The sun rose pale and uncertain that morning, its weak light spilling through the curtains of the small apartment Ethan shared with his brother. The silence was strange—too heavy, too still. Adrian's bed was empty, untouched since the previous night.
Ethan rubbed the sleep from his eyes and glanced at the clock. *8:47 a.m.* His brother had never stayed out this long without calling. A small frown creased his face as he grabbed his phone from the nightstand.
"Come on, bro… pick up."
The line rang once, twice… then cut to voicemail. He tried again. And again. Still nothing.
Ethan paced the room, running a hand through his messy hair. Maybe Adrian had crashed at a friend's place. Maybe his phone died. But a creeping unease slithered into his chest. Something didn't feel right.
He dialed Ella next. Her phone was switched off. That was strange—she was usually glued to her phone.
By noon, worry had turned into panic. Ethan left the apartment and went straight to campus, scanning faces, corners, anywhere Adrian might be. He asked around—friends, classmates, even Jake, the guy who usually knew everything. No one had seen him.
By the end of the day, Ethan's hope was hanging by a thread. He barely slept that night, every creak in the house making him jolt upright, half expecting his brother to walk through the door. But he never did.
The next morning, Ethan found himself sitting in front of a tired-looking police officer, explaining everything again.
"He didn't come home," Ethan said, his voice tight. "His phone's off. It's been over twenty-four hours."
The officer scribbled a few notes, then looked up.
"Any idea where he might've gone? Friends, enemies?"
Ethan shook his head. "He's… he's not like that. He doesn't get into trouble."
The officer nodded slowly. "Alright. We'll file the report and start the investigation. But you need to stay calm, son. Sometimes these things resolve themselves."
Ethan nodded, though his heart sank.
The investigation began that same day. They questioned everyone close to Adrian. Ella was the first. She sat across from the detectives, eyes downcast, voice trembling slightly.
"I—I don't know where he went," she said. "I left early that day. I didn't see him afterwards."
Ethan, standing outside the interrogation room, could only stare through the glass, frustration and confusion twisting inside him. She was lying—he knew she was lying, Ella was always clunged to Adrian like a cloak.
Days passed in a blur of sleepless nights and unanswered questions. On the fifth day, the police organized a search through the woods near the edge of town. Ethan insisted on going with them.
The forest was eerily silent. The air smelled of wet leaves and something faintly metallic. Flashlights cut through the mist as they combed the area.
Then, one of the officers called out, "Over here!"
Ethan rushed forward, heart hammering. There, half-buried beneath leaves and dirt, was Adrian's phone—its screen cracked, the casing smeared with mud. Around it, faint drag marks and broken twigs told a grim story.
"Looks like there was a struggle," one officer muttered, crouching to examine the ground.
Ethan's throat tightened. "So… what does this mean?"
The officer hesitated before answering. "There's a chance… he might have been attacked. Maybe by a wild animal. Or…" His voice dropped. "Whatever took that other kid from the campfire."
The words hit Ethan like a cold slap. *Whatever took that other kid.* The image of the pale, lifeless boy found in the woods flashed through his mind.
After nearly a week of searching, the police called it off. No trace of Adrian. No signs of life. Just silence.
When Ethan asked them to keep looking, the chief simply sighed. "Son, we've done what we can. If he's out there, he's gone too deep. Sometimes the forest doesn't give people back."
The words shattered him.
In the days that followed, everything blurred. Classes continued as if nothing had happened. People whispered in hallways, exchanged pitying looks, then moved on.
Ella stopped coming to school altogether. No one had seen her since the day the police questioned her. And Selen—quiet, mysterious Selen—had vanished as well.
Ethan sat on the steps outside the lecture hall one afternoon, staring at the empty quad, the fading sunlight casting long shadows across the pavement. He felt the hollow ache in his chest deepen. Everyone had moved on. Everyone except him.
Somewhere deep down, though, a flicker of defiance burned.
He wasn't giving up on his brother.
Not yet.
That night, the apartment felt emptier than ever. Adrian's side of the room still smelled faintly of his cologne—sharp and familiar. Ethan sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the dent on the pillow where his brother's head used to rest.
He picked up Adrian's watch from the nightstand, turning it over in his hands. The metal was cool against his skin, grounding him in a world that suddenly felt unreal.
"Where the hell are you, man…" he whispered, voice breaking.
His vision blurred. The first tear fell, then another, until his shoulders shook with silent sobs. He hadn't cried since they were kids. But now, the dam broke. All the fear, anger, and confusion he'd been holding in poured out of him like a flood he couldn't stop.
"I'm not giving up on you," he said through gritted teeth, wiping his eyes. "I don't care what they say. I'll find you."
The room swallowed his voice. Only the ticking of the clock answered him.
Outside, the wind howled softly through the trees—cold, mournful, and endless.
Somewhere far away, beyond the forest and the reach of men, Adrian was still alive. Ethan knew , And he could feel it.
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