Chapter Text
Andrew Minyard hated talking, he hated dancing, and he hated people. Galas happened to include all of those. They also happened to include the single most annoying and irritating asshole, Kevin Day. Oh, and they also included Riko Moriyama, who was also a pretentious brat with a stick up his ass. And yet, here Andrew was, standing next to his worst enemy, hands itching for another cigarette.
“Andrew,” Kevin whispered harshly once he noticed him,”Where did you go?!”
A half hearted shrug was all Andrew gave in return, placing his hands in his pockets.
Kevin sighed in annoyance,”Did you at least see where he went?”
Another shrug.
“Christ, Andrew, what were you even doing? You’ve been gone for at least an hour, maybe two!” Kevin swore, exasperated.
‘Smoking cigarettes and questioning whether I should throw myself out of the window,’ Andrew’s inner voice explained casually.
“Doing things,” Andrew said simply, plucking a glass of some kind of alcohol off of a passing waiter’s tray.
Kevin’s eye twitched in a most rewarding way. Andrew could tell by the way he was clenching his jaw that he was only a few comments away from storming out of the gala, giving Andrew a convenient chance to escape. Preferably to his home and preferably to his favorite book and a warm fire.
“I brought the wrong twin,” Kevin muttered into his wine glass.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Andrew exclaimed, placing a hand over his heart,” I’m amazed that you would choose me over my brother, whom I have forgotten you are disgustingly in love with.”
Kevin’s cheeks blazed a vivid red and he appeared to freeze in the moment. As he suffered through…whatever he was going through, Andrew took stock of their surroundings. The people around them stood in groups, giggling and laughing about whatever silly thing they were talking about. He noticed that the intriguing redhead from earlier and the annoying blonde were nowhere in sight, much to his disappointment. Riko, the resident asshole, was also missing, a cause for concern that Andrew chose to push to the back of his mind for now.
Andrew watched, unamused, as Kevin finally unfroze. The man spent several moments opening and closing his mouth as his face went through the five stages of grief. It was a quite enjoyable experience, but it was far too quickly ended by Kevin finding his voice.
“Andrew Minyard, you are the most intolerable man I have ever had the displeasure of meeting,” Kevin sputtered, evidently prepared for what Andrew had no doubt was a grand speech.
However, before he could continue, Andrew simply shouldered past him, heading off to find another hiding spot. Hopefully there was another nook somewhere that had a plain view of the stars. And one that was uninhabited by annoying redheads. After circling the ballroom for several minutes, he was surprised to discover a small door, hidden in an alcove under the great stairs. He made sure no one was watching as he inched it open and made quick work of squeezing himself in the room inside.
Once he had closed the door with a soft click, he was pleasantly surprised to see that the room was not a room, but a hallway, dimly lit by flickering candles, that seemed to curve with the shape of the house. A warm feeling filled Andrew, not one he was used to, as he began making his way through the hall. A soft, thick, but surprisingly old carpet quieted his steps as he moved. Cobwebs stretched across the low ceiling and out of the corner of his eye, Andrew could still see the spiders who made them. The squeaking of startled mice filled his ears and he looked down to see several running across the carpet in front of him, leaving small footprints in the layer of dust. Paintings glared at him from the wall. Portraits of people, long gone and forgotten, immortalized forever as they were in their youth, seemed to follow him with their empty eyes.
Andrew felt a slight draft blow through the hall, disturbing the small piles of dust and dirt. He felt his chest seize with excitement. Somewhere ahead of him, he knew there was an opening, either to some secret place, left barren and empty for decades, or he would have discovered a secret passage. Either way, he would be left content knowing that he was the one who had discovered it. However, as quickly as that thought crossed his mind, it was replaced by another. Who, exactly, had lit the still burning candles that ran along the wall? There were dozens of them, all burnt down to the exact same height and all flickering in what Andrew could almost be certain was the same pattern.
“How very strange,” Andrew murmured as he leaned in closer to look at one of the odd candles.
For some reason, he felt the urge to blow the candle out. To see what would happen to the rest if one was extinguished. He blew a gentle breeze and the dull reddish color was snuffed out. Andrew stood back and waited. Seconds seemed to thud by, accompanied by the sound of Andrew’s heart beat, until suddenly, the flame jumped back into existence, merry and flickering as ever.
Andrew couldn’t help but stare in disbelief at this absurd phenomenon. He repeated the action, blowing out the candle and waiting. Again the flame leapt back into existence. Andrew lowered his brow in annoyance, glaring at the flame. It’s happy dance seemed to mock Andrew, mocking him and telling him he wasn’t trying hard enough. Andrew tsked in obvious annoyance, thinly veiled as he once again forced his expression to return to apathy. As he turned to leave, however, he felt yet another breeze blow across the nape of his neck.
“Andrew,” he heard a voice call as the breeze moved on.
Whirling around, Andrew raised his fist in a defensive movement, but to his astonishment, there was no one there. Paranoia seemed to creep onto his skin now, causing the hair on his arms and the back of his neck to rise. He quickly adjusted his shirt before moving in the opposite direction of the voice, further into the mysterious passage.
“Oh, lovely,” Andrew froze as the voice whispered in his ear,” I hope you return sometime.”
Andrew opened his mouth to reply, but suddenly, a sharp pain flared behind his eyes and the world descended into darkness.