Don't you dare

Being the bravest person in my small town was the best. Everyone respected me and challenged me and I always came out on top. My absolute favorite game was truth-or-dare. I've never backed out of a dare, not once.

It was Saturday and there was a party at my friend, Malachi's house. When I showed up everyone wanted to play truth-or-dare, they all wanted to see me back down on something but that was not about to happen. We gathered in a circle, there were only about sixteen people, again, it was a small town. They stared at me with wide excited eyes but no one would open their mouth to give me a dare. Without a word they huddled together, whispereing so I couldn't hear them.

"Make him spend the night in the Mausoleum!" Someone whispered loudly and they all shushed him. I laughed.

"I'll do it!" I said before they could think of anything else. Everyone gasped in disbelief. There had been rumors of mysterious murders around the mausoleum and no one would even go withing one hundred feet of the small building, even in the day time. But as I said, I never backed down from a dare. Malachi's mother walked into the room.

"You will do no such thing! The mausoleum is way too dangerous, whether the rumors are true or not!" She ordered drying out a bowl with a dishrag.

"What if I brought someone with me?" I pressed. She paused her drying and thought a little bit.

"I don't know Dimitri..." She sighed at me. "Who would really be willing to go with you?"

"I would!" Malachi jumped up waving his hand.

"You guys can't!" Malachi's girlfriend, Andy, cried, "Don't do this dare Dimitri, this is way too dangerous!"

"Relax..." I said, "We'll be safe if we stick together, killers don't attack people in groups." I shrugged and picked up a flashlight that was lying on the coffee table. Andy sighed.

"Please be careful..." She whispered and turned back to the group of people. Malachi and I left the house and got into his red pickup truck, the cemetary wasn't that far away. There was barely any sun left in the sky, we would be there in time for it to be dark. We took off down the road. The night was growing dark fast, much faster than I thought. To be honest, I was scared. All of the brutal murders consited of skinnings and what not, nothing that felt good I'll tell you that. Malachi was just as nervous as well. His knuckles were ghost white as he clutched the steering wheel. It was a very silent drive, talking about it would make us feel worse I'm sure.

We turned into the cemetary and parked in front of the gate behind some bushed so the cops wouldn't see the truck. The mausoleum was in the very back, luckily it was a pretty straight forward and flat walk. We were there in about five minutes. The small building was just cement and had simple wooden doors. Malachi turned on the flashligth and went to open the door. I picked up thick stick, if the rumors were true and a killer came after us then I could beat them within an inch of their life with this stick. I shoved open the wooden doors. Dust flew up from the ground and a musty smell filled my nose. Malachi shined his flashlight into the room with a shaky hand. It was empty except for the many coffins inside the wall an the one huge coffin in the middle of the room.

We closed the door and huddled up in the corner. I can't even express how happy I was that it was a very warm night and we weren't going to freeze to death. My insides shook and my tongue tickled. I was so nervous and very scared of this place. All that was left now was to fall asleep and wake up in the morning with another accomplished dare. We were only asleep for about an hour when Malachi shook my shoulder.

"Dude... I gotta pee." He whispered.

"Can't you hold it?" I grunted shifting away from him.

"No can do man, my bladder is about to burst!"

"Then pee in the corner over there!"

"That's disgusting Dimitri, c'mon just step outside with me, please, I'm scared!" He begged me. I yawned and stood up. We walked outside behind the mausoleum, leaving the flashlight inside the mini building, I really didn't want to get an accidental sneekpeak of Malachi's glory. I turned my back and waited for him to be done, which wasn't any time soon, he was serious when he said he had to go. I'm glad he didn't pee in the corner or else the mausoleum would've been flooded. Finally I hear him zip up his jeans. As he walked back to me a noise came from inside the mausoleum. It sounded like stone scraping on stone.

Malachi gave a small whimper and we inched forward to check it out. The flashlight was off even though we had left it on. I gulped and stepped back. "Something's not sitting right with me..." Malachi whispered, "Lets just go back ot the truck."

"No way! I am not backing down from this dare!" I protested and went for the doors. Malachi hesitated but eventually followed me. We slowly stepped in and looked around. The room was so dark it was like I had my eyes shut. Malachi and I dropped on to our hands and knees and crawled into the room searching for the flashlight. My head bumped something sticking out from the wall.

"Shit..." I grunted rubbing my head. Suddenly light flickered through the room. Malachi had found the flashlight and was looking around the room.

"Dude, that wasn't there before!" He freaked pointing at the thing I had bonked into. One of the coffins in the wall was pulled out and open. My body began to tremble and I peered into it. Nothing. I breathed a sigh of relief and shoved it back in.

"Don't worry, it's empty." I panted crawling over to him. Malachi rocked back in forth.

"Dimitri, if I die please tell my mom and dad and Andy that I love them. Well, that is if you don't die with me." He cried covering his face. I sat next to him and rubbed his back. He seemed to calm slightly. We sat in silence looking at the open door. Something, a squirrel maybe, was moving out side.

It stood up. I tried to keep Malachi from looking at it but he caught just the slightest glimpse. Someone was out there limping around the gravestones. Malachi clutched my arm. "Dimitri..." He screeched. I gulped back the lump i my throat and shone the light at it. The light caught its attetnion and it started to run towards us. Pieces of rotting flesh hung from its body and it had only one eye. It was made of mostly brown bone a well. I fumbled with the flashlight and turned it off so it wouldn't see us. Scraping, metal to stone. Whatever it was, it was now in the mausoleum with us and it carried something sharp and metallic. I grasped the branch I had picked up earlier and began to crawl towards the exit. Maybe Malachi and I could sneak out before it saw us.

It walked towards the back as we moved for the front. I stood up to run when my fingers hit the wet grass. Malachi and I took off down the cemetary road, looking back occasionaly to see if it was following us. My legs were burning and my throat hurt with each breath. Finally I ran into the big red truck. Malachi fumbled with the keys to unlock it. I looked back. It was coming after us but it was far back.

"C'mon Malachi, it's coming!" I shouted. Malachi's eyes were red with tears as he jammed the key into the window to break it. He reached in and unlocked it manually. We jumped in and started the car. The motor roared and Malachi began to back out of the bushes. A giant thud came from the trunk and I looked back. The thing was in the trunk, glaring mad. It held a giant butcher knife that was covered with rust. It ran at the window. The knife pierced the back window with a sickening crunch. Malachi screamed bloody murder and spun off the rode into the ditch.

Sounds of crunching metal filled my ears as we spun. I felt myself begin to slip as the vehicle came to a halt. I shook myself awake and looked over at Malachi. He was much worse than me, practically dead. "Malachi!" I cried reaching over to him. I heard scuttling. The zombie scuttled up to Malachi's window and pulled him out of it. I watched in horror as it tore the skin from Malachi's bones. Malachi woke a little, just enough to feel the pain. He was dying right in front of my eyes and I was trapped in the truck watching.

It ran away on all fours draggin Malachi's skinless body in its teeth and leaving the rest for who ever was to find it. I cried untill I passed out.

I awoke to the sounds of sirens. Malachi's mom, my mom, and Andy stood by the car. Firemen were attempting to cut me out. the paramedics stood by and the Police were examining the remains of Malachi's body though they couldn't make an identification, it was just basically a pile of meat and bones.

Andy stood at my bedside at the hospital. I gulped and looked at her. "I'm sorry about Malachi..." I whispered, "We almost made it... it was the car crash and he couldn't defend himself..." I cried. She hid her face and cried as the heart monitor beeped slowly. Getting slower and slower. Beep... beep.... beep.....beep......beep.......beep........ then blanked out and my eyes shut for the last time.