Ben Masters's Story

"Lets see, we got a guy who is like a brother to me, and who I'm always in competition with. The girl of my dreams who most likely has no feelings for me, and has no idea how I feel about her. Then there was everyone else. In one of the emergency scenarios that father always talked about, I would focus on my brother and/or my girl, pending on the situation, then Tessa and/or Nikki then Jasper. You know I don't really know anyone but them, maybe this race..." He thought but was violently shaken from his head as Tessa tagged his pack and said go. Instantly his mind and body synced and switch to race mode. He raced to catch up to her and once he did he stayed behind her to show off like he did with his car. As they ran he couldn't help but watch her form, clearly she was a runner, a little rusty now but definitely a runner. Half way through he was getting ready to sling past her when she dropped her pack catching him off guard. He stumbled over it barely catching himself from falling though it did slow him down. When he was able to regain his balance, he just missed hitting a tree head on. Having been slowed down by her pack and the tree Zack gets just short of arms reach as Tessa crosses the line. He slowed to a jog as he finally passed her and came about to stand next to her as he dropped his pack, watching Jasper grabbing Tessa's pack. Walking in front of her he bows and slightly winded, "Good run."

Zack walked beck to his pack taking a water bottle out and sipping it as he started to walk it off. After a little while he noticed that the others were still not in sight and he couldn't hear them. He looked down the path they just ran up, maybe it hasn't been long enough or maybe something happened, then again maybe he was just being overly protective. Looking back at Tessa who was resting and Jasper who was starting to make camp. With a sigh, "Wait here, I'll be right back. Jasper I'll give you a hand when I get back and Tessa again good run, maybe we can do it again sometime." He grabbed his pack, just in case some thing happened, and started off down the path to see what's up, hopping it was just that he didn't wait long enough. Once he made it to the point were Tessa dropped her pack he looked around. Seeing Ben up ahead, Sera and Nikki off to the side, way off the path, he took off after Sera. Even though he was tired and starting to hurt, he wasn't use to running with a pack on, he ran as hard as he could, the whole time thinking, "What is she doing? Is she ok? Why isn't Ben checking on her? Did he do something to her?" He nearly ran into Nikki as she started towards camp distracted by his thoughts. By the time he reached her he was completely out of breath and hurting all over. His lungs felt like they were on fire and his leg felt like they could give out at any moment, but he was able to get a few words out. "Are... you... ok...? what's...." As he tries to talk, he looks were her attention is and sees an old carnival. Seeing that suddenly his second wind rushes through him, "Lets do it. Now, me and you right now. The others can catch up." he said as his curiosity getting the better of him, and getting rapped up in the excitement, adrenaline rush he gives Sera a big hug.

Sera nodded her head at Nikki's words and just continued to stare off at it. This place seemed to be pulling her in, though just before she had the guts to look around she heard Zack's words. She stood there in silence still and just stared. Though when he pretty much read her mind she hugged him back, finding that she didn't want to break the hug. But she quickly did and glanced back towards the group before grabbing his hand and running through the pathway towards the carnival grounds. Yeah, they would probably get called out on this choice since camp still needed to be set up but she couldn't miss out on an adventure with Zackary.

The second they were officially on the grounds she couldn't help but notice how quiet it was. There wasn't even animals roaming around. "This place is creepy as fuck!" she stated as she began glancing around at all the broken down rides that had their gorgeous look taken away by wear and tear over the years that nobody was taking care of it.

All of a sudden the air around the two of them began getting colder. She folded her arms across her chest and shivered a bit. She stepped a bit closer to Zack, attempting to get warm. As they continued walking she noticed that a dead crow immediately fell from the sky as if the air around the carnival intoxicated it within seconds. Startled by this sudden notion she jumped back with a small scream.

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Jasper turned his head when he realized that Zackary was darting back down the path, he just sighed and pushed whatever was going on aside. If it was important Zack would have said something. “Where are the others, babe?” he heard Tessa question. But before he was able to answer he heard her speaking to Nikki. Seeing as how she made it, he figured that the others would be close behind.

Though he wouldn't lie, being alone with both of the girls made him feel very awkward. He just hoped it wouldn't be for long. Just before he was about to finish setting up his tent he heard a soft scream coming from down the path. It sounded like Sera. He immediately dropped everything and darted down the path, looking for Sera. That's when he immediately stopped at the opening for the carnival. He sighed and shook his head, noticing that someone had walked through. Seeing as how he hadn't noticed Zack or Sera on his way through the path he figured they were on the carnival grounds.

He peered through, just barely making out the shapes of Sera and Zack. "Guys, is everything okay?" he called through the opening. "I think we should get to camp and finish setting up, you guys can finish exploring later," he added. Though he felt that there was a little more to it than that.

Ben suddenly noticed Sera's excitement after his last announcement as she ran off in a jog. Not far from where Ben and Nikki were though, she stopped and walked in the wrong direction. "Sera? That's not the right way!" he screamed after her. Sera's reply made him wonder if she heard him at all. "Ben, Nikki, come check this out." As requested Nikki and Ben made their way to the where Sera was standing. From the opposite direction Zack came running, apparently with enough energy left from his little race.

Before Ben and Nikki arrived Ben could already see the scared look on Zack's face, Ben assumed what happened."You lost?" he called over to Zack with a hint of a smile on his face. At that moment Zack gave Sera a big hug for some reason. Did they started drinking without us? And how much did they drink in the little time the 2 groups were separated? Coming closer Sera pointed at what she had been looking at, and Nikki and Ben looked through the overgrown leafs.

The old carnival looked eerie, but awesome. Finding an abandoned carnival was like a dream to Ben. He remembered the rush from High School when he and his friends would go to the cemetery at night and hold so called séances. Ben was a person who knew his Ouija board. Before he could say anything he already could hear Nikki didn't feel the same way. "We should get to the camp site, there is a lot to do before it gets dark." When Nikki took her step back she nearly fell and Ben held his hand behind her back to prevent it. Then she walked off to the camp site.

The same hand that stopped Nikki from falling, was now raised in the air waiting for Zack to return the high five. "Awesome! We are so gonna check this out! How did we get this lucky?" His mind was racing as he thought about the adventure waiting for them. He wasn't bad with his hands, maybe he could get one or two of these rides to work. Who wouldn't want to go on a carrousel in the middle of nowhere? He put his arm around Sera and moved his other hand in the sky from left to right like Mufasa would do for Simba when showing him the Pridelands."Sera, Zack..." he paused a moment for dramatic effect."Just imagine the haunted house in this place." He nearly started jumping up and down from excitement.

He immediately started thinking out a plan. "Okay, Nikki is probably right. We should set up camp first before exploring. In that way we at least have a place to crash for tonight. Come on!" With that he let go of Sera and walked hastily to the camp site, just hearing Tess inquiring about them. "Where are all your friends Nikki?" As she said it Ben jumped in sight. "We're right here of course. You really thought we would let Nikki out on her own." He winked at Tess, but instantly regretted it. It could come of as playful, but on the other hand she might think he likes her. Which of course is true, but not something he wants her to know. "Did you guys see the old carnival? Or did you not notice it during the running?" In a softer voice he continued. "By the by, thank you for winning, that's awesome!"

Walking past both girls he dropped his backpack in the clearing and started getting his tent out. After setting up his own, which due to experience took him less than 5 minutes, he started helping Jasper with his. "Dude, who could have imagined such entertainment. And that right next to our camp site. If I would have known I should have never brought my guitar with, I'm not gonna use it now in any case."

She laughed a little and nodded at Ben's surprise appearance. "thank you for winning, that's awesome!" Tessa tilted her head to the side modestly as if to be a good sport. "N'aw well, anything for you Ben." For a moment the mentioning of a carnival swooped over her head making Tessa appear a little slow. Tessa’s mouth dropped open once she tended to the information. “Wait. Carnival?” She looked between the others for any hint of a joke as rightfully she had a little reason to question Ben in all his playfulness but no one had laughed or grew a mischievous grin.

When Jasper darted off she crossed her arms and shook her head. “Everyone is really losing their mind over this carnival! Which is funny because I didn’t take him for the type,” she said, pursing her lips looking in the vague direction Jasper headed. She shrugged it off and went to help Ben with the tents but realized she was only getting in the way so just stood there waiting for him to finish up before bombarding him with questions of the carnival.

Instead she turned her attention back to Nikki. “We’ll set up your tent later Nikki. Everyone else has ran off to the magical carnival.” Tessa opened and closed her palm for Nikki to come with her and grabbed Ben’s arm before he thought about galloping off to the carnival without them. “And besides, Ben really wants to go. He would’ve left his guitar back if he knew a carnival was in the middle of nowhere,” she mocked Ben now but added her own wink at him to show she was joking. Not that he seemed like the uptight type anyway but she just needed to add the clarification that she meant well.

Re-attending her thoughts was Nikki and if she were as keen to go. If Nikki weren’t ready to go or didn’t want to go tonight though, Tessa would stay with her. Not out of pity but common respect. Nikki seemed above peer pressure anyway.

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Almost as soon as Ben started helping Jasper to set up the tent, Jasper disappeared towards the carnival. Ben was a bit annoyed by it, he wanted to go to the carnival probably more than anyone else, still he knew the tents needed to be up first. Tess tried to help, but somehow she seemed to got strangled in more rope than she was actually untangling. On top of that, being so close to Tess made Ben nervous and clumsy. Why can't I just act normal? What must she think? After a while he noticed she had stepped aside completely, letting him finish. With some concentration it only took a few minutes before the tent was standing.

Hearing the plan to go to the carnival before setting up the rest of the tents, Ben put all the bags he could find in the already standing tents. Out of the side pocket of his own backpack he took the two flash lights and put them in the side pockets of his cargo shorts. The moment he stepped out of the tent his arm was grabbed and he was being dragged of by the two remaining ladies. “And besides, Ben really wants to go. He would've left his guitar back if he knew a carnival was in the middle of nowhere.” Ben didn't know whether to feel insulted or amused. When she added the wink to her comment Ben felt himself turning as red as a tomato. He hoped they wouldn't see it in the shadows.

Now that he would finally get his chance to get to the carnival his face lit up in a smile again. He started walking faster and his arm, still hooked in Tessa's, dragged her forward a little bit. He felt like a little boy being excited to go to Disneyland. They got to the opening without meeting Jasper, so Ben figured he would be at the carnival already. When they got to the opening Ben held some branches to the side to let Nikki and Tess through. When he followed he first looked for Sera, Zack and Jasper, but he didn't see them right away.

He walked a bit further around a stall that apparently used to sell corn dogs. He could only imagine all the things that he was about to see. So many stories, so many attractions, so many possibilities to scare the others. Suddenly thinking of the others he noticed the girls hadn't followed him yet. He did a few steps back and spoke to the girls without turning his head. "Well, ready to explore ladies?"

After hearing Jasper's voice coming from the opening of the path to the carnival, she sighed as she was about to start making her way towards the camp. But once she noticed the others stepping in with nothing more than a means for adventure a huge smile returned to her face. She noticed that Jasper was a bit hesitant about the whole thing but followed behind the rest of them, not the slightest bit happy about his friend's decision.

Sera looked to Ben once he spoke to Nikki and Tessa and met the small group half way. "This place is creepy," she stated to her friends. She wrapped her arm through Tessa's, finding it a bit comforting and she glanced behind her towards her best friend's boyfriend with a look of concern. "Are you alright Jas?" she questioned.

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Jasper sighed as he noticed Ben, Nikki, and Tessa brush past him and slumped his shoulders as he hesitantly stepped onto the grounds with a relaxing sigh. He needed to hold up his composure. He just hoped that whatever bad feeling he was having about this trip wouldn't happen in this place. Though of course he wasn't going to mention anything about it now because then he would be called a pussy by the other guys and that was a conversation he wanted to avoid.

Though he couldn't help but noticed Sera and Tessa beginning to get closer, Sera sliding her arm around Tessa's in a friendly way. When Sera questioned him about his well-being he just nodded his head with a sigh. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's get this adventure on the road, shall we," he stated as he pulled his hands out of his pockets and rubbed them together, trying to play his feelings about this place off.

Tessa chuckled being dragged forth by Ben’s boyish haste where they regrouped with Sera, Zack and Jasper.

Sera wasn’t the wuss type as far as Tessa knew so Sera’s arm wrapping in Tessa’s own, along with the statement made Tessa question the suddenly chillier grounds of the carnival. It did look like a spook town with the absence of the activity a carnival should have. But worse it looked like it hadn’t been tended to in years. She thought it cool but upon setting foot in the actual place, the creep factor dominated the fun factor.
She tightened her arm around Sera’s and glanced back to Jasper too, smiling a little. He clearly wasn’t feeling the best about it but she didn’t want to break the arm link that benefited both of them with a calming effect.

“So where do we begin?” She asked returning to the bright side of the spooky carnival. Such an opportunity shouldn’t have been disregarded because it looked intimidating.
No. They were going to have fun and lunge on rides impulsively and all the things people were supposed to do with an empty carnival.

Zack's heart stopped for a moment because in that moment everything was perfect. He did not want to let go of her nor have her let go of him. But like all good things this moment ended when she let go and then dragged him into the carnival. He gladly followed her not caring what the others would say, or what they were getting themselves into, as long as he was with Sera he couldn't be happier. As he thought about him and Sera running off and hiding in the carnival he was interrupted by her scream. He looked around to see what scared her and spotted the cow, "Were did that come from, and oh my gosh she even has a cute scream." His thoughts being interrupted once again, this time by Jasper calling out to them. He turned to see Ben show up and as predictable, he two was exited to find the carnival. High fiving him he turned to take a look at the carnival when after a moment he heard more foot steps. Turning around again this time Nikki and Tessa had joined them, with Ben coming back a sort time later. "Great now the gangs all here." he thought well the group tried to decide what to do next. Just then Nikki suggested the house of mirrors. "Could be fun. But I think Ben makes a good point... lets check out the hunted house. That is unless our scared Ben. And don't try and hide behind the ladies or that we need to setup camp, cause look around us, we got plenty of places to camp. Besides you know I wouldn't let anything happen to any of the ladies." As Zack finishes talking he glanced over at Sera with a quick smile. Well inside he was a little scared of this place but he had to keep his strong competitive appearance, plus this way he could drag Ben with. If he was going to do anything stupid or was walking ito hell he wanted Ben by his side, though he would never admit it.

Sera sighed and just nodded her head when she heard Jasper's response. He was clearly hiding something from everyone. She knew there was something more about this place that he wasn't going to tell anyone. The female glanced over between Tessa, Nikki, Ben, and Zack as they began talking about what they wanted to do.

Though throughout the entire time, she wasn't paying much attention to what they were saying. Instead just staring over at Zack, thinking about that night they spent tangled in the sheets. She lightly bit her lip and then looked away when she noticed what she was doing. Sera had a feeling a couple of her friends would have questions about her sudden silence, because in a place like this it's very unusual for her to be so silent. Of course Sera was an easy one to scare, but she loved creepy.

"Um, I'm cool with the mirrors or the haunted house," she finally stated as she glanced around at her friends. Realizing that she was still hooked at the arm with Tessa. "Maybe we could even do both?" she added as she glanced back and forth between Nikki, Ben, and Zack.

As she was speaking, she felt the air around them suddenly chill. Of course her out of all people wouldn't bring a stupid jacket. She removed her arm out of Tessa's and wrapped her arms around her in a hug. "Sorry, I'm just really cold all of a sudden," she stated to her best friend.

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Jasper smiled when he heard about the haunted house idea and immediately perked up. "Hell yeah! Let's do that. Then we can do the house of mirrors," he stated as he looked around at the small group, wondering if that plan was something they could all agree to.

Though that's when it hit him, when he was entering into the carnival, he noticed the huge sign at the opening saying, Redwell Carnival. He's heard about this place before. If he remembered correctly this was where his parents met. Though he thought there was more to this place than just some historical abandoned ground. He smirked a bit when he noticed Sera cuddling up to Tessa, trying her best to get warm. But for some reason, he felt completely fine. Other than the fact that he felt this carnival wasn't a good place.

Part of him hoped he wasn't the only one feeling this way, but there was no way he was going to be the first one to say something about it. The last thing he needed to deal with was being called a pussy by the guys and possibly even a couple of the girls as well. That would be highly embarrassing. Jasper needed to get his act together and just remove all of those thoughts from his mind.

Tessa grinned and gave Sera a bear hug and nodded to the idea of the horror house but looked to Nicole waiting for her own response whose say was just as valid as the rest. Then again there was no real reason to oppose an exploration of the haunted house especially when they agreed the house of mirrors to be next.

Tessa smirked at a new thought as she returned to herself and let all these small silly worries go. “I’m surprised you’re not cuddling up to Zackary,” she whispered to Sera cupping her hand to Sera’s ear. She tried to refrain from giggling so it wouldn’t be completely obvious but instead had a huge grin on her face. Tessa slipped away from Sera to see how she’d take the comment on board and headed to the haunted house.

Honestly, these boys couldn’t be trusted in front of the pack or behind. There was no real winning. But Tessa took her chances in front, holding back a hand for someone to hopefully grab on to. She would have stuck with Sera if she hadn't felt like she were intruding on the vibes flying between Zack and Sera. Meanwhile, in the absence of a hand she would clench her own palm nervously.

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Ben was happy to hear most people agreeing on the haunted house. "We'll make the mirrors second on our list. Although to be honest, I've known for a long time that Zack is very funny looking, don't need no mirror for that." Ben spotted a large older looking tower a short distance away. Everything was a bit creepy like, but if Ben would have to place a bet the tower would be part of the haunted house. He was looking forward to creeping the shit out of everyone, although he could expect the same from any of the others. Ben pointed at the tower and shouted: "TO THE HAUNTED HOUSE!"

He stepped out in front of the others waiving his arms. "Please follow me fellow tourists, let's get scared" Even Ben himself could feel the evil grin on his face. While walking to their destination they past abandoned food carts, broken clown masks on the floor and all the way Ben had the feeling he was being watched. Get a grip Ben, you can't even be near creeping out right now, we just got here. He just couldn't believe this place hadn't been taken apart for scrap. The copper in the bump cars wires should make a pretty penny, why was everything just abandoned. Turning two more corners they stood in front of the haunted house.

The outside was made to look like a hotel. The name of the attraction was broken and some of the letters had fallen away. Ben wasn't quick enough to figure out what it should have been. The slogan underneath was still pretty much intact. 'Make sure to pack heavy, your stay might be eternal.' The smile came back on his face. "Very promising..." Ben saw the operator room next to the entrance. "Guys, I might just be able to get this thing to work. If this thing works on generators there might still be some diesel left in them. Shall I try?" Thinking of the state the park was left in it was a fare assumption. If they don't take the precious metals, why take the trouble to suck the diesel out of the generators?

Honestly, the entire time she was hugging up to Tessa for warmth, the thought of doing this with Zack hadn't crossed her mind until Tessa whispered into her ear, “I’m surprised you’re not cuddling up to Zackary.” Sera just smiled a bit and found herself releasing Tessa as she stepped away from her and began making her way through the carnival grounds to look for the haunted house.

At first Sera didn't seem to have any idea where Tessa thought she was going until she heard Ben's words, "We'll make the mirrors second on our list. Although to be honest, I've known for a long time that Zack is very funny looking, don't need no mirror for that." At his last words she just sighed and glanced over at Zackary before glancing back towards Ben and stating, "How rude? Zackary is very attractive." Even though she was telling the truth, she still seemed a bit shocked that she had admitted to her attraction towards him in front of everyone, even him. But hopefully the group wouldn't read into it so much, though she already knew that everyone on this trip knew that she had a thing for Zackary. But she couldn't quite seem to grasp if Zackary knew about the feelings she felt towards him himself.

"TO THE HAUNTED HOUSE! Please follow me fellow tourists, let's get scared," Sera just chuckled a bit and followed him as he stated, having a feeling that he already knew where he was going. Sera just couldn't seem to understand how he was so good with his sense of direction. Part of her envied that quality in Ben. Even out on the road, if she didn't have someone in the car with her to tell her exactly where she had to go, there was no point in her even going to the place she was looking for. Sera was so glad Ben decided to tag along on this trip with them because if anyone else were in charge with the directions in a place like this, they would be lost for days.

Before Sera started making her way towards the house, she glanced back towards Jasper, seeing that he still seemed to be a bit off guard for some reason. Though she couldn't seem to understand what it was all about, all she hoped was that it didn't have anything to do with their dirty little secret. But before she was able to get too lost in her own thoughts she found her way beside Zackary and kept a steady pace beside him as they walked to the haunted house.

Upon arrival to the front of the haunted house, she noticed how battered up the place looked. The sign was no longer readable, but the quote was left almost untouched by nature and it's horrible abuse to the buildings. After reading it she felt chills go down her spine. "Almost as if the place is calling out for us to literally never leave," she stated as she felt her body get chills once again. As she stood there she could feel watched and it wasn't the paranoid kind of feeling, she literally felt watched. Sera began to glance around and found herself laying her brown hues upon a creepy looking clown in the distance, standing at the corner of one of the buildings.

Sera immediately found herself clutching onto Zackary and burying her face into his chest. "Creepy clown, three o'clock. Looks alive and watching us with blood thirsty eyes," she was able to get out through her fear.

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Jasper began to follow the group through the carnival grounds and noticed that Tessa wanted someone to hold on to. As much as he knew she wouldn't admit it to everyone, he knew that she was officially creeped out and was thankful he wasn't the only one. He caught up to her and slid his fingers between her's and gave a comforting squeeze.

It was odd that he was as silent as he was. Usually Jasper was one of the most talkative members of their little group, half the time everyone would be telling him to shut up. Though he just couldn't seem to find a way out of his own head for some reason. Though as he walked through the grounds, glancing around at all of the battered, abandoned buildings and carts, he felt as if someone was watching them like a hawk. Following their every move, listening to their every word. It was not the greatest feeling in the world.

Once they arrived at the haunted house, he glanced at the hotel looking building and chuckled a bit at Ben's words, "Yes, very promising," he agreed. Though once Sera pretty much ran directly into Zack's arms he couldn't help but to smirk. The two of them would make a very cute couple, he thought to himself. Though the reason for why she did that sent immediate chills throughout his body as she explained. Jasper trailed his eyes in the three o'clock direction and spotted the clown she mentioned. Sera was right, not the greatest feeling. "Sera, I'm sure that thing isn't even real, you've got nothing to worry about. Besides, we're the only ones here and it doesn't seem like anyone would ever give us company," he stated to her with a soft sigh.

As much as he hated to admit, he felt that Sera was a lot more correct with her words than he wanted to believe. He just hoped it really wasn't true. If something were to happen to any of them he would feel at fault because he had a horrible feeling about this camping trip to begin with. Ever since they started talking about the idea he didn't like it. But now, he was glad he tagged along. If anything were to happen to Tessa when he wasn't around, he would be feeling very worried and pissed off at himself. I'm just glad I'm here to protect her if anything were to happen, he thought.

"Alright, make your magic happen Ben," he stated with a soft smile, quickly changing the subject of the creepy killer clown standing in the distance, hoping that all it was was a decoration.

Seeing as everyone was more or less onboard with the hunted house idea, Zack smiled as thought of how to scare everyone started flooding his head. This was quickly broken up by Bens comment about his appearance. Not wanting to give Ben any satisfaction of a reaction he was going to let it slide... till his heart stopped. "How rude? Zackary is very attractive." "Did she really just say that? Was she just being nice to a friend or...?" he thought but quickly dismissed it, "Thank you Sera." he said with a nod, as he followed Ben.

As they walked he could help but feel like there were eyes every were watching them. This he also dismissed the best he could, being used to the feeling with his father always having people watch him. He couldn't count how many times he had to loss a tail to meet up with Ben or Sera. He remembered losing a hard tail the last night he and Sera spent together, which was an other reason it meant so much to him and why she means so much to him. But this was different, this was darker, unnatural, every were and no were. Luckily about this time he spotted a clown masked that looked intact on the ground and carefully so not to fall over due to his pack, which he noted only he and Sera still had, he scooped it up putting it in a side pocket in his pack. This put an evil grin on Zack's face, even if the mask wasn't perfect it would still do the trick. His mind quickly jumping from one evil idea to an other, he completely missed most of what people said or what the sign read, till Sera buried her face into his chest. Carefully he peeled her off dropping his pack, he took of his favorite black jacket and put it around her, "Here, you look cold. And don't worry I'm not going to let mean old Ben or some rusted old clown hurt you. Oh wait I just mentioned Ben twice. We should probably leave our packs out here in whats left of the operator room. We can get them on our way out, but I will bring my daypack just incase." With that he knelt down at his pack and pulled out his backup jacket, throwing it on and as secretly as possible tucks the mask in it. Then unhooked his daypack throwing that on, he looked at poor Sera who was probably still scared out of her mind and cold, he throw an arm around her and pulled her close. With a big smile on his face, "So whose ready to get this party started? Or are we waiting on en to quite wetting himself?" He said manly tring to lighten the mood. He knows this place is creepy but even before they left everyone has seemed on edge and if people don't lighten this was going to be a long trip.

The clown Sera bought to their attention was all kinds of nerving and discomforting. It would have been the final straw of the whole creepy carnival presence if only someone had decided to pull back and give Tessa a good excuse to leave too. Knowing the group though, they’d be too prideful and need a real scare before they exited the grounds. Tessa jigged a little restlessly. “Come on,” she muttered under her breath hoping to leave the stare of the clown that she tried hard to ignore and get the haunted house over and done with or not running at all. She held Jasper’s hand tightly but still insisted on giving him a smile like she were having a good time and looking forward to it.

Tessa went to her tippy toes, peaking over her boyfriend's shoulder checking on her other best friend who entered her mind and was seen with the shakes. Nicole wasn’t coulrophobic that she knew of and it was awful to see her friend like that. “Nikki?” she went to voice her concerns but after a brief glance at the others, thought better of it for the both of them. “Don’t be a stranger, stop trailing behind,” she said instead which was completely applicable to a haunted house exploration and she added a smile.

As she looked back to Ben, she couldn't prevent the shiver from rippling down her spine and the urge to interfere with Ben's mechanics of getting the horror house operating. It was a selfish thought but a large part of her truly urged to divert their attention from the horror house and Ben was the one reviving it...maybe jump on his back and claim it's tag? Fake an injury? She blew out her lips mentally scolding herself for being such a grinch and braced herself.

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Ben looked up when Sera mentioned the clown. It even looked as if it's eyes were glowing red a bit. "Awesome," Ben whispered to himself. In the operator room everything looked dusty. No surprise there to be honest... A cloth lay on the floor and he used it to wipe most of the dust of the controls. The controls weren't really rocket science, quite straight forward actually. The only thing was the missing keys for the ignition, he grabbed his pocket knife from his pocket. Jamming it in there should do most of the work, although he would most likely loose his knife, which he was not planning on doing.

He shouted to the others from inside the operator room. "Guys, or more specifically, Girls. If you can just distract yourself from old Pennywise over there. Do any of you have a hairpin or something I can use to jam the ignition?" Ben was so in thought he didn't even notice who actually gave him the pin. He stuck his knife in the ignition and jammed it. He stuck in the hairpin afterwards and slowly wiggled out the knife. Looking proudly at his own work he flipped the two main switches. Some of the buttons on the panel lit up. The first two buttons he pressed were 'sound' and 'lights' and he could see the effect instantly. The music from the ride sounded creepy as fuck, especially after the so far eerie silence of the abandoned park.

With a euphoric smile he stood in the opening of the operator room. He leaned against the door post looking more smug than the chills he felt inside should make him feel. "I'm ready to receive my compliments now.. Leaning back he flipped the main switch and one of the doors opened, the first cart came rolling out. It seemed the ride was made for two people per cart. Classic... He could only think of the amount of young couples that went in there together. He hadn't missed the little signs between Sera and Zack, so his suggestion wasn't too far out of the park. "Zack? Any objection taking Sera with you in the first cart?" Ben figured Tess and Jas would be going together, although he would have liked to go with Tess himself. Just put it out of your mind Ben.

Ben suddenly realized he would be going with Nikki, which he absolutely didn't mind. He could see how scared she looked already, although she tried to hide it. Maybe he should tone down the pranking around her a little bit. He didn't know how long the ride would last, maybe it would stop halfway. "Guys, in case the ride stops, the people in the first cart stay where they are and the other two catch up with them. I'll be in the third one with a flash light, and for someone in the second cart I've got one as well.