Night in The Mall ~ A Karlnap and Dreamnotfound Short Story

~4~

George POV:

"Excuse me kind sir."

Her sweet voice catches the attention of all of us. She talks specifically to Dream and I.

"I noticed the kind act you've done there, and I would like to give you a token for your appreciation!"

"Oh please ma'am, you don't need to give us anything-"

"Oh darling, I insist!"

She pushes the tray in front of our face.

"We only want the kindest people in this casino, and you've proved that you are kind. Here, I have a free treat for you two! There's even enough for your friends in the back!"

I lock eyes with Dream, we share a weird look. 

"No really, we're okay! We need to get going to the second floor, where the mall is!"

Dream says. I can see a vein appear on the lady's forehead. I lean in to Dream's ear and whisper,

"She's getting angry."

I back away and look at her with a smile, ready to counter everything we just said.

"Actually, we would love to have some! What is it?"

I grab one for me, the others follow. We all take a bite at the same time. The treat bursts with flavor in my mouth. All of our eyes widen, as we hurry to eat the rest. It tastes... addicting.

"Lotus flower."

By the time she responds we're all done with our treat. I beg for more and start to feel a bit woozy.

"Please may we have one more each? Just one more I promise!"

The lady nods her head, a smile forming on her face before she walks away.

"Have as many as you want..."

She walks away to get more delicious flowers. Sapnap stumbles and almost trips over his feet.

"Guys, is it just me, or is the time moving so slow?"

"I know right, we should go do something!,"

I suggest. Dream points to a nearby slot machine. 

"Let's go there!"

We all follow him, forgetting about the woman for the time being. For some reason something doesn't feel right within my soul, but I continue walking over and playing anyway.

Dream pulls down on the handle. The screen spins faster than usual, making me dizzy.

"Seems like you're enjoying yourselves, here's some free treats to make your stay more enjoyable!"

We eat them all up in an instant, then stumble along to the next game, and the next game. We go around blowing our cash on God knows what. No really, I don't remember what we did at all. A rising suspicion grows in me, but I deny it once a kind lady offers us some lotus flowers.

We end up at a poker table. Chips clink against each other as we play. I'm still left suspicious though. A woman comes to our table.

"Hello, would you like some delicious lotus flowers to accompany your game?"

We accept them with no hesitation, eating them in one gulp, then continuing our game.

Her words echo over and over in my head. "Lotus flower." Lotus flower. Lotus flower! I know that plant, I swear! But from where? 

Another voice echoes in my other ear.

"Attention shoppers and gamblers, the night has sadly come to an end. Please return tomorrow at eight am where the fun will resume!"

Wait, how late is it? I glance down at my phone. The clock reads 10:57pm. Wait, 10:57?? We left at seven o'clock! Something has to be wrong!

A wave of realization washes over me. I know where lotus flowers are from.

Lotus Flowers: The lotus plant represents individual pleasure – as those who consume it are able to escape into their own mental paradise. However, feasting on food represents communal pleasure and togetherness.

Oh, no.

The lady swings by our table once again. I realize I don't remember. How many times has she passed by and fed us these treats? How much time did we spend playing games, or playing poker? How long have we've been stuck here?

"Here's a tray of free snacks for you lot, please enjoy your stay!"

She skips away to God knows where. Everybody reaches for one except me. I slap the flowers out of Karl and Dream's hand, but it's to late for Sapnap. His teeth sink in the the treat, confused on why I knocked the lotus out of the other's hands.

"Hey, what was that for?"

"Yeah, why didn't you slap Sapnap's?"

I sigh and shake my head, confiscating the flowers from the others, while Sapnap continues eating his portion.

"You guys, they're lotus flowers! Wake up! Why hasn't this worn off on you guys yet!"

Karl's expression goes into a state of realization, then he immediately goes into panic.

"How long have we've been here? How many times did she feed us those flowers? Why-"

"Casino closing in one minute. Please exit the building and return tomorrow at 8:00am where the fun resumes!"

Dream looks confused, and Sapnap continues to stuff his face.

"What are you guys talking about-"

"Security is roaming the halls for any outliers. The Casino Mall is officially closed."

I start to panic as well. Dream is still intoxicated, Sapnap is long gone because he ate the last flower, and Karl and I can barley get a word out. Oh, and the mall is closed, which is just lovely!

"What's going ooooon~"

"Shush Sapnap! Everyone get under the table!"

Everyone complies, everyone but Sapnap. I tug on his foot in attempt to pull him down, but he stays put.

"Guys~ Where did you go?~"

"Sapnap if you don't get down here this instance!"

"Wait but he's right, you guys aren't explaining. What's happening?"

"Both of you be quiet-"

Karl stops scolding them at the noise of footsteps. They get louder and louder, signalling they're approaching.

"Guys?~"

"Oh my god-"

Karl exclaims, then quickly grabs Sapnap's shoulders from under the table and brings him down. He slaps his hand over his mouth tightly. I follow his actions and cover Dream's mouth as well.

I can see legs walk past our table slowly. I try to stay calm, but Sapnap does the stupidest thing ever. He grabs Karl's hand off of his mouth and shoves him away.

"Sapnap, what are you doing?"

I whisper. But it's too late.

Sapnap gets up from under the table and walks with heavy steps. By this point Dream has gained his conscious back and looks confused at the scene. Karl shakes his head vigorously and closes his eyes. I rub his back with my opposing hand, trying to calm him down.

"Hello~"

I see the footsteps stop on their tracks, as the security guard paces back to Sapnap.

"Well well well, look what we have here. We're going to have to take you with us."

He talks into his walky-talky, ordering backup. Sapnap slurs his words and tries to walk, but it's no use. Two guards appear and take Sapnap by the arms. They drag him across the room and into an unknown place that we can't see.

I look back at Karl. Fear traces his eyes. I can feel him shivering under my touch.

And then the lights go out.