My Three Brothers Locked Me In A Freezer

To boost Joeys live stream, my brothers locked me in a commercial freezer. Three hours, Marcus promised. Well watch the temp. Youll be fine. Owen smiled. If anything goes wrong, well shut it down. Desperate to belong, I agreed.

But the stream didnt end. As viewership soared, they extended it, and the temperature kept dropping. Through the window, Joey watched the numbers climb, eyes bright with greed.

I tried the emergency release. It was jammed. I pounded the steel, begging for help. Marcus frowned. Its barely freezing. Stop the drama. Owen nodded. Joeys finally happy. Dont ruin it. Finn waved casually. Hang tight. Well let you out at a hundred thousand followers.

They didnt understand. I wasnt chilly. I was freezing to death. And that sweater they gave me? Not rated for extreme cold at all.

The cold crept up my limbs, wrapping around my chest like iron bands. My teeth chattered so violently I could barely speak, and my legs threatened to give out. My voice was nothing but a raspy whisper.

"Please, guys, I am not lying," I sobbed, clutching my phone with trembling fingers. "I am so cold. My head is spinning, and I can not feel my hands. Please just let me out. I will do whatever you want, I promise. Just let me out."

Marcus's face darkened through the small hatch. "Iris! Enough. I have been patient with you, but this is ridiculous. Do you think I am stupid? The thermostat says it is perfectly safe. You have really improved your acting skills, I will give you that."

"I am not..."

I tried to speak, but my fingers went completely numb, and the phone slipped from my grasp, clattering onto the icy floor.

I clawed at the heavy door, desperately pounding my fists against it. "Send someone in to check the temperature! If I am lying, I will take whatever punishment you want. Please, Marcus, I am begging you!"

For a split second, Marcus's cold expression wavered.

Owen seemed uneasy as he watched my desperate clawing. "Marcus, do you think she is telling the truth? Maybe we should just let her out for a minute."

Marcus opened his mouth to reply, but before he could speak, Joey slid over, her lower lip trembling. "Why does Iris always have to make things up? The monitor clearly shows it is a comfortable sixty degrees in there. Does she hate me that much? Does she really want to ruin my big day?"

She squeezed out a few tears, looking small and fragile.

Instantly, Finn stepped forward, pulling Joey into a protective embrace. "I knew it! She is faking it. Iris, you are pathetic. How could you lie about something like this just to steal Joey's spotlight?"

He glared at the window. "It is just a few hours in a chilly room. Why do you have to act like a martyr? Joey is so sweet, and you can not even do this one small thing for her. You are just bitter and jealous!"

Marcus's gaze turned completely icy.

Owen sighed, giving me a disappointed look. "Iris, I know this is hard, but just bear with it. Think of it as a quiet break. I promise I will let you out in three hours. Be good."

"I am not lying! I am really not!" I screamed, biting my tongue in my desperation.

"Stop throwing a tantrum," Owen said gently but firmly. "We will get you out soon."

A sharp click echoed as they slammed the small metal viewing hatch shut, cutting off the last sliver of light and my final shred of hope.

I gritted my teeth and curled into a tight ball in the corner, trying to press myself against the wall for warmth, but the surface was covered in a thick layer of frost. The cold seeped directly into my bones.

High up in the corner, the security camera blinked, streaming my slow demise to thousands of strangers. With trembling hands, I picked up my phone and opened the live stream. The viewer count had reached ten thousand, and the chat was flying by.

Whoa, is she actually in a real freezer? Her face looks awful. Isn't this dangerous?

She looks like a literal corpse. Streamer, be careful.

Damn, I thought other channels used green screens, but this girl is actually doing it. Dedication!

"Make sure to hit that follow button, guys! Of course it is real. I would never lie to my favorite followers!" Joey's sweet, high pitched voice echoed through the stream app.

The chat went wild.

Aww, she is so cute. Definitely dropping a follow!

I struggled to keep my eyes open, watching the colorful gift animations flash across my screen. My mind was growing foggy. I had to do something, or I was going to die here.

I looked up at the digital thermometer on the inner wall. It read negative twenty degrees. And I was wearing nothing but a cheap, thin cotton shirt I bought from a street vendor for a few dollars. It offered absolutely no protection.

With shaking fingers, I dialed Owen. "Owen, please," I sobbed. "I am freezing. Tell them to turn the temperature up. Please."

"Iris, just hold on a little longer..." Owen started, but his voice was suddenly cut off as the phone was snatched away.

"Iris, why do you keep lying?" Joey's voice came through the receiver, dripping with fake innocence. "Why do you hate me so much? The remote over here says it is sixty degrees. Why are you trying to trick Owen?"

"I am not... the thermostat is broken! If you don't believe me, just come inside and feel it..."

"Iris, that is enough!" Finn's harsh voice cut in, booming through the speaker. "Joey is just trying to build her brand and have some fun. Why do you have to be so toxic? You are making it sound like we are abusing you."

"Don't think I don't know what you are doing. You are putting on a show to get sympathy from the viewers. Well, it is not going to work!"

The line went dead with a harsh beep. When I tried to call back, the call would not go through. They had blocked my number.

The icy chill invaded my chest, slowing my heartbeat. The digital numbers on the wall kept dropping. Desperate, I turned to the only link I had left to the outside world: the live chat.

I typed a message: Please help me. I am locked in a real walk in freezer. The thermostat is broken and I am freezing to death.

The chat went wild.

Wait, is she actually trapped? This isn't just an act?

I knew she looked off. Her lips are literally blue. Streamer, let her out!

Yeah, this is getting weird. Don't let someone actually die for views.

A spark of hope flared in my chest, but Joey quickly crushed it. "Don't worry, everyone! It is all part of the act. We would never actually lock her in a real freezer. If it were real, I would be more worried than anyone!"

The skepticism in the chat quickly faded. Panicking, I tried to type another warning, only to find a red notification flashing across my screen: You have been muted by the host.

With the last of my strength, I dragged myself to the camera, waving my arms and screaming for help, but Joey spoke before the viewers could question it.

"Don't worry, guys! This is just our special effects makeup demonstration. Stay tuned, because she is going to show you what severe frostbite looks like soon!"

The chat calmed down immediately.

Oh, wow, her acting is incredible!

This channel is so high effort. Definitely worth a subscribe.

This looks way more realistic than other streams!

Outside the heavy door, Owen stared at the screen. He watched my pale, trembling form sway and collapse onto the floor, and a seed of doubt began to grow in his mind.

"Do you think the thermostat could actually be malfunctioning?" Owen muttered, stepping toward the heavy door handle. "She looks really bad. Maybe we should just let her out now."

Joey quickly grabbed his arm, her eyes wide with desperation. "No, Owen, please! I am so close to ten thousand followers! Just a little longer, please. Once I hit my goal, we will let her out."

"Besides, we checked the room beforehand. The remote says it is a comfortable sixty degrees. She has to be faking it just to make you guys feel guilty and hate me."

She looked up at him with teary eyes, the picture of vulnerability.

Finn stepped between Owen and the door. "Joey is right, Owen. Joey would never let anyone actually get hurt. Iris is just playing her usual games. Have you forgotten how she pushed Joey down the stairs and threatened her? If we don't teach her a lesson now, she will keep tormenting Joey."

Owen's face hardened. "She pushed you?"

Marcus's eyes narrowed. "Iris has gone too far this time. She deserves to spend the night in there to think about what she has done."

"But what if she gets sick?" Joey sniffled, wiping away a stray tear.

"You are too soft, Joey," Finn said, patting her shoulder. "That is why she thinks she can walk all over you. Come on, let us go get some dinner and leave her to cool off."

Finn led Joey away, and Marcus followed. Owen hesitated, casting one last look at the massive steel door, but eventually, he turned and walked away too.

In the virtual world, thousands cheered for my masterpiece of a performance, dropping virtual gifts and clapping for my dedication.

Inside the dark chamber, I finally gave out. My knees buckled, and I crashed face first onto the frozen floor.

The biting cold rushed into my body from every angle. I could not feel the impact. I could not feel the pain. There was only a heavy, crushing numbness spreading through my chest.

Marcus, Owen, Finn... I was not lying to you. I am really dying.

My eyes fluttered shut, and the darkness claimed me.

I do not know how much time passed before a strange weightlessness washed over me. Slowly, my soul drifted upward, leaving my frozen shell behind. I floated in the air, watching the tragic farce unfold below.

The stream was still active. The comments kept rolling in.

Damn, she has been lying there for four hours. Talk about commitment to the role!

The fake fog effect is so realistic.

With acting like this, she should go to Hollywood. She would be famous instantly!

A profound, hollow sadness filled my spirit. I drifted through the thick metal door, floating toward the brightly lit dining room of the mansion.

The dining table was filled with food. Joey sat at the center, smiling warmly. Marcus was carefully peeling shrimp for her, placing them on her plate. Owen was busy scooping her favorite side dishes, while Finn brought out a fresh plate of sweet and sour ribs.

"Joey, I made these just for you. Your favorite. Try some."

"Thank you, guys!" Joey giggled, her cheeks full of food.

"Slow down, sweetie," Marcus said softly, wiping a speck of sauce from her chin with a napkin.

Watching them, a dull ache throbbed in my chest. The warmth, the love, the sense of family that I had spent my entire life craving, the things I had practically died trying to earn, were handed to Joey so effortlessly.

Had I been wrong from the very beginning? Maybe I should have never let them find me. Maybe I should have never come back, trying so desperately to earn a place in their hearts. If I hadn't, I would still be alive.

"By the way, Iris must be hungry by now," Owen muttered, looking at the leftover food. "Maybe I should bring her a plate."

Owen, if only you knew that I am already a corpse in that freezing room.

Before Owen could pick up a plate, Joey stopped him. "I already asked the housekeeper to take some food to her earlier. She is fine, Owen."

Owen paused.

Finn frowned in annoyance. "If she already ate, she won't want any more. Besides, I only made a small batch of these ribs. If you give them away, what is Joey going to eat?"

"It is okay, Finn," Joey said sweetly.

"No way. My little sister needs to eat well. You are already too thin."

Tears slipped silently down my ghostly cheeks. I was already dead, so why did my heart still hurt so much?

For the rest of the evening, my name was never mentioned again. They finished their dinner and headed upstairs.

"Should we really leave Iris in there all night?" Owen asked, hesitating near the stairs.

Marcus scowled. "Leave her. She needs to reflect on her actions. Besides, she has plenty of warm clothes, and the temperature isn't that low. She will survive a night of discomfort."

"Exactly, Owen," Finn agreed. "She targeted Joey. She needs to learn that her actions have consequences. We can not let her bully Joey just because she shares our blood."

Joey sniffled, hanging her head. "Please don't fight because of me. Finn is right. I am not your real sister anyway. It is only natural that you would care about her more. I shouldn't be here. I will just pack my things and leave."

She wiped her nose and ran toward the front door, but Finn quickly caught her. "Joey, stop. You are our sister, and you always will be. We only brought Iris back because we felt obligated to. Owen, tell her!"

A flash of conflict crossed Owen's face, but it quickly faded. "Finn is right, Joey. You will always be our only little sister. Now, stop crying and go get some sleep."

After they took turns comforting her, Joey finally returned to her bedroom, a small, triumphant smirk playing on her lips when they weren't looking.

The next morning, a blood curdling scream shattered the peace of the mansion. A worker hired to clean the storage units ran into the main hall, gasping for air. "Help! Someone is dead! There is a frozen body in the walk in freezer!"

Marcus, who was walking down the stairs, froze. Owen and Finn, right behind him, stared in shock.

Joey stepped out of her room, her face pale but her voice sharp. "A dead body? You are probably just another actor Iris hired to pull another one of her pathetic stunts!"

As if snapping out of a trance, Finn sneered. "Exactly. The temperature in there was barely cool. How could anyone freeze to death? Did Iris tell you to say this to get our attention? Tell her she is not fooling anyone."

Marcus crossed his arms, his expression hardening. "Go tell Iris that if she wants our attention, she needs to find a better way than this tasteless prank."

Owen adjusted his glasses. "There is a manual release valve inside that freezer. Anyone could open it from the inside at any time. Your story makes no sense."

"What are you people talking about?" the worker yelled, his hands shaking. "I don't know any Iris! I am just a cleaning guy! Why would I lie to you? The temperature in that freezer was minus thirty degrees all night! The body is stiff as a board! And the manual release valve is completely broken. It was sabotaged from the outside! If you don't believe me, go look for yourselves!"

But his words didn't bring fear, only deep annoyance.

"That is impossible," Marcus snapped. "I checked it myself! It was working perfectly!"

Finn ran a hand through his hair, his temper flaring. "I am going to see what kind of game she is playing this time. She is in so much trouble."

They marched to the freezer. Finn kicked the heavy door open. "Iris! Get out here! Do you think this is funny? You hired a guy to lie to us just because we locked you in for one night? If you keep acting like this, don't bother coming back!"

Marcus sighed. "Iris, stop this. Come out."

"Yes, Iris, please come out," Joey whimpered behind them. "It is all my fault. I will leave, just please stop fighting with the boys."

My ghost hovered nearby, watching them. A bitter pang hit me. Even now, they would rather believe I was a manipulative liar than accept that I was gone.

With no response from inside, Finn stormed into the freezing chamber. "Iris! Stop playing dead! Do you really think hiding in here is going to solve anything?"

His eyes swept across the dark, frosty room, finally landing on my slumped figure right in front of the camera.

He marched over, grabbing my shoulder roughly. "Iris, you..."

But the moment his bare hand touched my skin, he froze.