Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
This Sounds Serious
Cedrick
I’m nearly half an hour late to Mayhem, and everyone is pissed—not that I can blame them.
I’ve never been late before, and we’ve never had to delay opening, but I guess there’s a first for everything.
They’re all starin’ at me when I come into the dressing room.
I drop my head as I walk toward my vanity and plop down in the seat to start on my makeup.
At this point, I’ve got it down-pat, so it should only take me five minutes, give or take—which I make sure to say aloud to everyone who’s already ready and waiting… and staring at me with annoyance.
“Yes, I know. I’m fuckin’ sorry,” I mutter, my accent thicker than ever when I’m irritated. And as frustrated as I am with everyone being rude to me right now, I can’t regret my decision to do what I did to Madison.
He’s worth every bit of it.
I can still hear his voice in my head. His stuttering whimpers and desperate pleas. His resolute determination and abject ignorance.
He’s absolutely perfect—and he never fails to keep on surprising me.
The way he passed out, eyes rolling into the back of his head, a bit of drool hanging from his thick, beautiful lips…
Fuck, he’s perfect…
I reach down and adjust my cock, but of course, as I do, Wesley notices and whistles loudly. Or, well, whistles as best he can through the fake teeth he’s wearing.
“Fuck off,” I mutter, rolling my eyes as I swipe the rest of the black paint around my eyes, smearing it a bit at the corners so it looks messier before painting my lips and doing the same.
My phone buzzes with a notification just as I finish up, so I toss my brush on the table to check it. It’s a motion alert for Madison’s room. I glance around the room for a second before opening it up to take a quick peak at my treat before I go out for the night.
I find him sitting on his bed, legs curled up in front of him with his arms wrapped around them. He’s got his chin resting on his knees, hair flopped across his forehead from where it hangs down slightly, and his right leg is shaking in the same rhythm as his hand.
He still has papers scattered across his bed, but they appear to be in the same place as earlier—like he hasn’t done a damn thing since our call. And that makes me feel giddy—the control I have over him already.
“The fuck’s got you so distracted today?” Kaser says as they come up behind me. I jerk and nearly drop my phone.
“Nothing,” I mutter and lock it. I shove it into the drawer before reaching for my contacts to put those in before gluing my teeth on.
“Mhm,” they hum, eyeing me through the mirror. I refuse to catch their gaze because I don’t like lying to them, and this feels a little too much like lying, even though it’s technically just an omission.
But I want Madison all to myself.
I don’t want to share him, and frankly, I don’t think I should have to.
“You seem to be in a whole other world,” Kase says after a minute, propping their hip against my vanity.
“I’m just a bit distracted,” I mumble as I finish with the teeth glue. I swipe my tongue over the front of my teeth, over the points at the ends, pressing hard against them until I feel the sting.
“No, shit, man. I’m asking why.”
I pull back from the mirror with a frown. “What do ya mean, why?”
Kaser scoffs. “You’re joking, right? You haven’t been yourself lately.
You’re late for work, which you never are, and that’s crazy to even think about because you love scarin’ mother fuckers more than anyone,” they finish with a huff, their accent thicker than it’s been in a long time, which tells me exactly what I need to know—I’m getting off track here, and everyone can see it.
But what else am I supposed to do?
I need Madison…
I pull in a deep breath and let it out slowly before pushing to my full height in front of Kaser. I turn to face them. “Look. It’s just…” I pause, trailing off as I try to come up with some excuse that makes sense.
“Who are they?” they ask, and I freeze.
“What?”
“Who. Are. They?” they ask again, enunciating each word deliberately, never taking their eyes off me. And that’s when I realize I’m fuckin’ stupid to ever think I could hide from Kase.
“I don’t know if I should tell you,” I tell them honestly, dropping my head slightly.
“You’re fucking joking—”
“All right, everyone! Time to get out there and scare some bitches!” Kierra comes through the door with a booming voice and a beaming smile, shattering the conversation between me and Kaser.
Their eyes narrow as they pull their latex mask over their face. “This conversation isn’t over.”
I can’t help it. I roll my eyes and smile.
“Wouldn’t fuckin’ dream of it, baby.”
“Fuck you.” And then, they turn around and disappear through the door, following behind everyone else.
I wait an extra minute to gather myself, waiting until I hear resounding screams, and then, I pull in a breath, force a grin on my face, and get my ass out there and hope this brings some sort of rightness back to my life.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are…” I taunt the newest group in a sing-song voice, scraping the blade of my axe on the floor as I walk so it creates the most grating noise that sends goosebumps erupting.
A small whimper escapes, and I stop and cock my head. I know they can see me, so I give them a show.
“Oh… Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.” I click my tongue. “That was a bad move…” I drawl as I near a girl cowering in the corner.
My face splits into a grin the closer I get, and when I round it and the sound of her whimpers and cries increase tenfold, I let out a loud cackle that makes her scream brutally—and I haven’t even touched her yet.
“Gotcha.”
“Fuck!” she screams and tries to scramble away from me, but I reach out and clasp her ankle, keeping her pinned in place.
“No! Please, please, let me go!” she wails and drops to the floor in a useless pile of limbs. She’s trembling, and I’ve barely touched her. I curl my nose. Pathetic.
They’re all so pathetic compared to him.
My sweet, darling treat was absolutely perfect…
I need to get him back here.
Oh, yes. I smile to myself.
I need Madison back here so we can play again.
Fuck.
“Static, what the fuck are you doing? You just let her get away!” someone yells in my ear, and I blink through the haze to find the space in front of me empty.
“Well, damn,” I click my tongue before pressing my finger to my ear and saying, “She wasn’t good enough for me.
Maybe you’ll have a better stab at her.” And then, I’m sliding to the ground with my head dropped back between my shoulders as I let myself daydream about chasing Madison through these halls all over again—only this time, it would be real.
There would be no game between us.
Just me and him and the fight for survival…
“Shit,” I mutter as I reach down and adjust myself. Just the thought alone is enough to have my blood boiling in my veins.
The only problem is getting him here…
But maybe… just maybe…
The sound of footsteps resound through the room, and I lift my head to find a man standing in front of me, chest heaving, sweat pouring from his face in rivulets.
“What the…” he mumbles, and then, we make eye contact, and he freezes. “Oh… Sh-shit…” He slowly takes a step back, eyes wide, jaw slack. All the while, I just stare at him, head cocked to the side in amusement as he scares the fuck out of himself all on his own.
I’m not doin’ a damn thing but sittin’ here, but it seems to be doin’ more than enough.
“Where ya goin’?” I ask as he steps over the threshold.
“Nowhere.” He holds his hands up in front of him in a placating gesture, and I can’t help but to throw my head back and laugh. Then, I slowly get to my feet, never taking my eyes off him. Maybe this is what I need. A new victim to release on.
He’s no Madison. And I don’t want him to be… but he’ll do.
“Hey, now,” I drawl slowly as he backs out of the room, tripping over the fraying carpet. “Come back.”
“No… No way, man.” He’s shaking his head back and forth so fast, it reminds me of a dog out of water.
“Pathetic…” I muse softly, head cocked to the side ocne more as I slowly make my way toward him, my long strides eating up the short distance between us quickly.
“You’re all so slow,” I murmur as I close the space and grab his upper arms. He yelps and tries to jerk away, but I’m stronger and hold on tight.
“He wasn’t slow, though,” I tell this stranger because who else is there to tell?
“He was perfect. You all just pale in comparison,” I spit between clenched teeth as I back him against the wall with my forearm pressed against his throat.
He lets out a pathetic little squeak, and even though it’s dark, I know his face is turning red.
“Wh-what’re you talking about?” he gasps, and I laugh. I throw my head back and let it out. A full body, shaking laugh that vibrates through me before it settles like a warm buzz beneath my flesh.
“Hmm,” I drawl, trailing my finger down his wet cheek. “Exactly.” And then, I snap my teeth, and he screams, and it’s…
It’s ugly.
“So… who is it?” Kaser asks when I walk through the door later that night. I throw my head back with a groan, not even bothering to hide how annoyed I am. “Don’t start that shit with me, Ced. You walked into this.”
“How exactly did I do that?” I ask as I peel my boots off and leave them by the door before walkin’ into the kitchen and making myself a strong Crown and coke.
“By lyin’ to me.”
I whirl around, glass in hand. I hold it aloft. “I did not lie to you.”
“Well, you didn’t fuckin’ tell me the truth, now did ya?”
I turn back around to finish making my drink.
After I’ve mixed it, I lean back against the counter to face Kaser and let myself have their wrath.
I knew this conversation would happen eventually; I just figured there would actually be something between me and Madison first so I wouldn’t seem like such a…
Freak.