The car rocked forward as Danny and Justin argued, grabbing each other’s necks with their words. “All I know is that this is Bri’s problem, not yours.” Justin said, averting his eyes from the rain-drenched window to look at Danny.

“It is my problem. As her best friend, it’s my obligation to make sure she’s okay.”

Justin shook his head. “That doesn’t mean you have to check up on her 24/7. I can’t even have a conversation with you anymore without you bringing her up.”

Tears cascaded over Danny’s face. He and Justin had been in a rough spot for six months. Danny was like Justin’s second best friend, but like an oversized sweater sleeve, he could slowly feel him drifting off as time went on. Justin had never been lenient towards Bri, and he thought her anxiety was just a hoax to make people feel bad for her. “You need to let go of her. She’s dragging you down with her.” A yell escaped Justin’s mouth as Danny slammed his hands on the seats, the sound against the leather reverberated through the car.

Vincent turned his body away from the wheel, smacking Danny on the knee. “Both of you stop it! I’m tired of you two always arguing over Bri. Justin, you need to understand that Bri can’t control her anxiety. It’s serious. Though you believe it to be a joke, it’s not.”

“Yeah.” Danny said, his face turning a vintage red color.

“Danny, Justin has a point, though. You can’t make everything about Bri. We’re your friends, too.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll try to do better.”

From the time Vincent had stopped Danny from disfiguring Justin’s face, they had arrived at the corn maze.

Swarms of teenagers ran across the field, talking to their old church buddies. Bri, as usual, didn’t know anybody there. Except for Danny, Justin, and Vincent, she had no other friends. She wished to have more, but her legs turned into Jell-O whenever she tried to talk to people other than her close group of friends.

There was no dew to be found on the dried blades of grass on the field. It was too humid for November, and Bri’s skin was baking under the sun. The plastic of the slide she was sitting on was hotter, but she preferred it over the scratchy grass. Her ombre baby hairs clung to her forehead. Leaves from the trees traversed through the wind.

Danny hastened to grab Bri. Individual rays from the sun illuminated his blonde hair, swinging in the wind. “Have you ever been on a hayride?” Danny asked. Bri squinted, noticing a clique of teenagers climbing up a white -now stained from cow manure- wagon, with a truck pulling it. She flared her nostrils as a foul stench infiltrated her nose. “You want me to go on that?” The wagon was slowly filling with more teenagers, and Bri, anxious to not have to ride with them, hoped that it would be full soon. “C’mon,” Danny tugged at her arm, “It’ll be fun.”

Without a “deal”, Danny took off with Bri, nearly dislocating her arm. Stabbing pains spread through her feet, which, if Danny ran any faster, would be above the ground. When her heart started beating faster than her blood was moving, she knew it was time to slow down. “Danny, stop it! You’re hurting me.” The sudden halt in motion as Danny stopped running made her body fly forward, but Danny caught her before she could fall. “Sorry, do you need time to breathe?”

“No, let’s just walk.”

The noise from the teens diminished, and the only sound Danny heard was the rustle of the leaves crunching under their feet. He usually hated the sound of quiet, but right now, the sound of the silence that flowed between them was bringing them closer together, and he was content with that. He reached over to grab Bri’s hand, gently brushing it. She moved it away. “It’s too hot for hand-holding today, sorry.” Bri complained. Cumulus splayed across the sky, hiding the sun from their faces. Danny rejoiced at this, saying, “Can I hold your hand now?”

Bri shook her head, sniffing in the muggy air. “On the count of three we’re going to race to that truck. 1-2-“ Bri took off, adrenaline pumping through her body. She and Danny had played this game many times before. One would count to two, and then the other would take off. Danny knew that he could outrun Bri any day, but he wanted to let her win for once.

Shivers crawled up Bri’s arms as she got into the wagon, the smell of hormonal teens permeating throughout it. “Don’t worry, I’m right behind you.” Danny exclaimed while sitting down next to her. Bales of hay lined the wagon, leaving an empty space in the middle. Mounds of rust-colored leaves accumulated around the truck every time Bri looked up. A red maple tree stood on the left side of her, leaves fleeing from its branches in a rapid succession. But the tree wasn’t bare yet; more leaves were on its branches than when they first started falling.

Tapping on Danny, Bri said, “Do you see those leaves falling?” Danny looked over the side of the wagon, noticing the leaves that had fallen. “That’s what fall is for. Don’t worry about it.” Danny laughed. Half of the leaves from the tree had fallen by now, but the branches still had an ample amount on them.

By the afternoon, the sky had merged into a pale pink, with a sheet of tangerine painted over it. The leaves were coming at a faster pace. Weakened by being around demoniac teens for hours, an unshaven man walked to the fence in front of the corn maze. “Who’s ready for a corn maze?” He asked in the most unenthusiastic tone he could muster. “Each of you will be assigned to a group, haters, hunters, or hiders. Hunters, you catch hiders. Haters, you catch hunters. And hiders don’t make too much noise. Spread out if you want to be with your friends. You will be separated by groups. The one’s, the hiders, will meet with Bryce. The two’s, the hunters, will meet with Hazel. And the threes, the haters, will meet with me.” As a plump woman walked around, counting each person, masses of the teens separated from their cliques. The woman walked by Bri, telling her that she would be a one. Vincent swiveled around when he saw Bri. “Thank goodness you’re here. I almost thought I’d have no one in my group that I know,” he paused, “Hey, where’s Danny?”

“Uh, I think he’s in group two.”

Jumping on the fence, the unshaven man announced, “Hunters, you will have a glow bracelet for identification. Haters, you will have a glow necklace. Hiders, you have no identification.” The plump woman went around handing out the identification accessories. “Hiders, you have a thirty second head start, go!”

The parched stalks of corn brushed Bri’s face as she sprinted into them, Vincent on her tail. She spat when the silk of a spider web covered her mouth. “Shhh.” Vincent said. Bri fought with the spider web, clutching it in her hand, spitting out whatever could be in her mouth. “What do you mean, shhh? A spider’s baby could be crawling on the inside of me” Vincent rolled his eyes.

Vincent vigorously yanked Bri down. “Stay low.” He whispered as a flashlight overlooked their crouching bodies. Pain surged through the tip of her finger. “Ouch!” She cried.

“What’s wrong?” Vincent slapped his hand over her mouth.

“My finger, something went through it.”

Vincent switched the flashlight on, examining a small stub of wood that had dug deep into her finger. “It’s a splinter.”

“Get it out, please.” Vincent pinched her finger. Blood surfaced at the top.

“This is going to hurt.” He tugged out the piece of wood.

“Thank you. I would’ve screamed had it been in longer.”

“Does it hurt?”

“Just a little bit, but I’m fine.”

Vincent and Bri emerged from the maze when they heard a siren. This round of man hunt had ended. Upon seeing him standing at the fence, Bri ran into his arms, saying, “It feels like I haven’t seen you in hours,” she said as his emerald eyes cut through her, “I was wondering where you wandered off to.”

“I got caught at the beginning of the round.” Vincent appeared behind Bri. “Vincent, how was the corn maze?”

“It was great, but Bri got a splinter.” Danny immediately turned her hand over.

“Goodness, are you alright?”

“Yeah, but has anyone seen Justin?” Danny and Vincent shook their heads.

The teens continued running around, chasing each other through dehydrated corn stalks, while Danny, Bri, and Vincent continued to search for Justin. Bri whipped her hair around when she heard the sound of shuffling feet. “What’s wrong?” Danny asked.

“I think there’s someone or something following us.” Sweat gathered at the palms of her hands.

“It’s probably the leaves,” Vincent reassured her. But the same tree she had seen at the hayride was no longer dropping leaves. The leaves she saw falling were a maple brown color, and they were falling faster.

“No, I think it means something-“ Bri’s foot smashed into a wooden platform that had once been covered by leaves. She suspected that the wood had been weathered by the constant rain and the heat of the sun from the cracks running across its surface. “What is it? Vincent asked. Bri knelt down, feeling the fuzzy green moss held deep within its crevices. She let her fingers skim across the surface until she felt a hole. Her hand drifted along the outskirts of wood that had been cut into a perfect rectangle, finding three more holes of the same size. “Uh,” she hesitated, “I think that we might’ve found a hidden passage.”

“A hidden passage?” Danny mocked. “This is so cliché that it’s funny.” He immediately choked back his laughter when Vincent’s humorless face convinced him that this was serious. “I suggest that we find whatever is under there.” Vincent said while wiggling his eyebrows. Bri could already see her death certificate being signed. Danny shrugged. “I guess so. It’s worth the surprise that we won’t find. This ‘hidden passage’ is obvious.”

“Why haven’t you found it before now, then?”

“Well, I-“ Danny mumbled.

“Exactly, you didn’t.” Vincent turned around, focusing his attention on the wooden platform.

“It’s going to take all of our strength to lift that.” Bri exclaimed.

The calluses on their fingers peeled off like oranges as chips of wood jumped into them, burrowing further into their skin. Danny held his bloodstained fingers to his face, screaming, “Vincent! This isn’t worth this much pain.” Vincent continued digging, blowing Danny off. He didn’t respond until he felt the searing pain of the yellow wood glue on his fingers. “If you’d just shut up, we might be able to get this off.” The wood began to lift, and before Danny could say anything, an empty rectangle in the ground stood before them. “So, who volunteers to go first?” Vincent asked. Bri chimed in, “Me!”

“You?” Danny’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Yes. Push me in if you have to.”

“If you say so.” Vincent said, pushing her in.

Darkness enveloped Bri as she fell for what seemed like hours. In those moments, she heard the distant sound of her heart thumping against her chest drawing closer. It was as if the world were a rug and it had been snatched from under her feet. Fear pushed itself up her chest, crawling like a spider up her neck. Her throat swelled as it clogged her glottis. She landed, her sobs turning into screams. Upon hearing this, Danny jumped in. He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Who’s there?” She screamed, lunging towards him. “It’s me, Danny.” She grabbed

him as her chest began to loosen. A warmth filled his chest as he felt the rhythm of Bri’s heart against his. He was just as scared as her.

“How long have I been falling?” Bri whispered.

“You hit the ground in a few seconds.”

“It felt like longer.”

“Your emotions got the best of you,” he paused, “Bri, I love you.”

“I-” She took back her words. “I’m sorry I always ruin your shirts.”

“It’s fine.” He looked down at her, wishing that she could see the sadness that had just exerted its weight on his back.

Ruining the moment, Vincent plopped down next to them, shining the flashlight in their faces. “Oh, thank God. I almost thought you guys were kissing.” Realizing a pair of grimy shoes with a pamphlet next to them, Danny clutched his hand to his face, saying, “Aren’t these Justin’s shoes?” Vincent grinned. “I don’t know, Danny. Maybe you can tell us how his shoes are here and why he’s not. You’re the one who was arguing with him in the car.”

“Whoa,” Bri said as she shot up from the ground, “What happened in the car?”

“Vincent, this isn’t the right time.” Danny said, holding his hand out.

“Isn’t it? It seems like no time is ever the right time for you. Why don’t you just make amends with Justin?”

Danny rolled his tongue in his cheek before saying, “He won’t respect Bri. And if he can’t do that, then I can’t be friends with him.”

Vincent tried not to laugh, saying, “You’re really going to stop being friends with him because he disrespected one of your friends?”

Danny balled his fists together. “My best friend. I wouldn’t mind if it was you.”

“Maybe if Bri could learn how to hold her emotions together you and Justin wouldn’t be this way.”

“Shut up! You guys are acting like you’re ten. Have we completely forgotten about Justin?”

Vincent laughed. “I’m surprised you’re not crying over me calling you emotionally unstable.”

Bri snatched the flashlight from Vincent’s hands. “It takes a lot to break me. Anyways, this pamphlet could be the answer to where Justin is.”

Everyone had left for the night, and Justin didn’t bother calling anyone. Hay pricked his shoeless feet as he walked through the maze. Night had fallen, and he had no flashlight with him. He grabbed his phone from his back pocket, quickly realizing that it was at a deathly low percentage. Shoving it in his back pocket, he continued to scan maze. The hay whispered in the breeze.

Justin rebounded off of a spongy surface that held the odor of an onion. He tried holding up his phone to see what had made him fall, but the insufficient amount of light that his low-battery phone provided wasn’t enough. A blinding light from above shone in his face. Then, the creature holding up the flashlight held it to their face. Removing the straw mask covering its face, a man towered six feet above Justin, observing him closely. His beer-filled belly was what had made Justin fall. He had closely cropped hair on both sides of his head, but the middle was bald. “We’re going to be friends.” The man said in a monotonous voice.

Vincent and Danny put their heads on Bri’s shoulders when she picked up the lightweight pamphlet from the ground. A thin sheet of dust covered the surface, which made her wonder how long Justin had been gone. On the front page stood a picture of a scrawny boy, about six or seven, with a straw scarecrow mask covering his face. “Who puts a straw mask over their face for fun?” Vincent blurted out. Bri began reading the passage beneath the picture of the boy. “Ever since this picture of Sylvester Denoid got taken twenty years ago, fifteen deaths have been reported on his account. The locations of the bodies he has discarded of is unknown. During one of his interrogations, he stated, ‘I was rejected as a child. I tried to get people to be my friends, but they all referred to me as a freak. Eventually, I started using this mask and dressing as a scarecrow. I learned the art of standing still. Then, I began taking people captive as my friends. And if they tried to escape, I’d kill them.’ Mr. Denoid was a very open with his responses. Though he’s been in prison three times before, we have not been able to catch him in ten years.”

The pamphlet slipped from Bri’s hands as she ran around the room, searching for a way to get out. Danny picked up Justin’s shoes, saying, “If Danny escaped this place, then how come the main opening was bolted down? And why are his shoes here?”

“Maybe he had to take his shoes off in order to fit into a secret passage.” Vincent said.

“Out of all people, I can’t believe that this is coming out of your mouth.” They turned around to the creaking of wood. “Vincent’s right.” Bri said as she dropped the block of wood that had been turned slightly inside of the wall.

Sylvester ripped a piece of red cloth from his shirt, bounding together Justin’s hands. Keeping a firm grip on them, he plodded through the field with him, dragging him to the hidden passage. The sound of leaves swirling around his feet ebbed as a sudden realization flooded his mind. His hiding place had been discovered. The maple leaves that covered it had been removed, and all that was left was an empty rectangle with a bottomless looking pit.

These thoughts tugged at Sylvester’s mind like a pestering toddler until he felt the subtle bending of Justin’s body on his stomach, becoming more evident when he thrust his elbow into his gut. A guttural sound escaped his mouth. He grabbed his hands tighter this time, saying, “So, you think you’re going somewhere tonight, don’t you?” He pulled Justin close as he jumped into the pit. “Oh, so that’s where your shoes went.” He said, looking over to Justin’s shoes. With the moonlight being directly above them, he saw the book Justin had been reading before he went into the maze. “How’d you find this?” He said, eyeing him suspiciously.

“From there.” Justin pointed to the empty space inside of the wall that he had escaped through.

“You know too much. Anybody who knows this much about me must be killed.”

A pocket of pain bursted in Justin’s stomach as fear surged through his body, but he kept his face emotionless. “Listen,” he said in a placid tone, “if you want someone to be your friend, I know a girl named Bri. She has ombre hair, and pretty light green eyes. One has a birthmark in it, which makes her appear fierce. She’s a pain in the-”

“I don’t want her as a friend! I want you.”

“Me? I’m the most uninteresting person you’ll ever meet.”

“Really? We think the same. I like that.”

“I’m not going to be your friend.”

Sylvester grinned. “You might want to think twice about that.”

“No.”

“Either I kill you, or you do something for me.” Sylvester had his head turned to a cabinet by then, unlocking it. A murky green liquid trickled over the side of his mouth when he turned around, knife in hand. Justin’s heart began beating in uneven intervals as Sylvester’s stomach started swelling. He quickly realized that this liquid had been the cause of it.

“You’re going to drink this.”

Justin’s face contorted as he observed the slimy green liquid.

“What does it do?”

“You’ll see.” Sylvester burped. He put two fingers at the back of his throat, pulpy hay falling from his mouth.

Sylvester lifted the bottle to Justin’s mouth. He sputtered as the liquid- slimy as mucus- crawled down his throat. His eyes rolled to the back of his head. Everything turned white for a moment, then his vision flooded orange, brown, purple, and green; obscuring a message he couldn’t see until the end of his transformation. His mind went swimming through a cloudy river, trying to find the word. Algae flew into his eyes, the message getting farther away. A four letter word flickered in front of his eyes: K-i-l-l. His mouth foamed, hay coming out. He looked down to his fingers. Scratchy hay protruded from them. The sound of a teetering chair brought him back to reality. “Wake up, man. You’re-” Justin’s hands broke free of the cloth binding them together. The air in Sylvester’s lungs rushed out as Justin’s hands closed around his neck like a venus fly trap. His eyes bulged out from his head. His vision blurred, and in a few seconds, Sylvester knew no more.

Vincent panted as his head popped through the dampened soil in the maze. But why would this hidden passage lead to the maze, he thought. He was the largest out of Danny and Bri, so he had to writhe through the passage with difficulty. Danny and Bri sat hand in hand, observing the stars that tore through the royal purple of the sky. Bri had always been prepared for the worst. And tonight. as she sat in silence with Danny, she had the feeling that soon, this fantasy of them being together would disappear.

“So, what comes after this?” She said, breaking the silence.

Danny bounced back as he heard the popping of a joint. The leaves twirled in the currents of the wind as the dirt erupted from the ground. Justin’s soot-covered head popped out of the hole that had been dug by Vincent.

“Let’s be friends.” Justin growled. Channeling a different part of himself, the one who wanted to take back what he had said about Bri, he almost mutely whispered, “Bri, I’m so sorry,” a tear rolling down his cheek he said, “This will be over soon.”

“For wha-” Bri became light-headed as the walls of her ribcage compressed together. Justin wedged his hands into the sides of her stomach, hay scratching her skin. Her eyelids closed. She heard the sound of a cracking neck. Justin let go. Red and green lights flashed on the insides of her eyes as her body collapsed to the ground.

Bri awoke to a thumping sound. Her vision blurred. All that she could make out was a leg slamming into someone’s side. It grew louder, and louder, and louder until she became deaf to it. Air began to slowly return to her lungs. Then, the person who had been getting kicked craned their neck to the side, smiling at her one last time. Before she could stand, Justin had burrowed back into the ground. The air that she had just gained rushed out of her as she fell over the bodies

of Danny and Vincent. A weight in her stomach lifted as she heard oxygen return to Danny. His eyes shot open, startling her. His smile reminded her of lying in pastures, watching the clouds take on different shapes. Whatever her mind would imagine. He reached out his hand to stroke her face. She took a mental image of the way he lie at the moment, coils of his hair rolled across the grass, the moonlight touching the dimples of his cheeks as he smiled, happy to know that he knew a girl like Bri. His chest rose as he breathed out one last time. His hand went limp, falling from her face. She lifted herself off of Danny, wiping away the tears that blurred her vision. She saw the flashlight Vincent had carried. Grabbing it, she walked to the secret passage. It flickered on. Justin turned around, guilty as charged.