a-ha one-shots

The Masked Singer (Morten Harket x Reader) PART 1

You looked at the small note in your hand and checked if you'd read correctly. The slightly crumpled piece of paper showed the sloppily marked instructions on a mini map of your home town.
Next to the visuals, an address was written in print letters.
Looking up, you checked the street sign and the house's number. The house you stood in front of had the number 3; however, the invite said it was number 13.
Up the street we go, you thought and walked up towards the foggy end of the street. It was going uphill, and your heavy dress made it a bit difficult for you to walk. With every step you cursed your gown, and your friends for inviting you to this ridiculous event in the first place.

- FLASHBACK -

"(y/n), I've got something for you~", your friend Lauren said in a cheeky tone.

"Could you wait until I'm finished here?", you huffed, lifting a heavy box into the trunk of your car.

You'd agreed to help your other friend, Heidi, move flats. Since you were the only with a somewhat large enough car at that time, she needed you to transport some of her belongings from point a to b.

"But it's just a piece of paper! Here", Lauren said quickly and shoved it into your face.

"Careful, some day you'll put somebody's eye out!", Heidi laughed while going back into the house to fetch some more boxes.

"Was damn close enough", you murmured while reluctantly taking the paper.
You unfolded it and briefly scanned the contents. "What exactly is this supposed to be? A map? For a treasure hunt?"

Lauren rolled her eyes and cackled. "It's an invite, duh. Turn it around!"

You did as you were told. "Costume Party - Venice Carnival" it read in bold letters at the top.
"Oh boy."

"'Oh boy' indeed, my friend!", Lauren beamed, "and you're so gonna go there!"

"I don't know, I might be busy that day", you lied hesitantly.

"You're lying. You always hesitate when you lie", Lauren said.

Heidi came up from behind you and dropped a heavy box in your car, "That's true, (y/n). She's got you there."

"Damn it."

Lauren grinned and lightly jokingly punched your upper arm. "It's going to be awesome, I promise. We're going costume shopping together in this cool costume store in the next bigger city. I even got some coupons!"

You gave her a weak smile. Your eyes still radiated a bitterness, even though you gave your best effort to make it seem genuine.

"Please come, (y/n). It's going to distract you a bit from everything that has been going on in the past few months", she said softly.

"I'll try. Thank you for the invite", you said nodding, and walked back towards the front door of the house to grab the next box.

- END OF FLASHBACK -

Little had you known back then, how much effort this was going to be.
The costume party was supposed to be in a Venice Carneval fashion, with gowns and masks. Especially the masks had absolute mandatory status: no mask, no entry. At least that's what the invite had stated.
The tight corset tugged on your lung volume as you were making your way up the street. Your certainly we'ren't envying the women of the past eras for their everyday fashion.

At last, you arrived at the end of the street. On a large gate, the number 13 was displayed in heavy iron digits. Behind the gate, on a fairly large property, was a small mansion of some sorts. You'd never been to this part of town, that was for sure.
Unsure wether you should just enter or not, you looked around for any other possible party guests. Just as you were about to take out your phone to text your friends, you heard a voice from behind shout to you.
You turned around and saw Lauren wave to you. Her gown was a very dark ochre in shade, which matched her dark locks perfectly. The fabric had a slight shimmer to it as well, making it almost seem dirty golden.