Free Friday Night in Beast House by Richard Laymon

changed positions. Sometimes, his butt fell asleep. Sometimes, one leg or the other. Every once in a while, he stood up and wandered around to get his circulation going again.
    When 11:30 finally arrived, he went to the other side of the gift shop. There, standing in almost the same place where he’d jumped down from the roof that morning, he began to pee in the grass. And he remembered the dead dog on the roof.
    It’s probably still up there .
    How did it get up there?
    He titled back his head and looked at the upper windows of Beast House.
    He could almost see the dog flying out into the night, tumbling end over even…
    Thinking about it, he felt his penis shrink. He shook it off, tucked it in and raised the zipper of his jeans. He hurried around the corner of the building, out of the shadows and back into moonlight.
    Much better .
    Waiting in the wash of the moonlight, he checked his wristwatch often. At 11:50, he walked very slowly toward the back porch… his gaze fixed on its screen door.
    Nothing’s gonna leap out at me, he told himself. It hasn’t done it for the past four hours and it won’t do it now. There’s probably nothing in the house to leap at me.
    His back to the porch, he sat down on the second stair from the bottom.
    Okay, he thought. I’m ready when you are.
    As eager as Alison had seemed on the phone, he expected her to show up early.
    He turned his head, scanning the grounds, looking for her. Of course, the various buildings blocked much of his view.
    He wondered if Alison planned to climb the spiked fence.
    What if she tries and doesn’t make it?
    He could almost hear her scream as one of the spear-like tips jammed up through the crotch of her jeans.
    Five, six inches of iron, right up her…
    Stop it.
    Anyway, she’ll probably hop over the turnstile, same as me. If she does, she’ll be coming around from the front of the house.
    He looked toward the southeast corner.
    Any second now.
    Seconds passes, and she didn’t come walking around the corner.
    Minutes passed.
    12:06.
    Where is she?
    What if she doesn’t show up at all? Maybe she got caught. Maybe she forgot about it. Maybe she never meant to show up, and it was all just a trick.
    No, no. She wouldn’t do that. She wants to come. If she doesn’t make it, it’s because something went wrong.
    Says who?
    Me, that’s who. This wasn’t any trick. She wouldn’t do that sort of thing.
    And then she came jogging around the corner of Beast house.
    Someone did. A figure in dark clothes.
    What if it’s not Alison?
    Has to be, he told himself.
    The approaching jogger seemed to be about Alison’s size, but not much showed. A hat covered her hair and she seemed to be wearing a loose, oversized shirt or jacket that hung halfway down her thighs. Or his thighs. For all Mark could really see, the jogger might not even be a girl.
    He sat motionless on the porch stair, watching, ready to stand up and bolt.
    The jogger raised an arm.
    He waved and stood up.
    Slowing to a brisk walk, she plucked off her hat. Her hair spilled out from under it, pale in the moonlight. ‘Hiya, Mark.’
    Alison’s voice.
    His throat tightened. ‘Hi. You made it.
    ‘Oh, yeah. I wouldn’t miss this. A stride away from him, she stopped and stuffed her hat into a side pocket of her jacket. She took a few quick breaths, then shook her head. ‘But I guess I wasted my time, huh?’
    ‘I hope not’
    ‘You knew the rules, Mark.’
    ‘Yeah.’
    Damn. I don’t know why, but I really figured you’d be able to pull it off somehow.
    ‘I sorta did .’
    Her mouth opened slightly.
    ‘I’ve been inside.’
    ‘Really?’
    ‘I just… figured I’d meet you out here.’
    ‘Okay. Great. Let’s go in.’ She started to step around him.
    He put up his hand. ‘No, wait.’
    She halted and turned to him. ‘What?’
    ‘I’m not so sure it’s safe.’
    She chuckled. ‘Of course it’s not safe. Where’d be the fun in that?’
    ‘No, I mean it. I really don’t think