"Did you know me?
Have you seen me on your TV?
They're still looking."
-Nicole Dollanganger (Have You Seen Me?)
***Trigger warnings for abuse, kidnapping, blood, gore, violence, brutality, and probably a lot more.***
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Wait to start the song. *Two Years Before*
You'd think that after all of the warnings on the news, Josh would have learned to be cautious by now. The citywide curfew was set for sundown due to severe safety concerns, which should've been enough to deter even the most rebellious of teenagers (i.e. Josh). He should've at least thought to bring his phone or to ask his brother to go with him, but he didn't.
Looking back on it now, he couldn't even remember where he'd been going. It was only nine o'clock at night, but no one else was out of their home. The streets were empty apart from Josh, or so he thought. He should've paid attention to the warnings. He really should've.
It had all happened so fast that Josh had no chance of defending himself. A van pulled over to the side of the road so quickly and so recklessly that it nearly ran him over. He slammed his foot down against the pavement, stopping his skateboard out of curiosity as he watched it slow down. Suddenly it was in reverse, rolling backwards toward him. Panic froze every muscle in Josh's body, and all of a sudden the back door of the van was sliding open. He was yanked inside, and a cloth was pressed against his mouth and nose.
The more Josh panicked or tried to scream, the more chemicals were able to sink into his lungs. He lost consciousness before he'd even seen his captor. Stupidly, only one though trickled through his mind before it all went black-My skateboard!
----- Start the song. It's Have You Seen Me? by Nicole Dollanganger. The first minute and a half is silent. Let it play out.
When Josh woke up again, he was somewhere dark and cold. Voices were speaking somewhere beyond the closed door at the top of the stairs, which were only visible because of a thin stream of light coming out from under the door. The chemicals swimming in Josh's lungs were slowing down his thoughts, keeping him from screaming despite having nothing blocking his mouth.
A quiet voice broke through the silence. "What's your name?"
Josh looked around the room slowly, trying to get his vision to focus. When it did, he saw a teenage girl sitting at the foot of the stairs. She was far too thin and her hair had been shaved off.
The momentary confusion erased her question from his memory. "What?" He asked her tiredly.
"What's your name?" She asked again.
"Josh," he mumbled out, struggling to keep his eyelids open.
"Josh what?" She pressed.
"Josh Dun," he clarified, trying to lift his arm to push his hair off of his forehead, only to find that it was tied to the arm of a chair. "Shit. Where am I?"
"I don't know," the girl whispered back. She stood up shakily and walked over to him, carefully brushing his hair back for him with cold fingers. "We're in the basement though."
