"Ladies and gentlemen, to your seats please, the show is about to start!"

The lights dimmed in the smoke wreathed club room and with it the burble of conversation. All eyes were drawn to the stage, as spotlights converged on the single noose and stool. The stage curtains were drawn to the side as the subject of the evening entertainment walked into the glare of the lights.

The boy was slim, young and healthy. He was wearing the gym uniform of some posh private school. His skin shone bright with sweat. There was a flatness in his eyes that betrayed the smile on his lips.

"Looks like a lightweight, wont go unconscious immediately like the chubby lad last week."
"What say you, 20 grand on at least 10 minutes?"
"Raise, 30k on 15"
"Daring tonight, are we?"

The bets were placed.

The boy tilted his head, listening to something coming through his earpiece.
That strange smile wavered. He carefully stepped up onto the stool, grabbing the noose with both hands and slipping it over his messy brown mop. The knot came to rest under his jaw. The paleness of his skin contrasted with the dark brown greased hemp rope, the rough fibres slightly indenting against young flesh.

The boy closed his eyes, took a deep breath and kicked the stool away in a clatter of energy.
Immediately his hands shot up to his neck, fruitlessly trying to pry away the tightening rope from his skinny neck. His legs kicked, feet pointed like a ballerina. It was true, the placement of the knot combined with his lithe build meant that just enough blood flowed into his brain to keep him aware. Not enough to stave off brain death in due course, though. The proprietors knew the allure of these events was always the extinguishing of life.

Minutes passed and the boy kept fighting. His gym uniform was thoroughly damp with sweat, clinging to his body and outlining his athletic form. His face was dark red, neck straining under the pressure of the noose. He raised his legs up to his chest, arms and hands twisted outward in a decorticate posture.

Slowly, his legs drooped. The gambler who had placed a bet on 15 minutes glanced at her watch. The little guy only needed to hang in there for a few more minutes.
But it was obvious to all that the boy just didnt have anything left to give. No hidden reservoir of stamina. A dark stain appeared on his shorts as his bladder released its contents.

The show was over.