Author's Note:
For the non American readers
80 F = 26 C
72 F = 22 C
75 F = almost 24 C
"You guys!" Jackson struggled, but Clawd was stronger than a minotaur. "REALLY! LET ME GO!"
He defeatedly laid against what felt like a semi-jogging werewolf.
"I thought you were my friendsss" he whined.
"We are your friends!" He heard a muffled Heath "That's why we're kidnapping you! Come on we knew you wanted to go to the creepover!"
Creepover?! Creepover.
Jackson was stuck with the thought of him not being able to fix this potion thing by tonight.
Inhaling and channeling his panic he started thrashing as much as possible.
"OW! HEY!" Clawd exclaimed as Jackson kicked him in the stomach.
"Wow he really wants to do his homework tonight…" Gil mused.
"Maybe we should like calm him down?" Deuce mused. Jackson could feel Clawd slow down. "It is Holt after all."
Calm him down? What did they mean by that? He felt a hand go for his jacket pocket where he kept his music.
Wait were they unplugging-
"WHY IS IT ON FIRE?!"
"When he transforms he flames up like me! Just put it out!"
Holt's heart was beating out of his chest.
He couldn't see and his eyes were burning.
Someone was holding him down.
Smoke was filling up his immediate space. Coughing he thrashed against his kidnapper who held him tighter. Flinging his hand against someone's head. Kicking arms that were grabbing his calves.
"WHY IS HE STRUGGLING MORE?!"
"HE'S ON FIRE! WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?"
"I thought he was the calmer one!?"
"Heath put it out!"
"What why me?"
"Right. Gil put it out!"
"What? That's not how it works!"
"I will fight all of you! LET GO!" Holt yelled thrashing harder.
Heat on his head.
He saw a flash of green light and whatever surrounded his face got very heavy and fell to the ground with a stoney clunk.
Squinting in the sunlight of outdoors, he twisted more til he was finally let go of and rolled to the ground.
His glasses clattered around somewhere off his sweaty face.
"Clawd?" He asked dazed.
"Ok in retrospect." Gil reasoned "The pillowcase wasn't the best idea…"
Holt was still out of breath.
"Why were you kidnapping me…?"
"Uhhh." Heath started, then smiled "Surprise creepover. Get in the car!"
"The what?"
Clawd nudged him as he stumbled into an open car. He squinted still overheated as his manster buddies all climbed in, surrounding him and squishing him in the middle.
Deuce tossed Jackson's glasses into his lap.
Gil buckled his seatbelt.
Deuce started up the car as Holt got a brief glimpse of the sparse after school Monster High parking lot. Before speeding off.
Holt dug his feet into the divider uncomfortable being in the middle spot. And still in nerd wear.
This was supposed to get fixed tonight.
He tapped his finger on the seat.
Holt looked around his friends, "I'm going to assume this is for the creepover thing."
Heath looked to the backseat happily "Totally!"
Holt smiled having a genius idea "Can we stop by my place to get my stuff then?"
"No need to we already got your stuff from your mom!" Heath answered reaching for the radio before Deuce wisely swatted him away.
"What? When?"
"Lunch. She actually seemed kind of happy that you were going out tonight. Weird, right? I always thought she thought I was a bad influence"
"You are a bad influence…" Gil mumbled. "Clawd, really?"
"What?" Clawd asked sticking his head out the window enjoying the wind.
It didn't take long for them to pull up to Heath's house, a one story relatively normal looking house. Well for monsters anyway.
Not like he hadn't been there before.
He wound up getting a bag of his stuff pushed into his lap, noting his favorite flame print boxers, and Jackson's stupid math camp shirt being in the mix.
His mom had probably picked out the two to please the both of them.
A gaggle of teenage mansters stood on the doorstep waiting for Heath's struggle of unlocking his house.
Holt getting pushed into the sudden poof of oven hot air coming at them with the open door.
Heath's house was, to describe it best, sweltering. Stuffy, and mostly made of uncomfortable things that couldn't catch on fire. Like tile flooring and concrete walls. It wasn't very attractive, save for a couple of abstract paintings on the wall, of… fire?
Beside the scorched ratty looking sofa, that greeted them in the immediate living room, there weren't many soft things to his memory of the place.
Clawd was already panting.
Gil's helmet fogged up.
"Hey mom! Turn off the heater!" Heath yelled.
There was a brief moment of silence before an "Okaaay"
Heath rolled his eyes dragging Jackson and his friends to the immediate left hallway that led to his room.
A pale woman with scarlet hair wound up wandering into the living room they were exitting, but caught sight of Holt first.
"Oh hey Jackson!" she greeted.
"Hi Aunt Cel." Holt felt uncomfortable scooting towards his friends.
"Still burning it up at school?~"
Heath sighed dramatically "Mom what does even mean."
"Oh you know you kids, with your … phrases~" she started humming while getting distracted by the themostat.
Holt could hear Deuce lightly laughing in the background.
"Like, 80's good for you kids right?" she asked.
"That's fine" Heath started.
Clawd interrupted "Yeah like, no? Maybe uh 72?" he asked desperately.
"72? I mean sounds a little dramatic but ok" Gil and Clawd sighed with relief, though heard something about a mumble of compromise and 75 as they made their way to Heath's room.
Clawd didn't ask permission as he immediately opened Heath's window in his room.
No one disputed as Heath's room had the usual odor of a teenage boy's room, that is if the boy slept in a fireplace.
Gil hovered around, going to Heath's bathroom to peek in
"Heath when was the last time you cleaned your tub?" he asked meekly.
"Why would I need to wash it?" Heath rolled his eyes "Everyone knows when you use soap in the tub, it washes itself, duh."
Clawd face palmed. Deuce bit his lip like he was trying not to laugh.
"I'll… get my sleeping bag out then…" Gil sighed tugging out a plastic sheeting to line his sleeping quarters with.
"Don't worry Heath, my bathroom wasn't good enough for him either" Deuce whispered, then looked at Holt directly, smiling.
Holt awkwardly smiled back, while Deuce got out something from his bag.
"I made that playlist by the way."
"What?" Holt asked. Checking his skin just in case. Still normie…
"You know uh Holt-proof songs as you put it?" Deuce explained, giving him his iCoffin with a playlist marked Jackson mix.
"Why'd you … make this?" Holt asked, still kind of boggled.
"Because we're friends?" Deuce snorted.
Jackson had friends?
Deuce continued "And believe me, it wasn't impossible to find songs. But I couldn't always identify whether or not they'd be enough to make you transform. I mean I think I understand time signatures but I really need you to test them all before I make you a CD." he paused "Your car takes CDs right?"
"Yeah." Holt looked at the iCoffin. Remembering how much he missed rocking out. Music was like his life. "Can I test it now?"
Jackson safe music wouldn't be half bad while he was stuck like this
Flip side.
Even if he did get back to normal by tomorrow. Who knows what music he was missing out on outside his transformation parameters.
Heath piped up "Uh I was thinking Guitar Monster soon but I think mom's using the TV for a little longer."
"Sweet…" Holt started plopping himself on Heath's bed.
Scratchy bed…
He looked down seeing a dark green woolen blanket under his comforter. Then grinned turning to Heath and announcing loudly "You still sleep with a fire blanket?"
The rest of the boys seemed confused, Heath madly red embarrassed. Holt was still cackling.
"What is that. Why is that important?" Clawd asked, as the other mansters seemed just as clueless.
"I mean it's kind of like Heath still wets the bed…" Holt laughed.
"Ok! You don't get to be on my bed anymore!" Heath flamed up tackling Holt and dragging him off. Deuce made a mad grab for his iCoffin before someone squished it.
Heath had his best effort of making sure Holt wasn't sitting on his bed, dragging his bedding with them in the tussle. Heath finally rolling off in a frustrated blanket bundle.
"Is that why you still need it?" Holt smirked pointing at Heath's burning comforter atop his head.
Who quickly started patting it out in a panic.
"Don't tell dad…" he whined.
Clawd opened the window to it's max and tried to fan the smoke out but it didn't really smell any different from the rest of the house.
Deuce dropped the iCoffin in Holt's lap for the second time, after he settled into a beanbag chair.
Giving him a look as he went to helping Heath reset his bedspread.
Holt gave a look back, but, it felt like everyone had been looking at him weird lately. He was beginning to not care.
Holt ran one earbud up to his ear to check out the new beats.
Seeing another playlist in Deuce's music set, titled "Cleo Party Requests." Remembering he'd gotten a similar list about a week before any planned party.
"Hey, it's friday, shouldn't you be helping with the party or something?" he asked Deuce.
"Ghoulia's got it covered." Deuce explained looking relieved "Thankfully… I think they're going last minute dress shopping tonight, after the swim meet."
"She doesn't have a dress before the day of her own party?" Clawd asked, knowing the girls.
"Oh she does. But this is the back up, back up, back up dress." Deuce continued, counting on his fingers "You know just inc-"
"Did you say swim meet?!" Gil asked suddenly popping out of the bathroom.
Heath brushed charred blanket into his trashcan, while Gil seemed to panic.
"Shoot… Lagoona's gonna kill me…"
"Aw man, sorry dude." Clawd piped up "I knew Draculaura was cheering at it, I just figured you would rather be here. I didn't realise you'd actually forgot."
"Same." Deuce added with a degree of indifference. "I mean you're here now. So no use worrying about it."
"It's not the swim meet itself I'm worried about, it's my girlfriend, the swim captain's, reaction that I'm worried about." Gil slumped against the doorframe, sliding all the way down to a sitting position.
"It's probably over by now." Clawd pat Gil's shoulder before musing aloud "I wonder what the girls are up to…"
Holt had similar thoughts. Though mainly of Frankie in her fearsquad outfit.