The Monster Bash (Merrikat)

Chapter 2

Clearly, he didn't give a shit about his stuff and Jack could easily change the locks. So why was Jack still even bothering to hold onto it?

A terrible idea occurred to him and he pulled out his phone, a small grin tugging at his lips.

"Hello?" Zack answered on the first ring.
"Wanna help me burn the assholes stuff?" There was no doubt about whose stuff Jack was referring to. "Hell yes! Bring it over to mine I know the perfect place."

It was Brendon who answered the door when Jack arrived. "Hey man!" Brendon greeted, pulling Jack into a hug.

It was funny to see him without the white face paint or fangs. His hair was messy and he wore large glasses that sat slightly crooked. Jack had the feeling he hadn't been up very long.

"For the record, I think this is a brilliant idea. No better way of removing negativity from your life than to burn it away, metaphorically at least. Not sure actually setting the bastard on fire would be looked upon too kindly." Jack couldn't help but laugh at that.
"Probably not, still tempting though."

The other two were sitting at the kitchen table. Ryan was in his pyjamas and had a mug of coffee held close to his chest whilst Zack was fully dressed in a muscle tank and jeans. A bottle of lighter fluid sat on the table in front of him.

"You are a terrible influence." Ryan was saying and Zack rolled his eyes.
"Oh give it a rest Ry," Brendon muttered as he led Jack in.

They both turned to them as they entered and Zack smiled. Ryan didn't look impressed.

"I'm only going to say this once." He began. "But Jack, you really need to think about this. I know he hurt you and right now you are angry, you have every right to be, but is burning all his stuff really the answer? You guys were friends before right? Doing this is going to pretty much guarantee that you'll never be able to get back to that. It's malicious and petty and it's not going to fix anything. You have to be sure."

He knew Ryan was coming from a good place but really he wasn't interested in a lecture on morals. "Noted. You ready?" He asked as he turned to Zack who grinned. "You know it."

They stuck Alex's stuff in Zack's trunk before he drove them towards the edge of town. "The woods?" Jack asked confused. "This isn't serial killer-ish at all." Zack laughed.
"Trust me, there's this little clearing with some log benches and a fire pit so we won't set anything alight that we shouldn't or disturb people."

They gathered the boxes and Jack followed Zack through the trees. It was eerily quiet, the only sound the crunching of the dry autumn leaves under their feet. The bare trees seemed to loom over them as they made their way through to the clearing.

"So how'd you want to do this?" Zack asked as he dropped his box in the surprisingly cosy setting. The place seemed more suitable for watching fireworks and toasting marshmallows under a shared blanket than revenge burning your ex's stuff.

"You want to start a fire and throw his shit on bit by bit or use his stuff to start the fire?" Jack couldn't really say he'd thought about it. He looked over the random items as he thought. "How about a bit of both?" He suggested. "Set the clothes alight to start it off then throw the rest of it on top." Zack nodded in agreement, eyes glinting with glee.