Author's Note: This was meant to be posted yesterday but I had a bitch of a time finishing it and editing it. There are probably still mistakes in this but I'm too tired omg. This is 32 pages long on google docs. The actual hell. It is a long one so maybe grab a snack or a drink if you're reading it in one go.
I loved writing this one tbf.
With this 'segment', I'm hoping they all won't be ridiculously long. This one is though as there were different parts covered.
I hope you guys are enjoying this fic so far. I'm certainly loving your guys' feedback and would love to hear more of it! This is a very different style for me to write in in comparison to my normal fics. This style... I have to focus a lot more on mentioning how Gar is pointing a camera etc and only really being able to describe stuff while Gar is there. Obviously because it's "what is going on on camera" and if others aren't with Gar, then they aren't mentioned. Y'know? So that's been super weird to do so far but I am having a lush time with lots of new "video" ideas popping into my head like every other day.
Leave me some comments, friends! ^.^
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. Obviously.
Overnight in Abandoned Shopping Mall
Uploaded by Gar Logan
27th November 2019
Length: 01:09:23
8:02pm
The camera jostled around a little as he fretted around the device, ensuring it was sitting exactly where he wanted it to, before starting his recording. Gar poked his tongue out in concentration, tweaking the way the camera was perched upon the dashboard of the car.
He cleared his throat just as the light on the top of it started to beep, signifying it was ready to go to work.
Taking an over exaggerated inhale of breath, Gar's eyes sparkled with excitement and mischief, just as they always did before he half threw his arm back and held up his hand in a two finger salute to his audience.
"Whaaaaaaaaat's up guys and welcome back to my channel, dudes and dudettes!" He hollered, his boyish grin only growing, lighting up more of his face, "Tonight, we're in Steel City which is just a little out from Jump but we've been visiting friends here this week and I thought why not do a video while we're still here. So, I am joined by ma best pals in the world..."
Vic snorted and rolled his eyes from where he was sitting in the driver's seat of the car, lifting his arms to cross them over his broad chest. He offered the camera a wink and looked over to his best friend, urging him to continue talking.
"We've got Vic next to me here and then…" He paused and leaned out of shot just enough to show the other three crowded in the back of the car, "Then, we've got Rae, Dick and Kory in the back there."
Raven simply blinked whilst Dick extended a smile towards the lens and Kory lifted a hand to quietly wave to his viewers.
Gar swooped back in, grinning at the camera, "We've got the whole gang here tonight, guys! And we are in for a-"
He was abruptly cut off as an incessant honking sounded from off to the right of their car. The five of them paused and glanced out the window to spy on the source of the horn beeping.
"Dude, seriously? I'm trying to film here." Gar muttered, briefly eyeing the camera,
Raven leaned forward and lifted a dark brow, "Oh yeah… how rude of him to interrupt some youtuber kid."
Gar smirked back at her before he snapped his head back around to stare back out as muffled yelling began to echo outside between two separate people.
Vic leaned over, a hand on his steering wheel, "Dang… there's some drama goin' down in the parking lot tonight…"
"What are they arguing about?" Kory murmured, curling around Dick to get a better look out of the window on Raven's side.
Her boyfriend shook his head and shrugged, "No idea… looks like they're arguing over the parking space though."
"But… there are plenty more?"
Raven tilted her head, "Well… some drivers are just unnecessarily entitled."
Gar took a pause to address his viewers, scratching his jaw, "Sorry guys… we're just watching this show…"
"Oop… the dude is getting out of his ride…" Vic whistled, eager to see what happened next.
The five of them delved into silence, merely watching what was happening outside.
Dick suddenly snorted, screeching tires being quite audible off to the side of the camera, "Considering that guy in the Lamborghini was the one yelling and giving it talk, he sure reversed and drove outta here fast…"
"Flashy car, big talk til it comes down to it." Vic laughed, throwing a smirk at Dick.
"Apparently… soccer mom type guys driving minivans are quite the threat…" Raven snickered, shaking her head at the commotion now passed,
Gar chuckled and turned his attention back to the camera, shaking his head to focus, "Alright… so… as I was saying, we're in for an interesting night tonight and we are all super excited, right guys?"
"No." Kory muttered, leaning her cheek against Dick's shoulder with her voice sounding less than enthused about whatever they would be doing.
Gar gave her a sympathetic smile through the rear view mirror but didn't reply, instead looking back to the lens, "So, I'll go into more detail about what we're doing when we get there although… you'll probably know since it will be in the title of the video."
He waved his hand, deciding it didn't matter, "But, let's just say, we are… camping… type of thing and so right now, we're just outside Target. We're gonna head in and get some snacks and prep since this is gonna be a long night."
With that, he winked and covered the lens with his hand.
8:34pm
"Hey guys, so we're just in the store now…" Gar murmured, walking through one of the aisles of the aforementioned store. His camera was held at his waist, his eyes zoned in on where he was walking, "So… I'm trying to be super chill with the camera. The employees here do not like people with giant cameras who are presumably doing YouTube as well. I've got in trouble a couple of times when I made some random videos back in high school."
He politely nodded to an elderly lady that passed by he and Raven as they continued to move around the store, grabbing bags of chips and packs of chocolate as they went. He glanced down at the lens and pulled a face, looking awkward, "Who knew Target was so busy on a Wednesday night?"
Raven could be heard off screen as she muttered, "Didn't you know? Target is a hotbed for party animals on weekdays."
Gar smirked, "What, old ladies and housewives?"
"Precisely."
He chuckled and shifted his camera a bit more so it caught Raven in the shot as well, catching her as she reached for a bottle of soda on one of the top shelves.
"You got all the things you want, Rae?" Gar murmured, glancing over his shoulder at her,
"Mhm. I think so." Raven replied, narrowing her eyes at her soda and checking the flavor was the correct one.
"Cool, let's get moving then. It's like a 2 hour drive to the place we're going."
Raven nodded and together, they wandered through the store, keeping a close eye out for their other friends. She half laughed, earning a raised brow from Gar.
"What?"
"Nothing. It's just… we spend time doing the weirdest things. I hope your viewers actually enjoy watching the videos." Raven explained, shrugging her shoulders.
His grin filled his whole face and he lifted his camera and stared down the center of the lens, "I'm sure they do! That's why most of them watching are already subscribed, right guys?"
Raven tilted her head slightly, "You… know they can't answer you, right?"
Gar pulled a deadpan expression at her, "Yes, Rae."
Just as they passed one particular aisle, Raven paused and nodded her head, "There's the others."
Gar turned into the long stretch of the store, turning his camera to face Vic, Kory and Dick, stood in the middle of the toy section. They were surrounded by barbie dolls and action figures as well as all kinds of plush, stuffed animals.
He snorted, "What are you guys doing?"
Vic looked up from the shelf that the three of them were staring at, with wide eyes, "Dude! Gar, check this out!"
Hurrying over, Gar sucked in an excited gasp, "Bro!"
Shifting, Gar focused the camera on the object in Vic's hand; showing a dark coated Ouija board and planchette in a raggedy box.
"Since when do they sell Ouija boards in Target?" Raven asked, taking the box from Vic for closer inspection.
Dick shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest, "They sell them at Toys'R'Us too."
Raven raised a brow at him, "Seriously?"
He nodded, "It's one way to get kids started in the occult early, I guess."
She snorted and handed it to Dick who wanted a better look at the thing as well.
Gar turned the camera around and lifted it up to capture all of them, since they were currently alone in the aisle and he had less chance of getting told off by a member of staff.
"What'd ya say guys, should I buy it?" Gar smirked,
Kory immediately snapped her head up, her eyes wide with apprehension, "Do not dare, Gar."
Throwing his head back, he burst into laughter, knowing that any sort of protest was going to come from Kory.
"Alright, alright… I won't…" Gar paused and smirked, bringing the camera right up to his face, "Guys, comment below if you think I should come back and buy a Ouija board-"
"No! Do not comment! Gar!" Kory fussed behind him, rubbing a hand across her face, "I do not want you to bring demons into our home through a spirit board."
"Okay, Kory… I hear ya." He said, effectively calming and reassuring her. He smirked secretly and winked to the camera, however, just out of Kory's line of sight.
"You guys ready to hit the road? We got all our snacks for the night." Vic explained, lifting his shopping bag, full to the brim with cookies and cakes and all kinds of other goodies.
"Did you grab a coffee, Vic?" Dick asked, "Since you are the designated driver to get us to this place."
Vic smiled, "I have it on order in the Starbucks next door. Ima grab it on the way to the car since it was pretty busy in there when I went in and ordered it."
"You're gonna need the caffeine if you hope to make it through tonight… Mwahaha-" Gar was cut off by Raven who smacked his shoulder,
"Can we go pay for the snacks already?" She muttered, rolling her eyes as the rest of them started to make their way towards the exit.
Gar grinned at the camera cheekily and winked, "See you guys in a bit!"
9:23pm
"Okay guys so…" Gar paused as he looked over the dashboard and out the windshield of the car, briefly glancing at Vic who was focused on driving through the pitch black of night, "We're just on our way to the place. We've been driving for about… half an hour?"
He glanced at Vic who gave him a nod in agreement, "About that, yeah."
Gar returned his attention to the camera, securely fastened in place by where it was stuck to the glass of the front window, trained in the middle to capture each and every one of them, rather than just Gar himself.
"Cool, so we've got roughly another hour and a half before we reach where we're going." Gar paused, "So, I'm gonna tell you what we're doing now to save time later."
"Hallelujah." Raven mumbled from where she was curled up in the far back seat. He grinned and threw her a look over his shoulder before he cleared his throat and looked back to the lens, watching his every move.
"Tonight, we are doing something a little new on the channel but something we have… done once or twice before…" Gar explained, smirking at Vic who punched the air,
"Nostalgia comin' through tonight, man." He chuckled, his grip returning to the steering wheel.
"It was back in our high school days." Gar elaborated before he continued on, "This will be the first in a new segment of… 'Overnights' where we will spend the night meaning… midnight to 6am in either abandoned or haunted or creepy locations. Which… I know everyone is super excited for."
Dick smirked and sneaked a side glance at Kory who looked less than happy but she gave Gar a reluctant smile.
"See? You love this stuff, Kory!" Gar exclaimed,
"I believe, I am simply becoming more accustomed to your antics." She replied, tugging her jacket around her shoulders a little tighter. Raven sat forward and looked at her best friend,
"That's what we all do. It gets easier with time to just… go with his stupid stunts."
Kory giggled behind her hand whilst Raven threw him a knowing smile.
Gar laughed and looked to the camera lens, "I have great friends, don't ya think?" He waved his hand and coughed, "Okay… let me keep talking or I'm never gonna get it out."
"We are going to an abandoned shopping mall tonight to spend the night. It's been left derelict since about… 2014? And no one has bothered to tear it down and put something new there instead so it just sits there. It was actually a place we all visited when we were younger. We came up here when some of our friends were here for college and went to the mall because it was never that busy but it was a pretty nice place. That was when we were about 18 years old so it'll be weird to see it all… like a ghost town."
"No pun intended." Vic mumbled,
"I don't think anyone died there so it's not ghosts I'd be worried about." Dick commented, sitting back in his seat, wedged between the two girls.
"Well, we don't know for sure that no one died there." Gar interjected, looking back to his camera, "So, it's all boarded up and we are packed up with flashlights and sleeping bags…"
"Yup. We're becoming real hobos tonight." Vic joked, earning dual snorts from Dick and Gar,
"We've got a ton of snacks and we have a few games to keep us busy because let's face it… we're probably not gonna sleep all that well."
"Speak for yourself, man. I can drop anywhere." Vic snickered, already yawning.
"Well, lucky you, Vic." Gar teased, smiling as he rolled his eyes,
"Anyway… I'll check in with you guys when we get there. See ya soon!"
And then, he cupped the lens to shroud the view in darkness for the time being.
11:43pm
"Hey guys, so we're here. It took us a little longer because we stopped by In-N-Out Burger since snacks aren't quite gonna cut it alone." Gar explained, holding the camera up as they walked through the long grass, surrounding the location they were headed for, "And we got a little lost. This mall was a little further out from the main city so we had to remember where it was."
He narrowed his eyes and tugged the hood of his green pullover up and over his head, trying to ignore the gust of wind, mingled with specks of freezing cold raindrops.
"And now, it's starting to rain so we wanna hurry and find a way inside this place. But first… A quick look at the outside for you guys."
Gar spun the camera around so the lens was focused on the deserted building, slowly falling apart with time as well as being left to rot within the harsh elements of the outside.
The structure was large, a simple type of cross shape as there were four main areas to the mall on the inside. The main doors had been pristine glass ones that automatically opened when they had originally visited the area 5 or so years back. Long glass windows adorned the outside walls, stretching from the roof to the ground outside the complex.
But, all of the previous glass panels were covered, boarded up with planks of wood to deter trespassers from visiting the now eerily empty shopping mall.
The outside had moss creeping from the nooks and crannies, dirtied by the years gone by of utter neglect. There were markings trailing all across the metal paneling, as well as holes and gashes littered all over.
"God… it looks so much creepier than it did back in the day…" Dick murmured, his hand locked within Kory's as he helped her cross the slippery mud drenched ground, only growing worse as the rain intensified.
"It really does… and it doesn't help that it's all so overgrown now. It literally looks like something out of a zombie movie or something." Gar responded.
Kory sighed and her shoulders slumped, "Why would you say that?"
Gar shot her an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Kory… but it does, right?"
She shook her head, her auburn hair cascading over her shoulder as she leaped over a particularly large patch of mud that looked like an accident waiting to happen.
Vic hunched his shoulders as the downpour suddenly got louder, raindrops pelting the surrounding area with force. He shied away from the onslaught of rain and turned to Gar,
"Dude… can we hurry up and get inside if we're doing this? This rain is gonna make us sick if we stay in it." Vic prompted, tugging at the strap of his backpack,
Gar nodded and kept the camera facing forwards as they scurried closer, seeking shelter from the rain beyond anything else. The shot jostled back and forth as Gar sped up, being mindful not to slip on the grass.
As they reached the shopping complex, Gar veered the camera upwards, trying to get a visual of the building up close. It still looked in plenty of disrepair and it was a wonder why the local authorities hadn't demolished it and made something out of the massive space, especially since the parking lot was 150 yards from the front; to the point, Gar could still see Vic's silver car from where they were now standing.
"Alright… spread out and try to find a place where we can get in from." Gar instructed, already searching the structure with his eyes.
Dick and Kory wandered to the left hand side, scanning high and low for any sign of a gap; somewhere just big enough where they could all squeeze through.
Raven took the practical route, walking straight up to the boarded up doors and trying the handle. When it remained locked, she turned to Gar and shrugged, "Well, I tried."
Gar snorted and shook his head, "Rae, your humor is something else."
Vic ambled along the right hand side, rapping his fist against the metal every now and then, as if testing the surfaces to see if there were any clear weaknesses that they would be able to exploit.
After only a few minutes of looking around, Kory's voice rang out over the drumming of the rainfall, "Friends! Dick has found a way in!"
Following the sound of her tone, Gar, Raven and Vic all sprinted around the side of the building the find Dick knelt down in front of one of the boarded up windows. Gar trained the camera on him to see what it was he was doing,
"Dick? Any ideas?" He huffed, trying to catch his breath,
His dark haired friend nodded and chewed his lower lip as he gently pried one of the planks loose, revealing a large hole in the window, glass fragments lying at the base of the wall.
"See? We can get in here. But… Vic, do me a favor and just kick in these last little bits of glass so we don't get hurt going in." Dick grunted, keeping the wood held back.
Vic hunkered forward, using the heel of his boot to dislodge the remaining shards of glass out of their grooves before they fell to the damp concrete at their feet. Gar kept his camera facing them as Vic reached down and tentatively touched along the edges of the window frame, just in case.
When he pulled back, it was a clear entry for them all to push through. Gar moved his camera upwards to catch Vic's face before he muttered, "In you go then, Vic."
Vic recoiled, his eyes wide as he turned to look at Gar, "What? Why am I going first?"
The camera shifted as Gar shrugged, "Guess you get to be the guinea pig tonight."
In response, he rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath, that the camera couldn't quite catch. He knelt down, ushering Dick away from the gap so he had more space to move through.
Due to his bulk form, he managed to wedge himself through without needing help from any of them. The remaining four stood and simply watched as he made his way into the building.
When it was silent, Gar took a step forward, "Vic? Dude, you okay?"
There was another stretch of silence before Vic's face suddenly appeared in the gap in the window, "Yo!"
Gar visibly jerked backwards, not expecting that in the slightest, "Dude… you scared the shit out of me!"
"Good. That's karma for making me go in first." Vic snorted, pointing his flashlight in the YouTuber's direction, "C'mon, who's next?"
When none of them volunteered, Raven rolled her eyes and let her arms drop from where they'd been crossed over her chest beforehand.
"Let's get this over with." She sighed, crouching down in front of their makeshift entrance, "Vic, could you hold-"
"I've got it, baby doll." Vic murmured, grabbing hold of the large plank of wood and pulling it away, ensuring it wouldn't hit her or catch her as she slid inside.
She flashed him a ghost of a smile, "What a gentleman."
"Babe, I would hold it for you but… y'know." Gar floundered,
"Mhm." She smirked, ducking and side stepping in through the hole, trying her best not to let her back knock against any jagged edges or sharp corners.
"See? I knew you could do it all by yourself! I had confidence in you the entire time!" Gar lamented, earning a shake of the head from his girlfriend.
Gar grinned and swung around, pointing the camera in Dick and Kory's direction.
"Alright, lovebirds. Which one of you is next?"
Dick frowned and hesitantly glanced at the red head beside him who already looked apprehensive about going into the derelict building. He sighed and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, "I'll go in first."
Kory turned to him, her mouth falling open as she prepared to voice her concern but Dick stopped her with a soft smile.
"I'll go in and then help you through. Good plan?" Dick murmured,
Kory fidgeted on the spot, shivering as a powerful gust of wind whistled through the army of trees surrounding their location. She nodded at him and released his hand, "Good plan."
He wandered close to the gap, getting on his knees to crawl through the space as Vic continued to help out, holding it back with both hands as to not allow any injuries to befall the group of young adults.
Gar zoomed his camera in on Kory who was staring at the hazardous structure with a foreboding sense of worry. He watched his friend through the viewfinder before,
"Kory!" He yelped, causing her to flinch and throw him the best glare she could muster; an unusual expression for Kory of all people to make.
He burst into a fit of laughter, the camera vibrating from the mirth wracking his limbs.
"Oh, Kory. You're so easy to scare when we do these things-" He chortled,
She narrowed her emerald eyes at him and huffed, "You are a clorbag."
He paused and looked up, "Did you just swear at me?"
Kory turned her nose up, closing in on the gap in preparation to go through. She shrugged at him, feigning indifference.
"That's not fair! I don't understand Tamaranian!" Gar complained,
Vic and Dick snickered from inside the abandoned mall. Gar turned to film Kory as she lowered herself to the ground and Vic's muffled voice could be heard from the other side,
"Just know, she did not just call you something nice, grass stain." Vic cackled,
Gar tilted his head, "I'm sorry, Kory. I will try to refrain from scaring you."
She flipped her long hair over her shoulder and eyed him carefully, "That would be appreciated."
He smiled brightly, "So… you gonna tell me what you called me?"
Kory matched his smile, "Nope."
And with that, she carefully crawled inside the building to join the others. Gar pressed his lips together in a thin line and turned the camera around to film himself for a brief moment,
"I am never gonna learn what that means. Awesome." He deadpanned, before he flipped it back towards the mall.
Last but not least, Gar scurried over to the paneled wall, dropping to his knee in front of the hole. He opened his mouth to call out to one of his friends but paused as another chilling breeze filtered through the night sky.
Gar turned his head, an uneasiness settling in his stomach. He felt as if there was someone watching him but, with a quick scan of the area, he could see nothing but the dense forestation nearby, along with the glint of Vic's car, parked all alone just across the empty clearing.
The area was sinisterly quiet and before his mind could dwell too much on it, Gar shook his head and clung to the wall, calling through, "Hey Rae?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you take the camera while I come in?"
"Sure."
A pair of pale hands appeared back through the entrance, palms up and ready to take the device. Gar relinquished control and handed it over, the picture becoming dark and distorted as it was hustled between the couple.
Raven sighed and turned the camera around so that it was pointed towards the gap as Gar slowly slithered through it, panting as he tried to do it in one swoop, the zipper of his jacket becoming briefly caught on the frame of the glass less window.
"You got it, Gar?" Vic queried, peering down as he loosened his grip on the board of wood usually pinned across the gap.
Gar rolled onto his back before he jumped up to his feet, brushing himself down to rid his clothing of any dust or dirt.
"Yep. All good, Vic. Thanks." Gar returned, watching as Vic released the board. It sprang back against the window, making a loud thump sound that seemed to echo and carry throughout the entire structure.
"Might wanna switch the flashlights on, guys." Dick mumbled, reaching into his own backpack to withdraw the aforementioned item.
Gar blew a kiss in Raven's direction and retrieved his camera back from her, allowing her to follow suit like the others and grab her flashlight from her backpack too.
After a few moments of shuffling and fumbling, four strong beams of white light appeared from each of their flashlights. Dick pointed his around the room they had clambered into, trying to decipher what kind of store it had been.
Finding his own flashlight in his backpack, Gar brought it out and flipped the switch, adding another bright ray of light to the fray.
The camera wobbled, the image dark and warped on account of the shrouding darkness enveloping them. Gar shrugged his backpack back on his shoulders and placed the flashlight between his teeth for a minute, cupping his hands around the camera properly, as well as turning the night vision mode of the camera on so that everything could be seen, even if they themselves were struggling with just a few streams of light leading them.
Vic cleared his throat, glancing at the others, "We all good to move?"
Gar nodded, "I think so. We've all got our lights on and the camera can see everything because of the night vision."
"Nice."
Raven narrowed her eyes as she stepped over debris and broken glass, drifting over to the shelves on the wall, aiming her flashlight straight at them to get a better understanding of what store they were inside.
Gar turned the camera towards her, capturing her movements.
"You okay, Rae?" He asked,
"Mhm… I'm just trying to see what kind of store this is and I think…" She paused and peered closer at the few items on the shelves, "It was a DVD rental store."
Gar blinked in surprise and stepped carefully until he was at her side, "Really?"
"Yeah, look…" She murmured, pointing to the 4 DVD cases that were lying flat on the shelf that was level with her chin.
"Wow… look at the dust on them, man…" He whispered, swiping a fingertip against one of the cases.
He zoomed in with the camera, trying to get a glimpse of what the DVD title was before he grinned, "Oh sweet! 'Rise of the Guardians'!"
Raven pulled a face at him, "You are such a child."
"Hey! It is a great animated picture, alright?"
"Uh huh."
He shook his head at her and picked it up, staring at the cover, "This movie came out years ago… like… 2012, I think?"
Raven shrugged, "It makes sense… It would have been relatively new when they closed this place down."
"It's weird that they left some inventory though, right?" Gar asked, putting it back on the shelf.
She walked along the wall, brushing her fingertips against the mahogany wood of the shelving units, "I suppose… but then again… if it went bankrupt of something, I don't think they would have been entitled to take all of the stuff anyway. Some people don't care for the items; just the money that would have been in the cash registers."
Gar nodded, "True."
"Yo!" Vic hissed, excitement laced within his tone,
Gar spun around, his camera facing out to record whatever went on around them tonight, "What's up?"
"This is bringing back all the Blockbuster and Hollywood Video nostalgia…" Vic gushed as he picked up one of the few remaining bags of chocolate that were definitely well past their sell by date.
Chuckling, Dick lifted a brow, "I don't know if kids today are gonna know what those things are."
Gar flipped his camera around to record his face, "Just for all the teens out there, Blockbuster and Hollywood Video were places where you could go each week and rent movies. You would take em' home and watch them a couple times and then bring it back to the store."
"A bit like a DVD library." Vic interjected,
"Think Netflix but… you had to leave your house to go and grab a movie." Gar explained,
He turned the camera just as Dick cupped a hand over his ear, feigning having heard something, "What's that? I can hear the confused rabble of your younger audiences."
Gar snorted, using his free hand to hold his stomach, "They were great places. Filled my early teen years with movie joy."
"I'm pretty sure there is still one Blockbuster left in the world, y'know?" Vic said, scratching his jaw, "It's somewhere out in Oregon."
Swinging back towards Vic, Gar blinked, "Seriously?"
Vic nodded at him before pointing at the lens of his camera, "Internet killed the video stores, kids."
Gar smirked at Vic's message and turned away, walking along the edges of the store, pointing the camera in various directions to get a range of shots. There was a line of ripped and decaying signage dotted all along the walls, listing deal prices as well as the mix of movie genres listed in the different sections of the store.
Most of the shelves were completely vacant, aside from the few DVD cases that were littered around on them.
"Alright, pals… how about we get outta here and find a place to camp out for the night and also dump our stuff while we explore?" Gar suggested, already edging towards the corroded door, pieces of glass heaped at the bottom of it.
Vic nodded in his direction but paused and his brows knitted together in apprehension, "We should probably be mindful though. We might… y'know… not be alone in this place."
Kory's eyes flashed to him, a deep worry suddenly settling in her, "What do you mean?"
He rubbed the back of his neck, "Well… Steel isn't always the friendliest place. We know that already. There might be some homeless people here or… some crazies. Not saying that there will be but… I would just… not be too loud and stay… relatively careful, just in case."
Gar turned his camera back to Kory who looked a lot more hesitant than she did beforehand and just as Dick was about to step in a reassure her, Raven jumped in instead,
"Kory, it's fine. I doubt there is anyone and even if there is… you can throw a real hard punch so you'll be okay." She shrugged, smiling slightly to try and relax her,
The red head shuffled on the spot and crossed her arms over her chest, the sleeves of her over-sized hoodie smothering her hands. She shrugged and cracked a small smile, despite her initial fear,
"That is true." She agreed,
Gar zoomed in on his friend for a second, "Why do you not have that courage when we do the other creepy sort of stuff?"
Kory tilted her head, "Because I cannot punch a ghost or demon in the face."
Dick snorted whilst Gar smirked and shrugged, "Okay, fair point. Onward, comrades."
He flipped the camera forwards again, showing the way he was leading them. Vic snickered and gave him a light shove, making the camera wobble, "You're such a dork, man."
"And yet, you guys still agree to be friends with me."
"It's more like a… I'm stuck with this situation."
Gar smirked, "Then, you best enjoy the ride, tin man."
An audible snort could be heard off screen as Gar made his way right up to the broken door. The camera went dark for a moment as he lowered it and slammed his shoulder against the door, cringing as it squeaked and scraped against the hard floor beneath.
"Well… if there is anyone else here… they definitely know we're also here now too…" Dick murmured, holding it open as he ushered Kory and Raven through before he stepped over the threshold as well.
"Holy shit…" Gar breathed as they stepped out into the main area of the mall.
He lifted the camera so that he could film the interior in all its vacant glory. As the others made their way out of the DVD rental store, they shone their flashlights all around, providing way more illumination of the neglected structure.
The mall split off into four sections with a concrete fountain in the very center of the space, completely void of the water that used to give it a certain beauty amongst the crowds of people shopping.
There appeared to be 3 levels to the mall, the second being visible when looking upwards with an open mezzanine walkway just before the rows of stores, restricted only by a glass railing running around the very edge. One escalator was situated at the end of one long strip of the building whilst another stood at the opposite end, one the other side of the water fountain.
They both stood rusted and broken, the rubber of the handrail having burned away through the years and flopping down the side of the balustrade. There was a deafening silence surrounding both machines; an oddity considering the vibrations caused from them back when the mall was open and functional.
A matching set of escalators could be seen on the second floor from where they were stood, leading up to the third floor which if memory served, Gar was fairly certain was home to the food court.
He tipped the camera upwards and grimaced at the ceiling. Smashed lights hung high whilst tiles had cracked or fallen through, dark gaping holes replacing them instead. Mold and decay clung to the corners and crevices of the roof, as well as all of the walls with the occasional smearing of dirt too.
There were linings of stores all along the ground floor and the second floor too. The windows were clouded with dust and most of them were splintered; cracks running all the way down them. Some windows were completely smashed, with shards of glass dotted around the concrete floor whilst others remained in tact, smothered with all types of graffiti.
Gar whistled quietly, "Whoa… this place really fell apart…"
"I guess 5 years of neglect will do that to a place…" Raven mumbled from just behind him, shining her light ahead to guide their footsteps.
"Yeah, no kidding…"
A sudden metal groan echoed from somewhere within the vicinity, causing them all to take pause. Gar spun around towards its direction, pointing his camera straight ahead in an attempt to capture the cause of the sound.
"What was that?" Kory whispered, shining her flashlight in the same direction,
"It could be people…" Vic murmured,
Dick shrugged, "It could also just be the building. It has been abandoned for a long time now. Not to mention, there's a storm going on outside. We're bound to hear some noises."
Gar nodded, "Dick's got a point. I mean, I'm pretty sure I can hear the rain anyway."
They remained standing still for a couple more minutes before Gar turned the camera away and back towards the main part of the shopping mall, "Alright… we haven't heard anything else so… let's keep walking around, guys."
Pointing the camera forwards, the group continued exploring the space.
"I still find it strange that there is such a lack of security or police…" Kory mentioned, hooking her thumb in the pocket of her denim shorts,
"I suppose they just don't see any point in wasting resources on something not only abandoned and being left to rot but that's also so out of the way." Dick assumed,
"Yeah… I mean… this is pretty out of the way. It's not exactly in the city center or anything." Vic added,
Gar turned the camera towards Kory as she brushed a hand against the grey, stone wall that ran around the edge of the 3 tier fountain. She peered over the side, seeing the dark limescale inside at the base of it. She shone her flashlight at the whole feature and frowned,
"This was so pretty before."
"I can't help but wonder why it closed down still… was it not making money or what?" Dick queried,
Vic lifted his shoulder, "Who knows. The main part of Steel City is buzzin' with shopping areas so maybe they just didn't think this one made the cut, y'know?"
Dick made a quiet noise in agreement as they continued on, exploring their makeshift home for the night.
1:06am
"Alright, guys so… it's already just past 1am and we're doing well. We found a way to get into this place, we've had a quick look around and we've just decided where to bunk. We're gonna drop our stuff and go look around at some more of the stores for a bit before we come back here and chill." Gar explained, the lens trained on his face, revealing little behind him due to the low lighting cast only by his and the others' flashlights.
He flashed the camera a grin before he turned it around to record his friends as well as the location they had decided to coop up in for the rest of the night.
"So, we found that one of the stores was a bank and it had the shutters mostly down. We had to mission impossible that shit by rolling underneath but it feels safer than anywhere else in here." He paused, "There was also a jewelry store that looked pretty sweet too but there was so much broken glass and let's face it… that's just an injury waiting to happen."
Lifting the camera up, he got some shots of the room. The paint on the walls was a faded blue tone, chipped and scuffed after years of wearing away. The carpeted floor was torn and stained and certainly not the same color it would have been when the bank was operational.
There was a large curved oak desk towards the back of the room, a door just behind that which was locked up tight with just enough space between the two, that they had all decided it would be where they would lay their sleeping bags down later. It offered a satisfying amount of safety and privacy, in case there were any stray individuals lurking within the shadows of the mall.
There were two computers on top of the desk; the cables and keyboards were long gone and there was a thick layer of dust blanketing the wood but despite that, the computers looked untouched. Vic had pursed his lips in thought when he had first caught a glimpse of them, mumbling to himself about possibly hooking it up to the power bank in his backpack and seeing if he could turn it into some kind of makeshift TV.
Gar briefly focused the camera on him as he was still hunkered down by the desk, inspecting the electronic device.
"Bro, give it up. You may be amazing with tech but this thing is long dead." Gar chuckled,
Vic smirked and lifted his head before getting to his feet, "We'll see about that, grass stain."
Spinning the camera back towards the room, there were a few more desks; smaller ones with pattern cushioned seats; one on either side. Gar could only assume they had been used for appointments and one-to-one chats with the banking clients.
The seats were ripped and mold was growing around the holes; the cushioning a dark and dingy colour as it puffed out and onto the floor in tiny pieces.
A large LED tube light ran around the edge of the whole ceiling of the room, shattered in some parts with the main spotlights, dotted along the ceiling, having been completely removed.
There was a series of ATM's, lined up against the wall; all of them had fragmented screens, with glass shavings littered all over the keypad and the foot of the machines in heaps. The locks on the lower part of the machines were dented and had been broken into, inevitably by some thugs trying to steal any remaining money that may have been inside.
The remaining windows that were still intact were smudged with grime from the filth that had accumulated in the airspace of the building but it was apparent they had been tinted a light blue before the place had been condemned. There were an assortment of finance related posters dotted up but most were barely credible anymore; faded beyond belief and curling in every single corner, practically peeling off of the walls.
Finally, Gar turned the camera to his friends who were all shuffling behind the curved desk, dropping their backpacks and stowing them as securely underneath as possible.
"We all good to look around, guys?" Gar asked, throwing his own backpack in Vic's direction to place alongside theirs.
"Think so." Dick confirmed, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans, "Let's just hope no one else is in here and takes our shit."
Gar waved a hand dismissively in front of the lens, "Naaah, I'm sure it'll be fiiine!"
Dick smirked and shook his head, offering Kory a hand to help her out from behind the desk. She smiled and took it, bestowing a kiss to his cheek for his chivalry.
He grinned back at her but it vanished as Vic quickly grabbed his hand after and pulled himself out from behind it too, smirking as he did so.
"Aw man, you're such a sweetheart." He cooed mockingly,
Dick rolled his eyes and shook his head but not before Vic leaned in and kissed his cheek too. He recoiled and jumped away from his friend, scrubbing a hand over his cheek,
"Dude!" He yelped, looking back at him and being unable to resist the laughter that poured from his mouth,
Vic fluttered his eyelashes and blew him a kiss, "Love ya." He teased, grinning at Kory who was holding her stomach amongst her fit of giggles.
"You are such an ass." Dick muttered, interlocking his fingers with Kory's and using his other hand to punch Vic in the arm as he passed by, heading for the shutters at the front of the store.
"Kory, I think someone's trying to steal your boyfriend." Gar chuckled,
The redhead smiled but leaned into Dick's side, her cheek pressing against his shoulder, "You can try, Vic but I do not think you are Dick's type."
Vic rolled his eyes playfully and snapped his fingers, "Damn."
She giggled and looked towards Raven who was knelt down by the silver shutters of the bank. Gar flipped the camera around so that he could focus on his girl, "Rae, you're so eager! It's great."
Raven glanced back at him and smirked slightly, "I can't remember what stores are here so yeah… I want to have a look."
"Awesome! I love when you're on board with my ideas, babe."
Raven lifted a brow, "Gar… I'm always on board with them."
"Aw, Rae-"
"I'm apparently the only one dumb enough to keep going along with them."
He turned the camera on himself and pulled a blank face, "Love you, Rae."
A tinkle of a laugh escaped her and she shook her head, "Will you help me to lift this up a little?"
"Rae, let Vic do it. He doesn't even break a sweat."
The man in question cleared his throat from behind and Gar spun around to record him as he slapped his hands together and cricked the joints in his neck,
"Uh huh… let me at it."
1:23am
Gar's grinning face filled the entire shot as he trained the camera on himself, "Guys, yo… there are like pocket maps with where the stores are. I mean… they're covered in… I have no idea what but one of them was kinda clean so now we're just looking for ones we wanna see…"
He waved the now dull colored map in front of the camera as they wandered along the second floor walkway. Gar walked until he stood at the edge and leaned over the glass railing, filming the cold and lonely space of the lower level.
"Man, this place is crazy." He murmured, turning away and making his way back to the group who were splitting to check out different stores.
"Kory and I are going to look in Urban Outfitters. I can see through the windows that they actually left clothes on the rails in there…" Raven explained, her arms crossed over her chest,
"Are you… planning on bringing some of them home?" Dick asked, eyeing both the girls, "I mean, I know you two like shopping but…"
"They might be a little moth eaten…" Vic added,
Raven rolled her eyes and shook her head, "No, we don't want to bring any clothes with us. We're just curious."
Kory nodded her head and smiled at Vic and Dick, who stood opposite them, "Where are you planning to go?"
Dick tilted his head in consideration before looking over at Vic, "Where do you wanna go?"
Vic stared at his ebony haired friend, "Food court. Obviously."
"Obviously." Dick repeated, smirking.
"Gar, are you going with them or staying here with us?" Raven asked,
"Ummm I'll stay here with you guys for a bit and then go up and see the food court. I wanna film as much of this place as I can." Gar explained,
Vic nodded and turned away, heading towards the rickety looking escalators up to the third floor. He held up his fingers in a salute and said, "See y'all in a while then!"
Kory stepped forward and pecked Dick's lips, giving him a look of concern as she muttered, "Please be careful."
He smiled and squeezed her hip briefly, "Always am, Kor."
She clicked her tongue and retreated back to Raven's side as he grinned and jogged after Vic, disappearing behind one of the corners.
Gar turned the camera back to the girls and the smile could be heard in his tone, "Ready, ladies?"
Kory giggled and pushed one of the sliding doors open and tiptoed across the threshold, into the store with Raven following closely behind. Gar entered last, impressed by how well the windows had remained as they used to be, with only a small amount of smears across them and approximately 2 thin cracks through them as well.
Before he stepped through, he lifted the camera to get a shot of the store letters which actually only read, 'Uran Ofittrs' with a few of the crucial letters missing.
He chuckled and followed after the girls, panning the camera from left to right in order to get a wide shot, rather than the usual snippets.
Multiple wooden beams crossed over one another, high in the rafters, giving the huge room an unfinished vibe as it was. The shade of the wood was a lot darker than the operational stores of the company; like the one that was 10 minutes from their home back in Jump.
With foiled fans hanging here and there across the ceiling, Gar snorted and shook his head, "This looks kinda like regular Urban Outfitter stores, guys. It has that industrial kinda vibe."
Raven glanced over her shoulder at him and smirked, "You've got a point."
The wooden flooring was scuffed and scratched up, a dark layer of dust and debris covering its length. The long wooden tables that usually held the assortment of branded accessories were completely empty, all of the stock having been removed or stolen post closure.
The circular rails were covered in a thick rust, with a few dresses and pairs of jeans hung up. Another had some ripped sweatshirts and hoodies whilst one more held an array of graphic tees. None of them were in good condition, having suffered to the elements as well as a general deterioration.
The mannequins that had previously showcased the hottest outfits of the season were now bare with limbs missing. Kory visibly shivered as she passed one, shining her flashlight at one of its shoulders where the arm had been twisted off.
"That is creepy…" She murmured, shaking it off and continuing to explore.
A large white cashier desk sat at the back of the store, in front of a corridor that led down to the changing rooms as well as large model posters hung up on the walls but the two that were still up on the walls were defaced with doodles and spray paint from other passersby.
Gar turned the camera on Raven who was staring at a black hoodie with purple rose heads lining the sleeves.
"You wanna get that, Rae?" He asked, saddling up beside her,
She pulled a face, "It's frustrating that these are… like they are. This is actually really nice."
Her fingers slid against the material until she found the price tag at the hem and turned it over. She immediately dropped it and furrowed her brows,
"$50? I think not." She mumbled,
"Y'know… you could just take it, Rae."
"I don'think I need it that badly, Gar."
He zoomed in on the garment, "You could just throw it in the wash when we get home, babe."
She shuffled on the spot and lifted her shoulders, "I… I don't know. It seems a little weird." She paused and shrugged, "It's fine. I'm sure I probably have something like it as it is."
Gar kept the lens trained on her as she moved away to join Kory who was crouched down behind the desk, scanning for anything of interest.
He stayed with them a little longer, wandering back and forth and checking out more of the decayed environment than the clothing that had been left behind.
Spinning on his heel, Gar captured the two of them in the shot and called out, "Hey, girls?"
Raven looked up, with Kory following suit shortly after, "Yeah?"
"I think I'm gonna go up and see what the boys are doing. You alright by yourselves?"
"Like I said earlier, Kory knows how to throw a punch and… I'm sure I could too. If I had to."
Gar grinned, "Well, just shout if you need anything."
"It's fine… I'd say we're almost done looking in here anyway."
"Oh. Want me to just wait then?"
Raven smiled and shook her head, "Don't worry. Go up and we'll be there soon."
"Alrighty roo, babe." He replied, half turning towards the main entrance they had come through,
"Oh, and Gar?" She called,
"Yeah?"
"Please don't do anything stupid while you're up there."
He chuckled, "I can't make any promises, Rae. You know that."
She sighed and waved a hand at him, effectively telling him to just go.
Gar spun and shimmied through the gap that Kory had made by pushing one of the sliding doors back, being mindful not to drop or catch the camera on anything sharp or awkwardly sticking out.
He felt a tingle down his spine as he made his way towards the escalator that Vic and Dick had gone up only approximately 10 minutes beforehand.
"Yo… it's so much scarier when I'm on my own… holy shit…" Gar whispered, keeping the camera facing forward.
His speed increased as he approached the mechanical stairs that no longer worked. Gar felt a small flush of relief flood his being as he heard the echo of Vic's belly laugh from above.
"Thank fuck…"
With that, Gar slowly moved up the steps of the escalator, cringing with each and every groan of metal, the cogs beneath straining at the weight that hadn't existed for years. His breathing grew louder as he came to a halt at the top of the steps.
"Looky here who made it!" Vic called from where the two of them were sitting on one of the plastic tables.
Gar swiveled his camera from one side to the other, taking in the sheer emptiness of the food court surrounding them.
"Yo… this place is crazy bare." Gar pointed out,
There were about five food windows that were covered over by the shutters that were pulled all the way down and locked into place by large padlocks that had corroded to the point that a key would no longer fit inside to open them.
Pillars were dotted around, acting as support for the entire structure but chunks of concrete appeared to have fallen away from the giant cylinders and onto the soiled ground.
There were pink, blue and yellow neon tube lights twisted along the edge of the ceiling, on the undersides of the counters and along the skirting of the ground.
It was a shame they no longer worked and Gar had to cast his mind back quite a bit to remember how the food court looked back in its heyday.
Plastic tables and chairs were littered all over the court, with a faint slither of moonlight filtering through the skylight window at the highest point of the roof above their heads.
Gar pointed the camera back towards the guys and burst out laughing, "I guess you guys got bored of trying to get past the shutters, huh?"
Vic threw his hands up, "Bro! All of them are locked up. How dumb is that?"
Dick raised an eyebrow, "Would you seriously eat food if it was back there?"
Vic blinked and seemed to think about it, "Maybe."
Shaking his head, Dick shuddered, "You're so gross."
"Hey! If there were some hot dogs back there, then no. Obviously not. That's hella unsanitary." Vic expanded, "Buuut, if there was a Hershey bar or… a pack of Twizzlers? Hell yeah I'd take em'. Candy stays in date way longer than normal food, dude."
Dick snorted and crossed his arms over his chest, shaking his head at his friend, "Whatever you tell yourself, Vic."
Gar exhaled loudly and took a seat in one of the chairs opposite the two of them, "I'm starting to get tired, y'know."
"So, d'you wanna stop looking at the stores?" Vic prompted,
Gar laughed, "Nah, man. I wanna see some more places and then Ima pass out in my sleeping bag."
Dick furrowed his brows, "Where are the girls?"
Gar jerked his head to the side, "Still in Urban Outfitters. They wanted to stay a bit longer."
"So, you just left them down there?"
"They can take care of themselves, dude. They're feisty cookies."
"Gar-"
Just as Dick opened his mouth to reprimand his friend, the boys all turned their heads towards the escalators where they heard daintier footsteps scurrying up towards where they were perched.
Gar shifted in his seat, shooting the camera over his shoulder and trying to ignore the pounding of his heart since he had a solid hunch of who was approaching.
Raven and Kory appeared before them, doing exactly as Gar had and stared at the large area around them.
"Not bad…" Raven murmured, nodding her head with a hand on her hip.
2:19am
The camera shook a little, becoming jostled as Gar walked towards the next store of interest. The other four walked ahead, circling the barren water fountain on the ground level a couple of times before they caught a glimpse of it right at the end of one of the four sections.
As they strolled towards the store, Gar turned the camera and captured some shots of the other stores that were not so lucky to have remained untouched after closure. There were a number of stores that had, in a sense, been gutted of all of the interiors as one would expect from a shopping mall that was shut down by the local government authorities.
The windows were completely shattered and the doors were mangled; the carpet was bare of any equipment or furniture and not even a light bulb hung from the ceiling, especially since a lot of them had caved in and were missing several tiles.
It seemed that only a few stores within the vicinity had been forgotten and simply left to rot as they were. Gar shivered and continued on, filming as much as he could with only the limited glow from the flashlights as his guide.
Suddenly, a bang sounded from behind them and the five of them stopped in their tracks and turned around, each of them pointing their flashlights in the general direction in an attempt to catch anything moving back there.
Vic took a couple of steps forward, narrowing his eyes at the shadows, "Yo! Anyone there?" He yelled, his voice bouncing off of the walls,
"Vic!" Raven hissed, "You're as bad as Gar. Stop calling out to potential murderers and psychopaths."
He shot her a grin and waved the flashlight back and forth a couple more times, urging whoever was there to come forward.
"Hel-"
Vic was cut off as two pigeons suddenly swooped out from their spot within the ceiling, likely nesting up there. The large man stumbled back, pressing a hand to his heart,
"Holy shit… I thought it was gonna be a dude with a machete."
Gar chuckled, "We got duped by pigeons, dudes."
"We'll have to make sure there aren't any in the roof when we head back to the bank." Dick chimed in, turning back towards the store they had intended on visiting.
Lifting the camera upwards, Gar got a shot of the sign, coated in a thick veneer which read, 'Jimmy's Rockin' Records'.
"Sweet… record store. There's not many of these around anymore." Gar murmured,
"Well… who even has a record player anymore? Vic snorted,
"We do, Vic." Dick pointed out, blinking at him in disbelief,
"What!? Where? When did we get that?" He sputtered,
"I think it's in the basement at the moment but we got it like 3 years ago."
Vic waved a hand, "Okay, I don't feel as stupid then if it's in the basement. I thought you meant it was upstairs and I just kept missing it or something."
The four of them headed inside first, with Gar trailing behind in the back, ensuring he was recording everything that he could.
The windows were mostly intact, with a few holes and littered splits across the panes but inside, it appeared as though the store really had been stuck in time. Records upon records were lined inside of numerous cabinets and tabletop browsers, all around the edge of the store, with a small mahogany cashier desk towards the back. There was a neon sign of the store name, behind the desk but in poor condition. Shards of the glass sat on the shelf just below it and there was an old register sitting atop of the desk, eerily left to erode with the cash drawer jutted out.
In the middle of the store, there were more dark cabinets, housing records in alphabetical order but each and every one completely covered in grime from the air. Two square pillars stood in the middle of the store, with headphones hanging on the wall of them, clearly used to sample some of the music before customers would have purchased them.
Vic wandered over to the pillars and lifted a pair of headphones, "Yo, Gar… imagine if these were still working."
Gar snickered, "Dude. I would freak the hell out if anything came outta those."
He zoomed in on his friend as Vic pulled them up and put them over his ears, repeatedly pressing the button on the wall before he stopped and stared at Gar, "Man, this place is not in very good shape."
Laughter poured out of Gar's mouth, "Dude, you're stupid."
Turning around, Gar aimed the camera in Dick's direction where he was skimming through the records with Raven beside him.
"You guys looking for one in particular or something?" Gar laughed as he came closer,
Dick chuckled and shook his head, "We're looking through the rock section… seeing if there's anything good here."
"Are you gonna take any?"
"Isn't that… kinda like stealing?" Dick queried,
Raven half turned and shrugged, "Not really… they've been left here. We'd pay for them if there was a cashier… but… there isn't."
"That's the spirit, babe!" Gar grinned,
She smiled but shook her head, "I'm not really a record person… And there aren't many here that interest me."
"I don't know. I have a soft spot for records." Dick murmured, continuing to browse through them,
"Okay, grandpa." Gar snorted, earning a matching snicker from Raven whilst Dick just held up his middle finger in the camera's direction,
Gar wandered away, filming as much of the dark and drab store as he could, stifling a yawn as he moved. He panned the camera from left to right, capturing Kory as she hovered near the doors,
"Kooory… what're ya doing?" He questioned, noticing that she was staring across the mall at something else,
"There is a bath & candle store." She told him, a light excitement to her voice,
"You think there are still some bathroom goodies in there?"
"I do not know but I want to see…" She whispered, scurrying out and over to the store.
Gar smiled and turned to the remaining three, "Any of you guys wanna check out the bath & candle store?"
Dick lifted his head, three records under his arm and trotted over to where he stood, "Sure."
Pointing the camera at his arm, Gar laughed, "Dude… you literally just went shopping."
"They're here so… why not? Like you said." Dick shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck,
"Good man. Let's go."
Turning the camera back toward the main area of the mall, they crossed the space and followed Kory inside the bath & candle store, aptly named, 'Bubbleworks' where not a single pane of glass remained intact either in the windows or the main doors which were wedged open just a fraction, allowing them to shimmy through.
The wood flooring was scraped and grazed, thin white scratches lining the whole stretch of ground. Dirtied display tables were dotted all along the store, right up to where the cashier desk was in the corner of the store; smaller than any of the other desks they had seen in other stores.
Running around the edge of the room were wooden display cabinets where the odd bath product still remained as well as an assortment of singular candles on the other side of the store where Kory was already scanning the contents.
"I did not know you were a candle hoarder, Kory." Gar commented, drawing closer to her with Dick in tow.
His friend snorted before Kory could answer, "Are you kidding? Our bathroom smells like flowers the majority of the time from all the candles she puts in there."
Kory glanced over her shoulder at her boyfriend and lifted an eyebrow, "I do not hear you complaining when I use the black cherry scented ones."
Gar snickered and turned the camera towards Dick who laughed, "I don't care, alright? Those ones smell really good."
The redhead giggled and returned to searching the shelves, peering at the labels of the candles with the aid of her flashlight,
"Kor, I have a feeling they would have probably lost their scent by now." Dick murmured, touching her waist as he looked over her shoulder at the votives she was handling,
"Mmm… I think they may be okay. Most of them are still packaged." She replied, looking between a 'Strawberry Cheesecake' candle and a 'Lemongrass' one.
"Well… bring them with and we can try them out later or when we're back at home." Dick suggested,
"Is… it not illegal to take things from here?" Kory queried,
"Well… technically, we're already breaking the law anyway. We're on abandoned property that isn't ours so… go big or go home." Gar explained, keeping the lens trained on the two of them,
Kory chewed on her lower lip for a good few seconds before she flipped her long hair over her shoulder and started to load up the pockets of her hoodie with small, individual votive candles, all with varying scents.
Dick chuckled and looked at Gar, "She chose go big and go home."
Gar smirked and took one last panning shot of the store before they began moving back towards the gap they came through, with Kory browsing some of the bath items too but deciding she had little room left in her hoodie pouch to take anything else.
3:37am
Gar kept the camera facing forward as the five of them wandered back towards the bank that they were camping out at for the night. They walked along the concrete ground of the lower floor, carefully stepping around the bigger pieces of debris that were littering the walkways.
"This has actually been really fun so far." Dick commented as they headed towards the escalator that stood closest to the bank on the second level.
"See!? I told you, I have fun ideas sometimes, rather than creepy ones." Gar stressed,
"It is fun… til a psycho finds us." Vic interjected,
"Dude, you are a fun ruiner." Gar complained, shoving him off screen,
Raven snorted and shook her head, "We really need to work on your vocabulary, Gar."
He flipped the lens to his face and grinned, "You lurve it."
"Mhm." She replied, smiling.
As they approached the escalator, Gar paused, turning the camera towards what he had caught a glimpse of. In the very corner of the mall alleyway was a tiny shop that appeared to be fairly preserved, just out of sight behind the escalator.
"Hey guys… hold up. I wanna see this store." Gar called, drawing them back to him from where they were already starting to climb up the steps.
Gar treaded cautiously until he arrived in front of the quaint door. It wasn't like the other stores at all. It looked to be more traditional, with the whole frame of the store being made from a dark wood and black criss crosses over the windows, with only one being broken and the rest of the shop being in a surprisingly pristine condition.
He pulled a tilt shot to capture the store name, 'Afterlife Antiques' and felt cold for a brief moment, "Oh my god… what a name for an antique store."
Raven skulked up next to him, cupping her eyes and peering through the windows, "It looks ancient inside."
"On a scale of 1-10… how excited are you to look inside, Rae?" Gar quizzed, knowing her love of oddities such as this,
She tilted her head from side to side before she answered, "Probably like 7."
He chuckled and filmed her as she steadily opened the door, cringing at the high pitched squeak of the hinges. Vic followed after, with Kory entering behind him and then Dick.
Gar entered last and was immediately hit with a heavy, musk scent like the kind of aroma that came from the inside of a really old book upon opening. With all five flashlights on and pointed around the room, Gar could see just how built up with items it was.
The entire room, despite being a smaller store, was filled to the brim with relic items; keys to the past that likely came from all over. It was cluttered enough to the point they had to move in single file as items lined every wall, display cases with fragile pieces dotted the center and things sat piled high in the very far corners.
Turning the camera around, Gar was able to capture the assortment of antique types. There were vases, ranging in size and color all around the edge of the store. There were clocks of varying grandeur hung up on the walls as well as some grandfather style clocks pressed against the panels too. Clouded mirrors were spread out on every other part of the walls with every single one appearing more creepy than the last.
There were china plates with decorative art scrawled over them kept neatly inside the glass showcase; alongside teacups that looked as though they were 500 years old. There were statues, lamps, rolled up rugs and crockery as well as a dolls house that was smothered in cobwebs from how long it had been sitting there.
Kory made a quiet, keening sound that was all too familiar, "It is… freaky."
Gar was inclined to agree; the utter silence that filled the air was deafening since not even one of the clocks worked which meant it was only their breaths that they could hear.
"Damn… and I thought some of the other places were dusty. This is a full on breathing hazard, y'all." Vic hushed,
"And these objects were probably dusty before they were abandoned, too." Dick mentioned,
Vic clicked his fingers and pointed at the dark haired guy, "You're right. Double the dust."
Gar swiveled the camera over to Raven who was walking along and gently brushing her fingertips over some of the delicate treasures that lay inside the store.
"How about you, Rae? You got creep vibes going on?" Gar called,
"Mm… nope."
He grinned and shook his head, walking in the other direction to see some more of the store. The particles floating in the air made it hard to see his surroundings and so he stumbled a couple of times, missing his footing.
Gar hummed quietly to himself as he scanned the walls with the camera, staring through the viewfinder to see better.
"Whoa…"
Dick's voice could be heard off-screen so Gar was quick to turn and hurry to where he was standing in the furthest corner of the store.
"Dude, what? What'd you find?" He asked as he approached,
Stepping out of the way, Dick pointed down to what was probably the creepiest thing they had seen in the whole building.
Sitting there, covered with dust and with cobwebs, was a rickety old wooden rocking chair. It didn't move but Gar could bet if he pressed a hand on the wood, it would creak.
And to make it worse, on the seat of the chair was a medium sized porcelain doll, dressed in period clothing with blonde curls around its face and a matching bonnet around the top of the head. Its eyes were a crystal blue but what made them all freeze was the fact that the lower portion of the doll's face was missing. The porcelain was cracked from the nose down with nothing but empty space there instead of a jaw.
"You think someone freaked and punched her out?" Vic whispered,
"Maybe she was brought here already broken. Antique stores are known for taking what others deem as ruined." Raven murmured, peering closer at the thing,
As they loitered in the antique store for a few more minutes, it was clear that fatigue was starting to grip each of them and with a loud yawn from Vic that seemed to reverberate through the roof of the store, Gar turned the camera to them all, "Ready to head to our campsite, guys?"
With that question alone, he received 4 head nods.
3:56am
Gar stretched his arms above his head, looking towards the camera which was now perched on a box, just at the foot of the desk inside the bank so that it was trained on the five of them, all cooped up together in their makeshift camp.
"Alright guys, it's almost…" He paused to check the time on his phone, "4am and this has been a pretty successful overnight… the last thing to do is chill and munch on some snacks and try and sleep."
"Some of us have already got to that point." Raven whispered, side eyeing Vic who was sprawled out, covered by his sleeping bag from the waist down. Kory giggled from where she was tucked into one, with Dick pressed to her back as they shared a double. He smirked and grabbed a screwed up piece of paper and lightly threw it over at Vic.
The four of them gave into a flurry of quiet giggles and snickers as Vic choked on a snore and waved the air with his hand before dropping back into his slumber.
"He didn't even eat his snacks." Gar pointed out,
"He must have been very tired." Kory smiled,
Raven sat up from the sleeping bag she was sharing with Gar and leaned over to pick up her backpack, taking out the box of cookies they had bought from the store earlier on in the evening.
"Anyone want a cookie?" She offered, with Gar swiping one as soon as the words left her mouth. Dick and Kory smiled but shook their heads, digging into their own stash of food.
Gar took a swig of his soda and grinned, "So… you guys gotta admit… this has been super fun."
Raven smiled as she took a bite of her chocolate chip cookie, "You know… it was actually more fun than I thought it was going to be."
Pressing a hand to his chest in mock hurt, Gar gasped, "Oh ye of little faith!"
"Well, the last few times… you've got us to do weird satanic shit so… I was on the fence about coming along to this thing. But, it was really cool." Dick added,
"Not to mention, illegal. But… it was most enjoyable. I never even knew this place had been shut down until you told us about it, Gar." Kory weighed in, chewing some of her rainbow colored gummy bears.
"You are all welcome, yet again, to have me as a friend." Gar beamed, stretching his arms wide,
Dick rolled his eyes and took a sip of his soda, "Aaand… he ruined it."
Gar chuckled and leaned back on his elbows and reached for something that was bundled up on his backpack, "Hey, Rae?"
"Mhm?" She responded, not tearing her eyes away from the eBook she was now reading off her phone.
"I got ya something."
She turned and was unable to stop the small smile that appeared across her lips, nor the light pink blush that stained her cheeks. Raven tilted her head and eyed him with suspicion.
He held out a somewhat dirty looking hoodie that was an inky black shade, under the dust that was stuck to it. And, there on the edges of the sleeves were purple rose heads.
"Is… is that the hoodie from the Urban Outfitters?" She half laughed, disbelieving that he actually took it,
He grinned and shrugged, "Well, yeah. You liked it and you wanted it. I could tell by the way you stared at it. I had to guess with the size though… the print of the sizes had faded off like… all of them."
She shook her head, "When did you even take it?"
"When me and Vic went out into the rain for a bathroom break. I grabbed it on the way back."
Raven skimmed her eyes over the garment and her smile remained, "I can't wait til people ask me where I got it."
Gar laughed and brushed some of the dirt off of it, "It'll be fine. We'll put it in the washing machine like 10 times and it'll be like brand new."
Taking it from him, she shook her head and laughed quietly, "You are something, you know that?"
His own grin only grew wider as she leaned up and softly pecked his lips before pulling back and stuffing the hoodie into her backpack for safe keeping.
Gar winked at the camera and made finger guns too, "See guys? That is romance for ya. Get the girl you like a gift from an abandoned store and she'll be head over heels."
Raven snorted and laid down, snuggling beneath the cover some more before affectionately muttering, "Idiot."
Dick smirked at the two before he also slithered down further into the sleeping bag, pulling it up around Kory some more who had fallen asleep with the bag of gummy bears still in her hand. He took them away and placed them in the front pouch of her backpack before he threw an arm over her waist and closed his eyes, murmuring, "Night Gar."
Gar yawned and scratched his head, smiling sleepily at the camera, "Alright guys… I'm gonna try and get a couple of hours sleep in to finish this overnight off. And, assuming we don't get murdered in our sleep by some wacko… I will see you after 6am."
He gave a two finger salute and leaned forward to turn the camera off for a while.
7:03am
"What's up, guys. It's ya boy." Gar greeted, the lines of his face visible from having only woken up recently. His voice was thick and he had to clear his throat a couple of times before he continued speaking.
He shifted the camera in the palm of his hand, allowing the others to show, who were all very much awake but still laying down in their sleeping bags.
"Wheyyy… so, first overnight with the whole squad was a success. We didn't get murdered, the pigeons didn't eat us and it's not raining anymore because this whole place is lit up on account of the bright ass sunlight coming through the holes in the windows and roof." Gar explained,
Vic yawned from the other end of their area, "I'm so glad we slept here instead of our comfy ass hotel."
Gar rolled his forest eyes and smirked, "It was fun and you know it."
Chuckling, Vic nodded, leaning on his elbow and rubbing his head, "Yeah, yeah… I'll give it to ya. It was a good night."
"It was different. But, if we do another one of these things, I'm not sleeping next to Kory." Raven muttered, her arm thrown over her eyes,
Gar tilted the camera so he could see both girls with Kory pouting at her best friend, "Why not?"
Raven pulled her arm back and squinted, "Because you kicked me through your sleeping bag about 6 times. I swear, I almost killed you myself."
Kory smiled sheepishly and blushed, "Oh… sorry, Raven."
The dark haired girl smiled and shook her head.
Dick sighed and stretched his arms up and over his head, "I'm assuming you will want to do more of these though, Gar?"
"Definitely. There are so many abandoned places around California that we can check out!" He enthused, earning a smirk from Dick.
Spinning the camera back around to face him, Gar smiled tiredly, "But for now, we're gonna pack up our stuff and get outta here. Hopefully, Vic is gonna drive us past a McDonald's so we can grab breakfast because I'm starving."
"Ugh, good shout, bro. I could kill for a double sausage mcmuffin." Vic practically drooled,
"Don't say that, it'll make my stomach growl." Dick groaned,dragging a hand through his dark tresses.
Gar grinned at his friends before returning his focus to the lens, addressing his many viewers, "However… I have a feeling that… whilst there wasn't any security during the night, there may be some out there today."
"Aw, what?" Vic yelped,
"Possibly. There might not be. But, in case there is… I'm gonna end this video and switch out the SD card so that if they are outside and decide to take the camera away, I'll still have all the footage I shot last night." He paused and shrugged, "I haven't heard anything from outside so I'm assuming we're all good but… just be mindful."
"I hope there is not. It is too early to run." Kory mumbled, turning into Dick's chest,
"Well, let's all cross our fingers that it is still as empty as it was last night!" Gar paused and winked at the camera, "Guys, I hope you liked this video. It's a super long one so I appreciate it if you watched until the end. If you enjoyed this video, don't forget to leave a like and also smash the subscribe button for more content. Tell me what you thought in the comments and let me know if you wanna see more stuff like this."
Gar leaned back and beamed at the camera, holding up two fingers, "Until next time, Logan fam. Peace!"