Andre - Page 47

"There's no boomstick in the basement," you concede, heading toward the treeline near the lakeshore. Out in the open of the grassy yard, you break into a jog, but not too quickly. You don't want your heavy breathing or thunderous footsteps to alert the demon to your presence. Just as you reach the comforting safety of the trees, a flicker of movement catches your eye.

"Psstt!" A voice calls out from the underbrush. A honeysuckle tree moves to the side and Darren pokes his head out. His face is covered in mud like a military commando. "Get in here," he whispers, holding the branches back just enough for you to climb through.

"Heidi..." you start, wanting to tell him what happened but not sure how to phrase it.

"I know," Darren calmly states, never peeling his eyes from the house. "I never really liked her anyways." The calm manner with which Darren speaks of his recently decapitated girlfriend is startling and unsettling, to say the least.

"Really?" Is all you manage to stammer past your initial shock. "I mean," you try to recover, "why not?" Your recovery fails. Darren shakes his head and sighs.

"Look," he begins to explain, "I'm the quarterback. I could fuck ugly and still get any girl I want. I was just with Heidi to keep the other guys off my back."

"What do you mean?" You wonder. You've never had that kind of problem - and a problem as attractive as Heidi sounds like a good problem to have.

"Are you kidding me?" Darren exclaims, quickly lowering his voice again. "That slutty bitch was such a vapid waste of oxygen. She didn't even know the difference between meat and vegetables!" You can't help but laugh. It all just feels so absurd. "If the star quarterback isn't hooking up with a hot bimbo, the other players will eventually realize that I'm gay."

"Wha-  Wait..." you stammer. "You're gay?" Your mind can't fathom what your ears just heard.

Darren's face blushes a deep red. "No way," he shouts as loudly as he dares. "I mean, the other players would think I'm gay." Darren's eyes dart from the house down to some fallen leaves beneath him. "I like girls just as much as everyone else..." His voice trails off and he sounds more like he is trying to convince himself than he is trying to convince you.

"Whatever," Darren finally concludes. "I'm not gay."

"Neither am I," you state flatly, not knowing what else to say. "What do we do now?"

Darren scans the area and moves deeper into the woods. "There's a trail here," he says as he starts to walk away. "You can follow me if you want, but I'm getting as far away from here as I can."

What do you do?

To follow Darren deeper into the woods, turn to page 99.

To head back to the house in search of different, straighter company, turn to page 45.