She walked towards the door, hand reaching out hesitantly. She gripped the knob tightly and then- Ring…Ring…


Marge Rayson jumped and screamed as the phone rang. She took a deep breath and placed a hand over her chest, trying to steady herself. She lifted the DVD remote with a shaky hand and paused her movie. The phone was still ringing, so she reached next to her, grabbing the cordless.



“Hello?” Her voice was still shaky. No answer. “Hellooo?” She asked again. Still no answer. She sighed and hung up the phone. Almost directly after she set the phone down on the couch, it rang again. “Hello?” Her voice sounded impatient, but this time…There was an answer.


“Twenty Seven minutes.” A deep voice said before the phone clicked off, dial tone sounding in Marge’s ear.


“Ok…That was freaky.” She was shaking again. “Maybe I need a walk.” Marge said lightly as she stood up, walking to the front door. She slipped on a pair of running shoes and grabbed her jacket before she slipped out the door.


She slowly began to walk down the street. It had gotten so dark so fast. The street lights were the only thing that guided Marge’s way.


After a while, she felt a buzzing in her back pocket. She stopped her walk and pulled her cell phone out. “Hello?” She asked slowly, she was sort of out of breath.


“Eighteen minutes.” The voice from earlier replied. For some reason, the voice sounded familiar to her now, though she could not put a face to it. She hung the phone up as fast as she could, turning it off and putting it back in her pocket. Who was this guy? And why the hell did he keep calling her?


She continued walking, she guessed some coffee would do her good. Plus, she needed a break from her walk, her legs felt like they were on fire.


She finally came across the little café at the end of town. Marge sat down at the counter and ordered herself a vanilla latte. She smiled and waved at some of the people in the café as she waited for her latte. When it came, she sipped at it slowly, keeping her eyes on the TV near her, trying not to think about the intimidating calls. Somewhere in the distance, she thought she heard a phone ring, but she didn’t pay any attention. “Marge?” She looked up at the sound of her name. “Phone for you.”


Marge took the phone with slight worry on her face. She knew who it would be. She held it to her ear lightly. “H…hello?”


“Time’s up Margie.” She dropped the phone and her latte, running out the door as fast as she could. She looked around, no one in sight. She ran down the road, making her way back to her house. She needed to get home, she needed the safety. She was so caught up she didn’t even notice the car following her with its lights off.


Just as she opened her front door she screamed loudly. Her light had flicked on and confetti was thrown at her. A tall man got out of the car. “Happy birthday Margie!” He said happily. Marge should have known her brother would pull a stunt like this…