CHAPTER 9

First couple: Leo and Don.

Song selection: "Dare you to move-Switchfoot"

First solo singer: Raph.

Song selection: "Paint it Black-Rolling Stones"

Second couple: Who and T.

Song selection: "Give it up-Ariana Grande"

Second solo singer: Mikey.

Song's selection: "I like it-Enrique Iglesias"


"Well what should we do now?" Mikey asked laying on Who's bed.

" I think T and I should get our PJ's on" Who said standing to her feet to do so.

"OH! And then we should tell Scary stories! I've got the perfect one!" T said with an evil glint in her eyes.

"Better make sure Mikey has earplugs, we don't want him gettin' scared!" Raph teased. Mikey glared at him.

"Ok! You boys can sort out your differences outside while T and I get dressed" Who said shooing the boys out.

...

...

As soon as she were dressed, Who let the boys back in.

"Where's T?" Leo asked.

"In the bathroom still getting dressed I suppose" Who replied shrugging. Just then, T came out of the bathroom. She was dressed in a black tank and black sweats and she had let her hair down from the ponytail she'd been wearing all day.

"Wow T, those are quite some PJ's" Who joked. T-Girl smiled sheepishly.

"I've long since sworn off PJ's, ever since my mom got me a pair that made me look like an overgrown elf" She explained shuddering at the thought.

"So… who wants to tell the first SCARY STORY? MUHAHAHAHA!" T asked excitedly turning out the lights.

Who turned on a giant flashlight and set it in the middle of their circle.

"I do" Leo said.

"Oh, this oughta be good!" Raph said crossing his arms.

"My story is called skinned Tom. In rural Tennessee, there lived a young man named Tom. He had an eye for the ladies and few could resist his charms. Every girl in town eventually fell for Tom's good looks, but he was never satisfied. As soon as he had romanced one girl, he would break up with her and move on to the next.

In search of more romance, Tom moved on to new pastures and began driving to the next town over. Soon, he came across a beautiful young lady named Eleanor. Tom was smitten with Eleanor and they began dating. There was just one problem: Eleanor was already married but Tom, in fact, enjoyed the excitement of having an affair with a married woman. The pair would often meet, late at night, in the local Lover's Lane and make out in Tom's car. Eventually, her husband got wind of what was going on and was driven insane with jealousy.

One day he told his wife he was going out of town for the weekend, then hid in the woods behind their house. That evening, Tom showed up to take the lady out. The husband followed them to the nearby Lovers' Lane. Tom and Eleanor were locked in a passionate embrace when, all of a sudden, they heard the car door open. Standing there was Eleanor's husband. His face was twisted in an evil grin and his hand was clutching a hunting knife. Tom was scared out of his wits and began begging for his life. He swore up and down that he didn't know Eleanor was married, but the husband didn't believe him.

The wronged husband grabbed Tom by the ankles and dragged him out of the car, still bearing a sadistic grin upon his angry face.

"Please don't kill me", begged Tom.

"Oh no", said the husband "I'm not going to kill you. I have something far worse in mind" With that, the husband dragged Tom off into the darkness.

Cowering in the car, Eleanor couldn't see what was happening, but she was forced to listen to Tom's blood-curdling screams as they pierced the dark Tennessee night.

Finally, her husband emerged from the darkness, his clothes covered in blood. Without a word, he climbed into the car and drove to the local police station where he turned himself in.

The next morning, the police drove up to the crime scene and made a horrifying discovery. Hanging from the branches of a tree was a pile of human skin; they realized that the husband hadn't killed Tom, he had skinned him. In fact, the jealous man had skinned Tom so deftly and carefully that Tom was still alive at the end of the ordeal. The husband had then draped Tom's hide over a branch and left him for dead.

The police searched the area but Tom was nowhere to be seen and they could find no trace of the hunting knife either.

They say that Tom still lurks around the Lover's Lane, waiting to catch a cheating couple and teach them the same lesson he learned that fateful night. Once a handsome young man, he is now just a bloody skeleton, stalking the little alleys and laneways with a big hunting knife clutched in his bony fingers. All of the teenagers in Tennessee are warned by their parents: "Don't go to the Lover's Lane if you don't want to be Skinned Tom's next victim!"

T's eyes were wide with fear; Mikey was clinging to Don's arm.

"I've heard scarier!" Raph scoffed.

"For the first time in my life… I have to agree with the hothead" Who yawned.

Leo sighed in defeat. "Well… who's next? Don? Mikey?" he asked.

"Well, frankly I don't know any good scary stories, so I think I'll pass" Don said. Mikey still paralyzed with fear on Don's arm didn't say anything except they could all hear his teeth chattering.

"Ok so any other takers?" Leo asked.

"I wanna go next!" T exclaimed, coming out of her terror.

"This story begins not too long ago and not far away. Just to the north of here there is a country where it is winter for 7 long moths of the year. Now this particular winter had gone on much longer than usual and the people were beginning to run out of food and firewood. Inside one small house right out in the barren snowlands an old lady was beginning to get anxious.

"My husband, I am so cold and hungry. My hands are blue! I am going to die, I am sure of it"

"Don't worry, my darling, winter will be over soon, we will have food again"

But the old lady looked very ill and continued to get anxious. Eventually the old man agreed, " I will go and search for food. But before I go you must promise me: you must not use the last two logs we have for the fire; we will need them to cook the food on when I return"

"I agree, just go! Please find food"

With that the old man went out in search of food. Time passed, the old man did not return; the fire was beginning to get lower and lower.

"Where is he? I'm hungry! I'm freezing! "

Then, the old lady had an idea. "If I put just one of the logs on the fire he will be back soon and then we will still have one to cook the food with!"

The old lady picked up one log and placed it on the fire. "That's much better, I'm so warm! He'll be back with food soon".

The old lady forgot how hungry she was as she sat close to the warm fire. More time passed, her husband did not return. It was beginning to get dusk outside and again the fire was getting lower and lower.

"Where is he? I am going to be left here to freeze!" Then the old lady had another idea. "If I put the last log on the fire it will be hot and ready to cook on when he returns".

With that the old lady put the last log on the fire. But more time passed and the old man was not back. The last log began to burn lower and lower until all that was left was a tiny flicker. The old lady got closer and closer to the fire. Suddenly, she burnt herself on it and began to bleed. She placed the finger in her mouth to lick it."MMMM, this tastes good!" Then the old lady began to chew and chew, up her arm, and around her body, until all that was left was a skeleton. "That was so good, I feel much better but I'm still hungry!"

Just at that moment she heard a rustling outside and the door opened. In came her husband with 2 rabbits in his hand.

"Look! I found fo-"

The old lady ran towards him and grabbed the rabbits. "Mmm! These are good!... My husband… I've just realized how meaty you are. Come here… I want… MEAT!"

With that the old man burst out the door and ran into the frozen wastelands as fast as he could. Behind him the old lady was running. "I want meat!"

Luckily the old man could run fast. He ran further and further into the snow. In the distance was the sound of the old lady. "I want meat. I'm going to eat you!"

Suddenly the old man came to the edge of a huge gorge that went as far as he could see that way and as far as he could see that way. There was no way across and coming closer was the sound of the old lady. Then, the old man noticed a small wooden cottage. He ran to it and banged on the door. The door opened on a chain and a woman could be seen inside. "Yes. How can I help you?"

"It's my wife. She's gone crazy she's going to eat me!"

"I will help you but first you must bring me a bucket of water"

"What? She's going to eat me and you want water?" The woman nodded.

The old man searched around and found a bucket to get some water from the well. He took it to the woman who pulled out a ladle from her pocket and dipped it into the water. "Very good. Now I will help you."

In the distance the sound of the skeleton lady was very close "I want meat. I'm going to eat you!"

The woman stood on the edge of the gorge and stamped her feet into the ground. Then, she reached out and stretched to the other side and grabbed onto a tree. "Now you may cross"

The old man walked carefully across the lady's back and reached the other side. Then the woman let go and went right back to the other side. She returned to her house just then the skeleton lady arrived at the gorge. She banged on the door of the house.

"Yes. Can I help you?"

"You are too skinny to eat. You will help me cross the gorge"

"First you must bring me a drink of water"

"Help me now or I'll eat you anyway!"

With that the woman repeated the same process she had done while helping the old man. The old woman began to run across. When she was halfway across, the woman let go and went back to the start. The skeleton lady fell to ground and shattered to a million pieces. It is said that there is a little bit of magic in each piece of the skeleton lady's bone and that one day they will join together and come in search of …"MEAT!"

When T finished everyone was quiet. "Well what do you think?" T asked.

"It was kiddish." Raph grunted.

"But- hey you scared Mikey so… I guess that means it was a lil bit scary, right?" Raph said trying to compensate for what he'd said.

"Yeah I guess so. And how about you?" T looked at Who. The latter cleared her throat and started making cricket chirping sounds.

"That was mean!" T folded arms feeling offended.

"Well… uhmm…" Leo said trying to stop the awkwardness "…we all need some sleep" He unrolled his sleeping bag and settled down with Ogima.

"Oh! I almost forgot someone!" T exclaimed jumping out of bed and running over to her bag. She pulled out a big stuffed dog.

"Guys, meet Spooky!" She said turning it to face them.

"Why do you call him Spooky?" Who asked.

"I got him a few days before Halloween. You don't think Chinny will mind having a buddy sharing the bed with him, do you?" T asked.

"In fact, he'll enjoy the company" Who answered smiling.

"Nite!" Everyone else said and the lights went out. As Who went to get in her bed, she heard Raph grumble something about people and their stuffed animals.

"The night ain't over… hothead. Get ready" she hissed at him.

"You get ready… witch" Raph growled back.