The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)

Boss and Un-Boss

Previously: "The Needle Skips" 

You quickly slap your shirt and boxers back on before pulling the door open a crack and peering out. It's that guy again. What was his name? Charles ... Whitney?

He pushes at the door, and after a moment's resistance you fall back to let him in. "I forgot the boss said to give you some of my clothes." He sighs as he trudges over to a chest of drawers. "By the way, I'm going out in a bit to meet some guys. Wanna come? What's your name again?" As he speaks, he pulls out and tosses a pair of jeans and some socks onto the bed.

"Will. Prescott."

"Where you go to school?"

"Westside."

"Huh. Is there a crew over there too?"

"A crew?"

"Yeah. Guys like us." From the closet he takes an electric-blue, long-sleeve shirt that (you can tell just from the styling) is probably five times more expensive than any shirt you've ever owned in your life. "You know. The boss's bitches."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Oh God, isn't he scrumptious?"

Jenna beams as she wraps her arms around the guy. He grins with embarrassment as she squeezes him in an embrace. At least, it looks like embarrassment, until he lifts his face to look at you. Then you see the glint of arrogant pleasure.

But he hasn't long to look so pleased with himself. Sean marches over to him, and with Jenna's arms pinning his arms to his side he has no way of blocking the gray mask that Sean pushes into his face. Sean grabs and supports him as he slumps, and drags him over to the dumpy sofa.

You join Sean as he stares down, with hands on his hips, at the latest person to get fitted with one of those masks. Zachary Holzer, from Eastman: That was part of the introductions that got made when Sean let him and Jenna into the house.

"Can I have him?" you ask Sean.

He looks surprised. "I thought you wanted Ethan."

You chew your lip. "We got Zachary first, so if you don't mind—"

Sean grins. "Kinda impatient, aren't you, brah?"

You hesitate. "I just want to be him, or one of them, while you're still being— You know. Like it was last summer."

Jenna, who has sidled up, says, "Okay, you guys are getting kind of gay, now."

"Shut the fuck up, man," you growl. "If you knew what the fuck it was like—"

"Calm down, bruh," Sean says. "And you shut up," he tells Jenna. "Sure," he addresses you again. "You can be Zachary, it doesn't matter to me." His grin widens. "You can be him when we go get Ethan."

"I'd wanna spend a day with you first. Make like it was when—" You swallow thickly. "When you and him were—"

"Sure," Sean says. "We can hold off getting Ethan until tomorrow."

You pull him into a tight, one-armed hug.

The mask reappears on Zachary Holzer's face about ten minutes later, and after peeling it carefully off Sean lays a metal band on his forehead. You are perched on the arm of the sofa the entire time, staring down at your victim. He's a kid about your age, with thick blonde hair brushed straight back into a high pompadour. He's not a bad-looking asshole, though his expression too easily curls up into a smug, punchable smirk, and he's well-proportioned. You hunch to hide the half-mast erection you are getting as you study him.

Then the metal band reappears on Zachary's forehead, and this too Sean peels off. He hands both to Jenna with the gruff instruction to "finish them off." "Come on, let's get you ready, bruh," he says to you, and leads you back to his bedroom.

- - - - -

Except it wasn't his bedroom, because it wasn't really Sean. That was not a thought that occurred to you at the time. But remembering it all now, you are aware that there was a difference. Usually, when Sean speaks to you, you have a compulsion to follow his orders. But that morning, which was several weeks ago, you felt no such compulsion. In fact, as with all your memories of the past few months, you remember no feelings at all. It was as if someone else was having the feelings while you merely acted them out. And you felt nothing either as Sean—or whoever it was that was looking like him—leaned over the bed on which you nakedly lay, and grasped your forehead by the temples.

The world had briefly winked out ...

- - - - -

You blink into Sean's face as he straightens up. There is a gleam in his eye, and a curl on his lip. "Okay, sit up," he says in a flinty voice. "Get your clothes off." You look down and find yourself in a white t-shirt and jeans and shoes that feel too big on your feet. Those clothes, and the sofa that you're laying on, and Jenna sitting in a ratty armchair as she brushes something into the inside of a mask, tell you that you are lying where Zachary had been lying. Without speaking, you get up and begin pulling off the clothes. When you're done, Sean takes them and goes down the hallway.

"Here," Jenna says a minute later, and holds out the mask. "Go give this to the guys."

"Why can't you?" you retort.

"Because," she snorts, "I don't also have some clothes I need to put on." She rolls her eyes and looks away.

You glance down at your own nakedness—feeling nothing—then take the mask and pad off down the hall after Sean, but he meets you right outside the bedroom door with his arms full of your clothes. These he exchanges for the mask, then ducks back into the bedroom and shuts the door in your face. You go into the hall bathroom. After a moment or two of examining yourself in the mirror, you dress, then go back out to the living room to wait. Jenna is on her phone, so you take out yours, and text Caleb to see if he wants to do anything later.

You are checking out social media—a new habit you have acquired in just the past few weeks—and posting replies to video clips and threads, when voices echo in the hall. You look up as Sean and Zachary swing into the room, their arms around each other's shoulders. Sean has a relaxed grin on his face, while Zachary wears a plump, smug smile.

That smile deepens into a punchable smirk when he sees you. "Brah," he groans, "so this's who you're hanging out with these days. Fuck me."

"We're all gonna be friends," Sean says.

"Sure." Zachary swaggers up and drops a heavy hand onto your shoulder. "You know who I am, right?" he asks, putting his smirking face close to yours.

"Sure, boss," you reply.

"That's right." He lightly slaps your cheek, then drops back and looks around. "Okay, so." He grins at Sean. "Wanna hit Taco Famoso?"

Sean's eyes widen. "Ooooohhhh! No!"

"Oooohhh yes!" Zachary laughs. "Come on, you don't wanna be a fuckin' pussy."

"What about me?" Jenna whines.

The guys look at her. Then Zachary, his arm back around Sean's shoulder, leans in to whisper gleefully in his friend's ear. The other chortles, and nods. "What?" Jenna asks.

"Sure you can come along," Zachary tells her. "But we have to pick some'n else up onna way." Without looking at you he says. "You can take off now, Prescott. We'll call you later if we want you." You nod, and let yourself out while he and Sean are still laughing about something.

"You have any idea who the new guy is?" Caleb asks you later when you tell him of the events at Sean's.

"Just the name. Zachary ... Shit, now I forgot the rest of it."

"You're such a bubble brain." Caleb takes out his phone. "You said he's from Eastman?"

"Yeah, and they're gonna get someone else out there to go with him and the girl." You cast your mind back to the introductions. "That fucking Jenna is hot.."

"Any chance she's gonna start hanging out with us?"

"I dunno. The bosses get weird when they get new faces. You looking for Zachary Whatsisnuts online?"

Caleb gives you a look. "No, how can I look Whatsisnuts up online if I don't know Whatsisnuts' last name? I'm just checking to see if Meghan's posted in the party thread." He looks uncomfortable.

You stare. "Are you still trying to do something with her?"

He flares. "Well, why not? I was—! Until—! And you and Katy are still—!"

"I didn't mean—! You just surprise me is all."

"How come?" He thrusts out his lower lip.

"I dunno. It's just not like you, man. Stalking a girl."

He glowers. "D'ju hit the gym after school again today, dipshit?"

"What's that got to do anything?"

"If you can still hit the gym these days, I can still—"

"That's different, dude! That's just, um—"

"Yeah, it's totally different," Caleb snarks. "You and the gym, you and Katy, you and your new posse, ever since—"

"The boss told me to hit the gym every day! And I like it!"

"He told you to like it! I was there when he said so!" He smiles sourly. "It's like I don't know who you are anymore, Will."

"Dude, no one says you can't work out with me. I'll show you how to work the machines and all, if you—"

"That's not the point!" He sags. "Besides, someone's got to babysit Keith, keep from realizing that both his best friends are—"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Uh ... Yeah, there's some more of us over at Westside," you tell Charles.

"Well, me and the Eastman crew are going out, kill the rest of Saturday." He looks very unimpressed as he gives you another up-and-down. "You can come along if you want."

Next: "The Morning Of" 

*
"Table of Contents (Vol. 2)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)"