Area Unknown

Monster

Gage and I entered into the lobby. It was a dim room with stained brown carpet. The fabric was thin, unraveling, and a dark shade of brown. Certain parts were darker as though someone had spilt splotches of water here and there. It might have just been the way the room was.

There was a chandelier hanging above us, though it seemed like the brightness was lowered to fit the room. A single wooden staircase rose up the back right and led up to a porch. Three doors broke off that and led down into what I assumed were seperate hallways.

The lobby was quite big, obviously fitting the rest of the house to size the rooms in. Ahead of us was the check-in counter with a middle-aged man standing infront of a wall that looked more of a poster board. Keys hung on little notches. Every set was there besides one.

Not many residents.

The man's desk was in the center of the room, right below the light fixture. He watched as we approached, though he was frozen and still.

"Uh, excuse us, how much is it for two rooms?" I asked, peeking up from behind Gage as we stood before the desk.

"85 dollars a night," he responded with a smooth, deep voice. He was in about his mid-thirties with a square jaw, faint beard, wavy brown hair, and tan skin.

"How much do you have?" I whispered to Gage who was flipping through his wallet.

"Shouldn't you kids be with your parents? This isn't some attempt for you two to prove a point and run away from home, is it?" The man asked.

Gage snapped his eyes towards the man a frowned right at him.

"We are not kids. I'm 23 and she's 21," he shot back.

I was in shock.

How did he know my age?

The man only looked away casually, not really caring what he said. Gage looked angrily at his wallet and began to count out money.

"Don't spend the money we have to give to the police," I warned him quietly. He elbowed me and scoffed, shooting me an angry look as if to ask, "Why the heck would I?"

After a short moment, he snapped the wallet shut, shoved it into his pocket, and slammed the money onto the counter.

"Change for the ten," he added quietly, making sure he still got the correct change.

The man began to count out money from a machine when someone grabbed my right shoulder and shoved me to the left with a surprising force. I stumbled and quickly collapsed to the carpet. I whipped my head back at them and widened my eyes as the stranger slammed his hand down on Gage's money and pushed it towards the man behind the desk.

"What is wrong with you?!" Gage snapped at the stranger.

Suddenly, the intruder whipped his head towards Gage, still not showing me his face. Gage gasped and took a slight step backwards.

The man turned farther to the right instead of simply looking back around the left to see me easier.

I was taken aback by the stranger's "face."

He wore a white, grinning mask under his hood. After staring at me on the ground for a moment, he turned back to the desk and reached into his pocket.

He pulled out a wad of cash and pressed it onto the counter.

As the worker took his money instead of ours, the masked man turned and looked at both of us once again, twisting his torso to see me on the floor.

"You two shouldn't be here," he spoke. It was dark and deep, adding onto his mysterious and suspicious character.

"Why not?" Gage asked, looking at me.