Chapter Text
William stood rooted to the spot at the top of the stairs, staring down into the darkness while his brain tried to process the absurdity of the situation. Some bored asshole found out his name and his number, and decided the best thing to do on Halloween night was to try and make him shit himself.
None of his friends would've taken a prank this far, and he highly doubted any of them would be able to climb up to the bathroom window either. Which meant that there was a complete stranger standing in the hallway of his parents' house, wanting to play scary movie.
He kept a firm grip on his phone as he glanced back towards the bathroom, weighing his options. He could use the flashlight on his phone to at least be able to see where the man was, but then what? Give him a lollipop and send him on his way?
This wasn't Jason Voorhees, or Michael Myers, this was Ghostface, who was just some regular dude in a costume that had a few screws loose. He wasn't undead or supernatural or invincible, there was a chance that William could take him by surprise and wrestle the knife he presumably had off of him, if he managed to move fast enough.
As if on cue, the voice spoke again, "Hello? Hellooo? Is the connection bad? Do I need to move closer?"
There was the sound of floorboards creaking under the intruder's weight, and he instinctively took a step back from the stairs, inhaling sharply. Okay, nevermind that plan.
The cold air coming from the bathroom window hit William's neck, giving him an idea while Ghostface drawled over the phone with thinly veiled impatience. "Listen, as much as it may seem like it, I don't exactly have all night. Now are you gonna come down or am I gonna have to come up?"
He swallowed slowly, already regretting his decision. "You mind if I use the bathroom first?"
The creaking sounds from downstairs stopped. "You need to use the bathroom?"
"Yes."
"Now?"
William huffed at the incredulousness in his tone. "I know it doesn't happen in movies, but my bodily functions don't really care about interrupting dramatic moments."
Ghostface snorted, more amused than annoyed at the impeccable timing. "Alright, fine. Just make it quick."
"Sure thing." He placed his phone on a side table that stood next to the bathroom and went inside, mentally calculating how much time he'd have before his actions would be deemed suspicious and the door would be broken down.
William slid the bathroom window up and peered outside, looking down to see the garage roof just below him, which was most likely how his uninvited guest had managed to get in. He reached over to press the button on the toilet for it to flush, hoping that it would be able to cover the sound of him clambering out of the window.
He slowly lowered himself down until he felt his feet touch the top of the garage roof, trying his best to keep quiet as he shuffled over to the edge and swung his legs over to let them dangle midair.
William leaned down as far as he could without letting go of the edge of the roof and attempted to gently slide off of it, before his momentum carried him too far forward and he landed with a muffled thud on the grass. He groaned softly and rolled over onto his side, where a bruise was no doubt already forming.
He waited warily for the sound of the front door opening as he got to his feet, but the only noises disrupting the quiet of the night was the wind blustering among the treetops and the occasional rumble of a car somewhere in the neighbourhood.
The silence unnerved him a little, but he knew he didn't have long before the sound of a certain someone's footsteps would shatter it. He had to move.
The quickest way out of his parents' garden would be to go down the front driveway, but that would get him spotted immediately and possibly stabbed to death before he could even run out onto the street. However, the driveway was really the only easy way to get into the premises, due to the large brick wall that surrounded every inch of the garden.
His dad had always liked it because it kept out any "nosy neighbours", but what William wouldn't have given to have one of those neighbours poke their head over the wall right now and phone the police.
Most of the brick wall wasn't exactly accessible either, due to the tall, thick and thorny hedges that grew all along the sides of the garden. The only semi-clear spot lay at the very back of the garden where his mom kept her vegetable garden. He stuck to the wall of the house to stay out of sight, keeping to the shadows as he slowly crept toward the back and stopped when he came to the glass sliding doors that led to the kitchen area.
William cautiously peeked over the edge of the doors just enough to be able to see inside, his heart thundering in his chest. To both his surprise and disappointment, the man had apparently moved from the hallway and was now standing in his kitchen, with the costume and everything.
He looked tall and somewhat athletic, the black robes doing little to conceal broad shoulders and toned forearms where the sleeves rode up slightly. Ghostface's back was to him, but he could still see the gleam of a sharp knife that he was twisting lazily around with one hand while the other was buried in the popcorn bowl that he had left on the counter.
If the motherfucker hadn't been both built and armed, William might've considered sliding open the doors and jumping him right there and then.
Ghostface shifted an inch towards the door, as if sensing the animosity radiating off him, and he drew back into the shadows, watching as the masked man lifted his hand to tap irritably at his phone. There was a short pause before he gripped the knife firmly and stalked out of the kitchen, no doubt heading upstairs to end William's bathroom break.
He waited until his shadowy figure was completely out of sight until he sprang from his hiding place and ran past the glass doors towards the other side of the garden, sprinting between his mom's flowerbeds and weaving his way through the shrubbery that stood in front of the brick walls. He prayed that Ghostface would think to search the house first rather than the garden, as it would only take one look out of almost any window to spot him making his escape.
To William's dismay, the wall leading to his neighbour's garden was a lot taller than he remembered. His fingers could barely touch the top of it when he was standing on his tip-toes, he'd have to be able to jump high enough in order to get a good grip.
He gritted his teeth and jumped up, managing to grab onto the ledge as his knees scraped against the brick wall. He had gotten one elbow over and was trying to hoist the rest of his body up when a twig suddenly snapped behind him.
In his panic William lost his grip, his palms sliding off the wall's edge as he swore loudly and fell backwards. Luckily, or rather unluckily, someone was there to cushion his fall.
He felt his back colliding with someone's chest and heard a muffled oof before they both tumbled down onto the grass, with William landing on top of him. He quickly scrambled upright and jumped to his feet, his gaze landing on the man lying in front of him as he sat up and raised a hand to adjust his mask.
The two of them stared at each other for a split second, before William caught sight of the knife that was still in his grip and immediately turned on his heel to run.
Gloved fingers hooked around his ankle before he could even take two steps and yanked him backwards with an unnatural strength that sent him sprawling back on the ground.
William lifted his head and flinched as the other man tugged playfully on his leg, with hands moving to grip his calf instead. He instinctively kicked backwards, gaining a brief sense of satisfaction when he felt his foot connect with what must've been his face, albeit through a mask.
There was the sound of a muffled grunt behind him, but the grip on his leg only tightened and he nearly screamed as he was abruptly dragged backwards through the grass.
He frantically twisted onto his back and looked up to see a looming Ghostface, his mask gleaming under the moonlight. "Boo."
A hand was covering his mouth before William even had time to think about yelling for help, his waist pinned between his attacker's knees. "Funny, I don't seem to remember this scene including a daring escape over the garden wall. If you wanted to play hide and seek, you should've just said so."
Something cold and sharp was held against his neck and he froze as the knife dug slightly into his skin, not deep enough to draw blood but with enough pressure to keep him still. "I don't like it when people make up their own rules for one of my games."
His eyes widened and Ghostface began to laugh uncontrollably, tracing along his neck with the knife in a manner that was almost admiring. "I can't say that the stunt you pulled back there wasn't entertaining, but this isn't how I planned for tonight to turn out."
William could feel sweat trickling down his back despite the cold air as Ghostface shifted his weight slightly and tilted his head at him, before continuing his monologue. "So, I'm gonna be real nice about this and give you a chance to play the game properly, alright? I'll even give you a ten second head start."
The hand covering his mouth was drawn back while the hollow pits in the mask where eyes should've been watched him intently. "Ready, William?"
He nodded, not wanting his voice to betray how close he was to passing out underneath him at that very moment.
"Go on then." The knife was lifted from his neck as Ghostface rose to his feet and stepped back to give him space, clearly set on keeping his word. "Ten."
He didn't need to be told twice. The second he wasn't pinned down anymore, William sprang upright and bolted back towards his house, stumbling over a flowerbed as he did.
"Nine." The masked man raised his voice to call out after him with unmistakable glee, which only made him put on a burst of speed.
His breath came in shallow, ragged gasps and he silently cursed himself for not trying harder in gym class during his highschool years as he made his way back towards the side of the house that led to the kitchen. If he could just make it upstairs and grab his phone, then locking himself in one of the rooms and barricading the door could hopefully buy enough time for him to be able to call the cops, his parents, the neighbours, anyone.
William tripped over an uneven patch of grass and practically flung himself onto the patio, almost colliding straight into the sliding glass doors before he started fumbling with the handle. To his relief, the doors slid open easily to let him inside, with the kitchen looking exactly like he'd left it.
His heart threatened to burst out of his chest and do Ghostface's job for him as he ran past the island towards the door and skidded around the corner of the hallway, only to stop dead in his tracks at the sight of a familiar figure leaning against the wall and casually twirling the knife in his hands.
Ghostface snickered as he stood in front of the stairs, with half of his mask shrowded in shadow. "Looks like that head start wasn't enough."
He must've unlocked the front door earlier that evening and gotten back in the easy way, instead of running through the kitchen like William did. Shit.
They watched each other for a solid five seconds while he toyed with the unwise idea of attempting to somehow duck past Ghostface and get upstairs, before he took one slow step forward, which was enough to throw that plan completely out the window.
William spun around and rushed straight back into the kitchen as Ghostface followed barely two steps behind him. He made a beeline for the island in a last-ditch attempt to put some distance between them and positioned himself on the opposite side of it, with his back to the counter.
"Really? This is your plan?" Ghostface seemed unbothered that the chase had come to a standstill as he leaned against the island, watching him with amusement. "It's pretty similar to one of the last scenes in the movie, isn't it? Did you do that on purpose? How clever."
William's gaze stayed glued to the knife in his hands as the masked man rambled on, all too aware that there wasn't anything stopping him from simply chucking it straight at his head. "I mean, its gotta be easier to get out of this situation when you're only dealing with one Ghostface. I always thought that the whole two-on-one thing was kinda unfair, especially since it was her own boyfriend out to get her."
"Hey." He slammed one hand down on the marble countertop to interrupt William's contemplation of possible escape methods that didn't involve having to dodge a knife to the face, almost making him jump. "Are you even listening?"
William struggled to stifle a hysterical laugh that was bubbling up from the twisted knot that was currently his stomach. "My bad, is this the part where I'm supposed to stall for time by indulging in your delusions? You got a sad backstory for me too? I promise I'm all ears."
Ghostface leaned further over the island and pointed the knife at his chest, yet he seemed pleased that he had his full attention once more. "You know the chase scene basically ends here, right? I can guarantee that there's no news reporter coming to disturb us."
"And besides," He stood up straight again and took a step back, his tone taking on a dangerously playful edge to it. "I never understood why slashers didn't just do this—"
William barely had time to register what was happening before Ghostface jumped on top of the island and lunged towards him, with one gloved hand outstretched and the other still gripping the knife.
He instantly ducked down and threw himself to the side, but a hand managed to grab the edge of his sweater and pull him back. The hard edge of the countertop dug into his side as he turned around to try and lash out when two strong arms wrapped around his waist and Ghostface practically tackled him.
A strangled yelp escaped his throat as he was slammed against the kitchen floor and his vision was obscured by a gloved hand pressing against his eyes, while the other held him down by his shoulder.
He thrashed beneath him blindly, clawing at Ghostface's arms and reaching out his hands to latch on to anything that might be of use. His fingers grasped smooth fabric and he yanked on it out of desperation, stiffening in surprise when whatever it was came off easily in his grip.
The grip on his shoulder loosened and the hand covering his eyes lifted all of a sudden, which William took as an opportunity to shove him off and scramble a few feet backwards, pushing himself up off the floor and into a sitting position.
"You did not just put your dirty boots on my mother's marble countertop you absolute—" He cut off as he glanced downwards and realised what he had tugged off. His hand was clutching a Ghostface mask, the empty eyes staring back at him with its mouth twisted in the signature scream.
"Dude. Not cool." William looked up to see a young man around his age standing in his parents' kitchen, with messy black hair and dark brown eyes that were narrowed accusingly at him, despite the slightly flustered expression on his face. "You don't unmask slashers, that's like basic horror movie etiquette. Give it back."
He stared at him incredulously as he got to his feet and took another step back for good measure, the fabric of the mask clenched in his fist. "Etiquette?! You're trying to kill me!"
"Well yeah, what kind of Ghostface would I be if I didn't? The whole point is to—" He paused when he noticed the look William was giving him and frowned, his voice taking on a note of concern. "Hold on, are you being serious? You really think I'm going to kill you?"
William jerked his head pointedly towards the knife in his hand, watching the man's face warily for any signs of deceit. "It's a little hard not to."
Not-Ghostface held up his hands in a placating gesture, before he realised that he was still holding the knife and hastily set it down on the kitchen counter. "I promise I'm not actually trying to kill you. The knife was just for the effect, like the mask. Speaking of which, can I have it back now?"
"For effect?!" He sputtered, unable to make sense of what he was hearing. "Effect of what, exactly?"
A look of bewilderment crossed the man's face, his brow furrowing in confusion as he tilted his head at him and kept his hands in the air. "Uh, like, a scary movie effect? A slasher always has to have their signature weapon."
William felt like his eyes were going to pop out of his head if they widened any further at the sheer gibberish that was coming out of the other man. Not-Ghostface coughed awkwardly and averted his eyes from his gaze, clearly uncomfortable with being scrutinised. The action seemed familiar somehow, and he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd seen this guy's face before.
"Wait a second. I know you." He snapped his fingers as the memories clicked in place. "You go to Upstate! I've seen you in my civics class, haven't I? What was it? Mark? Mark! You're Mark Grayson! What the fuck are you doing here?!"
Not-Ghostface, or rather, Mark, glanced back at him in surprise, his mouth falling open a little. "You know my name?"
William raised his eyebrows skeptically at him. "You obviously know mine. Which definitely doesn't help lower my suspicions that you're trying to murder me, by the way."
"I'm not, I swear, I just wanted—" He broke off, his face reddening as he became increasingly embarrassed with every passing moment. "You got my gift, didn't you?"
It was his turn to have his mouth fall open. "Your gift?! What the hell are you talking about?"
Mark gestured towards the bucket of candy that was still sitting next to the microwave. "I saw you take it from where I left it on the porch."
He looked from him to the bucket and back again in disbelief as the other man rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "The original plan was to show up at the door in my costume and do a kind of reverse trick and treat, like I would be the one bringing you a treat instead."
A million questions flooded William's head along the lines of what made you think that was a good plan and why would you want to bring me a treat in the first place and how the hell did you find out my parents' address, but he settled on the most obvious one first. "And it never occurred to you that you could've just knocked?"
Something akin to defensiveness flickered across Mark's face before he lowered his head and mumbled an excuse. "I did knock at first, but there was no answer even after I waited for fifteen minutes. I thought it would be better to call you instead."
William ran a hand through his hair, his voice a mixture of sarcasm, astonishment and curiosity. "So instead of asking me to let you in like a reasonably sane person, you decided that the best course of action was to act out a slasher scene, break into the house and chase me around the garden?"
He had the decency to at least sound apologetic as he shifted his feet guiltily. "I guess I got a bit carried away."
"A bit?!"
Mark gave him a sheepish look, his face still slightly flushed with shame. "Can I please get my mask back?"
William rolled his eyes at the request, but begrudgingly obliged and tossed it over to him. "What difference does the mask make now? I already found out who you are."
"That wasn't how I planned for it to go. I was supposed to reveal myself as a dramatic plot twist," Mark protested as he caught the mask with a surprising amount of gentleness. "Besides, I'd prefer not to lose something like this. It's based off the original model by Fun World before the first Scream movie even came out, custom made with high quality materials and everything—"
He broke off when William suddenly let out a snort of laughter, his skeptical expression quickly turning into one of amusement. "Oh my god. You're a huge nerd. That's what this is all about, isn't it? No wonder you sounded so excited to talk about horror movies over the phone. And here I thought you were just really good at acting."
Mark made an offended noise at the nerd comment, but a smile tugged at his lips at the sound of his laughter. "It's honestly a big compliment that you almost took me for the real thing, even if I did end up taking it too far. I'm sorry for scaring you so much with my ominous dialogue and menacing aura. And for repeatedly foiling your escape plans."
He scoffed at that, resisting the urge to roll his eyes again. "Don't flatter yourself too much. I would've definitely made it over the garden wall if you hadn't caught me off guard."
"Oh, of course, of course." The other man leaned against the kitchen counter in perhaps the most pathetic attempt to seem nonchalant that William had ever seen in his life. And he went to frat parties. "Were you still thinking of watching a scary movie tonight?"
The sheer audacity of this man would obviously never cease to amaze him, and he almost choked on his own words as he forced himself not to burst out laughing again. "You're kidding. Tell me you're kidding."
Mark tilted his head with one eyebrow raised questioningly. "Is that a no?"
"Is that a—" William nearly exploded in indignation. "You should be kissing my feet for the fact that I'm not calling the police on you right now!"
He wrinkled his nose at the idea, taking his words far too seriously. "I'm not really that type of guy. Can't I just kiss you normally instead?"
Time seemed to stop momentarily as William's brain struggled to process the absurdity of that statement. Surely his ears were deceiving him. "Excuse me?"
The other man blinked in surprise at how scandalised he was at his suggestion. "Have I been reading this entire situation wrong?"
William pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation, inhaling and exhaling to calm himself down. "Clearly."
"But—I mean, you—" Mark hesitated before he continued, his skin turning a deeper shade of red as he got more flustered, "You said that you thought my voice was hot."
His stomach twisted in a way that had nothing to do with fear as William waved a hand dismissively and attempted to sound casual. "I never said that, I said that you could do the whole hot murderer voice thing well."
He looked almost disappointed as he glanced away in embarrassment. "Oh. So you don't think it's hot?"
"I never said that either."
Mark's eyes snapped back towards him and William instantly regretted not keeping his big mouth shut. "Don't you look at me like that. You'll be lucky if I don't file a restraining order."
He laughed, an irritatingly attractive grin spreading across his face. "I'll be a lot more than just lucky."
William huffed as he felt his own cheeks redden slightly and decided to change the subject. "I'm not about to let you off the hook that easily. How exactly did you find my parents' address? And how the hell did you know I'd be off campus?"
Mark's grin wavered a little and he started twisting the fabric of the mask in his hands. "I'd been planning to try and approach you for a while, but the opportunity never really presented itself. I noticed you hanging around Amber a lot, who I know from highschool, so I asked her if you had any plans for Halloween break."
He groaned, shaking his head disapprovingly. "I knew it, I just knew that Amber had something to do with this. I swear, one of these days—"
The other man cut him off before he could start his whole rant. "I mean, it was her idea to surprise you with a gift, but please don't tell her about how I, uh, got a bit too enthusiastic. She'll be the one murdering me instead."
William smiled at the thought, humming in contemplation as he pretended to seriously consider it. "I can't say that doesn't sound tempting, especially with the amount of stress you caused me this evening."
Mark gave him a wounded look that did little to conceal the mischievous glint in his gaze as he straightened up off the counter and took a step towards him. "Have I still not redeemed myself yet? I'm sure I can make it up to you, that is, if you'll let me."
He opened his mouth to say something when the screech of car tires against gravel interrupted him. His parents had returned at the worst possible time and were pulling into the front driveway, which meant that he had barely a minute before they were in the door.
"I'll have to deal with you some other time, but you need to go. Now." William moved over to slide open the kitchen's glass doors and gestured frantically for him to leave. "There is no way I'm letting my parents think I invited some Halloween hookup over while I was supposed to be house-sitting."
Mark raised his eyebrows as he grabbed his knife from the counter and followed after him. "Hey, I can be a lot more than a hookup if you—"
He shoved him through the sliding doors and onto the patio, his voice a quiet hiss. "Mark Grayson, get the hell off my parents' property right this instant before they walk in here and have you arrested."
A gloved hand curled around the edge of the sliding door just as William moved to close it. "Okay, okay, message received. But I just want to make sure, tonight was fun for you right? Or at the very least, not at all boring?"
The sound of keys jingling near the front door made him spit out a jumbled mess of words as he quickly made shooing gestures to get him to hurry the hell up. "Yes—I mean—No—Okay, maybe—Just go!"
Mark stepped back and waved cheekily at him when he shut the door, mouthing the words "I'll call" before he ran off through his parents' garden. William wished that he could say he wouldn't be looking forward to it.
Almost a week later, he was back on campus and holed up in his dorm working on another assignment that was making him want to tear his hair out. He stared tiredly at the pages in his textbook, willing the words to start making sense.
A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts and William got up to open it with a sigh, hoping that it was Amber coming to drag him out to a yoga class again. At this point he'd go with her willingly just to avoid doing his assignment.
His eyes widened as he was greeted with the sight of Mark standing right outside his dorm, holding a bouquet of flowers in his arms and smiling awkwardly at him. "Hey. I thought I'd do things the right way this time."