Henry was in charge of adding some finishing touches and getting things started for his fraternity's annual holiday party. He showed up at the little hall that alums rented, a few hours before the party, expecting a few other pledges to be there to help, but the place was empty.
With the party being in between finals and the 25th, students are partying, packing, and shopping for gifts. Not to mention, since a huge snow storm touched down the day before, everyone is stuck or delayed somewhere. Henry only found Mr. Agnes, an alumni he's met a few times before because he usually helps the frat with events, at the venue.
Mr. Agnes is always pleasant to talk to. He seemed like some perfectly normal dad who occasionally helps the fraternity to escape from his domestic life and "cut loose with the guys." All the brothers think he's cool, but in a dorky dad kind of way. Since he helps out with so much and is a big donor, all the guys kind of need to be nice to him.
After making small talk about where everyone is, Henry and Mr. Agnes walked up a floor to a storage room because the alum said he needed more chairs for the party. It was dark and dusty, with the only light source being a window, revealing the icy, overcast winter wonderland that was outside. The conversation took a few personal turns, making Henry forget why they even went up to that old room. He was wary of finding a spider in there.
"Well, if it's just us guys for awhile, we can have some fun!" Mr. Agnes said, using his notorious "we're going to do something naughty" voice.
He reached for Henry, seeming like he was going to give him a noogie, which is something he does. The middle-aged alum clamped his hand over Henry's mouth after ringing an arm around his neck, instead of running his knuckles against the top of his head.
Henry chuckled uncomfortably, sounding muffled. He didn't immediately resist because he assumed that this wholesome dad who just wants to have a good time was just horsing around. Henry waited to see what Mr. Agnes was trying to do before trying to get himself out. Mr. Agnes held firm. Henry tried asking Mr. Agnes what he wants, but couldn't get much out while the hand held his jaw and lips shut.
"Relax. It doesn't hurt to shut your mouth for a change," Mr. Agnes said teasingly.
"Put your hands behind your back," Mr. Agnes ordered as he moved his hand from Henry's mouth to his belt buckle to undo it.
"I'm gonna show you a trick I picked up in the Marines… It's a really fast way of restraining a prisoner using any old belt," Mr. Agnes explained with enthusiasm.
"Uhhh. Maybe not… " Henry started saying, but was cut off.
"Nah! It's a great trick. I always do it with the guys. They love knowing how to do this. It makes them feel more in control" Mr. Agnes insisted. Henry was still uncomfortable with the whole thing, but he complied, assuming that this guy was harmless.
Mr. Agnes removed his belt, pushed Henry onto the floor, faced down, and started wrapping his belt around his wrists and connecting the wrists to each other. The alum was stronger than Henry expected. He wanted to try fighting him off, but felt a little threatened.
"There we go!" Mr. Agnes said as he stood back up, then added "Try getting out of that!" He sounded playful, making it seem like an escape challenge.
Henry squirmed and tugged animatedly to show Mr. Agnes that he's trying, hoping that would satisfy him and he can get untied. The alum seemed to strut around Henry tied up on the floor, like a peacock.
"Yeah… good trick! I'm really stuck" Henry said, sounding a little annoyed to signal that it's time to be let out. "Can you let me gghhh-aagh!" Henry added as Mr. Agnes pulled a white cloth napkin between his teeth and knotted it behind his head, cutting him off again.
"If I knew you were this much of a talker, I would have brought one of my wife's fluffy hand towels to shove in your mouth!" Mr. Agnes said with nonchalance, starting to horrify Henry. He started to wonder if this older man was planning on holding him hostage or something. This time being subtle, Henry tried actually getting himself loose, but couldn't.
"Come on, prisoner!" said the alum as he tugged at his belt, making Henry get to his feet. Henry fumbled a bit, barely grasping what's happening and not immediately thinking to use his feet. As soon as he balanced himself, Mr. Agnes pushed him onto a chair by the window.
"What the fuck are you doing?!" Henry finally managed to lisp through his cleave gag. Mr. Agnes hesitated.
"Well… I'm tying you to this chair because it would be easy to convince people that you're stuck somewhere else, I can use your phone to ensure that, and you'll just be quietly waiting for me up here while everyone has fun downstairs," Mr. Agnes explained as he fastened Henry's legs to the chair with straps that are normally used for lifting heavy appliances.
Regardless of how sinister this all was, Mr. Agnes delivered his explanation with his usual, casual demeanor, making Henry think that he's joking. Maybe the guys are in on some kind of holiday prank. As much as he'd hate the embarrassment of that, Henry hopes that this is all it is.
Mr. Agnes wrapped Henry's torso to the chair with more straps. Henry fought to keep his cool because if this were a prank, it would be more embarrassing if he visibly freaked out and the rest of the frat would never let him hear the end of it.
"Just so you don't call any attention to yourself" Mr. Agnes added as he wrapped another napkin over Henry's mouth, covering his lips. He dug his fingers into the pocket of Henry's jeans to retrieve his phone.
"So, I'm going to reply to Jake's text to ward off any alarm about your absence… " the alum said after unlocking Henry's phone. He pointed the phone up at Henry, who's looking unamused, to snap a picture of him, then added "for next year's Christmas cards!"
"Well, people are going to start showing up, so I need to get things in order… Since my team flaked on me," Mr. Agnes said with a smirk. "You should look out the window, I'm sure the view is gorgeous."
Henry sat in the storage room, his brows furrowed in distress. He couldn't believe this turn of events. He tugged at his restraints, hoping to get anything free. After about an hour of struggling, Henry heard music down in the event hall. From his view, he was able to see his frat brothers, their girlfriends, and other alumnus, wrapped up in winter gear, making their way to the party. Henry wished that they could see him bound and gagged, prompting them to rush upstairs and let him out, but he knew that nobody would look in his direction because of the icy air that's blowing in their reddened faces. Even if they did look up towards Henry, they probably wouldn't be able to make out what's happening because of how dark the storage room is and how high the floor is. The only thing Henry could hope for is that some people would wonder up here to find supplies or hear his muffled cries for help.
It's incredible how much a storm could change the direction of a night. Who knows what else Mr. Agnes might have in store for Henry?
THE END
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