Slash or Pass (Final Girls)

by Tylor Paige

“Uh, Eisley…” Kansas’s nervous tone made me wipe my hands off and go to the door. I turned the corner to the hall and paused. Through the frosted glass, I saw red and blue flashing lights. Berries & Cherries, to quote Micah, the police were here. I swallowed my nerves and went to the door, opening it quickly. “Hello.” I smiled at the officers from the drive-in. “Eisley Doe?” I frowned. “Yes.” I hated my last name. I’d been given it after Kansas and I escaped, and they couldn’t find my biological family. Changing it was on my list of things to do. “We wanted to talk to your boyfriend. Is he here?” They peered around me.

“I’m here.” Kansas stepped forward with a dark expression. “What is this about?” “We’re here about what happened at the drive-in this evening. Some patrons said there was a knife brandished.” “That wasn’t him!” I blurted. They looked from me to him skeptically. “Let me guess,” Kansas crossed his arms and replied dryly. “It’s his word against mine?” The one speaking nodded his head. “You’ve got it. What did you say your name was, son?”

“Kansas.” “Kansas what?” “Kansas.” “All right, Kansas, I’ve never seen you around here. In Shelley Vale, everyone knows everyone. Strangers are treated as such.” The officer tugged on his belt. “Are you charging me with anything?” Kansas asked directly. “Do you know who you’re talking to, son?” the second officer barked. “Where did you come from?” “He’s just visiting from scho...

leaving in the morning.” “Oh, like some big-time school?” the officers mocked. “I’m on a scholarship,” Kansas growled. “Oh, yeah, which one?” The officer laughed as if they knew one scholarship from the other. “The Foxworth scholarship,” Kansas revealed, hanging his head. I gasped. All laughter stopped in an instant. “The Foxworth scholarship?” The officer reached for the baton on his hip. “Son, you realize you tried to fight with a Foxworth tonight? That boy can call his daddy and get your money pulled like that.” He snapped his fingers.

“I’m fully aware,” Kansas said dryly. “I told you I’m leaving in the morning. What more do you want?” The officers shared a look and then nodded. “Next time you come for a visit, just be a little more mindful about who you speak to and how. The Foxworths run this town.” “Got it.” I thanked the officers and quickly shut the door. “Kansas,” I sighed. “I’m so sorry.” “Your boyfriend really doesn’t like me.” Kansas smirked as he stormed into the kitchen. “What do you mean? Spencer? He’s dating Soleil.” I locked the front door and followed him back to the kitchen. “Not by choice. The guy totally wants to fuck you.”

“Stop. He’s just protective of the people he cares about. He gets super jealous with Soleil too,” I tried to say, but I wasn’t entirely sure that was true. I’d never seen Spencer like that before tonight. It was weird. “Sure.” He grabbed his teacup, looked at it with disgust, and set it back down. He grabbed the bottle of bourbon from last night and popped it open, taking a long swig. “He’ll get his. All those preppy, daddy’s-money-will-take-care-of-everything motherfuckers.” He stared at the bottle and then brought it to his lips, ...

When I dragged myself up the stairs, I paused at my guest room, where Kansas was. I heard nothing, and sadly, went to my room to sleep. When I woke in the morning, I checked in on him. He was still fast asleep, and I presumed he’d be that way for a few more hours. He’d had a lot to drink. I made more biscuits and then waited. At around noon, I heard the creak of the stairs as he came down. “Hungry?” I hurried to usher him to the kitchen. “I made more biscuits. I can make eggs too if you want.” “No,” he groaned. “Just the biscuits, please.”

I pulled the jam out of the fridge and sliced a biscuit open, spreading the fruit on it quickly. He took it from me and popped it into his mouth. “Thanks.” He leaned over the counter and took another, spreading the jam himself. “I’m sorry I cut our night short.” “It’s fine. That whole thing was so dumb. I want to focus on the good, and the good is that you’re here.” “I promised the cops I’d take off today.” My heart sank. “Are you really going to? I thought I had you for one more day.” Kansas gave me a look over his glasses. “I’ll stay for a bit, but I think it’s in both of our best interests I take off. Don’t want them to pull my scholarship and all.”

“They wouldn’t do that,” I said, but I was unsure. “Spencer isn’t always like that. The knife was just a stupid jump scare.” “Sure.” He grabbed the water I had slid over to him and gulped it down. “I’ll stay for the afternoon, but probably take off before it gets dark. What do you want to do?” His mood was sour, and I suddenly felt silly for baking a cake for Constantine. I glanced at it and sighed. “Well...

When he came back downstairs, I was waiting by the front door eagerly. “Do you have your leash?” he teased, patting the top of my head. “If I do, does that mean I get a treat?” I bit my lower lip and put my hands behind my back, causing my chest to pop and his eyes to dip hungrily. He licked his lips. “If you let me collar you, you’d get so many treats.” He put his hand against the door, pinning me against it. My heart stuttered as he pressed me into me. “What do you say, are you a good girl?” My jaw dropped as he cupped my sex. “I love that you always wear skirts and dresses,” he murmured, his head dipping down to kiss my collarbone. “Easy access.” He rubbed over my underwear, and I moaned. Realizing what was happening, I pushed him away gently. “Come on, I don’t want to waste another minute.”

Good lord ok

“Well, hello,” a voice from behind us called out. Emi came toward us. “What’s going on here?” “I was just showing Kansas my bat flower. What are you up to?” She pointed behind her. “Me and the girls are about to head to the set and I wanted to check on my pumpkins.” “Set?” Kansas asked, and my mood instantly fell. Emi crossed her arms and nodded. “Yeah, we’re all going to be extras in that documentary about the Sinister Minister. You know, that creepy cult guy that killed all those people ten years ago.” “I know who he is.” Kansas’s eyes darkened and his body stiffened beside me. I could feel the anger radiating from him.

“No, I’m good. I’d rather not exploit the victims for my fifteen minutes.” She rolled her eyes. “You too? Well, I’ve got to go.” She glanced at her pumpkins and then started off, leaving us alone. As soon as she was gone, Kansas spun around. “Were you going to go?” he demanded. “No! I told her that. It’s disgusting.” I put my hands up in innocence.

“Have they asked you to talk to them?” He started off toward the exit, and I followed him. “No, have they asked you?” I shot back. “I got a letter. I told them to go fuck themselves.” Kansas got a letter? Why hadn’t I? “What did it say?” I asked as I locked the greenhouse and we started toward my car. “Just that they wanted to speak to me as they wanted victims to come forward. It’s all bullshit.”

I had so looked forward to this weekend with Kansas, and it felt like at every turn, it was disastrous. And now he was leaving. We drove back to my place quietly with him simmering beside me. I wanted to say something, anything, to quell the storm raging inside, but I didn’t know what to say. We were going back up the steps when I saw something taped to my front door. A white envelope with my name on it. While I didn’t know the contents, I kn...

Brush and dried twigs crunched under my boots as I trudged through the woods. It had been almost a decade, but I still knew the path well. I shifted my backpack and kept walking. I put my hood up to cover my face from the thin, long-reaching branches. I’d be covered in cuts and scratches if I wasn’t careful. What a pain that’d be.

Over time, once the police were done with it, kids started using the church, the place I’d lived for the first twelve years of my life, as a make-out spot. As the original owner of the land was dead, no one could stop them from trespassing, so why not? I was half a mile in when the large building took shape. From a distance, it was as I recalled when I saw it for the first time. It was a small church building with a large cross on its steeple. That was it. A church buried deep in the woods. Nothing… sinister. What a fucking lie that was.

I wanted to see the damage ten years of reckless teenage drinking had done to the place and try to clean it up some. Just enough for me not to vomit every time I stepped inside. It was my inheritance, after all.

Carefully, I tiptoed toward the basement stairs. They were in the common room. If I went straight down, they’d see me. I tightened my grip around the knife and listened in. “I can’t believe I’ve never been down here,” a boy said. “The best time to go is in October,” a girl said. “That’s when it’s the most haunted.” “You’re so dumb,” another girl said. “It’s not haunted. Although it is giving that.” “It does serve,” another guy said. I rolled my eyes. I stepped away from the stairs. I’d go the back way.

His desk was beaten with a metal bat. It was broken into large chunks on the floor. Every crazy bible of his that had been left behind had been pulled apart and scattered. The carpets had been pulled up and it looked like small fires had been started in here, but I didn’t have time to go through it all. I didn’t fucking care. I wanted to push the bookcase aside and go through the door that led downstairs to… the studio.

I crept down and paused at the base of the steps. I’d only been in this room once to film. It was the last time I’d spoken to her, during the ceremony. The memories flooded through me so fast, so hard, I had to lean against the wall.

“Eisley, you need to go. I’ll be okay.” “But you won’t! Constantine, I can’t leave without you!” “You see this?” I raised my necklace and grabbed the matching one around her neck. “It’s going to keep me going. You run, and I’ll catch up. I love you, Eisley.” “I love you too, Constantine.”

I’d shoved her into Kansas and they ran. They flew up the very stairs I was stuck on and ran out, eventually making it through the woods and to safety. I didn’t. I was left behind. Mustering up the strength, I stepped down into my father’s horror room and looked around. It was empty, other than the graffiti and blood on the wall. Blood I’d put there. So much blood. It was like my own little art project. The laughter came...

“Did you guys hear that?” The laughter stopped. I paused, having only nudged the door an inch over. Was my cover already blown? “Fuck off, Sam. You’re just trying to scare us. I can see it on Marnie’s face. She’s laughing.” “If I wanted to scare you, Joey, I’d pull a Spencer Foxworth. You know, run up behind you and pull out a knife, just when it gets to a good jump scare.” Sam snickered. “That wasn’t cool,” Marnie said. “Eisley is so nice. He shouldn’t have done that to her.” Ah, yes. I’d heard about what that rich fuck had done. The cops had squashed that.

Joey snickered. “She’s a whore. You know she’s a cam girl, right? Shoving dildos up her ass for fat perverts on the internet. Who cares?” I cared. I gripped my knife tighter and adjusted my mask. I’d make them care too. “We don’t slut shame,” Sam said. “Right, Mike?” “I do,” Joey continued. “She’s a slut and everyone knows it. Who cares if she gets her throat cut? I’d do it.” “You’d kill someone?” Mike asked. While they were arguing, I opened the door wide enough for me to slide through. I stood on the other side, out of sight, and listened. “I’d kill a slut, yeah. You know what we call prostitutes in the force?” Joey asked.

“You’ve done one ride along and now you’re a ‘we’?” Mike laughed. “You’ve got a ways to go before you’re on the force.” “You don’t know shit.” Joey snarled. “They call them the ‘less dead’. It means they don’t give a shit how they die; they aren’t looking in...

“Oh, it’s very true. They told me that last night when they were visiting her house. She’s a less dead, so is her loser boyfriend.” “Fuck off, Joey.” Marnie’s voice cracked. “We shouldn’t have come here.” “You’re drunk,” Sam added. “I should fucking stab you,” Mike said. “Do it. Fucking do it, you coward.” Joey laughed, and without missing a beat, I spu...

Everybody began to scream as I swung my arm out, catching who I presumed was Joey. He stared at his arm in horror as I slid the knife out and aimed for his chest. He let out a loud, terrified scream only once before I punctured the center of his chest and tossed him aside. The other three had fled. Good. I stormed down the halls, checking the rooms. Years ago, this had been our priso...

Today, they had laughed about them. These stupid rich kids. They didn’t give a shit about what their families did to us. Their kids were happy at home, safe, warm, and well-fed. These very ones. They laughed and talked about Eisley as if she weren’t ...

“Who are you?” the girl asked. Based on her voice, I knew it was Marnie. I didn’t answer her, and instead straightened my back and slowly stalked over to them. “Where’s Joey?” Mike asked. “Why did you do that?” “This isn’t funny!” Marnie shook. “This is a big joke, isn’t it?” Mike nodded rapidly. “Because we made fun of Joey getting into the academy. Well, lesson learned, we’re done.” He raised his arms, and I raised mine. Without another word, I plunged the knife into his shoulder, and then tugging it back out, I did it again and again. He dropped like a fly and then I turned to Marnie, who hadn’t stopped screaming since the first stab. I lifted her by her hair. I ran the knife across her neck, shutting her up for good, and then tossed her down.

Three down; one to go. Sam. I started to search upstairs, but then I heard a scream from the woods and darted out. She’d run, but I’d catch her. I found her in less than ten minutes. I ran ahead of her and jumped out. Sam howled and fell backward. “You fucking psycho!” she screamed, pointing at her fallen phone. “I’m live right now, and they’ll catch you, even with your mask.” I picked it up and put my fingers over the cameras. I raised it to my face. She was live, but no one was watching. How sad.

I tossed the phone and it sunk into the water. It was deeper than I had estimated. The grin slid off her face as I flexed my hand with the knife and turned my attention back to her. She began to scoot backward. I found it confusing until I looked down and saw bone protruding from her shin. “Why are you smiling, you sick fuck?” she demanded. “Because you’ve got a horse face and a broken leg. The best thing to do is put you down.” Tired of this lazy cat-and-mouse game, I cleared my throat and stomped over to her, then I raised my knife. “Goodbye, Sam.”

I stared at the letter the film crew had taped to my door. I’d read it to Kansas before he left and then read it again alone. Then again, with a bottle of wine. Why hadn’t they mailed it? It seemed so unprofessional. And creepy. Someone who knew about my traumatic childhood and wanted to use me to make money had been on my porch. Had they looked through my curtains? Checked out my backyard? Did they try the doorknob? The possibilities were endless, and I hated every dark thought.

I’d spent the afternoon in my bed drunk crying, eventually falling asleep. When I woke up, I was still holding the letter, but the bottle of wine was empty. Guilt swam in my stomach, knowing I hadn’t taken my meds the entire time Kansas was here, and now, the alcohol?

The first thing I saw was the birthday cake I’d made to celebrate Constantine, my dead friend. I couldn’t even stomach looking at it or eat it, so I lifted it out of its glass case and tossed it in the trash without a single bite having been taken out of it. I paced the house, allowing the alcohol to wear off. I was unsure of what exactly to do. I wanted to go to the police and demand the film crew leave me alone, but I knew exactly what they’d say: The film crew was bringing in money for the town.

If I called the police, they’d want to see the letter and then they’d know my secret. They’d know that I was held captive by the Minister for almost five years before escaping. And once they knew, the whole town would too. I tossed the letter in the trash on top of the cake and grabbed my car keys. I couldn’t be in this house right now. I drove around aimlessly, trying to clear my head, but nothing worked. I put the windows down and blasted Stevie Nicks, but I was still hopelessly miserable.

I should have taken my meds. The little alarm rang in my brain, telling me I was wrong for not doing so, but ...

Somehow, I found myself outside of town, across the street from the woods where the Church lay rotting. I parked my car on the other side, away from the trees. I hadn’t been back on that side since Kansas and I had pulled ourselves out. But there was some solace on the other side. A small wooden cross. Constantine hadn’t made it to the road, but Kansas thought it’d ...

“You don’t think he’s in heaven looking down at them?” Kansas asked. “I don’t think there is a heaven.” I shrugged. “Or a hell. I don’t know, the idea that people are watching us from up above creeps me out. Same with the concept of god.”

Kansas smirked. “You mean to tell me, we spent five years having god screamed at us and now you don’t think he exists?” “I don’t. If he did, he wouldn’t have let us stay there so long.” “So, I guess Constantine won’t get to enjoy the flowers after all.” Kansas frowned. “I guess not. He’s dead,” I looked back toward the woods, where he most likely died. “That’s where his story ends.”

shoved the brief memory out of my mind and returned to the present, where I stood in front of his memorial. The grass was overgrown and birds had taken it as their own. What was once a pretty, sleek black, now sat a sun-faded cross covered in white bird shit. I crouched down to clean it up some and drew back instantly. Sitting at the base of the cross was a pure white envelope, crisp and clea...

Cautiously, I picked up the envelope. It was light, but something was definitely in it. I sat down on my ass and crossed my legs. With slightly shaky hands, I opened the envelope and pulled out its contents, unfolding the thick, formal-looking paper. As soon as I recognized the words, I...

A scream came from the woods that chilled me to the core. Teenagers often used the Church as a place to get drunk, make out, and spook each other. I’d been here plenty of times and heard kids playing hide and seek, screaming and laughing like idiots. This one felt different. The same scream rang out again, and I turned and ran to my car. Maybe someone ran into a tree or fell and broke their leg. Either way, I wanted no part of it. I started the car and then looked back at Constantine’s marker. The document lay on top of the tall grass, almost as if it were begging me not to leave it there. With a si...

I sat for a moment, staring at the front door, searching for another unwelcome letter, but saw none, and relaxed. Then, I turned and took a deep breath, picking up the thick folded paper that I’d tossed on the passenger side while I drove. I opened it and reread it carefully. It was all there, including my ...

“I don’t want to go.” I clutched Constantine tight. Our hands shook as we squeezed them together on the filthy, worn mattress. I wasn’t entirely sure if it was the cold, because we hadn’t been fed in days, or because of how terrified we were of what was waiting for us on the other side. “I don’t either. We’ll figure something out,” he promised. I turned my head, staring up into his bright blue eyes. Despite the years of torture, they remained vibrant and resilient. Constantine was a fighter, and he’d get us out of here. “We better,” Kansas, pacing the room, snapped at us. “Otherwise, one of us⁠—” “You can’t think like that.” Constantine rose, forcing me upright too, as he didn’t let go of my hand. “We’re all going to escape.”

“How?” Kansas shouted. “We’ve been trapped in here since, since… I don’t know how long! And now that she’s…” Kansas’s anger quelled when he flicked his gaze to me. He shook his head. “The Minister has already made up his mind, we’re doing this. And someone is going to…” His face crumpled. He turned around to face the wall as he sobbed. He didn’t need to finish his sentence. We all knew what he was going to say. Someone would die.

“I’m not going to let that happen,” Constantine repeated. He’d been saying this since he woke up, but neither of us believed it. How could he save us? We were all the same. Weak, malnourished, and hurt. Over the years, they’d beaten us, deprived us of sunlight and fresh air, and forced us to listen to the Minister’s sermons. We prayed to a god I never understood. If the Minister’s god was the best one, then why did he require sacrifices? “We need a plan,” Constantine continued, ignoring Kansas’s meltdown. “You’ve been upstairs. How do we get up there without being seen?” I asked. Constantine and Kansas were given special privileges...

“The Minister has a staircase in his office. It leads to one of the rooms down here,” Constantine told us. “What room?” Kansas wiped his nose and turned back to us. “The room we’re going to.” “You’ve been in there?” Kansas demanded. “One time. There were some people from the town upstairs. He didn’t want them to see me, so he made me go down the stairs and through the room. The door is covered by a bookcase. It’s heavy.” “So what?” Kansas’s eyes lit up. “If all three of us push, we can get it open, right?” Constantine nodded. “I think so. And once we’re upstairs, we just hold on to each other and run. Got it? Don’t look back. As long as we stay together, we’ll be fine.” Loud clicks came f...

“It doesn’t matter what you want.” The Mother stormed over to me and snatched my hand from Constantine’s. “The Minister has decided. The three of you will be bathed. The three o...

A frantic knock came from the front door. My entire body was stiff from sleeping in my clothes. The knock came again, and I stood. The two papers meant for me fell to the floor. I picked them up and looked around for a quick place to stash them. The rapid knocking on the door made me worry they would just come right in if I didn’t get to them quickly enough.

“What’s going on?” I asked. “Why are you here at seven in the morning?” Her long brown hair was in a high, messy pony; her makeup was expertly done to highlight her hazel eyes, and she wore the tightest sundress, despite it being October, to highlight her massive chest. “Sorry, did I wake you?” She cocked an eyebrow as she looked my wrinkled dress up and down with condescension. “I know you don’t want to hear about it, but something huge has happened with the movie.” “The movie? I thought it was a documentary.”