Masks

Chapter 19

I was lying in the backseat of my car when I regained consciousness. My arms stung and I shifted my head to see torn black fabric tied around them as a form of makeshift gauze- if my jacket hadn't been ruined by the fall, this certainly destroyed it; not that I was complaining. I winced as I sat up and looked through the window to find Tim leaning against the trunk of my car while smoking. He started walking around as I weakly got out of the car and warily watched him; despite saving me earlier, Tim's stance suggested he was ready to fight.

"...Can't imagine why. I mean I only ruined his life by being around him- making him see those things." I leaned against the door of my car, pressing against it as if it would help if the situation took a turn. "T-Tim I can explain...!"

"Explain what, exactly? That you've been seeing that thing and this is normal for you?" Betrayal and anger laced his voice as he glared at me. "You know, I thought something was off a few times but I always thought it was my own paranoia. Everything was relatively normal- again- until I met you."

"Do you really expect a normal life after those things start following you?" I shook my head and looked at the gravel parking lot. "I can't escape. I've tried, my father tried... Everyone I know dies because they get too close to me and end up seeing it. The Operator, Slenderman- any others like them- they're like a virus and it's my fault they die because I can't keep them away from me."

"Were you planning on telling me or were you just going to sit back and see if one of them decided to kill me?" He didn't seem surprised there were two at this point, not that I expected him to be.

"...I wanted to warn you, but things weren't affecting you. I was staying in control and you- well you seemed fine. You weren't staying long either so... I decided not to. Why drag you into something that would've ruined your life if I did tell you- assuming you'd even believe me." I shrugged tiredly. "...It was a mistake... Maybe if I'd... I don't know... done something..."

"You tried to kill me at the hotel, didn't you? Do you remember that?"

"Yes... I do remember it..." I could've lied but I doubted it would've made it any better. It probably wasn't that difficult to figure out it was me. "I just hoped he'd leave me alone... that he'd leave them alone-"

"So you think that's how it works? Just obey orders and that thing will go away? Do you have any proof of that?" He dropped the cigarette on the ground and put it out with his shoe. I looked up at him as he got threateningly close to me.

"No... but I-I couldn't do it. You saw I didn't put up a fight and I know you heard it attack me... I was punished for it. My friends were punished for it." I coughed before forcing the bloodied fabric up from my wrist, revealing the blood smeared mark to him. "I don't know how I got this but it just showed up after that! ...You should've let me die... It would've been slow, painful, but maybe it would've been over for everyone else's lives I've fucked up..."

I paused for a moment to calm down."...Why did you save me if you knew what I'd done?"

"I'm not a person who watches someone fall and bleed to death if I can help it." He turned away as if thinking back on something.

I crossed my arms, careful not to further agitate the cuts more than I already had. "Yeah, sure. I think you just wanted answers... Well, I'd like some too. I mean, your hooded friend back there showed me this old message that seemed to imply you're not exactly telling the whole truth either. I know for a fact you wear a mask just like I do at times. You're not any different from me, are you?"

"You're right. You know why I didn't tell you? Because my friend Brian died, Jay got himself killed after I tried keeping him safe, and I had to kill Alex before he could kill anyone else. Everyone I once considered a friend just... just died because of me." He began pacing, seemingly more upset now with himself than at me as he continued ranting about people I didn't know. "But now... Now Brian is somehow alive and still working as Hoodie. I keep missing pieces of my memory because my pills keep going missing- again- and I've been going into my Masky state again because-"

"Everything in our lives is fucked up." I cut him off, forcing down the guilt I felt for causing his life to get messed up again. "...I doubt running will do anything to fix either of our problems."

"I was doing fine until I got pulled back into this mess." Tim sat down on the ground a few feet away and held his hands in his hair.

I turned my head back down to the ground at my feet. "...I've never been able to remotely return to a normal life for more than a few years or more recently months... I doubt I have much time left before I'm killed or made into a complete proxy. With two of them wearing me down it's getting harder to fight off my original operator... And any second he could show up and take full control- force me to kill you just like made me kill Mallory... I-I don't know much about your friend Brian- how he's alive- I just remember finding him dying in some building when I was, um... Pawn- yeah; that's what they call me. I don't know how he escaped being made into a proxy or with his life but I'm assuming it has to do with why you're on his kill list."

I paused unsure if he would respond and tried to control the trembling as the bad memories were allowed to flood my mind. "...My family died because of him. I f-first remember seeing him with my little sister... Shortly after she disappeared- died- and all they found was ropes a-and her blood... I-I can't help but wonder if it's my fault. If I did something to her... My mom... at least her death might've been a true accident- being a car accident and all- but I watched them carry out my father's mutilated body out of a burning house after he was murdered by a proxy called Toby..."

I took a deep, ragged breath as I tried to calm down; pushing away the memory of the sickening smell of burning flesh. "I should've done more to prevent the people around me dying, getting hurt... I hate remembering how I hurt people like Zac and Mallory... Landon, maybe Dillan too. Everyone close to me and I can't forgive myself for it."

My body was still trembling and my stomach churned at the guilt threatening to consume me after my confession. I doubted Tim cared about my backstory- if he'd even listened- considering his was probably just as tragic, if not more so. But he'd wanted answers and I gave them... in a way. The silence only felt like a larger weight on my chest as I waited in anticipation for a reaction. I couldn't bring myself to look at him as the minutes passed by. Was he still upset over everything? I wouldn't blame him...

A scuffling sound alerted me that he was standing up and I listened as he walked a short distance away before coming closer again with a drawn out sigh. "Well, uh, I guess we don't have much of a choice but to stick together. By this point we're both dead anyway so I see it as we split up and spread the influence of these things or we stick together and try to contain it. Maybe we can figure out a way to stop them."

"Probably die trying." I muttered before getting into the driver's seat of my car. "I'd rather try ignoring what I can but if you want to get to the bottom of this then I'll try to help I guess... Can I trust you- well, Masky I should say, not to kill me?"

"I don't know. Um, you said we met me when I wasn't... myself-"

"Twice. Briefly." I specified and glanced around for my keys; they were becoming the bane of my existence. "Both times I couldn't really tell if he was aiming to hurt me or if he was mostly going for my proxy 'friend'."

"Just stay on guard then." He stared down at me. "What about you?"

"If I'm acting under his control as Pawn then I'll be trying to kill you. I don't know if I'll be able to fight his control off so if it comes down to it then... you might have to kill me." I could tell he'd guessed what I was going to say before I finished just by the look in his eyes. "Don't feel bad if it happens. No matter how you'd finish it, it would be nothing compared to what he could do."

"This just keeps getting more depressing."

"Let's just head back and go from there." Tim pulled my keys from his pocket. "I'll drive, you don't look too great."

I reluctantly allowed him to take my spot and climbed over to the passenger's seat. Curiosity on how he'd gotten here and found me crossed my mind as he began driving but I didn't ask; the answer was obviously something to do with The Operator. Soon enough the small amount of energy I'd gotten was gone and I drowsily stared out the window, wondering if I'd just made a big mistake or not in my decision to trust Tim.