chapter two:
the monster mash

FRIDAY: October 31st, 2027

"I look like a fucking dead possum" Claire's voice was loud and aggressive as she turned slightly to look at herself in the mirror. Alix chuckled softly as she approached the distressed girl from behind.

"At least you're a cute dead possum then" she wrapped her arms around Claire as she smiled softly. The girl sighed, Alix sighed back at her to lighten the mood as Claire sighed again. "Okay, no amount of sighing will make it look any better, why don't we just do a different costume? I mean you did black swan last year so ditch the feathers".

Clarie huffed "I barely wore it last year, besides we don't have anything that even remotely matches". Alix moved towards the bed and sat down "then we go buy something new, the party's not for another hour so we'd have time to find something then head there".

"Okay fine, but there's no way I'm dressing up as anything remotely furry. It's not cute at all. If I wanted to look like a dead possum, I'd be a dead possum". Claire moved away from the mirror as she looked outside her bedroom window, she could see the children wandering around outside. The sun was slowly fading away and the streets for the most part were empty aside from a few cars passing by.

"Do you really think everyone's gonna show? Benjamin didn't even show up last time we all were supposed to hang out, now Alexander is being awol and ignoring all of our messages. Everyone is drifting apart, and I thought that'd be a good thing".

"I think we're all still healing, I mean everything that happened last year is still fresh for some of us. They're only ignoring us because they're probably paranoid, besides it's the Halloween bash! Everyone always shows up for that, especially us".

Clarie smirked "and we're gonna look absolutely hot when we walk through those doors. This is our last dance at high school, we have to make the most of it before it's too late. No more ghostface drama, tonight is a ghostface free zone".

—

The entire gymnasium was loaded with teenagers, music blasted through the speakers and the bright lights flickered as smoke flew along the entrance way. Claire's arms were looped perfectly with Alixs as they walked through the tall arch where photos were being taken as students walked inside.

"What was that you said about no ghostface?" Alix whispered into Claire's ears as the camera flash went off. So many people wearing a ghostface mask wandered around the gymnasium holding onto orange solo cups, while a few wore the entire costume. The rest only put on the mask as if it was an inside joke, the sight of the mask made Alix feel uncomfortable.

A stumbling figure emerged from the crowd "oh yeah!" they let out a loud chuckle as the mask over their face shifted slightly. Their arms wrapped around Claire and Alix, whoever it was reeked of alcohol and weed. "You girls look so happy... Everyone's so happy tonight! Isn't it just so amazing!".

The boy laughed as he lifted the clown mask upwards "I'm a clown, I'm calling myself Beno the clown! Everyone's just loving it here, you should try the punch, it's literally mind blowing".

"Ben, you're drunk" the boy huffed "I'm perfectly fine, besides why would I be drunk? It's Halloween". He made a dramatic oooing sound as he wiggled his fingers in front of the girls faces before he laughed and walked off towards the drink table.

"He's definitely wasted already, I thought we all agreed on not drinking tonight, guess it didn't catch". Alix sighed "well Ben's been drinking for months, I doubt he's ever sober these days. Let's just find Vivian, she said she got here like an hour ago".

Vivian normally didn't attend school events let alone dances where she knew the punch would be laced with alcohol. The thought of drinking it made her feel sick so she refused, she adjusted her wig when she caught sight of Claire and Alix approaching her.

"Hey Viv! I love your costume!" the girl smiled at Alix as she hugged the girl "you guys look so much cooler than me, I put this together last minute. Didn't really think I was gonna show up, but here I am".

"So what exactly is your costume then? Are you Sherlock Holmes or something? The coat is giving very much Sherlock Holmes, loving the wig". Vivian chuckled slightly "it's the tenth doctor from Doctor who, I wore this thing when I was like fifteen so it's a bit small but overall it still fits".

"Wait, that's that one show where those one robot creatures are always yelling exterminate!" The girls all laughed as Alix dramatically shook her body after Claire spoke. "Gosh if I ever ran into one of those things I'd probably flirt with it".

Alix smiled "you'd flirt with a piece of popcorn if it looked at you a certain way" Clarie shrugged "I mean what if it's like a hot piece of popcorn? Gotta whisper sweet nothings while you eat it".

Across the gymnasium, Alexander stood awkwardly beside the bleachers as he looked down at his drink. He wasn't exactly sure what was inside but he hasn't drank it since he grabbed it. Benjamin who had single handedly dropped a bunch of the cups off the table was now walking around the gymnasium out of his mind. The fact that he wasn't kicked out already was a major surprise, the way he held himself was almost depressing to watch.

His loud cheers and sloppy dance moves made half of the teenagers inside the gymnasium wanna leave. For Alexander's sake it made him wanna down the alcohol inside his cup, Benjamin was a fucking mess. How the boy was still standing was beyond comprehension, Alexander shifted his gaze away from the boy altogether. He could see Kieran in the distance sitting alone near the bleachers as he stared down at his phone. Almost as if he was waiting for something, his actions lately were off and odd.

Alexander noticed the way he'd flinch whenever his phone would go off. The way his hands would cling onto it so desperately, his eyes would light up and his lips would twitch. Given how things ended with Nadia, and how everyone's lives were spiraling downwards. Alexander found himself dreading the smiles on everyone's faces. The way they could continue existing, he didn't exist.

Not when his mind was on the verge of collapsing, he thought about Gwen. Her perfect smile and her beautiful voice, he remembered the little moments, the times he'd see her for what she was before. He didn't think about the mask or the knife she plunged into his back, the wicked gaze on her face. The curve of her lips as she ripped him apart piece by piece.

He had loved her? Or perhaps he was tricked into an endless mind game that wasn't even real altogether. Gwen was dead, that's what he told himself everyday when he'd wake up. He didn't care about the theories or the fake news articles that said she was alive. He didn't care if she was alive, in his eyes it would never be the same again. She was this sick and twisted vessel inside his head, the pain he felt that night inside the theater always lingered.

That mask was engraved into his damn skull, he wanted to scream just thinking about it as he made his way out of the gymnasium. Time felt slower, the days turned into a never ending nightmare, he hated it and he hated himself for even coming here. He had left at such a rapid pace, he rarely noticed the figure that lurked behind him. The parking lot was full of cheerful teenagers as they all made their way towards the building, a few others were making out or sitting inside their cars. As if having a flashy car made anything remotely interesting, what a joke.

Alexander, given his car was taken away by his father, ended up walking here. Of course the thought of actually walking all the way back home felt dreadful, he could get a ride from Kieran. But knowing the boy he would be here all night just sitting on the bleachers like a helpless fish out of water.

He remembered the Halloween bash vividly from last year, the lies and horror he faced. Gwen had died, well apparently she faked it but still. He couldn't get it out of his head and it made him wanna scream for hours until his voice became raw. Gwendolyn was a good person, or at least he thought she was.

Given she drove a knife into his back without even flinching it made his perspective of her change altogether. She wasn't a good person, Alexander knew this the second she turned into a stranger. He liked to picture her as she was before, anything else he did his best to push away or else he'd just cry for hours.

"You need a ride man?" Alexander jumped at the sudden voice as he turned slightly. Benjamin looked dazed as he held onto his car keys. "You shouldn't drive while you're drunk, or like in general" Benjamin scoffed slightly. He looked like he wanted to throw up or maybe cry? Alexander wasn't fully sure, Ben was a confusing person to read.

The way he acted was unrecognizable, then again everyone was like that now. Changed and different, Alex wasn't even sure if he knew who he was anymore, maybe he was just broken. At the end of the day Alex knew one thing, he wasn't an asshole.

He grabbed a hold of Benjamin's car keys "I'll drive, and you're gonna drink some water for once". Benjamin didn't say anything, he just climbed into the back of his car and laid down. Alex sighed as he started the engine "you know, drinking doesn't help with anything. Just makes you feel more shitty".

"Isn't that the point?" he could feel Ben's gaze on the back of his head as he drove along the roads. "Look, what happened, it's got all of us messed up. But clearly you're the main one truly spiraling because of it. What happened inside that theater with Andy? You won't tell any of us, and it clearly changed you".

Benjamin was silent as he looked outside the back window "why does it matter so damn much, it's all over with isn't it? I mean..... we're still here". His voice cracked slightly and Alex looked at him slightly before he turned down the boys road.

"Not all of you. You're different and normally I don't even care about those types of things, and given we barely know each other prior to everything. I shouldn't even pry into it or ask, but you're actually different. You're not the same Benjamin I meant that first day of drama club. I know we never talked, didn't even interact unless it involved a script or lines. But maybe the only way we can all heal is by just talking about what the hell happened for once".

"You mean Andy" Benjamin didn't make any move to exit the car when Alexander parked it in the boy's driveway. "Andy was clearly not stable, he literally tried to kill all of us Benjamin. Whatever you did or whatever he did to you, it's not your fault".

"I loved him, that's what I did" Benjamin pulled open the car door and nearly tripped over his own feet. "That's not a bad thing you know, I loved Gwen and I still do despite what happened". Benjamin scoffed "she's alive at least, even if you keep telling yourself otherwise. Gwen got away, she survived and she's probably gonna be running for the rest of her life".

Alex turned the car off and climbed out "what happened man? Why can't you just tell someone for once, getting it off your chest will help. Even if you don't tell me, at least talk to someone about it, a therapist? Or even a diary at this rate".

"A diary? I'm not ten anymore" Alexander shrugged "one can feel a lot better after writing things down, I have my fair share of diary's. I mean everyone knows my life's shit, the second I graduate, I'm getting out of this town once and for all. No looking back and definitely no more drama club".

"If only it were that easy, but something tells me we could go half way across the world and still be stuck in woodsboro. I'm stuck, and I can't get out. I don't know what to do anymore and it's driving me insane". Alexander sighed "well for starters you can tell me what's wrong with you, even if you lie".

Benjamin let out a weak chuckle that turned into tears as he looked down in defeat "I'm just alone, and confused or maybe just fucked up in the head".  He scratched at his neck slightly "I killed him, I killed Andy and I'm never gonna forgive myself for it. The first person who actually noticed me... even if it was fake, and I killed him and just left him there". 

"He was going to kill you Ben, last I knew that's called surviving. Anyone else in your position would've done the same exact thing, Andy was insane, He was literally going to kill everyone and blame it on you because of some stupid play".

"I liked it...." Alexander frowned deeply "what?" Benjamin looked up at him "I liked killing him".

—
authors notes:
holy shit.....
It's been literally what... 3ish maybe almost 4 months since I've even wrote anything for this book let alone thought about it. It's just been sitting here, I remember the excitement I felt for the first book, I got chapters out so fast but this one... welp I barely even touched it. I literally remember I made a plan to finish this within a month or two after casting was out and then make the third and final book by welp... now. I think the lack of opinions made me forget about it, I was waiting for so long on all of them and literally most aren't even completed so I'm winging it this time around I guess lol. I'm kinda glad I got back into this book, despite not remembering anything I planned out or wtf was even going on in the first half of this chapter I already had prewritten like I literally ended it mid word... overall I just added in the ending part with Alexander and Benjamin, it just felt right. Anyways two chapters left on this little prequel act then it gets to the real action. I think this chapter was suppose to mainly focus on Claire's and Alix, given the gif but I don't even know lol, I also literally forgot everything... so I reread the entire first book and gosh I forgot how good that shit was. Anyways this is a long ass rant and I doubt anyone really reads these damn things but anyways enjoy! (Yes I will be updating this frequently or attempting )

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