Liam almost passed out by the time they finally made it to the shed. The day's events had taken a toll on his energy and he just wanted to sit down and relax.
"–And like, it's been almost a week and somehow only now have my legs started acting up! I usually could walk a bit and only have to rest once or twice, but now my leg is in pain after just getting up!"
"Yeah, that sucks man."
"Anyways, how's your day been?"
Liam paused for a bit. "Well, this morning the car broke down so I had to walk and I was late. And then I got drenched and had to get a change of clothes. So... Not good.'
"At least we can hang out here in peace. The hunters haven't came backe since then so I'd say we are safe."
"That's good."
Henry sat down on the bed and gently placed the hare down, where it then promptly fell asleep. Henry petted the hare while he and Liam talked.
"Just asking, did you feel weird while we were walking? Like we were being watched?" Liam asked, trying his best to mask his unease.
Henry replied, "No, not really. The forest's inhabitants don't get many visitors, so the animals might have just been curious."
Liam nodded. He still believed that they had been followed, but they could protect themselves if they needed to.
But he was still curious about that book.
Why has he never talked about it before? Henry might as well have told him his social security number with how much he overshared! Liam decided to ask him about it. What else could he do?
"What's the deal with that green book you were looking through yesterday?"
"Oh It's nothing! Just something I got from that thrift store a while back and brought here."
"Can I see it?"
Henry suddenly froze, a deer-in-headlights look on his face.
"What? Is it a diary?"
"Ye-Yeah! It's a di-a-ry!" Henry replied in a shaky voice.
"... Why are you saying it like that?"
————————————————————
"No reason! I... I..." Henry was panicking. He couldn't let Liam know what it actually was. Alas, his walls had broken down and now he no longer had any defenses to protect himself with. He'd gone so long without a constant sense of being in danger that he could no longer lie as effectively.
"It's fine. I won't look at it."
Henry breathed out a sigh of relief. The true purpose of the book was something he would take to the grave. He too thought it was only a diary, but it was much, much more.
————————————————————
Liam managed to distract Henry by telling him his concerns about potential watchers.
"Are you sure? Very few people even go here."
"I'm sure of it," Liam stated in such a way that it felt more like demanding rather than a mere proclamation.
Henry shuffled nervously. "Alright then, I'll go check. Stay here, and don't touch anything."
"I won't."
Henry left, the hare in tow.
————————————————————
Drew was panicking, if he stayed out here longer they could catch him. Or worse. If Henry turned into... that after only a few weeks, what could he turn into after a day?
He shook his head, he had no time to think about that! What he needed to do was get somewhere where Henry, and Liam by extension, couldn't see him.
He quickly farted behind a tree, quickly pulling up his hood and silently damning his genetics for giving him incredibly striking hair.
"Hello? Anyone there?"
Drew dared to take a peek, hoping that Henry wasn't staring directly in his direction.
"Y'know what, he's kinda right. I do feel like I'm being stared at."
Damn it! Drew thought
————————————————————
With Henry gone, Liam could finally figure out what the heck that damn book was about. Sure, it could just be an old diary that Henry thought was cool, he had a habit of buying things he never needed but thought were cool in the moment. But he felt that it was something else. Something... sinister.
There was something wrong with that book.
He quickly and quietly looked through the bookshelf beside the door.
"Not that one, not that one..." He mumbled to himself before finally finding a green and golden spine. "Aha! That one!"
He gently took it out of its spot and began searching through it, growing more and more horrified the longer he read.
He stopped flipping through the pages once he landed on one that was covered in sticky notes. At first, he thought that it was just notes for maybe a story or something, judging by the crude sketches of people. He almost flipped to the next page when he decided to look closer.
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He thought nothing of the contents at first, before the realization hit him.
Henry wasn't ever his own person, only a reflection of those who considered him to be a friend.
