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boneswriteswords · 5 years ago

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Showers: Slasher Version (The Bois)

Hi, here is a thing. None of the writing is even. I don’t care. I struggled.

Hope y’all like it. :) Its my usual crap quality. Also if there is someone you want me to add to these sorts of things, let me know. I just picked based on who I know best.

Warning: Some of these are kinda NSFW. Like not really but its h i n t e d.

This is unedited and unbeta’d because we die like men here.

Jason Voorhees:

Jason had issues with water. Even before you knew he was more than an urban myth, you figured he’d have major hang-ups being around water. His tragic drowning at the hands of cruel children and incompetent counselors would have given him lasting trauma around water.

And you were right.

However, you weren’t prepared for the hang-ups to extend to showers simply because it didn’t involve large bodies of water. Granted, he never needed to shower before. The only times the layers of grime slipped off his body were when it was raining and even then, he often took shelter in his cabin to avoid it. All water was bad water.

That changed when you came around. He chose you to be loved by him. His mother encouraged him, telling him that you were his and you were there to love him and his mother has never been wrong before.

She wasn’t this time either. You looked at him in all that he was and loved him so truly that his heart would have stuttered a beat if he had one. In turn, Jason’s diamond sharp focus centers on you, keeping you away from harm as best he can. He keeps you close to him, his world off-kilter when he can’t see you immediately.

You had never felt so safe in your life, knowing he was there guarding you. Knowing he was killing to make sure you stayed safe.

To his dismay, however, he discovered that you liked water. You liked showers and baths. You liked swimming. You liked to sit on the porch and listen to the rain. You liked taking walks when the rain was light enough to not get completely drenched. You liked it all.

He hated it.

But he loved you.

And he trusted that you would never lead him into danger.

“The water is warm. The steam rises and shrouds everything in a dream. The day washes from your body and prepares you for a new day. There is is healing in cleanliness,” you told him as you undressed one evening, unperturbed by his eyes roaming over your body. It wasn’t a new sensation, the feeling of his gaze on your naked body but it still delighted you.

Jason watched you as you turn the shower on and stepped inside.

His hunger for you stirred, clawing its way to the surface as he watched you squirt some delicious smelling concoction into your hands and lathered into your hair. He liked the way the suds slithered down your body.

If he wanted to join you, he’d have to get in.

Slowly, he undressed and stepped inside behind you, your hand already reaching out for his.

Michael Myers:

Michael is not going to shower unless there is some benefit for him. If he feels inclined to bathe, he will just stand under the spray (or the rain) for a bit and call it a day. No scrubbing. No washing. No actual removal of anything other than the surface layer of gross. He doesn’t care all that much about how dirty he is. He’s just going to get dirty again.

That doesn’t mean he won’t join you when you shower. Michael is hedonistic; he does what he wants and searches for things that feel good to him. It is part of why he kills so much – it feels good to him. In the months after he followed you home and refused to leave, he found that he very much likes how it feels when you run your hands along his body with soapy water.

A lot about you makes him feel good – its why he’s keeping you alive and protected – but the sensations of warm water, small hands, and the different smells of your bathing products are at the top of the list.

He insists on being present during all your showers as a result.

You sighed at the familiar squeak of the shower door, the rush of cold air against your side, the grip on your wrist dragging you a step over towards the intruder.

“Hi Michael,” you sigh, wiping your eyes with your free hand so you can look up at him. His mask was still on, the steam from the shower not so intense that he felt the need to remove it this time, and his eyes pierced yours from behind it. He didn’t respond, he hardly ever did, but the hand griping your wrist brought it up and laid it on the soap.

You could feel your lips twitch as you lather it in your hands, “Where do you want me to start?”

Michael grunted, taking your wrist again and laying on his chest. You suppressed a grin. Michael didn’t like when you pointed out that he liked things and would stop doing them out of protest.

“Okay,” you whisper, the sound getting lost as you run your hands from the top of his shoulders to the dip of his waist, doing your best to ignore the soft contented grumbling vibrating under your hands.

Brahms Heelshire:

Contrary to what you expected from him, Brahms loves to take baths and showers. He likes being warm above all else, having been forced to endure harsh cold weather during his years in the walls of his home.

(You once asked him why he preferred to be running hot, given what happened to him, and, in a rare glimpse of Adult!Brahms, he told you he has issues with flames and not warmth. Warmth does not mean fire.) The showers and baths provide it in a way your arms can’t and he likes to revel in the sensation.

However, just because he likes it, doesn’t mean he is going to make your life any easier by getting in when you instruct him to. He is a brat and while he loves you more than any living that has ever or will ever exist, he loves to make your job taking care of him harder. You have to work for it.

‘Its only fair,’ he tells himself, grinning behind his mask as you get the shower ready for him, scolding him as you do, ‘You made me love you without having to work for it. I continue to love you without you having to work for it. You have to work for something.’

“Okay Brahms, get in. Its nice and warm but not too hot. Time to get clean,” you say, stepping away from the shower, frowning when you see that he was still fully clothed.

You sigh, “Brahms, we talked about this. You need to shower. Its been four days. You promised me.”

“No,” he stomped his foot, child voice in full effect, “I don’t want to.”

“Brahms -”

“No!”

“Brah-”

“No! No! NO!”

“Bra-”

“NOOOOOOOO!”

“Okay! Fine. No shower for Brahms,” you grumbled, pinching the bridge of your nose and his grin widens at your mounting frustration, “You can go now.”

He lets out a childish yell, grabbing your hand so you can play with him, but you stand firm when he tries to tug you along.

“Hey?!”

“Oh no Brahms. You may not want this shower,” you grin and his heart beats hard against his ribs, “But I do. You may go but I fully plan to enjoy this shower.”

You pause, letting go of his hand so you can remove the cardigan he had forced you into earlier in the day and letting it drop onto the floor. You start to work open the buttons on your shirt, taking a peek at him from under your lashes as you did.

“Its a shame that I’ll be in there all alone. We could have shared it but I guess I can’t make you now can I?”

Your shirt fell to the floor.

He knew he was being tricked. He knew this was a ploy to get him to bathe. He knew he was losing the game he started.

You slide your pants down your legs, your underwear going with it, and turn around. The length of your back, the dip of your spine as it curves into your ass, the little crease of flesh that he loves to stroke and bite....all open for his consumption. He watched as you reached behind, unsnapping your bra and peeling it away from you.

Fuck it, he decided as he pulled his cardigan off, he’ll just have you work for something else.

Bubba Sawyer:

Baby Boi Sawyer is a sweaty boy. He is a hard working man. He works on the property during the morning, cuts and prepares the meat during the afternoon, cooks dinner in the evening, and passes at night out most days. Bathing was something he didn’t do as much as one should simply because of how impractical it was.

And, a lot of the time, there wasn’t any decently tempered water left after his brothers showered. Drayton always got first dibs because he ‘worked out of the home and needed to look presentable.’

Bubba immediately took up a better hygiene routine when he met you. Short showers in the morning. Two rinses in the afternoon depending on what you were doing that day (he’d skip them if you were at the gas station for the day). A longer shower before dinner. There was a bar of soap in one of the pockets of his apron at all times.

You quickly became family to the Sawyers, accepting and falling into their lifestyle seamlessly with little to no bitching from Drayton.

And under no circumstances did he want you to think he was stinky. He was already struggling with the fact that you’d think he was ugly and dumb. He couldn’t change his face - the masks helped hide it but he knew there was no fixing what was underneath - and he couldn’t change his inability to speak - he tried so hard to learn so you’d think he was smart but he just couldn’t make the words come out - but he could change how he smelled.

You also seemed to like to seek him out during the day, bringing out fresh lemonade and snacks so he was forced to take a break from his work and chat with you.

Bubba loved it. He loved you.

But he hated it. He hated himself.

He had to work and when he worked, he sweat and when he sweat, he stunk and if he stunk, you wouldn’t like him. He was anxious, tipping around you throughout the day to wash down and decrease the smell before you found him. He had never been so paranoid in his life.

It was only a matter of time before you caught him off guard though.

It was the best day of his life.

Not only did you not mind the smell (“Bubby, sweetest of men, you work all day outside in the heat. You sweat. I’d be surprised if you didn’t have a bit of smell”), but you told him you thought he was attractive (“You are literally so attractive when you’re working and covered in dirt. Its not fair.). You leaned into him, paying no attention to the dampness of his clothing and how some of it transferred onto yours, and gave him a kiss, paying even less attention to the sweat above his upper lip. You leaned into him during dinner - the first time he hadn’t showered beforehand since knowing you -, pressing into him as close as possible while eating and interlocked your leg with his under the table.

But the best part was when you pulled him into the shower when the day’s work was done and scrubbed him clean, smiling into his mouth as you did.

Bo Sinclair:

Showers are one of the few places where Bo can be soft with you. In public, he maintains a carefully crafted visage of a stereotypical tough guy. Toxically masculine. Overly rough. Dominating. Borderline violent in every twitch of his brow and flex of his fingers. Bo would rather chew his own tongue off than admit he was anything softer than a rock.

But you knew better.

In private, away from the prying eyes of the living and the dead, he becomes pliable, veneer slipping away from where it’s settled in the tension in his shoulders and clench of his jaw. His touch loosens into a grip less desperate. He breathes deeper.

He folds into you like clay, allowing you to guide him. He relaxes in your arms and allows everything to drift away. Nothing can get him. Not his victims. Not his responsibilities. Not his mother. Not his trauma.

He is safe.

Showers were a way he could let you know that he was feeling vulnerable, that he needed to get away to break. The shower was a place where no one will follow. In the months following the birth of your relationship, it became a way for him to communicate to you what his needs were.

And you adapted.

So when he barges into the house, huffing and growling with murder in his eyes, and says he needs a shower, you know what he means and what you need to do.

You get in the shower first, going through the motions of washing you hair, and push open the glass door you hear the rustling of his clothes. You let him lean on you, first gripping onto you from behind, and then turning to look into his eyes.

The shower fills the room with steam and in the blur, he will break and you will put him back together.

Vincent Sinclair:

This man has no concept of time. He lives in his basement and gets so wrapped into his projects that the world fades to background noise. He barely takes the time between the wax town and his own art pieces to sleep so taking a shower is very much not a priority for him.

He will if he must. There have been times when a victim gets too close and things end up bloodier than intended. Vincent does not like how blood gets tacky on his skin.

Other than that, he won’t. Its not to be gross, he just has no idea of how much time passes between one shower and the next and he’s rather work in the basement.

He does argue with you about it because of that. After three days, the stank will start to become prominent when you breathe near him. After four days, the stank becomes visible. After the fifth day, you get involved because his smell literally wakes you up from a dead sleep.

You’ve mastered the art of arguing with him though so its not too bad. You go into the basement and tell him he needs a shower. He’ll grunt. You will reiterate that he promised he would take more showers, because he had. He’ll agree that he did but it is not time for a shower. He just took one. You will bring out the calendar you use to mark when he showers - one of your only big fights involved not having proof of when he last showered so you got a calendar and marked it together - and count the number of days between the last mark and the current day.

(You can and will get Bo to confirm what day it is currently. He thinks all of it is stupid but no one asked him)

He will realize that he is wrong, apologize, and shower before its time for bed. You rarely ever join him. Vincent considers showering to be a very private activity and his insecurities about his face and body are something you and him work on every day. He is fine with you seeing him as he is in dim lighting but the bright florescent lights in the bathroom are a different story and you respect him.

(You wonder if the bright lights in the bathroom are part of the reason why he avoids showering but its something you won’t bring up just yet.)

When he comes out, damp and warm and smelling nice, you wrap him up in your arms and hide away in your duvets until the sun comes up and Vincent will whisper thank-yous into your skin.

Thomas Hewitt:

Thomas was used to not bathing as often as he’d want. Between the hot Texas sun, the heavy-duty (and often bloody) work he did on a daily basis, and the lack of hours in the day, taking a shower was on the low end of his priorities list. He’d rather catch 20 minutes more of sleep.

After your relationship got more physical, he made showering a larger priority for the simple fact that he likes to wipe your body down. Especially after sex. He likes to hold you so you are facing the water and he can press his entire body against your back. Grabbing the body wash – something you introduced to him-, he’ll lather it up and run it over your body until the only thing left on your flesh are his marks.

You are so small compared to him. He loves to watch how his hands encompass and grip your flesh, pressing into the proof of your love for him, the trust you give him.

“Oooo,” you breathe, leaning back even further into the wall of man behind you. Thomas’s hands dipped lower, fanning out over your thighs and you could feel the beginnings of renewed arousal. He purposely avoided your cunt and you knew he was unsure if you were feeling sore. “That’s feels nice, lovely.”

A deep grunt. He’d never admit it but he loved when you called him lovely. There was something precious in the way you cooed the word at him that caused his knees to buckle. His hands moved up to your waist, pressing and searching. He grabbed your breasts and your returning whimper was lost in the sound of the spray. You could feel him at the small of your back, hot and heavy but he made no move to buck into you.

He could, if he was inclined. He could lift you up and fit you on him with ease, forcing his way into your body like a sword in a sheath. You knew it. He knew it.

But he wouldn’t.

Not without your consent.

Not without your permission.

Gripping one of his hands in your significantly smaller ones, you lowered it back down, cooing at the stretch of his fingers dipping inside of you and gave him all the permission he needed.

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End

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caffeinated-moonchild · 4 years ago

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therapy [jeon jungkook]

writer: michiko

genre: angst, short story, fan fiction

synopsis: some things are only for oneself. some things are shared to friends, family, significant other, or even social media. but there are things that only the therapist knows.

character/s: jeon jungkook, original character [i]

TRIGGER WARNING: may contain mention of violence, profanity, mental health, self-harm

story:

There are things that no one else knows, things that are better off kept to oneself or locked away in the deepest and darkest part of ourselves. It sounds kind of selfish, almost as if I did not give a single fuck about anyone around me because sharing is supposed to be caring, but let us be honest for a while...none of you gives a shit about anyone, too.

But when you keep everything to yourself and not share it with anyone, chances are you would burst into flames and your enemies will dance on your ashes, not even taking time to scatter your remains at your favorite place. So the moral lesson of life is trust no one.

Why have I grown to be such a heartless loser? It’s all because of a guy.

How cliché. But isn’t life a compilation of clichés?

“Let’s give him a name. Jeon. Let’s call him that.

It wasn’t anything romantic or extraordinary like eyes meeting from opposite sides of the room or bumping into each other and me spilling coffee on his perfect white shirt. But it does involve coffee.

There is this hidden gem of a coffee shop in Gangnam that holds these jam nights. It's really fun. It's not just music. There's a bit of slam poetry and every Friday the 13th, there's a speed dating.

Yes. That's where I met Jeon.

I still remember his first question…"

I had yet to settle on the stool when the guy asked, "What's with the black lipstick?" His voice dripped of this tone that seemed like some kind of judgment, which I was ready to retort. But then my eyes saw the most gorgeous being to walk this fucked up planet. Maybe for me but that was the thing, I normally dislike everyone but there was something about him that gripped onto me so tight that I could not find a way to escape it.

His dark brown eyes seemed too pierce through my soul, his button nose being the only adorable thing on such a handsome face, his red lips tugged up to a smirk, and framing his face was his gorgeous chin-length black hair with an undercut on the right side―a modern Hades with his black clothes and black boots, matched with his golden skin that glowed even under the dim light of the coffee shop.

I arched my brow as I looked at him, wondering what a guy like him was doing at a speed dating.

“Not to be judgmental but he had the look of a sex god and I am pretty sure that every girl who sees him would definitely jump on him. Trust me on that one because if it wasn’t for my lack of interest and self-control, I would have straddled him right there and then.”

Out of habit, I rolled my eyes not out of genuine annoyance but more of to build a bit of persona around him. It was more of a mask as I tried to gauge what he likes and what he was into...the likes. “I didn’t really want to go to this thing. When they said Friday the 13th event, I was looking forward to a slasher fest or a horror movie night, but apparently that’s not what’s going on. I’m not thrilled.”

And though I stay over poetry and enjoy the sappy love songs, my reputation has long become the disturbed girl with serious parental issues resulting in lack of self-confidence and self-love, matched with a foul mouth and love for gore and anything dark and darker than black.

“Call it stupid but it was easier to put a mask for someone rather than to bare my soul and be judged and tossed to the side. At least, with a mask, I can throw it away and make a new one. That makes me sound so deranged but so what?”

He chuckled, crossing his legs like he was some kind of model who just had to show off that he could look like a model. “Dark but I like it.”

That was what did it for me. The moment he appreciated the darkness I presented, I thought that nothing would scare him because right then he knew that knives and blood are what keep me sane. Right then I thought that he knew what kind of mess he was getting into...or what I thought he was getting into.

“The more we talked, the more I found myself falling in love with him. I learned how he is more than the guy that he lets on to be. In ways, we were similar. We both hated being judged and so we pretend to be someone else to keep our true selves intact and untouched by the chaotic world outside and toxic people who feed on the weak and the kind.

And the more things got real, the more I wanted it. But he felt differently.”

His hand has always felt warm around mine, making me feel safe and secured. There was something about every bit of him that made me feel warm...as if I was home.

The view was nothing spectacular but the way the sun and the clouds decorated the blue sky was breathtaking in its own way. Our eyes would momentarily take a break from basking in the light and meet each other in a passionate yet brief glance, as if to make sure that we still had each other. I dreaded the moment that we would have to part…

“So you’d understand how crushed I felt when he let go of my hand because his friends were approaching us and he hasn’t told them about me for reasons I didn’t know at the moment, reasons I wished I didn’t know.

He held me as if he didn’t want to lose me. He touched me like I was a goddess he worshiped. He kissed me as if we would die tomorrow. He told me he loves me as if those were the only words he knew.

But the moment his crew gets involved, I become a girl who got obsessed with him and wanted him all to myself and he was just kind enough to actually play with me.

What kind of self-respecting woman would stay with a guy like him?”

His head hung low, eyes could not even meet mine. “What the hell was that, Jeon?” My voice was firm, trying my best not to explode and risk another unnecessary argument that I knew I could not handle at the moment. “I know you have some kind of reputation to uphold but why can’t you just tell them that we’re in a relationship? Why do you have to make it seem like I am some kind of obsessed fangirl who wouldn’t leave you alone?”

As he looked up at me, I could see that he felt guilty about it. His doe eyes always worked its charm and I would often forgive him but I could not seem to find a reason to do so.

“My self-confidence was on a different kind of low. A part of me felt as if he was just hanging me on a hook because I love him...I loved him. He liked the ego boost so he kept me. Every single time he made me feel like a stalker fangirl, I lost every bit of faith and hope that someone could love someone so messed up, that someone could appreciate the broken.

I very much thought he could and maybe he could.”

Shaking my head, I knew what I had to do and say, “I’m going. I’m sorry, Jeon. I can’t do this if you want to keep this up. I know that you have your own issues but I can’t keep on ignoring it. I can’t keep on pretending that it’s okay because it’s not. I love you. I swear, I do. Maybe even more than myself.”

I should not have glanced at him because the moment I saw that look on his face, his brown eyes pleading with me. Immediately, I looked away to avoid breaking and losing my stand. “Maybe someday, Jeon.” I paused, a brutal attempt to keep myself from breaking down. “I love you.”

Then I left.

I left before I changed my mind and decided to settle for what was there.

“As petty as it sounds, it drove me back to the darkest parts of my mind. Whatever light he brought to my life disappeared. My life drowned in pitch black again.

My family is a mess, my parents constantly breathing down my neck over every single thing and me being the constant disappointment in their golden lives. My friends expect me to be as high-achieving and goal-oriented as they are as if I have no dreams.

As stupid as it may seem, Jeon was the only one who understood me...or tried and that was more than enough.

He tried. And that’s okay.

I didn’t want to kill myself over him. I just wanted to feel a bit of physical pain to justify the emotional pain that I was going through, thinking that the break-up was too small of a thing to cry over...and wounds are more valid.

But I guess I was wrong because I had to talk about all of this again when I didn’t want to. As much as possible, I wanted to keep this all hidden and buried underneath but therapy really wants us to dig deep, right?”

Dressed in a little black dress, curly black hair clipped at the side, black boots tapping against the floor, bandaged wrists making the perfect accessory to show off while drinking a non-spiked punch―it was an outfit I had no time to plan out but it was a perfect way to show off how I feel about the entire thing...not that anyone gives a shit anyway.

Across the floor was Ms. Kang, glancing at my direction as if I was going to have a breakdown. Her eyes even got bigger than they already are just when I felt someone standing next to me. And by the look on Ms. Kang’s face, she was invested.

I knew that the older woman across the floor was not going to look away anytime soon. And I did not have to look at who stood next to me because I could very much tell by the scent that was wafting to my direction.

“Oh Jeon.”

“What do you want, Jeon?” I asked, trying to stay strong despite my own strength wavering.

He chuckled, the same cocky reaction he had whenever he knew that he had something in his grip. “You.”

“I’m not a ‘what’ and didn’t I say that we’re not getting back together until you learn to treat me like your girlfriend and not some psycho stalker?” I rolled my eyes as I took a good gulp of my drink, hoping that I seemed convincing because I did not believe anything that was coming from my lips.

He nodded, setting his cup down on the table before he held me by the shoulders and faced me towards him. “And that’s why I’m here. To make things right.” The cocky look on his face immediately melted, his hands reaching for mine. “I told my friends who you are in my life and it took me a while to realize that it didn’t matter what anyone wants to see from me. What’s important is that I’m happy and I’m happy with you.”

Arching a brow, I asked, “Really?”

“Really.” A smile stretched across his lips as a soft one appeared on mine, almost as if telling him that we were okay.

“Sometimes, love can be as simple as forgiving. May their apology be truth or lie, time can only tell and it may be too late but you did your part. But we can’t always fear forgiving and getting hurt. Let’s be honest, we learn by getting hurt. And we won’t know unless we try.

As much as I wanted to keep Jeon at arm’s length, I want to know if things will work out now because I don’t want to wake up one day regretting that I didn’t forgive the guy I truly love, especially for something that’s still fixable.”

“Why is Ms. Kang looking at me like she wants to murder me?” Jeon asked, arms cautiously wrapped around my waist.

Pressing my lips together for a while, I looked at him with a smile. ��Maybe because she knows what kind of asshole you are?” I laughed.

With a confused look he asked, “What do you mean?”

“Let’s just say that I tell my therapist everything.”

#jeon jungkook #jungkook #jeongguk #jungkook ff #bts fan fic #bts ff #bangtan sonyeondan #kpop #kpop fan fiction #jungkook x original character #jungkook x oc #original character #original character fan fiction #bts x original character #therapy #angst fan fic #fan fiction

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faiththefox · 5 years ago

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The Sun of the asylum Chapter 2: Meeting the patients

Sorry its taken so long to post this Ive got school and there have been some big storms in my area so I have put my laptop on charge just in case. Anyways I hope you guys enjoy.

@uirene you wanted me to tag you with every chapter so here you go! lets start the story

@ask-the-new-killer (I wrote this a while back just check the Sunlily tag next time! I’ll try to tag you when I finally get around to the third chapter lol)

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I wait in the lobby of the asylum for the head nurse so I could find out where my on-site room is and get a tour of the building. I stand there for only a minute before a women her 50′s comes in with a very sour look on her face. She huffs at me before extending her hand out to me. “Welcome Miss.. Rose was it?” She says as I mumble “Its Tori.. rose is my surname” to which she ignores me. “I’m Miss Rachael and this is the Hills asylum the home to some of the famous killers in history more commonly know as the slashers. You are going to be replacing me as the head nurse of this facility so its best to give you a tour now before meeting your patients” She drones on as she starts walking.

She lead me around the asylum showing me all the activity areas available to the patients ‘although she commented on the fact they shouldn’t have to have them for murders’ I think back as she showed me each of their rooms. It seems like all the brothers were roomed together while Billy, Micheal and Jason were put in their own rooms. The place wasn’t as big as I thought but this just means there should be better chances of getting closer to them right? Suddenly, Rachael brought me to a room completely covered in Christmas decorations “This is billy’s special places.. as he calls it. This is where you bring him if his “fits” become to much.” She says bluntly before pulling me away and started leading me outside.

There they were.. the Slashers. Micheal was throw flat rocks at what looked like a makeshift person. Bubba, Chop-top, and nubbins were playing tag and running all around the place. Bo was leaning on a wall looking very pissed off while his brother was sitting by the fence drawing in a sketch book. Jason was also sitting near the fence but facing more towards the woods with his shoulders slumped down almost... sad looking. Brahms was just sitting smack dab in the middle building a very sad looking castle out dirt but the weirdest thing was billy who was chained to a bench with a straitjacket and muzzle. I look over at Rachael who waves her hand out over the yard “Why don’t you go meet them while I go finish getting the last bit of paperwork ready for you then Ill show you their activity planner so you know what they do on which days.” She bluntly says again before walking back inside.

I start walking over to Jason cause something was pulling me over to him. I sat down in the dirt, getting my uniform dirty, before looking at Jason tilting my head. He turns and looks at me as I notice what he had been doing. In the dirt was a a childish drawing of a little boy and what looked like an older woman. My eyes widened as I realized that this was him and his mother. “Do you miss her?” I say softly as he kept looking at me. He looks back at the drawing before nodding with his shoulders slumping down more. I gently placed my hand on his shoulder and smiled “I miss my mom to sometimes but all I need to know is that she loves me with all of her heart” I spoke gently before Jason hugged me surprising me. I forgot to meet all of the other slashers as I just sat with Jason telling him stories my mom told me about herself. Soon Rachael came back outside and walked over to us which made Jason tense up. “I see you are getting close to Mister Voorhees. Shall we head inside?” She says in her dull tone. I nod getting up as Jason turns back to the woods and his little drawing.

We walked inside and did everything that was need before she lead me to my room. Giving me the key before walking away leaving me to my own devices so, I start to unpack and put all of my stuff away. As I putting away my Brahms costume my phone started ringing from my purse on the bed that I had just pulled out of my bag. I pull it out and check the caller I.D and surprise surprise it was my brother Alex “Whats up bro?” I say as I answer the phone. “Hey! How was your first day..? Did you get hurt?” He asked and I could hear the worried tone in his voice. I laugh before replying “No but Jason seems to like me now! I told him.. about mom” My smile faltered as I said the last part. Our mom had died two years ago during her trip around the world... She was walking around Paris and her heart-rate got to high... they couldn’t save her. Alex was quiet before I say “I didn’t get to meet the others so its going to be a crazy ride tomorrow.” He laughs halfheartedly. We chat for a few minutes about random things trying to get our minds off of mom for a moment because her death hurt us terribly.

We said goodbye and I finished putting away my stuff before flopping into my bed and passing out almost as soon as my head hits the pillow.

~~~~~~~~~~The Next Morning~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up to the sound of loud knocking on my door. I jump up and walked over to the door opening it forgetting I didn’t change last night so I probably look like crap. At the door was a young nurse about 20, I guessed fresh out of college or nursing school. “H-hello Miss Rose... umm Miss Evans wanted me to tell you today is the day you get control to see how to do with the patients...” She says in a shy and nervous tone. I place a hand on her shoulder and smile “Thank you for telling me and call me Tori! Also don’t be nervous around me Im only older then you by 6 year hahah” I say jokingly. She nervous smiles back before rushing off to something. I shut the door and quickly see that my hair was a rats nest and my outfit was a bit wrinkled. I groan as I brush my hair out but decide that I wouldn’t have much time to change and headed out the door.

I head to the dining room (it was to small to be a cafeteria and seemed more like a dining room to me) and see all the slashers sitting at the table but no food in front of them. “Hello I’m the new head nurse Tori! Sorry for the quick intro but why don’t you guys have food?” I quickly question. “I dont know you tell me? Man you are shit head nurse” Bo says making glare at him before walking into the kitchen area. “I’ll make something does anyone have any requests for breakfast?” I call out to me through the window thing as I put an apron on. “PANCAKES!” Three very hyper voices call out making me laugh. I quickly make a chocolate pancake recipe my mom used to make for me. Then I put the two pancakes from the huge batch on 9 separate plates. I brought two out and sat me in front of Jason and bubba before running back and trying to being the plates out as quickly as I can.

Everyone dug in quickly after I set all the plates down expect for Micheal, Jason and Brahms. I sigh walking back into the kitchen and making some toast for myself as I used all the batter for their food. After 30 minutes I walked back in to see everyone’s plates were clean making smile just a bit as I grabbed everyone’s plates to put them in the kitchen. I walk back in and smile “Ok guys today is a free day so I can fully get to know each of you guys!” I say with a happy tone. Everyone (expet for the ones with masks) looked happy and rushed off but billy grabbed my arm as I walked to follow the rest out. I only then noticed that he wasn’t wearing the muzzle or jacket today. “Flithy pig..” he softly mutters and I see that his eyes aren’t fully focus which made me a bit sad. I lead him to his christmas room and set him down. His face lights up and he starts playing with all the toys in the room.

Billy finally got focused with a coloring book I was able to leave the room and start to check on the others. The first group I found was the sawyer brothers listen to the radio and playing with some blocks. I knocked lightly on the door frame when the music went to commercial making them all look at me. Bubba clapped his hands and run up to me hugging me practical lifting me in the air. “Whoa! Bubba can you please put me down!” I say laughing a bit with a smile which I guess he didn’t expect the me be happy? I could see his eyes widen behind the latex mask the replaced his original one. He giggled setting me down as his brothers started chanting “Bubba’s got a girlfriend behind him”. I smile and say “Just wanted to see how you guys were doing! and if you needed anything!” Bubba nods and points at the blocks before pulling me over to them. Chop-top laughs and says “He wants to play with ya! Good for ya!” as Bubba and I started playing for an hour before I had to go. Bubba was happy and waved as I left to go check on the others which lead me to the art room where Micheal, Brahms and Vincent.

I watched Vincent work with the clay making a beautiful statue of an alicorn before I was snapped out of it by Brahms’s childish whining as Micheal grabbed one of the colored pencil that he wasn’t even using. I walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder like I did with Jason and the young nurse. “Is there a problem sweetheart” I ask defaulting the nickname out of habit. I could see Brahms’s eyes widen as he looked up at me from his coloring book on the table. He shook his head before turning his head back to his coloring book (which looks like greta and him making me sigh in my mind). Micheal didn’t even look at me as he worked on this beautiful looking mask so I left him alone. I left and found Jason by himself outside looking at the forest again. I walk up and gently put a hand on his shoulder like yesterday making him turn to me. “You missing her again?” I ask in a soft tone but he shook his head. He made a drawing of eyes “You want to just look at the woods because you like nature?” I guessed making him nod his head quickly. “Mind if I join you?” I ask making him nod as I sit down next to him. This was a good start as any I guess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FINALLY DONE IM SOOO SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO MAKE THIS! IVE BEEN SO BUSY BUT HERE IT IS! HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY! IM GOING TO GO DO RANDOM STUFF LOL!

Also She didn’t find Bo because he was hiding away from her so he didn’t have to deal with her.

#micheal myers #jason voorhees #brahms heelshire #vincent sinclair #bo sinclair #billy lenz #Bubba Sawyer #nubbins sawyer #chop top sawyer #Sunlily #Oc #Chapter 2

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lalalizzy16fitness · 5 years ago

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Halloween movies; most don’t survive. Don’t get caught; STAY, ALIVE!

Best time of the year, best time of year to die. Bet. We all know there can be only one (one that survives anyway), let’s make that you. If you’re like me, sometimes the best part is screaming at the screen “Look behind you!” or “Don’t touch that, idiot!” or my personal favorite, “DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT COULD KILL HIM!?” When you are on the outside looking in (although I personally feel I am an expert and would easily survive a 2000’s slasher film) it seems pretty simple to outsmart the killer/demon/thing that just wants horny teenagers to die. But when you’re being chased by a chainsaw connected to a 7ft tall behemoth wearing your friends face for a mask, there are certain things that may slip your mind. So, that being said, in the spirit of the spookiest time of year, here are some rules (you can tattoo them to your forearm for future reference if you are really worried) to guarantee you are the allocated single horny teenager that escapes (barely, and gravely injured), alive.

Listen To the Kid / Old Lady

The wisdom of children and the elderly is questioned more often than any other age group, so it makes sense that in horror movies they reveal the truth of the situation first (often within the first 15 minutes of the film). The child usually ends up being the protagonist or close to them, while the elderly usually act as a prophetic warning. Naturally, neither is heeded by the other characters, paying for it rather quickly. Stay a step ahead of the enemy; (children are stupid and eat glue) but if you are in a 90s horror film listen to the kid or the old lady.

Don’t Sneak Up On Your Friends

Horror movies are often populated with irritating (and expendable) characters that make it very hard to sympathize with them, and part of this is the obnoxious way in which they like to make their presence know. EVERY horror film has that scene where the friend suddenly slaps their hand on the jumpy pals shoulder, scaring the pee out of them. Who actually does that? Honestly? Then acts surprised that their friend jumps or screams. Monsters don’t like imitators.

ALWAYS ASSUME THE MONSTER ISNT DEAD!!!!!!!!!!!

Near the end of every horror movie, the remaining character(s) finally defeat the monster. They pat themselves on the back in sweet relief; all the while the audience knows (biting their nails, waiting for the jump scare), the monster is in fact (surprise!) NOT dead. It comes back to life for one last scare. The menacing monster rises back into the menacing frame menacingly. The characters are surprised, oh no! They are forced to continue fighting back, only to “kill” it once again (often times in the most gruesome way so far in the film). Many characters will go so far as to stick their face into the monsters and start poking it, just to assure it is finally back in whatever hell it came from. The monster is largely of course unharmed, a simple headshot would end it all (unless you are dealing with a demon or an apparition upon which a ritual of some sort is appropriate), but for some unexplained teenage horny reason the assumption is its dead. They either leave STAT. Or the most annoying ones of all slump to the ground, gasping for air while the monster rises (menacingly) in the background.

Don’t Do Drugs

Every horror movie has drug users. Much like sex, you horny degenerate fucks. Your fate is already sealed. To your credit you stick to the easier stuff, alcohol and marijuana, but killers are straight edge and don’t stand for that shit in their good Christian neighborhoods.

Don’t Be the Jerk

The one constant in horror is that the “jerk” is a death sentence. There’s nothing worse than the guy who refuses to cooperate with everyone else during times of crisis, thus the horror gods smite him of his life, and the audience is disappointed but not surprised. The moral of the story in this bloody teaching moment is to be nice kids! Be a team player!

Don’t Have Sex

Slasher films from the 70s onward firmly established that pointy boobs and having sex while a maniac is on the loose will kill you. For whatever reason (I suspect sexual frustration), monsters hate walking in on two unmarried teens going at it. Also, why do the teens INSIST on banging in the strangest places? (Forests, barns, and even morgues. What the fuck.) Practically begging for the killer to intervene. Frankly, I don’t blame him. If I was camping with my wife and kids and some teens decided to bang nearby within earshot of my toddlers, I might kill them. If they weren’t in a horror film, and this was real life, they might just get killed anyway, by some… deranged drifter or some shit. More recent horror films however are bending this rule, abstinence does NOT guarantee survival, but it still most certainly increases the odds.

Don’t Touch Anything Strange

I would say 50% of all horror movies situations wouldn’t happen if the characters were raised better and their mothers taught them to keep their hands to themselves. Example: Dark, decrepit, old, basements and attics suddenly become the touching tanks at an aquarium. Then upon finding an ancient looking book filled with ritualistic notes they can’t decipher but notes at the bottom in English they CAN read that say something along the lines of, “DO NOT READ OR REPEAT, DO NOT SAY OUT LOUD, ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD, YOUR EYES WILL FALL OUT, YOUR TEETH WILL TURN TO LIQUID, YOU WILL BE CRUCIFIED, YOU WILL BE BURNED ALIVE, EVERY T.V. SHOW YOU DECIDE TO START WATCHING WILL HAVE SPOILERS IN SKY WRITING ABOVE YOUR HOME FROM NOW ON!” They read it in a horny teenager accent, and the horrible demon is unleashed.

Don’t Go Alone

Man does not survive alone, characters in horror films go against this logic (I literally cannot think of ONE horror flick where they don’t), and split up when staying together is safer. Insane killers, zombies or some type of monster your odds of survival rise substantially when you have the help of other horny teenagers to rely on. The alternate universe where horror movies take place it is the better idea to go it alone to investigate the noise you heard in the creepy forest. The result? Being pinned to a tree by something sharp and pointy through your stomach (or head depending on the stage of the film).

Don’t Take Vacations in Secluded Areas

The creepy secluded cabin in the woods the rich characters parents own. Classic. No cell reception, who would have thought? Murders took place in the basement years ago and my parents never told me? This is an outrage! The caller is coming from inside the house!? (Wait I thought there was no cell reception…?) Anyway, in the world of horror, secluded areas outside of modern civilization (it’s not like Jason Voorhees is a part of his homeowners association), is a breeding ground for demons, killers, and diseases. Take a vacation to Candyland. (But watch out for that Gloppy… I don’t trust that guy).

Pay Attention to Your Surroundings (If You Don’t Do This Already Maybe Take This as A Life Lesson)

The real reason and most realistic reason so, so many characters fall prey to their assailants is because they simply don’t pay attention to their surroundings, outside of investigating a sometimes very easily explained noise in the distance. The monster is watching them from the bushes 100ft away but nope, let’s play beer pong, other horny teens! Then BAM… the monsters right behind you and just like the dentist, it’s always too late. It’s almost comical. Pay attention homie.

Happy Halloween suckas’

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aarontalksmusic-blog · 5 years ago

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A Top 30 Horror Movies

This is Halloween! This is Halloween! There are a lot of awesome horror movies, but I picked just 30 that qualify as my favorites.

#30 - The Conjuring

So this movie isn’t perfect. The last 20-30 minutes kinda turn into a mess as the demon gets more confrontational. But, the first 90 minutes are a near perfect slow build of tension and smart visual storytelling. All the actors do a good job, even the kids. This movie has insured I never play Hide and Clap.

#29 - Paranormal Activity 2

In my opinion superior to the (still pretty good) original, PA2 moves faster than its predecessor and uses the audience’s curiosity against them in interesting ways. You’re always looking to the edges of the screen for something or someone out of place, and as the movie progresses, that curiosity rattles the nerves more and more.

#28 - The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

One of the only modern horror remakes that improves and expands on the original. The Hills Have Eyes hit when I was a junior in high school. It is gleefully gorey and deranged. People die in awful ways, and the protagonist (seen above) spends most of the last half hour drenched in blood. It’s a lot of fun if you’re into that sort of thing.

#27 - Event Horizon

Space Horror is a hard genre to get right. Event Horizon knocks it out of the park by getting the slow build right. There are gruesome and bloody images from time to time, but the majority of the movie is built on tension and dread. Having Sam Neill and Laurence Fishburne leading the cast adds some dramatic weight to the proceedings.

#26 - The VVitch

The GOAT 17th Century rural horror movie. This movie gets real weird and leaves a lot up to the audience’s imagination. The less said about it the better if you haven’t seen it. But, even for the 2010s renaissance of horror, this one stands out.

#25 - Hereditary

This is a list of my favorite horror movies, not the scariest. If it were “scariest” this would be top 10, maybe top 5. The second half of this movie is some of the most uncomfortable and relentlessly horrifying storytelling I’ve ever seen. Across just two feature films, Director Ari Aster has proved himself a master of the horror genre. We’re all worse off for it.

#24 - Return of the Living Dead

The first movie on this list that is more funny than scary, Return of the Living Dead is laugh out loud hilarious at times. Somehow, it still manages to be a more effective zombie movie than most serious ones. Great punk rock soundtrack and highly quotable, this is great for people who scare a little too easily.

#23 - Friday the 13th Part 2

Basically improving on the original in every way, Friday the 13th Part 2 is iconic even without Jason’s hockey mask making an appearance. The killer instead keeps a lumpy bag over his head the whole time. The movie lets you know early on that its going to be ridiculous, when the Part 2 logo literally smashes through the Friday the 13th title card. Great representation of the slasher genre.

#22 - Suspiria (2018)

I’m a sucker for lore in movies, and Suspiria is full to the brim with details that expand on the world. Led by great performances from Tilda Swinton and Dakota Johnson, the movie is highly intelligent and occasionally brutally violent. The fact that the director’s prior movie was “Call Me By Your Name” shows that he’s a talented filmmaker no matter the genre.

#21 - Halloween (1978)

Michael Myers is iconic. The music is iconic. Jamie Lee Curtis is an all-time great horror leading lady. Halloween is a must watch for horror genre fans.

#20 - Get Out

This movie is so well written it won an Oscar. Get Out is both hilarious and brutally tense. The acting is awesome across the board. Who knew Jordan Peele would use his comedy talent to make a career in scary movies?

#19 - Shaun of the Dead

A classic comedy filled with so many jokes that it takes about 3 watches to catch them all. Not scary in the least, but uniquely playful in the genre. Also made Simon Pegg a star. Nothing but greatness here.

#18 - The Descent

I’ll always remember my first watch of this movie. It slaps you in the face with trauma in the first 5 minutes. Then spends three quarters of an hour building tension and claustrophobia before suddenly becoming a solid monster feature. Though it fizzles a little at the end with some wtf moments, the first 3/4ths are very effecting.

#17 - Nightmare on Elm Street

Nightmare on Elm Street is just a cool as hell idea for a horror movie. It takes the occasional predictability of Halloween or Friday the 13th and flips it. The kills are inventive and visually interesting, the effects are very cool, and you get to see Johnny Depp get brutally murdered. win-win-win.

#16 - Saw

Saw came out at a perfect age for me. Seeing this movie at 16 was a great experience. Even as the sequels got worse and worse, the whodunnit nature of the original held up. People were literally drowning in gore by Saw 3, but this is a solid movie that knows when to tone things down. Great watch.

#15 - Evil Dead 2

By turns hilarious and unsettling, watching Evil Dead 2 allows the viewer to marvel at the special effects done on a shoestring budget. Bruce Campbell is an absurd and talented physical actor, and singlehandedly carries this movie into the hall of fame.

#14 - IT Chapter 1

Chopping the 1,000 page Stephen King book in half allowed the first half of the IT saga to thrive. Bill Skarsgard is a fantastic Pennywise, and the child actors all do well. A slightly repetitive series of scares keeps this one from perfection (and would be the downfall of Part 2), but its still an amazing peak of the genre.

#13 - Dawn of the Dead (2004)

Fast zombies. Zack Snyder directing before his head got too big. Hilarious musical cues. Apocalyptic imagery. This movie is one of the best of the zombie genre.

#12 - Fright Night (1985)

One of the most simply fun movies on this list, Fright Night is straight out of the mid 80s. It never takes itself too seriously, but it still has some good scares sprinkled in. An essential vampire movie, and the remake with Colin Farrell wasn’t half bad either.

#11 - The Omen (1976)

One of my early favorites, The Omen is another lore filled film that gradually ramps up the twists until the dramatic finale. Probably one of the least scary films on my list, its built on Gregory Peck being a great actor and a few pretty messed up deaths.

#10 - An American Werewolf in London

Another favorite from childhood, this is the best the werewolf genre has to offer. Made by John Landis who also did Animal House and Blues Brothers, American Werewolf balances 80s level of gore with award winning special effects and clever music (every song featured has moon in the title).

#9 - It Follows

One of the newest (and most original) movies on the list, It Follows is one of a kind. It’s terrifying, has great cinematography and halfway through the movie you have absolutely no clue how it will end. Must see.

#8 - Midsommar

This is absolute newest film on the list, and one I’m anxious to rewatch. Midsommar sets itself apart by being 95% in broad daylight and providing a wealth of backstory to the “bad guys”. Also Florence Pugh shows that she is an amazingly skilled actress, particularly in the final 10 minutes.

#7 - The Exorcist

^That guy is scary. He’s also only in the movie for like 3 seconds. Obviously this is a classic. If you haven’t seen it and like horror at all, it will still amaze you, almost 50 years later. I would’ve loved to be a fly on the wall when it was in theaters watching people lose their minds. Still a masterpiece of the genre.

#6 - The Blair Witch Project

I watched The Blair Witch Project for the first time alone in my room at age...I believe 14. That was a mistake. While the mistakes of the hikers become a bit hilarious on multiple rewatches, the night scenes are still tense af. The last 15 minutes are uniquely terror-inducing. Everybody’s seen this one, but if you haven’t, maybe watch it with the lights on?

#5 - The Evil Dead (2013)

This movie is one of the most intense and relentless horror movies ever. Nail guns, rusty knives, a turkey carver, a chainsaw, a machete: people get literally ripped apart in this movie. But, here’s the thing, its really really fun to watch. You’ll be out of breath when its over, but still.

#4 - Cabin in the Woods

Cabin in the Woods isn’t THAT scary. It flirts with scary. It has some shocking and frightening moments But mostly its a shitload of fun that plays on every trope of the horror genre. It also has one of my favorite final moments of any film on this list.

#3 - The Thing

Underappreciated upon its release, The Thing has become the standard by which body horror is measured. Its delightfully paranoid and lets the audience sit and think as gruesome deaths pile up.

#2 - Alien

One of the first movies to terrify me, Alien is one of the greatest horror movies ever made. The monster design is iconic. The kills and set pieces are one of a kind. It has a kick ass female heroine played by Sigourney Weaver. What more do you want?

and finally

#1 - The Shining

YEAHHHHHHH Here’s a brief list of iconic Shining scenes: - An elevator full of blood - The old woman in room 237 - All work and no play make Jack a dull boy - The snowy hedge maze - Here’s Johnny - Danny’s vision of the twins - The house of horrors finale featuring the man in bear costume featured above and of course - REDRUM This movie is a masterpiece, made by one of the greatest directors of all time, starring one of the greatest actors of all time and based on one of the scariest books by the defining horror author of our time. Its damn near perfect.

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tlbodine · 5 years ago

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A Decade of Horror Recommendations: Millennium Edition

After my 2010s horror recs post, @comicreliefmorlock asked me to do some for older films. So I figured I’d just work my way backward.

The lists might get a bit shorter and less diverse as I go back in time as I’m not as well-versed in older horror films, but I’ll toss out some recommendations for what I’ve seen and maybe some will be new to you anyway :)

Long post under the cut!

2000: A Surprisingly Good Year for Horror

Maybe we don’t think of the Y2K year as a big one for the horror genre, but it was still riding the tail end of the slasher/teen horror revival. Some must-sees:

Final Destination: I’ve written pretty extensively about this movie and it’s no surprise that I like it a lot, even if the sequels get downright ridiculous. The original still stands on its own feet.

Ginger Snaps: Maybe one of the best werewolf movies, period. Smart writing and a strong female cast as an added bonus.

American Psycho: Did you know this came out in 2000? I honestly always thought it was older, somehow, maybe because by the time I watched it in college it seemed like everyone had seen it. Fun fact: did you know it was directed by a woman?

What Lies Beneath: Part psychological horror, part drama-thriller, and sporting a surprisingly A-list cast. It has some well-worn tropes, but it’s a solid watch.

Battle Royale: Speaking of movies that seem like they’re way older than they are, did you know Battle Royale only came out in the year 2000?

There were a smattering of Asian imports in 2000 but none of them quite got their feet under them. I will make a shout-out/honorable mention here for Blood: The Last Vampire, an anime film that’s pretty well-known and gets referenced a lot.

2001: The Beginning of the End (for a little while)

Some solid stand-alone titles came out this year, but it also was the start of when the 90s revival started to dwindle down, I feel, with plenty of disappointments to go around. Scary Movie didn’t help much (and it also launched a whole trend of really awful spoof movies, which tried real hard to kill the comedy genre for a long time, imo). Anyway, some recs!

Jeepers Creepers: The director is an unfortunate sack of shit, but the movie is quite good. The first part, which draws heavily from a true story, is especially chilling.

Thirteen Ghosts: An underrated gem. The plot twists too much for my liking, but the ghost designs are super cool and the whole concept of the house is neat. A+ for originality.

The Devil’s Backbone: Maybe my favorite Guillermo Del Toro film, and a damn good ghost story to boot.

Suicide Club: A Japanese import that feels a bit ahead of its time in terms of pop culture (and internet culture especially). Features a couple of squick-heavy scenes I still struggle to watch (but, like, in a good way).

Ichi the Killer: Another Japanese import and my introduction to Takashi Miike, who makes me more viscerally uncomfortable than just about anyone.

It’s also probably worth mentioning From Hell, the Johnny Depp movie about Jack the Ripper, which many people enjoyed. I personally strongly dislike the film for reasons I can’t fully explain.

2002: Wait, That’s When That Movie Came Out?

I feel like 2002 was a big year for me in the “movies I enjoy but didn’t watch until years later” department, probably because I was a teenager with minimal access to decent cinema. It was also a rocking good year for Japanese horror.

28 Days Later: A movie that brought about the return of zombies in a big way, and also introduced (or at least popularized) fast zombies. Also it’s super scary.

May: I don’t even know if May counts as horror, but it’s a dark, quirky movie that I try to make everyone watch because I love it so much.

Ghost Ship: Honestly the bulk of the movie is pretty forgettable, but the opening scene is one of my favorite moments in gory cinematic history.

Signs: M. Night Shyamalan’s last decent movie or his first shitty one, depending on who you ask. I liked it a lot when I first watched it, and it started to fall apart more and more as I got older.

Ju-On: The Grudge: One of the better-known Japanese horrors and one whose tropes still get referenced and re-used. Skip the 2004 remake and watch the original trilogy.

The Ring: Probably the best-known Japanese horrors and maybe the import that put “Japanese horror” into public consciousness.

There was a lot of shlocky dreck in 2002, some of it decent (Cabin Fever) and some of it downright awful (Pinata: Survival Island/Demon Island). I should also mention Red Dragon, based on Thomas Harris’s novel of the same name, which quite a few people liked (I’ve only seen it once but I recall being underwhelmed). Also an honorable mention to Dog Soldiers, which I have not seen but which I hear frequently recommended as an A+ werewolf film.

2003: Wow that’s a lot of dreck

Look fam nobody said these film recs would be objective. There were a ton of horror movies that came out in 2003, I just didn’t really like hardly any of them. Some exceptions:

Willard: The movie that made me want to start keeping rats as pets, which says more about me than it does the film. It’s a great movie, though, the first thing I ever saw Crispin Glover in (and god, he’s amazing), and one of the few films that I think is better than the book.

Identity: A pretty decent psychological horror starring John Cusack. Watch this and 1408 together as a double-feature for maximum fun factor.

House of 1000 Corpses: Look, if you’re reading this blog, you probably already have an opinion one way or another of Rob Zombie. The movie’s on the list because it’s arguably historically important, not because it’s objectively good.

A few other notable moments from 2003 included a Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake (just watch the original, but if you insist on a remake, this is one of the better ones), the second Final Destination film (the last good one in the franchise), the Jeepers Creepers sequel, Freddy vs Jason, Darkness Falls, and Dreamcatcher. Like I said, there were lots of movies that came out this year, I just don’t think they were very good.

2004: Oops we created torture porn

I was in college at this point, which meant I was watching less horror than at any other moment in my life (I had a roommate who really hated scary movies) so maybe that’s why I haven’t heard of the majority of movies that came out that year. Or maybe they were all just really bad, hence why I still haven’t seen them. Hmmm. But! A few shining stars:

Saw: Obviously a classic. I’m lukewarm about the franchise, but the original is an excellent film and well worth watching, especially given the impact it would have on the next many years of horror cinema.

Shaun of the Dead: Hilarious, and honestly one of my favorite zombie films of all time.

Dumplings: A Korean important you likely missed in 2004 but may have seen in a Three Extremes compilation. Well worth the watch if you’re not squeamish.

Otherwise 2004 was pretty lackluster. Some forgettable franchise installments, some shlocky creature features, some unnecessary remakes. Lots of titles I’m unfamiliar with, though, too, so somebody tell me if I missed a big one that year!

2005: Ehhhh

Just a couple important titles this year too:

Hostel: Not a great movie. In fact, pretty damn campy. But an important one to watch to understand the torture porn genre.

The Devil’s Rejects: See above re: House of 1000 Corpses. Hit or miss but a well-liked film by Rob Zombie fans.

And you know what, I think that’s actually it. I mean there were other movies -- a remake of The Fog, the infinitely predictable Hide and Seek, the second Saw installment, and of course Doom. But it just wasn’t a great year for horror, imo. One shout-out here though for Wolf Creek, which is on my to-watch list; I haven’t seen it so I can’t vouch for it, but it does get recommended to me a lot.

2006: Mostly more of the same

Did we seriously have a Saw movie every year in the 2000s or what? No wonder everybody got sick of them and thought all horror was torture porn for a while. Talk about market saturation.

Anyway, some shout-outs:

Stay Alive: This movie is ridiculous, but I love it a lot. It’s about a video game that kills you in real life, and is a more successful video game movie than most actual adaptations.

ReCycle: An Asian import. I missed this one entirely when it came out, but it’s one of my favorites to have discovered in later years. It’s a seriously cool movie, both fanciful and deeply uncomfortable. Content warning for abortion, but it’s not what you think.

Otherwise, just some mostly soulless remakes (The Omen, The Hills Have Eyes, The Wicker Man), some franchise installments (Saw III, Final Destination 3, The Grudge 2). I will give an honorable mention to Black Sheep, which is so-bad-it’s-good ridiculous, and to that cult favorite Slither.

2007: Wait, is horror getting good again?

Well, not quite, but we’re back on the map with some promising additions in a year where the genre seemed to be struggling to rediscover its identity:

The Mist: One of the better Stephen King adaptations.

30 Days of Night: A divisive entry in the canon, but a pretty interesting piece to study for anyone interested in vampires.

28 Weeks Later: Not exactly a direct sequel to the earlier 28 Days Later, and probably not as good of a film, but pretty good in its own right.

1408: Watch this one with Identity (see above) and enjoy a night of John Cusack going crazy in hotel rooms.

The Orphanage: One of my favorite horror films of all time, both deeply unsettling and agonizingly sad.

Paranormal Activity: The highest-grossing film of all time thanks to its low budget. Also what we can blame for the burst of popularity in the “found footage” style.

Dead Silence: A movie that still frequently gets recommended and delivers some solid spooks. I’m not as fond of it as a lot of people, but it deserves a mention for how often it gets referenced (and for playing “killer ventriloquist dummies” straight as a trope).

Trick r Treat: A Halloween classic.

Of course the year brought us another Saw and another Hostel, a contentious Halloween reboot, another stab at I Am Legend (often adapted, rarely well), and a smattering of other sequels. I have not seen The Girl Next Door but based on how rarely I hear it recommended compared to the book, I imagine I’m not missing much. Borderlands was OK but, for my money, forgettable. Oh, there was also Grindhouse, a double feature which I quite enjoyed (I saw it in theaters, where it came with a warning for length, which I found amusing) but which history does not seem to have remembered positively.

2008: Did Somebody Order a Recession?

Back to slim pickings, although I admittedly have not seen most of the films released that year (I was pretty damn broke in 2008, so maybe that’s why). Still:

Let the Right One In: Skip the later English remake, you cowards, and watch this with subtitles. It’s so good. SO GOOD. An unexpected twist on the vampire story, and kind of a romance to boot. Sort of. In a really messed up way.

Cloverfield: A couple things are neat about Cloverfield. One, it was an early adopter and trope-setter for found-footage movies. Two, it successfully spawned a franchise where none of the movies feel related at all. Three, it launched with some really cool viral marketing that was utterly ahead of its time. On the downside, the shaky cam may in fact make you vomit if you get seasick easily.

Repo! The Genetic Opera: A classic. Also may in fact be the only film of its kind, or at least the only rock-opera scifi-horror that comes to mind.

I haven’t seen Pontypool, though it’s on my watch-list -- I’ve heard it’s quite good. Ditto Tokyo Gore Police which delivers, to my understanding, exactly what it says on the tin. Speaking of movies I didn’t see, can we take a moment to appreciate that a film called “Sauna” with the tagline “cleanse your sins” came out this year? Jfk 2008, are you OK?

2009: Why are all the best horrors comedies this year

It really does become obvious just how much the genre was floundering to figure out what it was doing the latter half of the decade, because the movies are so weirdly hit-or-miss. I do have some favorite hidden gems, though, alongside a couple well-known recs:

Zombieland: A genuinely funny feel-good zombie comedy-horror, feeding right into a growing cultural fascination with zombies.

Jennifer’s Body: Is this a comedy? Is this a horror? What is this? I’m not sure how to classify it but I sure do like it.

Antichrist: Ok I don’t know if this is a recommendation per se, but if I had to watch this with my own eyes, I’m making y’all watch it too. Have you ever wondered what it might look like to watch a filmmaker have a psychotic break while making a movie? That’s almost literally what this film is.

The Human Centipede: This is a cop-out because I have not watched these movies and I in fact refuse to watch these movies because the premise is fucking stupid, but I will acknowledge the historical, ah, importance? of this film in the greater scheme of 21st century horror.

Dread: One of my favorite movies, and the film I recommend to anyone who wants to watch a torture film done right. I love the shit out of this movie. Please go watch this movie.

Grace: Deeply disturbing and pulling approximately zero punches. It’s one of the best films to tread the “horrors of motherhood” territory, which is saying something because that’s very fertile (ha, ha) ground.

I actually have not seen Drag Me to Hell or The Last House on the Left, although people have recommended both to me. Anyone want to chime in with how good they might be? I also want to make a shout-out to Daybreakers, which I feel like nobody ever talks about but which actually has one of the most fascinating vampire concepts I’ve ever seen on film. The movie itself is kind of boring and forgettable, but the idea is really neat.

And that wraps up my journey through the 2000s in horror. Next decade: The 90s, coming right up!

#horror movies #film recs #movie recommendations #horror #horror by the decade

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robronsecretvalentine · 6 years ago

Photo

truth or dare

(AO3)

RATING: T

Aaron Dingle thought that bumping into Robert Sugden at Chrissie White’s Halloween party would be the worst thing about his night. He’s wrong. That would be all the murder.

Or, the teen slasher AU no one asked for.

:::::

For @omarandjohnny Happy Valentine’s Day my favourite gothic prince! May this next year shower you with all the love! (And plenty of fictional soap murders.)

truth or dare

He doesn’t have too many regrets in his young life, but so far his biggest one is letting Vic talk him into going to this Halloween party with her. (Not that he’d had much of a choice seeing as she’d cornered him at the garage where he’d been working after school and had taken his cup of coffee and sandwich hostage.)

“I don’t even know Chrissie White,” Aaron grumbles as they walk up the driveway to Home Farm. The face paint pulls at his face and the beginnings of his beard, his makeshift skeleton costume already making him want to turn back. “Why would I want to go to her party?”

He burrows his hands deeper into his jacket pockets and hunches his shoulders to brace against the sudden night breeze, chills running across the back of his close-shaved head and down his thin spine. Below him gravel crunches.

“Because I do, and I want you there,” Vic insists from a few steps ahead of him. She stops and turns back to give him a pleading look; big green eyes belying her underlying nerves and need for moral support. When she sees he isn’t budging, she crosses her arms against her chest and pouts. “Oh come on. Do it for me!”

When Aaron makes a face, she rolls her eyes. “Some kind of best friend you are.”

It shouldn’t get to him, but it really does, Vic being one of the few and far between people he can stand and actually likes spending time with. (It helps that she’s devoid of any of his own harsh sense of judgement and that she finds his jokes funny — and that he feels comfortable enough to talk to her about anything. Though given her recent fixation on being liked by one Chrissie White, he’s slowly starting to rethink his opinion.)

With a reluctant sigh, he closes the gap. Vic beams up at him as she links her arm with his, the sleeve of her yellow top bright against the black of his big puffy jacket. They continue walking up to the main house in tandem.

“Will you at least try and have a good time?” She asks after a few minutes. He almost misses her words as the wind picks up around them.

“Not sure how I’m supposed to do that with him there,” Aaron mumbles under his breath. The wind dies down just enough for her to hear that.

“Robert’s not all bad,” Vic says, ever the dutiful sister. “Yeah, he can be a bit of an idiot. But all that stuff with Debbie’s in the past now. And it was only ever a one-time thing.”

As far as Aaron’s concerned, it’s been an ongoing thing, Robert making no bones about his sexual prowess — or his attempts to bed half the school’s female population. Aaron’s cousin had just been one of the many names added to that steadily growing list at the end of term last year. Though if he’s being honest she’d gotten over it rather quickly in the summer, leaving Aaron the only one still holding a grudge. (Well, him, his mum, and his uncle Cain. Even Debbie’s mum, Charity, seems unbothered by it at this point.)

“What are you supposed to be, anyway?” Aaron asks in an attempt to change the subject. He knows full well she’s dressed as a cheerleader. And even if he didn’t, the short maroon skirt and bright white trainers would more than give it away. He doesn’t understand how she isn’t freezing.

“Uh, I’m Buffy?” Vic says instead. Her tone makes it seem like it’s supposed to be obvious.

“Is that why you’re carrying that wooden stick?” Aaron asks, nodding at the prop in her other hand. Vic’s sigh is loud and put upon from beside him.

“It’s called a ‘stake’ and it’s used to kill vampires,” she explains like he’s the one who’s picked a ridiculous and obscure costume. “You know, because she’s a vampire slayer?”

Aaron just shrugs, accepting it for what it is: yet another thing Vic is into and he isn’t. Though judging by her exasperated sigh and the determined jut of her jaw, he senses an upcoming night parked in front of the telly. Shaking his head, he turns his attention to the house in front of them, and it quickly becomes clear that the Whites have spared no expense for the holiday.

There are lit up jack-o-lanterns all along the path to the main house, and half the roof is covered in cobwebs. The other half has black spiders in the ivy crawling up against it, causing the mansion to look less grand and more dilapidated. It’s like something out of one of those horror movies Paddy and Marlon are always trying to get him to watch, the ones Aaron’s always declining. He thinks about taking out his phone and snapping a photo for them, but he can’t be bothered and it’s far too chilly a night. So his hands remain in his pockets. (Paddy, in particular, had been quite excited that he might be attending a Halloween party at all. Never mind that it was at Home Farm of all places. He’d spent the entire time Vic had been applying Aaron’s face paint just dithering in the doorway of his bedroom, telling him about all the fun Halloween pranks he’d gotten up to in university.)

Beside him, Aaron can already feel Vic’s excitement level start to shoot up, her grip around his arm tightening. Despite his earlier misgivings, he can feel his own mood start to lift, Vic’s steadily growing enthusiasm finally starting to infect him.

Practically the whole school had been buzzing about tonight’s “big” party, everyone discussing their costume ideas during and between lessons. With any luck, most of Vic’s and his classmates would have already arrived, meaning Aaron wouldn’t have to do much to avoid anyone he doesn’t want to see yet.

Meaning he wouldn’t have to do much to avoid Robert.

The heavy bass of some booming party track is already audible through the heavy front door, the beats thumping louder as they get nearer. The intended ominous and foreboding vibe of the house’s exterior, at direct odds with the life of its interior.

They come to a stop just before the doorway, Vic turning toward him patiently. He can see on her face that she’s truly offering him one last way out, one last chance to get away from all of this.

And it’s that that makes him shake his head and soften his stance, an acquiescent smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Oh thank you thank you thank you!” Vic exclaims, her voice mildly muted by the music. She reaches up and excitedly kisses him on the cheek, apparently unworried she’ll get paint on herself or ruin her makeup.

It’s in the middle of this that the door swings open, and a blast of noise rushes out to greet them, the music now so much louder with nothing to keep it at bay.

Not that Aaron notices it much, his eyes trained on the figure in the doorway, at the bare, freckled chest and swim-toned arms, and the fucking smirk gracing those often-cruel, pink lips.

“Well, well, well…”

Green eyes darken around a sharp glint of mischief. The other boy steps close, not even a trace of a shiver passing through him as he crosses his arms over his chest. Everything about this motion is instantly familiar, the unconscious resemblance both strong and uncanny.

“If it isn’t my sister and her little boyfriend.”

Who you calling ‘little’? Aaron opens his mouth to fire back, but Vic does it for him, stepping forward and pushing past her brother as she warns, “Robert, don’t be boring.”

A second later, Aaron finds himself being pulled into the party after her, Vic’s hands still wrapped firmly around his left forearm.

For a moment it looks like Robert might object, as he moves just a tiny half a step forward. But his mouth remains shut as he continues to behold Aaron; just keeps staring at him like he wants to say something.

For his part, Aaron sticks his chin out in challenge, meeting Robert’s gaze headfirst as he moves to walk past him. In glimpsing that almost-sneer up close and in high definition, he notices instantly that it doesn’t quite reach Robert’s eyes, which have somehow grown even darker in the last couple of seconds; not a trace of warmth, or even love, lost between them.

When it appears like Robert’s not going to move out of his way any time soon, Aaron gives into Vic’s tugging and bumps into the older teen’s right shoulder. He feels the impact even through his thick coat and warm, woollen jumper, Robert’s slim frame proving much harder than anticipated; those hours of farmwork feeding his unyielding solidity.

Aaron lets Vic lead him down the White’s hallway, the dim light adding extra drama to everyone’s costumes. She pulls him into the living room situated on the right — not that he really notices. His body might be here but his mind is still back outside with Robert, and the slowly blooming wave of warmth in his right shoulder.

So much for avoiding Robert Sugden.

:::::

They’re barely there an hour before Ellis Chapman arrives, dressed like he works in an office and carrying a bloody cricket bat. Instantly Aaron knows he’s lost Vic’s attention, her gaze now fixed over his right shoulder as she nods absentmindedly when he asks her what she’d like for her second drink.

Shaking his head, he waves a hand in front of her face to recapture her attention. When he has it, Aaron nods over at Ellis. “You should go over and say hello.”

To her credit, Vic smiles at him sheepishly, her cheeks turning a light pink that’s visible even in this muted lighting. “I said I wouldn’t leave ya alone, so I’m not going to.”

“Why not? It’s clear that you like him.” Aaron shrugs and takes another sip of his beer, Chrissie’s father seemingly having no problem with serving half the school alcohol. (Yes, he’s17, but he’s also grown up in a pub. Vic still isn’t, and neither is Ellis.)

Vic shushes him to keep anyone else from hearing — not that they would over the still-loud and booming dance track.

When she’s sure no one really has, she protests much more softly, “I never said anything like that.”

“You didn’t have to,” Aaron explains with another shrug. “You get all weird when you’re around him.”

He bursts into an impression of her talking to their friend, pitching his voice high and batting his eyelids as he pretends to toss his hair over his shoulder. “Oh, Ellis. You’re so funny.”

He follows it up with an exaggerated giggle that earns him a smack on the arm. He frowns because it actually smarts a little.

Thankfully, Ellis puts a pin in this argument for them, coming over to the corner where they’re both standing. The splatters of red paint on his short-sleeved white shirt and red tie are more noticeable, up close.

“Excuse me, Ms. Summers but have you see a Victoria Sugden?” Ellis asks both of them, like he’s meeting them for the first time. “I was hoping to ask her to dance with me.”

It’s then he turns to look at Aaron, and flashes him a smile. “You look like my mate Aaron, but less scary.”

Aaron rolls his eyes as Vic laughs at the joke. Despite herself, it sounds a bit like Aaron’s impression.

She follows it with a pleased, “See! You’re the only one who doesn’t know who Buffy is.”

Aaron replies, “Just go dance with the office manager.”

“Hey! I’m meant to be Shaun of the Dead,” Ellis corrects, sounding affronted. He gestures up and down at his costume, and then specifically at his fictional name tag.

“I’m going to get another drink,” Aaron tells Vic. It’s a blatant lie seeing as his glass is still half full. But she still reads his second directive for what it’s meant to be: Go dance with him. I’ll be alright on me own.

Vic smiles at him gratefully and turns back to Ellis, who’s now glancing curiously between them.

“Better do as he says,” she says, gazing at the other boy shyly. “Or he’ll get even grumpier.”

“And here I thought this was him happy,” Ellis jokes back. But when he looks over at Aaron he’s also thankful.

Aaron watches as Ellis offers her his arm, Vic taking it and letting him lead her over to where everyone’s dancing. Aaron shakes his head at his two secretly smitten friends before his eye catches on something in the middle of the makeshift dance floor.

It’s Robert, still shirtless, grinding up against Chrissie White, the only thing between them the thin linen of her Cleopatra’s dress, and whatever white cotton pants he seems to be wearing — but even that might as well be non-existent at this rate, their movements growing less and less suggestive.

Almost without warning, Robert seems to sense him, looking up from where his chin is resting on Chrissie’s neck, and through the gap in the parting crowd, straight at Aaron. He doesn’t stop moving, just keeps dancing; gyrating slowly against Chrissie’s backside. His mouth quirks upwards at the corners, as if proud of himself — and as if wanting Aaron to know it.

In Aaron’s chest, it’s like the air’s gone stale, the breath passing through it now constricted. He looks away like his retinas have been burned, but he can still feel Robert’s gaze upon him. In an effort to mute it, he downs whatever’s left of his drink, and then heads off to the kitchen for a refill.

He can’t stand the sight of Robert fucking Sugden.

:::::

He’s necking cider by himself in the kitchen when he hears a gaggle of voices by the doorway. A few seconds later, Bernice, Kerry, and Priya enter the room; an angel, a devil, and Lara Croft locked in a heated discussion.

“I’m tellin’ ya man, they’ve got loads of those cabins around here,” Kerry says with a grin and a nudge. “You and Liam would have plenty of privacy.”

“And most importantly,” Priya notes, as she pours them all more beer. “No more Daz Spencer hanging around you.”

She thinks for a minute then looks over at Kerry. “Sorry.”

Kerry brushes it off as she takes the red plastic cup handed to her. “Oh, no worries. Dan doesn’t like him either. Can’t believe Bernice here dated him as long as she did.”

“But it’s not like I can just ask Chrissie to give me the keys,” Bernice points out. She accepts her glass but keeps it on the counter beside her. “And certainly not in the middle of her party!”

“Then why don’t you just take them?” Aaron asks from he’s standing, he’s drunk enough that he’s feeling a bit bolder.

When all three girls turn to look at him, startled expressions on their faces, he shrugs and adds, “Reckon her dad’s got an office around here somewhere.”

“Stealing is a crime,” Bernice protests, though judging by the look on her face she’s already considering it.

“Not if you’re just borrowing,” Kerry says enthusiastically, in support of the suggestion. She beams back over at Aaron, her glittery horns shine in the low kitchen light, and making her live up to her costume.

Priya joins in with a, “Or do you want your ex-boyfriend to keep interrupting you and Liam?”

Bernice straightens up and looks across the kitchen island at Aaron. “So, where do you think this office is?”

:::::

He finds the keys without much difficulty once he heads downstairs, the home office better organised than he’d expected. He tosses a set marked 12-04 over to Bernice who first fumbles the catch and then nearly drops it. When she brings her hand up, the keys are still clasped within it, her knuckles whitening with the pressure.

“Bring them back in a couple of hours and no one will notice it,” he advises, not really caring one way or the other.

“Aaron Dingle, I could kiss you!” Bernice exclaims as she takes her phone out and starts typing, no doubt already messaging Liam.

He scrunches up his face in immediate disgust and mutters under his breath, “Don’t you dare.”

But if Bernice notices his reaction she doesn’t say a thing. Though it’s clear she’s barely paying attention anyway.

Seeing as she’s already walking out the door where Kerry and Priya are keeping watch, Aaron realises that putting things back as they were will be his sole purview.

He’s moving the box of keys back into the file cabinet he took it from, when he hears a shuffle by the door behind him.

“Finally realise you were forgettin’ something did ya?” He calls out in a strained whisper over his shoulder, he’s bent over, rearranging the files within the bottom drawer. “Don’t worry. I already took care of it.”

He hears the click of a phone camera before he sees a flash out of the corner of his eye.

It’s followed by a voice dripping nothing by smugness. “This is what you get when you invite a Dingle to your party.”

Aaron stands up straight, and clenches his jaw. Then turns around slowly to face Robert. “Why do you care? Not like it’s your house.”

He then snorts and adds, “Not like it’s even your party.”

Robert’s smile seems to slip — but it’s only for a second. His eyes get darker and more pointed.

“It is my business when my sister’s boyfriend is involved.” He practically spits that word out at Aaron.

Aaron’s eyes narrow as Robert steps forward, glancing around the room as if truly noticing the office for the first time.

“What you doing down here anyway?” He asks when he looks back at Aaron. He’s steps closer in an effort to be threatening. “Scoping out places you can sleep with my sister?”

“What you goin’ on about?” Aaron asks, stepping forward as well. “Vic and I are just mates. Why would I want to sleep with her?”

Robert’s eyes study him, but he doesn’t seem to buy it. “Please. I saw the way you were staring at Chrissie and me earlier. You’re not using Vic for your sick sexual fantasies.”

It shouldn’t be funny, but something about it is. Aaron chuckles, shakes his head and looks away.

“What’s so funny?” Robert asks, stepping closer and sounding even more annoyed. His breath tickles Aaron’s face, moist against the dry pull of paint. He smells of sweat, and beer, and body spray.

“You are, mate,” Aaron answers, edging even closer in challenge. “I’m not interested in your girlfriend.”

“Chrissie’s the fittest girl in school,” Robert points out, both angry and gloating. “So that makes you a liar.”

There’s a fury in Robert’s eyes, and Aaron can’t look away. He tries to widen his gaze, take in the splatter of freckles around Robert’s cheeks as he rumbles, “Or it makes me gay and honest.”

He can tell Robert isn’t expecting it, his eyes going wide in shock. If anything, Aaron knows how he feels; barely having expected to make this admission tonight — and never to Robert Sugden. In fact, he’d never planned on coming out to more than a few close friends. But like always, Robert has to go ahead and ruin it.

Before his own panic can set in — the feeling already rising in his chest — Aaron takes a moment to truly revel in the other boy’s reaction. He looks at wide open eyes, and a jaw dropped mouth, before offering a smirk of his own to Robert. Then without further ado, and his work done here, he bumps his shoulder into him again as he exits.

The second the door clicks shut, Aaron’s throat starts to constrict, a cold kind of dread creeping up his spine. Sure, there are people who are out at their school, but he can count the entire queer student population on just one hand. However, even that is proving to be cold comfort when faced with the fact that his truth is now known by Robert Sugden.

All he can do now is limit the fallout as the rest of the student body slowly starts to find out — and maybe get a few more people on his side. Now armed with a rough plan, Aaron rushes upstairs. He needs to find Vic and Ellis.

:::::

“There you are!” Vic exclaims when she sees him emerge in the living room. “We’ve been lookin’ everywhere for ya!”

She gestures at Ellis, who’s perched on the arm of a sofa right beside her, before fixing Aaron with a stern almost-motherly stare.

“Bernice said something about you being her hero?” Ellis teases lightly. “You find some way to get rid of Daz for her?”

Vic elbows him in the side, and he groans instantly. “What? He’s the one bein’ creepy and not leaving her alone. The guy needs to learn how to take a hint.”

“I think I’m going to go,” Aaron tells them, the words coming out in a rush. Now that he’s faced with his friends he can’t stand to do it; all of the courage and bravado that had come when he’d been facing down Robert having vanished from his system right this very instant.

“Don’t be like that!” Vic protests, looking guilty. “Have you even tried to meet anyone yet?”

She lowers her voice as she adds, “Chrissie said she’d invited some blokes from her old school. I’m sure one of them’s bound to be gay — or bisexual!”

That’s not the problem. Aaron wants to tell her. But before he can, that’s when the girl of the hour walks into the living room.

“Who wants to play ‘Truth or Dare’?” Chrissie questions looking around, holding up a glass beer bottle. She seems a bit drunk and like someone put her up to this.

Aaron’s chest seizes up and he looks around for Robert, but he seems nowhere in sight or in the vicinity.

“See!” Vic insists, jumping to her feet. “You can’t leave now! Things are just getting interesting.”

She grabs his forearm and drags him behind her. Ellis just smiles and shrugs as he also follows her lead, falling in step beside him.

As he follows his friends into the other sitting room, Aaron immediately questions their friendship. But even that thought quickly falls by the wayside as he keeps his eye open for any sign of Robert.

:::::

When he doesn’t show up after a few minutes, Aaron breathes a silent sigh of relief. They’re all seated in a circle, Vic beside him with her feet curled up under her, not leaving his side just like she’d promised — though her attention is held by Ellis, who’s currently cross-legged on her other side.

The beer bottle from earlier is slowly spinning to a stop, the long throat of it threatening to land on any of them. It finally does, and the first victim is David Metcalfe, with Rebecca White gleefully sat right across from him.

He’s barely uttered the word, “Dare,” when she says, “Give me a lapdance.”

Only there’s nothing about her tone that’s joking, her desire for David apparent to everyone sitting across the space. But David doesn’t blink at the audacity of the request, just smiles and raises his eyebrows, as if to say, You sure about that?

Rebecca’s appraising smile is more than enough answer, but she still adds a flirtatious, “Why? Too scared to accept?”

“Not at all,” David grins back proudly, getting to his feet and walking over, his own eyes fixed on Rebecca and her completely white “hippie” costume — complete with a flower crown that looks almost like a halo.

Get a room, Aaron thinks rolling his eyes. Though even he has to admire David’s football captain physique. The older boy doesn’t need to take his shirt off, but he does so anyway, looping the red fabric around Rebecca’s neck when he gets to her. He’s clothed in nothing but running shoes and the football shorts of his David Beckham costume as he tries to move to a rhythm of his own making. It’s not much to look at, David’s movements kind of jerky, but Rebecca and the rest of their classmates seem to be enjoying it. Aaron shakes his head as his scowl deepens.

When David’s finally done he gets a round of whoops and hollers, and what looks like Rebecca saying, “Call me.”

He comes back and takes his seat, his shirt still off, and the spinning of the bottle commences. After a few long seconds, it falls on Ellis, the base of the bottle ceding power to Tracy Shankley.

“Truth or dare?” What’s meant to be a sexy bee asks.

“Truth,” Ellis answers her question boldly.

“Describe your crush,” Tracy says with a smile. Aaron immediately turns to look at Ellis when she says that. To his credit, his friend doesn’t look like he’s sweating.

“Well,” Ellis says, after clearing his throat. “She’s sweet, and clever, and funny.”

He takes a brief pause and it’s the most nervous Aaron’s ever seen him, before he says, “And she’s sitting right next to me.”

Ellis turns to Vic as he says that, giving her a nervous smile. From where he’s sitting, Aaron just smiles, happy for his best friend and her potential new boyfriend.

“Do you really fancy me?” Vic asks in a small voice, after a few seconds have ticked on by. The shock on her face is loud and clear.

“Yeah,” Ellis says bashfully. “Have for a while now.”

“I like you too,” Vic beams right back. She reaches between them and gives Ellis’ hand a squeeze. They sit there, both holding and smiling.

The moment is ruined by Tracy’s loud, “Awww. This is so sweet! Kiss him!”

At the behest of the other cheering members of the circle, Vic leans forward and gives Ellis a quick peck on the cheeks. Tracy looks like she’s about to protest, but then she catches Aaron’s eye. He glares at her and she looks like she’s going to back off.

“Who’s going next?” She asks, crawling forward enthusiastically. She give the bottle a spin and moves between them. As it’s about to come to a stop, there’s a really loud bang. Everyone sitting there startles.

“I have a question,” a loud voice booms. Aaron immediately turns towards the source of it. Looking behind him, he finds a drunken-looking Daz, his knees already wobbly from the alcohol.

“Why did Bernice dump me?!” He demands, not quite focusing on anyone’s face, just flickering from person to person between hiccoughs.

“Think the answer’s pretty obvious,” Kerry fires back from where she’s sitting. “Look at the state of yourself! She deserves better.”

“What are you doing here?” Chrissie follows up, rising off the ground. “I didn’t invite you! Leave or I’ll call the police!”

It takes Daz Spencer a long moment to process this edict, his face going on a journey of emotion before collapsing in a flood of tears.

“Where’s Bernice?! I-just-want-to-talk-to-her…” He half-whines-half-whimpers in a slur. Aaron doesn’t know whether to look down or feel bad for him. “Need to tell-her-I-love-her…”

“Mate just go,” Jimmy King says, getting to his feet as well. His bear costume coupled with his tall height and muscles makes him look even more imposing. Being the captain of the rugby team finally good for something. “Bernice clearly doesn’t want to see you. It’s probably just best to stay away from her.”

He moves towards him like he’s going to show him out, but then Daz stumbles backwards and nearly falls over. As he tries to straighten himself up and find his balance, any argument dying on his lips. So when he looks back them, he’s just tear-stained and clueless.

“Okay! I’ll go!” He loudly declares. “But tell Bernice I love her!”

It’s followed up by a loud, heaving sob, the tears coming once more. “And ask her why she did this.”

Jimmy stands his ground, watching Daz walk away. The second he’s left the room, a sigh of relief passes through it.

“Thank goodness he’s gone,” Chrissie says out loud. “I thought he was going to make more of a scene.”

“Forget about him!” Kerry declares from a few people over. “That’s just Daz. If there’s any event, he’s gonna go and ruin it. No need to let him spoil ya party.”

“Guess you’re right,” Chrissie says with a smile. She turns to address the rest of them. “Whose turn is it?”

“No one’s!” Tracy announces, and Aaron sees that she’s right. The bottle’s stalled between Priya and David.

She crawls forward and gives it another excited go. The bottle moving faster and then finally, slower.

Aaron’s pulse starts to quicken with each slowed down movement, until the bottle’s nose comes to a close and then fixes on him. He swallows nervously, and looks up to see who’ll be presenting him with his options. His heart jumps in his throat when he finds that it’s-

Robert.

His chest starts to tighten and he tries to think how this happened, when Robert Sugden slipped in and joined this circle. It must have been during this whole thing with Daz, when he’d distracted Aaron and his attention. There’s no chance of escape, not with everyone’s eyes on him; with everyone expecting something.

“Truth or dare?” Robert poses the question, with a smirk. But it gives away nothing about how he’s really feeling.

Aaron studies him carefully, but he can’t seem to get a read, can’t find any knowing twinkle in Robert’s eyes, or any knowingness to his gaze, just senses a kind of thrumming tension revving up in his half-naked body.

It’s now or never, Aaron thinks, considering his upcoming outing; for Robert to reveal he’s gay to everyone present.

Deciding to face it head on, he holds Robert’s stare. Not wanting to give him any sort of satisfaction.

“Dare,” Aaron half-growls, and a beat passes between them, Robert appearing to accept his answer.

It’s as he’s waiting for the other shoe to drop, that Robert’s eyes turn considering. And then it’s gone in an instant, hidden behind that newly-formed smirk. The one that looks like every other one Aaron sometimes wishes he could punch away.

“I dare you…” Robert says slowly, a half-smile hooking at the corner of his lips. Aaron can’t stand to hear what he says next.

“To steal a bottle of scotch from the cellar.”

It catches Aaron by surprise, like a hiccough in his chest. He feels his heart skip a beat and then spasm.

“Is that all?” He asks, his voice sounding rough, like he can barely catch his breath now that it’s been stolen.

“Yes,” Robert says after a long, pregnant pause. Then he adds, “But I’m coming with you.”

“Why?” Aaron questions, with a half glare. This is easily a one-man job he can manage.

“To make sure you pick something good,” Robert says like it’s obvious.

Aaron looks across at Chrissie. “And you’re alright with this? With us stealin’ from your dad.”

He can feel Robert thinking, You didn’t seem to have a problem with it earlier. So he refuses to meet his eyes again.

Chrissie doesn’t say no, but she doesn’t say yes. She just looks thoughtfully from Robert over to Aaron. “I’m sure he won’t miss one bottle if it’s gone. Just make sure it’s nothing too expensive.”

When Aaron does turn back to Robert, he’s grinning at him like, See?

He just scowls back at him in response.

“Don’t tell me you’re having cold feet,” Robert resorts to teasing, his tone too smug for the occasion. “Thought all you Dingles loved stealing things.”

The attempt to goad is too obvious and Aaron simply rolls his eyes as he brings himself to standing. “It’s called having a conscience. You should try it sometime.”

Robert doesn’t respond, just continues to smirk. When Aaron looks over at him, there’s a light in his eyes that wasn’t there before. Despite himself, the pit of his stomach fills with dread, a cousin to the kind he’d felt earlier.

“Now what you waiting for?” He demands of the still seated Robert. “Not so bold now are ya?”

Robert raises an eyebrow and then takes his time getting up — even making a show of stretching when he is eventually standing. Aaron shakes his head but he also can’t help but stare at the way Robert’s muscles move under the light; a shifting collection of freckles dotting his skin.

Looking back at Robert’s face, it seems like he’s clocked him, as if he was aware of what Aaron was doing. Unwilling to stand the scrutiny or examine what those seconds earlier might mean, Aaron lets out a huff of frustration and storms off in the direction of the cellar. “I’m going. Come if you want to.”

He hears hasty footsteps follow behind him.

:::::

As soon as they enter the cellar room where Lawrence White stores his scotch, Aaron spins around and rounds in on Robert, pressing one arm across his bare and naked chest.

“What you playin’ at?” He growls, moving even closer. Robert’s back is now pinned against the cool brick wall behind him, a shiver passing through him and into Aaron. “Why’d you bring me down here?”

“I didn’t ‘bring’ you anywhere,” Robert argues back smugly, looking him straight in the eye. “You came here by yourself.”

A second later he adds, “I told you, Aaron. I’m just here to make sure you don’t mess up and pick the wrong bottle.”

Aaron searches Robert’s gaze, and it seems like he’s telling the truth. But he still can’t bring himself to trust him.

“Why didn’t you tell everyone?” He asks, his voice just above a whisper, a part of him scared that his voice might somehow travel.

Robert stares back at him for a long hard second. Then he swallows and looks down and replies, “Not my secret to tell, is it?”

He hasn’t struck Aaron, but he might as well have, an unexpected earnestness coming through loud and clear. The surprising reply causes Aaron to let go and step away — though not without one more firm push against Robert’s chest. That earns him a soft moan, as the breath leaves Robert’s lips, the feel of it tickling Aaron’s earlobes.

As he comes back to standing, Robert makes a big show of rubbing his chest, long fingers massaging his uncovered pectorals.

“Let’s find it and get out of here,” Aaron grumbles, turning around, though the sight of it is burned into his retinas.

Robert comes to join him, standing on his right.

“Let’s not be hasty,” he warns, tone light and casual. “We’ve only got one proper shot at this.”

Aaron’s brow furrows as he takes in Robert’s words, the lightness of their tone and meaning. He quietly studies him, taking in his profile from the side; the relaxed swoop of his shoulders and the almost smile on his lips as he stands there and studies each bottle appraisingly. The moment from a few seconds ago might as well have not happened, Robert acting as if they’re old mates all of a sudden.

Aaron tears his eyes away and focuses on the matter at hand — and not the way Robert Sugden sometimes hums when he’s thinking.

“How about this?” Aaron asks after a minute of searching. He’s done and he just wants to get out of here.

He shows it to Robert, who makes a face at his selection. Aaron frowns at his unexpected pickiness and places the bottle back.

“When did you get a taste for scotch anyway?” The question slips out as soon as he thinks it. He doesn’t care if it’s too rude a query.

“I have a taste for a lot of things,” Robert answers, throwing him a look. His voice is pitched low and Aaron nearly loses focus.

Then without warning, Robert steps closer, reaching for a bottle over Aaron’s left shoulder. In his surprise, Aaron takes a step back, his back bumping into the shelves behind him.

“Find what you were looking for?” He asks, his voice kind of breathy. He’d be more concerned about that if he weren’t already trying to get his pulse under control, his heartbeat having sped up rapidly in the span of the minute it takes Robert to notice him.

Robert doesn’t answer, just seems to forget what he was doing, his arm suspended over Aaron’s shoulder as his eyes drop down; first to his eyes and then his lips.

Aaron clears his throat after what feels like a moment of staring. His throat feels parched, his lips even more so. He moves to quickly moisten them.

He opens his mouth to talk but trails off as he catches sight of Robert’s eyes following his own tongue’s movement, green jade turning darker by the second.

“Uh… We should-” He tries, his mind feeling fuzzy. There’s only space in there now for a pair of pink lips, and bright, darting tongue — the narrow tip of it already driving him crazy.

Any other semblance of thought is pushed out of his head when he sees Robert nod, before his lips finally start moving towards his.

They draw closer together, two satellites floating in orbit, before Robert leaps and closes the distance.

Robert’s lips are softer and moister than expected, the force of the kiss sends his back bumping into the shelving behind him, bouncing off it and back into Robert. Within seconds Robert’s fingers are stroking against the grain of his hair, and his other hand tugging Aaron closer by the waist where he’s holding him. Aaron’s own hands clasp at Robert’s upper arms, an effort on his part to steady himself as the kiss grows deeper and deeper.

He can hear Robert’s groans, can feel them against his tongue, as he starts to rub the beginnings of his erection against the stirrings of his own one; cotton pants bumping and rubbing against denim.

Just when it feels like things are about to progress, there’s a loud noise to the side and they both spring apart gasping.

Before Aaron can find his bearings, and reclaim the fragments of his scattered mind, a familiar face appears from around the corner.

“Bernice? Is that you…? Are-you-in-here?”

He wonders how much he saw — or rather, how much he heard — when Daz Spencer finally staggers in, not much soberer than he’d been half an hour ago. Aaron sighs inwardly, but Robert’s face screams murder, as he clenches his jaw and goes up to him.

“What do you think?” He sneers at Daz, who looks a bit taken aback — probably because he hadn’t expected to come in here and find either of them. “Why would Bernice be in some cellar? Oh yeah. She’s hiding from you.”

Daz’s eyes widen as the words start to sink in, and then he starts to blubber, tears and snot running down his face. This seems to annoy Robert even more, his shoulders tensing in anger.

“Oh grow up,” Robert says rolling his eyes. “What makes you think she’d want to be with someone like you. Look at you. You’re pathetic.”

That shuts Daz up, as he goes stock still, just stands there staring and blinking. “Wh-what did you say?”

“I said you’re pathetic,” Robert repeats, before adding, “You really think this is going to convince her to get back together with you?”

His tone is cruel and pointed as he gestures to Daz’s booze-soaked and rumpled appearance, his hair unwashed and curls flat. “If you want her back, then do something about. Do something that’ll make her listen.”

“L-like what?” Daz asks, hope dawning in his eyes. Aaron thinks he’s gotten the wrong takeaway from this lesson.

“I don’t know, tie her up?” Robert jokes, no longer mad, but clearly disinterested. “All I know is you’re going to have to do something pretty big if you want her to win her back. Her and Liam looked pretty cosy earlier.”

That snuffs out all trace of happy emotion on Daz’s face. It’s clear he didn’t know about Bernice starting to date the best student in all of Year 12.

Daz steps backwards, the shock leaving him blubbering. Then he turns and trudges back upstairs, his every step sounding more woebegone and shattered than the last one. But Aaron can’t bring himself to care too much about it.

Not with Robert Sugden still standing before him.

He’s yet to turn to face him, so Aaron takes a moment to admire his back, that same thrum of desire firing up within him as he looks at the myriad of freckles. He has to stop himself from reaching out to touch it. From touching Robert Sugden.

He already remembers the feel of his skin on his, lithe swimmer’s muscles sliding under smooth, velvety skin. Aaron wants nothing more than to run his palm over it again, to feel his hands trace each and every muscle.

Robert Sugden kissed me.

When Robert does turn around he doesn’t look at Aaron, just focuses on the shelf of alcohol behind him. As he goes for the scotch bottle, Aaron gets in his way, forcing him to look over at him.

“We need to talk,” Aaron tries to state calmly, while trying to stop his attention from drifting down to Robert’s lips.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Robert answers, still refusing to meet his eyes. He reaches for the bottle he wants to retrieve.

“Yes, there is,” Aaron insists, stepping to his right to remain in Robert’s eye line. His head blocking access to the bottle. “You’re the one who brought me down here and kissed me.”

When it doesn’t work he shakes his head and tries again. “Just admit it, Robert. You’re actually gay.”

“No, I’m not,” Robert argues, eyes flashing darkly. He finally turns to look at Aaron.

“Alright then,” Aaron shrugs, accepting the protest. “Bisexual or whatever. Why are you tryin’ to deny it?”

He’s starting to get worked up now. There had been something there. He knows Robert probably also felt it.

When he doesn’t get a response he tries yet another track.

“Then what was all this about?” He gestures between them. “Do you even like Chrissie?”

“Of course, I do.” Robert actually answers, his tone making it seem like Aaron’s being ridiculous. He tries to reach for the bottle again but is blocked once more by Aaron.

But this time his face is hovering just centimetres, Aaron could kiss him again if he wanted.

“Is that why you’re still here with me, instead of up there with her?” Aaron challenges softly. “Face it. You could have taken any of these bottles and left by now.”

Robert just swallows and keeps staring into Aaron’s eyes. It looks like he’s searching for some kind of answer.

Inside of Aaron, a thrill starts to rise. Did he maybe get through to Robert Sugden?

He bites his lip, and looks over at Robert’s, wanting nothing more than to resume their kissing. But after a long battle, the shutters come down. And Robert steps back and grabs a random bottle.

Aaron just stands there, barely comprehending what’s happening, as it starts to dawn on him that Robert took him up on his other offer. He watches the other boy walk away, without even so much as a backwards glance. The air in the room grows colder.

:::::

When he emerges upstairs, the game has been called off. People are back to drinking and dancing. He searches the room for any sign of Robert and his terrified haste — and finds him stood in a corner kissing Chrissie.

It’s like a kick to the chest, even though he hadn’t been expecting much. After all, what canyou expect from Robert Sugden? But even in his mind’s eye, Aaron hadn’t pictured this, a desperate scramble for any semblance of passing straightness.

Sadly, however, that’s not the worst part of all. No, that would be the fact that he can still feel every inch of that kiss: Robert’s fingers stroking fingers through his hair the groan into his mouth, the firmness of Robert’s body pressed up against his. Despite his initial surprise, Aaron had enjoyed that kiss, best one yet in his thus far still young life. The second it had ended he could feel himself crave more — but then this whole mess with Daz’s interruption had happened, thus ensuring he wouldn’t be able to go back for seconds.

As he resists the urge to run his fingers over his lips and recreate that sensation goes through Aaron’s mind, Robert’s eyes open mid-kiss and he sees him. But instead of acting sheepish or even apologetic about what he’s doing, he just shuts his eyes again and lets his and Chrissie’s kiss deepen, his hands slowly roving over her body. The bottle of scotch sits there unopened.

It’s the final push that Aaron needs to finally make his move and exit the party — the party he hadn’t even wanted to come to in the first place.

As he’s heading for the door, he hears someone call his name. He turns to find Vic standing there, arms crossed and pouting. “Don’t tell me you’re already leaving.”

“Why do you care?” He asks, emotionally ravaged. He doesn’t think he can handle dealing with another Sugden so soon after the first one. “Go and hang out with your boyfriend.”

He sees her flinch at that and he immediately feels bad about it. But right now he’s feeling worse for himself.

“Ellis isn’t-“ Vic starts, before stopping and realising his tactics, seeing his attempt to push him away for what it is. “Please stay. We never really get to do stuff like this.”

“Yeah. Well, there’s a pretty good reason,” Aaron says turning to reach for the front door handle.

“What did Robert do this time?” Vic asks with a sigh.

“Who says it has anything to do with Robert?” Aaron lies to her face. A familiar twinge of guilt accompanies it.

“You’ve got that look on your face,” Vic points out like it’s obvious.

Like Aaron has spent enough time moaning and groaning about Robert Sugden that he now has an expression completely dedicated to him. Aaron doesn’t believe it, just rolls his eyes at her.

Vic doesn’t say anything just waits for him to disclose. Aaron bites his tongue and tamps down on it. Robert’s inherent queerness and refusal to accept it, despite kissing him, isn’t a truth he can share. Robert’s words now echo in his head.

Not my story to tell, is it?

Aaron finally sighs, tired of their stalemate, and refusing to budge on a confession.

“I’m going home,” he tells her firmly as his grip on the front door handle firms. “This was… great. See ya later.”

The twists and pulls and the door swings open. Something, or rather, someone almost falls onto Aaron, and lands at his feet instead when he sidesteps him.

It takes Aaron a second — and several more after that — to process what he’s looking at. Lying there in front of him is the body of a tall teenage boy. He’s dressed like Tim Curry from Rocky Horror.

“Are you alright?” Vic asks, her concern loud and clear.

When he doesn’t move, Aaron nudges the boy with his foot.

After still no response, he decides to take matters into his own hands. Aaron bends over and rolls the boy over. “Listen mate the least you can do is try and contribute…”

He stops talking when he recognises the person.

Even with a wig on and some kind of outlandish outfit, Aaron can see that it’s Alex Mason. Only he isn’t drunk, or asleep, or even passed out. If anything he’s actually lifeless.

Aaron’s eyes immediately flying to his throat, where an angry red gash is still bleeding, the blood dark and red and pooled on that front stoop. It’s now forming a puddle under him.

He opens his mouth, but nothing comes out. Vic’s scream is loud in his ears.

:::::

It’s like she’s screaming forever, and then time stops, before more voices join them out in the hallway.

“Vic! What’s the matter?” Robert’s first on the scene.

He’s followed closely by Chrissie and then a concerned Ellis, most other people probably having chalked it up to some Halloween prank. “Are you alright?”

Vic doesn’t answer, just points at the body.

“Somebody killed Alex,” Aaron tells them, getting to his feet. He’d been checking for a pulse to see if maybe they could save him. But he must have lost a lot of blood, because his body was still a little warm, but also rapidly cooling.

“W-What should we do?” Chrissie’s tone is almost hysterical, her attention is fixed on the body, the shock of seeing it causing her to cry and shut down a bit.

“Call the police,” Aaron suggests quietly, a thought that’s passed his mind several times in the last few minutes.

They all look between them, but not no one volunteers, neither Aaron, nor Vic, nor Chrissie in any shape to do so.

“I’ll do it,” Robert steps up. He turns to Ellis and nods at Vic and says, “Watch her.”

He then takes out his mobile phone from his too-thin pants, and then goes into the next room, leaving the door ajar behind him.

Ellis walks over to Vic, and pulls her close to his side. She wraps her arms around him and lets him guide her to the side of the foyer closest to Aaron and a hyperventilating Chrissie.

Silence settles over them. No one says anything. Vic just sniffles into Ellis’ shoulder.

:::::

When Robert’s returned, no one’s really moved, except for Aaron who’s no longer crouched but standing.

“The police are on their way,” Robert informs them as he comes close. He stands next to Chrissie and across from Aaron.

“W-we need to tell everyone,” Chrissie finally breaks her silence as she starts to cry. The music is still thumping from the party. “We need to warn them.”

“No!” Robert and Aaron exclaim at the same time. They lock eyes as they do so, but Robert quickly looks away and back at Chrissie.

“That would just cause more panic,” Robert explains calmly. “The police said we should just stay put. They don’t want anyone tampering with the evidence.”

“Besides,” Aaron adds. “What are we going to tell them? That there’s some killer running around with a knife?”

He snorts. “Like that would go over well.”

There’s a long pause, and then Ellis asks, “So what do we do?”

Aaron and Robert share another look, but this time Robert’s the one to reply, offering up their one and only option. “We do our best to hide him.”

“And how do you propose to do that?” Chrissie nearly shrieks despite Robert’s attempts to calm her. “There’s a dead body lying in my doorway!”

“Why don’t you say that a little louder?” Aaron hisses back. “Think there are some people by the swimming pool who didn’t hear ya.”

Chrissie looks suitably cowed, and even Robert looks relieved. Vic just shuffles closer to Ellis who holds her tighter.

“Well there’s got to be some way to keep everyone distracted,” Robert says when the moment’s finally passed. “Just until the police get here and sort everything.”

“And so we can see that everyone’s safe,” Vic’s voice is small, but she’s still pretty adamant. And it’s that that causes everything that’s happened so far to sink in.

There’s a dead body at their feet and a killer possibly on the loose, and most of their friends are still none the wiser.

“Another game of spin the bottle?” Chrissie suggests hopefully.

Robert shakes his head, but then answers her gently. “We already did that. Don’t reckon anyone would be up for a second round.”

“Maybe we can order pizza?” Ellis throws out there. “People don’t really move when they’re eating.”

“Great idea,” Aaron doesn’t spare the defensive sarcasm. “The delivery guy can just step overthe body.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he can see Robert bite back a smile at his words. It shouldn’t warm his chest so much, but it does so.

That’s when it hits him, what they have to do. The idea is elegant in its simplicity. He’d seen it in one of the many room ground floor rooms when he’d been walking around the place; when he’d been doing his best to avoid Robert.

“I’ve got it,” Aaron says looking around at everyone’s worried faces. In turn, they all turn and look back at him, expectantly.”

He flashes them a small proud grin as he reveals his big plan, “Why don’t we just watch a movie?”

:::::

He’d never tell her this to her face, but Aaron’s almost impressed with the way Chrissie seems to be handling things. She’d put aside her panic and put on a fake smile as she’d marched out and announced this change to her party. From there it hadn’t been hard to corale and shepherd all the guests into her large living room, where she’d started playing Scream on her massive big screen TV.

As the movie starts to play, their small group all gather in a back corner of the room and discuss their findings and observations.

“I-I can’t find Rebecca,” Chrissie’s tone is panicked once more, as she starts to cry from worry about her sister.

“Bernice is missing too,” Vic adds with a sniffle after a moment.

“Don’t worry,” Robert says, though he seems quite a bit stressed himself. “I’m sure they’re off somewhere together.”

This seems to calm both Chrissie and Vic down considerably, but in the pit of his stomach, Aaron knows it’s probably not true — and that Robert himself barely believes it — the likelihood of either girl hanging out and spending time with each other, the remotest of all possibilities.

“Have you tried ringing their mobiles?” Aaron asks Chrissie and Vic. The former nods and tearfully says, “She didn’t pick up, just let it keep ringing.”

“What about Bernice?” Robert asks Vic, who starts to cry as she answers.“She isn’t answering either, and you know her, it’s hard to get her off that thing!”

“Should we go looking for them?” Ellis asks as he checks to see if someone else might be listening in.

Robert gives it a thought and then says, “No point in all of us going. Maybe just one or two of us.”

Ellis looks relieved when he says that but Vic looks pretty worried, she turns to Aaron and says, “Can you at least go with him?”

As much as he doesn’t want to spend this extra time with Robert, Aaron can see that it would go a long way to assuage her worries, Vic clearly worried about losing her big brother to Alex Mason’s killer — and trusting her best friend to keep him safe and protect him.

Aaron gives her a nod, because of course he will. Like Robert, he’s never quite been able to say ‘no’ to Victoria.

When he looks over to Robert, he can see him watching him carefully, but trying to pass it off like he isn’t.

Aaron does his best to mirror that same amount of casualness, as he looks over at him and says, “Probably should. Safety in numbers and all that.”

:::::

They decide to start with the upstairs bedrooms, because even though those were explicitly marked ‘off-limits,’ teenagers are rarely ever staunch rule followers. As they step past the velvet rope at the bottom of the stairs meant to cordon things off, it feels like they’re passing into new kind of territory.

“Reckon we should have some kind of warning?” Aaron asks, keeping his voice low. “You know if one of us does actually meet the killer.”

Robert lets out a chuckle and Aaron immediately turns to look at him, wondering what he finds so amusing.

“Think we’ll even have time for that?” Robert says wryly. “Please. Whoever’s doing this is probably insane. We’ll be lucky if we get out of this with our lives.”

Aaron snorts and shakes his head. “Well, aren’t you ever the optimist.”

“I’m just being honest,” Robert says with a shrug.

“Then what was all that? Downstairs with Vic?” Aaron asks, getting incensed on her behalf now.

“No point in worrying her further,” Robert replies. “Figured finding the body is traumatising enough.”

“So you just lied to her then?” Aaron asks, pausing where he is. “You know what? I don’t know why I’m asking. That’s just typical.”

He continues walking, taking many steps at a time, he bumps into Robert’s shoulder as he walks past him to the top of the stairs.

“Don’t tell me this is about earlier.” Robert exclaims like he can hardly believe it. Like it’s every day you kiss your sister’s best friend who just came out to you, and for all intents and purposes you were clearly attracted to.

But Aaron doesn’t say anything, refuses to even look at him. He doesn’t know what he would even say if he did so.

“What? Just because you think I’m gay,” Robert’s voice continues to be disbelieving and joking.

Brows furrowing and eyes scrunched shut, Aaron scratches his forehead, trying to remember his promise to Victoria. Sure, he’ll get Robert back to her alive and in one piece. But he can’t be held accountable if there’s some facial bruising.

“So you’re not talking to me now,” Robert says, tone growing bitter and almost a little hurt. “That’s real mature. Especially with a killer about. Is this going to be our safe word? Silence?”

“Thought we didn’t need one,” Aaron says, ignoring everything else. He’s decided Robert Sugden isn’t worth all this hassle — even if he is an excellent kisser. “What with there being no time and all.”

He doesn’t need to look at Robert’s face to feel the surprise radiating off of it. Clearly, he’d expected Aaron to put up more of a fight, to keep insisting about his sexuality.

Aaron’s thoughts are confirmed, when Robert pretty much asks, “Not going to tell me I’m gay again?”

He stops in the middle of the hallway, turning to face Robert, who stops and meets his gaze as he does so.

“You know, I’ve met guys like you, who don’t want to accept who they are,” he says with as much stern seriousness as he can muster, like Paddy had last year before he’d come out to him. “So they just lash out at everyone around them. But the only person they’re really hurting is themselves.”

It’s like looking in a mirror, because Robert rolls his eyes just like he did, even trying to joke, “Don’t tell me this is some kind of, ‘It gets better’ mumbo jumbo, because from what I’ve seen you’re not out to everyone.”

The flippant tone doesn’t quite land and there’s a glint of panic behind those eyes. Aaron’s seen and felt it enough times to recognise it.

“No, I’m not,” he accepts with a nod. “But I am to the only person it matters to: Me.”

That seems to stop Robert short, all pretence at joking falling aside, as his face opens up as he studies him.

He looks younger than his age now, floppy blond hair falling down into his face, eyes murky, and pink lips fixed in neutral. Without his shirt on, he somehow looks more lost and alone. Despite his annoyance, Aaron’s heart aches for him.

It’s not easy coming out, he wants to say, but he suspects Robert knows that. Why else would he hide behind so much bluster and bravado?

It’s like he’s about to say something, when there’s a noise at the end of the corridor, from a bedroom door that’s slammed shut all of a sudden.

When he looks back at the older boy, Robert’s defences have shot back up, a hardness to his face that was missing a moment ago. Without waiting for Aaron, he sets off towards the source of the sound, padding slowly onward muscles tense and ready for action.

Aaron watches him for a second, a bit stunned from all this emotional whiplash, but then he starts following him toward it after a second.

There’s a lurching in his gut, and his hair is standing on end, on either side of them, room doors have simply been flung open.

The killer was here, Aaron’s realisation sets in. And they could still be here.

His pulse starts quickening at the thought of it. Judging by the way Robert’s paused outside this final door, he’s having the same thought run through his own mind.

“Should we wait for the police?” Aaron whispers, leaning a little closer. He’s once again hit with that same familiar scent combination of sweat, and beer, and body spray.

Robert shakes his head no, eyes fixed on the door knob, as if mentally running through the various scenarios of what lies behind it.

The longer they stand and wait, the worse the pictures in his head get; of some burglary gone wrong, the intruder dressed in all-black with a balaclava on, a bloody knife clasped in his hand.

But what kind of burglar would slit a teenager’s throat by the front door? Robert’s theory that they’re crazy is growing stronger. That cold pit forming in his stomach, grows several feet deeper, as sweat starts to form on his brow now.

While this is going through his mind, Robert seems to have found some courage, his hand reaching out for the doorknob. He looks up at Aaron and gives him a nod, as his fingers wrap around and twist it…

Maybe we need that safeword after all.

:::::

It’s somehow better than they’d hoped for, and a thousand times worse, as what appears to be the inside of a girl’s bedroom looks pretty much ransacked.

But while Aaron seems to tense, Robert just relaxes. He seems more relieved than anything “Don’t worry. This is just how Rebecca’s room look all the time. Chrissie’s always going on about it.”

Aaron tries to smile and nod, but that sick feeling won’t seem to settle, all his hairs standing on end. He listens to his gut, which has yet to steer him wrong. The same gut that told him to go to the cellar with Robert.

He decides to listen to it, walks over to the other side of the bed, some part of him feeling like he’s violating this unspoken code of privacy without asking. But he’d rather do that, than not listen to this feeling, Rebecca’s annoyance a small price to pay for acknowledgement of her safety.

As he grows nearer, his heart rate starts to race. He thinks he hears Robert talking to him in the distance — or perhaps just asking him a question.

Before he can answer, his eyes catch sight of it, the sight of it, a sucker punch to the solar plexus.

David’s half-naked body is laying on the floor, his torso covered in blood and what appears to be three different stab wounds — but that’s nothing compared to Rebecca.

She’s in a crumpled heap, her white dress turned a deep and dark kind of red, the epicentre of the spread bloodstain resting over her heart. Aaron doesn’t need to check to see if they’re both dead. He barely hears himself call out, “R-Robert.”

The other boy’s by his side in less than a second. Aaron takes a step back, and stumbles over one of Rebecca’s shoes, but he doesn’t fall backwards, just straight into Robert, who catches him; letting Aaron just lean there against him, as he holds onto both upper arms. Though part of it feels like it’s to keep himself steady as he processes it.

“Are they?” He whispers, into Aaron’s ear.

He nods, barely able to make himself say, “They are.”

It’s the number more than anything that hits him the hardest, not even the bloodiness or the sheer violence. It’s the fact that they’d come up here searching for one missing girl, only to find two dead bodies for the price of one.

What are we going to tell Vic? Aaron thinks frantically. What are we going to tell Chrissie?

“We can’t tell Chrissie,” Robert says, finally letting go of Aaron. There’s an underlying current of panic in his voice and Aaron gets it. “At least not until the police get here.”

He looks at Aaron like he’s expecting him to yell, but Aaron understands this decision for what it is: kindness.

“Sounds like a plan.” His voice sounds foreign to his own ears. Though nothing about any of this is even remotely normal: Murder. Dead bodies. Robert.

The thought of the last one causes laughter to bubble out of his chest. He stands there spluttering and snickering. Robert just looks at him like he’s crazy.

“What?” He finally asks, when it seems like Aaron isn’t going to calm down anytime soon.

“I told Vic I didn’t want to even come to this party,” he tells him as his amusement finally starts to die down. That part of his night feeling like a million years away. “Guess I was right after all.”

Robert smiles at that, before looking away.

“For what it’s worth, I’m glad you came,” he says softly.

It’s so sweet and earnest that Aaron thinks he almost misheard. Still he’s not able to stop that part of himself that mocks, Are you glad you kissed me?

But he doesn’t say anything, just clears his throat and comes back to serious, doing his best to address the matter at hand. “We still need to find Bernice before she runs into this killer by accident.”

Robert nods in agreement. “We should check the bathrooms. Maybe she snuck up here for a wee or something.”

Aaron starts to nod, but then he remembers one crucial thing: Bernice isn’t here. She’s at the cabin.

:::::

“What do you think they’re after?”

Robert’s question cuts through the silence that’s formed between them after Aaron had told him about the keys and the cabin.

“And of course she’s not picking up!” He’d exclaimed in frightened frustration after trying Bernice for fourth time in a minute. “Probably too busy with Liam.”

“Do you have his number?” Aaron had then asked, having thought that the other boy hardly seemed like the kind who’d leave a ringing phone unanswered.

“Why would I have that?” Robert had asked him back puzzled, like this was a matter of social standing and not life and death. “Didn’t think he even had any friends, let alone a girlfriend.”

Despite himself, Aaron had chuckled, more amused by Robert’s words than he’d ever let on. The look on Robert’s face had been priceless.

“What?” Aaron had asked, going from light to conscientious.

“Nothing,” Robert had said, shaking his head. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile. That’s all.”

“Maybe say something that’s actually funny for once.” Aaron hadn’t been able to keep himself from making that dig. And now Robert’s shocked expression is stored in his memory.

“Not sure,” he replies, as they go down the stairs. “There’s hardly any sort of ‘pattern.’”

Robert nods but he looks like he’s still considering something, a dog gnawing a mental bone in his head.

When they get back to the room where everyone’s watching the movie, Chrissie leaps up to greet them.

“Did you find her?” She demands anxiously. “Did you find Rebecca? She’s still not answering her phone.”

When Robert fails to answer, Aaron immediately steps in, sticking to the plan for both of them.

“She wasn’t up there,” he lies, not even bringing up David. Chrissie’s face is a mixture of relief and disappointment. Robert just looks like a truck hit him — or perhaps the gravity of the truth of it.

Three people in this house are dead.

“What about Bernice?” Vic asks again. “She’s not answering either.”

Thankfully he doesn’t have to lie for this one. “Bernice and Liam snuck out to one of the cabins. They’re probably there right now.”

“She what?!” Chrissie sounds annoyed, and for that he’s kind of grateful, not wanting her to go back to the topic of her now-dead sister.

Still, he doesn’t meet Chrissie’s eyes, feeling a bit guilty about the role he’d played in this whole mess. If he hadn’t helped her steal those keys, Bernice would be safe and watching the movie.

Would she really? Look at David and Rebecca.

Behind the shut door, something scary must happen in the movie, because everyone screams, with Kerry and Tracy competing for the loudest.

“Now’s not the time,” Robert says, having recovered. “We need to go warn them. You three stay here and wait for the police.”

Vic’s face drops, torn between concern for her brother’s continued safety and confirmation of her older step-sister’s. Her kind heart must win, because she nods in agreement. But not before leaving Ellis to rush forward and hug Robert.

“Be safe,” she warns, squeezing him tight. Then she lets go and does the same to Aaron.

He hugs her back as well, not realising how much he’d needed this, the last hour really taking its toll on him.

When they let go, she goes to comfort Chrissie, “Don’t worry. Maybe they’ll run into Rebecca when they go to bring Bernice. You know how she is. Probably just lost her phone, like normal.”

“Yeah,” Chrissie smiles, though her eyes are lined with unshed tears. “Trust her to do something like that during all this.”

Vic smiles at her and then goes to lead her inside. But she turns back and says, “Hurry back and be careful.”

“Yeah, good luck,” Ellis chimes in, giving them a nod. He’s about to follow Vic and Chrissie when Robert grabs his arm, stilling him.

“Rebecca’s dead,” Aaron whispers. Ellis’ brows shoot up at the revelation. “So’s David.”

His jaw drops open at that one.

“We didn’t want Chrissie doing anything rash or hasty,” Robert explains, looking behind Ellis to see if Vic or Chrissie have noticed. “There’s still someone out there killing people.”

Ellis nods, confirming his understanding. “So what do you want me to do about it?”

“Tell the police when they get here,” Aaron informs him. His stomach lurches as he adds, “They’re in her bedroom.”

Ellis just nods, because there’s not much else to say. He started out the night getting a girlfriend, and is now ending it covering up the knowledge of three dead bodies. Aaron knows exactly how he feels.

“Call us when the police get here,” Robert says, when no one else says anything.

“Will do,” Ellis says, his voice as shocked as he’s trying not to look. Aaron just hopes he’s able to keep the secret until they get here.

As he watches Ellis go back inside, and join Vic and Chrissie, Aaron contemplates stopping by the kitchen for a shot of alcohol. Based on the look on his face, Robert feels the same. But they can’t because time is of the essence.

:::::

Maybe it’s uncovering all the murder, or maybe it’s just because they’re straddling both autumn and winter, but the night air is chillier when they go out there. It’s also managed to get so much windier.

A cold gust blows, and Robert shivers beside him. It causes Aaron to chuckle.

“What?” Robert asks, arms crossed against his chest. Aaron thinks he heard his teeth chatter.

“We could have stopped to get a coat, you know,” he says, like it’s obvious. “Don’t want to end the night with four dead bodies.”

He knows the joke’s in poor taste, but Robert still laughs, the reaction almost hilariously dependable.

“Didn’t think it would be this cold, did I?” Robert barely manages his voice kind of wavering. It’s clear that he’s freezing. But Aaron still hears the underlying message: Didn’t think I’d be traipsing around Home Farm to warn my step-sister about a killer, did I?

Aaron just sighs and stops walking immediately. Robert stops too and looks at him in confusion. Aaron unzips his jacket and shrugs out of it and hands it over to him. “Don’t want you to freeze to death before we get there.”

Robert looks like he’s going to argue, but the wind picks up. Aaron can feel it even through his thick hoodie. Robert grabs the puffy jacket he’s holding out in his hands, and shrugs it on as he shivers a, “Thank you.”

“What were you even supposed to be anyway?” Aaron asks in an effort to distract from the sight of Robert Sugden now wearing his coat; at the strip of pale freckled chest that’s still exposed, given that he’s done nothing to zip it up.

“The genie. From Aladdin,” Robert answers like it’s obvious. Like he doesn’t look like he’s just a guy walking around shirtless with flimsy white exercise pants and trainers.

“Thought the genie was supposed to be blue,” Aaron points out the obvious.

“But that would take too much time,” Robert explains. “And why would I want to cover any of this up?”

There’s something about the way he gestures at himself, that makes Aaron burst out laughing immediately.

Under the pale moonlight, he can see that Robert’s blushing furiously. His heart skips a beat at the cuteness of it. Aaron shakes his head and focuses in front of him. As evidenced earlier, even thinking about the possibility of a romance with Robert Sugden is a path best not travelled.

They settle into silence, nothing but the wind through the trees, and the dead leaves and gravel crunching under them, and yet Aaron doesn’t feel scared or lonely. He regrets not asking for torches before they’d left the house, but having Robert by his side is still calming.

“I like you, you know.”

He almost misses it, because the wind picks up. But when he looks at Robert’s face he can see that he means it. He looks shocked at the admission, as if not having expected it; a thought that was meant to remain solely in his head.

Aaron looks back at the path in front of them. The cabin isn’t too far in the distance.

“Funny way of showing it,” he replies after a long beat. “Didn’t think you could run away fast enough after we kissed.”

“I was scared.” Robert says, his voice loud and defensive.

“Being gay isn’t scary,” Aaron points out. He’s living proof of that isn’t he? He remembers the first few tremors of fear he’d felt when he’d looked at other boys, and felt the stirrings of something that felt like attraction.

“Stop saying that,” Robert is insistent. But before Aaron can bring up his admission from a few minutes ago, he answers, “I’m not gay. I’m bisexual.”

The word hangs in the air, just floating between them. Not even the increasingly strong wind able to blow it away from them. When Aaron sneaks a glance, Robert looks infinitely calmer, his posture growing taller, straighter, more confident.

“Oh.” Aaron says, rolling the word over in his mind. He’d considered it earlier, but it’s nice to finally have confirmation.

“Why didn’t you just say that?” He asks after a beat. “I even asked you about it earlier?”

“Why don’t you just tell everyone you meet you’re gay?” Robert answers the question with a question.

He has a point and Aaron acknowledges that. “Fair enough.”

They continue walking, the growing cabin numbers signalling that they’re growing closer. But Aaron doesn’t want to even think about what they might encounter.

“Does your family know?” He asks just as Robert asks, “Do you like me?”

They both stop walking, stunned by each other’s questions. When Aaron turns to face him, Robert shakes his head and looks away. “No. Haven’t even told Vic.”

Aaron nods in understanding and then offers up an answer of his own. “Well, I don’t shove my tongue down the throat of every bloke I meet. I can tell you that.”

He starts walking and Robert falls into step beside him. His elbow bumping into Aaron’s as he keeps hands in the pockets of Aaron’s jacket.

“Never really thought about you, did I?” Aaron offers up the truth. “Just thought you were Vic’s headcase of an older brother.”

Robert’s quiet for a bit, then quietly admits, “I thought about you.”

“You did?” Aaron asks, completely staggered.

“Yeah,” Robert sounds rueful. “It’s why I’ve been so hard on you. I hated the thought of Vic dating you.”

Now that he’s said, some pieces start to fall into place for Aaron — namely the fact that his grudge hadn’t been entirely about Robert’s treatment of Debbie, as much as his having been with her in the first place.

“Then why’d you go back to Chrissie, after kissing me?” It’s the closest he’ll come to admitting he was jealous and that it pained him.

“Thought it might change things,” Robert’s actually honest. “Thought it might change me.”

“And did it?” Aaron asks, feeling kind of breathless, his pulse is racing and they’re careening into something.

“Yes,” Robert says, but he doesn’t offer anything else up. Aaron’s heart droops in disappointment.

They walk a little longer, both boys lost in thought, elbows occasionally bumping into each other. Then Aaron asks, “So what now?”

“What do you mean?” Robert asks confused.

“Well you had better ask me out, haven’t you?” It’s meant to sound like a tease, but it’s actually a semi-earnest request, it finally sinking into Aaron that he might like him. (Though if he’s being honest, he’s liked Robert for a while now. Tonight’s just the first night he’s been able to recognise that.)

“Wait. Did you think something was going to happen between?” Robert asks. He sounds genuinely surprised. Aaron’s betrayed blood starts to boil immediately.

“Then what was the point of all this?” He gestures between them. “Why’d you even tell me that you like me?!”

“Because I do!” He can tell Robert means that — at least as much as he can — but that doesn’t stop it being any less confusing.

“People don’t treat people they like, like this.” Aaron replies with plenty of sureness. “You don’t tell someone you like them and not date them!”

Robert still looks scared, and normally Aaron would be kinder, he knows better than anyone how hard self-acceptance is. But it’s been a long few hours, and this feels he’s reached his breaking point. He can’t find any sort of kindness within him. Not when his heart is stinging the way it currently is.

“After everything tonight, you’re still scared of what people might think of you?” Aaron does his best to name Robert’s fear for what it is. “Robert, we found three dead bodies.”

And just like that, he can’t stand the sight of him anymore. His stomach just feeling queasy and his heart aches. So when he sees cabin 12-04 and how close it is, he leaves Robert and marches himself over.

“Aaron wait-” Robert calls behind him. His fingers briefly grasp Aaron’s elbow, but he yanks it out of reach. He doesn’t want to accidentally end up punching him. At least not now, with a killer on the loose. All bets will be off later.

Without calling for Bernice, or even trying to knock, Aaron just grabs the door handle and opens it…

The first thing he sees are Bernice’s petrified eyes, the teenage girl, tied and gagged to the radiator. The second thing he sees is the barrel of a rifle. And the third is the crazed, bloodshot eyes of Daz Spencer.

Fuck.

:::::

“Aaron come back!” Robert’s voice comes crashing in right after him. “We need to talk about-”

Robert shuts up the moment he barrels right in, ending up standing next to Aaron. It takes him a second to process everything and then burst into laughter.

“What’s so funny?” Daz demands, waving the gun between both of them. At least it seems like he’s sobered up from earlier.

That seems to calm Robert down, quickly enough. But it doesn’t stop him mouthing off to Aaron. “Can you believe that all of this is because of this idiot?”

Without waiting to see how Daz will respond, or even Aaron’s reply, Robert immediately looks over at Bernice. “You definitely know how to pick them.”

“Shut up!” Daz exclaims, pointing the gun in Robert’s face. But this only makes him laugh all the harder.

Seeing Daz’s finger tighten around the trigger, Aaron’s heart leaps and he tries to neutralise the situation. “Why are you doing all this?”

Daz’s finger loosens once again. But Aaron’s not done trying to distract him. “Why’d you kill all those people back up at Home Farm?”

Bernice lets out a mortified eep from where she’s sitting.

Daz flashes them a smile, looking more crazed in the moonlight, the shadows making him look more menacing than he is usually. “It was all Robert’s idea.”

“I didn’t tell you to murder anyone!” Robert yells back in shock.

But Daz barely pays attention to him as he monologues. “He told me I should do something to make her listen.”

“That’s not what I meant!” Robert protests, but Daz is too pleased with himself to really hear it.

“Alright, but what does that have to do Alex?” Aaron asks, trying to find some kind of reason to the madness.

“I thought he was Liam,” Daz explains. He gestures at a crumpled body in the corner and Aaron’s heart sinks. He hopes that the other boy — also wearing blue scrubs — is simply passed out or unconscious.

“Alright,” he says, not to drag out the matter. “What about Rebecca and David?”

This one, Daz actually looks sad about. “I thought she was Bernice. I heard her giggling on the stairs. Didn’t realise she was also dressed like an angel.”

Daz thinks for a second, and then he shrugs. “David just caught me as I was leaving.”

“And then you decided to go for the gun,” Robert observes sarcastically. Aaron shoots him a glare as he adds, “Good job. Knives are so messy.”

“Shut up and let me think!” Daz yells in his face. Though Robert doesn’t look like he’s going to. Daz once again brings up the rifle and points it at him.

Aaron’s heart beats even faster at this newly added factor, his chest filling up with worry for Robert even though he’s still mad at him.

“I know how you feel,” he declares, as loudly as he can. He’s hoping it’ll distract Daz enough to put the gun down.

It works because he’s no longer just pointing it at Robert.

“There’s someone I like,” Aaron says, keeping his gaze trained only on Daz. He doesn’t think he could even bring himself to look at Robert right now if he had that option. “But they don’t want anything to do with me either.”

Even though he told me that he likes me.

“Yeah, but it’s not like you tied them to a radiator and pointed a gun in their face,” Robert’s voice chimes in.

Aaron wants nothing more than for him to shut up. Daz apparently has the same kind of intentions. Because he brings up the rifle and points it at Robert, finger on the trigger, as he says, “You know, I’m getting sick and tired of you.”

Without even thinking, Aaron’s moving forward, heading for Daz in a kind of running tackle. His shoulder hits into him and they fall into the ground. As they scuffle the gun goes off, the sound of it ringing loud in Aaron’s left ear.

Aaron’s first thought in that moment is, Robert.

But from somewhere behind him he hears a loud shout of, “Aaron!”

He pushes himself off Daz, who’s now not moving, and rolls onto his back on the cabin floor.

“You okay?” Robert asks, throwing himself onto his knees and checking for a gunshot. Aaron just looks up at him stunned relief, Robert’s voice sounding further away thanks to the ringing.

“Why’d you do that?!” Robert yells, clearly worried. “I had a plan!”

“How was I supposed to know?” Aaron eventually answers. “We never decided on a safeword.”

And now Robert’s laughing in relief, his hands still on Aaron. He smiles as he looks up and watches him, still clad in Aaron’s big coat. In the moonlight his floppy hair almost makes him seem like a handsome vampire — or some kind of fairytale prince. Or maybe just Robert Sugden.

Aaron’s heart gives a kick, and Robert seems to sense it, as he looks down and says, “Don’t ever do that to me again.”

The ringing is starting to die down, but Aaron still nods in agreement, only to be surprised by Robert leaning down to kiss him. His lips are once again, surprisingly gentle, and now it’s Aaron is the one who’s hungrier, running a hand up Robert’s cheek to hold it in place… and to convince himself that this isn’t him dreaming.

“Robert Sugden’s gay?!” Daz’s voice calls out in confusion.

Once again, both boys spring apart immediately. Upon seeing him up on his feet and with the gun back in his hands, Robert moves to cover Aaron’s prone form with some of his body.

“No,” Robert says, from where he’s crouched down next to Aaron, his tone as bold and irreverent as ever. “I’m actually bisexual.”

Daz’s eyes go wide, and then he seems to gasp and sort of seizes on the spot. Then he coughs, and blood comes out from his mouth. As he brings a hand up, he falls down to his feet, revealing Bernice standing up behind him, her hands bloody.

When Daz falls face first, there’s the hilt of a kitchen knife sticking out of his back. The look on Bernice’s face is a hybrid between shocked, relieved, and disbelief.

“How did you…” Robert asks the question for both of them. Aaron just finally managing to sit up with some help from Robert.

“Dad’s always making us help with his magic act,” Bernice explains. “Been getting out of ropes since I was five-years-old. Something Daz would have known if he’d ever listened.”

:::::

When the police let him go, he finds Robert waiting for him. He’s leaning on a non-ivy covered section of Home Farm’s exterior.

“Where’s Vic?” He asks, looking around for her.

“Sent her home with Ellis,” Robert replies, tucking his hands into Aaron’s jacket pocket. “Promised her I’d stay here and look after you.”

“Ah,” Aaron nods, happy for the update.

“Also told her I was bisexual,” Robert says.

This gets him a laugh, Aaron a bit shocked. “Hardly think tonight was the right time.”

“Yeah, but thought I’d give her something to look forward to,” Robert says with a smile.

Aaron’s brow furrows as he tries to parse the meaning of his words.

“I like you,” Robert tries again.

Aaron replies, “Yeah. I know. You told me.”

“When I thought I might have lost you…” Robert swallows. “I was really scared.”

Aaron nods quietly. He’d felt a spark of that same fear when he thought the bullet might have hit Robert.

“But that’s not as scary as not being with you,” Robert continues, and for a moment, Aaron feels like his hearing’s gone funny again.

“What you trying to say?” He asks, trying not to get his hopes up.

“I think I want to ask you on that date now…” Robert says, voice and face both bashful.

“What were you thinking?” Aaron asks with a smile, butterflies now housed where his nerves had been all night.

Robert pulls out a familiar looking bottle from where it was tucked under his arm within Aaron’s jacket, all that puffiness hiding the bulge of it.

“Fancy a game of truth or dare?”

#omarandjohnny #robron #robron fanfiction #robron secret valentine #robronsecretvalentine #fanfiction

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sieben9 · 6 years ago

Text

“the final battle” impressions

{Quick request to anyone reading: I’m watching OUaT for the first time, and I want to avoid spoilers. So, if you want to discuss something spoilery, I’d be grateful if you could start a new post for that. Thank you!}

Ah Once, what am I going to do with you?

I mean, this episode was definitely an Experience™, that much is certain. Just… ::sighs::

Look, if I try to sum it up, I think the best I can do is “this was twenty minutes of a really good finale stuck inside a rushed ninety-minute wtf-fest. Also, those twenty minutes belong to a totally different season.

this is the sort of thing you’ve got to foreshadow at least a LITTLE

The acting was pretty damn good, though.

(Fair warning: don’t open this on mobile, there’s a ridiculous amount of pictures under the cut)

OK. So. Couple of things that I really liked up front, so I can gripe in peace later on. (And readers can skip whatever part they wish ; )

First, and I realise this is a weird thing to enjoy, but I loved how utterly despicable I found Fiona in this one. She may have hung around like a bad smell for most of the season without really doing much, but she sure stepped up her game for the occasion.

Seriously, if Rumple hadn’t killed her, I would have found a way. “Our son”, indeed.

Though, please, have some pity on the poor guy. At this point, he has killed both his parents, and one of them twice. That can’t be good for anyone.

oh look the wall robots are still there

And speaking of Rumple… dang, that was a good scene in the mines. What I loved most about it was that this was literally all him. Nobody would ever know what he did in there if he didn’t tell them, except for himself, and he still made the right choice. Despite being offered everything he ever wanted, despite being under the influence of his curse just as much as ever…

before you ask, yes, my mind did go Places

…and more literally than it’s usually shown. Well done, pal. I should probably be more excited about this, but despite the tense buildup, I feel like the scene kind of fizzled as a whole. Maybe because he already made the exact same choice earlier, and was just confirming that he really meant it, too. Still, it was a good moment, and I was very proud of this walking human disaster by the time it was done.

Some more on the topic of Rumple: congratulations on his acting skills. Rumple’s, not Robert Carlyle’s, specifically. Because there’s no way in hell I could have seen these photos…

…and kept a straight face. Honestly, I’m half convinced that they were a test by Fiona to see if he was awake after all.

Oh, and the book!

The book made it across! And you know why? Because Belle and her son have True Love, even if Gideon cannot remember that, because Fiona is The Worst. And Rumple worked so hard to make Gideon remember; it was heartbreaking to see. I mean, he had to do that for… what? Five hours? And he still couldn’t stand the thought that Gideon might believe his mother didn’t love him. It was a good scene, OK?

On a sillier note (but still unambiguously positive): Emma’s wardrobe came back for the finale!

I don’t know, it’s just nice to see.

Other things I loved a lot:

Any and all interactions between Regina and her now-settled other half. Just. Pure joy, even in the midst of the wtf-ery. And with the obvious standout-moment when the Queen goes and sacrifices herself to give the others that tiny bit of time they need to get back to their world and help Henry (and Emma, but I think we all know who the priority was in this case)

Just… damn. I’m still worried about this woman’s self-destructive streak in general, but this was a good moment. (It also helps that she got better. ‘cause that could have been really depressing otherwise.)

Oh, and since we’re speaking of Regina (or the Reginas, plural), I absolutely adored the speech she gave Emma. Just… I mean, I expect the hope speeches from Snow (and that one was pretty good, too), but this? I mean… wow. Please compare and contrast with season 1. Except you don’t have to, because Regina already did that, and it was beautiful.

Then we have an actual mirrored TLK (see below for a botched version…) in this very good moment:

Like, yes, I love bookends, and this was a great one. Calling back to the “holy crap why didn’t I see this coming” kiss in s1 worked surprisingly well, considering how little interaction Emma and Henry had this season, but there’s enough material in the show in general to make me buy into this. Like I said: sucker for bookends.

In general, I feel like this episode was at its strongest whenever re-focused on the family relationships between the characters.

And to close it out, the ending montage.

Just... it’s like Snow said. They get to live their happy endings now. Snowing finally have the time to be a proper family (and David got a dog!). Regina is accepted and loved by her people (and the Queen gets to have a completely “new adventure”, as Robin so aptly put it.) Snow can do what she loves and doesn’t have to fight all the time anymore. And Emma finally has a place in the world; one where she can settle and be comfortable and doesn’t have to be alone anymore... and I’ll just leave it at that. It’s a good ending.

And no, I haven’t forgotten it--obvious special mention to this bit here:

Yup. Killed me dead. And I died happy, thank you very much. They’ve been through so much bullshit, and now they can be together, and raise their son in peace, and won’t be really worried when he doesn’t stop growing, either.

I also want to give a special shoutout to the five six people who immediately made sure that I knew that 1) the kiss wasn’t scripted and 2) we, as a fandom, are extremely lucky to have Robert and Emilie. (For those who haven’t seen the interview in question, it’s here, and here)

The finishing dinner was nice, too, even if I’m not sure what the whole Last Supper imagery was supposed to do.

Listen, I’ve been going “just let them be happy!” for way too long to complain much when they finally are. Also, I could write an essay on the range of emotions Rumple goes through when he comes through that door and people are actually happy to see him and his family. Or about that look that passes between him and Regina, because I caught that and it made me cry! I don’t think either of them ever imagined they would really be this happy again when they first met and they’ve been through so much crap and just... guh. I like this. It’s a good closing shot.

And now, the rest.

Because frankly, this wasn’t a great finale. It wasn’t even that good of an episode. It was everything wrong with the 4B finale, only more of that.

For example: What was the deal with making Emma lose her belief? Since when was her belief required for the magical realms to exist? The only person who’s ever had even something approaching that function was Henry. She didn’t need to believe in magic to keep it alive, she needed it to break the curse.

And this was never set up as the Black Fairy’s plan. Not even a little. This came so out of left field, it wasn’t even in the same stadium! And it’s so frustrating, because this wasn’t a bad plot, as such, but there was no build-up, no real payoff, nothing. Or, let me put it differently: this was a perfectly fine plot resolution, it just had no business being attached to this season.

Everything felt rushed, there were about five dozen plot points, none of them with any time to breathe and somehow, we still got that terminally boring climb up the bean stalk.Sorry, David, you know I love you, but what was the point of that sidetrack? Nothing happened. There was no try-and-fail cycle (because there wasn’t time for one) and honestly, if you needed a handwave for how they got back from the magical realms, maybe you could have gone with a less time intensive one?

And that moment where Snow kisses David back to life? Yeah, unearned, again. And dear show: the cut-in from the first episode worked for the split-heart curse, because you were subverting it. But here? It just didn’t do anything. This wasn’t a parallel. David wasn’t cursed, he was crushed by a beanstalk.

And speaking of things that don’t make sense…

For the love of fuck. Her ankle? Really? This is such a cliché that even the slasher genre doesn’t do it anymore. And it’s a dumb cliché, too. It’s rooted sexism and it makes it look like you didn’t have any other ideas. I get it, you don’t want Belle with Rumple at that final point so she doesn’t influence his decision. Here’s a thought, then: let her stay behind for a good reason! Or, hell, if you don’t want to write a scene for her (the writers sure seem to be allergic to giving Belle any screentime), let there be a fork in the road! They don’t have the time to check each one, let Belle go one way and Rumple another. It’s still a lazy plot excuse, but at least it’s not the stupidest cliché in the book.

And one more thing…

::sigh:: I have such mixed feelings about this?

Because on the one hand: Gideon had a life that nobody would want. He was kidnapped, imprisoned, kept in the dark and abused for all of his twenty-eight years, and even if he got free, he would never get that time back. Nobody would ever choose that for themselves.

At the same time… Gideon died. The person I got to know over the last half-season is no more. He’s gone. And he never had any say in the matter. Hell, he didn’t even get to say goodbye. It’ just such a messed-up way to get a wonderful thing.

(Also, while I’m on that topic… yes, I did notice that Rumple didn’t recognise his very tiny son at first, and I realise that it’s because he’s never seen him before. It prompted a particularly long “oh noo…”, too.)

And finally…

… that cliffhanger/teaser, though, huh?

I have so many questions. Why was Henry in that monster forest? Why is he now in an apartment and doesn’t remember his daughter? When did he get a daughter? (Also, who with? Enquiring minds would like to know.)

So. I know, like, three things about s7, and one of them is the cast list. Please try not to spoil anything else, because that’s already way more than I wanted to know going in. Seriously, I’m a reasonably grown adult. I can deal with a couple of surprises.

#ouat #once upon a time #ouat the final battle #sieben watches ouat #sieben talks #ouat writing critical #anti cs #anti hook #(by implication mostly)

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mysterioustransmissions · 6 years ago

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My favorite comics of 2017

Keeping with my new tradition of posting this list super late, here, on the last day of 2018, is my best comics of 2017 list. I can offer excuses -- my wife and I remodeled our house and welcomed our first child into the world this year, and I’m also unfailingly lazy -- but 2017 was also a killer year for comics, making this a bit larger of an undertaking than usual. Both Koyama Press and co-publishers Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics had absolutely stacked lineups. You’ll see them listed as publisher for many entries below.

I always struggle with how to order this list. I got serious about organizing my comics collection in 2018, and am running into the same problem. There, I’m thinking of dividing it into two -- a single-author section organized by author name (which ends up being mostly minicomics and graphic novels), and a multiple-author section organized by title (which ends up being mostly traditional-sized comics). Here, I’m essentially doing that same thing, but mixing them together; some entries are by title, and some author name.

Comics I especially enjoyed are marked with an *.

Allison, Matthew; Cankor: Calamity of Challenge #2 and #3 (self-published).

Berserker 1, edited by edited by Tom Oldham and Jamie Sutcliffe (Breakdown Press). There was a lot of anticipation and very specific expectations placed on this book ahead of its release, but no one seemed to walk away from the finished product satisfied. But it’s got a killer cover, great production design, and strips by some of the best cartoonists going. I hope Breakdown does another one.

* Booth, Tara; How to be Alive (Retrofit Comics & Big Planet Comics). One of the funniest books I’ve ever read. Booth’s drawings are a riot to look at, that the gags are also great is pure gravy. About as big as crossover hits get in my house. (I.e., my wife also loved it.)

Cardini, William; Tales From the Hyperverse (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics). Cardini’s sci-fi world is made bigger and more engaging by the rapid-fire pace of this short story collection. His wild experimentation with color is always an inspiration.

Corben, Richard; Shadows on the Grave #1 - #8 (Dark Horse Comics). Not my favorite of Corben’s late-period Dark Horse horror books, but there’s plenty to enjoy. I was stunned by the sheer efficiency of the storytelling -- there are entire stories told with a single image and a few word balloons. A lot of these books sport great covers, issue #1 here, seen at the link for this entry, is one of the best.

Darrow, Geoff; The Shaolin Cowboy: Who’ll Stop the Reign? #1 - #4 with Dave Stewart (Dark Horse Comics). I was so bowled over by the experience of buying Shemp Buffet monthly that I initially scoffed at Cowboy’s return to more traditional narrative, but it turned out to be no less wild and no loss at all.

Davis, Eleanor; Libby’s Dad (Retrofit Comics & Big Planet Comics) and You & a Bike & a Road (Koyama Press). You & a Bike & a Road does something that’s often attempted and rarely successful -- it beats the audience down so it can then lift them up higher. Its success is due in no small part from its origin as a real-life journal. The visceral and emotional pain Davis feels on her journey is sincerely felt, and the lack of cynicism the storytelling choices are made with allow the reader to feel it whole cloth. And listen; it certainly doesn’t hurt that Davis is an amazing narrative storyteller besides -- Libby’s Dad is no less affecting.

DeForge, Michael; mini kuš! #43 'Meat Locker' (kuš!). I sleep on DeForge. I take him for granted. I feel like I’m not the only one? I see some excitement when his books come out, but no discussion. Blame it on the high volume and opaque nature of his work, the dearth of comics reviewers, and me, obviously. Also obviously, whenever something of his does find its way to my hands, I’m never sorry.

Estrada, Inés; Alienation #3 - #6 (self-published). The bundled version of this series, seen at the link for this entry, has the coolest book packaging I’ve ever seen in my life.

Expansion by Matt Sheean and Malachi Ward (AdHouse Books). I didn’t like this nearly as much as this same team’s previous Ancestor (due no doubt to its earlier and improvised creation), but damn, what a cover.

* Forsman, Chuck; Slasher #1 - #4 (Floating World Comics). I’d say the majority of my interest in Forsman’s work is in seeing how he presents his it and steers his career -- he’s among the best there is at that. Slasher is his first work I strongly connected with. It digs deep and gets wilder and wilder.

Ferrick, Margot; Yours (2dcloud). I’m a simpleton, so I was surprised at how deeply I was able to be moved by something this abstract. As always, grabbing 2dcloud’s whole line on Kickstarter expands my horizons and makes me a better reader.

Foster-Dimino, Sophia; Sex Fantasy (Koyama Press). I’ve actually only read the minis of this. This collection has the one I’m missing, plus some new material, but I love Sex Fantasy. It’s like a perpetual motion machine for thought -- you can just think about it forever.

Fricas, Katie; Art Fan (self-published). One of those things you dream of happening at a show -- picked this up at MICE not knowing anything about it, and was delighted by the artwork and knocked out by the “reviews of trippy art events”; particularly the first, about Duke Riley’s Fly by Night.

* Friebert, Noel; WEIRD6 (self-published), SPINE: I’ll Still Watch (Bred Press), Old Ground (Koyama Press). Sometimes when I have a fever, I can’t break loose of a single, circular thought -- I have the same thought over and over, only to realize once the fever’s broken that it was barely coherent. Friebert’s newer, decompressed work is like that. You turn page after page, and nothing happens. It’s the same characters still doing and saying the same things, again and again. You turn the pages faster and faster, almost in a panic, hoping to break the cycle and resolve the unease before you. But it’s no use.

* gg; I’m Not Here (Koyama Press), Valley (kuš!). I’m Not Here is one of a few books I recommended to people who were enjoying season 3 of Twin Peaks at the time. It doesn’t convey information so much as emotion, and rewards as much thought as you want to put into it.

* Hankiewicz, John; Education (Fantagraphics Books). I loved this so much I only read a few pages a night to make it last. Michael DeForge once called Noel Freibert an “astronaut” -- that applies to Hankiewicz also. No one’s ever done anything like this before, and if we didn’t have Hankiewicz I don’t think anyone ever would. Bringing poetry and modern dance (!!) into the language of comics, this was another book I recommended to watchers of season 3 of Twin Peaks -- you don’t understand the story by connecting facts, you understand it by connecting emotions.

* Hanselmann, Simon; Portrait, XMP-165 (self-published). XMP-165 was the first big payoff of the longform nature of Megg and Mogg, and it destroyed me. Also released this year was Doujinshi, Cold Cube Press’ gorgeous re-release of a Japanese Megg and Mogg fan comic.

Harkam, Sammy; Crickets #6 (The Commonwealth Comics Company). People talk about how good this book is, and I agree, but I’m not sure I could tell you why.

Haven, Eric; Vague Tales (Fantagraphics Books).

Hernandez, Gilbert and Jaime ; Love & Rockets Vol. IV #2, #3 (Fantagraphics). I made the terrible error after Love Bunglers to trade wait Locas, and for whatever reason they haven’t released one since. So I was way behind when this started coming out, but I bought and read it anyway. I initially found the story to be light, but I eventually realized I had a free ComiXology trial and caught up. It’s as great as ever.

Ito, Junji; Dissolving Classroom (Vertical, Inc.), Shiver: Junji Ito Selected Stories, and Tomie: Complete Deluxe Edition (Viz Media). Tomie may have come out in 2016 actually? I describe it to people as being about a beautiful woman who stands around until some total lech of a man inevitably murders her, then she comes back and annihilates him in the most unpleasant manner possible. Repeat ad infinitum. I don’t think the text 100% supports my reading, but that’s what it means to me.

Landry, Tyler; Shit and Piss (Retrofit Comics). The ephemeral, disjointed nature the single issue format served this story better, but it’s still extremely rad.

Loup, Celine; The Man Who Came Down the Attic Stairs (self-published).

Marcus, Ben; Crisis Zone 3rd Edition (Bred Press).

Mignolaverse and John Arcudi; Dead Inside #3 by Arcudi, Toni Fejzula, and Andre May, Lobster Johnson: The Pirate’s Ghost #1 - #3 by Arcudi and Tonci Zonjic, Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea by Gary Gianni, Mike Mignola, and Dave Stewart (Dark Horse Comics). Ignoring a few years in college when I was a lapsed comics reader, I’ve bought every Mignolaverse comic since I was about 13. That loyalty has slowly eroded over the last half decade about. I’m not alone in thinking the Arcudi-Davis run is one of the greatest of all time, and that the books started to go downhill after Guy Davis left. Beyond the departure of Davis, there are a few reasons for that, in my view.

First was the decision soon after to expand the line’s offerings. Doubling the line’s output and bringing in (inevitably) inferior creative teams was a no-win proposition for readers. Who wants more of something not as good?

Second, I think that Arcudi, a great writer, has shifted his focus from tightly-plotted five issue arcs to series-spanning character arcs. While I’m guessing this reads great in big chunks, it doesn’t spread out month to month, some months out of the year. I’m looking forward to a big re-read of everything after B.P.R.D. wraps in a few months, to see if this theory holds. Lobster Johnson: The Pirate’s Ghost came close to standing on its own, but was still rife with moments that I can only assume were big character payoffs because I didn’t remember enough to know. (Especially cool covers by Zonjic on these issues.) However, the non-Mignolaverse title Dead Inside offered the type of visceral, plot-based payoff his B.P.R.D. run with Davis hooked me with. I hadn’t been this thrilled by an Arcudi book since Killing Ground.

But third, and worst of all, has been the addition of writer Chris Roberson, whose books read like updates to the Mignolaverse Wiki. (The Visitor: How and Why He Stayed was okay, but pretty much solely due to Paul Grist’s fun art and layouts.)

I’m staying aboard the main B.P.R.D. book as it races to the finish line, and will continue to buy anything Arcudi writes, which seems to be mostly these Lobster Johnson comics. (Although even that’s looking increasingly, and sadly, unlikely to continue: https://twitter.com/ArcudiJohn/status/1075086925436874753) And I’ll certainly buy any more of these very sporadically-released Hellboy OGNs, like Into the Silent Sea, they decide to release -- the only real non-Mignola drawn Hellboy books anymore.

* Milburn, Lane; CORRIDORS (self-published). Sits comfortably next to Inflated Head Zone by Zach Hazard Vaupen, one of my favorite comics. They both forsake straightforward narrative in favor of theme-driven emotional impressionism, and do it with horror. This is catnip to me, and something I aspire to (although I’m far too boring to achieve it).

* Mirror Mirror II, edited by Sean T. Collins and Julia Gfrörer (2dcloud).

Now: The New Comics Anthology #1, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics Books).

* Providence #12 by Jacen Burrows, Juan Rodriguez, and Alan Moore (Avatar Press). It came out months after, but it’s a safe bet Moore wrote this before Trump got elected, right? A more accurate depiction of the shell-shock of being thrust into a post-facts world I haven’t seen.

Roberts, Keiler; Sunburning (Koyama Press). Another big crossover hit in my house.

* Shiga, Jason; Demon Volumes 2, 3, and 4 (First Second). Demon became a book I wouldn’t stop showing to anyone who would listen. Like Gina Wynbrandt’s Someone Please Have Sex With Me, its hook transcends the normal comics reading audience -- you can show it to anyone and they get it right away. Specifically I would show people this amazing video https://youtu.be/NRxCTeM5pyU, which would clue them into what Shiga does enough to get them to read Demon. Demon has a story, but it’s more about rules -- establishing them and playfully subverting them with a level of inventiveness that regularly leaves you in awe.

* Terrell, Jake; Extended Play (2dcloud). This delightful book took me completely by surprise, an experience made possible by 2dcloud’s subscription model.

Tomasso, Rich; She Wolf: Black Baptism #1 - #4, Spy Seal: The Corten-Steel Phoenix #1 - #4 (Image Comics). The end of this second series of She Wolf approached the same hostile disregard for what came before as the end of Tomasso’s previous series, Dark Corridor. But where Dark Corridor acted on that impulse by simply burning it all down, She Wolf has enough respect at least to replace what came before by pivoting into a completely different comic. The freedom this affords the plot to dart in unpredictable directions is exhilarating. And it’s fun and beautifully laid out and designed, as always with Tomasso.

Tran, Thu; Dust Pam (Peow). Gorgeous!

Vaupen, Zach Hazard; Combed Clap of Thunder (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics).

* Willumsen, Connor; Anti-Gone (Koyama Press). The part where the protagonists drive their boat past a window with a dog in it rewired my comics-making brain forever. This was another comic I only read a few pages of a night to make it last longer, and also recommended to friends of mine who were enjoying season three of Twin Peaks -- the plot is obfuscated in a similar way.

Yanow, Sophie; What is a Glacier? (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics).

Yokoyama, Yuichi; Iceland (Retrofit Comics). Another comic I recommended to Twin Peaks season three fans. Similar to the residents of the Red Room, the characters seem truly of another world, their motivations and actions incomprehensible to us.

#best of the year

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that-70s-show-slasher · 7 years ago

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That 70s Slasher

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Chapter Three: Good times bad times.

Eric Forman’s Bedroom.

Eric stared at the ceiling of his bedroom tears still fresh on his cheeks, Laurie’s body had been found eight hours ago by fez, Eric didn’t sleep a single second of those long horrible hours. Instead he cried, curled up under his covers. He never expected this much emotion for his sister, but how could he not feel this way. She was dead, actually dead and that was tearing him apart, it should have never happened this way, if only he had offered her a ride or just not been selfish and let her have the car completely.

He didn’t wanna get out of bed. He didn’t wanna walk in to the world that was now his reality. He didn’t wanna face the sad faces of his friends, or hear the sobs coming from his mother’s room. He didn’t wanna face Red. He wanted to go to sleep and never wake up, but he couldn’t. Another hour passed of pure silence as he stared upwards, sometimes he’d turn his head. Maybe even look at the tear stained family photo that he had gotten out the night before and cried over, seeing Laurie’s face. He didn’t actually see her body like Fez did, not that he wanted to. His last memory of her being alive was fine. He might not ever feel an ounce of happiness again if he saw her lifeless face.

He knew breakfast wouldn’t be ready when he came downstairs, and Hyde would still be in the basement so he didn’t see much point. If no one else was gonna get up and do something than why should he? It was pointless, going out there just to live a life where his sister was dead.

Suddenly not getting up wasn’t an option when he heard Kelso’s voice echo from downstairs, he blinked and wiped tears from his cheeks, getting up and pulling jeans on. This was not what he wanted to deal with and he hoped Kelso knew the situation and wouldn’t act foolish. Once down the stairs he saw his father talking to Kelso and Jackie. His friends looked up at him, tears in their eyes. Eric scratched the back of his neck, he didn’t know what to say, none of them did. Red looked as emotionless as always , Eric knew his Dad was hurting even if he didn’t show it. Red left the room, heading back upstairs to try to help calm kitty down. The three friends instantly started to talk. “Eric oh I am so sorry about Laurie.” Jackie managed to force out, hugging Eric, an odd gesture from the one friend in his group that he wasn’t that close to, but it was welcomed, he hugged her back for a few seconds before they pulled from the hug, Jackie was far from his favorite person but any affection at all helped him feel better than he had the night before.

Kelso grabbed Eric next and squeezed him, pulling away sooner than Jackie, his hug was tight and quick while Jackie’s was an embrace, not too hard or tight, but comforting. After the friends had gotten all of the physical apologies out they made their way to the basement, they wanted to check on Hyde and see how he was doing, though he hadn’t cared for Laurie nearly as much as Eric, he had still known her, and still cared about her. When they arrived in the basement they could hear The Rolling Stones playing loudly from Hyde’s room. Kelso and Jackie sat down while Eric went to get Hyde. Right before Eric got to the door, Hyde emerged. He looked fine, aside from a single wet spot on his cheek where he had forgotten to wipe off. “Hey… Kelso and Jackie are here.” Eric motioned back at the two dark haired teens sitting on the couch. Hyde nodded, putting on his sunglasses and walking over to his seat. After they had all sat down it was quiet, there was nothing to talk about, the events of last night were too serious for the group to make any jokes, or burn each other. Everyone was on edge and that made the entire group stay quiet. They didn’t wanna make things worse for the others.

It was Kelso that spoke first. “I… can’t believe Laurie is gone” he gulped, his Adams apple bobbing. No one spoke, not at first, it was a moment before Jackie joined in. “I was just starting to like her… we had so much to do” she sniffled. This was truly hard for all of them.

“Yeah, Laurie and I were just starting to-“ Kelso didn’t finish.

“Starting to what Michael?” Jackie turned to her boyfriend and glared, it wasn’t her normal glare but it got the point across.

“Starting to get along- yeah. We were starting to get along and- damn Jackie this is a trying time for me!” Kelso crossed his arms and turned away from her slightly.

“Man, don’t be a dick.” Hyde threw an empty Cream soda can at Kelso.

“Ow!” Kelso rubbed his head, this brought a small smile to Eric’s face, He wasn’t completely happy, but seeing his friends bicker and throw stuff at each other reminded him of the days before his life became hell. While the four friends argued and tried to hide their depression, Donna was a house over with her parents and a cop, the murder had happened right next to their house so the cops had decided that was the best place to start.

“Mr. and Mrs. Pinciotti” the officer addressed the adults. “We are so sorry to have to bring up Laurie Forman; she was your Neighbor and friend.” He turned his head to look at Donna, then turned back to her parents. “But because it happened so close to your house, its mandatory that we talk to you about the events of last night, in case of finding out even the smallest of details that could help us bring the killer to justice” the adults nodded and Donna sat back in her seat, paying just enough attention to get information from him, but not enough to let it get to her.

“Did the three of you see or hear anything the night of Laurie’s passing?” the officer asked his first question, readying his note pad to write down whatever the family had to answer.

“Bob and I heard a scream.” Midge spoke, huddling against her husband. “We thought it was just some of the local Kids playing, there was a party on Chicago so we assumed it came from there.”

The officer nodded and scribbled on to the notepad. “The event happened in the woods around your house, did the proximity of the scream not concern you?” “Oh it did, I made bob go check it out.” Midge nodded quickly, holding Bobs arm.

The officer perked up at hearing this. “So you did go to check on where the scream came from?”

Bob nodded. “Yup, I got up and walked right over there, didn’t see nothin.” Bob was telling the truth, when he had walked over to the woods, there was no body to be found.

“Did you know that Laurie was outside alone at such a late hour?” the officer glanced at all of them.

“No, we had no idea. We were in the back yard and couldn’t see the street.” Midge answered for both her and Bob. The officer turned his attention towards the girl sitting to his right. “What about you, Donna, did you know anything about why Laurie was out that late on her own?” It was a simple question that she should be able to answer truthfully but she didn’t say anything at first. Could this get Eric in trouble? She didn’t wanna rat Eric out, and she definitely didn’t wanna add more stress in to his life, there was enough already from what had happened. “the night this happened… we were going to the bowling alley, and Laurie wanted to take the car but because the party she was going to was just a few blocks away we told her to walk.” She was telling the truth, for the most part, Laurie was told to walk, but only by Eric. She wasn’t gonna hand her boyfriend over to the cops, not for this, not for anything.

“So you told her to walk, alone, at night?” the officer wrote this down. “Did you ever think that might not have been the best idea?”

Donna wanted to punch the cop in the face. “No, we didn’t. Point Place isn’t a dangerous town we had no reason to suspect that Laurie would be killed that night” said Donna, with an annoyed tone in her voice.

“Thank you, all of you for taking time to answer these questions.” The officer flipped the notepad shut and made his way to the door. “Everything you have said today may help to find a lead in the case” he nodded at the three and let himself out. As he was walking out he noticed something, a dried red foot print on the patio. He didn’t know what to make of it, were the Pinciottis covering for their wrong doings? They both said they were in the backyard at the time of killing, but were they lying? He turned and walked back to the door, knocking.

Bob answered. “Something else officer?” he cocked his head slightly.

“Yes, may I see the bottom of the left shoe that you were wearing that night?” the officer asked.

“Well, I don’t quite remember what shoe I had on” Bob scratched his head.

“Let me jog your memory.” The officer stepped aside and showed Bob the red footprint. Bob stared at it, realizing what he had stepped in that night, it wasn’t beer or water. It was blood. He took a step back. “Can you tell me how this got here Mr. Pinciotti?”

Bob nodded. He knew exactly where it came from. “When I went to check on the scream I stepped in something… I thought it was a spilled beverage… it was dark after all”

The officer nodded, he could tell the emotion bob was showing was genuine. “Thank you Mr. Pinciotti, would you please bring me the shoe?”

“Of course, but why do ya need it?” Bob asked and looked at the man standing in front of him.

“It’s evidence in the case.” That was all that needed to be said, he didn’t say anything else until Bob had gone to get his shoe. When Bob returned he handed the shoe to the officer, they talked about some extra things for a moment then he went back inside, sitting down at the table next to his wife and looking across at Donna. “You knew that Laurie was out there?” Bob asked his daughter.

“Yes, I did… like I said, Point Place is boring and peaceful, Eric and I have walked all over town and nothing has happened” Donna was fed up with the way adults were treating her on this subject, yeah they shouldn’t have made Laurie walk, but there was nothing to worry about, her parents and everyone was acting as if their small town was just the worst most crime filled town in the state, but it wasn’t.

“What about Tina, Donna this isn’t the first time something bad has happened in this town”

“Really, dad? You’re gonna bring Tina in to this? That happened four years ago and was a totally different scenario!” she stood up from the table. “We had no idea that this was gonna happen, I would have made Eric give her a ride if I thought it would be dangerous”

“Donna all we are trying to say, is that maybe putting all of your trust in how quiet this town is, from this point on may not be a very good idea” Bob spoke and midge agreed. Donna frowned. “Sure because making the same mistake again was on my agenda” she stomped out of the room, leaving her parents alone. She was so tired of all of this, maybe they did care. She knew they did, but right now they were being huge assholes, acting as if she was dumb, she wasn’t. She knew the details of her sister’s disappearance; it wasn’t like Laurie’s death. She was murdered and left for someone to find. Tina wasn’t, no she had disappeared, and 4 years later they still hadn’t found her. Tina was a child; Laurie was an adult. That also had to mean something right? Donna was so busy trying to come up with any connections or disconnections that she hadn’t even noticed where she was heading, Eric’s house. She was at the basement door when she noticed. She went ahead and went down the stairs meeting up with her friends and sitting next to her boyfriend. “A cop was at my house.” She said, causing the group to look at her. “Cops are no good man, they probably know something we don’t like who the killer is, they just don’t want us to know” the events that had happened didn’t affect Hyde much; he was still himself, distrust in authority and all.

“What’d they say?” “did they ask you any questions?” Jackie and Eric asked almost at the same time, glaring at each other for talking over them. Donna smiled at how normal the basement felt. “A bunch of random crap, they asked me if I knew why Laurie was walking at night” she rolled her eyes.

“What’d you tell them?” Eric sat up a bit.

“The truth, I covered for you though, told them it was a group decision, no names” she was replying to Eric but gave a look to the entire group implying that she meant she covered for all of them.

“Those cops don’t know what they’re doing, they didn’t know Laurie like I- we did” Kelso blurted out, getting a confused look from everyone except for Jackie, who was glaring at him. “Michael, why are you talking about Laurie like you had something with her?” she was still glaring and clearly upset now.

“I didn’t I- she was my friend, and I’m just upset that she’s gone.” replied Kelso.

“You’ve been acting this way before she went missing, Michael” Jackie was clearly not happy with him and she could see how much he was lying. “Just tell me the truth Michael”

“I- I am Jackie! Nothing was going on I swear!” Kelso stood up and looked at Jackie. “If you wanna be that way, fine! Accusing me of something I didn’t do!” he had done it, he had been sleeping with Laurie and even catching feelings for her behind Jackie’s back, but he wouldn’t admit to it.

“What are you saying Michael?” Jackie stood up also. “You know what, Michael We’re over… I can’t trust you, I gave you a second chance but maybe I shouldn’t have.”

“Fine!” Kelso yelled.

“Fine!” Jackie yelled back and watched as Michael turned and stomped up the basement stairs.

Jackie slowly turned to look at her friends, tears welling up in her eyes, she brought her hand up to her mouth and looked at the group, her eyes landing on Donna, then Eric, then Hyde, where they stayed. She slowly made her way over to Hyde and hugged him for a moment before taking a seat between Eric and Donna. “I’m such an idiot.” She sniffled. “I knew there were signs of him cheating… and I should have broken it off sooner… and He’s probably more upset now…” Eric and Donna laid their hands on her shoulders and rubbed softly.

“don’t worry Jackie, Kelso will come back, beg you for forgiveness, admit to his really shitty behavior and you two will get back together, until he cheats again… because you know he will, he’s Kelso” Donna tried to comfort her friend But didn’t do too good of a job based on the crying from the rich girl beside her.

“Yeah, man. Kelso is an idiot but he’ll get over this, like he always does, and maybe he will come to terms that cheating on you does not ever end the way he wants” when Jackie heard what Hyde said, it calmed her down a little, she was still upset, but her friends were helping.

“And if you ever need anyone to talk to…” Eric smiled caringly. “I’ll be right here, ready to listen” Jackie looked at Eric, who was being much nicer than normal and smiled softly. “Thank you.” She looked at Donna and Hyde also. “Thank you all for being here… Michael is such a jerk, I’m glad t-things are o-over” she choked up and began crying again, falling against Donna. Hyde stood up and stretched. “I’m gonna head to work, Leo is probably asleep or something”

“Can I come with you?” Jackie said and looked up at Hyde who shrugged and made his way to the door. “Yeah, come on” Jackie followed him out, leaving Donna and Eric alone. “You okay?” Donna asked, looking at the scrawny boy beside her.

Eric didn’t speak right away; he just stared at the blank T.V thinking of how to reply. “I uh… I’m fine” he pursed his lips and turned his attention to Donna. “I mean, My life is never gonna be the same and now My family is gonna be the big story on the news” he shrugged slightly, he still hadn’t shaved and he had been wearing a white Tee-shirt the entire morning, showing that he still wasn’t okay, not at all.

“I know this is rough, Eric. That’s why I’m gonna be here for you the entire time.” Donna gave him a kiss, feeling his light scruff brush against her face. “And all this time I thought you couldn’t grow any facial hair” she laughed and it brought a smile to Eric’s face. “Oh, I can. But this world isn’t ready for the Eric Forman beard” He joked and they both laughed. “Are you sure it’s not because this is all you can grow?”

“Well, yeah it might be that too. The world still isn’t ready though” he softly punched her arm and she punched his arm back a bit harder. They leaned in to each other and laughed, thinking about how even in a dark situation like this they still found happiness together.

“Have you seen Fez?” Donna sat up and blinked a few times, their foreign friend was nowhere to be found, yeah it was only morning but fez was often one of the first to show up and he wasn’t there.

“Now that you mention it, no… not since last night” Eric sat up also, a small amount of dread sinking inside of him. “We should go check on him, right? Make sure he’s okay, he was the one that found her after all.” Eric stood up and waited for a response from Donna. She nodded and stood up and they headed outside to the vista Cruiser. They got in and headed for Fez’s house. They soon arrived and got out, going up to the door and knocking.

Fez’s Host mother answered and gasped. “I saw both of you on the news. They were talking about that girl that was murdered.” She didn’t give them time to say hello or anything. “What are you doing here?” She didn’t seem very happy that they were there.

“We were just here to see if Fez was okay-“ Donna was cut off when Fez’s host father stepped in. “yes, he is perfectly fine, and he will stay fine without you.” He huffed and glared at them. “He doesn’t need to be around such negativity, a girl being murdered, a place like that is no place he should be.” Eric felt anger boiling up, how could this man stand here telling them they couldn’t talk to fez because of what happened? “We didn’t do anything wrong, seriously?”

“Someone was murdered, for all we know, he could be next if he goes anywhere near your house.” Fez’s host father spoke sternly.

“You think this is our fault? My fault? It was my sister that was killed- I would never- none of my friends would ever hurt her- it wasn’t us, I’m not a threat to him!” Eric stepped forward but Donna grabbed him and looked at him. “Come on, it’s clear we are unwanted here, we will find another way to contact him.” Eric sighed and nodded. The couple walked back to their car and got in, looking back at the house as the rude man shut the door. Eric’s life was falling apart one piece at a time and he couldn’t stop it.

#Eric Forman #Laurie Forman #Kitty Forman #Red Forman #Steven Hyde #Jackie Burkhart #Michael Kelso #Fez #Donna Pinciotti #Tina Pinciotti #Bob Pinciotti #Midge Pinciotti #That 70s show #That 70s slasher #chapter 3 #Good times bad times.

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