Missing You (Gawsten)

Hide and Seek

Trigger Warning: Panic (it's p intense so I figured I'd put a warning!)

***

Ice floods Awsten's veins as he stares at the open door on the security monitor. How long had it been open? Did it just open a second before he looked? Did it open the second he looked away?

Realizing that he doesn't have time to figure it out or rewind the footage, the purple-haired boy snaps into action. He grabs the gun, abandoning the radio, then moves toward the crawlspace. He opens the creaky panel and quickly shuts it behind himself after ducking inside.

The crawlspace is very small and cold. Being inside the walls is like being in another dimension. It feels like being somewhere abstract- somewhere people don't usually think of as an existing place. He blindly and slowly follows the pathway, knowing that if he goes too fast he'll fall.

He's never been in the crawlspace, but Patty said that there's a dropoff where he'll have to climb down a small ladder. Then, the path will lead him to a panel that'll open beside the front door. Hopefully he can slip out undetected.

Thankfully, there aren't any other paths, so Awsten's blindness doesn't cause any problems. He feels his way along the dusty walls, and checks to make sure there's stable flooring below him before he puts his weight down on his foot everytime he steps forward. He can feel cobwebs getting caught in his hair, and it sends shivers down his spine.

Through the wall to his right, he can hear someone going up the steps. He keeps his fearful sobs silent, but he can't stop the panicked breaths from quietly echoing in the darkness. He's sure they can't be heard through the wall, but he isn't so sure about the quietness of his footsteps and shaky hands dragging against the walls.

Like a game of hide and seek, he's either going to be found, or he's going to win- except losing this particular game will be worse than losing others.

He hears the sounds of someone struggling with something, and realizes that whoever is in the apartment is trying to open the security room door. Hopefully Patty's bed slows them down.

The purple-haired boy keeps feeling his way along the crawlspace until he hears the sounds of the intruder slamming into the door to bust it open. The aggressive sounds make him stop in his tracks.

He hears the door break open, and the bed being shoved out of the way, and he struggles to breathe. He let's out a quiet sob, allowing tears to soak his face more than they already have.

What if Geoff comes here and finds him dead in a dark crawlspace, covered in dust?

His legs threaten to give out as more panic sets in. The gun in the waistband of his jeans adds more weight to his body and mind, which are already at capacity.

He takes in a struggling breath and puts another foot out, continuing to move forward.

He may be far from okay, but he remembers what Otto said before they all split up. He isn't a china doll. He has to do his best, because Geoff, Patty, Alex, and everybody else are doing their best.

He keeps moving forward, trying to stay as quiet as possible. It's only a matter of time before whoever's in the security room finds the crawlspace entrance.

The purple-haired boy hears more movement, and figures that the intruder is checking the rest of the upstairs area. He definitely knows there's someone here- seeing as someone barricaded the security room- so he must be checking to see if there's anyone else in the apartment. He'll find the crawlspace panel sooner or later, and Awsten is willing to bet he has a flashlight, so he'll be able to not only see to navigate the crawlspace faster, but he'll be able to see the purple-haired boy.

He speeds his shaky footsteps up a little, and after a few seconds, he nearly falls into pitch black nothingness. He assumes this is the drop off that Patty told him about. This should take him down to the first floor of the apartment.

He carefully squats down and dangles his legs off of the ledge, feeling for the ladder with his feet. He finds it and turns himself around, slowly putting his weight onto it. From his understanding, the crawlspace is rarely used, so there's no telling what condition the ladder is in. It creaks slightly, but it seems to be stable enough to hold up his weight. He starts descending it, wishing that he could see what he's doing.

He keeps shakily going down the ladder, and finally his feet make contact with the ground that's waiting below him. He turns around and starts feeling his way toward the exit.

After just a few steps, he hears it. The creaking panel opens, and a miniscule amount of light leaks into the crawlspace.

He begins running, not caring about making noise. He keeps one hand to the wall beside him, and one hand out in front of him. The tiny amount of light provided isn't enough to help with visibility, especially through the purple-haired boy's tears.

He lets out a sob as he hits the exit panel. He isn't sure where the intruder is anymore- he'd made too much noise while running to hear if he's in the crawlspace or not. Assumably he heard Awsten take off and is in the walls with him, following him.

The purple-haired boy opens the panel, climbs through it, and quickly closes it behind himself. He finds himself in a small coat closet- the one next to the front door. He goes through the rack of coats that are hanging up and opens the closet door slowly. He doesn't see anyone in the living area, so he quickly closes the closet door, and turns around to run out of the front door. He freezes in his tracks though, as there's something a mere inch away from him that he almost ran right into. It takes his brain a moment to comprehend what he's looking at.

When he does comprehend what it is, he instantly wishes that he didn't. The thing staring him dead in the eye is the silver barrel of a gun.

...