The Box

It was an annual tradition for the outgoing high school class to have a bonfire and tell scary stories the night before graduation. Chloe sat opposite Tucker, self-proclaimed fear immune, who insisted that none of the stories were scary. He interrupted most of them with jokes, or spoiled the endings of ones he'd heard before.

It was Chloe's turn, and she was making one up on the fly, ignoring Tucker's interruptions and speaking softly to entice the others to listen closely and shush him for her. Always a wallflower, she hated the attention, but right now needed to make the most of it.

"...as soon as the old wooden box arrived at the doorstep, Mia knew the time had come. She took it inside and set it on the table, putting it in front of her husband. She untied his arm and gave him a choice; tell her the truth, or prove he was not lying.

'The box is magic from Old Country,' she told him, 'Separates truth from lies. An honest man does not fear it, but a liar will suffer fate worse than death.' She pushed it closer, a hole big enough for a hand on the top surface. He tried to look inside but saw only darkness. The man's confidence was his undoing though, and he gave her a defiant look and put his hand in the box."

Chloe was not great at making up a scary story so she went for visceral instead, describing every prick, pinch, and cut of the hand, breaking out near the end to her own dramatic scream of pain. She was happy to see Tucker flinch at it.

Letting the silence fill the air for a few extended moments, Chloe pulled a box out of her backpack. Polished wood with a black hole carved out of the top, big enough for a hand to fit.

"Tucker," Chloe started to walk around the bonfire towards him, "You were saying the box was fake?"

"Oooooo," one of the other guys that usually joked around with him called, "She callin' you out!"

"Pfft," Tucker said, standing up and rolling his shoulders. Chloe noticed his fingers flexing at his sides, as if he were fidgeting with a pen. He looked around the fire, a nervous smile on his face as he tried to say something. Probably a joke or a snarky remark.

Chloe held out the box, her heart racing in excitement. She lowered her head towards the dark wood, tilting it so that the gaping black hole was facing him. The fire light was hitting the side of the box, making the hole seem darker by contrast. "Go ahead," Chloe said, her voice as even as she could make it, "Put your hand in."

She wished that she could read his mind, to see what he was thinking. Did he fear pain? Did he fear a prank? Embarrassment? Her eyes were on Tucker's face the entire time, watching it shift through a multitude of emotions. None of them were an expression of confidence.

"Screw this," he said, smacking the box out of her hand and walking away, "I'm over this kid shit." A couple of his friends got up, jeering him and making fun of him for wussing out. Chloe watched them walk away into the darkness before picking up the box and laughing.

"What was in it?" someone asked.

"Exactly what Tucker's afraid of," Chloe said, pulling the latch from the side and swinging the box open. She turned it towards the fire to show everyone it was empty, "Nothing."

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WC: 597
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