...
it was almost twelve am on the dot. midnight. the dim light shining onto moose's nose, reflecting off of his glasses. moose usually didn't wear glasses, as he mostly hated them. he wore them at night or when he was alone. because who in their right mind is going to sleep with contacts in, or even wear them while on the verge of passing out? he would much rather have wore glasses with the small chance of just snapping it in half. which seems much easier to fix than something going wrong with his eye or his vision again. it was enough that he couldn't see properly most days, he'd much rather prefer what he had going on right then.
whatever.
pausing his music just to try and listen outside, he could hear his parents moving around outside. their movie must have been over, then. he pulled the comforter higher onto his body, covering his shoulder. his phone light getting blocked by the blanket. usually his parents didn't open his door to check up on him, especially when it was a friday night. but he still just had the bit of anxiety. why moose was sneaking out? he had no clue. surely if he had just asked his parents to go hangout at simon's or just spend the night they would have let him. but a part of him wanted to try something different, do something sneaky. try to see the limits he could get away with. he knew he was probably abusing his parent's kindness in the moment, he knew the fact if he got caught sneaking out or sneaking back in he wouldn't be in trouble. his mother would just have wanted to talk and ask why moose just didn't ask her in the first place. moose felt bad, he really did. he didnt want to abuse her kindness, abuse the fact he wouldn't be in trouble.
but he just wanted to see how it would go. just this one time.
his car keys were in his jogger's pocket. simon was blowing up his phone, texting his number, discord, and on snapchat. everyone was at simon's currently. they were all hanging out together. moose didn't know if they all planned on staying the night, but moose wasn't going to. rhys was most likely going to, but caspian and sage probably had another plans. proobbably. and poor alistair. stuck there wtih the idiotic group without moose. he was probably fine, they were probably all getting along perfectly fine, but sometimes in moose's mind it was just funny to imagine alistair suffering with the group of friends. sage was often teasing the male anyway, giving him crap for being with moose and always giving him a hard time. poor guy. if they even tried to tease her about caspian one of them would end up with a remote to the head. if they were lucky. it could have been something much much heavier.
moose's stomach growled. he was so hungry. he had been up since seven in the morning and had taken no naps since then. after school he hung out with simon for a few hours before heading home. moose had ended up playing video games for too long and forgotten about dinner, and by the time he realized it was almost nine at night. his mother wouldn't have been happy if he ate that late, and she definitely wasn't going to support it. moose could cook on his own, it wasn't something he struggled with. he wasn't going to need to sneak into his mom's room and just ask her nicely to make him some ramen or some food. but she probably would have been more disappointed that he was making dinner after dark then him actually sneaking out.
his mother loved when they ate together. and moose did, too. he loved eating with her. the only time he'd avoid doing it was when father was home and wanted to eat with them. moose didn't enjoy eating around him. he didn't hate him, they had an okay relationship, actually. but sometimes moose just was too upset to be around him, or was scared something that was actually going to upset him was going to be brought up. like his current grades, why he didn't have a girlfriend, why he didn't speak so much at dinner. why he chewed like that, why he decided to eat what he did, all that. moose never knew if his father was trying to pick and poke at him to hurt his feelings or if he was genuinely trying to help. but either way, moose didn't want to deal with it. at all.
a door closing suddenly caused moose to jump slightly- his thoughts collecting back onto the original motive. yes, sneaking out. right. he listened quietly, hearing nothing but the wind outside and the leaves shaking off the trees and occasionally hitting into a window or scraping against the shingles. he heard nothing. nothing coming from his room, or his little brother's room. he couldn't even hear the cat downstairs or the dog in the backyard. moose sucked in a deep breath, taking a minute longer to listen, before slowly pulling the sheets and covers off his body. a chill ran down the boy's spine. the house was much colder than he initially expected it to be- his blankets were so much more warm than the house. why his dad always had to have the house so cold? he had no clue.
but it just made moose sigh.
he pushed himself onto his feet, the carpet feeling soft against his skin. he was so lucky he didn't have any wood or anything that would creak in his house- because it would just expose him right then and there. of course, blaming the cat was always something that was on the table, but it was kind of difficult to blame the small animal for making such a loud creak when she was downstairs and the floor boards squeaking came from upstairs. whatever. cracking his thumb lightly, moose shook his head. his shoes were on the bay window, right by the opening. just so he could easily slide them on before climbing out, to hopefully make the least amount of noise possible. moose sneaked over to his door lightly, and cracked it open. he looked down the hallway, his breathing shallow and quiet. his parent's bedroom was downstairs, but he still didn't want to waste any time checking.
the hallway light was out. and so was the kitchen. living room. downstairs. all the lights were out.
he was good.
there was still the possibility his parents were still up, seeing as his mom usually stayed up much later than his father. but his father fell asleep so easily, he could even fall asleep during a horror movie if he wasn't paying attention. he was so much worse than simon. but moose just felt a pit in his stomach. he felt guilty. what if he disappointed his mom? what if she got sad that she wasn't let in on what was happening? his mother often had helped him sneak out before- his father usually wasn't allowed to know anything. his father made moose's curfew 9 at night. even on weekends. as a senior in highschool. moose was always so disappointed in it, so his mother would help him sneak out. aka, moose running home, saying 'i'm going to bed', then sneaking out again with his mother's help.
damnit.
moose shook his head lightly, let out a small growl, before pulling his phone out of his pocket. he quickly typed out the text to his mother, and sighed. he couldn't leave her out of the loop. he'd explain his motives later. but for now, he just needed to tell her what he was doing. he felt bad leaving her out. i am sneaking over to simon's. i know it's late, i'll explain it later, i promise. i love you, sleep tight. tell me how the movie was in the morning. sent. moose nodded to the message, chewing on his inner cheek. slowly leaning backwards on his heel, moose closed the door behind him slowly, and made sure to click the door locked. pulling the jacket off of his desk chair, he put it on slowly to make sure it didn't make any sound from zippers hitting against anything. he quickly slid on his vans, sucked in a deep breath, and opened the window slowly. the cold air almost felt like a slap to the face.
it wasn't super cold, but it was definitely colder than the house. and it was colder than moose originally had anticipated. grabbing a small stick that made it's way onto moose's roof, he slid between the window and made it outside, before he put the stick between the window slightly. it was barely noticeable. he just didn't want to be accidentally locked out. the way he'd have to have simon come pick his own bedroom lock is way too embarrassing. how on earth would ever explain that situation, too? and simon would probably spend the whole damn time laughing at him for being so stupid-
whatever. he was out.
he took a few moments to just watch his door, anxiety creeping in his chest. he just had to make sure no one heard, no one was coming to his room to check on him. okay. he nodded to himself once more, before he started slowly creeping down the roofside, and onto a large, thick branch that was right next to the roof. this was probably the scariest part to him. not because he could get hurt, or have the stupid branch fall from under him, but because it was probably the loudest part of the whole situation. if he walked too fast the leaves would probably shake insanely. and more than just a normal windy thing. unless somehow the wind picked up, and granted him a quick freedom.
and it was almost like he manifested it.
the wind picked up. it was fast, it was almost roaring. moose didn't even think twice, he took it as an opportunity. he wanted to get out as fast as possible, and he was given an open door. quickly moving across the branch, the leaves shaking and quivering, moose moved as fast as he could against it. he didn't even take the moment to check his window the moment he was at the base. all he did was hop onto the stone wall, and onto the grass below him. he did it. he was out. his phone buzzed quickly, a text from his mother.
stay safe, ezzie. keep me updated. i love you, tell simon i said hello. moose's smile grew. he loved his mother so much, he didn't deserve her. he didn't deserve the way she helped him and cared for him, making sure he was safe all the time. he loved her so dearly. sending just a simple brown heart in return, moose slid his phone back into his pocket before starting his way towards the car. but the moment he left the grass, the moment his shoes had touched concrete, he felt like he couldn't move. he felt like his body was glued down to the pavement. he didn't know if this was anxiety just somehow stopping him, or .. somehow something else.
no.
moose sucked in a deep breath, just trying to move his legs anyway possible. they wouldn't budge. they wouldn't freaking budge. he felt like his legs weren't attached, he felt like he was somehow getting taken over. his throat felt dry, and his chest felt like there was a heavy weight pressing against his ribs. he tried to calm himself, he tried to breathe. it had to be anxiety, right? it had to be the anxiety taking over his body, he wasn't stuck. he was just freaking out. but why was he freaking out? this isn't the first time he had done something like this before. his mother was in on it, it wasn't like he was full on leaving forever. why was he so scared?
the wind was picking up again. and it felt so violent against moose's face, like razors being flung against him.
his heart racing, he began to genuinely panic. if he wasn't scared before, he was now. what was going on? what could possibly have been going on? moose tried to move to grab his phone, but his arms wouldn't move either. they felt limp. like his body was dead but his mind wasn't. like he was somehow stuck in sleep paralysis. he was terrified. he couldn't even get himself to call for help. he didn't care if he got caught anymore- he tried, he did. he wanted to scream. but he couldn't get anything out. like his vocal cords were cut, or his voice box was turned off. he was terrified. he felt tears stinging against his eyes, the wind trying to get him to close his eyes, to somehow get him to lose awareness of where he was-
there was a figure down the street.
....
"that is NOT my son!" lydia woods shouted. moose's mother. it was saturday afternoon. moose never had made it to simon's house, and moose wasn't back at home either. lydia had checked his room, checked the bathroom, checked everywhere. she found nothing. it was like moose had never left, but also never came home. his jacket somehow returned to the chair he originally grabbed it from, his shoes still on the bay window. and his phone, cracked on the rock outside. like he had somehow threw it. opening the phone only revealed texts to his mother and to simon. there was nothing new.
"ma'am, it hasn't been forty eight hours, we can't do anyt-" "he was seventeen. he is still a minor. can't you do something?" she was terrified. she was so scared. her son was gone. and no one knew where he was. moose wouldn't just leave his phone broken, he wouldn't just disappear without telling simon or alistair. he wouldn't. and lydia knew that. something was going on, and she was too scared to figure it out. she was just somehow praying that moose somehow was just at someone's house, playing hooky or some sick joke. it didn't sound like something he'd do, hell, it wasn't. but she was too scared to try and imagine anything else.
and she was mad.
she was so mad. she wasn't mad at moose, but she was more mad at herself. her husband. simon. the cops. why couldn't the cops do anything? why couldn't they just help search, find anything? why didn't simon just come pick him up, why didn't simon just waitwith him and make sure he got to his house safely, why couldn't her stupid husband just be someone mooose could get along with? why couldn't he be someone that moose wanted to be around without fear that he was going to be criticized or yelled at? why couldn't he just be someone moose enjoyed being around, so they could all just be together, and moose wouldn't have to feel the need to sneak out to be with his friends or someone he loved?
why couldn't she be a better mother?
she blamed herself the most. how could she let him sneak out without making sure he was okay, without watching him to make sure he got into the car safely and make sure he didn't get hurt? why did she even let him out in the first place? she felt terrible. she like an awful, good for nothing mother. she was so scared she was the reason he got hurt. she was so scared that her bad parenting skills were the reason her son was missing, the reason he wasn't safe and sound at home right now. she couldn't get the anxiety out of her head, salty warm tears prickling at her eyes.
the police blamed moose. that moose was an alcoholic. or that he was on substances, that he was chasing a high and got himself hurt or lost. that he was being irresponsible. that he was just a druggie. that he was the only one at fault. because him sneaking out meant he was doing something to destruct himself as a person, instead of him just trying to meet a friend. and lydia was angry. she was so angry. "he had straight a's. he was a good kid. he took care of his friends, h-he-he, he always made sure his little brother was asleep and okay after long nights." she stuttered, tears streaming down her pale face.
"after long nights of me and v-victor arguing, he'd always make sure i was okay, or-or that his brother felt okay and was safe and not scared. he never did those kind of things, he wasn't a bad kid. and even if he did do stuff like that, he wouldn't put himself in danger. he's missing, someone has my son, and i want your help finding him." her bottom lip was quivering, she was shaking. and her husband couldn't even try to calm her down. in fact, he wasn't doing anything at all. he was just sitting in the chair next to her, quiet.
she hated him for it.
"ma'am, we're doing our best, but it's just what we can and can't do in this time period. i know you're worried, but we have to-" slamming her hands on the desk, lydia pushed herself up. the room fell quiet. she knew she was acting irrationally. she knew she should have handled herself better. but she didn't want to. she wanted her son found and she wanted him now. she wanted him home, she wanted him safe and sound, in bed, while she made cake or some other baked good for him. she wanted him okay. she felt sick to her stomach.
her stomach was churning and shaking. her head was shaking and ringing, there was a deep knot in her throat. tears were streaming down her face almost uncontrollably, with every blink a new warm tear streamed down. she was horrified. she was terrified. she didn't want to feel this way. she didn't want to be scared. she just wanted her son back. "i hate you people. i hate you."
"you make me so sick."
...
monday morning. it was nine forty two in the morning. simon was at school. he wasn't going to stay very long, due to the fact he felt like his world was crumbling underneath him. how was he supposed to stay here, stay okay? the news of moose missing had gone around school. there had even been a stupid assembly and everything. they all acted like they cared, like they were scared. simon felt like it was just a bunch of liars trying to make themselves feel good about a bad situation.
simon knew moose was friends with alot of people- simon didn't know if he should call him popular or not, but moose definitely knew alot of people, and he was friends with quite a bit of them as well. he was always friendly. whether he was super quiet or not, it was hard for people to hate him. wasn't impossible, because simon knew a few people who couldn't stand moose, but it was definitely hard. but that stupid assembly seemed like they had just milked every little thing possible. they almost were as bad as the police station with the situation.
'be there for moose' 'be there for his friends, his family' 'he will be home soon, we love you moose', shut up. just shut up. it was all a lie. it was all fake and it was all a lie. a student was missing, what are they going to do? make a cute new fieldtrip to go find him? send out a search party for the new english assignment? he knew that awareness was good, he knew it was better to let them know what had happened instead of just thinking moose was sick or playing hooky. but the way they went about it, it made him so angry. it was almost as bad as them posting 'fly high' on their snapchat stories when someone had passed away. the angel edits with the damn clouds-
god simon was so angry.
and mrs. julander sat there, in the front of the class, just speaking about it. she was a math teacher. a freaking math teacher. it was her job to teach them how to do math. not tell them that his best friend was missing and how they have to be there for simon and the family during this whole hard time. he didn't want their stupid, pathetic sympathy. he didn't want them to come up to him and rub his back, 'we're so sorry to hear about moose' no youre not. simon was angry. simon was upset, and angry, and confused. he just wished he didn't bother moose and spam him so much that night. maybe he would still have been home and in bed if he didn't try and pressure him into hanging out with him that night.
sage told simon not to worry, that moose probably fell asleep on the way there or something- that he was probably just not going to show up, and to just text him saturday morning. that they could all hangout again. but simon just felt miserable. that whole night instead of worrying, they just played video games. they watched stupid shows. they didn't check up on moose, they didn't drive over to see what had happened. they didn't check anything. they just let it happen.
and the morning after was the worst feeling simon ever felt.
he went over to moose's and greeted his mother. his mother was horrified. she asked if moose was at simon's asleep or something, and that he left his phone here. it caused panic for almost everyone. especially alistair. imagining waking up at a stupid friends house having to hear that your boyfriend had gone missing. that's not the type of stuff you want to hear at a freaking sleepover. god, that's not the stuff you want to hear ever. and a part of simon was scared to tell him more about the situation, more about what they had found, more about what they had said.
more about how they thought moose was possibly dead.
the only person simon told about that was rhys. mrs. woods didn't want that information to get out, solely because she was terrified and she was also not willing to believe it was a possibility. not yet. but after finding the locket moose always wore around his neck, bloodied and behind the stone wall by his house, the whole situation just got worse. why the hell was there blood on it in the first place? you open up the locket, and there was blood drops on moose's photo. the one of him and alistair together. and the lock was covered in blood.
it was so scary.
sighing lightly, simon just slammed his head against the table once more. he was too tired to hear mrs julander talk about moose. he didn't want to hear it anymore. moose didn't even like math, moose hated that place. it was almost ironic. and it was a punch to the stomach. putting his hand into his hoodie pocket, he rubbed against the locket quietly. he probably should have turned it in as evidence, but he didn't. and he definitely wasn't going to now, knowing he had cleaned off the blood and had his fingerprints all over it. he wanted to give it to alistair, he wanted to return it to him, or just somehow put it back in moose's room. like somehow it will manifest his return.
without proper explanation, without even saying anything, simon swung his backpack into his back, pushed himself upwards, and left the classroom. it was ten am now. the stupid teacher had spent all that time talking about moose when she had no idea what she was even talking about. moose never even took her damn class. she didn't even know moose, not that simon knew of anyway. why couldn't they just go back to a normal stupid day? they were acting like it was rotations in a elementary event- every next class speaking about moose and then doing a cute little coloring activity of a animal (moose. lmao) just to try and lift spirits. no. simon was tired.
flicking his phone into his hand, simon quickly sent a text to the groupchat, his heart dropping to his feet. im ditching class. they're pissing me off. does anyone want to just come with me? i'm going to hang outside by the steps for a few minutes, if anyone wants to come. he sent the text quietly, just waiting for someone to open it. he didn't know how alistair was going to respond to the whole thing, there was probably the chance simon's offer was going to be ignored, but sage took no time waiting to respond. she'd be out in a few minutes.
whether sage was upset about moose or not, sage was always taking her chance to skip class. how she still was passing? it was a mystery to everyone, including herself. but simon didn't mind the company. he just desperately wanted someone with him, anyone. he didn't want to sit outside on the stairs alone, crying because his best friend wasn't by his side. he didn't want to be hurting alone. he felt bad even complaining he was alone right then and there. he felt so guilty complaining about it all. moose was probably more alone than anything. and simon didn't know.
sitting outside on the cold step, simon leaned his head against the pole on the stairs. it felt cold against his head, but it felt nice at the same time. like a hot day suddenly getting hit with a breeze. simon usually wasn't one for the cold, he really hated it. but this one time, it felt better than any other temperature possible. his lips felt chapped, his throat felt dry, and his chest felt like it was collapsing in on himself. he was so tired.
exhausted.
suddenly the metal doors swinging open, a short female had walked out quietly. her pink hair reflecting in the sun, she sat herself next to simon quietly. sage. simon scooted himself closer to the girl, and ended up leaning his head onto her shoulder instead of the pole. it wasn't as cold, but it was definitely softer. his neck didn't feel like it was breaking and his head wasn't going to eventually get a headache from the tough metal.
"you feeling okay?" the girl asked softly. usually sage was a jerk- an absolute ass. she was mean, and mocked everyone, and was always teasing everyone. but she was softer this time. sage never knew how to handle venting, or how to handle emotions properly. usually she just offered physical comfort and let the others do the talking. sage was bad at it. and everyone knew it. but they loved her anyway. because even if she couldn't speak, her trying and her physical admiration was more than enough to them. it showed she didn't actually hate them like she said she did.
"my best friend's missing, sage. i'm not okay. and i'm not going to be okay until he's found." he muttered, shaking his head. shortly after the male felt pressure against his head, scratching against his scalp. sage's nails. she was running her hands through his hair. she stayed silent. and they were silent for a little while. maybe it was five minutes, maybe not even that. but the silence felt long. long, and comfortable. with her hand in his hair, the wind blowing gently, and the two just breathing, it was easier for simon to calm down that way. maybe even with sage's silence, it felt nice. it genuinely felt more comforting and a better way to relax then any of the ways those stupid teachers did.
"i know this isn't going to help, but it.... it's information that i think would be something we can talk about." sage said abruptly. sitting up slowly, simon sucked in a deep breath. he didn't know where this was going, but at the same time, sage had no information. she knew nothing more than alistair did. she didn't even know about the locket in his hoodie, or the possibility of moose being dead. simon was skeptical of whatever the female could have said, but at the same time, her words instantly caused a pang of anxiety to build in his stomach.
like the anxiety you'd get when your crush says we need to talk, or when someone you had been talking about recently calls you or adds you on social media. just those type of anxieties. not the ones where simon felt like he was about to break down, but in a way? simon did kind of want to. nodding his head towards the girl, he shifted himself on the step to make sure he was facing her better. to make the conversation flow easier. she was still staring off into the distance, just watching the road. it made him feel almost.. intimidated by the girl. like her energy was somehow mixed with something else.
"for a few weeks, animals had been going missing, too. it just kind of started with house cats and dogs, you know?" she said quietly, shrugging her shoulders and moving her lips to the side of her mouth lightly. "it was just the small things. it was concerning, but it just made people think an animal had gotten loose or something and was getting to pets or whatever. it was just started in a small area of the town." sage moved her fingers in a circle, almost trying to show an example of it all. but as she continued, she only made the circle get bigger and bigger, moving her fingers in silence. "as it went on though, the range did get bigger. pets literally all over town were disappearing. even house cats, or birds that stayed inside cages." she muttered.
her hands dropping back into her lap, she let out another huff from her nose. "then farm animals. like, large ones. big pigs, sheep, cows, horses. they started..disappearing too. with no trace. there was nothing to even hint they got out or something had gotten to them and killed them." sage fell silent for a while after that. she didn't speak, and her gaze stayed almost glued on the horizon outside. like she was purposely leaving simon to think about it, to let his mind wander. she didn't move for a minute, either. they both sat in silence, sitting in the same position. sage finally moved.
"i have my keys. we can go driving around for a bit. sitting here makes me feel like we're gonna get caught." she muttered, before pushing herself off of the stairs. she waited quietly for simon to push himself upwards after him, before she bounded down towards her dark blue beamer. she wasted no time turning on some quiet music and turning on the ac. "buckle up. i literally am not going to move until that seatbelt is on your chest." she said quietly. simon gave her a look, before clicking it over his chest. then the two slowly drove out of the parking lot, and sage began her little adventure.
it was quiet for a minute. sage driving towards the mountains, driving around the quieter areas of town, practically sightseeing. looking at christmas lights without the actual lights. neither of them spoke. simon's leaned against his door, looking out the window, and sage kept her eyes on the road. once sage passed a sign exclaiming 'you're now exiting! come back soon', sage finally spoke again.
"i think....i think whatever is taking those animals, whatever took them.. probably took moose?" sage said, almost questioning her own theory. simon scoffed at it lightly, shaking his head before looking at the girl. "what if they took him cause his name's moose. he has the name of the animal, they got confused." he joked. he let a small laugh escape his lips, and he grinned even more when he watched smile's lips curve up at the joke as well. "you're stupid.." she muttered, shaking her head before her smiled dropped again. she was serious about. "i don't think it's human, simon. i don't think whatever has moose would have done whatever they did." she said quietly.
simon pressed his tongue against his dry lips, his eyebrows furrowing at the girl. "they put his shoes and jacket back. what kind of kidnapper goes to that extent for nothing? they would gain nothing from doing that. except getting finger prints on his stuff. but there was nothing." she muttered, chewing on her bottom lip as she spoke. the whole theory she was going on about just gave simon even more anxiety. what if she was right? simon knew she was one to believe in paranormal and spiritual things, she was often dragging caspian into it was well. simon always mocked it silently to himself, but what if she was right this time?
"how...how would that happen?" he muttered. "his phone was cracked, too. " sage gave simon a weird look before turning back to the road. "his phone being cracked, i don't know anything about. could possibly be some.. spirit trying to just.. tease or whatever. but either way, when moose comes back, he's going to be so disappointed about that." when. when he comes back. hearing sage speak like that, she was almost certain that moose was somehow coming to come back. which, in hindsight, did give simon a bit of hope. hearing that if she, the pessimist, believed that moose was coming back, maybe he actually would.
"i have his locket." simon blurted.
it seemed sage was almost startled, as the beamer had a moment of a speed up. like her foot hit against the gas in surprise. "what do you mean?" she asked, her eyes squinting smaller as she drove. she continued to look at the road, but this time, occasionally offered side glances to simon. "i meann... i have his locket. " he repeated, before pulling out the locket from his hoodie. the one moose always wore. he never took it off, not even to sleep. the only genuine time the male removed his locket was to either shower or when they were getting in simon's pool. because of the photo inside the locket, he didn't want to ruin it with chlorine or just having water get in it.
moose always talked about how the photo was replaceable, and that if he did get it wet and ended up wrinkling or ruining the photo, that it would be fine. but it was just the meaning of it, he didn't want to risk it. he liked the photo, and it held a lot of meaning to him. and also the fear that the metal was going to be proven cheap and end up somehow getting ruined. but now that it was covered in blood, that simon assumed was moose's, the photo was ruined anyway. another thing to add to the list of moose being disappointed at when he comes back.
holding the locket tightly, he opened the necklace to reveal the photo. simon had forgotten to clean the inside, it seemed. with dried blood spotting on the metal outside, there was a drop or two on the small photo. sage quickly searched behind her with her mirrors and turning, before going onto a small dirt road to stop and park the car to talk. she left the ac on, but turned off the engine.
"so. you have this damn necklace. and you didn't turn it into the police as evidence?" she asked condescendingly, with hints of disappointment glazing her words. "look, his mother is mad at the police. and they're not helping much, either. they checked around the house and then said they'd look. we've heard no word, no nothing. and this was right next to the freaking stone wall at his house. how did the police, professionals, miss a damn locket that i found?" he snapped, before clicking the necklace closed once more. "it was covered in blood. i cleaned off the outside but the inside still has it. " he muttered.
"blood? are you freaking joking right now?" sage seemed more mad than disappointed, but seeing her respond the way she did was almost scarier than having her tease him and call him a worthless baboon. she let out a loud sigh before sinking back into her seat, her head against the back of it. "you are going to kill me someday, you freaking moron." she muttered, holding her hand to her forehead, almost trying to massage the headache out of her eyebrows.
"look, i didn't know what to do. alistair was going to be upset, and i frankly, don't want to see that tall tree mad." he muttered, flaring his nostrils slightly. "look you're, yo..you're witchy, right? you.. you do the pagan stuff, you like, use crystals and incense! can't you do something to make this work with it?" immediately after saying that sage flicked her head towards him, her tongue grazing against her lips like she was a house cat ready to pounce on a unsuspecting mouse. simon felt like he .. probably had said something wrong.
"look, bird brain, even if it was that easy, i don't know the kind of outcome we'll get from that. this is a missing person's case, and that's his bloodied necklace. i don't even know what to do with that. the.. the amount of time, and resources, and help i'd- i don't have the money to get me everything. my abeula could probably coach me through it, but are you nuts? i can barely afford the stuff i have, i can't jus-" "then i'll get it! easy peasy. i'll pay for the resources, you can use the chess room in my basement no one uses, we can do it! we can at least try. i don't know if it's going to work, but it's worth trying, r-right? come on, please?" simon put his hands together against his chest, pouting out his bottom lip.
sage sighed softly, before turning her head towards the male. she offered a genuine smile. not one that made her seem like she was going to stab you after, or make a dirty joke or somehow reveal she called your mom and now your in trouble, but a genuine smile. one that was rare to the friend group. usually caspian only got those. "okay. okay, fine. we can do it." she said quietly. the moment simon started to get excited, sage raised her finger at him. "but- you need to know, this isn't going to be a definite answer. we aren't going to suddenly wake up and know where he is, or look up into the sky and see a arrow shaped cloud. we aren't going to get the answer immediately. all we can hope for is that someone out there listens to what i'm projecting and help us."
simon tilted his head like a confused dog, his hair perking up like the ear of one as well. "someone?" sage shrugged her shoulders. "man, moose really was the only listener, huh?" she muttered. simon wanted to argue- but sometimes, she was right. moose was the only real listener. moose remembered everything. from the small things to the big things. he was always the one that had remembered if someone liked the blue raspberry shake at a certain store two hours away than the one from here. he would always be that person. hell, he was always the better person anyway. at least, thats how simon felt.
simon wanted to be moose. so bad. he wanted to be who moose was, he wanted to become the person moose is. he wanted to be just like moose. he acted like a little brother who wanted to grow into his older brother's habits so bad. but it was simply the truth. simon just always wished he was moose. moose always listened, moose always understood. moose always was there. moose always even showed interest in the things others would find boring. well, moose wasn't perfect with that. sometimes if it wasn't his friend he was with he'd go back to the friend group and talk trash but, when it was with the friend group he was just so much better. he never acted like it was weird or showed disgust or disinterest, he always did it.
so moose probably was the best to talk to the witchcraft things about.
when sage was just in 6th grade her abuela showed her pagan rituals. she showed her how to do spells, how to do curses and hexes, how to cleanse a place and to keep her protected. her abuela taught her everything she knew. and sage was so excited about it. almost everyday, sage would come to the table and ask everyone to come outside when they were done eating, and she'd show them the stuff her abuela taught her yesterday afternoon. all of them were interested of course, but it was hard for them to understand. especially when simon would keep distracting caspian and send him off into a whole tangent about pine needles. but moose always was interested in her witchcraft, her things. he was interested in everyone's things.
simon's love for the derby. sage's witchcraft. caspian's stupid random facts. rhys little stinky bracelets that simon had to bully him for( he still wears them- he probably has one on his wrist as we speak not gonna lie), and alistairs little collections. moose knew about them all, and he was always interested. taking simon to the derby, buying sage new stuff and asking her about new spells, all that jazz.
simon wanted him back.
"hello? earth to simon?" sage was snapping her fingers in front of the male's face. he was spacing out again. just thinking on moose. "sorry, sorry. i just got thinking again." he shrugged, sniffling his nose slightly. sage was quiet for a few minutes. "it's okay. i get it. i've been doing it, too. but... just listen, don't get it in your head that this is going to work perfectly, okay?" simon nodded quietly. "i know." he was disappointed, almost. he knew not to be, he knew he shouldn't get his hopes up about it all. but it was hard not to. the idea that sage could somehow just save moose with a simple spell was so cool to simon. but simon also had almost zero braincells.
"what do you mean..whoever hears you?" simon asked quietly. sage bit her lip while rubbing her thumbs and pointer fingers together, pulling away the dead skin. "i mean whatever deity there is. i'm not just.. talking to the christian god or buddha or whatever. there are different things out there. i don't know if sometimes you can get..the actual universe, but there are just. things of power out there. and whichever one hears me, is the one we...gotta rely on. we can always do multiple times, multiple rituals and research multiple deities to talk to for.. more help, i guess but.. that's just what i meant, thats all."
simon sniffled his nose once more. "okay. i... i get it a bit. i wish i listened more to your stuff in middle school." simon joked. sage just shook her head and laughed. her smile didn't fade this time. "middle school was a wreck, i can't believe you guys didn't ditch me after that. moose was so supportive, but i was just scared you thought i was weird or something." with a scoff following her remarks, simon shook his head, hard. "weird, dude no! we were interested in it a lot. we thought it was cool you could do stuff like that. we were just young idiotic boys with adhd. i'd show caspian a rock and he'd go off about geodes, and we'd get distracted." sage giggled again. she knew all about caspian's stupid fun facts. the girl was dating him- she probably got them after even gifting him something for valentines day.
"maybe... maybe once we resolve this stupid issue, i can teach you again." she offered, shrugging her shoulders. simon only nodded in response. "i'd really like that. i.. i want to do that, please." sage ran her hand through her hair, and sighed. "okay. we can do that then. but until now, we just need to focus on actually getting the missing idiot back in his bedroom. and maybe we can lock him there so he can't leave for a few days, to really make sure he's still home." simon didn't know if she was joking or not (most likely, yeah), but he still laughed anyway. "we probably should. and should hangout at his for the next few weeks or so. so he doesn't accidentally get sucked into some grass on his way out and disappear again." simon went quiet. "wait..what if he's in-" "he's not in the damn grass, don't even."
simon offered a cheeky smile. "okay, okay. i just had to check. he might have been, you wouldn't know." he giggled. sage only punched his arm lightly, before clicking her seatbelt back over her chest. she started the car once more, and began to back out of the dirt road they had been sitting in. "i'm not taking us back yet, i just.. want to drive around for a bit longer. see what's around, you know? maybe we can get some food, as well. and see if the group wants to go back to your house and we can.. start a ritual there." she said quietly. "you can do it in the day?" simon asked, furrowing his eyebrows. sage only gave him another nasty and weird look. "witchcraft isn't just set to night time, you moron. you can do it whenever. i know you probably have it set in your head i do it with candles around me at night while whispering to the moon incantations, but i don't. plus, i just think getting a head start on it would be nice. so we have the day to relax and hangout, while we have a spell working its way around. and then i can maybe do more and more."
simon only nodded silently. sadly, sage really hit the head of the nail on that one. with the lack of listening on simon's end, he did just assume it happened in the dark and in the dark only. he didn't know much about the stuff, and he felt about it. hence, him trying to learn once it was over with. maybe he could do some spells with her, too. and curse the football team. because he was bored, and alistair would probably like to see number fifty seven be hexed, somehow. "can you curse one to vomit slugs, like in harry potter? or to have spiders in their hair every time they try and shower?" simon asked quietly, almost with a sad, childlike wonder accompanied with the question.
sage only responded with the same confused look once more. "dude, this isn't harry potter. i can't just point my wand at someone and say 'eat slugs' or somehow curse them to...eat slugs. that's not how this works." she muttered, with only earned a disappointed sigh from simon. "damn. i really wanted to see someone vomitting up the slimy thing." "that's gross, simon. that's..really freaking gross." she giggled. she was definitely disappointed, but at least he got to hear her laugh one more time.
...
it was about four in the afternoon now. the whole friendgroup decided to just ditch school, and they were going to continue to ditch school for a few days or so. simon had sick days galore to miss, so if he really wanted, he could practically disappear from that place and still be fine. he wasn't going to ( yet ), but it was still something that was a possibility. the group was on the couch, minus sage downstairs doing her thing. he could smell the incense from up here. it would help sage began to burn some up here, just to cleanse the area. there was an unlit incense stick on the table in front of them, in the holder. like it was waiting for them to set it on fire. to cleanse the area. sage told simon it would be smart to, but... he just hadn't had the guts to yet.
the lighter felt warm in his hands.
...
sage had been in the room for about twenty minutes. the spell was finished, she could leave already. she just didn't want to. moose's picture in her hands, the candle dancing calmly and smoothly. and the small of the rain incense filled her nose. she loved it down here. she did feel bad that rhys and caspian practically ransacked the room in an attempt of cleaning it up for her, which left the storage room a complete mess ( not really- sage is just dramatic and soaked in ocd. the tables are fine, it's fine i swear, just tables where tables shouldn't be. ) , just for a little spell. sage didn't have the guts to tell anyone it might not work. sage wasn't fully amazing at it like her abuela. and even with her on the phone, sage was scared.
what if she messed up? what if she messed up one small thing and that caused them to lose moose forever or just to get set back completely? anxiety running through her veins, her palms felt sweaty and sticky. she was so scared she messed it up. and no matter how many times her abuela told her she did great, she just couldn't get the idea that she screwed up out of her head. licking her lips slightly, she shook her head down at her phone. her abuela texted. mija, don't you be panicking now! you did maravilloso. i hope whatever you did this for ends up alright. te amo mija, i'll see you later.
sighing softly, sage just let her shoulders fall into a more relaxed state, her chest slowly moving up and down with her breathing. okay. maybe she did good. maybe she was going to do alright. hopefully she could start getting signs and movement as soon as possible, but patience was a big key with these things. which was a major reason a part of her was scared to tell the group- knowing a few did ... not have the best track record with handling their patience. cough rhys cough.
sage left the room quietly, closing the door behind her. she didn't feel ready to go upstairs yet. her chest felt like it was hurting. everyone's chests seemed to have been hurting lately, was that just a symptom of anxiety? her throat felt wack. it wasn't dry, it wasn't anything like that, it just felt like something was there. and she wanted to cough and vomit. but she had nothing in her stomach except the unhealthy early lunch her and simon had before picking up the rest to hangout for a few hours in an attempt of lifting the mood, even if it was just slightly.
sage couldn't usually handle high sugared things very well, and she struggled with greasy foods. she ate out once and a while of course, but just this one time, the anxiety was beating her up along with it. anxiety mixed with foods that sometimes just make her feel worse and sick was probably not the best thing she could have done in that situation. the worst part is, they didn't even eat alot. they got fries and shakes. simon made them a salad to share when they got home so sage would feel better about eating the greasy food, but for some reason she just felt sick. she didn't feel hungry, but she wasn't full either. and she had almost no motivation to eat. all she could really do was sip on her soda quietly. the french fries must have filled her up, somehow.
she did end up eating more later, she had some of the salad earlier prepared, and ate a few cherry tomatoes from simon's fridge, but the anxiety was just eating her up. and she didn't know if she was trying to blame the anxiety on that in a desperate attempt of just trying to figure out where the hell it could possibly be coming from, or if she genuinely was freaked out from it. whatever. she wasn't going to let it get to her. she had bigger problems on her plate. and she wasn't about to let a stupid french fry ruin her night, especially when they genuinely did taste good, no matter how many times she told simon they tasted nasty. (she'd grab some, say they taste awful, but continue to eat them smh.)
chewing on her lip quietly, pulling away the dead skin, she finally sucked in a deep breath and pulled herself away from the wall. she'd come and check in on the spell later, see if the candle was still lit and the incense was still burning, just to check if anything had changed. then she'd maybe just...try and pray or see if anything was out there for her. just a sign for anything. she climbed up the stairs slowly, her hand dragging against the wall, feeling all the bumps and texture from the paint on the wall. it was a shade of brown, almost like the one in simon's room, but a bit darker. she liked the color. and oddly enough, that was the thing calming her down. she just felt pathetic, but at least she was calmer.
letting a sigh escape her lips as she entered the room, she hit simon in the back of the head as she entered the room. the incense she left on the table was still not lit. simon was just holding the lighter, staring at it. she felt like almost disappointed. shaking her head at the male as she stared at him, she quickly got on her knees and started her own lighter, lighting the incense. "you know you were supposed to do this, right? this is what's supposed to cleanse us, in case something goes wrong or karma or whatever." she muttered. she could only look at simon disappointed. "we talked about this in the car, you sad, sad child."
"aren't i older than you?" he scowled, shaking his head as he pushed her slightly, in an attempt to make her lose her balance. "youre such a brat." sage muttered, waving her finger like she was a mother scolding a child for tracking dirt onto the kitchen floor. sage was scared and anxious. what if she did the spell wrong? the incense was not going to fix her anxiety, but it was definitely calming her down. in a scenario where she accidentally messed up and doomed them somehow, and these the boy's house was cleansed. karma wouldn't just come strike a tree down or somehow have whatever took moose take simon too, right?
god, as much as sage wanted to act like she was a know it all in this situation, she genuinely knew nothing. and she was so scared of the potential outcome.
simon had everyone come over to his house, just for the night. to plan, figure out what was all going to go on and what was going to happen. he didn't tell anyone about the locket yet. it was just the two shortest in the room that knew about it. and they had a good, long debate in the car about it as well. if he was going to show everyone, if he was going to show alistair or rhys, or if he was still just going to keep it a secret. they didn't know what to do with it at all. simon didn't trust it with the police, and lydia seemed angry at the idea of them giving it to them as evidence. she was so scared she would just lose another token of moose without getting any help.
it was still such a weird mystery to simon about how he found the locket and the police didn't. they searched for two hours, outside and inside. how did they miss something so out in the open, so reflective against light, so.. in their faces? how did they miss such an important piece? simon tried to justify it with the fact it was covered in blood it could have just blended in, but even then. blood was so dark against the light stone wall. it reflected with light, too. it almost seemed like they purposely left it, or it just.
somehow showed up after they had searched.
"do you...really think it's something paranormal?" simon asked, furrowing his eyebrows at sage. he didn't want to believe the paranormal jizz. he didn't. he didn't want to fall into the whole ghosts play. in reality, simon was so terrified of the idea of ghosts and spirits being real. he'd much rather it just be some mean guy that took moose last night or something, but too much just doesn't add up to it being like that at all. and simon was so terrified. he didn't want to have to deal with a stupid ghost, with the fear that it might haunt him forever and take his soul or something. how are you even supposed to fight ghosts? throw pepper at it? shake your hand and say you have an onion? he knew nothing about that kind of thing.
and it really, really scared him.
"i don't want to add.. anxiety, or be that guy, or whatever.. but it really is a possibility. we can't just hide from the fact it genuinely could be anything. with animals disappearing under people's noses as well, how do you supposed a kidnapper just takes someone's horse or cow in the middle of the night without any trace or them hearing anything?" she muttered, her hands on her hair anxiously. it seemed like she was braiding it somehow, to keep her mind off things. "what if they aren't even connected though?" that was the biggest fear. that they put all this work, all this investigation, all this thought and money, for the two things to not be connected at all. he just.. wanted his friend back. three days was enough. he was ready for him to be back by now.
"we just have to take that risk. there's nothing else we can do. we can't just suddenly hope from one theory to another in the matter of days and find moose that fast. there's no logical way. and even if we just set out into the forest by his house or whatever, what even are the odds he's gonna be there? we just.. have to work with what we are given, and hope it works." she muttered.
the room was silent.
too silent. simon wanted to just scream to let it somehow fill with noise again. he didn't want to turn on a video game in the background with fear that someone would get mad or disappointed, and say it's the wrong time and it's inappropriate to be playing those things right now. but simon just didn't know what to do. he didn't know how to fix the awkward energy, he didn't know how to calm them down or distract them long enough they felt a bit of joy for the first time in a while, he didn't even know what to tell them to even try to advance them further or just make it better. he was stuck. they were all stuck. and it hurt simon more than it should have.
clickng open his phone, he quickly looked at the album in his photos. moose. he stared at the males smile for a few minutes, looking at his eyes sparkling, just trying to somehow get motivation or an idea from staring at him, before he finally just closed his phone and looked at sage. "can i tell him?" somehow, the girl understood him. well, at least he hoped. simon pushed himself off the couch and let a small sigh escape his lips.
"alistair we have something we have to show you."
