The Backrooms

Part 0: Level 0 (The Lobby)

"So why are we near the back of this Chinese restaurant again?" I asked.

My childhood friend, Clarence sighed. "I told you, we're going to see the Backrooms. I know they exist. There's too many stories about it."

"Is this because you keep reading about it on 4chan?"

He shoved me playfully. "Maybe. You know how much I love browsing that site."

"Exactly. It's a website. Most of the stories on there are fake. Can't we just go back to my place? It's late anyway, and the restaurant will be closing soon," I told him.

"It's just a bit further," he said. "When we see that old yellow wallpaper, that'll be where the entrance is."

"What does yellow wallpaper have to do with—"

"Nice! I found it!" Clarence said, startling me.

He had walked ahead of me, holding a flashlight so he could see better.

"Look! I told you!"

I looked at the old and moist wallpaper. It was a pale yellow, and it didn't seem to match the rest of the place. It looked...off. Like it was a glitch.

"What is that?" I asked. "It looks...weird."

"It's the entrance obviously. If we look hard enough, we might be able to find a way in."

I watch as Clarence started to feel against the wall. He patted the wet and old wallpaper.

"Hey, aren't you going to help me?" he asked.

I sighed and walked over to him.
I guess I could entertain him for a little while, I thought.

I put my hand on the yellow wall, it felt oddly cold. And wet. It was disgusting. Like it hadn't been replaced in years.

"Ugh. This is gross, why can't we just—"

Before I could finish my sentence, I felt my hand go through the wall. I panicked as I was pulled by an invisible force. The last thing I knew, I fell onto the ground.

When I opened my eyes, I was somewhere else. The room I was in had many hallways, twists and turns. And it didn't look like there was an exit anywhere.

It was lit in a yellowish color by the old fluorescent lights that buzzed and flickered overhead. This place looked strangely familiar. Like it was from a dream.

I slowly got to my feet and looked around. I didn't hear or see anyone.

"Hello? Clarence?" I called.

No one answered.

"Come on," I said. "This prank isn't funny. I want to get out of here."

Again, I was only met by silence.

"Ugh, fine. I guess I'll have to find my own way out," I said to myself.

As I walked forward, I saw something was scribbled on the wall in sloppy handwriting.

'Level 0: The Lobby'

I stared at it, confused.
"There's levels? That's just great."

I continued to walk around, taking in the strange, yet familiar scenery. There were so many hallways that I thought I was going in circles. Then I eventually came across a handwritten arrow pointing forward. I followed it until I was facing a wall that had the same sloppy writing on it. I read what it said.

'Don't move. They're watching you.'

"What in the world...?"

I looked around and didn't see or hear anything.

I shrugged. "This is some kind of sick and elaborate prank. I swear I'm going to kill Clarence once I find my way out of this maze."

As soon as I took a few more steps forward, I heard an awful screaming sound, followed by the noise of things being knocked over. I instantly started to run the opposite direction, but I could heard the sound behind me. I didn't dare look back. I focused on running. I soon found myself lost, and there was nowhere to hide. The screeching sound was getting closer and closer. I saw a small gap in the hallway and hid, hearing the loud and pounding footsteps. They became so loud that it started to hurt my ears. I could tell that whatever was chasing me was walking past me. And I finally got a glimpse of what it was.

It had dangling long arms, slimy legs, a distorted head that didn't look human, and a long skinny body. It looked alien, and it was way taller than any human.

I held my breath as the thing passed me, shaking the entire room. I waited for a few more minutes before I got the courage to look around. I didn't see the strange creature anymore, but I could still hear the loud footsteps in the distance. I started to look for a place to escape, but I was only met by numerous hallways. I started to walk around aimlessly again, keeping an eye on any ways to escape this frightening place.

After what seemed like hours, I finally found a ladder. There was a small hole in the upper wall that looked wide enough for me to slip through it. I slowly climbed the ladder, being careful not to fall. Once I got to the top, I took through the hole in the wall. It was pitch black and I couldn't see an exit.

"There has to be an exit. Maybe it's through here..."

I slid my body through the hole and began to crawl forward. I was surrounded by darkness for ages. And when I finally saw some light, I felt so relieved. As I was crawling out of the hole, I fell to ground.

I groaned in pain as I got to my feet again. I looked around and saw that I was in a different place, but it wasn't the exit. On the wall to my right I saw something written in the same, familiar sloppy handwriting.

'Level 1: The Habitable Zone'