Don’t Play This Game: Event 3: The New Neighbour
It started with that low, unmistakable rumble: van wheels and voices bouncing off brick and concrete. I peeked through the blinds, mug in hand. A moving van. The flat across the hall.
It made sense. The old neighbours moved out a few weeks ago. We didn’t really talk, but through paper-thin walls, we knew their rhythms… intimately. Let’s just say our living room regularly doubled as a front-row seat to their “private cinema.”
Now? A new lot. Family of four. Alan and Evon Wickbeth, and their kids—Ben and Scott. Yeah, another Scott. That’s gonna get confusing.
Later that evening, there’s a knock. A second one in as many days.
Alan’s at the door, smiling in that slightly-too-perfect way. Polished voice, like he practices conversation in the mirror. Said they were settling in and wanted to invite me to dinner. A welcome meal. Friendly gesture.
Layla was working late. I was free. I said yes.
Their flat is… clean. Not tidy—scrubbed. Like they were expecting a visit from royalty. Candles burning despite the daylight. The dining table set for seven, even though it was just me and the four of them.
Only the three of them sat down, though. The younger Scott seemed to vanish the moment we walked in.
We talked. Alan asked how long I’d been in the building. Six years, I told him. Moved in just before the pandemic hit. Spent lockdown here. Got to know the neighbours by the sounds through the walls, and the community through Facebook posts I rarely replied to.
I mentioned it’s peaceful. Quiet.
And then I added, “Mostly. Been a few… odd things lately.”
I didn’t go into details. Didn’t mention the book. Or Margerie. Or the Stranger. But I said enough. Evon’s eyes flicked up when I used the word “odd.” Like she’d heard it before. Like she was expecting it.
They asked a few more questions. Polite stuff. But the longer I sat there, the more aware I became of just how quiet the rest of the building felt. We live in a block of eight flats. My floor alone has three. Where was everyone else?
Why was I the only one invited?
And where did their kid disappear to?
I left feeling… watched. Not by them. Not quite. More like the way a mirror watches you when you pass it in the dark.
But they seemed kind. Alan offered to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. He even mentioned the local Neighbourhood Watch group.
Said he’d send me an invite… how he was already a member and I barely even knew of their existence I still don’t know for sure.
I don’t think I trust them. But then again, who can I trust now? The game’s already started, and everyone I meet might just be another player piece the Entity has moved into place.
And yet… the food was nice.
DON'T PLAY THIS GAME is a Solo TTRPG
