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The click of a pressed in button and the flipped open panel. The tug of a cord from the camcorder to the laptop. Cold gloved hands slipped around the shape of the camcorder. A man lets out a stuttered breath, ragged like someone with broken ribs but there is no flinch. Sitting crossed legged on the carpeted floor of a cheap hotel room, silently. He leans over to the laptop and removes one hand from the camcorder to tap His gloved hand along the keys of His laptop. Going live on His youtube channel, He watches for a moment steadying the camcorder towards the hotel room connecting door.
He watches as His Totheark channel goes live, the red dot on and the screen on His laptop shows the door. The door was pre-unlocked, one of those doors that leads to the hotel room next to it. He looks at the time, 2:43 am. He can faintly hear the clicking of keys on the other side of the wall and the muffled words of two men talking in the next room over. It's slow, like the men on the other side are exhausted. He knows they are reasonably wary.
He sat there for a few moments video still on the door, silent other than the muffled words and the sound of the night. He kept His vision on His laptop waiting for the watch count to go up and it did after a few minutes. A louder muffled curse from the other side of the door was heard. So He got up, letting His camcorder scan the room. He carefully towards the window, long cord dragging before it slowly became taut as he reached the window. He tilted His aim of the feed down, towards the parking lot carefully scanning before focusing on a single car. Steadying the camera He focused on it for a few minutes. The voices in the other room got a little louder, footsteps scrambling. Another stuttered breath.
He listened as the door to the hallway in the next room over opened and a single pair of hurried footsteps left. He waited before setting up His camcorder towards the connecting door, making sure it was stable on the bedside table. Once it was He stepped away and into view of the video feed, a faded yellow hoodie took up most the feed for a second as He double checked before turning away and heading towards the connecting hotel room door. A flash of black full face ski like mask was visible for a second red paint mimicking a mouth and two eyes. He let out what was a another shuddering exhale, like He was trying to almost laugh.
He reached forward, doorknob a hair away from gloved fingertips as He paused for a moment as He heard the rustle of someone trying to pack as quick as they could. As if that would help, He was already here after all. Tonight was for fun, to scare them away. So He wrapped gloved fingers around the doorknob, stepping back as he pulled the door open. The man on the other side froze. He smiled under His mask as Tim came into view. He would have preferred Jay, an easier time. But Tim was much more fun to tease and play with.
Tim's broader figure heaved a breath as he looked at Him, watching as He stepped back. The way He moved was teasing, hands behind his back and light on his feet. Watching as Tim shifted on his own feet, a step back as well. It was charming. Tim was just as impulsive as his compatriot downstairs, somewhere else. So it would work either way. So He moved a few move steps back watching as Tim tensed. Watching the way his eyes changed and expression hardened. Good, that's what he wanted. He wanted Tim's aggression on Him, He could make it hurt more that way.
So He was ready when Tim lunged forward running into the room to tackle Him. He was able to just get out of the way as Tim was able to shoulder check Him. A hand gripping his arm and pulling him closer to swing at Him. The hit makes contact with the side of his jaw hard. Tim is a big man but His body is resilient now. So He just moves in closer, grabbing the collar of Tim's shirt as Tim's knuckles slammed into His stomach. A press of air parted from His lips like a burp, but it was wetter. The taste of rot on the back of His tongue, not filling His mouth but the uncomfortable taste of His own rotted insides filled His throat for a moment.
He swallowed it down as He used their combined movement to throw Tim to the floor with a hard thud. He felt the pleased twitch of a smile reach His lips under the mask at the deep groan of pain that left Tim. Without any hesitation at all, He brought a swift kick straight to Tim's jaw, and Tim responded with a howl of pain while curling a little in on himself. Cute. Another stuttered exhale left His mouth, tasting of bile and rot as He moved over Tim. As He glanced over to His still live filming laptop and camcorder he could see Him kicking Tim in the jaw. Shoe making beautiful contact right along the bottom of Tim's jaw, head being slammed back into the hotel room floor. How lovely YouTube Live delay is. But He couldn't be distracted as He brought His foot down on Tim's throat. Not too hard to stop him from breathing but enough for Tim to know He meant it as a threat to behave.
“What do you want?” Tim's voice rasped, from the foot on his throat and likely from recent over smoking as well. He can see a little blood on his teeth. How cute. So He shifted, kneeling down. Foot pulling off Tim's throat and knee replacing it, His other knee pressed firm in the crook of Tim's elbow. He ruffles Tim's hair, careful about His weight and not crushing Tim's windpipe. Tim doesn't struggle but he moves his hand to His thigh, nails digging in as He leans back a bit. He watches Tim's expression, angry with brows scrunched and teeth bared.
“You should drive the other way. Go back.” He says, voice rasped and with a bit of phlegm in the inflection from His guts being vomited up in his throat. The words are hard, He hasn't really spoken before. It feels wrong but it's so fun to see Tim's eyes widen. But He knows He can't have too much fun, his companion Jay could be back any minute. But He hopes Alex is watching. He wants him aware He isn't scared to take action. So He leans forward, masked face over Tim's bared expression.
“Fuck. You.” Tim seethes, fingers digging in harder into His thigh. The bruises won't ever go away, He hopes He can make this moment never go away for Tim as well. So He leans closer, His gloved hand reaching up to His throat, slipping under the collar of His hoodie. Fingers curling around the fabric mask. He stops for a moment, speaking.
“Oh how you wish you got the chance.” His voice still rasped and wet but the playful dangerous lilt makes His smile under the mask audible. Then He starts to pull the mask up slowly, the pale cold skin of His neck visible. He can see Tim's mind working overtime, trying to figure out His angle with this. He knows Tim will know soon enough. So He tugs the mask higher, revealing bruised jaw and scruffy facial hair. Then higher, grin wide and visible. A gleeful poisonous gap tooth smile. Tim starts to speak then.
“What are you do—” Tim's words cut off by his own stolen breath as He finishes pulling off the mask. The neck of it resting messily in Brian's hair.
“I guess I really stole your breath.” Brian chirped, shifting more of his weight onto the knee pressed to Tim's throat. He leaned closer, more weight on Tim's throat and back mostly to the live feed being recorded. Tim's eyes were wide, hands scrabbling for purchase against Brian. He could see the terror in Tim's eyes and that's all he wanted. Maybe he would run away after this.
So with a death rattle of an exhale Brian pulled back and brought his fist down hard on Tim's nose. A crack bounced around the walls of the room for a moment as Brian was already shifting his body back. Blood already spilling. Then he brought his fist down again on Tim's face. With two hard hits and the knowledge Tim's throat would be bruised and mind marked forever. Brian fully pulled back, lifting off a rattled and barely conscious Tim.
He pulled down His mask and turned back towards the camera and waved. The barely audible sound of someone on the first floor of the hotel starting up the stairs made Him head up to His laptop and click down on the trackpad, ending the stream. With a swift moment He closed the laptop and grabbed the camcorder.
Then hurried out the hotel room door and towards the opposite set of stairs He heard the steps from.
Two viewers. How interesting.