The Night Everything Lost Sense

13. Alone

[Sorry for disappering! I have no excuse 💜]

Briar stared at the blackened room before his glossy eyes, trembling as if he were bathing in icy water. The melodic tune erupting from his phone became a distant resonating sound, dying out along his breath. The empty room seemed bigger than before. The walls seemed to be expanding. The ceiling grew taller. The shadows turned darker.

Briar was alone.

His mouth stood open agape. He sat frozen, completely petrified by the idea that Casey wasn't with him. And even though he was the only person in that room, kneeling on the dusty wooden floor, he couldn't understand the circumstances. He couldn't understand them at all.

Just a minute ago he was sobbing into Casey's arms. Just a minute ago he told Casey the truth about Soyoung. He poured his heart and soul onto Casey. It had to be real. Briar refused to believe that it wasn't.

His phone lit up again. The same caller ID appeared on screen. Casey. Casey was calling him. But how? They were together a few minutes ago. Briar was sure they were together. They spend the whole day going around town. They were on a date. He clutched onto Casey's shirt earlier. Casey had to be with him, right? He had to be in front of him, right?

Then why couldn't Briar see him?

A single exhale rolled out of his mouth, freezing his teeth and salty lips. His damp cheeks hurt as cold air found them. Briar touched his face to assure himself that he had cried earlier. That he hadn't dreamt. Feeling his damp skin stick to his fingertips, he felt a flicker of hope. He had cried. That meant Casey had to be with him.

But he was alone.

The room was empty. He was completely alone.

Staring at the void in front of him, he reached his fingers out to his phone. His heart stopped beating for a moment as he waited to hear if somebody speaks from the other end of the line. Surely enough, a concerned voice soon yelled out his name. "Briar! Where the hell are you?"

Briar's eyes widened. He looked down at his screen. His brain failed to process what had just happened. Casey answered the phone. Casey was on the phone. Casey was asking him where he is.

How?

"Briar? Briar are you there?"

How was this possible? Why wasn't Casey in the same room as him?

"I'm here..." he answered quietly. His voice was hoarse.

"Oh, thank god! Where are you? We have been looking for you for over an hour!"

"W-what?"

Chills traveled up Briar's arms and back. An hour ago, he and Casey were in the arcade. They had to be. He remembered playing games with him there. He remembered it so vividly.

"Where are you?" Casey repeated.

Sitting on the floor, wide-eyed and pale as paper, Briar didn't know how to answer. He thought he was in his and Soyoung's hideout. He thought Casey and he were there together. But that wasn't the case. Now he was lost. Where was he? Was he at the hide-out? How long had he been there?

"Briar?" Casey's concerned voice raised an octave. "Are you there?"

"MHm..." he murmured before gulping.

"Where are you?" Casey asked sternly.

He stared at the dark room with big eyes that reflected horror. He saw a window. Dead fairy lights. Pillows. Blankets. Books. His eyes flied over those details a couple of times until he was completely sure that they were actually there.