1 New Message | Bratayley Fanfiction

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Ugh! My fingers hurt from typing.

I just finished writing the worlds longest "I'm desperate help me message". The anonymous source that wishes to help us is taking quite a while to respond.

"SHES TYPING!" Annie yells into my ear. I can see the gray "typing" speech bubble and immediately get anxious. We're just waiting and waiting and waiting and...

How can I be of service, young ones?

Really? That's all she types?!

"Well, what do we say?" I ask Annie.

"Hmm..." Annie thinks for a minute, stroking a fake beard in her chin. Something Caleb always used to do. "Well, why don't we just go for it. Say exactly what we need."

Yeah, cause "Hey help us find clues so we can find our dead brother", isn't gonna sound weird.

Oh! "I'll type...we need to track the stars!" I say.

Annie gives me a weird look. "The stars?"

"Yeah! When she texted me something about stars, I remembered that we made a star for Caleb! We have to tell her that.

I type my message and get an immediate reply.

Wise choice, young ones. The stars are easy to find, as long as you have a map, transportation, and a motive. Find a way in, to find a way out. Follow my clues. Ill give you the first one free, but after this you must solve to get a clue.

The next-door neighbors hold the key, under your slumber is where it may be. Good luck.

"Look! She gave us a clue!"

"Yeah she gave us a clue...but what does it mean?" Annie deadpanned. She's right. What does this mean? Neighbors? Key? Under your slumber? This makes no-

Wait.

***

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Annie asked me, hopping over the wooden picket fence. We decided that the message meant our neighbors. So I decided, since our neighbors are out of town for the weekend, to sneak in and check for the key. I don't know what key, but it's something.

Annie helps me over the fence and we begin our adventure. An age old trick with a bobby pin and a little coordination helped us get through the back door. We walked into the family room and thought for a minute.

Under your slumber... Slumber...under...?

"Well maybe 'under your slumber' means downstairs. You sleep in the bedrooms, so under the bedrooms is downstairs! It must be here somewhere!" Annie concluded. It sounds like a valuable plan. So we went with it. Annie went to check the kitchen and dining room while I checked the living room and the office.

Nothing.

"Annie!" I whisper yelled into the direction of the dining room. "Anything yet?"

"Nope. No signs of a key anywhere in this pl-"

Click.

Oh my God. The door is being unlocked!

But it sounds like their having problems unlocking it. Annie and I exchange one look and book it up the staircase. We sprint into the first bedroom we see, it looks like it belongs to a little girl, with pink walls and furniture. We scramble to fit under the small bed. There's only one thing to do at this point.

Pray for mercy.

Just as I hear footsteps approaching the staircase, I see something glimmering through the corner of my eye. It's a- it's a key?

It's a key!

"Annie look! It's the key!" I say, pointing to the back wall under the bed. I was just about to grab it when I hear that awful sound.

Click.

He's opening the door! Me and Annie quake in our spots as the door slowly opens, letting the man put in foot into the room.

Arf Arf!

Oh thank God for dogs! The man runs downstairs to the barking dog yelling, "Macey! Shut up!"

Nows our chance! I quickly grab the key and we jump out the window. Don't worry, there was a roof right under us.

We safely leave the house and walk back to ours. We run into our rooms and I see something I've never been happier to see. 1 new message.

"Annie! WE GOT A MESSAGE!"

"WELL STOP TALKING ABOUT IT AND READ IT!" Annie claps back.

I read the message.

Congratulations! You found the key. I knew you could do it when you trusted me. Now here's the catch you must obey, you find a bus to find your war. Ride the fare and you will see, your answer is in NYC.

"NYC?! That's way too far! We can't take a bus were only kids." Annie complains. But now that I think about it, this is the price to pay to find these secrets. If we don't take this bus maybe we'll never figure out where our brother really is.

"Annie, we have to do this. We have to find these secrets. We need to go to NYC."

She thinks for a minute then nods her head. "For Caleb." She puts her hand front faced out in front of me.

"For Caleb." I repeat, placing my hand on top of hers. I give her a hug then we make a plan to sneak out of the house.

***
"It's fairly simple, we waltz past Mommy and Daddy's room, to the door and out of the house." Annie says. I guess simple is the way to go.

We follow Annie's plan, slowly walking past Mommy and Dasdys room and to the front door. Annie even put oil in the front door do it wouldn't squeak. Once we leave the house, we slam the door behind his and book it.

We run as fast as our small legs can take us. After what feels like miles we reach an intersection with a small bustop. It says the bus will be here in a few minutes.

"This is it, Annie. We're catching the late service bus to New York to begin our journey." I sigh:

"Our journey to find Caleb."

After a few minutes, the bus arrives. We give the bus lady our money and head to the back of the bus. It's completely empty.

"Next stop- Non stop service to NYC." The bus driver says over the intercom.

The bus is cold and a little bumpy, but nonetheless, I feel happy that we're getting this close to our destination. I lean my head against Annie's shoulder and we both fall asleep.

As we drive, I realize that this isn't just simple chain mail anymore, it's a calling for an adventure. A calling for us to find Caleb.

A calling to find that one last glimmer of hope, that still manages to find a spark in my heart.

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So...WHAT DO YA THINK?

I worked really hard to get this chapter to the way it is now, so show your love with some votes and comments!

QOOT: if you could choose to have a different name, what would it be? (It could be featured in a chapter...)

❤️Anjolie