That was what Duke said, but he was still asked to come a lot earlier than preferred. Since it was a sensitive operation, he could only kiss Rowan's sulking away. Later, he promised to treat Rowan with something worth the bother.
After having dinner with Reeva in one of the restaurants, Rowan found himself grooming himself in front of the mirror. He was facing yet another kind of audience who consumed his art. Unlike the 'respectable' people at the art gallery, he was now diving into the world of the weird. Out of all the cities they went to launch pieces of Red Riding Hood's art, Gideon City was the only one with a Ghoul's Society.
Right, that was the name of the club he would be speaking to this evening. Based on what Reeva had on his tablet, this was some kind of society for those who liked the morbid and the terrifying. At the very least, they hosted the worst kind of Halloween parties—for being too scary and traumatizing to the common, as they called it.
The brave Rowan lost half his confidence when Reeva pulled up in front of an abandoned building. That was the base of Ghoul's Society, and they didn't bother to redecorate to have an authentic feeling of emptiness and misery.
"I'm a little scared to proceed." Rowan glanced at the other cars in the parking spaces. A lot were heavily customized to look scary, and he even spotted a hearse in the midst.
"Archie figured you'd like to meet some of them. Who knows how much you can learn from those who truly embrace the macabre?" Reeva hummed and led him inside.
Unlike their usual formal get-ups, the two came in clothes that were more casual yet exuding danger. Reeva was in a blood-red vest and black long-sleeves, his makeup rather pronounced as if a vampire covering up his dead face. Rowan only stuck to a black ensemble of differing shades. The only color on his clothes was that red sun necklace Duke bought him before.
The path to the only functioning gathering hall was littered with dull graffiti and dry waste. The walls were long and chipped, the paint peeling from the ceiling. Rowan figured the place was giving haunted house vibes, but the noises he could hear from far away surely came from a rave party. He remembered how Reeva said the Ghoul's Society threw rave parties to cover up their real activities.
Too much effort was going into this society. Rowan wished he could give the same kind of energy every day—not just every night.
By the entrance of the hall was a big burly man who acted like a bouncer. When his eyes lay on Rowan, he immediately moved to face their direction. Rowan would feel uncertain about getting close to the man, but he only saw the gleam of anticipation in the man's eyes.
"Good evening, we're here for the party." Reeva chuckled as he took out the invitation that even looked like envelopes dipped in blood. The red stains even yellowed at the ends as if real blood was used. Whether it was human or not, Rowan cared too little.
"Mr. Riding Hood… Big fan…" The bouncer couldn't keep his mean face because of his own excitement. He then took out an A6-size photocard from inside his jacket. It was a print of one of the paintings. Rowan remembered launching those versions in another city a month ago. "Do you mind?"
Rowan only smiled and took the photocard. He used the vacant table at the side and signed the photocard with a red permanent marker. Reeva made him carry that one marker everywhere he went.
He gave the photocard back. "Thank you for liking them. Can you tell me what to expect inside the room? I don't particularly like loud places."
"Don't worry, sir. Just go through the back, and the party is way behind you." The bouncer didn't mind saying a thing or two. "I already called the president. He will greet you in front of the black curtain. I hope you enjoy the night, Mr. Riding Hood."
"Keep safe out here, too." Rowan nodded and chuckled as he pocketed the red marker. "If someone attacked you out here, the people inside would marvel at the crime before even thinking of calling an ambulance. We'll be off."
Reeva still led the way, but he laughed at the feigned confident smile on Rowan's face. After walking into the dark hallway leading to the party, Rowan started whimpering and covering his ears. The slender male only laughed louder when Rowan glared at him for it.
Laser lights whipped around, causing Rowan's eyesight to keep following them. He was so used to the LED lights being stationary. Once they moved so erratically, he felt like something was already striking him. As someone who had been seeing glinting cold lights of blades, he just wanted to be in a visually safe space. Everything was too chaotic for his mind.
"Mr. Riding Hood!" Someone called out nearby as if trying to make his voice clear over the loud music. "Please come this way! I'm so happy you came!"
"Let's hurry out of this place first," Reeva answered for the other. "He's getting sensory overload from the rave party. I didn't realize he would react this badly."
The attendant only escorted the two hurriedly through the distraction hall. No one was dancing there, so there was no one to bump into. After minutes of crossing the hall, the three arrived at the black curtain. Rowan finally opened his eyes and saw a woman standing there in her immaculate gothic gown.
She smiled at them like a ghost. Her movements were even so fluid as if she was waving air all the time. "Mr. Ghoul will see you a little later. Please follow me, Mr. Riding Hood."
"Do you need anything, Mr. Riding Hood? Water? Special snacks?" the male attendant asked Rowan in a worried voice. Rowan figured this man was here in case Rowan and Reeva were new to eccentric people like the gothic woman.
"I'm fine… just… stop talking please…" Rowan lowly lifted his hand. He just needed a few seconds of subtle noises to retake control. After a whole minute of silence from the three others, Rowan took a deep breath and smiled slightly. "Thank you for indulging me. Erm, where are we headed?"
At the cue, the gothic woman smiled. "To the conference hall. Everyone's waiting for you, Mr. Riding Hood. Ever since they heard you'd be coming, their excitement had never been quenched by anything. Oh, do you have allergies? We took liberty in making use of eggs and milk a lot."
Rowan shook his head. "Don't worry, I don't have any food allergies. I just hope people won't be talking a lot at the same time. I can get easily overwhelmed by noises."
"Does the sound of applause terrify you, then?"
"I just got used to compliments."