Monday morning.
The least favorite day for students at Descendants College. It's a busy day, filled with assignment and project submissions. But for one particular class, they had been blessed by the heavens, their instructors were all out, attending appointments. Which meant... no classes for today.
BUT! There was a catch.
Despite having the day off, they were strictly told not to roam around the campus or leave it. They had to stay put. So, to kill time, some students played card games or online games. Others reviewed notes for upcoming quizzes.
Raia, a second-year college student, was playing Uno with his classmates inside the classroom. There were seven of them in total. The card game was simple but entertaining. Each player was dealt seven random cards from the shuffled deck. One card was placed in the center, face-up, it determined what kind of card could be played next. Players dropped matching colors or numbers, and the first one to run out of cards won.
There were two types of cards: Numbered cards from 0 to 9; Special cards, like the Shift cards, which reversed the turn order. +2 and +4 cards, which forced the next player to draw extra cards. Color-change cards, which let the player change the current color. Dare cards, the most powerful if used wisely, they allowed the player to make up a rule on the spot.
To win, a player had to drop all their cards. If they were down to one card, they had to shout "UNO!" otherwise, if another player shouted it first, they'd be forced to draw two more cards.
To spice things up, the group had added special rules to the game. Every card that has number 0 will make everyone swap cards with the person next to them. And then, Every card that has number 7, if played, everyone races to slap their hand on the table. The last one to do it draws two cards.
The game began. They all focused on the center card. A yellow 6.
A girl with a bowtie in her hair dropped a yellow 1. The next three players followed with more yellow number cards. Then it was Raia's turn.
He dropped a yellow Shift card, sending the turn back to the player before him. Unfortunately, that player didn't have a yellow card, so they had to draw from the deck. When it was Bowtie Girl's turn again, she smirked and played a Dare card. "I dare everyone to draw 5 cards," she said cheekily. Groans filled the room as everyone reluctantly followed the dare. Despite the setback, the mood was fun and competitive. Multiple 7s were played, triggering mad hand-slaps and laughter at the poor soul who was always the slowest.
Then, Bowtie Girl dropped another Dare card and smirked at Raia." Raia, I dare you to draw 15 cards." Raia stayed calm, raised a brow, and said, "Alright." Now holding 18 cards, he quietly studied them and smiled. Everyone assumed Raia was doomed. Most players had 3 to 6 cards left. But when it was his turn again, Raia dropped a Dare card. Whispers and thoughts raced.
'Will he add 15 cards back to Lovely? That would be epic!'
'C'mon Raia, do it!'
'This is going to be good… Take her down!'
But Raia didn't do what they expected. Instead, he declared, "Give me all your special cards. Shifts, Blocks, Plusses, Color Changes, and Dares."
Gasps.
Complete shock. Still, they followed the dare. One by one, players passed him their special cards. Raia picked a color. "Red." The player after him stared in disbelief, he had a red Shift card. He played it. The turn returned to Raia.
Raia dropped three 0s.The rule triggered. Everyone had to swap their cards four times. Since the play was clockwise, Lovely ended up with Raia's former 13 cards, including all the special ones. She smiled wide, thinking she just got a massive advantage. "Next color is Yellow," Raia declared. The next player, wide-eyed, dropped a Yellow Shift again, the turn bounced back to Raia.
Raia let out a quiet exhale and placed another Dare card on the table. "I dare everyone to drop all their numbered cards... including mine." Everyone stared.
Then, slowly, they obeyed. One by one, they emptied their hands of numbered cards. Raia was the last to drop his cards.
Lovely stared at her hand. All special cards. No numbered ones. No way to win. She had lost.
"You cheated!" she blurted, pointing at Raia.
"You totally cheated!" Raia stood, cool and calm.
"I didn't cheat. I just paid attention. The person beside you tried to hide a card before I played the 0s. She tried to cover it up by drawing from the deck like it just happened. But I'd already seen the move. The card she was hiding was a Dare."
"As for how I knew what cards everyone had? Easy. You all hold your cards way too openly. "A hush fell over the group. They were in awe.
"Okay, fine. Let's play again!" Lovely huffed, accepting her defeat.
She scolded her friend for cheating and shuffled the deck. Everyone laughed. But just as the next game was about to start... Raia heard a whisper.
'Run!' He looked to the player beside him.
"Did you say something?" The player shook their head, confused. "No?" Raia felt a chill creep down his spine .
'Get up. Run!'
The voice was clearer this time. He looked around but everyone else was busy setting up their cards.
ScreeiiiiiiEEEEEEEAK!
A piercing shriek tore through his ears. He winced and clutched his head. The others stared at him like he'd gone crazy. "Didn't you hear that just now?" he asked, panicked. "What are you talking about?" Lovely said. "No one made a sound… unless this is another one of your mind games."
"What? Of course, n—"He stopped mid-sentence as another shriek forced him to his knees.