Disclaimer: I do not own the Scream series. This is merely a fanfiction.
…
Riiiing!
It begins with the sound of a telephone ringing; the familiar harbinger of impending doom. Sixteen year old Jamie Lewis walks into her living room. She checks out the Caller-ID. It's a RESTRICTED number.
"Yea, right."
She turns away, just letting it ring. She fixes herself a snack in her kitchen when a voice comes on the answering machine.
"Jamie, I know you're home. Come on, pick up!"
Rolling her eyes, Jamie picks up the phone, placing it to her ear. "Hey Hannah."
"Why didn't you pick up the phone earlier?"
"I'm not going to pick up a RESTRICTED number. Ever since you made me watch those awful STAB movies last month, I haven't been answering any strange numbers!"
"Yea well, I lost my cell phone the other day, so I'm calling you from my brother's cell. Listen, I'm going to be there in twenty minutes. You better be dressed!"
"Okay, okay, I just have to shower up and get my costume on. I still can't believe you talked me into this!"
"Come on, it'll be fun! It's not too often Woodsboro has an annual Halloween carnival."
"You know how I hate scary stuff!"
"Yea, but Chuck knows one of the guys operating the carnival … he owes Chuck's dad a favor. The guy said we could stay after hours, once the carnival closes. Have all the rides to ourselves!"
"I still don't know about this …"
"And Todd will be there."
"Todd?"
"Yeah. The guy you practically drool over in World Lit. class. Word on the street is, he's got a little thing for you."
Jamie's face turns red. "Who told you that?"
"Chuck. He's basically best friends with Todd. Think about it, Jamie. Tonight could be the very night you and Todd start going out! Now enough chitchat! Go upstairs, shower and put that sexy costume on!"
CLICK!
Hannah hangs up, and Jamie looks down into the kitchen floor as the sound of treading paws echoes throughout the room. She kneels down. "Hey there, Rex." Her Pomeranian wags his tail, and tags along after her heels as she exits the kitchen.
…
The steam from the shower fills the whole room. Jamie is preparing to undress, when her cell phone rings in the other room. She rolls her eyes, and turns the shower off.
She enters her room and looks at the CALLER-ID on her cell phone. HANNAH. Hmm, now that's odd. Hannah said she lost her cell phone. Maybe she found it. Jamie shrugs and answers.
"Hello."
"Hello Jamie."
Jamie's eyes widen. That voice. She recognizes it from the iconic STAB movies. "Who is this?"
"Oh Jamie, don't you know the rules? You don't ask questions like 'who is this' or 'who's there'! That's just asking for a gutting!"
"Look Hannah, I know it's you, and it's not funny! Now just stop it!"
"Oh, I would stop it – if I were Hannah. But I'm not. If you only knew who I really was, you'd be running out of your house to your car right now! But you won't. Because if you acted intelligently, you would escape and the movie would be over!"
"What are you talking about? Listen, I'm hanging up!"
"Go ahead. But if you do, I can guarantee that you'll be skewered like a pig within five seconds! They'll be picking your liver and intestines out of every crevice!"
Jamie is visibly shaking. "Okay Hannah, you've had your fun. I don't know how you downloaded that voice app. on your phone, but cut it out. You're really freaking me out!"
"Ah, I can hear the cracking of your voice. Your muscles are tightening, you're sweating. Your porcelain skin has goose bumps. Yeah. I'll be stripping your skin straight off your bones … while you're still alive…"
"You're sick, Hannah! Now I don't even feel like going to the carnival anymore!"
She hangs up the cell phone, storming out of her bedroom.
Riiing!
The cell phone's ring tone blazes again. Swearing, Jamie picks it up. "Look Hannah -."
"NO, YOU LOOK YOU LITTLE TWAT! HANG UP ON ME AGAIN, AND I'LL CARVE YOU UP LIKE A JACK-O-LANTERN!"
Jamie pauses … "Hannah …?" She's suddenly unsure of whether this is really her friend.
"Listen to me very carefully, Jamie. We're going to play a little game."
Jamie slowly enters her brother's room, gripping his baseball bat. "What kind of game? Ask me trivia questions like in the STAB movies?"
"No … not quite. More of a game of … hide and seek …"
"What … I hide and you find me?"
"No. You have to find me."
"What if I refuse?"
"Have you seen Rex in the past five minutes?"
Jamie nearly drops her phone. She begins calling out her dog's name. "Rex! REX! Come here, boy!" No answer. "Where is my dog?"
"Safe and sound … for now. I'm lightly petting him with my hands … pray that I don't decide to pet him with my knife!"
"Don't hurt him!"
"Then come find me."
"Give me a hint!"
"I'm outside … but don't hang up. I need you to stay on the line. And if you call the cops – well, if you saw Halloween, you'd know what Michael Myers did to that German Shepard. Now … go to the back porch. And drop the baseball bat!"
The baseball bat drops to the ground with a THUD. Jamie, her face streaming with tears, and shaking violently, runs downstairs and outside to the back porch. She turns on the light, illuminating parts of her enormous backyard. The rest remain bathed in darkness, the trees looking weird and distorted.
"Can you see me?"
"No. Please, just give me a hint!"
"Fine … Wood."
"Wood?" She looked around. "Trees? Are you hiding in a tree?"
"Why don't you walk into the backyard and find out?"
She prepared to take a step.
"Oh, and turn out the porch light."
"No … please!"
"Do it! We're playing by my rules. Remember, Rex is counting on you!"
Shivering, Jamie turns out the light, shrouding the entire backyard in darkness. She holds the phone – trembling - to her ears, entering the blackness. She walks slowly, every small noise making her jump.
She looks up around the gnarled trees, expecting something to jump out at her.
Then her eyes see it. The old, wooden tool shed. She gulps, as she silently approaches it. She could see the door is slightly ajar. The tension builds up. She is nearly hysterical. The fear of what Rex might look like if this man kept his promise … she pushes that thought out of her mind.
Her white hand reaches out. Her fingers trace the doorknob. She says a silent prayer, and then jerks the door wide open, bracing herself for a killer to jump out at her.
Nothing.
Silence.
She takes a cautious step inside, looking around. Nothing but a lawnmower, a chainsaw, garden shears. She backs outside and puts the phone to her ear.
"I still can't find …" Her voice trails off as she realizes that the man hung up.
The noise of crickets is perpetual. Chirp. Chirp.
She backs away from the tool shed -.
BAM!
Something jumps at her from the side. She screams and falls over to see…
Ghostface towering over. There is a flash of silver as he produces a hunting knife.
Jamie screams and scrabbles to her feet. She runs through the darkness of her backyard, heading for her porch.
Ghostface is blazing her trail, only feet away from her. She bounds up the steps, Ghostface gaining ground.
She slips on a puddle, falling on her side. She reaches up and grasps the handle to the door.
Ghostface is ascending the steps.
Almost to the top.
Within reach.
Jamie opens the door at the last second, and scrabbles inside. She spares a glance over her shoulder to see …
Nothing.
He is gone.
She prepares to dial 9-11, when suddenly Ghostface pops around a corner, grabbing her. He shoves her onto a couch, then straddles her, pinning her in place.
Then a strange thing occurs.
Ghostface begins laughing.
Not menacingly. In fact, laughing as though the entire thing is quite humorous. Jamie recognizes that laugh.
"Hannah?"
Ghostface suddenly slides off her body and withdraws the mask to reveal – Hannah, who is nearly doubled over in laughter.
"You should have seen your face! It was priceless! Oh, this is so going on YouTube!"
Jamie gets up and shoves Hannah into a couch. "You bitch!"
"Hey chill out, it was only a prank!"
"It was not! It was sick, just plain fucked up! And what if I had injured you in self-defense? Or… or worse?"
"Relax, nothing went wrong!"
Jamie is struggling to control her rage. "Where's Rex?"
Hannah smiles and goes over to a closet. "I must've scared the poor pooch half to death." She opens the closet door to reveal Rex, munching on a shoe. Hannah bends over and picks the Pomeranian up. "But you forgive me, don't you Rex?"
Rex growled viciously at her.
"Okay, maybe not."
"You deserve it."
"Come on, don't be such a baby. It was only a joke!" Hannah held up the Ghostface mask and spun around in her black robe. "You like my costume? Not too many people wear Ghostface costumes anymore. Not since … you know..."
"Yea, yea, yea."
Hannah stood up, adjusting the robe. "Well put your costume on!"
"I'm not going. That prank was totally not cool! I'm too jumpy and furious right now!"
"Okay, I guess Todd will just have to find someone else to go through the Hall of Mirrors with. The dark, romantic Hall of Mirrors. Where couples have been known to have long, private make-out sessions."
Jamie eyes her friend, the words bouncing around her mind. "Alright, point taken." She waved Hannah's fake knife in her friend's face. "But this doesn't mean I forgive you. I'll be right back down."
…
Jamie and Hannah sit in Hannah's Beetle, on the dark roads of Woodsboro. Hannah is still sporting her Ghostface costume, while Jamie is dressed as Alice in Wonderland. Right now, Jamie is feeling a little insecure. "Now you're sure Chuck said Todd was in to me?"
"Relax girl. That's what Chuck told me."
"What were Chuck's exact words?"
"Uh … Todd's into her."
"What else?"
"He thinks you're hot. And, he's been meaning to ask you out but hasn't had the courage."
Jamie leans back in her chair, a satisfied smile on her face.
Riiing. Riiing.
It's Hannah's cell phone. She looks down at the CALLER-ID to see a RESTRICED number.
"Don't answer it," Jamie murmured.
"Oh, come on. It's probably just a telemarketer – or maybe I finally won something from Publishers Clearinghouse!"
"You shouldn't talk and drive!"
"Whatever. Don't be such a goody-goody." She puts the phone to her ear. "Hellooo?" She says in a singsong voice.
"Hello, Hannah." Ghostface's voice.
"Oh, let me guess, Ghostface right?" She winks at Jamie. "Whatever, Chuck. Listen, Jamie totally fell for our prank – I told you she would."
Jamie angrily punched Hannah in the shoulder.
"Ow! But she's pretty mad about it. Maybe Todd can make her feel better, if you catch my drift."
"Sure … But I just want to ask you a question real quick."
"Alright, shoot."
"What was the name of the killer in the 1979 film When a Stranger Calls?"
She goes along with it. "Oh, asking horror trivia, huh Mr. Ghostface, a.k.a. Chuck." She rolls her eyes. "That's an easy one … one of my favorites. The killer is named Curt Duncan."
"Very good, Hannah."
"Easy as pie, Chuck."
"Okay. Just one more question. Where did the opening scene of the 2006 remake take place?"
"A carnival."
"Precisely. See you there …"
"See you there, Chuck. Be there in five min-." She pauses, looking at Jamie. "He hung up on me." She shrugged. "Oh well."
