Who Killed Markiplier?

Chapter 8

You sat quietly with Damien for a few minutes. You couldn't stop the tears, but this time you really didn't mind them. It felt good to let out your emotions. After a while, you broke the silence.

"Hey, remember the time we all went to the park to get drunk and Mark ended up taking the peanut butter from our picnic basket and trying to "seduce the squirrels" with it?" You wiped your eyes and smiled at the memory.

"Back in high school? Yeah, of course I remember," Damien chuckled. "Do you remember the time Mark tried to do his own makeup and he had to call you for help because he couldn't figure out how to get it off?"

You laughed. "He used the waterproof kind! Of course it wasn't going to wash off easily!"

You and Damien sat together for over an hour talking about Mark's strange personality and experiences. It felt good to laugh. It felt good to step away from everything and just be with your best friend.

After a while, you let your mind wander while Damien talked. Of course you thought about him. Damien. "The mayor" now. You were so proud of how far he'd come. You thought about all the times you spent with him before he became too busy with work. Late night talks under the stars, crazy 3am adventures, and hilarious eating contests that you usually won. You loved him, there was no denying it. You always had. But you never told him. It was your doubts and insecurities that got in the way. Besides, he hadn't done anything that would indicate that he had feelings for you as well.

You were brought back to attention when Damien waved his hand in front of your face.

"Hello? Are you still alive, there?" he joked.

"Yes, I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"I asked if you at least had fun during the party. You were... rather wild, I must say. I certainly hope you had a wonderful night." He kept glancing at your face, almost as if he was judging your reactions.

"I'm sorry, Damien. I must have had too much to drink, I don't remember much." You felt the frustration creeping back in. What if you had seen or done something important? You should have controlled yourself better. You looked over at the mayor and noticed he looked... distant. However, when he noticed you looking, he smiled again.

"Ah, that's understandable. My memories are a bit frazzled as well. If I am remembering correctly, though, I did a keg stand." He sounded strangely proud of himself. You snorted, then immediatly covered your face in embarrassment.

"That sounds like you from 10 years ago," you giggled, peeking out from behind your fingers.

"I felt like me from 10 years ago! I didn't have a care in the world last night!" He laughed.

"Waking up this morning was awful. Everything hurt! What did I do last night?" you asked.

"Oh... um, nothing too bad, really." You turned to look him in the eyes. Was he blushing? "You robbed me blind in poker. Again. You stole three boxes of crackers from the kitchen, which of course infuriated the chef." He couldn't look you in the eyes. "Again, nothing too bad."

"Damien," you said slowly. "What did I do last night?" You were becoming slightly nervous.

However, just as he opened his mouth to respond, a muffled gunshot rang out. After a moment of confusion, fear stabbed your heart and you were up and racing toward the house. Damien followed close behind. You threw open the doors and immediately you heard the sounds of a fight. You found them near the front entrance.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE PLAYING AT, BUT YOU BETTER LOWER YOUR WEAPON, YOU MURDERER!" It was the detective, shouting at the top of his lungs.

Lightening flashed as the Colonel responded. "I bloody well won't! You're the one that assaulted ME! For all I know, YOU could be the murderer!" Lightening flashed again. You would have been annoyed if you weren't so scared. The two men both had guns pointed unwavering at each other.

"What the fuck is happening here?!" you shouted. You flinched and held up your arms as the Colonel aimed his gun at you, but he almost immediately turned back to the detective. That didn't stop Damien from stepping in front of you protectively.

"Last chance, drop your weapon!" Abe shouted, completely ignoring you.

"Everyone, please!" Damien cut in. "I know we're all on edge, but can't we resolve this amicably?"

"On edge? This PSYCHO tried to shoot me!" The detective refused to take his eyes off of the Colonel.

"That's a bold-faced lie! You raised your weapon first!"

"Oh really? Because I think-"

"ENOUGH!" You pushed past Damien and stood in between the Colonel and the detective. Their weapons lowered slightly and they both looked somewhat startled. "Both of you! Do you really believe that this is going to solve anything? You're just making the situation worse!"

"He shot at me!" The detective protested, raising his weapon again and trying to aim around you. The Colonel did the same.

"I did no such thing! You're the one making a scene, you're the one responsible for all of this!"

"Mark was my friend! You've always hated him, William! You're obviously the murderer!" Lightening lit up the room for the umpteenth time that day. You couldn't keep them distracted long enough. They were going to kill each other.

"Don't say that!" The Colonel took a step forward as Abe took a step back. You moved to stay in between them.

"Please, stop!" Neither of them even acknowledged you.

"Don't you DARE accuse me of that!" Will continued. He took another step. "Mark was my friend as well! He was a difficult man to love, but I loved him all the same!" Another step. The detective was being backed into a corner.

Damien grabbed your arm and pulled you out of the way.

"Enough of this horseshit! You knew I was onto you and you tried to kill me before I could out you as the murderer!" Lightening. Another step. The detective's back hit a shelf and a vase came crashing to the floor. You were almost overwhelmed with panic, yet you couldn't make a sound. You couldn't even move to stop them. Damien held you tightly and you both stood there, unable to react.

The Colonel clicked his gun's hammer into place. "DO NOT CALL ME THE MURDERER IN MY OWN HOME!" You buried your face in Damien's shoulder and waited for the gunshot.

Instead, you heard the front door crash open and an unfamiliar, feminine voice.

"STOP!"

[The past few days have been exhausting. I apologize for the lack of updates. I know this chapter might not be the best, but please forgive me. It's almost 2am. Also, I'm sorry if the romance or "fluff" isn't all that great, I'm pretty shit with anything like that. I promise you, I'm trying. ANOTHER THING! Once I reach chapter 10, I will go back through all the chapters and make small corrections if need be. Whatever mistakes you've noticed so far won't be there forever!]