"Rei-chan! Rei-chan, lookie here!"
Rei stepped back as an old, worn out, yellowing paper was shoved in front of his face. He blinked and questioningly glanced at the hyperactive blonde that had barged into his room.
Rei had invited Nagisa for dinner. His parents were out for the weekend and he thought that it wouldn't hurt to invite at least one friend to visit. He would have invited Haru and Makato, but that would only cause chaos. The last time he insisted they'd come over too, the place was flooded with water. Boy, his parents were so angry they grounded him for 2 months.
"How did you get in?" Rei asked. "I swear, I locked the door."
"Let's just say I know where you keep the spare key," Nagisa said smugly. "Now, take a look, I found this in our clubroom and thought, 'Wow, wouldn't it be awesome to do this with Rei-chan?'"
Rei raised an eyebrow. "Really? That's strange. You'd usually want to do it together with everyone."
Nagisa shook the paper in his hand, speaking in a matter-of-factly voice, "Well, you'll understand why I want to do it with you, Rei-chan, if you would just read it."
The bespectacled man furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, but took the paper nonetheless, and began to read.
Step 1:Cut the doll and replace its insides with rice.
Step 2:Place something from your body into the doll.
Step 3:Wrap the doll with the red thread as if to hinder it.
Step 4:In a bathroom, pour water into a large washbasin and find some place to hide.
Step 5:Place a cup of salt water in the place before starting the game.
To play:
Step 1:Start at 3 A.M. because that is the time when spirits are most active
Step 2:Give the doll a name
Step 3:When the clock strikes three, close your eyes and say"First tagger is (doll name)!"three times. (If you're talking to the doll, you must talk sternly.)
Step 4:Go to the bathroom and place the doll in the washbasin.
Step 5:Turn off all the lights
Step 6:Close your eyes and count to ten. Ready your weapon and head to the bathroom. Go to the doll and say"I found you (doll name)!"and stab the doll. Afterward, close your eyes again and say"Now (doll name) is it!"three times
Step 7:Place the weapon next to the doll and go to your hiding place. YouMUSTlock the door as well as all other doors and windows.
Step 8:Drink the salt water, but do not swallow or spit it out. The salt water will protect you from the spirit.
Keep the game under two hours. After two hours, the spirit in the doll will be too strong to be removed.
You must play alone. The more people there are, the higher the chances of someone getting possessed.
Don't go outside
When hiding, BE SILENT
Turn off all electronics before starting
When running away, DO NOT LOOK BACK. Also, don't fall asleep while playing. The doll might stab you.
When discovered by the doll, you can get a small wound or even get possessed. If found by the doll, be careful because your weapon will be somewhere on the floor or in your pocket.
After the game is over, it is important to clean up properly. Be sure to put salt in every corner of the house, especially places where you put the doll and where you found it. Salt is said to scare away spirits.
Rei frowned. What is Nagisa thinking? "Are you serious? Firstly, there is no such things as ghost; Secondly, it says to play alone; And lastly, why in my house? Honestly, Nagisa, this is the most silliest of your antics you've—"
"Oh, hush up, Rei-chan," Nagisa said, rolling his eyes. "It's just for fun. Now, come on, please? It'll be fun! It's just a small thriller. Besides, you said that ghosts don't exist so it'll be okay."
"Yes, but. . ."
"Oh, come on," the blonde took the bespectacled man's arm, leading him to the bathroom. "It'll be fuuuuun~"
Rei, knowing that he had no chance into persuading his eager friend, sighed and just went along with a frown. It was always like this. Nagisa always gets his way. Who cares about ol' Rei's opinion? Nobody.
"Okay, so I have the doll"—Nagisa brought out a stuffed teddy bear out of nowhere ("Where'd you get that?")—"and now all we need is some rice, red thread, and a weapon. Hm. . .I don't want to get hurt so we'll just use a mechanical pencil."
"Wait, aren't we supposed to do this at 3 AM?"
"Don't worry; I'm pretty sure that it'll work any time. Besides, I can't stay that late here, can I?"
"You do have a point. . ."
"Okay, now get our remaining supplies."
"Hey, why me—"
"Because I'm too cute to break a sweat. Come on, don't stand there. Hurry and get the supplies."
"I hate you. . ."
"I love you too."
Rei sighed again, turning and heading out to fetch the needed items for their ritual.
He had first targeted the rice, which he found in the kitchen, and scooped a bowlful. Mom and Dad are gonna get mad if they find out I'm wasting food for a stupid game, he thought sulkily to himself. Then he went on to the red thread, entering his parents' bedroom and fishing out a bundle of it from his mom's sewing kit. I'll take this needle, too. Lastly, he went to his room and searched his bag for his pencil case and picked his least favorite mechanic pencil.
Walking back to the bathroom, he couldn't help but wonder how this stupid game would end up at. Would Nagisa and him end up hiding inside a closet for who knows how long until they give up and eat dinner? Dinner. Oh, yes, dinner. He hasn't prepared anything yet. Nagisa had come far too early. But then again, that's just how the short blonde works. He couldn't blame him.
"I've got it," Rei announced as he entered the bathroom. Nagisa was filling up the bathtub when he heard the familiar deep voice of his friend. He turned to him and smiled.
"I knew I could count on you, Rei-chan! Now, hand them over, please?"
Rei gave the items to the blonde and silently watched as he worked his magic. He first ripped open the bear's stomach (Impressive, doing that with his own bear hands. Wait. Did I just make a pun?), then took out all the stuffing, and shortly poured the rice into the empty toy. He then plucked a strand of midnight blue hair from Rei without warning ("Ouch!") and a strand of his own, dropping them both into the grain-filled stomach.
"Be careful with that needle," the bespectacled man warned as Nagisa slipped the thread into the eye of the sowing needle. The latter just smiled and nodded, stitching the stomach close slowly.
"Ah! Wait. I nearly forgot!" Nagisa suddenly blurted out. He smiled sheepishly, "Rei-chan, would you mind getting a cup of saltwater for me?"
"Goodness, Nagisa, you scared me!" Rei clutched his rapidly running heart and tried to catch his stolen breath. "I thought something was wrong. Ugh, fine, I'll go ahead and get some. Just do what you need to do."
Nagisa nodded and happily went back to stitching while Rei went to fetch a cup of saltwater. Honestly, that boy. . .
When he came back, he found Nagisa patiently waiting for him, finished with his work. Rei picked up the bear and observed the careful stitchery that was done by his blonde friend. "Not bad. I would have expected something less beautiful from someone like you."
Nagisa rolled his eyes. "Thanks, I'll take that as a compliment. Now, let's begin, shall we?"
Rei nodded. Nagisa gently placed the bear into the bathtub and went off with the bespectacled man to turn off all the lights. While they were at it, they closed and locked all the doors and windows. Something in the back of Rei's mind told him, "No, that's a bad idea," but he ignored it anyway. After all, this was all fake. A mere game of tomfoolery and curiosity.
Once they shut their last light and window, they began to count in a whisper. Rei didn't know why, but as the numbers increased, so did this queasy feeling in his stomach.
". . . 10." They both said at last. Looking at Rei with a nervous expression, Nagisa forced a nervous smile and nodded to the direction of the bathroom. Rei tried to return the smile, but it came out awkward. 'Right,' he mouthed.
The two teenagers made their way to the bathroom, finding the bear laxly floating about in the tub of water. For some strange reason, Rei felt like running. Run and never look back. Maybe take Nagisa with him and convince him what they were doing is foolish and then go out to McDonalds for dinner instead. But of course, being the stubborn man he was, he ignored the feeling and walked towards the toy.
"Rei-chan?" The soft voice of his little friend brought him out of his daze. "Rei-chan, are you feeling alright? You look pale."
"Yes. Yes, I am. Just a little nervous. I don't know why, but. . ." His voiced trailed off, not wanting to continue. Nagisa didn't press him on. Instead, he landed a small kiss on his cheek. "W-Wha. . .?"
"A cheer up kiss," Nagisa explained with a big smile. "Don't worry, Rei-chan, I'm here for you. Let's get this thing started, shall we?"
Rei, slightly taken aback, took a few moments to gather himself before answering with a newfound confidence. "Yeah."
"Okay, so the doll's name will be Reigisa."
"Reigisa?"
"Yeah, It's our names mixed together—Ah, Rei-chan, why is your face red?"
"Shut up, you won't understand. Let's just get on with it."
Negisa blinked in confusion and then shrugged. "Okay, if you say so. Ready?"
Rei closed his eyes. "Ready." Nagisa nodded and closed his eyes as well.
Together, they chanted, "I found you, Reigisa! I found you, Reigisa! I found you Reigisa!" Rei shivered. The temperature suddenly dropped sharply. Then, swiftly, they stabbed the toy with the mechanical pencil within their grasp. "Now, Reigisa is it! Now, Reigisa is it! Now, Reigisa is it!"
They dropped the mechanical pencil next to the bear and ran off. Rei didn't know where they were going, but he trusted Nagisa. The blonde must know where they were going to hide. He was the one who brought up the game, he must have prepared everything. He could only hope he picked a good hiding place.
Wait a minute. What is he thinking? This was just a game. Nothing more, nothing less. There won't be anything bad happening because it was just a stupid game! So, why? Why is he feeling like this? Why is he thinking like this? Why?
"In the closet," Nagisa whispered. Despite the slow opening of the closet, it creaked loudly and drearily. "You go first, okay?"
Rei nodded and entered. Without warning, Nagisa split the bespectacled man's legs open and sat in between the space, shortly closing the closet door afterword. That was sudden, Rei thought with a blush.
And so, they waited inside the closet. They made no sounds, their shallow breathing the only exception. It was quiet for a while, so quiet that Rei thought he could hear the blood rushing through his ears.
But then, suddenly, it started. The laughing of small children. It was literally outside his bedroom. And it was getting stronger. He could hear the shrill giggles of girls, the bass of the boys, and then. . . his own voice? What? That didn't make sense! And he could hear Nagisa's voice, too. They're both laughing as if they heard something really funny, like a joke or a story. This is just your imagination, he thought.
"Where are you?" a voice questioned, dripping with pure malice. It was a man's voice with Rei and Nagisa's thrown into it. "Come out; come out, wherever you are. . ."
Rei slapped a hand on his mouth to prevent himself from screaming. Oh no, oh no, oh no. What the hell was that? Who the hell was that? Why the hell does it have his voice? He felt dizzy, as if he would faint any moment. But, he vaguely remembered that the paper told him not to sleep. However, he wasn't going to be sleeping. He was going to be unconscious. But still, he forced himself to stay conscious.
He almost let out a scream, but this time, not because of the fear welling up deep within his heart. It was because of the tight grip that Nagisa had implanted onto his hand. Biting back his scream, he squirmed to get his hand free, but the blonde's grip was iron. Though, he did seem to notice and somewhat loosened up a bit.
Rei, even though was not a big fan of physical contact, wrapped his free hand around Nagisa, seeking for at least a sliver of comfort in their situation. He needed it, bad. He was so scared; he was surprised he didn't piss his pants yet.
Nagisa knew what Rei was implying with his gesture and he didn't waste any time in placing a reassuring hand on the bespectacled man's arm. 'It's okay,' he mouthed, even though he knew well that he couldn't see it. 'I'm here for you.'
They both didn't know how much time had passed after that. It had seemed like forever, waiting for the doll to pass by. But then, the creaking of the door and the strong laughter of children entering the room told them he wasn't go to pass by until he had checked every room in this house.
Rei caught his breath. No. Just no. No. This could not be happening. Why? Why did he have to enter?
" ?" the voice asked sweetly. Through the thin, open line in between the closet doors, he could vaguely see the teddy bear walk around the room. He looked under the bed, "Are you heeeeere~?" Then he heard his covers being drawn. "Are you heeeeeeeeere~?"
The teddy bear stopped. For a moment, Rei thought he was going to leave, but all that hope disappeared when the bear locked eyes with him. "You're there."
Slowly, the bear trudged to the closet and swung open a door. " ~ !"
Nagisa let out an ear-ripping scream and dropped the cup in his hands, the saltwater he had held in his mouth dripping down his chin. "No, no, no, NO!" he wailed, grabbing his head.
"Run! Nagisa, run!" Rei insisted, but the blonde didn't listen. Instead, he let out another scream that was so loud it defined 'bloody murder.'
"NOOOOO! GET OUT!" Nagisa cried, pulling so hard onto his hair that a couple of locks actually were plucked off.
"N-Nagisa?" Nagisa has gone silent. ". . . Nagisa?" No reply. ". . . . . . Nagisa? Nagisa, please, answer me: Are you okay?"
"Who. . .," Nagisa began, his voice mixed with a deeper tone, "is Nagisa?" Slowly, the blonde turned his head to the bespectacled man. He was smiling. But it wasn't his usual smile – it was a darker, mocking smile that sent shivers down his spine. The laughter became so loud it seemed as if Rei's ears were bleeding.
Nagisa picked up the mechanical pencil and turned his whole body to Rei, but didn't move out of his position. Rei was trapped. He couldn't get out. "It isn't my choice of weapon, but it will have to do."
"Nagisa, you're scaring me. Please, stop this." Rei said sternly, but shakily. "Besides the stuffed animal. . ." The bespectacled man's eyes widened as he saw the toy laying down on the ground, limp. "Don't tell me. . ."
"Night-night, R e i – c h a n~"
With that, the blonde brought the mechanical pencil up and swung it down. He then brought it up again and swung it down, continuing this action 'til the light in Rei's eyes began to slowly fade.
As this happened, one thought ran through the bespectacled man's head:
You must play alone. The more people there are, the higher the chances of someone getting possessed.
