Demon Cleaner / Eltorey

TWO

"Are you sure it's not too soon to be doing this?" Corbin asked Corey, shoving his hands into his pockets.

They stood in front of the Whaley house, Elton and Evan were up on the porch talking to the property owners, while Jonah checked their filming equipment in Elton's car.

Corey shook his head and stared down at his feet. "I don't know," he sighed, "but I don't think there's anything I could do to make Elton stop."

Corbin groaned softly, turning over his shoulder and watching as Matt pulled into his street parking spot. Corey chewed on his bottom lip, still staring at the ground. He had protested all morning, practically begging Elton to consider postponing their future filming dates.

"Corey, this is our job," Elton had finally snapped at him as they stood in their kitchen, "I've spent too long trying to get permission to film at the Whaley House. If you don't want to show up, fine, I'll film the entire fucking thing by myself if I have to."

Corey only came to make sure Elton didn't do anything stupid or too crazy, but quickly realized the night was going to be miserable.
Because Elton would do something stupid and crazy anyways, and Corey would have to pretend that it's all okay and he wasn't going to bicker with Elton on the drive home.

"Hey," Matt called out with a small smile as he approached the group, "how are you guys?"
His smile dropped as he stood next to Corey, watching the man stare up at him with a scowl.

"What happened?"

Corey laughed and rolled his eyes. He pointed out to Elton, who still had his back turned to the rest of the group. "Were you not there when he got fucking possessed?"

Matt and Corbin sent each other a quick look, before Matt placed his hand on Corey's shoulder, patting him gently.

Before anybody could say anything else, Elton jogged down the stairs and past the group with a big grin. Matt and Corbin trailed behind him as they made their way over to Elton's car. Corey followed, shaking his head and dragging his feet.

Elton clasped his hands together and stood in front of the group, Evan finally wandering over and completing their small circle.
Corey hadn't seen him this cheerful in days.

"Alright gang," Elton said with a small giggle, "let's get our stuff inside. We've got eight hours, let's make them count."

Corbin and Matt grabbed a couple of their suitcases of gear, carrying them into the house and placing them in the front hallway. Jonah and Evan helped each other with their cameras, adjusting their lights and making sure their cameras were mounted safely.
Elton took a small box out of his trunk, tracing a finger over the symbols engraved in the aged wood. He bit his lip as he picked a small piece of the wax seal away, slowly wandering back over to the house.

Corey scoffed again, grabbing their final gear case and following him slowly. Elton didn't put the small box down when they got inside, he tucked under his left arm and caressed it with his right hand.

"What even is that?" Corey asked, setting his case down and standing in line with Corbin and Matt. Elton stared straight ahead, waiting for Evan and Jonah to come inside and begin filming their intro.

"You'll see," was all Elton said. He was stood on the other side of Corbin, all the way down the line from Corey.

Corey shook his head and folded his arms over his chest. He wanted to let it go, hoping he could get through this video without losing his mind, but he couldn't.

"No, I won't see," he said sternly, "tell me what it is."

Elton shook his head and clutched the box closely, still refusing to make eye contact with anybody. Evan and Jonah could still be heard adjusting their equipment on the street.
Corey couldn't believe it. He continued to stare down the line of people at Elton as he dropped his hand.

"Alright," Evan muttered as he walked up the front steps. Jonah followed, closing the two behind the two of them and shining his light on the group. Matt and Corbin tried to break the tension, chuckling awkwardly as they shielded their faces.
Corey and Elton didn't budge.

Evan and Jonah began recording, and Evan gave the group a small countdown as he stood straight in front of them, acting as their main camera as usual.

"Hello everyone!" Elton suddenly cheered, "and welcome back to the Overnight channel!"

Corey could feel the shift in Elton's attitude, pitching his voice up and giving the camera a large, fake grin.

"Are you joking?" He cut in before Elton could continue.

Everyone froze, and their smiles dropped.

"About what?" Elton asked, turning to face Corey with furrowed eyebrows. He looked upset, his lips curled into a small frown again.

"I'm not starting the video like this," Corey said, "with that shitty fake grin and that weird voice. Why the fuck are we doing this? Is nobody else concerned that Elton literally got possessed? Also we're not starting the video until you tell me what that box is."

Elton bit his lip, finally turning his body towards Corey. Corbin took a small step back and stared at the camera, wishing Evan could help him in some way.

"We're not starting the video because you just interrupted me," Elton practically growled, "and the box is supposed to be a surprise for later. Can you let me do this without bitching me out?"

Corey laughed, a painful and frustrated laugh.

"Bitching you out? That's what you think is happening here? Alright."

Corey took a step forward and swiped at the box in Elton's hands. The older moved quickly, taking a step back and hiding the box behind his back.

"Don't touch it," Elton breathed. His voice was low and shaky. As he stared into Corey's eyes, all the brunette could see were his dilated pupils.

"How would you feel if I did this?" Elton continued, reaching a hand out to try and pull at the cross Corey wore around his neck.
Corey gasped and swatted his hand away, "what does that even mean?" He clutched the cross in his hand and held it to his chest, taking a step back.

Elton went silent. He held the box in front of his chest and tapped it slowly, still staring at Corey. He didn't say anything else.
Evan and Jonah had lowered their cameras but not stopped recording, genuinely in shock of what was happening. Corbin and Matt had taken a few steps back and stared back and forth between their arguing friends, too scared to speak up.

"I'm fucking leaving," Corey said as tears formed in his eyes, "this is getting way too weird, and I don't know what your problem is. I think we should all leave."

With that, Corey stormed out of the house.