the mask shop (🇺🇸)

Greta's Plan

                 Wednesday morning came and seemed like a day like any other. Greta was standing outside her house at six-fifty A.M. still sleepy as hell. After she started dating Arlen she never went to school alone again. Showing up with him was like a statement to the other girls. 

"Have a great day, sweety!"

Her dad finally fully awoke her. She waved him farewell as he left the garage with his car.

"Boy, how I love that car."

She turned back to meet the one she was waiting for.

"You mean, "good morning, love of my life"?" 

Arlen  giggled and kissed her. 

"Good morning, G."

They walked hand in hand through the almost busy streets of Alcott. Simple little town stuff happened around them. Little kids were walking in groups with their teachers, deliveries were made, dogs were being walked by their owners. A regular Alcott morning.

Greta looked up at Arlen's sleepy eyes. "Will we have a car like that one day?"

Now he has finally woken up. "Hmm, yeah, sure babe."

"Wouldn't it be perfect if we had the exact same story as my parents?" 

"What do you mean?" He seemed confused.

"Are you kidding me? I've told you already. They met at school. OUR school."

"Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Right." Arlen pretended to remember. It was just easier that way.

"Staying through high school  together, supporting each other. Then, buying a place here, having children. Just like them. I'd like that." She said with dreamy eyes.

"That would be crazy!" Arlen let his thoughts escape his mouth.

"What do you mean crazy?" 

"I mean, having the exact same story you know? So many coincidences. That's what I mean."

"Oh, okay! Hahaha. But, wouldn't it be nice, Arly?"

"Sure, G. But we're talking about the future, right? Like, DISTANT future." There was a bit of emphasis on that "distant".

"Of course, my man." And she hugged him sideways.

Arlen secretly rolled his eyes over a bit, sighed, and kissed her on her head.

"Today is gonna be one of those days hard not to sleep in class. Let's get some stuff on the candy shop downtown?

Arlen looks at his watch. 

"Yeah, we can do that."

They take a right and the suburbian scenario takes only two blocks to become a business scenario. 

Greta walked around the shop just pointing out the candies she wanted while Arlen followed her and put every candy she wanted in a little basket, he struggled to keep up. At the register, a very old man waited for them. Greta didn't even try to pretend that she wanted to split the bill. She simply squeezed his butt and gave him a sexy wink.

"You got this, hon." 

Arlen sighed and reached for his wallet  in his back pocket as Greta walked out the store with the bag in her hands.

Greta didn't even see him coming. She was focused on her candy in the bag, trying to find an specific one in the midst of so many. She was so aloof that she crossed the street without looking both ways. Lucky for her, Arlen had been browsing the area with his eyes looking for her and he saw that the carriage would hit her if she didn't stop.

"Greta! Look out!"

She snapped out of it and jumped  back. As she looked up scared she saw what she never expected. An old-fashioned carriage being carried by a horse had almost hit her. The strangest thing was the conductor, a very well-dressed man in a white mask.  Above the carriage a sign identified it, "Mask Shop".

 Arlen rushed to her. "Pay some attention! He almost hit you! What are you thinking?"

Greta didn't mind him, she was still trying to process what had just happened. The old man from the shop joined them so he could see the strange sight, as did everyone around as a matter of fact.

"Oh my god." The old man couldn't believe his eyes.

"What? Who is that guy?" 

"A demon."

Arlen couldn't hold his laugh. "Pffff, what?"

"When I was your age, I saw the same man enter my town like that. Soon, strange things started to happen, people started to act strange. I moved away from there and never came back."

Greta and Arlen shared a look.

"Wait, how could it be the same man? How old are you?" Said Greta.

"I'm telling you kids, leave town right now! That's what I will do." He was in anger because the kids took him for a fool.

"Yeah, sure. The immortal masked man. What are you even talking about? That was probably like a magic shop or something." Arlen mocks him.

The old man grunts and turns his back on them, "no hope for this youth" he probably thought.

Arlen and Greta watched as the carriage left Alcott and disappeared in the forest.

"He sure is creepy." Greta laughed in excitement  as she chewed some candy.

"Don't get any ideias. We're not going there."

"Oh won't we? Goodbye then." Greta walked away in a provocative way.

Arlen rushed to her and grabbed her by her wrist. "Hey, hey! Wait a minute, don't do that."

Greta had simply thrown a fishing hook at Arlen, and he bit it without thinking twice. Greta knew exactly how to lure that fish. At his age, it was very difficult to resist to some desires. She was his candy and he would do nearly anything she came up with not to be without it.

"Don't worry, we are not going there." 

Arlen was relieved.

"Someone else is going for us"

Arlen couldn't understand why Greta picked on that girl so much, but once she had made  her mind about something, no one could change it. 

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