smellsvanilla (smellsvanilla) wrote in shadows_rpg, @ 2019-08-27 11:23:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | #december 2017, brynn, brynn x liam, liam |
Who: Liam and Brynn
Where: Loomis’s Gifts & Antiques, Joyland
When: Late afternoon, Wednesday, Dec 27
Status: Complete
Christmas had come and gone by the time Liam and Brynn made it back up to the antique shop again, though Liam had to admit they weren't trying very hard. The holiday kept them both relatively busy with family and it was more fun to mess around with their masks in the privacy of their rooms than to stop by a shop that might or might not be open. It did give them a reason to hang out in person though. Even though they’d discussed getting together to play video games, which Liam definitely wanted to do with Brynn, he still felt like he needed a reason, otherwise he’d have to evaluate if they were hanging out as friends or if it was maybe a date and that was usually where he screwed things up. He didn’t want to screw things up with Brynn like he had with Jen. He was excited to spend time with her though, even if it was in a musty old antique shop.
“It’s open,” he smiled back at Brynn as he held the door open for her, eager to follow her inside. He liked the winter, getting all bundled up in coats and gloves and hats, but lately they’d been on the bitter side of the season and he preferred to observe it from inside, where he could be curled up by a fire rather than freezing in the cold.
Christmas had been a lot of fun, and even though it kept her from actually hanging out with Liam, they had still been able to use the masks while on the phone with each other so they could actually talk to. Brynn knew she probably looked silly with that thing on her face all the time, but she was in the privacy of her own room and no one actually saw her doing it, so no harm no foul if you asked her.
Today felt like the perfect day to try Loomis's Antique shop again though, and there was maybe a tiny part of her that was anticipating hanging out with Liam more than finding any answers about their weird magic masks. The masks themselves still hadn't done anything scary or dangerous, so she was guessing they were just some kind magical communication... things. Honestly, she had no clue and the longer they had them, the less she actually cared about figuring out their mysteries.
Inside the shop now, Brynn was still sort of huddled in her coat with how cold it had been walking from the car to the door, but thankfully the shop itself was plenty warm. Brynn didn't immediately see the man who sold her the mask, so she started to wander the shop for a few minutes. "It looks like he's got some new stuff in," she said, picking up an old school looking camera, the kind that took those old rolls of film. Brynn set it back down and glanced at Liam. "I don't see anything that was here the day I bought my mask. Do you think he really sells that much stuff?"
“I wouldn’t have thought so, but maybe around Christmas he does,” Liam said as he came to see what Brynn was looking at. “You never see cameras like this anymore,” he smiled, picking it up after Brynn had set it down. “I don’t even know where you get film for it now. Maybe the internet? And who develops it?” He put the camera to his face, looked through the viewfinder, and snapped a quick picture of Brynn, even though he was pretty sure the camera had no film in it. It felt good in his hands, way better than a cell phone, though those pictures were easy. Instant gratification.
Brynn posed when he took her picture and then laughed. "Maybe it's just for show, and not actually to use. Like... check out this cool old school camera on my shelf with all my dusty books!" There was a weird feather pen set that she picked up and almost immediately set back down as she walked down the short aisle. She still hadn't heard anyone in the shop and Brynn couldn't imagine the owner would leave the door unlocked if this place wasn't supposed to be open. Walking over to the counter, she looked for a bell or something but found nothing. The Employees Only door was behind the counter and she didn't feel right going back there to knock. "Hello?" she called. When no one answered Brynn looked back at Liam. "Do you think maybe he's hurt or something? Should we check?"
Liam held on to the camera, turning it over to look for a price tag, but there didn’t seem to be one. It was then that he remembered that the mask hadn’t had one either and he began to look around-- nothing in the shop seemed to have a written price. While he’d never worked in retail, this seemed bizarre, but maybe it was because everything was used. Were they supposed to haggle over the price? Or was it a best price offered kind of deal? He wondered how much the camera might cost. “We could at least knock,” he suggested. “Maybe he’ll call out?” He wasn’t opposed to snooping a little, but didn’t want to be caught doing it.
Brynn chewed on her lower lip tentatively before walking around to the other side of the counter. It surprised her to find nothing on the shelves beneath the register. They were empty of bags and register tape and all that. But maybe it was silly of her to assume they would be crammed with things. The man who owned this place could very well be a neat freak. Brynn glanced at Liam before knocking on the employee door. "Hello? Mister... uh, Mister?" No, she didn't know his name. Pressing her ear up against the door, she tried to listen for any response, but there was only silence. "I don't think he's here," she told Liam.
Liam stuck close to Brynn, following her back to the door. When nothing happened after she knocked, he pressed his ear to the door as well, expecting to hear… Well, something. “He has to be,” he said, looking over at Brynn. “He wouldn’t have just--just left the store open and wandered off.” He supposed it was possible that the man had run next door for a moment, or gone to get something to eat, but then shouldn’t he have closed the shop? Or at least put up a ‘Be Back Soon’ sign and locked the door? If no one was there, what was to stop someone from just taking things? Liam tried the door and, when he found it unlocked, slowly pushed it open. “Hello?” He called out as they peered inside. “Anyone there?”
Brynn got the feeling they were doing something they shouldn't and she was more than ready to just give up for the day and leave. They could go get coffee or something. Because the back room was empty and dark and she saw no sign of the owner or an employee anywhere. "We should go," she whispered, pulling back from the door to make her way from behind the counter. For a split second, Brynn thought maybe a pair of white curtains had been pulled in front of the store, but then she realized it had gotten really, really foggy. She couldn't even see her car that had been parked right in front. "Liam," she said. "Look at that."
Had Brynn not been there, Liam might’ve ventured into the back room, even though it seemed unlikely that the owner was hanging out back there in the dark. Instead, he turned to see what she was looking at, giving up on the search for the owner at her suggestion. “Whoa,” he said, mouth open as he took in the sight before them. The fog was so dense that he couldn’t see the street, could barely even see the sidewalk outside the window. “That’s wild,” he said, moving closer to the window. “I don’t think you can drive in that.” Even walking down the street seemed like a bad idea.
She rarely felt comfortable driving on a sunny day, let alone in crappy weather. Brynn frowned and then shoved her hands into her coat pockets. "What do we do? Just like... wait here? What if the guy who owns this place shows up and makes us leave or something?" Maybe it would pass through quickly and they go get out of there. But what if it didn't? She remembered how bad things got the last time it got really foggy in town, though Brynn didn't want to come across as nervous or scared. She doubted Liam wanted to deal with her freaking out.
“We shouldn’t go out in it,” Liam said with a small frown. “He could at least let us stay while the store’s open. Once it passes we can leave. And… and if he kicks us out, we can chill in your car.” It wasn’t ideal, but Liam wasn’t sure they should worry about that yet, not when the store was still open and the owner nowhere to be found. “There was a sofa near the other end of the store. Maybe we can chill for a bit till it passes.” It would be nice to sit and hang out with her for a bit, even if the circumstances were kind of bizarre. He wasn’t in a hurry to get home and they still had hours before the store should close, or so he thought. It was hard to tell when the hours weren’t posted.
She had no idea where the man would come from, unless there was a backdoor somewhere, but it felt like they were alone. Brynn pulled out her phone to text her mom when she saw she had no bars. The text wouldn't even go through. "There's no service in here," she told Liam. Brynn frowned and slipped her phone back into her pocket. There was no reason to worry. It was just fog. It would pass. She took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. "I guess we should get comfortable until the fog is gone." Brynn looked around the store. "I wonder if he has any cards, or games. Unless you just want to... hang out and talk or something."
Even though Brynn had just said there was no service, Liam checked anyways, in case it was just her phone or her carrier. She was right, though; he had no bars and there didn’t appear to be public wifi that they could jump on. “We could always do both,” Liam said with a little smile. “There’s gotta be some cards around here, and I think I saw Clue and Life last time we were here.” It was possible they’d been sold, but Liam doubted it. Why would anyone want to buy a used board game? “Got a preference?”
"No preference," Brynn said. Despite the creepy, crappy weather, and being stuck in a shop where they felt essentially alone, she wasn't too upset about being trapped there with Liam. "I always sucked at Life, and Clue is usually better with more than two people playing, so... if there aren't any other games on the shelves, we can just play cards? I know a couple games at least." And it would be something to do. Brynn grinned at Liam, slipping her hands into the pockets of her peacoat. "You're not competitive, are you?"
“Not super competitive or anything,” Liam smiled, poking around to see if he could find a deck of cards. “I mean, I don’t like to lose, but who does?” He liked Brynn though, so he’d do his best to reign it in. It could be horribly off-putting to play a game with a sore loser. “If we can find cards, what’s a good card game for two people? I’d normally look ‘em up online, but that’s out of the question.” Which was annoying. He didn’t realize how much he relied on the internet until it wasn’t available.
Brynn had a competitive streak too, but she felt like high school had drawn it out of her. Being popular, even popular by associating, was difficult, though Brynn knew very few people would actually sympathize with her. So many of her friends were always trying to one up each other with the silliest things. Brynn knew it was ridiculous, but she also found herself doing the same thing from time to time. High school was an eat or be eaten environment, and Brynn did not want to fall behind. She began to look for a deck of cards herself, trying to think of games to suggest. "There's rummy? Ummm. Egyptian Ratscrew. Slapjack." Brynn pushed up on her toes to try and peer at some of the knick knacks on a higher shelf. "Strip Go Fish," she added, mostly as a joke.
“Egyptian Ratscrew?” Liam asked with a laugh, then grinned. “You can play Strip anything.” Even Go Fish. He knew she was joking, but just the thought of it made him turn a touch red because he couldn’t help but imagine Brynn in her underwear. In reality, he’d probably be the one sitting around in his boxers, freezing his ass off. “Better keep our clothes on, just in case the fog lets up,” he teased, looking over at her. They both had enough layers on that they’d have to lose pretty bad to get down to anything that mattered, but still… “What’s that behind you?” He asked, nodding towards a rectangular box sitting on a shelf. “Is that a game?”
"That's true," Brynn said, grinning as Liam approached. The last thing she needed was to get caught half naked with a boy in an antique shop. Then again, it sort of surprised her that he didn't jump at the chance to see her with her clothes off. She didn't have enough fingers to count how many boys at school would have been down for "strip" anything. But they were friends, and it would probably be weird for friends to do that. Brynn turned to the shelf he was looking at, and she reached up to take the game down. It was a dark blue box with faded outline of voodoo dolls on it and the word "Cursed!" in light gold script across the front. "A hilarious game of revenge," she murmured before looking at the bottom of the box. "For two to four players." Brynn looked over at Liam. "What do you think? Do you want to play?"
Maybe, someday, they would play “strip” something, but if they did it wasn’t going to be in an antique shop, of that Liam was quite certain. He wasn’t bold enough to say it though, so instead he came over to see the game that she’d found. “Looks interesting,” he smiled. He’d never heard of it, but video games were more his thing, not board games. “So long as we’re not playing with real voodoo dolls, it could be fun. Let’s give it a try. How do we play?” If the instructions included pulling strands of their own hair and adding them to wax dolls, he’d call it off, but he doubted it was going to be that macabre.
"I don't think they would put real voodoo dolls in a game," Brynn said, tucking the box into one arm to open the lid and peer inside. "Oh! No, see? I mean, they look like dolls, but they're not real." There were four, all different colors. They looked pretty generic, actually. "Let's find somewhere to sit so I can read the instructions." They found a decent place on the floor, away from the windows, and Brynn set up the board and took out the voodoo dolls, the pins and the cards. Then she skimmed the directions. "Okay, so it looks like the objective is... you want to gain power cards to win the power of voodoo. Once you achieve that, you can start cursing the other player. The voodoo doll to have ten pins in it first is the loser. It seems pretty easy." Brynn set the instructions down beside her. "We can give it a try, at least. Let's make it fun though. Um, loser has to buy the winner a milkshake at Moxie's later?"
Liam picked up the blue doll as she explained the game and turned it over in his hand. It was the sort of thing made in a factory, canvas filled with stuffing, no signs of wax, hair, or blood. He’d never made a real voodoo doll himself, but he knew this wasn’t one. He smiled up at her. “Deal,” he said, since he’d have happily bought her a milkshake at Moxie’s anyways. It was a good way to pass the time and it wasn’t long before they were sucked in, laughing as they pushed pins into the dolls, placing obscure curses as they went. Liam’s favorite was the one that caused the inflicted to break every mirror they looked into, each time suffering the cuts of glass somewhere on their body. It was such a minor thing, but he imagined it would get old really fast in real life. Another caused electronics to short out around a person under certain circumstances. That one seemed so much worse for anyone this day in age, the kind of thing he’d want to get taken care of STAT. It wasn’t real though, and that’s what made it fun, imagining the circumstances but never having to deal with them themselves.
The curses were kind of funny to think about. Constant clumsiness. Barking like a dog whenever one tried to speak. Some were a little gross, like bruising easily, crying blood instead of tears, even causing rage rampages and attacking random people. But each level was different and Brynn had read one of the Adults Only! cards, laughing as she read that she could stick a pin in her doll to force sexual arousal with no hope of an orgasm. It was a silly way to spend some of the afternoon, but she had fun anyway. At least until they were finishing up, with Liam winning with eight pins to her ten. That was when Brynn realized the fog hadn't gotten any better, and she was pretty sure the sun would have been set by now. "I still can't see anything," she said with a frown. "Do you think we should try to go somewhere else? Or should we stay?"
Liam looked out into the fog with a sinking sense of dread that he hadn’t felt earlier in the day. He’d been hoping that it would be gone by now, that they’d spend the afternoon together, but then get home in time for dinner. It hadn’t even been that much of an inconvenience before, seeing as how it let him hang out with Brynn, but now he wondered exactly how long it might last. “We could maybe try to go to one of the other shops, if we thought that might be better, but we still can’t drive in this. And I think trying to walk home would be suicide,” he frowned. “I’m okay with staying here, but if you want to try for another shop, we could do that too. It’s kind of creepy being here alone.”
It was definitely feeling creepier in the shop. Brynn looked behind her toward the counter, like Loomis would somehow magically appear with them. But the shop remained empty but for the two of them and she was so suddenly aware of all the antiques surrounding them, especially the porcelain dolls on the shelf nearby, with their frilly dresses and blank eyes. Brynn could almost imagine one turning its head to look at her. But she was starting to freak herself out and she moved instinctively closer to Liam. "My head tells me to run for it, and maybe find a shop with people in it. But what if they're as empty as this one? I guess... we should stay here. Who knows, maybe our phones will start working again soon and we can text our parents to let them know where we are. I would love to be able to order a pizza," she added with a small laugh, just to try and lighten the tension a little.
The shop hadn’t bothered Liam during the day, but as night fell and the shadows grew darker it felt a bit like hiding in a snake pit to get out of the rain. Sure, they’d get wet if they went out, but what might bite them if they stayed? It wasn’t sensible though and he couldn’t back his feelings with anything concrete, so it was probably best to stay put. The last thing they needed was to get lost in the fog in the dark. “Pizza would be awesome,” Liam smiled back at her. “Maybe there’s some food in the back. We can always leave cash for it, so it’s not really stealing.” At this point he figured it was safe to snoop a bit. They were clearly the only ones in the store.
Brynn nodded, because what else could they do? What if the fog lasted for a couple of days? What if they were stuck there? It was scary to think about, especially since she only had a bottle of water in her bag. And what if there was no food? They would have to go out in the fog to try and find a better place to hunker down but for some reason the idea of being out there in the cold with zero visibility frightened her. At least she was with Liam and not completely alone. "Let's go see if they have like, a break room with a fridge or something. Maybe someone left their lunch." She smiled, just to hide the fact that this whole thing was a little unnerving to her. “If they don’t have anything here, we may have to try and get to another shop in the fog later.”
“Yeah,” Liam smiled nervously, nodding in an effort to convince himself that was a good idea. He knew it was, that they’d be better off some place with food and other people, but going out in the fog kind of terrified him. Liam led the way back to the employee’s only door, calling out one last time before fumbling for the light switch. It was a little room, with a table and chair, a mini-fridge and a microwave. That gave Liam hope until he opened the fridge to find it bare. The only other thing back there was the bathroom, which was good to have, but didn’t help in the food department. “I think we’re gonna have to go outside,” he said softly, no longer able to hide his anxiety over it. “Better now than later. People should still be awake.”
Brynn was imagining the both of them getting lost in the fog and dying from the elements. But maybe if they stuck close to the building and kept their hand on it until they reached another door, they would be okay. "Okay," she said finally, unable to hide her apprehension. "But we need to hang onto each other. Joyland is a couple buildings down and there's bound to be people inside, right?" Plus, hot coffee and muffins would be there and she was starving. "I'm ready if you are."
“Totally,” Liam agreed as he finished pulling on his gloves and making sure his coat was all zipped up. “I won’t let go of you. And we can keep a hand on the building until we get to the edge. Then it’s just a matter of walking in a straight line until we get to the next one.” While he talked a good game, Liam was concerned that she might feel his trepidation the moment she took his hand. This felt like a horrible idea, but staying there, alone and without food or water, seemed even worse. Mustering up his courage, Liam offered her his hand and pushed the door open before stepping out into the fog.
He sounded confident enough so Brynn took his gloved hand in hers and braced herself for the cold. At least they had left the antique shop just as they found it, except for playing one of the games. It had been a used game so no packaging had been unwrapped at least. Brynn pulled her scarf up over her mouth and nose as soon as the air hit her face. It was bitterly cold and she closed her eyes, wishing already that they had stayed put. She clung tightly to Liam's hand, trusting him to get them to Joyland, or the next warm place that had food or something to drink. Not that he would know what they was when they couldn't see a thing. Brynn wanted to ask if he was okay but talking seemed like a bad idea, so she stayed close to him, ready to be inside and out of this fog.
It was like walking with their eyes closed, the tiny bit of visibility they had providing nothing useful. Liam could see his feet and the bit of sidewalk about a foot in front of him, but otherwise they were walking through a cloud, everything around them white. He shivered as they made their way down the sidewalk, holding tight to Brynn the whole way. When they got to the edge of the building, he hesitated, then carefully took a step forward, letting them drift into the space between shops. One foot in front of the other, they moved forward, the distance made farther by their blindness. We could die out there, he thought in a moment of panic, but then a second later almost tripped over the curb that signaled another building. “Watch your step,” he called back to Brynn, making sure she cleared it before pressing on, telling himself hot chocolate was waiting for them.
It was so cold and miserable out there that Brynn desperately wished for her warm bedroom. Soft pajamas and thick socks. She was shivering so much her spine felt tense. But she kept hold of Liam's hand, doing her best not to trip and take them both down. She knew Joyland had to be close. They were only a couple blocks away. But it felt like it was taking forever, like they would be out there wandering until they fell over and died from the elements. Maybe they had passed Joyland? Maybe they were in some alternate reality where there were no more doors, no way out of this. God, that was morbid. Brynn pushed the thought away and walked a bit more closely to Liam. Her toes were frozen in her boots and she had to pee pretty bad. But god she really wanted a caramel macchiato too. "We have to be almost there," she called, tugging her scarf down from her lips so he could hear her.
It was definitely taking at least twice as long as Liam expected, the walk something they could have made in seconds without the fog around them, but they couldn’t move as fast when they couldn’t see where they were going. If they tripped or fell, they’d lose their sense of direction and then they’d be seriously fucked. The more Liam thought about it, the more he began to panic and he was starting to think he was going to get them killed when his searching hands suddenly found the wall of a building. “Found something!” He said, waiting till Brynn was able to move around to keep a hand on the wall as well. From there they could move faster, keeping to the side of the building until they were up against a window, able to see into the coffee shop and its low, warm lights. “We made it!” He grinned, pulling her towards the door. His fingers were frozen, as were his toes, but they could both warm up once they got inside.
Oh thank god. Brynn followed him inside eagerly, grateful that the door wasn't locked. There were people inside, some of whom quieted down when she and Liam walked in, but otherwise it was warm and she could smell the coffee. Hopefully they had some muffins or something left because she was also starving. Shivering, Brynn tugged her scarf down from her face with her free hand, wondering if she should let go of Liam's hand now. "That was crazy," she breathed, looking at Liam. "Are you okay? My toes might be frozen for good."
Liam wanted to hug her, to bounce up and down and celebrate their survival, but he settled for a grin and a squeeze of her hand. “I’m good,” he smiled, his cheeks and nose red from the cold. “Freezing, but we’ll warm up. Let’s get something hot to drink and I’m kind of starving. Can I get you something? They’ve gotta have something to eat.” He wanted to find a place to settle in and see if they could warm themselves up. Maybe she’d stick close to him, for warmth’s sake. It didn’t hurt to hope for that or something more.
"I don't even care what they have. I'll eat anything right about now," Brynn admitted. Hopefully they hadn't run out of food. The cafe wasn't too crowded, and the murmurs of conversation had started up again now that Brynn and Liam's arrival lost its excitement. She was definitely sticking close to Liam for "warmth's sake", because she was still shivering from being outside. The smell of coffee was heaven to her and she walked with Liam to the counter. "I think a hot chocolate would be good right now," she told him. "And a muffin or something. I guess we're going to be stuck here for a while, but it's better than being alone, right?"
“Definitely,” Liam said, reluctant to let go over her hand, even though there was no reason to keep holding it at this point. Truth be told, he’d been fine being alone with her. It was the shop that had been the problem, creepy and without anything to eat. Joyland, with its bright lights and hot coffee, felt like a safer place to wait out the fog. It might be a bit more crowded, but Liam thought this was one of those times that safety in numbers might be accurate. They were still stuck, but at least if something bad happened there were other people around to help them.