Terrifier: Splatter

13

Danny would probably regret this later.

No, she knew he would regret this. Letting a stranger into your home? He didn't even know her name yet! "My name is Mallory." she broke the silence, glancing over at him before she went back to looking at the night sky through the car window. "Danny, but you knew that already." he joked, knowing she looked at his nametag.

"So, if you don't mind me asking, who is after you?" he questioned. They entered into a neighborhood. This part of town wasn't familiar to her, it looked luxurious. She thought about how to explain this without seeming like she was crazy. "A clown."

"Oh... an ex, or?" He thought it was a metaphor for something. How funny! She sighed. "He's dressed up like a clown, he's not my ex anything. One day, my friends and I saw him while we were on a roadtrip, just bad luck really. He killed all of them, and ever since then he's been trying to get me and... kill me? I don't even know at this point. I get it if you want to stop the car and throw me out."

He was quiet for a moment. "No... just give me a minute to, uh, process this." They arrive at a house after they end their conversation, and she can't stop the surprised reaction she has. The house is two story, fancy looking, and huge! She could practically fit a hundred of her old house in this one.

When they got out of the car, which was parked in the spacious driveway, she walks to the water fountain that was in the center of the entrance. He walks behind her. "You're rich?" she said, turning to him, still in shock.

He chuckled. "Not rich... just a little wealthy."

"Exactly what a rich person would say." she murmured, going with him to the front door. She would've never guessed it, him working at a small café, appearing humble and all. He opened the door, revealing two spiral staircases that led up to the second floor, and a room on each side of them. One was your standard living room, and the other was an entertainment room. There were arcade machines, and a pool table in the middle, this one interested her more.

She walked in, watching the small step down so she wouldn't trip, before going to one of the machines, moving the joystick. She felt like a kid again, and this was the type of house she would imagine herself living in during her childhood. Mallory laughed in astonishment, "Wow. How come you work in a café?" she asked.

Danny smiled, thinking of fond memories. "My mom used to work there, and I'd always want to help her, even though I couldn't reach the counters yet. Now, I like the simple environment." She nodded, and he spoke again. "You can check out the rest of the place, I'm heading to bed. Pick whichever bedroom you like, they're all upstairs."

Before he left the room, he looked back at her. "By the way, I have a security guard who stays here, his name is Everett. If you need anything, just ask him."

She continues to explore the house. The downstairs had the entertainment room, the living room, the kitchen, a bathroom, and two rooms that looked like they were for fancy celebrations. Mallory went upstairs, going around the spiral of the stairs, she almost went tumbling back down when a muscular bulky guy was at the top, nearly bumping into him. This must be the security guard. He was dressed casually, in a regular t-shirt and pants.

"Hi, I'm Mallory. Danny told me I could stay here for a while." she introduced herself. He gives a curt nod, not saying anything in reply. He waits for her to step away from the staircase before he goes down. "Okay then..." She checked out the rooms upstairs. Like Danny said, mostly bedrooms. She counted five, each had a different aesthetic. There were also two bathrooms, both of which were bigger than her old bedroom.

There were two doors that she couldn't open. One she was sure was Danny's room, since it was near the other bedrooms, and the other was at the end of the long hallway by itself. She wondered what could be in there for a brief moment, but was too exhausted to think about it. Sleep was the main thing on her mind.

She selected the bedroom she liked the most, considering both appearance and how comfortable the bed was. She laid down, wrapping the blanket around herself, and went to sleep within minutes.

◇

Mallory found herself going down the steps early in the morning, half asleep. The smell of fresh eggs and pancakes woke her up. She went to the kitchen, and saw Danny over the stove, flipping a pancake. He turned around to grab a plate. "Good morning." he says.

She rubbed her eyes, sitting on one of the barstools, then she yawned. "Morning. Do you usually cook for yourself? I thought you'd have a cook." she spoke softly, and he smirked. "I do, but when I have the energy, I cook instead. When I go to work later, she'll come so you can get the best meals."

She smiled. "Oh, thanks." She watched as he served two plates, and put one in front of her, placing utensils on a napkin. All under a minute. "I can tell you work at a café."

He laughs, before sitting on the barstool next to her. They both started to eat. "Yesterday, when I was looking around," she began, chewing on the pancake, which was perfectly made. "I saw this room... the door was locked. I don't wanna sound nosy but..."

"But you want to know what's in there?" he guessed. "Yeah. I'm honestly just a little paranoid, sorry." Mallory clarified, looking down at her plate.

"It's fine, I get it. I can tell you that I'm not a serial killer." His words weren't exactly comforting, especially after everything she'd been through, but she pretended to fully believe him, nodding as he spoke. "But what's in that room is private, so..."

"Okay." She decided not to pry any further, since he had been very kind to her so far.

She stays in his house for a couple of days, then it turns into weeks. He was very generous, letting her stay this long, and she was thankful. She had been safe from Art, and could finally take a breather. Mallory thought to herself that she could live like this, in this house, with Danny. Of course, neither of them have made any moves on eachother, since there was never a right time, but she was liking him more with each day.

While he was at work, which was often (since he did work two jobs), she would talk to Everett, who rarely ever spoke to her, but he was a good listener. Or she'd speak to the maid, Zoe, who would also cook her gourmet meals everyday.