(100th writing! I want to thank anyone who has ever read, liked, and commented on my pieces. It means so much to me! Thank you!)

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“Slightly cloudy with a high chance of rain-“ “Need five off the board to go on-“challenge is to create a holiday appetizer using-“

Lance sighed, flicking through channels. Nothing was ever in at this time of night. Why did he have insomnia again? He wanted a refund.

“—has been missing in the Lavender Valley area.” That caused to his sit up straight. Lavender Valley was the next town over. It was so close that there was only one school for both sides to attend.

Rewinding the segment, he caught the name this time. “Dally Brooks has been missing in the Lavender Valley area for approximately 29 hours. The 25 year old was last seen by his sister. He was wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans. Here is a recent picture of him. If you see him, please call the authorities.”

Dally Brooks. The picture popped up on his TV screen. Dally had dirty blonde hair and pretty green eyes.

Lance ran his fingers through his hair, trying to concentrate on that face. Something nagged at the back of his brain. Did he go to school with him? They were the same age. No one ever moved to this place so he must have gone to school, but the name doesn’t register.

BANG

Jolting from his seat on his couch, Lance shot up. Something or someone just knocked on his door. He glanced at his clock and the bright digital numbers read 3 am.

Fear gripped his heart as it pounded away in his chest. He grabbed a decorative metal bowl for defense. His mom would laugh at him if she saw him now holding onto the bowl she bought for him.

“Please help me,” a voice whispered, the sound barely passing through the wooden door. Apprehension flooded Lance’s body. Should he open the door? Is this some kind of prank or does this person seriously need help.

Going against his survival instincts, he opened the door slightly. If there was a one percent chance that this person needed help, he had to do this.

On his doorstep is Dally Brooks, those green eyes staring at him.

“Please let me in. She’ll know I’m gone soon.” Automatically, Lance moved out of the way, and Dally scurried in quickly.

“You should shut off your living room light. I saw it from the outside,” Dally suggested. His whole body practically vibrating like he was readying for an attack from any side.

Lance pushed the light switch and they were blanketed in darkness. Only a sliver of light came through the kitchen window. “You probably know who I am, but I’m Dally.”

“I’m Lance.” He studied this new person in his house with the little light he had.

Duct tape was hanging off of one wrist, the other wrist red like it was rubbed raw. His clothing, torn and dirty. Lance realized that there was blood dripping from Dally’s ankles.

He grabs a dish towel from his sink and offers Dally a seat at his couch. He all but collapses onto the soft cushions.

“Is it ok if I wrap your leg in this? I don’t have a first aid kit,” Lance asked. He should have listened to his mom about getting one. “Yeah, ok.” Inspecting the injury, it didn’t look like wound done with a knife. It wasn’t a clean cut. More like something sort of blinding that dig into his ankles.

As gently as he can, he wrapped his ankle in the towel and kept it together with masking tape. Dally winced at the sound of him unrolling the tape.

Once that was done, Lance grabbed his phone. “I’m going to call the police and then you can call whoever you want to notify,” he said.

Dally rested a warm hand on his arm. “Thank you.”

When he unlocked his phone and went to press the green phone icon, he saw the internet bars change. “Shit.”

“What? What’s wrong?” Dally questioned, panic rising. “I don’t have internet.”

“Does that happen to you a lot?” He would applaud Dally for the hopeful suggestion in any other situation.

“No. Someone knocked out my internet.”