24 years is such an odd time for a reunion

It had been twenty-four years since she'd seen it, but the place looked the same.

Her high school.

Alice never wanted to set foot here again, this big fucking yellow banner strangled above the entrance

"Welcome class of 2018"

Great, real nice. Nothing more exciting than anything coloured yellow.

She knew she was stalling, who wouldn't? Who would go rub shoulders with the town arseholes while her husband stayed at home with the girls. Lucky man.

The door sat heavy, like it was trying to keep her out. Somethings never change.

Her name was scribbled on a badge, spread out among the others unfortunate to RSVP.

"Are you all set?" An over-the-top cheery voice smashed through Alice’s thought train.

The voice perfectly matched it’s over the top face. A wide smile was spread across Natasha fields face. Not even Alice's old tormentor, just one of the crueller bystanders.

"Got it" she replied, leaving the other woman to her boredom.

Alice knew she had moved past all this, this hatred. But as soon as she saw that smile, the same smile that was there for every insult, Alice saw red.

There was no crowd parting as she entered the hall. No gasping at what she had become. As soon as she crossed that door, she had stopped being Alice Gretchen: award winning artist and instead became Alice Gretchen: the girl they called whale.

She barely recognised anyone here, a sea of bald patches and bad decisions, at least there was a semi-open bar.

Home was missed already. She had no idea why she was actually here, there was nothing to prove and only old horse teeth had seen her on her way in. She didn't have to stay.

So, she didn't.

It was much easier to sneak out, Natasha having abandoned her post to probably check her make up or something.

The once heavy door was already open for her, but she didn't realise why till she was already halfway through.

It was incredibly still, eyes unmoving he stared forward, a ruby red grin contrast to his painted white face.

Of course, the school had hired a fucking mime, a proper clown would fit in too well.

Alice thanked him, but the mime showed no sign of even hearing. No movement. It made her hair stand on end the way he just grinned forward. She hurried to her car; half convinced he wasn't real. But she had to be sure.

She slowly turned her head back, the door still open. Nothing changed except his head, now staring right into her eyes from across the carpark.

If she hadn't wanted to go before, this was the push. She tried to ignore her crawling skin as she got in the car

There’s a certain person out there, you meet them throughout your whole life. A person you instantly don't trust, like an aura of anxiety hangs around, a scent. You just know this person is a Devil in sheep's clothing, half expecting them to grab you and devour you whole.

This was nothing compared to the fear Alice felt as she watched the figure slowly raise its arm, fingers twinkling a goodbye just for her.

She peeled out of the carpark faster than she had ever moved before, not even stopping to watch him step inside tip-toe and all

The police picked up on the third ring, tiredness in the operator’s voice.

"Where do you need police assistance?"

Alice struggled to even think, let alone get the words out.

"Ma'am?"

"Sorry, Westrie high. The school"

"And what is the nature of the emergency"

"I was at my school’s reunion and there was a mime, he was acting really weird." Alice had to pull over, her hands shaking so bad she couldn't keep the wheel straight.

"Ma'am, that's not an emergency. That's a phobia"

"Please believe me" Alice pleaded her, trying desperately to leave the fear out of her voice. 

"Where are you now?" The lady sounded even more tired now.

"I'm a few blocks from the school, I had to pull over"

There was a click on the line, so quiet Alice's panic-stricken mind stepped over it.

She waited for a response; she could hear the operators breathing from the other side.

In. Out. In. Out.

 She repeated her answer, adding what street she thought she might be on. It had been so long since she had been this side of town.

Still nothing.

In. Out. In. Out.

Then her phone went dead.

It had been fully charged. Alice swore she had a charger in her car, unless one of the girls grabbed it. No luck.

Her adrenaline was wearing off, her thoughts slowing down enough to be heard. She was sure the lady had heard her, and with the sudden call drop, sent police straight here.

 All she had to do now was wait, they would be here any minute. Alice knew that. So why did every second feel like her last. Every breath bringing her closer to the edge, leaving her dangling above nothing.

 The school wasn't far off. What if The Mime found her before the cops did?

How? How would he find her? He was just a mime. she had always done this, blown things out of proportion, and none one else saw it. Doctors stuck her with a label of "active imagination". Code for little liar. But Alice had never lied about any of it, she had seen those things. What makes tonight different, what makes him feel real?

It was because she didn't know if he was.

Every other time, it had been in her head, and now Alice didn't know if this was too.

He hadn't tried to grab her, something none of the others could do. She didn't know.

The passenger door calmly opened mid thought, a figure very quietly trying to get in, as if Alice wasn't screaming as he sat down.

He put a gloved finger to his lipstick covered lips, Alices scream sticking in her thought.

He casually clicked her cars light on, dramatically twirling his finger in the air.

Her words came out all choked up. "you want me... to turn... the car around?"

The Mime pondered this, stroking his chin to the thought before dropping his smile to nothing, his eyes an empty wasteland of life. He stared at her as she pulled the car around. Practically devouring Alice with his eyes.

The car on the road, he picked his smile up from the floor. Hygienic.

"Where are you taking me?" She whispered, showing no fear, she wasn't going down like this.

The Mime picked a book off his shelf, opening it to show her.

"Back to the school?"

Only a nod to answer.

That worked perfectly for her, she had told the police about the school. Can't find her? This is the first place they will look.

None of the cars had moved from their parks, which didn't tell Alice anything about the situation.

Car parked, The Mime stuck his arms out like he was in cuffs, staring at Alice till she followed suite. He took his invisible rope, and careful not to touch her, began gently wrapping her arms together.

It was incredible, she could feel her arms pushing together, unable to will them apart.

The more she tried, she more she couldn't.

She silently followed him to the front, the banner still hanging like a threat. If she had of looked down, she would have noticed two black heels hidden behind the entrance door.

It was so quite now, nothing like before. No music. No talking. Ghost school.

Alice went to step through to the gym, the same door she had snuck out of just 29 minutes ago, but The Mime tugged the air in front of her, pulling Alice away. He pretty much skipped down the room, finding a door he seemed to prefer mire.

He made a show of opening it for her, his smile still plastered across his face. He barely made a sound with each step he took, no matter how dramatic he got.

He twirled his finger in front of her, turning her to face him.

"You're a fucking pussy, aren't you? She growled at him. He leaned forward. His face inches from hers, she almost broke. But she didn't, and she wouldn't, no matter what happened.

His gloved hand waved itself between them, Alice's vision going blank. Not black, but blank like nothing existed. She tried screaming out, but her voice wouldn't work, hoarse and rough, it wouldn't come.

She blindly followed the tugging rope, knowing the faster she was, the faster it was over.

It was cold and silent when she felt the rope drop. A slow rumble started as she tried to stay as still as possible. The noise growing louder and louder

She tried to push her scream through the barrier, but nothing happened.

The rumble got louder still. Deafening. Her ears hurt, but her chest was the worst. Heart beating with every rumble, she thought she might die right here and now.

Light flooded her eyes, burning her retinas. The sound didn't stop. It couldn't. She slowly let her eyes adjust to the light, a sea of bald patches and bad decisions turned one of smiles. Her classmates clapping her on as Alice stood on the stage above them.

They sat in chairs, imitations of The Mime itself. Then silence, every eye on her. Her arm flew up, limp like a puppet dangling in the air. Her bones creaked with every movement. Her leg came next, raising itself to the crowds silent Oh’s and ah's.

She twirled, her stomach lurching with her. She had never danced in front of people, always alone or in her younger days, with Tom at 3am in the morning. Bouts of insomnia over taken by feelings of love.

There was no love in this dance though, just fear as her body moved across the stage. She tried forcing her feet through the wood, tried ripping down the  strings which held her up. But a living puppet she just danced, watching him off stage with every twirl his fingers dancing with her.

Her legs gave out as she landed her final step, sinking her to her knees. The crowd started its clapping again, picking it up as The Mime made his way out of the shadows, taking a deeply pointed bow.

He motioned for her to get up, but Alice refused. Fuck that.

His face seemed to enjoy this challenge, his mouth becoming wider with every second. He raised his hands, each finger dancing closer and closer.

Alice felt the invisible strings tightening, tearing at her. Her joints felt like they might pop out if she didn't give in. But they moved.

He sat her on a chair pulled from nowhere, only to pull it out once she sat down. But she didn't fall down, her body wouldn't let her. Each joint frozen in a sitting position. Immediately her legs started to burn from the pressure, it had been years since she worked out like this.

She tried to ignore everything, the pain and the audience. Trying so hard she barely recognised the girl in the front row. She had blacker hair now, not the blonde it once was. Janet Reedy. Her own personal bully.

Janet always had a problem with Alice, no reason why. Just one day she decided to obliterate her life, and she did. She made it her mission to sleep with Alice's boyfriend, their last year of high school.

Finding out she succeeded almost killed Alice.

And now Janet had two front row tickets to the second most awful thing in her life.

Her body on fire, she cursed at The Mime, telling it to get it over with. Just kill her. She didn't think of Tom, or the girls. All the experiences she would miss. She just knew acceptance; she was a toy.

He only nodded.

The audience rose, silently making their way to the stage, practically climbing on each other to get to her. Closing in. Tightening. Killing.

Two noises came from within the silent mob as they stopped her breathing. A quiet call for help, followed by one single sob.

They never found Alice's body, nor any of the others from that night. After years of nothing, the case was put to bed. The town had seen things like this before, and this too it would move on from. And that was all that mattered.