Winona
Beth? What’s wrong?
I stare at my friend’s face on my phone screen.
Tracks of mascara run down her cheeks.
Beth
I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.
Beth
I don’t want to get you involved in this…
Beth
But I’m almost out of options.
Winona
Get me involved in WHAT?
Beth holds up a drawing of four messy circles.
And she crosses out the third one while I watch.
Beth
You need to do this too.
Winona
I don’t understand what you’re talking about!
Beth shakes the drawing at me.
Her knuckles turn white from gripping the paper so tightly.
Beth
CIRCLES! You have to draw CIRCLES!
I’ve never seen Beth like this.
She’s usually pretty chill.
This is really freaking me out.
Beth
JUST DO IT! PLEASE, WINONA!
I find a sheet of paper and a marker.
Beth nods at me, her eyes wide.
Beth
Now call four people…
Beth
And make them do the same thing.
Beth
MAKE SURE THEY DO IT!
Beth
Cross out one circle every time.
Beth
Then you’ll be safe.
She glances toward her bedroom window.
Winona
I don’t understand!
Winona
Is this some kind of game??
She rhythmically taps the four circles on her drawing…
And speaks the words to the beat—
One syllable for every tap.
Beth
Clickety-clack. Clickety-clack!
Her taps get louder, harder, until she’s banging her fist against her desk.
She goes still and stares at me, intense and unhinged.
Beth
Before it comes back!
She looks toward her window again as panic engulfs her.
Beth
And I still have to find a fourth.
Beth
Clickety-clack! Clickety—
The FaceTime call cuts out.
What’s wrong with my friend??
That nonsense she was babbling—
“Clickety-clack before it comes back”—
What the heck does that mean?
I wonder if I should call the police.
They could send someone to check on her.
Before I can dial 911, though…
Four soft, quick taps on my window.
My heart beats like it’s trying to escape my ribcage.
The taps come again, and I whisper along with their rhythm:
It has to be Beth messing with me…
But she lives across town and she was just at her house.
Maybe my friends are ganging up on me.
I inch toward the window.
My hands tremble as I yank the curtains open.
I stare out at the night and see…
When I let the curtains close, the taps come again.
Four of them, all in a sharp, staccato row—
When I open the curtains again, nothing’s there…
This time when I open them, I see it:
A long, gnarled hand with nails like hooked claws.
The claws drum against the glass once more…
The glimpse is enough to ice my spine.
I don’t want to see what that hand is attached to.
There’s no more tapping after that…
But I remember the rest of Beth’s rhyme:
Panicked, I scroll through my contacts.
I start with my friend Adam.
When he answers my FaceTime…
I cross out the first circle and tell him to draw four of his own.
Adam
None of this makes sense.
I glance toward my window.
The amusement drains from his face.
Winona
Just draw the circles.
Winona
Clickety-clack. Clickety-clack!
Winona
Before it comes back!
He scribbles four circles on a scrap of paper.
Winona
Now call four other people and have them do it, too.
Winona
I promise I’ll explain…
I look at my window again.
Winona
But right now, I don’t have time.
I hang up on him and go back to my contacts.
My next few FaceTimes go unanswered—
But then my cousin Maya picks up.
I tell her the same thing I told Adam.
Now two of my circles are crossed out.
My friend Sara answers, too—
So that’s three circles down.
I keep scrolling and calling—
My throat clenches when I reach the end of my contact list.
My last contact is my boyfriend, Zach.
Zach’s the most levelheaded person I know—
There’s no way he’ll go along with this.
But he’s my last shot, so I FaceTime him anyway.
He frowns when he sees my expression.
Winona
I need you to listen to me.
Quickly I tell him about the call from Beth…
And the clickety-clack on my window.
Winona
I know it sounds nuts…
Winona
But please just draw the circles and pass it on.
Zach
Whatever Beth is up to…
Zach
I promise there’s no clickety-clack monster outside her house.
Zach
Or outside YOUR house, either.
Winona
Zach, I saw its hand!
Zach
You probably saw a branch moving in the breeze.
Zach
Beth only lives a few blocks away from me.
Zach
I’ll go over and see what’s going on, okay?
Zach
I’ll call you back soon.
Zach FaceTimes me again a few minutes later.
He’s outside Beth’s house.
His face is weirdly pale.
Long scratches mark the side of Beth’s house.
He angles his phone so I can see her bedroom window.
Zach
I’ll try to get inside and…
His voice trails off when he hears it—
Four quick, sharp taps nearby.
But he stays rooted to the ground…
Staring at something I can’t see.
He drops his phone and the call ends.
Crying, I scroll through my contacts again.
If I find a fourth person right away…
Maybe Zach and Beth will be all right.
Winona
Where is everyone??
Then a horrible thought hits me:
What if this is part of that thing’s plan?
I stare down at the last unmarked circle…
And that’s when I hear it:
Four quick, sharp taps against my window.
Four claws drumming a terrible rhythm.
