Lucifer
Scarlett hated being grounded, but with her overprotective mother, it was a common thing. Her mother being an old fashioned lady never let Scarlett stay out past nine o'clock and last week she had gotten in major trouble when she arrived home at 11 pm.
It was a Saturday night and everyone was going out to a huge party downtown. Alyssa, Scarlett's best friend, called her and insisted she joined her that evening.
"Everyone is going to be there!" Alyssa whimpered when Scarlett said she was grounded. "I have my mom's car for the night, and I can get you home by midnight. Just tell your mom you're going to bed early tonight and sneak out your window. It will be easy!"
Scarlett thought this through, and she concluded that she simply could not miss out on the party of the year. Alyssa was one hell of a persuader.
"Alright," Scarlett said. "Pick me up in an hour."
This was the first time she ever snuck out. She couldn't help but feel bad about lying to her mom, but she figured she would get over it.
She looked in the mirror. Her long, dark hair fell at her waist. I can do this, she thought to herself. Though she'd been reluctant at first, the risk of what she was doing now filled her with excitement.
An hour later, Alyssa arrived, according to the plan. Scarlett carefully opened her window and slipped outside, tiptoeing to her friend's car. When they arrived downtown, it felt like they weren't even in the right place. The street where the party was supposed to be was disturbingly quiet, and the street lights were either dimmed or shut off completely.
As they slowed down they found a huge place next to an abandoned warehouse. This had to be the party; all the other buildings were dark and empty, but this one was brightly lit, with music booming through the walls. They parked nearby and got out of the car. As they walked up to the entrance, they were surprised to find that there were no doormen or guards standing in front of the entrance. All it had was a raggedy old banner that said "WELCOME" in big, bold letters.
When they went inside, they saw hundreds of people dancing and drinking. The music was extremely loud and pounded through Scarlett's heart. Alyssa and Scarlett searched for the classmates that had told them they would be there, but they could not find one familiar face. Alyssa, however, did not care, and told Scarlett this was one of the coolest parties she had ever been too. Scarlett wasn't sure if she was scared or not. Some people's faces looked warm and kind, like the blond girl who'd waved at them when they first came in. Others looked dark and lifeless, as if they weren't even really there.
Before she knew it, she had lost sight of Alyssa. She couldn't find her anywhere. One second she was there; the next, she wasn't. Starting to panic, Scarlett made her way through the mob of laughing and dancing people. She located the bar and sat in one of the stools. There was no bartender, which was odd, as the people around her had plenty to drink; where had they gotten it all?
She felt uncomfortable and angry at Alyssa for ditching her. Now, all she could do was sit and wait for Alyssa to hopefully come back to her.
It was clear that this party was not the party "everyone was going to." She figured Alyssa had just made that up to trick her into going. Alyssa had always had unusual friends and often hung out in strange places, so her pulling something like this didn't surprise Scarlett much. She cursed Alyssa under her breath and just stared off into the dance floor.
Her mind must have been playing tricks on her. She could have sworn that people's faces would change while they were dancing. It only happened for a fraction of a second, but it seemed that their faces would morph into a disturbing demonic face with big black eyes and a deformed mouth. However, when she would blink, their faces would be back to normal. She didn't understand; she wasn't drinking, nor doing drugs. Why would I see these things? she thought, confused. She tried to convince herself it was just her imagination, but the chills were already starting to run down her spine, and she knew that it was no use.
Getting more desperate, she got off the stool and started looking for Alyssa.
"Alyssa!" she screamed. "I need to get the hell out of here! I'm going to kill you for bringing me here!"
She kept yelling, but Alyssa was nowhere to be found. Then all of a sudden, someone shoved her hard, and she toppled to the floor. She didn't know who did it or if it was an accident, but she was pissed. She wished she was back home in bed.
The lights suddenly dimmed and slow music started to play: a love song she never heard before. Everyone stopped dancing for a moment, getting into pairs before resuming once more.
She heard a deep, but soothing voice call out, "Are you okay?"
She looked up to see a tall, handsome looking man. He was young, maybe 20 years old, and had blond hair and piercing blue eyes. By the look on his face, he was very concerned.
"I'm fine. I, uh, I just fell," she stuttered. She always did get nervous with handsome men.
He smiled and offered his hand to her, helping her up.
"Do you want to dance?" he asked politely.
How could Scarlett refuse? He was charming. He was sweet. She accepted, and they walked to the centre of the dance floor and started to dance.
"You're a good dancer," she let out, flustered.
He just smiled. After dancing for some time, she asked him if he came here a lot.
"You could say that," he whispered.
Scarlett didn't quite understand his response, but she kept on dancing.
"You have a pure soul," he said suddenly, in an eerie, quiet voice.
"Um... thank you?"
She thought this sounded a little creepy, but he seemed so nice otherwise, and she didn't want to judge.
"I'm not so innocent," she joked. "I snuck out of the house today, and if my mother finds out, I'm dead."
"I know," he mumbled, emotionless.
He looked down, locking eyes with her. Instead of deep blue, they were now almost black. Scarlett figured it was just the lighting, but the expression on his face had changed as well, from friendly and welcoming to cold and sinister. Scarlett suddenly didn't want to be in his presence anymore.
"Sorry, I better go find my friend now. It was nice dancing with you, but I really have to go."
She tried to step away but he quickly grabbed her arms, gripping them tightly.
"I know you, Scarlett. I know everything about you."
As soon as he said those words, the music stopped playing and the lights shut off. It was pitch black and she couldn't see a thing. He was still holding her and she struggled to get away.
The lights came back on again, but only for about a second. They flickered on and off and she could see that the once handsome blond man was not a man at all. His feet were like that of a goat and his fingers were not fingers, but huge claws. Long, red claws with pointy nails. He had huge horns, and his face was horrible, resembling some sort of goat with red fur and huge black eyes.
The lights kept flickering as his evil grin started to part, and he started laughing hysterically. The most evil, terrifying laughter in the world.
"I am Lucifer," the thing boomed.
Scarlett was so shocked and scared that she couldn't even move anymore. She felt liquid running down her neck. When she looked down, she was horrified to find blood. Blood everywhere; on her legs, her beautiful, silken dress and on her hands. Scarlett screamed.
The light shut off once more, this time for almost ten seconds. When they finally turned back on, she was alone, and the place was empty. It was old and dusty, as if no one had stepped foot in it for years. When she turned around, she was horrified to see her friend Alyssa hanging lifeless from the ceiling fan, with blood running down her face. She forced herself to look away, disgusted and a few gags away from throwing up.
That was when Scarlett noticed a horrible burning feeling on her torso. She lifted up her dress to see what was hurting, and there on her stomach, was carved "YOU'RE NEXT".