*Ashley's Point Of View*
"Oh God! It's like--" My mouth went dry and I could't speak.
"It's not 'like' anything. That's us." Chris sounded annoyed.
I had unlocked and opened the dollhouse to reveal eight dolls; six in the downstairs room and two upstairs. They were all undressed and with black, painted-on eyes that made them seem demonic. It wasn't the eyes that unsettled me, it was the way they were arranged in the house. The two upstairs were slouched on the couch, as if they were passed out, and they looked eerily like Chris and Josh. The ones downstairs made me visibly cringe.
It was the scene from the prank last year. Mike stood at the center of the room, while Matt held the camera and the rest of us sat and watched. When I saw the doll that was supposed to be Hannah I almost broke down in tears. She stood looking towards us, with a makeshift spotlight on her from one of our flashlights. I searched in my pocket and gripped Abby's beanie tightly, searching for comfort.
"This was set up by someone. Who was there. It has to be." Chris was angry, desperate, exhausted, and devastated all at once. It was clear by the way he spoke and acted, trying desperately to find a logical explanation to this.
"Or someone, or something that was watching us..." It could have been Hannah's ghost, or worse, the psycho that killed Josh.
"I think someone put this here to mess with us. It has to be the maniac trying to fuck with our heads." Chris immediately discarded the ghost option, taking refuge in his logic.
"Why would he set all this up?" I wanted to believe that there was no ghost, I tried to also take refuge in the logic, but after what I just witnessed that seemed impossible.
"He's trying to tell us he's going to come after us all too." His gaze darkened and I held back a sob. Chris wasn't taking refuge, he was facing cruel reality.
As if on cue, the doll that represented Hannah snapped her eyes open, scaring me and Chris half to death. We jumped back and just then the roof of the dollhouse opened, revealing a few personal items inside and a pink little notebook; Hannah's diary. Slowly I reached out and grabbed it, looking at Chris before opening it and reading the last few entries.
"Mom Finally agreed. The invitations are out! The party is gonna happen!! I hate that I have to wait :( So far Ash, Matt, Sam and Abby have said definitely yes. Nothing from Mike... :(
O.M.G!! Mike confirmed!! He phoned Josh this afternoon :D
Woohoo! PARTY TIME tomorrow! Everyone being here together on the mountain is gonna be SO AWESOME, cozy fires and hot tubs and OMG MIKE! I am so psyched to spend some time with him! Totally got to stop obsessing but I can't help it - and don't want to :)"
This was too sad, it broke me apart. I slammed the diary closed and put it back in its place. Chris patted my back in a comforting way, but I lightly pushed him away. I didn't deserve that, it was partly my fault the Washingtons were dead. I heard the faint click of a lock become undone coming from where the painting had dropped. The door then creaked open, getting Chris' attention.
He quickly walked over to the door and I hesitated only a second before following him, scared of what was awaiting us through the door. I didn't clearly see what happened next. Chris pushed the door open and waited a second before walking in. I had barely caught up with him when something jumped out at us through the doorway and caused me to recoil in horror and Chris to jump forward to the rescue into the room. The door then slammed, separating us.
"Oh! Chris! Chris!" I didn't want to be alone in this place, not with that maniac lurking round. The door wouldn't budge from my side and I felt the insanity, the guilt, and the desperation grow like a lurking shadow in my mind. The doorknob then turned from the other side and Chris was there, safe and real. I hugged him tightly and he just stood there for a second before returning the hug. He let go first, and I hesitantly followed suit, pointing my flashlight all over the unknown room.
