Separation Anxiety

Chapter Three | Man

George was thrilled to have Clay come over since he had never had friends outside of his online circle.

As he spotted Clay in the hallway, George could sense his friend's anxiety. He wished he could read Clay's mind because he always seemed either upset or nervous.

What was hidden behind Clay's bright smile?

Clay jumped when George said his name. "Clay, are you alright?" George could see the emotions in Clay's eyes as he looked over to him. Clay smiled slightly and replied, "Yeah, I just need to get my computer, and then we can go to your house."

What had gotten into him? He is so scared of everything, jumping to the slightest noise. Flinching every time I tried to touch him like I was going to hurt him.

"You sure you're alright?" George asked again, hoping he would tell him something... anything, so George would know he is okay.

"Uh, yeah! I just... yeah," Clay smiled but it was clearly fake.

George could see that something was clearly troubling Clay, and he desperately wanted to help him feel better. "Clay, I can tell that something is really bothering you. Please, if there's anything you need to talk about, I'm here for you. You don't have to go through this alone," George said with a compassionate tone.

Clay looked up at him, tears welling up in his eyes. "I just... I can't talk about it right now, please, can we just go now?" he pleaded. "Okay, we can talk more once at my house," he suggested.

They drove to Dream's house in silence, with George keeping a close eye on his friend. When they arrived, Clay quickly jumped out of the car and ran inside.

George didn't wait long when Clay came rushing towards the car in a panic, jumping in and closing the door. George could see that Clay was visibly shaking and looking around anxiously. "Clay, please tell me what's going on. I want to help you," he said softly.

"Not now, George," Clay spoke softly, eyes peeking through the windows, surveying the land outside George's car.

"Clay, please! Just tell me what's going on!" George spoke back to Clay being as calm as possible, but by the looks on his face he was terrified.

"GEORGE!"

"PLEASE!"

Clay shrieked as someone stepped out of the house. They were twice the size of Clay. They were dirty like they haven't bathed in several months, years even. They had the same dirty blond hair as Clay. They wore a tool belt around their waist.

"Shit!" Clay pushed George to the ground out of nowhere. George responded by screaming at him. "What the hell, Clay!"

"Shh!" Clay whispered to George, he wanted to continue to talk but Clay covered his mouth not allowing George to speak. "Clay!"

George tried to scream, until he heard yelling come from outside the car. George could hear Clay's panicked heartbeat against him. "Clay! Where the hell are you hiding?!"

The same man yelled; George had no clue what to do.

Who the hell is this guy and why is Clay so frightened of him?

"Clay!" The yelling started to fade away.

Clay turned to George with a look of terror in his eyes. "We need to get out of here, now," he said urgently. George nodded and quickly got up to look around, but the man had vanished.
They sped off.

George couldn't help but ask, "Who was that guy?" He hoped Clay would tell him the truth, but he could tell his friend's hushed voice that he was scared.