Different Times (BuzzFeed Unsolved X Reader)

Chapter•2

"Ryan, what are you doing?" Shane called out. His partner refused to reply to him, or perhaps his cry was muffled by their separation. Not knowing which, Shane opened his car door and stood outside.

"What the hell, man? We're supposed to be a team," Shane spat. Ryan's wide eyes remained glued to the world around them.

The sky was blue. Not a single cloud hung above them, though in the horizon was a herd of thunder and lightning coming for them. The air was sweet, though the aroma was soured by the odor of burning breaks as cars continued to roll by them on the busy street where they parked.

Shane came around to Ryan's side of the vehicle to get his attention again. He firmly placed either hand on his shoulders and shook gently.

"Ryan, you with me? Talk to me,"

"Do you even realize how fucking crazy this is, Shane?" Ryan asked him, irritation lacing his voice, "L-Look at our clothes! Our car! What the fuck happened?"

Shane still had no answers for him. His hands slipped from him and fell back to his side. All he could do was shrug.

"Look around, Shane. Does this look normal to you?"

A woman pushing a pram on the sidewalk had turned her head to the sound of Ryan raising his voice. Shane gave her a nervous nod and she shot him a dirty look.

"I never said this was normal," Shane retorted quietly.

"Then why are you being so calm?"

"I... I just... I don't know. There's something to this, I just know it. Here, let's go inside here and get some directions to get back to the the office," Shane suggested, pointing to the shop they had parked their car by.

On the entire strip, this was the only outlet to have a dark theme to it. The awning that provided the cool shade had burgundy and black stripes going down it. At first it didn't seem ominous, however looking into the display case made the two question if they should really go in. Looking past the gold lettering reading "TAYLOR'S ANTIQUES est. 1910," there could be seen box, a board, and many books. The box was presented up front and center. The lid had been pulled up, so inside could be viewed. To their surprise, it was a 19th century Vampire Killing Kit. There was a wooden crucifix, a prayer book, a pistol, a stake, and some vials of mystery substances. Behind the kit was the Ouija board. The letters would have been still neatly printed on if there hadn't been so many scratches on the piece of wood. It looked as if the planchette was being scraped against it, like the journey between each letter created a new permanent line. The books were of different languages and of different topics, though they since they were placed back, they weren't of as much interest.

Shane became involuntarily intrigued. Who ran this type of place? How dismal and odd were they?

The two stood in the front for a few moments in silence, too caught up in their own heads, which were clouded with opinions and suspicions about the shop.

"Let's go," guided Shane. He opened the door, causing a sudden ringing of the bells hanging on the handle. Ryan stepped inside and Shane closely followed.

The energy inside was dense, the sweet air from before disguised in a thick scent of sage. A heavy feeling lingered in Ryan's chest. The anxiety and paranoia was plaguing his senses and the more he looked around, the more he felt unwelcome. Shane did not think of the shop to be as off-putting as Ryan did. He saw it for what it was on the outside: a boutique. He either refused to acknowledge or was not perceptive of the eerie aura surrounding the location.