S.M.A.S.H

IV. Break Stuff

Song for this chapter: Revelation of Doom by Gorgoroth (Fun fact: this was the first black metal band I listened to)

Nine people were huddled into a small closet with barely enough to breathe. None of them dared to. Their boss (I guess you could say) had received some rather upsetting news, and was not handling it well. In fear for their lives, they hid in the broom closet of the warehouse, hoping that Courtney would let them be. 

"What even happened?" Brianna whispered, tears brimming her eyes. "Like, this is so unlike her." 

"Oh, I told her about Chosen," Auntie Wine explained. "I heard, through the grapevine, that he's left her to work for SMOSH. Isn't that crazy?" She let out a light chuckle. "God, I could really use a glass of merlot right now. Anyone else?"

"Oh, no; rosé would be so much better," Brianna replied, sniffling. "Or maybe Chardonnay?" 

"Are you ladies done chattering?" Straight Chanse snapped. "This is serious!" 

"Yeah, a man could be put to death at the hands of Courtney Freakin' Miller and he'd never get a fair trial," Judge Betty said. "Well, it's not like he deserves it, but still." 

Burgerman opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a sharp scream in the distance, followed by a thud. Brianna's hand flew over her mouth as she gasped. 

"Oh, my God. I'm actually going to die." A single tear strolled down her cheek, as if for dramatic affect. 

"Pipe it," Bunny Boy snapped. "She'll calm down in a bit."

"Don't tell me to pipe it!" Brianna cried. "I'm feeling, like, seriously threatened right now. Oh, my God; you're such a bitch." 

Everyone's attention was drawn from the forming tension by soft sniffles from down below. They had forgotten about Toddler Topp, who, in a mix of fear of Courtney and from the tension in the closet, had begun to cry. 

"Now look what you've done." Businessman knelt down (to the best of his abilities) and attempted to hug the toddler, who clung to his leg like a magnet to a fridge. Brianna looked at the child with mild disgust.

"This is actually the worst day of my life." 

____________

At seven forty-five that morning, you and Chosen pulled up to the SMOSH headquarters. Surprisingly, though, everyone else was already there. Usually, most people got there a little after eight. Yet, here they were, all crowded outside.

"What's going on?" You asked, getting out of the car. 

"Well, when Keith got here, he saw that some of the cars were still in the same places that they were yesterday, and then he saw that the door had been broken, so he didn't want to go inside by himself. Right now, we're all just trying to figure out what happened." Shayne gestured from the cars to the door, a distrusting look in his eyes. "You actually brought him?" 

"Yes, she did. I want to help," Chosen yawned. "Why do you people get here this early? No wonder Shayne can carry Thanksgiving dinner under his eyes." 

Shayne rolled his eyes, and looked to the small crowd around him. "Should we call the police? Just in case?" 

"No, not yet. There's not really a cause for concern yet; just a broken door. It could have been caused by literally anything," Damien said. 

"I think he's right," Chosen agreed. "Just go in and see if everything else is fine. Then you can call the police." 

Shayne studied Chosen's emotionless face, but didn't object. He opened the door, careful not to step on any of the shattered glass on the floor, and stepped into the building.