when the party's over, hockstetter 𝜗𝜚

xx. six feet under

❨ WHEN THE PARTY'S OVER ❩
CHAPTER TWENTY:
SIX FEET UNDER

‧ : *: ‧ °✧

"patri—"

her frantic pleas for help are the last sounds patrick hears before the line abruptly goes dead, leaving him with a chilling silence.

"what–(y/n)?" his eyebrows furrow and he sits up from his relaxed state, kicking the covers off of himself.

when he hears only a low-tone beeping in response, his heart rate quickens.

"lil' bit?" he bites his chapped bottom lip, "(y/n), baby? answer me. are you okay?"

patrick hears rapid clicking from the phone, followed by sudden heavy breathing.

"no! let me go! please, my baby! 'trick, help!" the familiar panicked screams of his ex-girlfriend make the boy shout her name, slamming the phone into the nightstand when the line goes dead again.

"shit!" he yells, pacing back and forth, hands tugging at his dark tufts of hair.

patrick hurriedly puts on some clothes, not caring that it's nearly four in the morning. all he could think of was (y/n), the possibility of her being alone, scared, and hurt.

he slams his front door shut, unconcerned about waking his parents.

stepping into the warm night, he fidgets with his father's car keys as he walks to the beat-up, dark green pickup truck.

the hockstetter boy wastes no time starting the car and speeding out of the driveway. the screech of the rubber tires against the road echoes loudly, almost certainly waking up his neighbors.

throughout the entire ride to bowers' house, his mind races. he wonders why anyone would want to hurt (y/n) and who it might be.

he questions why henry wasn't there to protect her, as he should have been.

and then he asks himself why he wasn't there.

the blaring sound of a car horn jolts him from his trance. in an instant, he yanks the wheel, jerking the car back into his own lane, his heart pounding from the near miss.

before he knows it, he's arrived.

his dark eyebrows furrow as he takes in the sight of the house, its windows dark and lifeless. the yard is eerily still, with the faint glow of the streetlights casting long shadows that make the place seem even more desolate and unnerving.

he steps out of the car, heart now thumping in his ears as he prepares himself for what he might find.

when he reaches the front door, he finds it ajar, which only intensifies his fear.

"henry?" he calls out as soon as he steps inside, surprised to see every light in the house ablaze.

all he hears in reply is his own voice reverberating through the empty house.

"(n/n)?" he calls out much softer this time.

the boy's heavy footsteps echo through the empty house as he searches every room, hoping she will suddenly appear and tell him she's okay.

he needed her to be okay.

"god damnit, (y/n)–" before the rugged haired male can finish his sentence, the front door slams open, making him jump.

he finds himself face to face with henry, who meets his gaze with an equally tense expression.

"am i...interrupting something?" the dirty blonde haired boy scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably, though a feeling of hope surfaces.

henry knew that patrick and (y/n) were
destined to be together. everyone knew it—everyone except them.

patrick quickly shakes his head, taking steady steps closer.

"n-no, actually. i..." he cuts himself off with a gulp as he notices the bowers' boy's furrowed eyebrows, "i can't find her."

"what do you mean?"

patrick shifts from one foot to the other, his long, pale fingers fidgeting restlessly.

"i can't find her. sh-she called me about an hour ago, she sounded spooked and then she just—shit, henry, i should've been there for her."

seeing his best friend's eyes grow red and watery, the slightly shorter boy steps forward and awkwardly pulls him into a hug.

"it's okay," he says calmly, though his heart is now racing, "are you sure she didn't go home with oliv—"

"no." the raven haired boy winces at the thought, "she called me. she called from here."

before henry bowers can respond, an ear-splitting scream reverberates through the house, accompanied by the flickering of the lights.

the two boys lock eyes, and the shorter one quickly shakes his head as he notices the impulsive look on the hockstetter boy's face.

"wait, pa—"

"that was her, henry." he says undoubtedly, slowly stepping towards the back door.

"no, you don't know that. it could've been the neighbors, they're always banging."

"the only neighbors you have are the animals living in the trees. i'm going out there whether you like it or not."

patrick doesn't waste a moment yanking the door open and stumbling into the backyard.

he squints his blue eyes as he scans through the dense trees, the rustling leaves filling the air.

"(y/n)!" he shouts, cupping his hands around his mouth to project the sound farther.

the boy stands still for a moment, edging closer to the woods as he hears what sounds like footsteps crunching in the grass.

"patrick." her voice whispers closely, as if it's right behind him, "please, patrick. turn around."

he obeys, but instantly regrets it when he sees the most terrifying sight he's ever encountered.

this kind of thing was supposed to exist only in movies or silly horror stories.

his eyes trace from the feet and slowly creep upward, each inch revealing more of the horrifying scene.

as his gaze ascends, a chilling sense of dread deepens with every second, until pure, paralyzing fear erupts within him.

he can't suppress the raw, terrified scream that bursts from him.

his (y/n) is held in the arms of a grotesque, circus-clown-like figure, her eyes barely open and her cheeks streaked with tears. bruises mar her arms and neck, fueling patrick's rage.

he desperately wants to kill the bastard who did this to her.

he steps forward, his arm drawn back to punch the monster, but just as henry calls his name, the figure vanishes into thin air.

"no!" he shouts, spinning around toward the trees and sprinting after a glimpse of that tattered, grimy clown suit.

before he can reach it, henry catches up to him and pulls him back, and they both tumble to the ground from the force of the impact.

"what the hell are you doing?" he asks, pushing the boy off of him, "you stopped me! i could've saved her. now she's alone with that thing!"

"calm down, okay? we'll find her, but we can't do it alone. let's get the others."