The four of them stumbled into the gym, breathless. The same circle of burnt wood awaited, perfectly intact.
Rain leaked through the ceiling, pooling around their feet.
"Enough!" Alex shouted into the dark. "If this is some sick prank—"
"Alex," Natalie interrupted, her voice shaking. "Look at the floor."
Their reflections shimmered faintly in the water — but there were five.
One stood perfectly still between them, a dark silhouette where no one was standing.
Felix whispered, "Liam."
A voice replied from nowhere and everywhere. "You left me."
The lights flickered on, revealing flashes of memory: the old party, laughter, dares shouted across the gym, Liam on the railing, Alex daring him, Felix egging him on, Natalie filming with Anne's camera.
"Jump, coward!"
Then a shove.
Then a scream.
Natalie's stomach dropped. "No," she whispered. "No, it can't be."
Liam's voice filled the air. "You all lied. You said it was an accident. You said I slipped."
Felix's face twisted. "We didn't mean to—"
"Who pushed me?" the voice demanded.
Silence.
Anne cried, "We don't remember! It all happened so fast!"
The lights flickered again — faster this time — and a cold realization spread across Natalie's face.
"It wasn't him we lied about," she whispered. "It was me."
Everyone turned toward her.
Natalie's hands trembled. "He didn't fall. I pushed him. He was going to tell the truth — about what we did to that teacher. He was going to ruin everything. So I—" She broke off, her voice cracking. "And you all helped me cover it up."
Felix stepped back in shock. "Natalie…"
The air seemed to split apart with a scream that came from nowhere and everywhere.
The water on the floor rippled violently, rising into the shape of a human figure. Liam's distorted face emerged from the dark.
"Truth or dare?" he whispered again.