Gates Ferry

Chapter 4- The Grand Entrance

Chapter 4- The Grand Entrance

      “Whoa, relax guy,” the stranger laughed at Ryan’s ridiculous aggressive gesture. Ryan’s face was fiery red and his blood pressure was high. He had always had anger problems, but at this point he was getting ready to snap on the poor fellow. “Take it easy. Please stop abusing my poor vehicle it did nothing to you. Don’t tell me you’re one of those environmentalists,” The stranger laughed while trying to calm Ryan down. “You shouldn’t sneak up on a person like that you idiot,” Ryan choked, “It isn’t funny.” The blood began to subside from Ryan’s cheeks, and he put his guard down. The stranger stuck his hand out, “It’s very nice to meet you kid, I’m Flueric…or Rick for short. I know it’s a weird name, my parents always got a good laugh out of it.” Rick seemed like a very friendly individual, but this didn’t stop Ryan from acting like an asshole.


    “You know you almost hit me back there on the road!” Ryan yelled. “I could’ve been killed. What the hell is your problem?” Flueric seemed aghast by the accusation. “I almost hit you? I wasn’t aware of this at all my friend, but I apologize nonetheless. It’s dark out and it’s hard to see anything around here this late.” There seemed to be something genuine about the nature of Rick’s voice, and Ryan couldn’t help but agree that it was very difficult to drive in the hellhole of a town. “Yea I guess you’re right,” Ryan choked. It was difficult for him to admit he was ever wrong. It did seem very odd that someone was out at a mall in the middle of the night, so giving Ryan’s obnoxious personality he immediately began to interrogate the poor man. “So what the hell are you doing out here this late anyways? Obviously the mall isn’t opened and no one’s here. I can tell you are about to do something shady.” A look appeared on Ryan’s face that resembled a smug child that had just found out the hottest high school gossip. Rick shot a bothered look at Ryan. Despite the fact that he was clearly annoyed, he replied, “If you must know, although it is none of your business…I work here.” Flueric pressed the “open trunk” button on his key ring and the back of the vehicle emitted a loud “POP”. He walked around to the back of the Escalade and Ryan began to follow.


    “Oh yea? You work here? Right…You drive a luxury vehicle and you don’t really seem like the type who would work in a mall, but it is a very nice one,” Ryan blurted as he glanced up at the giant building. As Ryan looked back towards Rick he saw that he was already in uniform…a janitor’s uniform. “HAHAHA!!” Ryan laughed hysterically. “YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!” Ryan was cracking up so hard his side began to hurt and he had to collect himself. Flueric seemed to be annoyed once again. “You are telling me that you are a janitor?” Ryan said, laughing so hard that his eyes began to water. “I’d like to call the profession I am currently employed in as that of a custodian,” Rick replied firmly with his head held high. Rick was a very handsome man, and seemed to be in his low twenties. In Ryan’s defense, this was a very odd stature for an individual in this line of work. “I also happen to be the manager.” Rick defended himself proudly.


    Ryan couldn’t conceal his ridiculous smile. “Wow that really sucks. So you have to show up by yourself this late to start working? I’d quit if I were you.” Ryan shook his head as if he was disgusted by the thought. Flueric began to laugh, “It’s not late, it’s early, kid. I can also judge from the distance that you’ve never had to work a real job.” Rick began to gesture towards the Mercedes. “Oh, no that’s mine. I’m on my own.” Ryan began to lie. “I’ve had to work hard for everything I’ve achieved in life…” Ryan was cut off by Rick’s piercing glare. It seemed he could see right through Ryan’s dishonesty, but instead of calling him out on his untrue statement, Flueric did quite the contrary. “That is very admirable my friend. I respect your unmistakable motivation and drive. I too have car payments to make, which is why I must get to work. It was nice meeting you,” and with that Rick began to approach the jaw dropping entrance.


    Ryan quickly grabbed Rick’s attention. “Wait, where are you going? You’re not just gonna leave me here are you?” Rick began to laugh with his back still facing his newfound acquaintance. “I have work to do kid.” Rick replied as he began to turn around. “I don’t suspect you have money to lend me for bills…” Flueric glared at Ryan after asking the rhetorical question. Ryan shot Rick an annoyed and frustrated look. The two of them awkwardly looked at each other for a moment, and Ryan began to grow chills on his neck. It was a very peculiar situation, so Ryan broke the ice without further hesitation. “Well, can I at least come inside and grab something to eat? This town is empty and I can’t find gas or food anywhere, but I am sure you are aware how fucked up this place is already.” The only way to possibly perceive Ryan at this point and time was to view him as a lost and confused pet, and a deranged one to say the least. He was now stuck in an empty town. He knew that if Rick didn’t let him in he would be abandoned just the same as the loved one’s he had left behind.


    “I was raised in Gates Ferry, so I don’t appreciate the insulting title of ‘fucked up’ that you have so graciously bestowed upon it.” As Ryan attempted to open his mouth in rebuttal, Rick cut him off. “However, I was raised right. You can come in and I’ll see if there is something you can snack on, but don’t mess anything up or I’ll lose my job.” Ryan’s eyes gleamed in utter excitement. Rick continued, “You see, the mall is closed on Sunday’s. I have to come in early and clean the entire place in order to prepare for the week because we are low on staff.” Once again Ryan proceeded to open his mouth, but it was shut by Flueric’s voice. “I know what you’re thinking, why is the mall closed on a day where most people don’t have to work? Well I guess the people who run this place still believe that Sunday shall remain a day of rest. I, personally, believe it should be opened, but I suppose I’m not much of the religious type though.” Ryan began to become distracted from all the talking Flueric had continued with. The only part he understood was that he was allowed inside the glamorous mall with all of its contents. The possibilities were unfathomable, and he had every intention of taking advantage of the kind stranger. It was obvious to Rick that Ryan was becoming bored of his speech, so he turned around and beckoned Ryan to follow, “This way, let’s go inside.” They began to walk towards the front entrance when something seemed odd to Ryan. He heard the humming of the Cadillac engine and turned his neck to see that the vehicle was still on. “Aren’t you going to shut your car off?” Ryan began. As he turned back around he noticed that Rick was already at the massive entrance. His hand was inside of his pocket in an attempt to find the key to the door. There were many chains wrapped around the door handles and a giant padlock that hung on the end. “Wow, some security system you’ve got there,” Ryan laughed. “The doors are made out of stained glass, don’t you think someone could simply throw a rock through it to get inside?” Flueric rolled his eyes and pulled a very large key ring out of his left pocket. The get up seemed extremely old fashioned, and Ryan couldn’t help but smirk. Rick began to sort through the keys attempting to find the correct one. Meanwhile, Ryan put his face up to the cold glass and made an attempt to peer inside. He continued to crack jokes towards Flueric. “So technology must not have been invented in Gate’s Ferry yet, eh Rick?” Ryan could not make out what was on the other side of the glass. It was pitch black inside and the stained glass wasn’t helping the situation. Ryan noticed that Rick hadn’t replied to any of his jabs, but he was trying so hard to see inside that he had completely forgotten about him. A hand landed on Ryan’s shoulder causing him to jump back once more. “You’ve gotta quit doing that,” Ryan yelled. Rick stood in front of him with the towering mall entrance doors slowly opening in the background. “Automated doors huh? Wow, you guys actually do have technology here.” Flueric could only smile at Ryan’s humorous gesture, and he began to lead him inside towards the darkness.


    Once the two were inside, the doors slammed shut behind them. They hit the frame so hard that the burst of wind sent Ryan forward a few feet. It was completely pitch black inside, and Ryan couldn’t see anything, including Rick. “Rick, where are you?” Ryan asked as he felt around to get a grip of his surroundings. “This isn’t funny, I can’t see anything.” Ryan began to grow fearful of his situation. He started to review what had just happened, and it began to frighten him. “A stranger whom I’ve never met just led me into an empty mall. He claims that it’s closed on Sunday’s, I have no gas, I’m starving, and he offered to help me despite the fact that I am a complete stranger… He must be some sort of serial killer or rapist. I’ve got to get out of here.” Ryan’s thoughts began to drive him even madder, and he jumped back to the door and attempted to open it.


    He began to pull the door handles towards him, but they were stuck. He forcefully pulled them in his direction, but to his dismay, the slightest budge of the mammoth structure did not budge. Ryan’s heart started to race dramatically due to his unfortunate predicament. Trapped inside of a dark room with no escape, it couldn’t get any worse. Just as Ryan balled up his fist in an attempt to punch through the glass, a loud ‘SNAP’ sound echoed throughout the room, and everything lit up.


    The intense illumination briefly left Ryan blinded. He put his hand over his eyes from unexpected occurrence. “Are you going to stand there all day, or do you want the grand tour?” Rick asked. Ryan looked across the gigantic food court and saw Flueric standing at the other end in front of a door that read ‘maintenance’. Before Ryan had a chance to answer, his mind was swept away by the elegance of the room that stood in front of him. The ceilings had to be at least 100 feet high, much higher than he imagined from the outside. There were giant chandeliers hanging down from the glorious ceiling which was covered in magnificent art. Surrounding Ryan was a vast assortment of fast food and restaurant locations, and in the middle sat an amazing organization of expensive looking tables and chairs for people to relax in while they indulged in the delicious and extravagant treats that lied before them. Ryan couldn’t believe his eyes. Rick had been somewhat smitten by Ryan’s awe, as if he had constructed the shopping palace by hand. “This is a mall?” Ryan began to ask himself. “It looks like heaven…” Ryan ran up to the ‘Little Italy’ restaurant that was housed in the far right corner of the room. An extended balcony laid overhead of the interior to give it the authentic outdoor approach. Ryan attempted to open the restaurant doors, but they were locked. Pizza was Ryan’s favorite food and for these doors to tease him so greatly only led to the talent in which he was so skilled in. “WHAT THE HELL MAN, WHY WON’T THESE DOORS OPEN? RICK, GET OVER HERE AND HELP ME!” Ryan whined and whined, which was how he always ended up getting his way. However, Rick was not Ryan’s mom and he did have a job to do. “The restaurants are all closed my friend, and even if you got inside who would cook for you? I don’t think your mommy is here, and I certainly won’t do it,” Flueric laughed. The subject of Ryan’s mom began to anger him once more. “Shut the hell up. I don’t need your help,” Ryan began to yell. “Well if you don’t need my help than feel free to walk through those doors in which you came. I have a lot of work to do and you certainly aren’t helping.” Rick sounded very firm in his tone, the same tone a parent would use to scold their child. “Alright, whatever. What do you got to eat then?” Ryan possessed such a selfish and ungrateful tone in his wording. Rick had offered to lend a helping hand towards Ryan, but this wasn’t anything new. People had handed Ryan everything in his life with minimal effort, mostly to get him off of their back. He was such a pest. Flueric opened the management door and gestured towards it. “Let’s head to my office, we have a fridge and some snacks from last week that you can have. I hope that will suffice.” Ryan rolled his eyes. He was disgusted that he had to settle for a measly snack, but he knew there was no other option. At this point Ryan had completely forgotten about his family, Julie, and Naomi. He had also forgotten about his cell phone that he had left in his unattended car which sat in the middle the deserted wasteland of a parking lot.  He walked through the food court passing tons of fabulous eating establishments. There was a Hungry Hungry Burger World, A Bob’s Barbecue Pit, a Wok the Talk Japanese restaurant, and tons of other appealing locations that made his stomach rumble. The restaurants that had been chosen to sit inside this food court were all fantastic, but they did leave Ryan feeling a bit distraught. Each one of these had an important memory from Ryan’s past that rekindled as he walked by. Upon passing by the Swirly’s Ice Cream Parlor, a very significant memory shot through Ryan’s head.


    He remembered a time not too long ago that left an unsettling churn inside of his stomach. It had been one of the crueler acts Ryan had bestowed upon Julie, and although he had minimum remorse for the actions he had so harshly lashed against the one who dearly loved him, this happened to be an event that stood out amongst the rest. It was a scorching hot summer day when Julie had called Ryan. She wanted to know if he wanted to go out with her to Swirly’s, (she almost always had to initiate the two of them getting together). Ryan agreed, but only because he knew a beautiful younger girl that worked there. Julie picked Ryan up that day and the two of them drove over to the ice cream parlor to treat themselves to a cold snack. While they were eating Ryan decided he would slip away, giving Julie the excuse that he wanted a drink for the road. He crept up to the window and began to flirt with the girl behind the counter, who happened to be a temptress herself. She knew Ryan’s girlfriend was sitting around the side of the small mobile establishment, so she played it casual. Ryan slipped his number to her attached with a quick kiss on the lips just as Julie walked around the corner. Ryan immediately played it off with a valid excuse, claiming he was trying to point at the menu inside of the parlor because the girl didn’t understand his inquiry, and as always Julie accepted the story with open arms and without the slightest uncertainty. The two of them held hands and began to walk away while Ryan turned his head back and shot the girl a wink. Her name was Naomi.


    The reason this memory was nerve wrecking to Ryan was because of the unusual connection between Swirly’s, Julie, and Naomi; All extenuating circumstances that revolved inside his life circle and had now rekindled mentally inside of this foreign environment. Ryan shrugged it off as he passed by the unlit frosty mascot and locked his eyes back upon Flueric, who surprisingly seemed to have a look of satisfaction upon his face. It seemed as if he knew what was going through Ryan’s head. The two passed through the doorway and into the dimly lit hall. It was an out of place corridor that stretched far into the distance. Oddly enough, the custodian’s hallway hadn’t been cleaned in quite a while. “Custodians are dirty people…” Ryan thought to himself. The lighting fixtures flickered above. As Rick and Ryan passed through the hall, the strobes of the old bulbs painted shadows on the walls. One of the shadows appeared to look like a figure walking behind them, but as Ryan quickly spun around there was nothing except for more hallway. The chills began to wrap around Ryan’s spine. He turned back around and Rick was already far ahead. He began to dash down the hall towards him. Rick stopped quickly in front of a door that resided on the left wall. Ryan didn’t have time to catch himself and crashed right into Flueric. “Watch yourself kid!” Rick yelled. Ryan picked himself up off the ground and dusted himself off. “You watch yourself. You shouldn’t have stopped so quickly, I could’ve been hurt,” Ryan replied menacingly. Rick rolled his eyes at the spoiled tone and pulled out his key ring once more. “Maybe your boss should look into newer technology. The key thing seems a little 1800’s doesn’t it?” At this point it was obvious that Ryan was getting under Flueric’s skin, but being the hospitable person he was, he ignored the rude comments and proceeded to search for the key. “Security office, no that’s not it. Management office, kiosk three, movie theatre ticket sales, no no no. AH! Custodial lounge, at last,” and with that Rick inserted the key and pushed the door open.


    It was pitch black inside of the room, so naturally Ryan nudged Rick forward. “I’ve put up with your words, but do refrain from putting your hands on me.” Despite the intentions of Rick’s words, he sounded rather monotone. “Relax, guy. I was just helping you into the room.” The sarcasm spewed from Ryan was only making matters worse. Rick felt around the wall for the light switch. As he came across the protrusion he quickly moved his hand upwards. There was a ragged light bulb above. It was attached to a ceiling fan which had only one blade. The handicapped apparatus began to spin around in circles. The broken fan served no purpose, for it did not have enough force to circulate the smallest bit of air throughout the room. It was a very disheartening scene to enter into. If Ryan had one unselfish bone in his body he would have shared an empathetic word or two about the unsuitable conditions that laid in front of him or even possibly gestured to help clean it up. This was not possible, however, because Ryan was Ryan. “This place……is a complete shithole.” Ryan gaped at the ceilings, which were draped in cobwebs. His jaw dropped at the stained furniture and the awful stench of the foul mold assemblies. As Ryan clamped his nose with his fingers he began to mock Rick, “One would think that because a janitor’s job is to clean up messes, the place where he lounges would be free of messes….don’t ya think? Just a thought….” Rick had made his way over to the refrigerator. “Custodian….” Rick replied back. Ryan didn’t seem to hear him clearly. “What?” Rick pulled his head out of the fridge and said once more, “I am a custodian, not a janitor. It’s not an easy job, and if you think I have  the time or energy to keep my little designated area clean after tending to all of our patrons disgusting spills…..well you, my friend, are sadly mistaken.” Ryan, who hadn’t been paying attention to a word Rick had said, made his way over to the fragile little table and sat in one of the chairs. “So what do you got to eat?” The question was asinine because Ryan was already peering past Rick and into the fridge. There seemed to be a small selection of food and beverage options to choose from, but he was going to take what he could get. “Give me the banana and the beer you’ve got in there,” Ryan commanded. Rick looked back over his shoulder and gave Ryan a “you look like your twelve” stare. “What? I’m of age.” Ryan lied. Although Flueric knew for certain Ryan was lying, he tossed the cold beer and the greenish banana towards Ryan. He was caught off guard by the quick toss and fumbled with them, almost dropping both items to the ground. Rick began to laugh at the clumsiness. “I guess someone was always picked last during physical education …Is that why you are always in such a pessimistic mood, Ryan?” Rick seemed to have triggered Ryan’s anger once more from the sly remark, although this time it seemed Ryan couldn’t think of a clever response. Instead, he cracked open his beer and flicked the bottle top at Rick. “Watch it kid!” Flueric bent over to pick up the beer cap to dispose of it. “Yea that’s right,” Ryan said, mocking Rick, “Do your job.” Rick rolled his eyes as he dropped the cap into the garbage can. “Your words belong in this trash can more than the cap does, kid. Didn’t your parents teach you any manners, but I’m sure you’ve been asked that question a million times. I’m guessing they were all answered with a smart ass, yet somewhat clever response. I know your type, kid. You think you know everything and the world revolves around your existence. Do you want to know why I know who you are Ryan? I know who you are because I was you. I couldn’t stand my father controlling me, so I left. I thought the grass would be greener on the other side.” While Flueric was providing quite the speech, it seemed as if for once Ryan had actually attempted to soak in the valuable information. He had actually been listening. “Well I’ve got news for you kid. Look at me now. I left for my own selfish reasons and he will never take me back. I took his love and generosity for granted and now my mother is that mop, and my father this bucket. Take the advice kid. Go back before it’s too late.”


      The statement had actually made sense to Ryan for a second. He remembered all of the chances his parents had bestowed upon him. He remembered the things they had bought him and the way they had always defended him even though he was wrong. He missed his parents, until he remembered they were no longer there. It was apparent that the information was marinating inside of Ryan’s skull, but Ryan’s response was predictable. “Na, you wouldn’t understand. I don’t need them. They didn’t do anything for me anyways. Always demanding I do this and that, and never provided me with the life I truly deserved. And besides, I like it better on my own anyways. No rules, no worries, no problems,” and with that being said Ryan gulped down the rest of his beer and engulfed the entire banana in one mouthful.


      “So, what now?” Ryan asked, looking up at Flueric. Rick had half a blueberry muffin in one hand and the other half in his mouth. His response was muffled, “Now, I wo wack to berk.” Ryan had a disgusted look on his face from the free food show that Rick had so graciously provided. “You promised me a tour, didn’t you? I like to see to it that people keep the promises they make…at least when they are directed at me.” It sounded as if Ryan was almost threatening Flueric, but Rick was a man of his word. “You’re right, I most certainly did, but are you sure you don’t want to leave and find your way back home? If you stay too long you might get too comfortable, and then who knows? You could be after my job.” Ryan laughed at the suggestion and walked towards the door. “That’s not going to happen, pal. So are you gonna show me around or what?” Flueric stuffed down the rest of his muffin and strolled over to the exit. He gestured Ryan outwards, and the two of them entered back into the gloomy hallway.


      As they marched back towards the food court, Ryan noticed that the hallway seemed longer than it had previously been. Despite the fact that it was slightly strange, he didn’t transition his thoughts into audio. It was evident that Ryan wanted to escape the creepy tunnel as fast as possible. After what felt like a few miles, the two walked back into the food court. It was pitch black again. “Hey, what the hell man?” Ryan was very frightened. He didn’t see Rick turn the lights off prior to them entering the custodial hallway. “Why is it dark? I definitely didn’t see you turn the lights off.” It was pitch black and Rick was not the slightest bit visible. “Stop fuckin around dude. This is pissing me off!” Ryan began to swing his arms around himself to try and hit Rick. He hit nothing but air. Finally, his fist connected against something very hard. Either Rick had a body like concrete, or it was actual concrete. Without warning, the lights turned back on. Ryan looked down at what his fist had come into contact with. It was a barricade that wrapped around the outskirts of the food court eating section. Ryan shook his fist up and down to rid himself of the pain, and then looked up. Rick was sitting at one of the food court tables. It was one that had an umbrella erected up out of the middle. The fact that there were umbrellas indoors was a good question, but there were better questions to be asked. “How the hell did you turn the light on from there?” Ryan’s face had grown bright red. “There’s a simple answer for that, kid…. sensors.” Rick pointed around at the ceiling. It was difficult to distinguish what he was gesturing at exactly, but it was clear that he was trying to identify motion sensors throughout the food court. “I thought this place didn’t have any technology. You have a handful of keys, but all of a sudden there are magical sensors that turn on lights. It makes no sense.” Ryan had forgotten about the pain in his hand. His intense curiosity had lapped over his swollen knuckles. “There’s a lot in this world that doesn’t make sense, kid. There is also a lot in this mall that doesn’t make sense. Come up here and take a seat. I have a map of the entire mall, and you can show me exactly what you want to see. I don’t have time to take you through the whole thing. I mean, I’m not a tour guide, after all, although I’d probably make a damn good one.” Ryan ran up the steps to join Flueric. He quickly pulled up a chair and sat down next to him. Rick already had the map unfolded. It was absolutely enormous. Ryan’s eyes began to scan the humungous piece of cartography up and down. Flueric could tell how excited Ryan was by all the phenomenal outlets the mall had to offer, and he felt a small satisfaction by this as if the mall was part of him. Before Ryan could ask the question, Flueric already had a pen in hand. Ryan snatched the pen from his grasp and began circling store after store. “Slow it down, bud. I told you I don’t have all day so let’s keep it to a minimum.” Despite Rick’s wishes, Ryan continued to highlight locations of interest. Upon finishing his destination wish list, Rick pulled it in front of himself to take a look. There were more areas marked on the map than there were unmarked. Rick rolled his eyes once more. It had become a repetitive occurrence. Before Rick could appeal the inquiry Ryan had already grabbed him by the arm and pulled him out of the chair. “I can walk perfectly fine on my own,” Flueric gasped while stumbling out of his chair. Ryan began to lead the two of them out of the food court and into the colossal mall opening. Before they walked any further, Ryan grabbed the map from Rick’s hands and looked down at it once more. He smiled and asked himself, “Where to start……...where to start.”