CHAPTER 18: THE FUNHOUSE PRANK
Today was Tuesday, and the best holiday out of all of them besides Christmas: Halloween. After getting a heads-up from George yesterday about his leader wanting to meet, I finally got the phone call right after my last class of the day. I regrouped with Cameron and we started making our way to the Bullies' hideout in Bullworth Town. According to Cameron, they liked to hang out at an abandoned motel right near a railroad overpass that separate the downtown district from New Coventry, a crime-infested ghetto which I had yet to explore myself. Cameron offered to drive me over to the motel, but instead we took my car. I had to go fill it up with gas later after I meet up with Taylor Northrop.
"An abandoned motel? That's a very weird place for a group to hangout", I pointed out. "Apparently, it's been their hideout for over 20 years", Cameron tells me. "They like the creepy atmosphere as well as the stories behind the old motel". "Stories?" I asked her. "There's been stories about how the motel owner, Milhailovich, killed people in his motel and kept their bodies in the motel rooms. There was even a story about how he killed a female Bullworth student while she was taking a shower. Butchered her with either a kitchen knife or a chainsaw or something like that", Cameron explained. "Sounds like someone spend too much time watching Psycho", I told her. "Good film, but I liked the Bates Motel TV show more", Cameron tells me. After a while of driving, we made it to the old motel.
I pulled up into the parking lot and parked it right in the middle of the asphalt. Once I set the car in park, we both hoped out and looked around. Man, was this place in despair? The windows were all smashed, some of the doors were either missing or hanging off their hinges, some of the roof shingles were missing, and there was a bunch of trash everywhere. A lot of the trash had to be the Bullies' doing because some of the pizza boxes looked recently fresh and not ruined by the weather.
After a while of looking around, we both went straight into the motel office. This room was much cleaner than outside in the courtyard. On the front desk of the office, there was a hand bell, probably left after previous ownership. I rang the bell a few times and waited for somebody to come. After a while, somebody came out of the backroom and told me, "You can stop with the bell. I heard you the first time". This kid had spikey reddish-brown hair, green eyes, and had a body that would probably grant him a job as a male model. You can clearly see his well-structured body underneath his skin-tight shirt.
"Are you Taylor Northrop?" I asked him. "Yeah, I am", he answers. "I'm…." I started to say, but was immediately interrupted. "I know who you are", he began to say. "I saw you that night when Jake and his friends humiliated you on the field as well as that night when you shot up his entire team. Pretty epic karma in my book". Once he finished his statement, he turned to Cameron and asked her, "You're the anti-bullying advocate, Cameron, right?" "Yeah, and it's not a secret that you oppose my beliefs, especially after what you did last year", Cameron says out-loud.
"What happened last year?" I asked them both. "Taylor here thought it would be a good idea to spray-paint over my anti-bullying posters as well as eye my supporters when I had them rallying up at the Old Bullworth Vale park", Cameron answers. "We had to stop the protest", Taylor argued. "We're just protecting our tradition passed down from previous generations. My father, who's serving sometime in the Happy Volts Asylum, passed it down from the previous generation to us. I'm not going to get rid of tradition just because some liberal bitch says that we have to take feelings into consideration". "WHAT?" Cameron yelled.
Right before she could get a hold of Taylor, I put myself between the two of them and said, "What happened in the past is in the past. We need to focus on the bigger issue at hand, and that is the Jocks. Can you two put your rivalry or hatred to the side and just focus on the Jocks?" With that said, Cameron stepped back and said to Taylor, "Greg's right. We need to work together. I'm willing to put behind what happened in the past…. for now. You summoned Greg for something, so what is it that he needs to do to get you to help him?"
"Well, good. Straight to business, eh? My friends are at the funhouse over at the Carnival waiting for you. They are setting up an ambush for the Jocks", Taylor stated. "Oh yeah, the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event. I forgot all about it", Cameron says out-loud. "The what-now?" I asked them. "Every year, the Carnival sets up a scary event within the funhouse with certain themes", Cameron started to explain. "Last year, it's theme was Resident Evil…. The games that is. This year, they're basing it off some film that came out over 20 years ago. It was based on some event that happened in Carcer City. Tons of people died; gang members, police officers, and some former film director who fell out of Hollywood favor, or Vinewood favor. One of those". "And the Jocks always go to this event", Taylor added in. "I would attend with the Jocks every year myself, but because I am not a part of the Jocks myself, I think I'll skip it this year", Cameron says.
"Just as a recap, I head over to the funhouse over at the Carnival and meet up with the rest of the Bullies. How will I know who the Bullies are though?" I asked Taylor. "They'll be dressed in black t-shirts with a red 'B' written on the front, black cargo pants as well as Ghost Face masks. They won't be too hard to miss", Taylor answers. "And aren't you coming?" I asked him. "I need a ride", he tells me. "You can ride with us", I told him.
The three of us left the office and then got back into my car. I started up the car and then drove out of the parking lot. While driving through Bullworth Town, I asked both Taylor and Cameron, "How about some music?" "Why not? I'd like to hear what crazy music Eric Young has playing tonight", Taylor says. I turned the radio onto Bullworth Underground Radio and heard what Eric had to say about tonight.
Hey guys, just because it's Halloween doesn't mean that you won't be able to hear any music from Bullworth Underground. I'll be setting up a playlist that will play while I'm out enjoying the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event as well as, well, my life. Anyway, I found a good song worth playing as of right now. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Depeche Mode with Enjoy the Silence.
"It's not a horror song, but at least it's something good", I said out-loud. After a while a driving, we made it to the Carnival parking lot. While there, we saw that the parking lot was completely full of cars. There was not one spot for where I could park it. Wasn't much of a surprise though since parking lots are usually crowded when there are special events going on. "You said you had to fill it up with gas earlier, right?" Cameron asks me. "Yeah?" I replied. "I'll take it to the gas station for you while you and Taylor go to the funhouse", Cameron suggested.
"You're sure?" I asked her. "I wouldn't be much help in there anyway. Let me help you the one way I know how", she tells me. I got out of the car and told her, "Just put $20 worth of gas. I always fill up at around half-empty anyway. Thanks, by the way". Just as I closed the door, she backed out of the parking lot, did a 3-point turnaround, and drove down the tunnel that we just came through not too long ago. When my disappeared out of sight, both me and Taylor then went to the ticket booth, bought our entry tickets, and entered the gates.
I have not once been to the Carnival. I never knew that this town even had one. I was going to have to check this place out right after I completed my task with Taylor and his gang. "So, where is the funhouse?" I then ask Taylor. "You never been here, have you?" he then asks me. I shook my head and he gave out a sigh of disbelief. "You really should come out here often, make new friends", he tells me. "I would be had it not been for Jake and what he did", I reminded him. "Just follow me. I'll take you there", Taylor then tells me.
I followed Taylor through the tight crowds, trying to push through as we made our way to the funhouse. While pushing through the crowd, some of the townsfolks cursed us out for s either pushing them into somebody else or spilling their refreshments. After a while of following Taylor, we made it to the funhouse. The entrance to the funhouse was in the shape of a clown's face, with the mouth being the doorway inside the building. Of course, since there was a special event going in the funhouse, there was a long line going straight into the building.
"So how do we get into the building?" I asked Taylor. Just as I asked that, he dug into his pocket and pulled out some ID cards. "They're fake, by the way", Taylor says. "I would never ask my friends to help out with any kind of event. We're not the helping kind unless there's something in it for us". "And you saw something in helping me?" I asked him. "Freedom from the Jocks", Taylor tells me. "They've been a thorn in our side for far too long. When George told me about how you helped the Jocks, I wanted you dead. However, after your attack on the field, I somehow knew you were the real deal. I just hope you don't let your heroic deed get into your head". "I won't", I told him.
Once he handed me the fake ID card, we hooked them onto our shirts and then went up to the front of the line. Once we got there, we were stopped by one of the guards on duty. "We're here to help out with the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event", Taylor addresses to the guard right before holding up his ID card. I did too when the guard turned to me. "Go on through", the guard told me. We walked through the doorway and started making our way through the funhouse.
"According to George, my friends should be at the one hallway where the miner automations should be", Taylor tells me. "Lead the way. It's my first time here if you don't remember", I told him. With that said, we then started making our way through the funhouse.
While we were making our way inside the funhouse, I couldn't help but notice how everything looked like the surroundings of an abandoned city. Not surprising since Carcer City has some abandoned buildings and city blocks that are mostly run by gangs and criminals. I haven't been there myself before, but from what I heard that's a road trip that I will avoid at all costs. After a while of walking, we made it into this one hallway that looked weird and had a dirty floor rather than the standard hardwood floor and carpeting like the rest of the building. "We're here", Taylor tells me as he climbs up this ladder on the wall.
I followed him up the ladder and soon enough, I found myself with the rest of the Bullies. "Taylor, glad to see you", one of the masked Bullies said. "Glad to see that you also decided to help us", the same Bully says to me right before pulling his mask up, revealing it to be George. "I need your guys' support. You need mine, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity", I told him. "So, what's the deal?" Taylor started asking George. "Has the Jocks come by yet? You got the goods?"
"The Jocks should be coming soon", George tells Taylor. "We got the Stink-Bombs and the Itching Powder in the duffle bag as well as both you and Greg's outfits. You better change into them quick before they show up". "Did you get my exact size?" Taylor asks George. "We did", George replies. "As for you Greg, we just got you a large t-shirt, a size 32-34 pair of pants, and a Ghost Face mask as well". "Okay then", I said as I went to the bag and digged up my shirt, pants, and mask. Once I got everything I needed, I stripped off my clothes and quickly changed into my outfit. Once I got done changing, Taylor was the need one to change. While stripping down to nothing but his boxer briefs, I noticed how much more of an attractive body he had. I'm not into men that kind of way, but he had the kind of body I would like to have. I work out from time to time, but there was no way I was ever going to have a body just like his.
Once he got done changing as well, we both crotched behind the cardboard cutouts that blocked the handrail from the visitors' view. These cardboard cutouts stretched from the railing down to the floor. It's funny how I didn't notice them earlier when I stepped in this room. "What are these cardboard cutouts supposed to be anyway?" I asked the Bullies. "They all look colorful and large like some huge building or something". "They're supposed to be boxcars like you see in the trainyards", Taylor says. "There was a scene in Blood Night where the protagonist had to cut through the trainyard while being stalked by corrupt cops and SWAT units. You really got to see the movie when you get the chance". Once Taylor answered my question, we then started noticing people coming in through the door that we just came through. Looks like the event has just started.
….
For what felt like an hour, we waited for the Jocks to come into the room just so we can harass them. "Where the hell are they?" Taylor mumbles under his breath. "They're usually the very first to come into the funhouse on Halloween", George whispers. After a while of waiting, I was about to give up when I felt my phone vibrate. I quickly pulled it out of my pocket and checked who was trying to communicate with me. I turned it on and saw that Cameron has texted me, telling me that the Jocks just got into the funhouse. "They're here", I whispered to the others.
We each got our Stink-Bombs and Itching Powders ready for when the Jocks entered the room. We were going to ruin their night. Nothing says Halloween rather than hazing those who did you wrong. 'Trick or treat', as many people would say. But rather than the treats, they were getting the tricks. I just hope that we do get them and not any unlucky family or even a cop. After yet another while of waiting, they finally entered the room. One of the Jocks in the room was Jaquon. Oh yeah, this was going to sweet.
Once they were in the room, Taylor whispered to the others, "Wait for my signal. We want to get all of them, not just one or half of them". Again, we had to wait. The anticipation was killing me. I really wanted to go ahead and throw all that I had at Jaquon. But since this was under Taylor's control, I had to do what he said; otherwise, I could kiss the Bullies' support goodbye.
Luckily though, once Taylor knew all the Jocks were in the room, he gave the order. "NOW", he yells to everybody. We all rose from our hiding spot and suddenly started throwing everything we had at them.
While the Bullies threw their weapons at random Jocks, I threw all I had at Jaquon. One of my Stink-Bombs struck him right in the face, causing him to fall backwards onto the ground. After a few more of the bombs were tossed on him, he then started vomiting. "I HATE STINK-BOMBS", he yelled. After that, I tossed all the Itching Powder onto him. Not only would he probably smell like the boys' locker room for a few weeks, he was going to have a serious rash for the rest of the night.
Once we used up all our weapons, we finally decided to get the hell out of there. While all the Bullies ran down the catwalk, I went down the ladder and went up to Jaquon. When I approached him, he turned his vomit-covered face towards me and said, "I will get you back". "No, you won't", I said underneath my mask. I then kicked him right in the ribcage and quickly ran down the room to regroup with the Bullies.
Once I caught up with the Bullies in the next room, they were all congratulating one another for their success. "Remind me to never piss you guys off again. The last thing I want is to be bombarded by hundreds of Stink-Bombs", I told them. We all then immediately left the funhouse through the exit and ran as fast as we could out of the Carnival. Even when we exit through the gates, we ran through the tunnel and paused to catch our breath when we reached the Bus stop.
While the Bullies waited for the next Bus to show up, I texted Cameron where to pick me up. "You did a good job, Greg", Taylor tells me as he patted me on the back. "Thanks for your help. Let us repay you for your deed". "If you want to repay me for helping you, then help me and the Nerds attack the Jocks at their next game. That is how you will repay me", I told him. "Despite the fact that the Nerds are our enemies, we'll help them and you. Just tell them to take a shower before we meet up and plan how we're going to attack", Taylor tells me. "I will", I tell him. "What day you want to meet up?" he then asks me. "We'll meet up on Thursday", I tell him. "Now we need a private place for everyone to meet up". "Our hideout in the school basement will do just find. Let's set the meeting for 6:00 PM. We'll be there and welcome you and the Nerds in. Deal?" Taylor says. "Deal", I tell him.
Just as we set up a date for the meeting, a School Bus pulled up and all the Bullies got on. Just as the Bus started to pull away, Cameron pulled up in my car. I hoped into the passenger seat and told her how successful the job was. "So, they're going to help?" she asks. "Yup", I answered, "even with the Nerds. Funny how enemies can decide to help one another to take down a common foe". "I didn't believe it at first, but I think you just might make a difference", Cameron tells me. "Thanks for the confidence", I told her.
After a while of driving and hearing Bad Voodoo by Kreeps, I asked Cameron, "You have any plans for Halloween?" She turned to me and answered, "Not really. I was probably going to go to bed once I knew you got back to the school safe". "How about we hang out for a while?" I asked. "Just hang out as friends. It's Halloween, for Pete's sake". "Okay", she says. "You want to go to Shin Jo? It's a Japanese restaurant, all-you-can-eat buffet", Cameron suggested. "Why not?" I said. "Let's go".