I do not own Monsters inc. or any of their characters. But I guess I would theoretically own mine. But that seems like a rhetorical thought, don't you think? Oh, well. Hope you enjoy Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Adventures at the Mall

As soon as we were released from assembly, Bruce, Kim, and myself hitched a ride with a friend of mine and went to the mall. Now the Monstropolis Mall you know today is nothing like the one we went to back in the day. At the time it was only two stories and still under construction in places. Most of the fountains didn't work yet and every now and then the power would go out in a random area. There were about thirteen stores that either moved or went out of business, mostly due to folks like me and the three-finger discount. They catered to different things ranging from music, to beta, video games like the Arteri3400 and Shreak-o-vision, clothes, and who knows what else. I can't remember everything, now can I?

Before we went to the theater, I made a quick stop at Monstrop. Mail, an odd store I went to every now and then. This was the place where I purchased all my attire, save the boots. Anyway, this visit was not for clothes, this was for something else.

"Wow," Kim said gazing on the apple of my eye, the soul core of my desire and avarice. The Frazder PX-2357 was the most magnificent electric guitar I had ever laid eyes on. It was a forty inch scale length Neon green and black "Flying V" design with two Maple wood bolt-on necks/ fingerboards, two triple saddle bridges, two vintage single-coil Precision Bass pickups, vint. Frets, Dot inlays, two distortion bars, and twelve tuning knobs. It was the mother of all guitars.

I gently plucked it up off its display case and began to play the opening licks to Stairway to Heaven.

"Hey, kid! Can't you read??" A snotty clerk yelled at me while he pointed up to a sign hanging from the ceiling. It read, "NO STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN!"

Bruce looked at me kinda' sour faced and said, "Ahh, Stairway denied man! Bummer."

I put the guitar back on the stand and we left. A few stores down from Mail was the theater. I happened to know a guy who worked there and always got me in for free. Today was no different.

"Hey Chet, what's up?" I asked. Me and Chet were really good friends when we were kids. He was a few years older than me, so he had just graduated the year before and was working at the theater for the time being. Chet was yet another reptilian type monster I had become friends with. "To each his own" I guess you could say.

"Yo Val, what's cracking?"

"Nothing much. We need a few tickets for, uh, The Lunch Club," I said winking. We had decided to see some blood n' guts slasher flick, but to cover my ass, we got tickets to some teenage comedy.

"What's with the chick man? She looks like a human. Is she even with you?" Chet was looking panicked and I knew if I didn't think fast, cousin Kim was going to be in a real pile of shit.

"No way man. She's a distant cousin. Show him your fangs Kim." Kim gave him a flash of the teeth and I continued. "She's a vampire. It's not her fault she USED to be a human. Cut her a break, man."

"Oh, sorry. I really am."

"It's cool. I get that a lot," Kim said as we walked in.

When we got inside the actual screen room, the picture was already starting. All three of us climbed up the stairs to the seats in the far back. They were right below the projection box. About twenty or so minutes into the film, guess who comes strolling in, yep, you guessed again, Sullivan and Wazowski. I leaned forward and whispered to Bruce, "If it starts getting heavy, I want you to take Kim to the food court and hide near the burger joint. I'll meet up with you in a few minutes." He nodded his head and we waited.

"Well, what do we have here? Two losers and a hot chick. What are you doing with these creeps?"

"Go away Sullivan, we're trying to watch a movie here. And don't talk to my cousin." I said. It might not sound like they were tough words, but trust me, they were.

"I don't think anyone was talking to you, loser," Wazowski said thru a mouthful of popcorn. The little cornels flew out of his gaping maw and landed on already filthy floor.

"Yeah, doesn't this theater have a no fags allowed policy?" Yet another "witty" crack came from the blue oaf.

"I guess, but the seem to have an open-door stance on assholes." After saying this both Kim and Bruce giggled.

"That's it loser, you're dead meat!"

"Now!" I yelled and punched Sullivan in the nosed, with all four hands. He fell and rolled down the stairs clutching his bleeding nose. Bruce lunged forward and "poked" Wazowski in the eye, with his foot.

With them incapacitated for the moment we made our second move. I broke left, they broke right. I ran down the stairs and jumped over the two morons. As planned, they quickly got back up and began to follow me. I headed straight for the men's room and waited in one of the stalls. I had the door almost wide open, but I also had my foot on the back, ready to kick it in. Sure enough, a few moments later, there stood Sullivan. Blood was dripping all down his face, one eye was swelled shut, he had a chipped tooth, and, if I wasn't mistaken, his nose seemed to bend a little too far to the right.

"Now I'm gonna' kill you Loser. I'm gonna' rip your head off and shit down your neck! Then I'm gonna' go and …" I didn't let him finish. With a swift kick and a sickening smack, I had ridded my mind of any doubt that his nose was not broken.

I knelt down to check Sullivan. When I was sure he was out, I grabbed his wallet and snagged a couple of twenties. Then I headed for the door. Just when I was almost home free the little red eye got in my way. I stopped and hesitated for a second. After a few seconds of quick thinking, I picked up a nearby garbage can and plunged it right into his face. With another crack sound, I knew that was the second broken nose I'd given today. Once he was out in the floor, I ran for the exit before someone could come to investigate the ruckus.

After I met back up with Bruce and Kim, we grabbed a quick bite to eat from the money I had "found" and then we left. Fortunately, the afternoon bus was just stopping outside.

It was about the middle of the afternoon when I got home. Bruce was now at his house, probably getting high and me and Kim were a block down the street from my house. Usually I would have been thrilled to get home, but the police cars outside were kinda' a mood killer. We got off the bus just out of view of my house and I told Kim to hide out in the shed until I came to get her.

When I went inside, there stood mom and two officers of the law.

"Are you Val Boggs?" One asked.

"Yeah, what do you want?

"Were you at the Monstropolis Theater this afternoon?"

It then clicked in my head. I'd been ratted out by the dumbass duo. But, being the sly devil that I am, I played it cool. "Yeah, why?"

"We have a report that you attacked James Sullivan and Michael Wazowski during a screening of "Sorority Babes Massacre Five" and we…

"Nope, wasn't there," I said while pulling out my ticket for the other movie. "I couldn't have been there, you know how those ushers are. They're like Nazis with those tickets." This seemed to throw them off my sent. At least for now.

"Fine. I guess that'll do for now. But we're keeping an eye on you son."

"I'm sure of it," I said as I turned around and walked up the stairs to my room.

So, what'd you guess think? Hoped you liked it. Please leave reviews; I love to hear from you people. "Stairway to Heaven" is a copy write of Led Zeppelin. I got a few lines from Heathers and Wayne's World. And last, there were a few hints at The Breakfast Club, the Atari 2600, and the Colecovision game system. Please don't sue me.