2. Two

Two

Avery

" D o you really think you need more glitter?" Charlie, one of my fellow dancers, asked, scrunching up her nose and tilting her head when I smeared another layer of shimmer over my stomach.

"Duh," I replied, turning as I looked in the mirror, looking at how it make my skin shine. We were running through a maze under flashing lights and shadows. I wanted to be easy to spot. Not to capture, but to catch glimpses of darting under the light show. "You could use a little more," I said, glancing up at her frowning face. She had pulled her fire engine red hair into pigtails, and she had fake blood pouring from her mouth, down to her tits. Didn't know what the fuck she'd dressed herself up as, but more glitter wouldn't hurt.

She whacked me on the arm and laughed when I chased her with the glitter bottle. Shit, I was pent up, ready to go. Being won in an auction just sounded so damn sexy . I was glad to be dolled up and squeaky clean already. Just a layer of sweat from dancing under those lights, masked with rubbed on shimmer and a spray of perfume.

"Did you spot who won you?" Charlie asked. She'd been through the maze and completed her private dance already. She had a show on stage later, second to last, before Zelda finished the night, so she was hanging out, harassing her co-workers when they were just trying to get in the right damn headspace.

I shook my head. It'd been too dark, but they'd been persistent, bidding within a moment each time someone else did. It got my blood pumping. I was ready to start, to run and flee, to put on a good fucking show for them.

Zelda promised me it would be fun, easy, not any touching, just the idea of it. Get chased, she said, then dance. Show off the goods. Make some money. Go home.

But I didn't want to be untouched. The thought of being hunted had me wild . And though I hadn't been able to see the person who'd won me, it was easy to conjure up an image. Dark hair, intense eyes, thick arms and long legs… yes, please. All eager to grab me and fuck me? Even a strip club dressing room was inappropriate for where my mind had started drifting .

Charlie opened her mouth to spout whatever nonsense when the door behind us swung open with a thunk. We both turned to look at our intruder, smiling, when we saw the owner, my best friend, leaning in.

"Almost your go," Zelda said, sticking her head into the changing room without knocking or preamble. I'd witnessed the woman give birth, though, and she'd seen me naked more times than I could count when we trained together, so I just turned and gave her a smile. "You ready?" she asked, eyeing me up and down, her eyes jumping to Charlie for a second.

"Oh, more than," I said with a grin, turning and giving her the full look. I'd had to slip off the angel wings to accommodate the narrow maze we'd built, but that didn't matter.

Zelda, me and some other staff had spent the weekend before building the maze. She was brimming with inspiration as we stabbed plastic nails through dildos and spray painted them silver. Yapping away as we utilized fetish furniture and skeletons to create creepy displays. Woman was too excited, if you asked me.

The maze was confusing on purpose, but we'd build in little hints for the staff, reminders of directions so we'd be able to get out safe and fast, run to our destination and leave our client to navigate it while we set up at the end. The excitement stemmed from the chase. They weren't supposed to actually catch us in there.

We only had a small window of time, after all.

We left Charlie to a game on her phone, kicking her feet up and nesting in the chair. Zelda walked with me to the start of the maze, her marionette costume looking a little worse for wear after hours at work. Painted black lines on her face smudged, and rips in her tights showed both reddened knees.

"Any news on what the winner looks like?" I asked my friend as we navigated the halls, more curious than anything to learn more. I didn't even know the gender of the person who'd fought for little angelic me.

Zelda shrugged, the strings dangling from her body flapping. "Male, tall, face painted up in this sexy as fuck skeleton vibe…"

I laughed at her audacity. Her man loomed around here somewhere, and he was a jealous fucker.

"You'll have a great time," she finished, gesturing for me to enter the maze through the staff entrance. I needed to be seen by him , then run for my life so he didn't catch me. It was all timed, planned, practiced, but even so, tension and anticipation heated my blood.

This was going to be fun.

Less than a minute after I got myself situated in the prearranged starting position - perfectly framed so I'd be spotted right away, a beast stepped into the maze. The white on his painted face caught the lights as he glanced around, taking in his surroundings with slow turns of his head. He looked relaxed, his hands in his pockets, no hint of surprise in his body language as he took in the crazy maze. The shadows were so intense, flashing and blinding, it was impossible to see much of him.

When his piercing eyes landed on me through the strobing, I shivered. He wore contact lenses, he must, because all I saw was black. His mouth turned up with a sly grin, and for a moment, my focus locked solely on him. Lost to him. Forgot to move…

My heart pounded in my throat, in time with the thickening of my cock. Even from here, across an expanse of cheesy decorations and outlandish props, lust bubbled between us. Fuck. My legs stuck like lead and my lips fell open as I fought to calm my pulse.

What was it about him? This almost invisible man in the shadows, save for the white flashes painted on his face and the whites of his teeth as he grinned. Standing still as heavy metal pounded and lights dimmed and flickered.

It was only when he jerked, as if to lunge for me, that I woke from my stupor and turned on my heel. My legs moved away while my brain stayed stuck on him. He oozed something, a fierceness that even the artificial shadows of the maze and the thick face paint over his features failed to hide. Fear warred with curiosity as I took my first turning, gripping the wall as I rocketed around the corner.

I wanted him to capture me. I wanted to get the fuck away from him.

So I ran, letting myself sink into the role of victim, scared and being chased through a haunted maze. He was going to catch me, fuck me, ruin me. I could enjoy that. Fuck yes, I would. It was all fakery, pretend, even in my own head, but it got my heart pumping faster and faster.

Anticipation boiled in my belly, and as I saw glimpses of him at my back, sometimes closer, just turning the same corner, or further away at the end of a long corridor, that excitement twisted to heat, made my cock thicken behind the lace.

It was fun . And as laughter fell from me, I'm sure it did from him, too.

My chest grew lighter, and I found myself looking forward to the dance, seeing this man who haunted me so well. But the next time I turned, he'd gone, no longer at my heel. He wasn't on the periphery, racing to catch up. It made my steps falter, but I kept running. More afraid now than when he stalking close behind.

I shot past the row of nailed dildos hanging from the roof, battling the fuckers out of the way, and jumped when a deep male laugh echoed nearby. Way too close. The ominous chuckle zapped right down my spine, made my balls twinge. Both lust and fear warred under my skin. The first, the lust, morphing and twisting as he played with my emotions. Was he about to catch me? What would he do? He wasn't supposed to…

My bare feet slapped on the concrete floor, and the music grew louder, the beat pounding and pulsing, making my heart race in time with it.

Lights flickered, plunging the space into almost complete pitch black save for some glow in the dark spiders, and I gasped, skidding to a stop. Shit. Where was I? I turned, tried to get my bearing. I'd built this fucking thing, timed the lights myself, but he had me twisted up, a squeezing, heart-pounding mess when I should be in full control.

I sucked in a breath to try to steady myself, calm the fuck down, but then the beat of the music shifted and the lights flashed on .

Gasping, I stumbled backward. He was there.

Right in front of me.

How the fuck—?

With a yell, I turned and ran in the opposite direction, fleeing back the way I came, even though it must be wrong. More of those stupid decorations tangled with me as I raced through the maze. The walls grew narrower, the music louder, everything darker, tighter, twisted… fuck.

My eyes squeezed shut of their own volition as I darted round another corner, so confused, so lost, so—I bounced off something hard and screamed so fucking loud my throat grew hoarse. Fingers grazed my shoulders, and I opened my eyes.

"How—" I started to say, but shook my head. Him, the man, the victor, he had me. I wrestled free of him, though his grip remained loose, and took a few measured steps back.

I wasn't actually being chased here. We could call this a simple flub. I'd take a few turnings and it would all be okay. If he'd just wait... but he beckoned for me, curling his finger repeatedly to urge me closer again. My foot stepped towards him, my chest pushed to move nearer. His costume, the tilt of his head and the intensity of his black eyes called me to him. I wanted it, despite the raging terror now causing me to crash, I wanted him. But the game hadn't finished.

I shook my head and darted around the corner, running again until I found the subtle arrows we'd built into the decorations. My mind was clearing.

But he was right behind me this time, not letting me get away like before. His heat, the pounding of his shoes juxtaposing my bare feet, the quick breaths he released. I felt him in the blood rushing through my veins, in the tingle at my neck, in the sweat prickling my spine.

He just didn't stop. He toyed with me, allowing me to slip out of his vicinity, only to catch right back up with that lethal chuckle. My mind turned to flashing images and emotions darting around, confusing me, overwhelming me as the curated playlist of crashing instruments and screaming vocals bounced through my skull. This maze was supposed to be silly, not scary, but my adrenaline peaked again, raging through me as I fought for my bearings.

I lost where I was, couldn't see the trail. Turned the wrong way. Panicked and flailed as sticky cobwebs brushed against my limbs.

Crashed into a wall, whipped around and tried to run away from the dead end. But he found me.My heart pounded as his tall body stepped closer, blocking my only exit. Shit. Shit!

"Stop—" I tried, but could only take rough breaths, only step back and press into the wall. He was… commanding, even with his features painted away and his entire body covered in thick, black clothing. It was his whole aura, scary, looming. Demanding. How?

He gave it a minute, let the reality of the situation sink over me. He'd caught me.

"Hello," his deep voice echoed, seeming louder than the blasting music, louder than the blood rushing around my ears. And my lust for him was louder than my desire to run.