At the Crown residence, 4 PM. Day six of filming was about to begin. The team gathered in the living room, reviewing the story so far.
The cast and crew were hooked—a far cry from their first day shooting Paranormal Activity. Six days in, scene after scene, everyone had gradually come to realize that this horror film was actually convincing. Interesting, even.
The project had no traditional dialogue or proper screenplay like other movies, yet it had somehow become captivating. The actors improvised everything—no memorized lines whatsoever. And somehow, it worked in a way none of them had anticipated at first.
Even Katherine, who'd chosen to trust Marcus on this project, hadn't expected to get this invested.
Right now, they were discussing the next scene. Marcus had pitched three scenarios: First, Katherine standing motionless in front of Mike for hours in the bedroom. Second, Katherine doing random but unsettling things while the camera rolled. Third, performing some kind of ritual—meditating and muttering something sinister.
All three were deeply unsettling just to imagine.
Everyone had an opinion.
Mike thought the ritual was creepier, but Katherine argued that the standing-and-staring option was more terrifying.
"Come on, she's possessed by a demon," Mike said. "Of course she should be doing mysterious ritual shit next to her boyfriend. That's way scarier."
Katherine crossed her arms, leaning toward the first scenario. "Honestly? Just standing there, staring at you while you sleep, completely silent? That's the most terrifying thing I can think of."
Even Mike felt a chill run down his spine when she said it like that, though he tried not to show it.
Marcus smiled as he watched them debate. Honestly, he thought both scenarios were scary and would fit Paranormal Activity perfectly. The first scenario was the original scene from his previous life's version of the film.
He glanced at Arya, Amy, and Ryan off to the side. "What do you guys think? Which one's scarier?"
Arya tapped her chin thoughtfully. "If I'm being honest? Both are scary."
"Yeah, same," Ryan agreed.
"Me too. Just talking about both of them is already creeping me out." Amy rubbed her shoulders.
Even Katherine and Mike, despite their different preferences, couldn't argue with that.
"Alright, if that's the case, let's combine both scenarios for the scene." Marcus stood up.
Katherine tilted her head, though her eyes showed interest. "Well, I guess that could work."
"Haha, yeah. Combining them solves everything. I'm cool with that." Mike chuckled.
They'd finally agreed, and filming could proceed. But before they started, Arya approached Marcus quietly.
"Hey, got a sec?" she asked.
Marcus turned. "What's up?"
Arya hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah. There's something I need to tell you. About school."
"Oh, school?" Marcus assumed she wanted to discuss studying, but they were working right now. "Let's talk about that later. Don't worry though, I haven't forgotten about my—"
"It's not about that." Arya shook her head and got to the point. "There's a rumor spreading about you. Not just in our class—the whole school."
Marcus paused. His eyebrows raised slightly. "Oh? What kind of rumor?" He looked calm, but internally he was cautious. 'What could it be? A rumor about me could be trouble.'
Arya explained: students thought he and Katherine were in a "secret relationship."
Marcus didn't know whether to laugh or be annoyed. "That's ridiculous. Who's spreading that?"
"Well, you have been getting pretty close to her lately. People assume things." Arya shrugged.
Marcus nodded in understanding. Yeah, he'd been seen with Katherine a lot recently. That would definitely spark gossip.
Still, he couldn't worry about that right now. The filming was more important—finishing the project was what mattered.
He was especially focused today, thanks to the Focus Potion he'd bought from the system earlier. It sharpened his concentration significantly.
"We'll deal with the rumors later. Right now, let's focus on filming, alright?" Marcus gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure it'll die down on its own anyway. Nothing to worry about."
Arya nodded. That made sense. With that settled, she turned her attention back to the shoot. She grabbed the boom mic and moved into position.
Ryan adjusted the lighting in the bedroom and double-checked the camera angles. Meanwhile, Marcus helped Katherine attach the wire rig to one of her ankles.
This was for the scene where she'd get dragged down by an unseen entity. Katherine had rehearsed it twice already, with Marcus and Amy positioned under the bed, ready to yank her down hard and fast.
"Alright, you ready for this?" Marcus asked gently, making sure she was prepared. "You were pretty sore after the last time. I'll try to be more gentle, but I still need to pull hard enough to make it look real."
"We've already done this twice. I can handle it," Katherine said confidently. "Just make sure your grip is firm and the timing is right."
Marcus nodded. "Yeah, if we don't get the rhythm down, it won't work. You just need to relax and trust me when I start pulling."
"I know. Just give me the signal before you do it," Katherine said.
Mike's eyebrows shot up. "Wait, hold on. Can you two hear yourselves right now?"
Marcus blinked. "What?"
"She needs to 'relax and trust you' when you start 'pulling'?" Mike grinned. "And you're gonna be 'more gentle' this time but still need to 'pull hard'? And she was 'sore' from last time?"
Katherine's face turned bright red. "We're talking about the STUNT!"
Mike put his hands up innocently. "Hey, I'm not saying anything. I'm just listening to you guys talk about your... 'rehearsals.'"
Off to the side, Ryan and Arya were trying not to laugh. Arya covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking.
Amy jumped in, unable to resist. "And apparently his 'grip' needs to be 'firm' with the right 'timing'?"
"Oh my God, STOP!" Katherine buried her face in her hands, completely mortified.
"You guys are terrible!" Marcus shook his head, but he couldn't help smirking a little.
Mike was still grinning. "I mean, if I walked in just now without context, I'd be thinking something completely different was going on."
"We're FILMING A MOVIE!" Katherine protested.
"Sure, sure. That's what they all say," Mike teased.
Marcus just shook his head, watching everyone crack up despite the fact they were about to shoot one of the scariest scenes in the film. 'Damn. I'm gonna miss this when we wrap.'
He sighed quietly, then gestured for everyone to get in position. He crawled under the bed with Amy beside him. They'd pull the wire rig on cue.
Under the bed was wider than most, but it was still cramped. Marcus and Amy were pressed close together in the confined space.
The playboy in Marcus told him to take advantage of the situation—make a subtle move, say something flirty. But reason told him to focus on the film. He was the director. This was his project.
He was tempted, but the Focus Potion he'd taken earlier kept him sharp. Still, he couldn't help some unconscious actions—like how close their faces were. Close enough to feel her breath.
"It's pretty cramped in here," Amy whispered.
Her breath brushed against his face, making the hairs on his neck stand up.
"You okay?" she asked, concern in her eyes.
Marcus whispered back, "Yeah, I'm fine. You good?"
His breath seemed to affect her too. She looked a bit shy. "Yeah. I'm fine."
Marcus smiled at how quiet her voice had become. Then he caught the scent of her hair. Something floral. Clean.
"Your hair smells nice. What shampoo do you use?" he asked, genuinely curious.
She hesitated, then answered shyly. "Um... Herbal Essences. The rose one."
Even though they should've been focused solely on the movie, Marcus was enjoying this situation way too much. He didn't want it to end. He wanted to stay close to her.
But all good things come to an end. Ryan gave the cue. Marcus and Amy pulled hard on the wire rig, and Katherine was yanked down to the floor, sliding swiftly under the bed.
She crashed right into them, making the already tight space even more cramped.
"Oh God, sorry! I couldn't control my fall." Katherine apologized to both of them, wedged awkwardly between Marcus and Amy.
"You're fine. Not your fault," Marcus said. Honestly? He wasn't complaining. Pressed between two beautiful women in a confined space? He'd take it.
After a moment of awkward shuffling, Katherine crawled out from under the bed. She moved to the center of the room and began the ritual scene—sitting cross-legged in a meditative pose, chanting unsettling, unrecognizable words in a low, eerie tone.
When she finished, she stood slowly and walked to Mike's side of the bed. She just stood there. Staring down at him. Motionless. Silent.
It took several minutes, but eventually Marcus called cut. They all gathered around the laptop to review the footage.
Whenever there was room for improvement, Marcus would call for a retake—and honestly, he was more than willing. Being squeezed under that bed with Amy was way more fun than he'd admit out loud. So when he pointed out minor flaws that required another take, he kept his face serious while the team groaned quietly.
Inside, though? He was grinning like an idiot.
'Perks of being thirty-something in a teenager's body', he thought.
Unfortunately, the actors and crew were too good at their jobs. By the second retake, they'd nailed it. Marcus felt a twinge of disappointment as they moved on to the next scenes.
They filmed for hours. By 7 PM, they'd wrapped for the day. Arya and Ryan headed home, but Katherine and Mike stayed behind while Marcus cooked dinner for everyone in the kitchen.
Around that time, Nathan came home from the studio. He walked into the dining room and found them sitting around the table, deep in conversation about the film.
"Hey, guys. How'd filming go?" Nathan nodded at everyone. He was used to this scene by now—his son had been shooting his feature film for almost a week straight.
"What's up, Nathan," Mike said casually.
Nathan pulled out a chair and sat down. "So, seriously—how was it today? Everything go smooth?"
"Yeah, it went really well," Katherine said. "Actually, better than well. I think the scene we shot today is gonna stick with people. Like, it's genuinely unsettling."
Nathan's eyebrows raised with interest. "Oh yeah?"
Mike nodded. "Yeah, man. We reviewed the footage, and I'm not gonna lie—it creeped me out even though I was in it and I know none of it's real."
"No kidding?" Nathan looked genuinely intrigued. He glanced over at Marcus, who was eating quietly with this subtle, confident expression on his face. "If these two are praising it, it must be pretty damn good."
He leaned back in his chair. "And honestly, I've been peeking at some of the footage here and there. The direction's actually interesting." He paused. "But don't let it go to your head. Could just be beginner's luck."
Marcus chuckled. "Beginner's luck? I'm not like you, Dad."
"Whoa!" Mike's eyes went wide. Katherine looked equally surprised.
They both knew Marcus was taking a shot at Nathan's directing career. But Nathan just laughed and fired back, clearly used to this kind of sparring with his son.
"Oh, so you think you're hot shit already, huh?"
And just like that, the back-and-forth started. Katherine and Mike sat there watching the whole thing unfold.
The more they watched, the more obvious it became—Marcus and his dad were cut from the same cloth. Same mannerisms, same quick comebacks, same stubborn streak. They were basically carbon copies of each other.
And neither of them seemed to realize it. Only outsiders could see it clearly.
---
The next day was Saturday, so they started filming much earlier. With the whole day ahead of them, they knocked out all the necessary scenes. Nathan even stuck around to watch.
In fact, Nathan got so hooked on Paranormal Activity that he started throwing out suggestions here and there. Marcus responded differently depending on the idea—some he went along with, others he politely ignored.
Nathan really didn't want to meddle too much. He knew this was his son's feature film, and he was only there to help if needed. But sometimes he just couldn't help himself. The damn movie was too interesting.
By Sunday, everyone knew this would be the final day of shooting if nothing went wrong. They started early, and after filming a few more scenes, it was finally time for the ending.
That's when Marcus surprised everyone.
"For the final scene, I've prepared multiple endings. And we're filming all of them."
Filming all the endings? No one had expected that. They'd assumed Marcus would pick one ending from the options he'd written and just shoot that. But filming every single one?
"Are you sure about this?" Katherine asked, clearly skeptical. "Won't that get confusing?"
"Yeah, we should just pick one and call it done," Mike added.
Even Arya, Amy, and Ryan—who knew next to nothing about filmmaking—suggested sticking with just one ending.
Nathan chimed in too. "Listen to your team, kid. Don't bite off more than you can chew. One solid ending is enough. Don't get ambitious and ruin what's actually turning into a damn good horror film." He said it genuinely—he truly believed in what his son was making.
Marcus looked around at everyone and smiled. "Who said we're filming all the endings and making it confusing? Of course we're only using one."
"Then why film all of them?" Katherine asked.
"Because we need to see which one works best," Marcus explained. "We'll film all the endings, but only one will be the real ending. The rest are just alternatives—backups in case the main one doesn't hit right."
"Oh." Mike nodded slowly. "That... actually makes sense."
Nathan crossed his arms, looking thoughtful. "Huh. Not a bad idea, actually."