. "I thought I saw your cheeks turning red five minutes ago."

"Oh, fuck off!" Casper cries.

Nick turns his head to see Casper shifting awkwardly in his seat. He folds his arms and then glares down at his shoes as if trying to be invisible.

"Look, I might have a crush on her-" Casper begins.

"You might?" Nick asks, smirking.

"Okay, fine! I do like her. Way more than my stupid ex-boyfriend Tony."

"Alright, so why don't you just ask Nadia out on a date?" I ask.

"Because I am scared she'll say stupid stuff like, 'I have a boyfriend, Cass, sorry,'" answered Casper. "Also, it's hard talking to Nadia when her friends are around."

Tapping his feet in his chair, Casper grows quiet momentarily and quickly moves behind me. He pokes my shoulder with his finger until I whip my head and demand to know what he wants.

"Hey, Teddy," Casper says sheepishly. "You're a girl, right?"

"Gee, what gave it away?" I gasp. "Was it my boobs or my butt?"

Casper pretends he doesn't hear my sarcasm.

"Why do you think girls travel in packs?" he presses.

"How should I know?" I snap irritably. "It's not like I had friends in high school."

Nick lets out a frustrated sigh when he sees something horrifying.

"Oh my God," he murmurs. "What the fuck?"

I turn to see the ocean of blood stretching across the road. The mountain of limbs and severed bodies topple over each other while the heads are nowhere to be found.

Terrified, I slam the brakes with my left foot while Nick unbuckles his seatbelt. He grabs his bag and then commands me and Casper to leave.

We don't question his orders. Instead, we gather their backpacks first and then vacate the vehicle. Casper, Nick, and I make it out alive; my prized green Volkswagen Beetle doesn't.

Running outside, the boys and I witness a towering dog standing atop the car. Its giant paws transform the Mustang into a pile of debris, and an angry breeze shakes its smoldering black fur. The monstrous dog examines the children's faces until Johnny whips out his pistol from his waistband and opens fire.
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