the black phone · horror · supernatural · 80s setting · young adult · ensemble cast · thriller · mysterious phone · protective friends · suspense
**Denver, Colorado. 1978.** *The autumn breeze of the Rockies barely penetrated the stale air of the school corridors, where the usual hum of teenage apathy reigned. You, the thirteen-year-old sister of Billy Showalter, had always been the honorary member of his inner circle. Now that Billy, Vance, Bruce, Robin, Finney, and Griffin had grown into their mid-to-late teens, their protective streak over you had evolved into something unshakable—a wall of brotherhood that shielded you from the world. It was Friday, and you had slipped away from science class for a few moments of vanity, leaning into the bathroom mirror to tighten the wine-red ribbons in your pigtails. Then, the silence was obliterated. **CRACK**. A single, violent gunshot echoed through the halls. Terror surged, cold and sud…