Phantom Chained

Chapter 27. Night of Terror. Ingrid.

To nobody's surprise, we didn't get first place. When the three Larsen brothers entered the stage in their steampunk costumes, the audience went into such an uproar that their screaming managed to drown out the electric guitars. Matty, however, was not amused and proceeded to yell right in my ear about how unfair this was; how supposedly they weren't Halloween costumes and the brothers always wore those to clubs. But honestly, I couldn't care less. I couldn't even begin to imagine the process of creating those cylinders with spinning gears! Not to mention the leather jackets with metal parts and all sorts of lights; each one was a work of art. Plus, they were worn on a naked muscular body! And each and every body moved to the rhythm perfectly! You don't just forget about the prize, you want to be the prize!

After Matty realised I wasn't listening, he left to talk with the organisers and I didn't complain. At least I've had my share of dancing and screaming today. It was so nice to feel like a part of society again; just forgetting about my problems and jumping around like an idiot for one night. I do, however, have to give some credit to the cocktails that people snuck through in coke bottles. The school committee should've supposedly checked for that kind of thing, but they ended up being the first ones to get plastered. In the end, everyone was happy.

Shortly after, Matty returned and reassured me that I had nothing to be upset about anymore and he had everything sorted out. The stage was set for yet another competition, this time 'The most terrifying couple', which we ended up winning. I suspect that Matty annoyed the organisers so much that they had no choice but to quickly think of a way to get Matty off their backs. Victory for the sake of victory, how typical of men.

When we climbed down from the stage, Matty grabbed me by the hand and dragged me to a nearby room, promising that "This ain't over yet!"

He came back quite quickly, eminently marching in front of a tall blonde girl with a pixie cut who was carrying a mountain of multicoloured boxes and bags. As she stepped into the room, she began to desperately look around for a place to dump everything.

"Our prizes," Matty began. "I just had to figure out why some nerds were getting everything when others got nothing. Here; I picked these just for you!" He handed me a giant pumpkin-ball on a stick and turned to the girl, who I assumed was the poor administrator.

"Put all of that in a bag," He diligently told her. "We'll get them later, I just want to take Inga for a walk."

"Oh! Inga, it's you!" The girl exclaimed. "I didn't even recognise you with that hairstyle! Is that a wig?"

"No," I smiled while desperately trying to remember how we know each other and what her name was. "I straightened my hair out for the party... you know, to fit my costume better."

"It really suits you." Replied the still unknown administrator girl. "Well, I'll leave you two to it. The bag will be here when you return. Have a pleasant walk!" She winked and hurried out of the room.

When I turned around, Matty was already handing me a coat and a scarf.

"A walk? Why?" I whined while slowly getting dressed. "What's up with you and your spontaneous surprises today?"

"We need to talk and this place isn't the most private. Plus it's stuffy as hell!" Matty complained. "Which idiot thought it was a good idea to throw a party at a wharf, where there's absolutely no ventilation?"

"And last year you complained about them organising it at school, remember? You kept going on about how it was 'too formal', 'extremely boring' and so on."

"Of course I remember. And don't tell me I was wrong. Anyway, you ready?"

"Ready. Are you going in your costume?"