Chapter Nineteen

1 0 0
                                    

Delirious found Evan at the bar with a glass full of Whiskey that he couldn't bring himself to drink. He sat beside him and smiled behind his mask at his friend. Evan wouldn't have been able to tell he was smiling if it wasn't for how happy his eyes seemed. He started giggling hysterically.

"Brock kissed you!" He said in between chuckles.

"Shut up, man!" Evan demanded. "I-I'm not... like that."

"Like what?" Delirious asked. "It was Brock! Everyone loves Brock, so it doesn't count!"

Just then, Brock found the two. Delirious stood up, lifted his mask just enough to show the bottom half of his face and, he too, kissed Brock for an uncomfortable amount of time. This time, when Delirious pulled away and set his mask back in place, Evan and Brock were the wide eyed and confused ones.

"See?" Delirious said.

"I knew it!" Lui said as he leaned on Evan's shoulders. "I knew you were a gay clown, Delirious!"

"It's not gay!" Delirious defended. "It's Brock."

"Sure..." Lui mocked. Evan stood up from his stool and gave Lui a long hug. When he pulled away, they shared a friendly stare down.

"Come on." Evan said. "We have a job to do."

=====================

Evan, Brock, Delirious, and Lui walked through Craig's door, cheering as they did as a way to announce their victory in retrieving their old friend. They expected to get the same response of happiness, but when they saw their friends glued to the TV, they grew concerned.

"We got Lui..." Evan announced. Craig turned, saw the four and waved them over.

"You have to see this." He said, his voice coming off low, but worried and urgent. The four walked behind the couch and began to watch television with their friends. On the screen, the camera panned around a facility that surrounded the lake in the Alamo Sea. It was enormous. Red eyed IAA agents surrounded the structure, guns in hand, ready to fire at any moment. A Colosseum lined the perimeter of the lake and a roofed over warehouse surrounded that. This image sat on the screen for a short period of time before the scene changed again and displayed a man with a red sock on his head sitting on a throne in darkness.

"...Ohm." Delirious said, his voice cold and flat.

Ohm looked up, eyes staring directly at the camera. He smiled and the creases in his sock shifted uncomfortably. A chill ran down the spine of everyone in the room.

"Hello, Bat Owl." Ohm greeted in a low, dark voice. "How are you? Good, I hope. You'll be happy to know that I've put thought into what you said.  About me being the bad guy. And you, of course, as you always are, being the good guy. I had doubts, but I realized you were right. I am the bad guy... to you. To the entirety of the Banana Bus Crew. But my intentions are pure. I just want us to play together. Forever. No secrets between friends. Come by and see me sometime. Bring some friends... And also some sunglasses. I want a challenge."

The scene changed again, back to the pan around of the facility surrounding the lake. Craig turned back to the group. "It's been playing on a loop since an hour after you left." He said. 

"Sunglasses?" Brock asked. "What does that mean?"

"That's how you avoid the effects of the red handgun." Craig told them. "He's probably got some way to do it in mass to keep all those IAA agents, and Brian, under." Craig walked over to a desk on the other side of the room, opened a drawer, and took out several pairs of glasses, handing them out to everyone, even Marcel, Scotty, and Anthony.

"Why do we get glasses?" Scotty asked. "I know w're not going, bitch."

"We are!" Craig said.

"The fuck?" Anthony said.

"This is bullshit!" Marcel cried. "This was a job for the fuckin' superheroes! Not us!"

"Nope." Craig told them. "We need everyone in the Banana Bus Crew."

Scotty stood up and began towards the door. "Fine!" He said. "Let's fucking go already."

"I said everyone in the Banana Bus Crew." Craig reminded him.

"So?"

"So? This isn't everyone. We're missing a couple. An actual couple. And because of those IAA agents, we need them both."

"Who's missing?" Anthony asked. Craig smiled, the thought of their remaining friends brought him joy in this time of panic. Their comedic relief would be welcomed in this journey and their precision and sharp eyes would serve them well in their coming endeavors. 

"How could you forget?" Craig asked. "It's time to call the Milkman and the Vape God."

Play With Me: A Banana Bus Crew Fan FictionWhere stories live. Discover now