I laughed, smiling at Wesley as he continued his imitation of our math teacher, crossing his eyes and yelling commands in a low voice. “You! Be quiet!”

Aaron laughed with us, hiccupping as he wiped the tears out of his eyes. “Dude that is priceless!”

We were sitting in the basement of our high school, which was a rather dark and grubby room located at the bottom of a flight of steps. This area was off limits to students, and to our best knowledge none had been there until today. Wesley had picked the lock on the door, and after nearly an hour of trial and error the lock finally sprung open. Thank god for all the information one can find on the internet.

Now, half an hour later, we were still celebrating our victory, taking plenty of pictures and getting video footage that proved that we’d made it down here. I had filmed a large part of our entrance to the basement, proving wrong the countless "haunted" stories about the place.

Our school was never closed after hours, or not directly anyway. The last members of the administration, staff and faculty usually hung around until the late hours of the evening, and didnt for a second think any students would want to break into something as boring as the basement. Then again, we had been underestimated before.

Something caught my attention, and I strained my ears, trying to figure out whether I had really heard it.

Tick… tick… tick… tick…

“Guys….do you hear that?” I questioned, watching them with a confused expression. They fell silent, frowning, listening intently. I fidgeted with my new camera, then glanced down at the screen and flicked through the countless photos I’d taken. I smiled as I eyed Wesley's surprised expression, I'd caught him unaware while he was picking the lock, and the result was rather priceless.

“Yea…” Aaron glanced around, his eyes playing over the many boilers and other large devices that stood in the basement. He was clearly not trusting the situation

“What is that?” Wesley got to his feet to glance behind the cement block he had been sitting on, then turned back to us and shrugged. “Could be a clock. Probably. Its not important.”

“Maybe. But I want to find it anyway.” I started to search, scanning the walls for clocks and glancing behind all large objects, determined to locate the source.

Tick… tick… tick… tick…

I couldn’t imagine that the ticking was there long before we noticed, for it was so clearly present it was impossible to block out. The rhythmic sound sent chills down my spine, and I questioned my own sanity as I opted. “Doesn’t it kind of sound like a bomb to you?”

The glare Aaron fired in my direction was enough to reduce me to silence, and I pondered quietly for a moment. The guys were searching the room from top to bottom, tossing bags and boxes out of the way, and producing such a ruckus that I considered leaving.

Damn curiosity, I thought, quickly snapping a photo before I joined them in their frantic exploration. Judging by the look on Aaron’s face my crude comment had gotten to him more than he was letting on. He looked terrified. His expression downright scared me, it was something I had never seen before in all the years we'd known each other.

“Could be. You never know, maybe terrorists are targeting our school now.” Wesley grinned a late reply to my suggestion, amused, as he sat down on the stairs.

“Let’s just leave.” Aaron pushed Wesley out of his way and started up the stairs, but I called out his name. “Aaron… come on! Lets just find out what it is.”

“Fine.” He sighed, sitting down on the top stair. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. For a moment I assumed he was joking, until it dawned on me that the terror in his eyes couldn’t possibly be fake. I felt fear rush through my system. “Aaron? What?”

“There’s….”

Wesley was by his side in a second, and stared across the room in the same direction as Aaron. When his expression twisted I felt my mouth go dry. What the hell did they see?

“Tracy, come here. Now.” He gestured at me without pulling his stare loose. I stomped up the steps to where they were, turned, and allowed my jaw to drop. Frozen in place I could hear the rapid beating of my hammering heart, my body going through an odd sensation. I was certain I could no longer move.

There was a device strapped to one of the radiator pipes on the ceiling in the back of the basement, nearly at the wall. The metal case of the digital timer shone menacingly in the harsh basement lamps. The timer was ticking away on the last minutes.

“Let’s go!” I turned on my heels, throwing myself at the basement door, and put all my force towards yanking it open. My muscles ached from the sudden jolt, and I stood still for an instant, astounded. When I understood what had happened I tugged the handle again and felt cold sweat break out all over me as the door didn’t budge.

“Move!” Wesley pushed me aside, and began to yank the handle desperately in alternating sessions of shouting and grimacing. began Aaron was still, standing with a sheet-white face, his eyes on the bomb, his mouth wide open.

“Shit!” Wesley hollered, then kneeled down and pulled his lock picking instruments out of his pocket, getting started on freeing us before it was too late. It took us an hour to get in, I thought, my eyes welling in despair, we don’t have time. I could have never guessed that I was going to die in the school basement. Blown up.

“Goddamn it!” I hollered, pounding my fists against the metal slab until my raging panic was interrupted by a sound. Aaron spoke softly. “Guys… one… one minute.”

Fear flashed through my abdomen, and I watched Wesley scream out in frustration over the tightly bolted lock, then lowered my gaze to Aaron. The world seemed to slow around me, and I widened my eyes, Wesley’s frustrated screams fading. What felt like years later I followed Aaron’s horrified stare back to the device. The camera fell from my numbing hand, but I wasn't in any state of being able to retrieve it, not even bothering to see where it landed.

The digital timer displayed the seconds in a mean red color on the dull black background, and the numbers seemed to be burning their way into my retina. I couldn’t pull loose from the changing numbers, and all I could do was watch the numbers drop from 22 to 21 to 20. The figures dipping lower and lower I felt my breath catch.

Why is this happening?

Who locked the door?

Why our school?

Why now?

Why us?

Why?

I tore my gaze loose and grabbed Wesley’s arm, forcing him to face me. “It’s too late..” I whispered my throat thick, locking eyes with him. He pulled Aaron to his feet, the two boys joining me on the top stair. Flattening our backs against the cold metal of the door we breathed deep and shallow, the remaining seconds of our lives ticking past, no longer slow. I was aware that my two best friends were staring at the same thing as me, our gazes burning into the digital countdown timer.

Three…

I swallowed heavily, the faces of my family flashing through my mind. Mom, Dad, Killian, I love you.

Two…

I reached out both my hands for those of the boys, and we locked together, clutching onto one another, certain that we all thought the same thing. We were all begging for savior. Someone help us, please.

One…

I closed my eyes and drew air deep into my lungs, painfully aware that it would be my last breath. Feeling unusually calm I held my breath inside me. All I could do now was hope it wouldn’t hurt.