Hey Jack, do you remember that one game? It was in the early 2010’s I think. I’m pretty sure we played it together. Maybe you showed it to me? I don’t quite remember.
This was back in the day so it wasn’t anything graphic. But it really scared us. It was one of those point and click kind of games. You clicked stuff and then you’d get a jumpscare. We played it like a million times.
You could only play the game between 6pm and 6am. I guess they wanted it to be dark when you played. We had to sneak down to my parents’ basement, where the computer was. We had to be quiet because my mom didn’t like me to use it when she wasn’t around. We would boot up the internet (oh god remember how long it took to load?!?!?) and then go to the game. I can’t remember what it was called. I think it had death in the name.
All the lights would be out and we were huddled together, hands over our mouths to keep from screaming. I’m sure you remember, but you went to the game page to play. When it started you were in the woods. You didn’t know who you were or how you got there. You wondered for a bit before you saw the house.
I remember you saying it looked a little like my house.
So we would go in and click around. The first time the story was about a house haunted by a ghost. Pretty standard stuff, but we were kids! It was so scary! Everywhere we clicked there was another ghost popping up to freak us out! I’m pretty sure I yelled too loud at the ending (we were ghosts all along) and my mom caught us.
Grounded for two weeks. Mom was such a bummer.
But the next time we played the story was totally different! This time we were a kid who got lost in the woods. It was the same house, of course. Wasn’t it weird how the knocker was the same as mine? That big sparrow with a nest?
This time the scares were a little more intense. Like the dad with the ax? Damn that gave me nightmares for weeks! Something about his face was super creepy. And then the decapitated mom walking around like everything was normal? What was up with that? Why did no one in that game realize what was going on? Why was everyone so blind to their reality?
I vividly remember the two sisters closing in on our character and all you could hear was sobbing. It wasn’t us, right?
Jack, can you see this? I’m not sure this is going through. Can you say something back to me?
I think the third time we played was at your place, right? Your dad just got you a computer. It was one of those big PCs with a giant monitor. It took so long to get online. But it was in your room, which was so cool. We were such nerds! We didn’t mind waiting as long as we could play flash games.
We went to the game page and for the first time it asked us to enter a name. You didn’t want to. Your dad told you not to tell strangers your name. I said it wasn’t a big deal and put my name in. After that we could play. This time we were blindfolded. We stumbled through the woods, hearing creepy sounds. Crunching bones and screams. I think you wanted to turn off the game but I said I wanted to at least reach the house. I liked the house. It felt like home.
The blindfold fell off (or maybe someone took it off? I can’t remember) and we were already in the house. The house was falling apart now. The furniture iwa broken. Mold was growing everywhere. It sounded like there were people in the rooms but we couldn’t see anyone. It was odd. It felt like we were in someone else’s dream. The weirdest part was when we clicked on a mirror and it showed a picture of me in the reflection. It must have taken a picture with the webcam. So clever, those old games!
But that old PC didn’t have a webcam…did it?
Jack?
Hey Jack, can you check on my mom for me? I’ve walked around for hours and I can’t find her. Sometimes I think I can hear her crying but it’s kind of quiet and I don’t see her.
I’m getting scared, Jack.
But I keep concentrating on those old games. We had a lot of fun. I really cherish those memories. It feels like it was just yesterday. How long has it been? A year? No, it must be more. Five years? Ten?
Am I really that old? I still feel like a kid.
There is a man in my house with an ax, Jack. He’s scaring me. .
Do you see him? Can you come check on me? I haven’t been outside in a long time. Actually…I haven’t seen the sun in a long time.
I think I clicked the wrong thing.
Jack, I think I got the bad ending.
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I was fooling around on my laptop today and visited an old flash game site I used to play with my best friend as a kid. This text is what I found there instead of the game. I went there because it was the anniversary of his disappearance. He vanished and no one knew what happened to him. I think I might know now.