Kai’s POV

There are few things I love more than shooting hoops with my friends after school. The sun was shining, the court was buzzing, and the air was filled with the sound of sneakers squeaking on the pavement. Huang Tae was being his usual flashy self, dribbling like he was some kind of NBA superstar, while Mark was doing his best to trash-talk everyone.

"Bro, you're going down," Mark said with a grin, trying to psych me out as I lined up a three-pointer.

"Save the smack talk for when you actually win," I shot back, sending the ball swishing through the hoop. "That's another three for me."

Tae threw his hands up dramatically. "Okay, Kai, we get it. You're good at basketball. You don’t have to rub it in our faces."

"Just admit that I’m better than you," I teased, tossing the ball to him.

As we continued playing, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. I ignored it at first—no way was I letting a text ruin my game. But then it buzzed again. And again. And again.

"Popular guy," Mark said, raising an eyebrow as he noticed. "Who's blowing up your phone?"

"Probably one of his many girlfriends," Tae chimed in with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes and pulled out my phone. The screen showed a notification from an app I didn’t recognize. That damn smiley face icon again. Game of Horrors. I frowned. The app from last night... I thought it had disappeared.

Curiosity got the best of me, and I opened it. The screen flashed a message:

> "Good morning, Kai! Ready to start your day with some fun?"

"Task 1: Steal Tae’s headband and wear it like a bandana. You have 2 minutes."

[TIMER STARTS: 01:59]

I nearly laughed out loud. "What the hell?" I muttered.

"What's so funny?" Tae asked, noticing my grin.

"Uh, nothing," I said, trying to keep a straight face. This was way too good to pass up. I darted over to him, snatching his red headband right off his head.

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"Hey! What are you doing?" Tae yelped, reaching for it.

"Just trying out a new look," I said, quickly tying it around my head like a bandana. I struck a pose, puffing out my chest and giving him a cheesy grin.

"You look like an idiot," Mark laughed. "But also like you belong in some old-school kung fu movie."

"More like a reject from a boy band," Tae retorted, reaching for his headband again.

I danced around him, dodging his grabs. "Come on, you know this looks good on me!"

The phone buzzed again, and I peeked at the screen.

> "Task complete! Well done, Kai. Let’s keep the fun going."

"Next up: Convince Mark that Tae is secretly in love with his sister. You have 3 minutes."

I snorted. This app was ridiculous. But hey, a task's a task. I turned to Mark with the most serious expression I could muster.

"Hey, Mark, I don't know how to tell you this, but Tae... he's got a thing for your sister."

Tae’s eyes went wide. "Wait, what?!"

Mark's expression turned from amused to horrified in seconds. "Tae, is this true? Bro, she's like... 14!"

Tae threw his hands up. "What?! No! Kai's making stuff up!"

I doubled over, laughing at the sheer chaos. This app was crazy, but it was giving me the best laughs I’d had in ages.

"Relax, I'm just messing with you," I said, clapping Mark on the shoulder. "You should've seen your face!"

Mark shot me a look. "You’re such a jerk."

Tae shook his head, trying to get back at me by shooting a basketball straight at my gut. I caught it easily, still grinning. "All right, all right, my bad," I said.

But before I could get back into the game, my phone buzzed again.

> "Great job, Kai! Ready for Level 2?"

"Task 3: Dump a bottle of water over your own head in the middle of the cafeteria. Timer: 5 minutes."

I groaned, but the humor of it wasn’t lost on me. This app was like a prankster’s paradise. I could practically hear the smiley face snickering. I glanced at the cafeteria doors, which were just a short walk from the court. Might as well go for it, I thought.

"Where are you going?" Tae called as I jogged off.

"Just gotta do something real quick," I shouted back.

The cafeteria was packed. Perfect. I grabbed a bottle of water from my bag, took a deep breath, and twisted the cap off. This was going to be hilarious.

Without hesitation, I stood on a chair, held the bottle above my head, and let the water pour down. The freezing liquid soaked my hair and dripped down my face, instantly silencing the noisy room.

"Is he having a mental breakdown?" someone whispered.

"That's Parker for you," another voice snickered.

I hopped off the chair, dripping wet and grinning like a maniac. My phone buzzed again.

> "You are on fire, Kai! Level 2 complete!"

"Let’s turn up the heat. Ready for Level 3?"

But before I could see what the next task was, the bell rang. Saved by the bell. I stuffed my phone into my pocket and made my way back to the court, my hair still wet and clinging to my forehead.

"What did you do this time?" Tae asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Let’s just say I’m staying hydrated," I quipped, wiping my face with my shirt.

Mark shook his head, laughing. "You’re so weird, man."

The rest of the day passed in a blur of classes and jokes, the weirdness of the app slowly fading from my mind. I figured it was some sort of prank game, something made to mess with people in a funny way. Maybe it was just a one-off thing, I thought. But then came gym class.

As we finished our laps and took a break, my phone buzzed again. I pulled it out, expecting another funny dare, but the screen looked different. The background was dark, almost shadowy, with the smiley face now twisted into a sinister grin.

> "Level 3: The real game begins now."

"Task 4: Trip the next person who runs past you."

"Timer: 1 minute."

I frowned. Trip someone? That wasn’t exactly funny—it was just mean. I hesitated, staring at the countdown.

"What's up?" Tae asked, jogging over. "You look like you saw a ghost."

"It’s this stupid app," I muttered, showing him the screen. "It’s giving me these weird tasks."

Tae raised an eyebrow. "What kind of tasks?"

"Like... tripping people," I said quietly.

Tae laughed. "Man, that’s kind of messed up. But it’s probably just a prank app. Don’t take it seriously."

"Yeah," I said, but I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in my gut. The timer ticked down to 10 seconds. I took a deep breath and decided to ignore it. No way was I going to hurt someone for a stupid game.

The timer hit zero, and my phone vibrated violently, almost falling out of my hand. A new message popped up:

> "You failed the task, Kai. Don’t let it happen again."

"Or else."

"Or else what?" I muttered, feeling a chill creep up my spine. The smiley face seemed to stare at me, its grin now more sinister than ever. And for the first time, I felt something else behind that mocking smile.

This game was far from a joke.