CHAPTER SEVEN ⨾ The Funhouse.

PREVIOUSLY ON AFTERGLOW . . . the tension between Colleen and Joey rises, and the group commits acts of torture to cleanse the next artifact. Joey proves himself by finding the second Lazarus coin, and pushes the group to murder one of their own to cleanse the artifact. The Lazarus box is open, a friend is brought back from the dead.

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THE GROUP WAITED IN THE LOUNGE AFTER JOEY STRUMMED THE HARP.

Vivienne grew nervous as each minute passed while she fiddled with the badge in her pocket.

"Joey, what's going on?" Manny questioned at the absence of someone getting revived, Joey was pacing around back and forth.

Rosanna: It's been thirty minutes since Joey played the harp, and nothing is happening, I'm like trying to just like will it to work, I don't know maybe if I put the feelings into it?

"This harp is faulty." Manny comments.

"Please work, please work." Joey chanted.

"It won't work, won't it?" Rosanna asked.

"We did all of that hassle for nothing?" Vivienne questioned, frustrated once more.

"Ro, you saw me do exactly as it said, I stroked it three times, I thought of who I wanted to bring back. I don't know why they're not here."

Safiya: I thought the harp was gonna work, maybe it's just another game.

"What if the harp's magic was already out?" Vivienne guessed.

"Honestly I'm hopeful, I'm just more worried who exactly we brought back." Nikka spoke. "Whoever comes back is gonna have a vengeance, if I can back from the dead, I'd be pissed."

Suddenly a knock—more like a pound—on the door was heard. "Is that them on the door?" Vivienne grew hope.

Joey: So there's a knock on the door, and I think I know who it is?

Joey opened the door. "Hello?" He asked, then looking at his feet seeing a briefcase.

"You brought back a box?" Vivienne joked, disappointed that it was the revived person she was thinking about during the thirty minutes.

"Girl, no I didn't, you better not! It's a briefcase." Joey said, holding it.

Joey: Maybe I didn't know what it was, I'd honestly like a briefcase...sure...I'll take it.

The group walked back inside the lounge, setting the briefcase on the table. "I know who that belonged to!" Mortimer pointed at it.

"Then who?" Manny asks.

"Some deadbeat insurance salesman."

"So you know who this case belongs to? How do you know?" Joey asks.

"I used to, he lived in the town," recalled Mortimer.

"An insurance salesman, you say?" Vivienne wondered.

"I don't trust insurance salesmen." Rosanna comments.

"It's drawings..." Joey asked, flipping through papers.

Then, they heard a sound, and looked up.

Vivienne gasped in shock, "Matt!" The group shouted and cheered seeing the man alive, back in his original clothing.

Vivienne: I swear I was so close to kissing him, but he looked confused and lost, now everything's awkward...because we last saw each other after a kiss...don't know how else to continue this stuff...

"Hi, my love." Vivienne softly said as she and Ro helped him to the couch.

"It worked!" Rosanna and Joey hugged each other with a bright smile.

Joey: I chose to bring back Matpat, you know it was a very obvious decision especially after everything that went down.

Vivienne was shocked with happy tears on her eyes as Matthew hugged everyone. Yet, she was still iffy about hugging him, still lost on everything that has gone between them. She knew he loved him dearly, but waited until he did something first.

"Mat we are so excited to see you." Nikita said.

"We are so happy to see you!" Manny hugged Matthew.

"Mat we were able to bring one person back, we chose you." Joey explained.

"You chose me?" Matthew asked.

"We chose you." Joey assured.

Rosanna, Vivienne, and Matthew hugged each other another time, the time they last did a group hug felt like forever. Yet Vivienne was still waiting on her singular hug.

Matpat: He could've brought back anyone, for them to specifically choose me, meant so much.

Matthew sat back down on the couch, his eyes finally connecting with Vivienne's. "Oh my gosh..." he muttered with a chuckle. "How could I forget?"

"Forget...?" Vivienne looked at him confusingly, before getting engulfed into a huge hug. "Oh! I've missed you too, so, so much." Vivienne muffled as she tightly hugged him.

"You were in my thoughts too," MatPat said. He let go of the hug before giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Oh! I also have something for you." Vivienne went into her pocket, blush on her face from the kiss. She took out the badge.

"You kept my badge?" Matthew asked, shocked.

"Of course!" Vivienne giggled, happy there was no longer any tension.

"Thank you so much, love." He smiled, and did a quick kiss to her forehead again as he clipped the badge back to his pants.

"Mat, there's one thing we need to know." Joey spoke, now seeing the moment between the newfound couple was over. "What happened when you died?"

"I saw the church, and standing in front of the church was a blonde woman and an Asian man." Matthew explained.

"The society against evil." Joey called them.

"They said that one of us have been to the church before..."

"You were right..." Rosanna looked at Joey.

"Told you."

Matpat: While I was dead it also became clear to me that Joey wasn't lying. He is an integral piece in this mission and that we do need him to survive so that we can escape.

"Okay that's all great and everything, I don't mean to cut this really intense moment for you, I know you died two hours ago and are reunited with your girlfriend, but we just got more clues and we really need your help more than ever." Nikita spoke as Vivienne leaned into Matthew.

Matpat: Way to put me back to work, guys! Go solve this puzzle for us. Fine, it's good to get back to business, it's good to be back with my love.

"Tell my story to let the fun begin. It has numbers and this looks actually like that." Nikita pointed, a circle design on the wall.

Nikita: So we look at the drawings, they're definitely not the kinds of pictures I was drawing as a little kid, let me just say that.

"They all have W's." Rosanna realizes. "So W, W, it's the same person drawing these growing up."

"Wait what'd you say the name was?" Joey asked Mortimer.

"His name was Willie." Mortimer replied.

"Willie? That's what W stands for." Vivienne states.

"Give me the beginning one, and a tack." Joey orders.

Joey: So we start tacking the drawings against the wall in the order that we think took place.

"So where do we think what comes next because he's born into this world..." Joey asked.

"Is this a mustache?" Rosanna pointed at a drawing depicting a larger woman with a rolling pin about to hit a smaller blonde doodle.

"That's his wife, he gets married, gets abused..." Matthew connected the drawings.

"On the last picture he has three faces." Manny holds the drawing.

"Oh, he does." Vivienne comments.

Safiya: So the story of willie's life starts out with him being born, then his parents fighting, him peeing himself, and getting bullied at school, going off to war, getting married, getting into fights with his wife, leaving his wife, making a deal with the devil, and then seemingly going mad?

"Last one is tacked in." Joey mutters, a chest opens.

"It opened. I heard it." Matthew pointed at a box.

Rosanna: This box opens and in it is a red button and I'm thinking: push it!

"Are you gonna push it? I'm ready!" Rosanna stood in a pose.

"Push it we don't have much time." Nikita suggested, more so like a demand. Manny pushed the button as the lights went dark, they all turned off.

Rosanna: We're in the dark, which I am heavily afraid of.

"Is everyone okay?" Mortimer asked amidst the darkness.

"Yeah." Everyone answered, then the room is projected in a purple light and something opens.

"Wait something opened!" Vivienne heard the sound.

"Something opened?" Matthew asked while Vivienne went to the opened box, retrieving a flashlight.

"It's a flashlight." Vivienne told while holding it.

"Guys, we haven't looked at the map yet." Safiya realized.

"Wait we haven't!" Manny adds, everyone gathered to the map hung up on the wall.

"Clearly what's new here is the funhouse. It says the funhouse is open for business. Bloody business." Safiya looked at the map

Joey: Bloody business, of course.

"Oh look! Around the room is a line." Vivienne waved the flashlight around, trying to spot anything.

Vivienne: Still having the flashlight, I began to wave it around different parts of the room, and I realize that there's certain places that glow.

"Travel symbol to symbol...starting with the swirl." Vivienne read.

"Wait look at how follow is written!" Safiya points out, it was underlined with a slash on the O.

"It's a zero." Joey replied.

Safiya: So we have the word follow and the number zero.

Matpat: And from there follow the arrows along until we reach a symbol. From there we hop to the next symbol, and follow that pathway.

"Five! Zero, four, five..." Vivienne listed the numbers they saw.

"We need to find another smiley face." Safiya suggested, looking around the walls.

"I found it!" Vivienne quickly said. "It's over here."

Matpat: When we get down the line we have a sequence of four numbers, but don't know what to do with it. So we go back and reread the words.

"Follow grave instructions three?" Safiya guesses.

"Literally. Follow grave instructions literally." Matthew said.

"Wait where have we seen a grave?" Manny asks.

Vivienne walks around with Nikita following her. "Oh guys it's over here!" Nikita calls.

"It's a grave, it read R.I.P." Vivienne observes.

"Oh rip! Follow grave instructions literally, rip it, darling!" Matthew instructed.

Vivienne ripped down the poster. "There it is!" Matthew said, the lights turn back on as Vivienne turns off her flashlight.

Safiya: So I put in the combination and open it up. Inside is the next artifact.

"It says the psychedelic swirl warps and distorts the souls who stare into it. To cleanse this wicked artifact you must brave the rooms of the funhouse. You'll need a ticket to enter, but don't plan on making it back out." Safiya read.

Rosanna: And next to the artifact are tickets! Tickets to a funhouse...

The group sets the artifact and the tickets on the table. "It looks like we're gonna be needing three light bulbs or three pieces to complete the wheel." Matthew predicts.

"What about calliope and Mortimer, we don't have tickets for you guys!" Nikita realizes.

"Guess that means we can't go with you guys, we'll take you as far as the entrance." Mortimer said.

"We are not liable for death." Rosanna and MatPat read the tickets.

Nikita: We are not liable for death, I'm just thinking how fun could this funhouse really be?

Manny: So we walk up it's the creepiest funhouse I've ever seen in my entire life. The entrance is a cat with swirly eyes, a guy in a mask walks out. Then I realize, that's Willie, that's the guy from the drawings!

"A few rules before you suffer..." Willy's voice was rough, and then turned his mask with a smiley face, "at the beginning of the hall is an elevator, you wanna enter in one at a time or—"

Rosanna: Willie has four different personalities, sometimes he happy, and sometimes he is a monster.

"—I'll rip your guts out with a fishhook!" Willie threatened, before changing his face again, "The elevator will spin you to a room which you must solve quickly!"

Vivienne: Choose a face and stick to it, you bipolar asshole!

"Every few minutes I'll spin the dial of disaster, and whatever room it lands on—" Willie changed his face again.

"Oh my god..." Vivienne muttered, rolling her eyes. Her sour comment makes Rosanna, Matthew, and Nikita giggle.

"—I will enter and take one or two of you out back for punishment!"

Joey: I don't understand what Willy has going on in his head.

"Now...a red light flashes time to time, and when you're in the room, you must get into the elevator within five seconds." Willie changed his face again to one that sounded nervous. "Let's have some horrible fun. Tickets please, please hurry."

Rosanna: I am terrified, in every scary situation you never wanna divide. When you divide that's when the bad stuff happens!

"Wish me luck, guys." Matthew said, he was the first to go into the funhouse.

lMat, be careful!" Rosanna wanted.

"Do well, honey!" Vivienne also called.

Matpat: So I hop into the elevator, all of a sudden I'm spinning.

Matthew was in a room full of colorful balloons and it was themed like candy. "Candyland?" He asked.

Matpat: There were so many balloons in this room it was awesome! It was like the best birthday party you could ask for! After a few minutes My darling Anne was in the room followed by Ro and Safiya! My favorite people in this group!

"The wretched woman hid all five of my treats. Put them back where they belong." Matthew read the small note.

Matpat: Presumably I start popping some balloons in order to find these pieces of candy and then put those candy in a box to complete his nicely arranged candy collection.

"Grab a pin! We need to find treats, that are I'm assuming hidden in the balloons!" Matthew explained to Vivienne.

Matpat: I have a needle and I'm ripping through em. My darling Anne has a needle she's gracefully ripping through em. Safiya has a needle and is ripping through them. Ro doesn't have a needle and she's...trying.

"Okay! I found a treat!" Matthew picked it up and went to the candy organizer. "This is a chewy candy that's chocolate, which makes me believe that would be here..."

Safiya: Basically each row has been categorized in a specific way. At the bottom you got kinda chewy chocolate candy.

"Okay so we need to complete all five rows. Keep looking!" Matthew says.

"They're also small!" Vivienne added and popped another balloon.

"Yeah! Make sure you look closely." MatPat nodded.

Safiya: And we finally find all of the candies we need.

"The chest opened! Ok here we go, there's a note! It says, Carnival Master corrupted one of you." Vivienne quickly read it in a rush, before pausing. "Wait what?" Vivienne asks in confusion.

"It can't be one of us, maybe someone with Joey?" Rosanna suggests.

Or what about Mortimer? He's been acting strange since we got here." Vivienne guesses.

"What else is there?" Matthew asked. "It's probably some trick from Willie to scare us."

"A key, a world encyclopedia, and a bunch of rings." Vivienne took out the stuff.

Rosanna: So we find the encyclopedia in the room and it's not helping us in any situation, but I guess it's for where are our other friends are.

"The book belongs to another room." Matthew states, after flipping through the pages.

"We have to give it to everybody else." Vivienne says.

Matpat: There is genuinely no place for us to hide, in such a small space, he finds us in no time.

"Come here!" Willy grabbed both Vivienne and Matthew.

"No! No vivi and mat!" Rosanna and Safiya screamed.

"Take the key! Use the key on the box!" Matthew threw the key in his hand.

Vivienne: So Willy drags us through the house, back through the elevator, and takes us into a chain styled prison. Great. I'm in jail again!

Matpat: Why us? Leave us alone, four face!

Vivienne: Matt tried any possible way we could maybe get out. Like ramming the door, I tried to to look on the ground for any possible clue. Nothing. We're just in here! But...now that we're alone...

The two just sat down on the ground in defeat, Vivienne laid her head on Matthew's shoulder.

"Did I remind you I love you?" Vivienne asked, jokingly.

"Well your actions tell me otherwise." Matthew replied.

"Can I kiss you?" Vivienne asked, Matthew didn't say any word, but slowly leaned towards her, and this time, without worry, their lips could connect; Vivienne pulled apart. "You know, when we can get out of here, the first date we're going to is a gazebo." Vivienne joked, she had a planned first date already in mind.

"We'd have a picnic while discussing about what happened on this very night..." Matthew daydreamed with a laugh.

"I just wish we'd have time, time to do all the stuff we dreamed about." Vivienne spoke.

"But we had the time to be boyfriend and girlfriend. We are dating, yes?" Matthew asked.

"Of course we are, I thought I'd never see you again after the strongman grabbed you away from me," recalled Vivienne.

"You know, you can never get rid of me that easily." Matthew joked, making Vivienne smile.

"I find this quite funny during these times." Vivienne spoke.

"Why?" Matthew asked.

"I would've never imagined us going into the 70's on a survival mission, and you having the same mutual feelings I had for you. I've been to jail twice in this one night. Now we're in jail my second time, and we're planning our first date." Vivienne smiled.

"Well, if I were to be on a 70's survival slight guarantee to death mission, I'd be at most happy to be spending it with you." Mat says, and Vivienne's heart warmed at the simple quote. Matthew watched in silence as Vivienne began to yawn.

"You think we can nap here, for a bit?" Vivienne asked, much to Matthew's confusion.

"Um...I'll be on duty to make sure we don't die, if that helps." Mat offers.

"Good." Vivienne yawned, and laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes as Matthew stood still. Mostly because he was scared if he moved Vivienne would wake up.

Meanwhile...

It's been a few minutes since Willy spun the wheel, "Spinning the wheel again! Uh-oh! I'll be coming for the sideways room now."

The sideways room was Joey, Nikita, and Manny.

Nikita: Then all of a sudden, homeboy Willy jumps inside of our room, but clearly there's nowhere to hide so I got caught. And then I walk outside to see Mat and Vivi asleep with Vivi leaning on Mat's shoulder? Excuse the romance, I might be jealous, but the main point is if you could've slept in the jail I would've been here ages ago!

"I'll gladly go in here!" Vivienne and Matthew both woke up from their short sleep to the sound of Nikita's voice.

"Oh, Nikita! Hi!" Vivienne waved, now awake from the short Power Nap.

"Have a great time, you guys! Coffee will be served soon. Bye!" Willy waved.

"Okay so what happened in here?" Nikita asked.

"Oh nothing, we can't even escape here, we checked all around everywhere. So we fell asleep, had a little Power Nap. You can have one! Here take my jacket as a pillow or sit down." Vivienne explained. "

"I'll be fine, how could you two sleep at a time like this?" Questioned Nikita.

"Everyone's distracted or doing something, and there's little chance Calliope nor Mortimer might somehow see us. This dungeon is quiet and empty," explained Matthew.

"Okay, I get it, then what could we possibly do now?" Nikita questioned.

"Either wait, sleep, stay awake, essentially we just have to wait," answered Vivienne. Nikita sighed knowing her friend was right, she'd have to play the long game.

"Ugh why aren't they hurrying!" Nikita whined. The trio have been in the jail cell for quite some time, they've grown impatient.

"Any time now!" Vivienne mumbled, now the three were standing right at the jail cell door.

"Do you have anything in that giant bouffant of yours?" Matthew asked.

Nikita managed to slip her hand through the crack of the jail cell door. "Oh my gosh, don't break a nail, hun!" Vivienne warned as Nikita tried to use it as a bobby pin.

"Babes these are reinforced acrylics." Nikita said.

Vivienne: At least the first time I was in jail I had a group helping me and Ro! We're completely helpless inside this one.

Then Joey was in the cell, Vivienne would've attempted to escape—but preferred to not get too close to death. "Joey, what'd we miss inside the funhouse?" Matthew questioned.

"We completed most rooms, we're in a lava one." Joey recalled.

"That liar said he'd serve coffee soon!" Nikita complained.

Nikita: Then Manny comes in and we're all helpless.

"Guys we're over here!" The group in the jail cell yelled out after hearing voices.

"Oh my god, guys how do we get you out of here?" Safiya asked.

"Possibly a key?" Matthew suggests.

"We don't have one." Rosanna answered, making the group disappointed. "We just have this note it says we have to choose one of you captured to the final challenge." Rosanna explained.

"So you guys choose who goes into elimination?" Joey asks.

Joey: Ro and Safiya get to choose between me, Vivienne, Manny, Matt, and Nikita. I'm just hoping they don't choose me.

"Think about what we've done in this game!" Vivienne suggests.

"Think carefully!"

"We know we'll obviously vote as wisely as we can! We gotta get back to the lounge! We'll try to help if we can." Safiya assured, her and Rosanna and walked away to the lounge.

After a few minutes of waiting, Willie walks towards the cell, making the group back away as he laughed maniacally. "Your friends have made it out safe, but chose you two on the side to enter the funhouse one last time," he explained.

Willy meant Nikita and Vivienne.

Matpat: Considering Nikita is a fierce girl and my darling Anne is there, this is like the worst possible scenario. Outside of me and darling Anne to be put up for elimination, obviously.

"You other three, scram!" Willie changed his face as the trio walked away.

"Do well, darling!" Matthew gave good luck to Vivienne.

Vivienne: I am horrified, I feel betrayed that one of them voted me in!

Joey: I'm just so relieved it's not me, but I don't know what's gonna happen.

"Niki?" Vivienne asked as the two girls walked inside the funhouse.

"What is this?" Nikita asked.

"It's the candyland themed room." Vivienne answered.

Nikita: Ultimately it's a race between Vivi and I. We're both fierce competitors and we will be going into this, knowing we're gonna go in one hundred percent.

"Niki I know we haven't interacted much, but if we do come back from this, whichever one of us, those bitches will pay." Vivienne assured Nikita.

"Yes honey, we're gonna come for blood." Nikita said.

The two walked forward to two tables displaying lollipops. "Once you complete the challenge, jump into the elevator and it will take you to the next room. First one through all three have defeated the fun house. Step inside to begin," the two read.

Nikita: The first room we're in is a series of lollipops and we basically have to match them to their correct taste.

Vivienne: They're the nastiest candy I've tasted in my life, considering I played the jelly belly challenge. We have bacon, we have fish.

Vivienne gagged at her lollipop she tasted.

Vivienne: It's so gross, I swear.

"Oh my god this is spicy!" Nikita commented on her lollipop.

Nikita: I've had a lot of things in my mouth, but this by far is the third nastiest thing.

Vivienne groaned at the smell and taste. "That's vile! It's completely vile! It smells like fish...vagina." She comments as she arranged her lollipops in order. "Bacon, pickle, apple, fish, earl grey, peppermint, cheese?" Vivienne guessed.

"You've completed this room!" Willy's voice could be heard as Vivienne immediately turned around. "Sorry Niki! Good luck!" She called as she ran to the elevator.

"Bye babe." Nikita said.

Vivienne: I am shocked once I could match everything up considering the taste of the lollipops. Nikita's choices of flavors were easier and mine were just plain disgusting besides peppermint. And afterwards I race over to the floor is lava room, I've never been here before so...yay?

"Toss the beanbag to each of the five holes from behind the red line. Step on the lava and you have to start right over. No cheating, you can only take one beanbag at a time."

Vivienne: So this is basically a game of beanbag toss on crazy high stakes...shit.

"Don't step in the lava!" Vivienne could hear Willy's anger voice as Vivienne tossed a beanbag one by one.

"One." Vivienne tossed her first beanbag. "Okay, two!" After a few more, Vivienne only needed one. It was much more easier than she anticipated.

"You got this Vivi!" Vivienne cheered to herself.

Nikita: I'm like oh my god I finally completed this room so I'm allowed to continue on. I see vivi still in the room so maybe I'll have a chance.

"My, oh my, you have completed the room!" Nikita could hear after seeing Vivienne.

Nikita: Never mind.

Vivienne walked to the final room. "Riddle me this. Twist to begin." Vivienne read, "Shit!" She exclaimed seeing multiple keys rain to the floor.

Vivienne scrambled to the floor and searched for a key that fit the exact key shape. "Come on, you got this, we've been drunk before we've been in the situation but it's better cause we're sober this time. Wait that one is too big, is it this one?"

Vivienne found a key, and unlocked a small door. Inside was a note. "Solve the riddle and then find the object and place it in its appropriate spot to win the dual." Vivienne read.

"When I am young, I am tall. When I am old, I am short. Sweat makes me age, and breath is my foe."

Vivienne: Easy bitch, it's a candle.

"Okay candle, where's a candle?" Vivienne looked around, she turned her head. "Candles!" Vivienne ran to grab them.

Vivienne: I found the candles, I have to put them on the table. The second I slam it in im like, I just won! Im so happy.

"Nikita im sorry!" Vivienne yelled out.

Vivienne: Then it hits me that, Nikita. Did I kill Nikita?

"We have a winner, ladies and gentlemen! We have a winner! Both of you exit the room and claim your prize." Willie's voice rang.

Nikita: And, I loose the challenge, I know I'm gonna die. I'm so fearful of dying and I don't know what I'll do when I die. Im thinking of I'm gonna leave Manny, I'm gonna leave the crew behind.

Vivienne hugged Nikita while in the elevator. "It's okay babe, you had no other choice." Nikita assured Vivienne.

"Wait...what is this?" Vivienne held the glass box hanging from the funhouse entrance. Vivienne gasped as she read the note inside of it.

"What does it say?" Nikita asked.

"Sad news is you both get to live." Vivienne replied and the two girls hugged. They both could live!

Nikita: Both of us are safe! I'm beyond excited. Me and Vivienne's first pair up was a great one. I'm also upset, why haven't I hanged with her earlier she seems so freaking sweet? And she's so smart, geez she completed that game so fast I was so close to dying.

Vivienne: I am floored. Nikita is such a spitfire and it would upset me to see her die—only because I've seen so many others die.

"Breaks my heart, it really does. the very good news however, is the person who voted the winner into the challenge is getting their guts torn open, right now." Vivienne read.

Vivienne: Now when I get back, I'll see whoever voted for me.

"Take the bulb and go before I kill you too." Vivienne finished.

"Girl! Come on!" Nikita said and grabbed the bulb.

"Oh my god. We're alive!" Vivienne smiled and ran with Nikita.

The two ran back inside the lounge. "Guys!" Vivienne called out.

"You girls what happened? Why is Safiya dead." Manny asked the two.

Nikita: We walk into the room me and Vivi have no idea who actually voted for Vivi.

Vivienne: Then I realize, Safiya voted for me. That's why she's dead.

"How did you both survive?" Matthew asked.

"They told us that whoever voted for the winner in the challenge will die." Nikita explained.

"I won." Vivienne spoke.

Vivienne: I don't know how to feel, Safiya voted for me and she died? No chance of fighting?

"I'm safe you're alive, but you didn't have to say it with such attitude." Matthew spoke.

"Attitude?" Vivienne questioned.

"Safiya died for goodness sakes!" Matthew yelled.

"Listen! I don't know how or why Safiya voted for me, but she did. She died because of it and you know I have no control over that. I understand you might be upset because of her death and my tone of voice, I'm sorry about that, but don't put the blame on me!" Vivienne snapped as Nikita stood beside her, watching the drama unfold.

Vivienne: I don't understand why mat got mad? I guess because Safiya was a good problem solver? Safiya is dead and I'm just as sad as he is—but also not really because she voted for me. But at this point, we're all trying to survive, and try to honor these deaths.

Vivienne walked towards Matthew as he went on the couch, they silently sat down.

"Enough fighting okay? this is exactly what they want us to do, they want us to be against each other! We need to come together or we all die. Especially our love birds, because they have a damn strong love for each other." Joey stood up.

"So I say give them space until they can kiss and make up." Manny comments.

"I'll actually agree. Vivi, Matt, go outside and apologize then you can come back and solve some clues!"  Rosanna declared, and the couple looked dumbfounded as Nikita grabbed Vivienne—Manny with Matt as they practically pushed them out.

"What?" The two asked, and sat in silence.

"Come back when you're ready!" Nikita shouted as Manny shut the door, much to the couple's annoyance.

"I don't understand what I'm apologizing for," spoke Vivienne.

"Of course, because it's on me." Said Matthew. "I'm sorry for blowing up on you, It's unfair that Safiya died even though it was supposed to be Nikita, I was upset about that and lashed it out on you, and I shouldn't have," he apologized.

"I was upset too that Safiya died, I'm upset by any death happening tonight as well. But between her, me, and Nikita, I'd want to live as well."

"I know, I just don't want our relationship to start badly, never do that again?" Matthew proposes, making Vivienne grow a smile and hug him.

"Of course, love," accepted Vivienne happily, Matthew gave a kiss to her temple.

"I would've forgave you anyways, you wouldn't had to apologize, I love you, you know that." Vivienne grabbed his hand and was ready to walk back the group in the lounge.

"Oh, okay good. I love you too," said Matthew as they walked back inside.

"That was quick." Manny spoke seeing the couple's arrival.

"Because we promote healthy relationships." Matthew replied, jokingly. "And because I love her too much," he whispered, making Vivienne giggle.

"Also fighting and arguing isn't what we should be doing tonight." Vivienne adds as the two sat back on the couch.

"And honestly Ro, kicking us out was kinda childish." Matthew called out as the group laughed.

"Well you're the only spark of romance we have, can't let you be heartbroken in one night." Rosanna sheepishly reasoned, also knowing she'd hurt to see her two best friends on bad terms.

Vivienne: At the same time I liked what Rosanna did because my mat gave me another kiss on the forehead, so thank you.

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double updates!

so I made the argument with Matpat and Vivienne so weirdly, I never wrote arguments between couples before, so I hope it's fine and in character for mat.

also what were your thoughts on mat's and vivi's private conversation in the jail cell, was it fluffy, I mean I tried. 🥲 I rewrote it a lot!

thank you for 100 reads btw! Idek how this got this much considering the small fandom this show has.