The night sky was filled with clouds and the moon constantly disappeared behind them. Braun, Gutter, and Ditto all walked to their favorite club. It was called "The Night Jar", and it was a total gothic club. The women were all pale and had bright eyes while the men wore long trench coats with torn shirts. The gang walked in and sat at their usual table in the back. The owner of the club, Jade, walked over to them.
"Hey guys, got a message for ya. Some chick came in looking for you. She said to meet her at your apartment at midnight." She said as she read it off of a piece of paper. They were all confused. They just shook it off and decided to worry about it when the time comes. They ordered their drinks and Braun took a small notebook out of his pocket. What the rest of the gang didn't know was that Braun was a poet. He never told them because he was afraid they'd think of it as a weakness. He wrote in it now and this is what it said,
"The dark of night leaves my sight as it quickly drifts by.
The deep black street all covered in mist, The fog would not desist, I walk alone and let out a sigh.
A figure looms in the fog up ahead, it leaves no footprints on the ground it has tread, the cool air drops down.
It's a man that leaves no trace, with a painted white face and a black painted frown.
A myth so I'm told, it cannot grow old, because legends don't die.
Out in the cold, in my arms I enfold, I curl in a ball and I cry."
He put the notebook away and took a few sips of his beer. The poem he just wrote was supposedly a myth that he heard from one of his friends, but Braun thought it was true. The guys finished their beers and they walked out without paying for their drinks. The refreshing night air was wonderful compared to the atmosphere in the bar. They all climbed into the car and Ditto started the engine.
"Hey, where's Beerbelly? I haven't seen him all night." Said Gutter, looking out the window. They all just shrugged and thought nothing else of it. They sped down the street, not caring whether or not who they almost just hit. Ditto parked the car outside of their apartment building. He looked at his watch; it read 11:52.
"Braun, go inside and see if that girl is there." He said, pointing up to the window of their room. Braun climbed out of the car and walked up to the door. He opened it and walked inside. He jogged up the stairs to their apartment door, and he unlocked it with his key. He peered in and saw that the room was dark. Braun walked in and someone shut the door behind him loudly. He spun around to see who had closed it, and saw no one. He looked around and searched the shadows for some sort of life.
"A little blue bird once told me he knew all, and then I tore off his wings and watched him fall…" sang a voice in a whisper. Braun got scared, and he stood stiffly in the middle of the room. He felt a hand brush across his cheek, although he couldn't see it. Then, right in front of his face stood a lovely woman with a painted face of white and black. She wore a black and red dress, but the red looked as if it were painted on; blood. He stared at her as if he didn't really see her, as if she were only an illusion. She waved her hands in front of her face, her fingers doing a dance of their own. It was almost hypnotic the way her eyes followed her own movements, the way her head tilted to the side as though she was questioning her own actions.
"A harlequin dance in the moonlight, the beams her only audience. A stranger disrupts her pleasure, and a bloody hand leaves the harlequin on her own…" she started to sing as she approached, just inches away from Braun's face. He remembered his poem, about the man with the painted face, and he realized something. His friend had told the truth, only it was really a woman with the painted face. Then out of the darkness came a man with a face just like the woman's. He had burning eyes and a sadistic smile on his face. Braun started to back away, but the man stepped behind him. Trapped between two lunatics, he was lost in his own confusion. The woman kissed him on the lips for a quick second and then she took a knife out of nowhere. She trailed his cheeks with it leaving bloody slits, and he was too afraid to feel them. Her eyes held an emotion that no one has ever experienced. It was more than hatred; it was repulsiveness, anger, and sorrow all in one. She brought the knife down and it cut through Braun's clothing and right into his chest. The woman plunged the blade in deeper and the man held the back of the long jacket Braun wore. She took out the knife and looked at the blood seeping through his shirt.
"Out in the cold, in my arms I enfold, I curl in a ball and I cry." Braun said as his own lifeblood slowly dispersed. He finally died and the man in black dropped the body to the floor. Katrina waltzed over to him and gave him a long and passionate kiss. Eric smiled and they both leaped out of the window together as the gang walked into the room.
"Hey guys, got a message for ya. Some chick came in looking for you. She said to meet her at your apartment at midnight." She said as she read it off of a piece of paper. They were all confused. They just shook it off and decided to worry about it when the time comes. They ordered their drinks and Braun took a small notebook out of his pocket. What the rest of the gang didn't know was that Braun was a poet. He never told them because he was afraid they'd think of it as a weakness. He wrote in it now and this is what it said,
"The dark of night leaves my sight as it quickly drifts by.
The deep black street all covered in mist, The fog would not desist, I walk alone and let out a sigh.
A figure looms in the fog up ahead, it leaves no footprints on the ground it has tread, the cool air drops down.
It's a man that leaves no trace, with a painted white face and a black painted frown.
A myth so I'm told, it cannot grow old, because legends don't die.
Out in the cold, in my arms I enfold, I curl in a ball and I cry."
He put the notebook away and took a few sips of his beer. The poem he just wrote was supposedly a myth that he heard from one of his friends, but Braun thought it was true. The guys finished their beers and they walked out without paying for their drinks. The refreshing night air was wonderful compared to the atmosphere in the bar. They all climbed into the car and Ditto started the engine.
"Hey, where's Beerbelly? I haven't seen him all night." Said Gutter, looking out the window. They all just shrugged and thought nothing else of it. They sped down the street, not caring whether or not who they almost just hit. Ditto parked the car outside of their apartment building. He looked at his watch; it read 11:52.
"Braun, go inside and see if that girl is there." He said, pointing up to the window of their room. Braun climbed out of the car and walked up to the door. He opened it and walked inside. He jogged up the stairs to their apartment door, and he unlocked it with his key. He peered in and saw that the room was dark. Braun walked in and someone shut the door behind him loudly. He spun around to see who had closed it, and saw no one. He looked around and searched the shadows for some sort of life.
"A little blue bird once told me he knew all, and then I tore off his wings and watched him fall…" sang a voice in a whisper. Braun got scared, and he stood stiffly in the middle of the room. He felt a hand brush across his cheek, although he couldn't see it. Then, right in front of his face stood a lovely woman with a painted face of white and black. She wore a black and red dress, but the red looked as if it were painted on; blood. He stared at her as if he didn't really see her, as if she were only an illusion. She waved her hands in front of her face, her fingers doing a dance of their own. It was almost hypnotic the way her eyes followed her own movements, the way her head tilted to the side as though she was questioning her own actions.
"A harlequin dance in the moonlight, the beams her only audience. A stranger disrupts her pleasure, and a bloody hand leaves the harlequin on her own…" she started to sing as she approached, just inches away from Braun's face. He remembered his poem, about the man with the painted face, and he realized something. His friend had told the truth, only it was really a woman with the painted face. Then out of the darkness came a man with a face just like the woman's. He had burning eyes and a sadistic smile on his face. Braun started to back away, but the man stepped behind him. Trapped between two lunatics, he was lost in his own confusion. The woman kissed him on the lips for a quick second and then she took a knife out of nowhere. She trailed his cheeks with it leaving bloody slits, and he was too afraid to feel them. Her eyes held an emotion that no one has ever experienced. It was more than hatred; it was repulsiveness, anger, and sorrow all in one. She brought the knife down and it cut through Braun's clothing and right into his chest. The woman plunged the blade in deeper and the man held the back of the long jacket Braun wore. She took out the knife and looked at the blood seeping through his shirt.
"Out in the cold, in my arms I enfold, I curl in a ball and I cry." Braun said as his own lifeblood slowly dispersed. He finally died and the man in black dropped the body to the floor. Katrina waltzed over to him and gave him a long and passionate kiss. Eric smiled and they both leaped out of the window together as the gang walked into the room.