Room 23

*static* "SAY HIS NAME ALOUD" *static* I REPEAT *static* SAY ITS NAME "CINEMATEUM". That is all I can hear from my radio from work, "Cinemateum, wtf is that?" I asked myself. I could not recognize that voice calling out and it went silent. It was probably just a joke. Whatever I got to get to work, I got the damn night shift again. Sleep? Never heard of her. I start getting dressed for work, but my dog Fetch starts jumping on my leg. "Come on buddy, you know it's too dark to go outside now" I tell him as if he could understand me. But for some reason he just will not stop bugging me, like he is trying to tell me something. But I do not have time I really have to go. I clock in just in time and I see a couple of co-workers talking about some weird new movie. "Is this all you guys ever do? Don't you have something better to do, like a job?" I ask sarcastically. Bill laughs and tells me to check this out, some new posters had arrived. "Why are they making so many horror movies? They all suck now" Martha spat out, yet we all agreed. "So, we got to get ready to serve a lot of teenage lovebirds or guys trynna get some?" I said rolling my eyes. "As if you weren't one of those guys" Martha quickly added. "I'LL HAVE YOU KNO-" I was cut off by our manager who walked in to assign us our spots. She assigned me to Screen 23. "Wait since when do we have a screen 23?" Bill asked for me. "Brand new" she snarled. "You're going to be in charge of security, there's some new big movie coming, Cinema... Cinema something something whatever, just GO". It took me awhile to find the screen, but I never noticed it before. I see the poster for the movie “Cinemate” I got cut off by Bill who was asking what I was going to do after work, we were used to going out late due to the work hours, we always went to the nice Denny’s close to here. I asked him if he ever heard of this movie, “Cinemateum, nope haven’t heard abo” the lights in the cinema started flickering “oh that’s great, dark creepy cinema, nothing to worry about” I said. Bill laughed “We have to use our free movie for this one, it might finally be something good” “It better be” - Martha said passing by. “Nice of you to join us I told her” she turned around “Shouldn’t you people be doing something else?” she chuckled and left. Whatever. “I should get going too” – Bill said “Deuces”. I cannot believe I am friends with that guy. Night went normally but not many people came into room 23 I checked in a couple times. There was only a couple in the room, and it was pretty dark so I just kept doing my job, I caught a couple of glimpses of the movie, the couple couldn’t even tell I was there. There was a lot of weird imagery in the screen, people do not know what else to put into a horror movie. They just do not make them like they used to. My radio started buzzing and My head hurt a bit, so I turned it off. The movie was supposed to be almost over, so I went to the bathroom, washed my face, the lights flickered again, and I could have sworn I saw someone behind me. All the stalls were empty, so I just shook my head and went back to work. I went to room 23 and the couple had left, and the credits were rolling, but there were only 2 names in the credits, weird, I thought to myself. More nights passed more people came in, but I still had not heard anything about that movie. More people came in and was assigned more screens and every day the lights kept flickering. And I could not shake this feeling that I was being followed. Every night I went into screen 23 more people watched it, mostly teens and couples. I stayed in the movie for a while and I got a really bad headache when I looked at the screen and there was something different about the movie, I guess it was just another scene. I went out and kept doing my rounds, maybe the light of the new projector was causing my headache. I did my rounds and when the movie was over I went to check in as I get in, everybody was gone, and the credits were rolling, but what I thought was really weird is all the new names that popped up, “When did they have time to edit this?” I thought to myself. The light in the theater started flickering again and I could have sworn I heard something running and when I looked back something started running at me, I braced for impact and the lights turned on. Nothing was there, I was seriously freaked out. I tried telling my manager, but she would not hear it, I tried finding Billy and Martha, but they were nowhere to be seen. We always have the same hours and they would never miss a day without telling me first. There is something weird happening here. I talked to ticket stand Rick, he might have seen them, he sees everything. “Yeah they were on a date or something, they went into” “Screen 23.” I cut him off. Maybe I am just freaking out, it’s nothing. Maybe they just for dinner. I kept doing my rounds. But when I got into that damn room again, my head felt like it was going to burst, I heard screaming, a lot of it and when I looked at the screen, there they were. Bill and Martha were in the movie. I felt like I was going insane, the lights started flickering and I saw a lot of figures running at me and grabbing onto me I tried to scream but everything went dark. I woke up in the middle of the room they sat me down and the figures were holding my arms, legs and head, I couldn’t do anything, I tried screaming I tried asking what they wanted and they just shushed me. The movie started, the room was full of figures, but I could not recognize them, they had no faces, they had no features. The movie started and it was about a man who was made fun of his whole life. “I’VE SEEN JOKER ALREADY, LET ME GO” one of the figures put their hand over my mouth and I could not speak. You see the man doing sorcery and different other rituals, and a whole lot of symbols spread out on the screen. Then it cuts to a crowd watching the film, everyone watching the movie started to scream and something came out of them, their spirit or something and they started to become into the same things that were holding me, and I feared that was going to happen to me, I closed my eyes and I heard more screams, the screen started spewing out more of those things and the screams started to get louder. My head felt like it was going to blow up. I started screaming as loud as I could for someone to come. I heard a cackle and a loud voice saying “ENOUGH”. The creatures screamed and held me tighter. “Do you understand now? Everyone thinks they are so special, but they are nothing they’re just shells” he explained. “Man, I’m not the guy you should be telling your villain story to, what do you want from me?!” – I screamed. He got closer to me, he did not look like the other creatures, but he did not look much human either. “I just need you to say my name again” – he got close to me and I could feel his nasty breath. “Are you Beetlejuice or some shit?” – I said sarcastically and then one of the figures put their hand on my neck and I began to choke. “OF COURSE NOT YOU FOOL, do not play with me boy” – he exclaimed. “Not when your little friends live depends on it.” He conjured up two figures that resembled Billy and Martha. “What did you do to them?” – I screamed. “The same thing I’ll do to you if you don’t cooperate.” There must be a reason he still has not killed me, but the figures were holding me even tighter. I did not have time to think and you cannot make deals with crazy. So, I accepted, “tell me your name and let’s get it over with.” “I cannot say my own name, but you already know it.” “I don’t think I’d be asking If I knew” – I exchanged. “You think you’re so clever, don’t you?” – he snarled as his hand went through my chest and I felt I could not breathe. He snapped his fingers and the screen read out his name, he let me go and I caught my breath. “if I say this, you’ll let them go right?” – I said trying to breath. He started backing away from me “of course I will” “or something like that” – he said under his breath. I looked up at the screen and saw his name. And I remembered what my work radio said, “Cinemateum, that’s who you are?” – I questioned. He took a deep breath “SAY IT AGAIN” - he exclaimed. The lights started flickering. “LET GO OF THEM CINEMATEUM!” – I said as loud as I ever could. Everything went dark. When I woke up my headache was gone and I could see millions of figures going into the screen, and I could hear screams coming from the other side, I tried to run but when I got the exit it was gone and I didn’t understand, I sat back on the wall and tried to collect my thoughts, but all I could hear was screams, I was lost I need help, man I'm such an idiot. I get my work radio, hoping it is going to work, but I hear something coming. I run as I try to hide, maybe I can stop it before it is too late! I turn on my work radio and I scream into it hoping it will go through, hoping I can warn someone and hoping I can get out of here "WHATEVER YOU DO DON'T"