Maris sat frozen in front of her screen, eyes locked onto the message.
You were supposed to forget me, Maris. But you didn't.
Her pulse quickened. The words felt like they came from nowhere—like a whisper from a place she never wanted to visit. The air in the room suddenly felt heavy. She leaned forward, heart pounding in her chest, scanning the message over and over again. Her hands trembled slightly as she tried to process the unsettling words. The kind of words that pulled you into a dark alley, where every corner felt like something was lurking just beyond your vision. Cold sweat began dropping from her forehead. Goosebumps began to arise throughtout her body.
Who was this? Her mind raced through worst-case scenarios. Was this a stalker? A hacker? A threat?
Her finger hovered over the screen, ready to close the message. But just before she could, another message popped up from the same unknown contact, sending a chill down her spine.
From: Unknown
"Heh, surprised? Didn't expect a reaction like that. Kinda cute, though. You really think you can run from the past? Nah, it's never that easy."
Maris's breath caught in her throat. What the hell was going on? She felt her stomach tighten as a sense of dread crept up her spine. The hair on the back of her neck stood up.
Suddenly, her phone buzzed again. The meeting had already started.
She jumped. How had she missed it?
Maris quickly joined the call, but as soon as she popped on the screen, she was met with an awkward silence. She was late, and no one said a word about it. The faces of her team members were frozen in place, their expressions far too serious.
Luna (Team Lead): "Oh, Maris. You're here... finally."
Maris (nervously): "Yeah, uh, sorry. I was dealing with—uh, something weird..."
Kaia (dryly): "Something weird, huh? You didn't run into any ghosts, did you?"
Maris froze, heart racing again. How did Kaia know? Was this some sort of mind-reading prank?
Tomo (grinning): "Ooooh, Kaia's right. Maybe it's a haunted phone? Or did you just get an actual curse, Maris? Lemme guess—do you hear voices now?"
Ryu (playfully): "Maybe it was a haunted text. I mean, she didn't look this spooked when I told her her hair looked like spaghetti this morning."
Maris blinked. "Wait, what? Spaghetti? That was—"
Luna (cutting her off): "Maris, you looked like you saw the Ghost of VTuber Failures Past."
The team erupted into laughter, completely unphased by Maris's confusion. She sat there, blushing furiously, trying to piece together what was happening.
Yumi (chuckling): "Aww, don't worry, Maris. We've all been there. Getting haunted by texts from that one guy. I mean, it's a rite of passage, right?"
Maris (groaning): "This isn't helping, you know?"
Suddenly,her mobile buzzed. Luna was smirking suspiciously which made Maris clear about her situation.
From: Unknown
"So, were you about to cry or scream? You looked two seconds away from calling the police on your own phone."
Maris checked the message and couldn't stop herself from laughing at how ridiculously accurate Luna was. She quickly typed back:
Maris (private chat): "I will destroy you later for this. Be prepared."
Luna (private chat): "Oh, please, like you're not going to send me a thank-you card for the comedy gold."
The meeting continued, and the mood lightened, but the team couldn't let Maris off the hook just yet. They kept bringing up the ghost text at random moments, just to see her reaction.
Kaia (teasing): "So, Maris, how's that haunted phone treating you? Is it still spamming you with cryptic death threats, or did you make peace with it?"
Ryu (grinning): "I think we should start a Spooky Texts Anonymous group. Maris, you're the president now. Congrats."
Tomo : "Maris, if you need to call in ghostbusters, I'll bring the holy water. I've got a shrine in the back."
Maris shook her head, face redder than before, but the laughter felt... nice. After all, it was all just another hilarious, bizarre memory with her team. The anniversary stuff could wait for a moment.
Yumi (smiling warmly): "Alright, let's get back to the anniversary planning, yeah? No more for now.
Maris (muttering): "Honestly, I wouldn't even mind being possessed if it means I get a nap."
Yumi (concerned but sweet): "Wait… do demons nap inside you? Or do you both nap separately?"
Ryu: "Bro… tag-team napping. One naps while the other haunts. Peak productivity."
Kaia (straight-faced): "It's called... Time Management. You should try it, Maris."
Tomo: "New merch idea: 'Possessed but Well-Rested.' I'd wear that."
Luna: "Make it a limited edition. Black hoodie. Glows in the dark. Comes with a complimentary spooky ringtone."
Maris (groaning): "Why are we like this…"
Kaia: "Because fun is free and coffee is expensive."
Tomo (holding up a mug): "This isn't coffee. It's warm regret with milk."
Ryu: "I ran out of milk, so mine's just regret."
Yumi : "Mine is oat milk. Because I'm a coward and lactose intolerant."
Maris (defeated): "You people are why I have trust issues… and abs from laughing."
Luna: "Good. You'll need both for the next segment: Anniversary ideas, but we brainstorm them as if we're all trapped in a horror movie."
Kaia: "Title: 'Stream Until Dawn'."
Tomo: "Tagline: 'The mic was never muted.'"
Yumi: "Plot twist: We never left the stream. We've always been streaming."
Ryu: "And no one watched."
Everyone gasped
Maris: "Okay, that's too dark. Reel it back."
Luna: "Fine. We'll do the spooky collab where we pretend we're all haunted, but in reality, we just play games badly."
Kaia: "So… a normal stream."
Maris (laughing): "I'm saving this chat log. When I win an award one day, I'm reading this entire thing as my acceptance speech."
Tomo: "And I'll run on stage, steal the mic, and scream 'It was the fridge all along!'"
Yumi: "Then I'll apologize profusely to the fridge."
Luna: "Perfect. I should have recorded it. ATLEAST I MIGHT HAVE GOTTEN A BONUS."
(ALL TOGETHER)
"O-U-R-S"
(MENACINGLY )