(Alfie's P.O.V.)

Where the hell am I?

Ouch.

My head hurts. I place my hand against the side of my head, where the pain is present, in an attempt to make it stop.

It doesn't.

I look around. Where am I?

All I can see in either direction is an endless field of corn. It's night time, and there is nothing in sight.

"Hello?" I call out, "is anybody there?"

The pain in my head is starting to dissipate, but I still have a slight headache. I look around again.

Where am I?

I don't remember getting here. I don't remember what I was doing before I got here, or who I was with…

Is this some sort of freaky Sibuna mystery? Is one of my best friends going to jump out at me from the fields, and tell me this is some sort of quest?

It probably is. It has to be. Otherwise, why would I be here, and not remember how I got here?

"Eddie? Fabian? Patricia? KT?" I yell.

I wait for one of them to respond. I wait for Eddie to come out and say he had a vision, or for Fabian to have an elaborate idea on how to solve this mystery. Then I remember: KT and Eddie are in America, Patricia is in Austria with Piper (who just landed a major role in some fancy opera), and Fabian is at his house, sick as a dog; therefore, none of them could be here.

Wait…

Was I with Fabian before I got here? Now that I think about it, the last thing I can remember is being with him…


~ 12 Hours Earlier ~


"Mum, I'm going to Fabian's!" I yell as I walk out the front door.

I hear her shrug from afar. "Of course you are. Where else would you be going?"

I roll my eyes, and shut the door behind me.

I honestly don't understand why she gets so annoyed when I hang out with Fabian. She's always said that she wishes I would hang out with people who are better influences on me, and Fabian is like, the best influence I have in my life!

Mum's: who knows with them.

Maybe it's because we spend so much time together? Although, how could she seriously think that I wouldn't spend every waking moment with him this summer? Not just because we're one hundred times closer than we ever were before as result of everything that happened last term, but also because the Rutter's moved in to the house next door to us…

I don't know, and I don't care. Fabian is my best friend, my brother, and my other half; I'm going to spend as much time with him as I damn well please.

I walk to his house, and knock on his front door. Moments later, his mum appears.

She smiles when she sees me. "Oh, hello Alfie! I wasn't expecting you today!" she chimes

I gaze at her in confusion. "Why not? We've barely been apart a single day this entire summer."

Is she annoyed at our friendship too?

She sighs. "Fabian woke up with an extremely high fever this morning. He's been having hot and cold flashes, a terrible cough, runny nose, and upset stomach. Did he not text you?"

I'm about to respond, when I hear a loud fit of coughs coming from inside the house, followed by a loud, "Alfie?"

Mrs. Rutter shrugs her shoulders. "He's upstairs in his room."

I smile at her, walk around her, and then up the stairs that lead to Fabian's bedroom.

When I get to his bedroom door, I don't even knock, I just go in.

His queen size bed sits in the middle of his moderately sized room, and he is laying in the center of it, curled up in a ball with several blankets, pillows, and boxes of tissues.

"Dude." I murmur as I walk over to him.

He forces a small smile on his face, and then breaks out into another fit of coughs.

I sit down beside him, and rub his back.

"You look like death." I tell him.

He groans. "I feel like death."

I pat his back. "Did this come on suddenly? You seemed fine last night."

He nods. "Yeah, at about 2 AM I started throwing up. I don't think I've been this sick for a while."

"Yeah, I can't remember a time where I've seen you this ill," I say, "so, do you wanna just lay around and watch TV all day? I can go change into my PJ's and then come back."

"We can, if you want to get sick." he replies.

I chuckle. "Dude, you know I'm going to get this eventually, it's inevitable. Seriously, I'll go change, and then I'll be back."

He smiles. "Do that. I could use the company."

I vaguely remember leaving him, going back to my house, changing into my PJ's, and then returning to his house.

He had uncurled himself from the ball he was in, and sat upright at the head of his bed beside me. I fiddled with the remote to his flatscreen directly across from his bed, and put on Game of Thrones, one of our favorite shows. He then laid his head on my shoulder, and curled up against my side. We stayed like that for awhile, watching TV…


~ Present ~


Okay, so I spent part of the day with an extremely ill Fabian. But what happened after that? How did I get to where I am now?

I look in every direction for something, anything. All I can see are endless fields of corn, and the dark night sky…

"Alfie?"

I turn around, and see someone walking toward me. I was half expecting it to be Fabian, Eddie, Patricia, or KT, but it's not; it's Charlie King, a boy in year twelve at Hathor House.

I've only talked to him a few times…what the hell is he doing here?

I walk towards him, and he hurries toward me.

"Charlie, what's going on? Where are we?" I question.

He shrugs. "I don't know. I was just about to ask you the same question. I was just standing in the corn, and I started walking until I found you…"

This is bizarre. Am I dreaming? I have to be dreaming…this is too weird to not be a dream.

I pinch myself with the hope that I'll wake up either in my own bed, or in Fabian's next to him; however, I do not.

"I tried that too," Charlie says, "we're awake, I promise."

I drop the arm I was using to pinch my skin, and stare at him in awe.

"Then what the hell is this?" I hiss.

He throws his hands up in surrender. "I have no idea. I'm just as confused as you are."

I sigh. This is too weird…

Wait…

Was I with Charlie before I came here? Suddenly, I start to remember something else…


~ 9 Hours Earlier ~


Fabian had basically fallen asleep on me after the first few episodes we watched together.

I was close to dozing off as well, until I heard his bedroom door open, followed by footsteps.

I sat upright and saw my parents, in addition to Fabian's parents, in front of the bed. All four of them had disapproving looks on their faces.

Then, I looked down at Fabian, who had his arms wrapped around my torso, and his head buried deep into the crook of my neck.

…This probably looks odd to them.

"Hi Mum, Dad. How's it going?" I start.

My Parents stare at me with concern in their eyes.

"Alfred, is there something we need to discuss?" my Dad questions.

I gaze at him in mock confusion. "I don't know, is there?"

Is he really taking this where I think he's taking it?

"Alfie, it's not normal for boys to be…like that, with other boys." my Mum says as she gestures towards Fabian and I.

I look down at Fabian again, who is still cuddled against me, snoozing away.

They can't be serious…

"What? Oh my god mum, no! I'm dating Willow, I swear to god I'm straight and I'm dating Willow!"

All of the adults raise their eyebrows.

"I'm serious! There's nothing going on between us, I swear!"

"Then why haven't you moved him?" Fabian's mum asks.

I stare at her in disbelief. "Because he spent the entirety of last night vomiting, so he's tired, and sleeping! You of all people should understand that!"

"Alfie! Don't snap at adults that way!" My mother yells.

I scoff at her. Is this seriously happening?

I feel Fabian start to stir. I stare at the adults in anger.

"We're just laying here, what is so wrong about that?"

I look down again, to see that Fabian's eyes are slowly starting to flutter open. He begins to tighten his grip on me, but then he sees the adults and stops. He lets go of me, and sits upright.

"What's going on?" he questions

"We were just discussing the relationship you and Alfie share," Fabian's dad starts, "and we were preparing to explain how unhealthy it is."

Fabian looks up at me in surprise. I sigh.

"What exactly is unhealthy about it?" Fabian questions.

His dad sighs. "The two of you only spend time together, and not with others, which has been proven by science to be very psychologically damaging. With that being said, you both need to need to branch out of your comfort zones, and be friends with other people. It's not good for either of your social lives to only spend time together."

"It's one thing to be best friends," my mum continues, "but it's another thing to be…this."

"We're not gay, I promise, we're not gay." Fabian interrupts.

"YOU WERE JUST CANOODLING IN THE SAME BED TOGETHER!" His mum explodes.

Fabian and I stare at her in shock. I can't believe they genuinely think that Fabian and I are gay for each other! I mean, we love each other, but not in that way!

"Mum," I begin, "you used to always let Jerome and I share a bed when he would spend the night. What's the problem now?"

She scoffs. "You and Jerome would lay side by side, not on top of each other. Also, you and Jerome could handle being apart, unlike you two."

"We can handle being apart," Fabian asserts, catching me off guard, "we just choose not to be."

"Then prove it," my Dad snaps, "prove it to us. Alfie, tonight I want you to spend time with the sons of my co-workers Henry King and James Bentley. Their sons are exceptional boys from Hathor House, and I think you would get along great with them."

I laugh. "Seriously? You want me to hang out with Charlie King and Noah Bentley, two party animals from Hathor House, instead of Fabian? That's hilarious!"

"We're serious," my Mum continues, "the two of you spend an unhealthy amount of time together. Homosexuality is a sin, and I won't have my son committing such a crime against God. So tonight, Alfie, you will spend some time with the Hathor boys. Understood?"

I stare at him in disbelief.

"For the last time, WE'RE NOT GAY! I HAVE A BEAUTIFUL GIRLFRIEND NAMED WILLOW JENKS WHO I LOVE VERY, VERY MUCH! I AM NOT DATING MY BEST FRIEND!" I scream.

The room is quiet for a moment. I can't believe our parents are so absurd!

"Regardless of who you're dating, Alfred," my mum murmurs, "I think it's a good idea for you to make other friends. It is truly unhealthy to spend so much time around one person, so much so that you become detached from the other friends and family you have in your life."

"Uh, we have other friends!" I reply.

"Friends that aren't Eddie, Patricia, and KT." my Dad snaps.

"Mara, Joy, Jerome, and Willow." Fabian murmurs.

"You guys are missing the point," his Dad continues, "you boys need to spend more time apart. It's not healthy to be together as frequently as you are. So tonight, Alfie, you are going to hang out with King and Bentley, and Fabian, you are going to rest. If you succeed in not having any contact with one another for the remainder of the day, you may see each other tomorrow. Am I clear?"

"What? No! That is so stupid! We're always together when we're at school, and no one ever says anything!" I yell.

"The problem is that you're so close to one another that you're almost homosexuals," Fabian's mum explains, "and that is something we cannot have."

She's insane. All of these adults are insane…

Then, Fabian lets out a loud cough. He covers his mouth with his arm, and continues to hack into it.

His Dad sighs. "You're sick, Fabian. You shouldn't be doing much tonight anyway."

"Yes, you should focus on becoming well again," his Mum adds, "so after Alfie leaves, we'll take your phone away for the evening so you're not distracted."

Fabian's eyes grow wide. "What?"

"You heard us. You can't have your phone this evening, because you need to focus on healing, and so we can prevent Alfie from texting you while he's out with King and Bentley. You'll get it back tomorrow."

Fabian stares at her with anger plastered on his face.

"But what if Eddie needs me? What if he has an attack, or one of my other friends tries to get ahold of me—"

"They can handle one night without you." his Dad interrupts.

"Alfie should have his phone with him in case there were an emergency while he is out, so we can't take his away—" my mum reasons

"So you're taking mine away," Fabian scoffs, "unbelievable."

My Dad sighs. "Boys, there's not much else to say here. Alfie, you're spending tonight with King and Bentley. Fabian, your parents are taking your phone so Alfie can't contact you. If you comply with these guidelines, you can spend some time together tomorrow. Are we clear?"

I stare at the adults before me in disgust. The fact that they're forcing me to hang out with two people I barely know because they're homophobic is truly, wholeheartedly, disgusting. Fabian and I are best friends, and that is that. We just wanted to spend the night together, as we have been for the majority of the summer. I'll never understand their reasonings for separating us…

"You're clear," Fabian murmurs, "crystal clear."

"Alfred?" My Dad questions.

I look up at him. "The only thing that's clear to me is how much of an asshole you are."

Fabian looks at me with wide eyes, and knees my side. The adults stare at me in horror.

"Alfred Anthony Lewis, you do not talk to me that way!" My Dad booms.

I smirk. "What are you going to do about it? Ground me from my oh-so-fun-and-exciting Friday night?"

He opens his mouth to yell at me again, but then he closes it. He shrugs.

"You have two minutes to collect your things. We'll be downstairs waiting for you." he mumbles

Then, the adults leave the room, so it's just me and Fabian.

Once they are gone, Fabian faces me.

"What on earth just happened?" he asks in confusion.

"Our parents are the biggest jerks to ever roam the earth, that's what happened," I mutter, "I can't believe them!"

Fabian rolls his eyes. "Just hang out with Noah and Charlie tonight and get it over with. If you do, you can come over tomorrow."

I pout. "I don't want to hang out with them though, I wanna be with you."

He smiles. "I know, and I want to be with you too. Just survive this one night, and maybe whatever bug is up our parents bums will be gone by tomorrow."

I shrug. "I hope."

He reaches over and gives me a hug. I squeeze him back.

"I love you, Alfie. You're one of my favorite people in the entire world, and nothing our parents say or do to us will ever change that." he murmurs.

I nod against his shoulder, and kiss his cheek. "I love you too, more than you can ever possibly imagine. Rest up for me, okay?"

"Okay."

We break apart from our hug. I then slide off of his bed, and leave his room…


~ Present ~


So I'm with Charlie because my idiot parents forced me to hang out with him?

I hate them!

Wait…

They said that they wanted me to spend tonight with Charlie King and Noah Bentley…where's Noah?

I turn and face Charlie again.

"Is Noah here?" I ask him.

He gazes at me in confusion. "Noah, as in, my bro Noah Bentley, right?"

I nod.

"I…I don't know. I don't think so. Why do you ask?"

I explain my memory to him, without making it sound like I didn't want to hang out with him.

"Well then he must be here," Charlie says after I finish, "we should go look for him."

I shrug. "Yeah, but where do we look? All I can see are fields and fields of corn…"

"I just came from over there," he says as he points in the direction behind us, "so maybe we can start by going forward, in the opposite direction?"

I don't have any better ideas, so I nod. "Yeah, that could work. Let's go."

We start walking.

"This is weird," Charlie starts, "this is really fucking weird."

I nod in agreement. "What's weird is how neither of us remember how we got here."

"Or where we are." he replies.

I shrug, and we keep walking.

"Noah? Noah Bentley, are you out there?" Charlie yells.

No response.

"Noah? Noah? Are you there?" I scream.

Nothing.

Suddenly, I smell something. I smell something…burning?

I stop. "Charlie, do you smell that?"

Charlie inhales deeply enough that I can hear his nostrils flare. Then he nods.

"Yeah, it smells like smoke…"

We quicken our pace, and hurry towards the smell. As we do so, I notice that the stalks of corn become shorter and shorter as the smell becomes stronger.

After a few more minutes, we emerge from the corn, and are put out on the side of a road.

I look in either direction; the road stretches in both ways. Above us is a massive bridge that also extends in both directions.

"What the hell is this?" Charlie questions.

I stare at the road in confusion. There aren't any cars on it, and it's in the middle of nowhere…so how did we get here? What is going on?

The smell of smoke is stronger than it ever was before.

"Let's keep following the smoke," I suggest, "maybe it'll take us to somewhere that will help us."

Charlie nods, and we keep trekking towards the smoke. After a few minutes, we actually start to see the smoke.

Wordlessly, Charlie and I start running towards it.

What we see next causes us to freeze.

Resting before us is a powder blue Bentley Continental car lying upside down. Smoke is coming out from beneath it, as if the engine had exploded. Its windows and dashboard are smashed, and the entire side that is in my vision is severely dented. Surrounding it are various parts of a car: a tire, a steering wheel, various mechanical-looking things, etc.

This car is destroyed.

"My…MY CAR!" Charlie screams.

I watch as he runs to his car, and starts inspecting it carefully.

Were we in that car? Is that how we got here? I…I don't remember climbing out of it…

I'm so confused. What is this? What happened to the car? What is going on?

Charlie continues to yell and curse as he looks around his car. I walk up to them to get a closer look.

Once I am beside the car, I bend down and try to see if anything is inside it; however, since it has basically been smashed into the earth beneath it, I can't see anything.

"Dude, this is bad," I start, "we need to call the police and file a report on it."

Charlie looks up at me in anger. "Really Alfie? Gee, I wouldn't have thought of that—"

"Charlie? Alfie?"

I whip around to see Noah hurrying towards us.

"Noah!" Charlie exclaims.

The two run to each other, and collide into one another. They slap each other on their backs as they hug, and then break apart.

"Noah, where the hell are we? What's going on?" I ask him.

He looks at me in shock. "You mean you guys don't know either? Fuck, I don't have any idea!"

I throw my hands up in surrender. What the hell is going on?!

"I'm most concerned about what happened to my car," Charlie mumbles, "I don't even remember driving it here."

This is all so weird…

"You obviously wrecked it," Noah replies, "and we clearly made it out alive…maybe the effects of the booze haven't worn off on us yet, and we don't remember climbing out?"

"Whoa whoa whoa, booze? What booze?" I question.

I don't drink, why the hell are we talking about alcohol right now?

Noah stares at me in confusion. "Do you not remember the party we were at before this?"

I shake my head. "What? No! What are you talking about?"

As if on cue, another memory begins to replay in my mind…


~ 8 Hours Earlier ~


I angrily slammed the door behind me, and then flopped down on my bed.

I hate my parents! I hate them, I hate them, I hate them!

How could they do this to me? I just wanted to hang out with my best friend!

I can feel myself becoming extremely angry; I need to vent. I whip my phone out, and start texting Eddie, KT, and Patricia.

I'm angry and need to rant. Someone talk to me.

Eddie replies less than a second later.

I'm here. Wanna skype?

Yes. I reply

I grab my laptop off of the table beside my bed and log into my Skype account. Once I am on, I see that Eddie is giving me a ring. I answer it immediately.

"Hey!" I say as his face pops up on my screen.

He smiles at me. "Hey buddy, what's up?"

I shrug. "My parents are complete and total assholes."

He gazes at me in confusion. "How come?"

I sigh, and explain the whole scenario to him. After I've finished, he stares at me in disbelief.

"Jeez, they're insane. What would they do if they saw the way the three of us cuddle?" He replies.

"Dude, they would have you freaking deported." I tell him.

He laughs. "It sounds like the actually would. Seriously. I've kissed both of you on the lips before…what would they do if they knew that?"

I smirk. "You'd be history if they knew about that, dude."

He shrugs. "That would be an interesting conversation to have with the US Embassy though. They'd ask, 'Mr. Miller, why do these people want you deported?', and I'd say, 'Oh, because I have an extremely platonic friendship with both of their sons, and they're disapproving of it, so they want me out of their country."

I laugh. "That would be extremely entertaining to see."

He smirks. "It would be."

Then, another call pops up in the corner of my screen. It's from KT.

"KT wants in." I say to Eddie.

"Okay, let her in then." he replies.

I click the "accept" button. Then, Eddie's face is shifted over to the left side of the screen to make room for KT's.

She smiles and waves at us. "Hey guys!"

We both greet her.

She smiles at us again. "What's up? Why do you need to rant, Alfie?"

I shrug, and tell her the whole story.

"Are you kidding me?", she says after I'm finished, "that is so stupid!"

"Yeah, I know. We were just talking about how they would have Eddie deported if they saw the way we cuddle."

She laughs. "I feel like that would be something they would try to do, based off of what you've told me."

We continue to joke and laugh about the idiocy of my parents and Mr. & Mrs. Rutter. Then, my phone buzzes.

"It's Charlie," I tell them as I stare at the screen of my phone, "he wants to know if I'm okay with going to a party with him and Noah tonight."

KT and Eddie look at me nervously.

"That sounds like it could be kind of dangerous." KT murmurs.

I shrug. "I know, I know. But if I tell them no my parents will flip, and I won't be able to talk to Fabian for god knows how long."

"If it comes down to it," Eddie starts, "just grab a cup, fill it with water, and act like you're drinking and carrying on with the rest of them. No one has to know what's in your cup, and you'll get the advantage of being the only sober one there, so you can witness all of the drunks doing stupid stuff!"

I laugh, but KT stares at him nervously.

"Why do I get the feeling that you're speaking from experience there, Eddie?" she asks.

"Because I am. Todd used to drag me to crazy parties all the time. I never drank because he would get so drunk that it would be the only time I ever felt like he didn't control me."

Todd. Even though he's been dead for a while now, I still feel my blood pressure rise when I hear his name…

"That could be the most depressing thing you've said in a while." KT murmurs

I nod in agreement. "That is really sad, actually."

Eddie purses his lips. "Yeah, I know."

"While we're on the subject of Todd and all things sad," I say, changing the subject, "why don't we do your daily arm check, Eddie?"

He huffs in annoyance. "Seriously? Do we still have to do this?"

"Yes. Put your arms up, now." KT replies.

"But you guys know I've been clean for months—"

"Dude, you know that the more you protest it, the more we think that you've relapsed." I tell him.

He shrugs, and then pushes up his sleeves. He flashes his arms before the camera.

The deepest of his scars are still visible, but the majority of them have done a tremendous job with fading. And, from the looks of it, he hasn't done anything recently.

I'm so proud of him.

"See? Nothing new." he murmurs.

KT and I smile.

"Yay!" We both cheer.

Eddie smirks, and pushes his sleeves back down.

"I hardly think about doing it anymore," he says, "every now and then I will as I'm laying in bed at night, but that's it."

"And you always text one of us if it gets too bad, and we calm you down. You've made such good progress, Eddie." KT chimes.

I nod in agreement. "I'm beyond proud of you dude. You have no idea."

I can tell that he wants to drop the subject, so I change it back to the prospect of having to go to a wild party tonight.

"Guys, you know me," I begin, "I can be super passive, and I don't like to be left out…what if they try to get me to do something I don't want to do?"

"Then don't do it," KT replies, "those boys are not the boss of you. If there's something you don't feel comfortable doing, just don't do it."

"Yeah, and it's not like you're trying to impress them or anything. You're only going because your parents are making you." Eddie points out.

"And if you feel too distressed, just text us. We'll talk to you." KT adds.

I smile. I honestly don't know what I would do without the two of them…

We talk for several minutes about various topics, and before I know it, we've been talking for almost two hours. It feels like it's only been minutes…

"Hey guys, I'm going to have to hang up soon to charge my laptop," Eddie says, "I promised Patricia we'd have a Skype date later, so I have to make sure this thing is fueled up and ready to go for then."

"Oh yeah, I meant to ask you, where has she been? I haven't talked to her in like, two days." I reply.

He smirks. "Her parents are being jerks as well. You know how Piper got that huge role in an opera at the Vienna Opera House, right? Well, she has shows twice a day, six nights a week, so her parents go to every single one of them; with that being said, they make Patricia go to all of them as well."

KT laughs. "I'm sorry, but the thought of her being stuck at a long, boring, opera sounds really amusing to me."

Eddie and I laugh as well.

"It's okay, I think it's hilarious too. She hates it so much…it's not even in English, and there aren't subtitles or anything, so she literally has no clue what's going on in it. You should hear her rant about it, it's so entertaining." Eddie explains.

"That is really funny." I say

After several more minutes of mindless chatter, we decide that it's time to hang up.

"Alfie, be careful tonight. Don't do anything you don't want to do, and you'll be fine." KT assures me.

Eddie nods. "Seriously dude, just pretend like you're drinking. It is so much more fun to be sober and watch all of the drunks than it is to be stupid right along with them."

"I'll keep that in mind," I reply, "I love you guys."

"Love you too, buddy."

"I love you too."

I say goodbye to them once more, and then I end our call.

I shut my laptop, and flop back on my bed. I do not want to do this tonight. I would literally rather do anything else.

I check the time on my phone, and find a message from Charlie.

I'll be there to pick you up around 7:00. See you soon!

Okay I text back.

It's nearly five o'clock now. Ugh, that only gives me two hours to chill.

I sigh, and turn my TV on. I flip through the channels, until I find reruns of Drake and Josh. I flop back on my bed, and watch the show…


~ Present ~


I went to a party.

I was worried about not being able to refuse peer pressure.

I'm trapped in the middle of nowhere with a vague recollection of how I got here.

Am I drunk?

Did I drink so much that I made my memory fuzzy?

That would be a reasonable explanation for this…

"Hello? Earth to Alfie, are you in there?" Noah questions.

I snap out of my daze and back to reality.

"Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking…I don't remember being at an actual party, but I remember knowing that I was going to one."

Charlie shrugs. "I…I don't think I remember being at one, either."

"Believe me, we were at one," Noah starts, "it was being thrown at Daniel Zinfon's house. I don't remember any exact details, but based on what's going on, here's what I think happened: we went to the party, hit the sauce, left, got into an accident, climbed out, and since we've been wandering aimlessly for awhile now, the effects of the alcohol are just now wearing off. That's why we don't remember how we got here."

I guess that makes sense…

"If that's true," I reply as I stare at the totaled car, "then we're lucky we're alive. Seriously, that car is destroyed."

"Hey, thanks for reminding me about that." Charlie snarks.

"No, Alfie's right," Noah says in my defense, "we are lucky to be alive and without any injuries. That car is history; it's a miracle we aren't as well."

"We should call the police," Charlie suggests, "so they can get us out of here, and file a claim on my car."

"We should. I'll call them." I say as I reach for my phone.

I always keep my phone in my right pant pocket; it's not there. I search my other pant pockets, in addition to the pocket on my plaid button down shirt; it's not there.

"Guys, I don't have my phone!" I panic.

I watch Charlie and Noah as they feel around their various pockets for their phones. It appears that they can't find theirs either.

"Shit!" Charlie screams.

"It's okay, maybe they fell out during the accident. Check around the car." Noah suggests.

The three of us crawl around the car, on our hands and knees, in search for our phones. We search for what feels like several minutes, but can't find anything.

My parents are going to kill me if I've lost my phone…

"Let's just face it, they're gone!", Charlie cries, "we lost our fucking phones, and now we're going to be stranded out here forever!"

"I think you're exaggerating a bit there, Charlie," Noah tells him, "someone will find us eventually. We just have to be patient."

I shrug, and stare at the car. Where are our phones? Are they hidden somewhere within the destroyed car?

"So what do we do then, wait?" I ask.

Noah nods. "I mean, that's all we really can do…"

I shrug, and sit down in front of the car. Noah and Charlie sit to my right.

An awkward silence fills the air. I'm not good at socializing with people who aren't from Anubis House…

"So," Noah starts, "how have your summers been so far?"

"Pretty chill," Charlie replies, "I've just been partying, hanging out at the pool, etc."

"Nice. How about you, Alfie?" Noah asks.

I smile to myself. I've had the best summer ever…

"It's been great," I start, "The summer started out with my best friend Fabian moving into the house right beside mine, so we've been hanging out like, everyday. Then, my grandparents surprised my entire family with a two-week trip to Disney World, and said I could bring a friend. I chose Fabian, and we even got Eddie and KT to meet us down there since they live in America. It was the best trip ever. After that, we flew back to Eddie's hometown, and spent two more weeks there. Patricia came over for that, too. It was also a lot of fun. A few weeks after that, I went on vacation with my girlfriend to her family's summer home in the Himalayas. She's still there, so ever since then I've just been spending every waking moment with Fabian."

Noah smiles. "That sounds awesome. Is Eddie…you know, doing better…after last year?"

I nod. "Yeah, he's doing much better. I think being away from school for so long has helped him a lot."

Charlie chuckles. "I think being away from that place would be the best kind of therapy for anyone."

The three of us burst into laughter. I have to admit, there is some truth in that!

"I hate school, but I will say I miss being with my friends all the time." I say as our laughter dies down.

Noah nods in agreement. "Me too. My friends from Hathor are my best friends in the world, too."

"I think it's like that for every house," I reply, "I rarely see anyone socializing with people from outside their own house."

"Yeah, this conversation would probably look weird to most people from our school." Charlie adds.

I nod in agreement. They both seem nice, they really do…I shouldn't be so hard on my parents for making me hang out with them tonight. I will admit, however, that I still would rather be with my Fabian…

"I think I just remembered something from the party," Charlie suddenly blurts, "I…I remember the three of us…we were taking shots…"

I gaze at him in shock. What?

As I'm processing this startling information, I start to remember something myself…

~ 6 Hours Earlier ~

I trudged down the stairs at exactly seven o'clock. Through the windows beside the front door, I could see Charlie's powder blue Bentley Continental car waiting in my driveway.

I shrug. I so do not want to do this!

My parents emerge from the dining room to my left, and smile at me.

"Have fun tonight, love," my Mum starts, "they seem like really nice boys. Enjoy yourself."

I scoff. "Whatever. Just remember that I'm only doing this to please your homophobic asses so I can hang out with my real friend tomorrow."

I don't even give them the chance to respond. I walk past them, open the front door, exit through it, and then slam it behind me.

I walk down the driveway toward Charlie's car. As I get closer, I see that he is sitting in the driver's seat, and Noah is in the passenger's seat.

Charlie rolls down his window.

"Hey man, go ahead and sit in the back." he exclaims.

I nod, and open the door leading to the back seat.

I slide in the back of the car, and then shut the door.

Noah turns to me and smiles.

"Hey Alfie, we're glad to have you. Trust me, you're gonna have a killer time tonight!"

I smile at him, only so I don't come off as a total jerk.

"Sounds good to me." I reply.

He smiles, and I feel the car start to move. This should be a very interesting night…


~ 5.5 Hours Earlier ~


The first things I noticed when I got to the party were the infamous red solo cups that were in everyone's hands.

Then, I noticed the enormous house we were in; Daniel Zinfon, a boy from St. Vincent Academy, a Catholic Boarding School forty minutes away from the House, lived in the biggest mansion I had ever seen in my life. The room we were in was called the family room, except it was literally ten times the size of the average family room, and more extravagant on every level.

It also had a disco ball hanging from the ceiling, a DJ station set up, strobe lights, and people dancing everywhere.

Charlie put one of his hands on my shoulder, and the other on Noah's.

"Well gentlemen, I'm off to the kitchen to get WASTED!" he screams.

Then, without another word, he runs into the crowd.

I shrug. I can already tell this is not going to be a fun night…

"Noah! I'm so glad you could make it!"

I look over my shoulder to see Noah shaking hands with some guy.

"Daniel, this is Alfie. He goes to school with Charlie and I." he says.

Daniel waves. "Hi Alfie, nice to meet you."

I smile. "Nice to meet you too."

He grins. "Is there anything I can get either of you to drink? Don't worry, we have plenty of options!"

"I could go for a beer." Noah replies.

"Great. Anything for you, Alfie?" Daniel asks.

I shake my head. "I'm good, thanks."

Noah and Daniel both look at me in disappointment. I hate that look…

"Alright then, suit yourself. Just know that there are plenty of food and beverages in the kitchen to go around." Daniel replies.

He leaves to fetch Noah's drink.

Noah slaps me on the arm. "Dude, don't be lame! Drink up, have fun tonight!"

KT's words from earlier replay in my head: "Those boys are not the boss of you. If there's something you don't feel comfortable doing, just don't do it."

I roll my eyes at Noah, and saunter off towards the kitchen. I'm not going to stoop to their level; I won't drink and get sloppy tonight.

I'll just eat tons of food instead.

I migrate into the kitchen. When I get there, I see an island countertop filled with various bottles of different alcohols. Beside it is a smaller table filled with several plates of food.

Next to the food are plastic plates. I grab one, and start observing my options.

Let's see what we have here: watermelon, pineapple, strawberries, carrots, cauliflower, celery, macaroni and cheese, chicken wings, cupcakes, brownies, cookies…

I grab the spoon in the macaroni, and drop a scoop onto my plate. I then grab a few cookies, brownies, and cupcakes; I hate healthy food!

Okay, now I need a non-alcoholic beverage to drink. Water, maybe?

I go over to a nearby sink, and turn the water on. Unfortunately, nothing comes out of it.

Huh?

I look up at the window above the sink, where a sign has been placed.

Sink out of order. Bottled water in fridge, it reads.

I take a few steps to the nearby refrigerator and open it's doors.

The majority of the fridge contains bottles of alcohol, with the exception of two large cherry-flavored water bottles.

Oooh, I love cherry flavored water!

I grab both of the bottles, and then move to look for a place to sit. As I do so, I pass a stack of unused red cups, and remember Eddie's words from before:

"If it comes down to it, just grab a cup, fill it with water, and act like you're drinking and carrying on with the rest of them. No one has to know what's in your cup, and you'll get the advantage of being the only sober one there, so you can witness all of the drunks doing stupid stuff!"

I grab one of the cups, and pour my water into it. Thank god Eddie told me about this!

I take my cup and plate to a nearby couch and sit down.

Jeez, this place is crowded.

People are everywhere! A couple is dancing right in front of me, and several other girls are in a group dancing beside me.

I shrug, and take a sip of my water. The cool liquid burns my throat slightly, but tastes very good.

I dig into my macaroni, take sips of my water in between most bites, and finish it quickly. Then, I move to the brownies.

I take a bite of the chewy, chocolatey brownie; however, I soon realize that this isn't some store-bought brownie: it's the best brownie I've ever eaten in my entire life!

I shove the remainder of that particular brownie into my mouth. Then, I scarf down the remaining three that were on my plate.

Woo, those were awesome! I need more!

I bolt up from the couch, taking my red cup with me, and navigate back to the table where the brownies are. I then grab six more of them, and eat them in just a few minutes.

Oh my god, these are amazing! I have never tasted something so delicious, so…so…good!

Hehehehe, these brownies are goood!

I grab a few more, and shove them into my mouth. The more and more I eat them, the better they taste, and I actually feel myself start to physically feel better.

I feel…relaxed. Why was I worried about coming here tonight? Why was I so worried about being here, when I have these awwwesome brownies?

I take a swig of my water. I feel sooooo good!

I should go talk to Noah and Charlie! I should thank them for bringing me here to eat such gooood brownies!

I walk through the sea of people to look for Noah and Charlie. As I do so, I hear that Ceiling Can't Hold Us by Macklemore is playing— I love this song! I can't help but swaaay to the music…this song is soooooo good!

I feel this amazing sensation as the music blares in my ears. It feels louder, and it makes me feel greeat!

I feel amazing! I feel like I can do anything! I'M THE KING OF THE WORLD!

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Noah and that guy Daniel from before. I should go talk to them!

I stumble over to them. As I am approaching them, I nearly trip and fall over my own feet.

Hahahahahahahaha, I'm soooo clumsy!

Noah and Daniel stare at me funny. I smile.

"Hi guys! Hey, Daniel," I say, and place my hand on his shoulder, "thank you so so so so much for those brownies, man! They are amaaazing!"

Daniel and Noah look at each other really funny again, and then back at me. Then, they burst into laughter.

"Oh Alfie, you're quite welcome. Hey, just out of curiosity, how many did you eat?"

I laugh, and swaaay to the music.

"Uhhh, like, a lot!" I cheer. "They're sooooooooo good!"

Daniel cracks up. "Damn, you must be really high then."

"Hi? Hahahaha, Hiii, I'm Alfie! Hehehehe, hiiiiii."

Noah smirks. "No, not that kind of high, Alfie. You're high, like on drugs."

I stare at him in hurt. "What? No way! I don't take drugs!"

How could he say that to me! I'm so clean!

"Alfie, those brownies were filled with pot," Daniel explains, "you probably ingested a pound of weed, if you ate as many of them as you say you did."

I laugh at them. They're so silly!

"Duuude, I don't eat weeds! That's fo like, little kids…hahaha!"

Daniel and Noah both continue to laugh at me.

"Weed is Marijuana, Alfie. We're trying to tell you you're high on Marijuana." Daniel says

I laugh along with them. "I don't know anyone named Mary, and I don't ja wanna!" I say

They continue to laugh at me. "Hey Alfie, do you like how you're feeling right now?" Daniel ask to me.

I laugh and nod. "Yeeah!"

He take me hand, and leads me away from where we standing.

"Then come with me."

I follow him through the people, and dance to the music along the way. Every now and then, I'll stop in my tracks, and let myself become one with the music, but Daniel always comes right back and drags me along behind him.

We go into the kitchen, and a new table is there. Some people are standing on either side of it, and there are little baby glasses filled with stuff on the table. Among the people are Charlie and Noah.

"Alright," say Daniel when we get there, "It's shot time! Whoever drinks the most shots in the next five minutes is the king of the party. Understood?"

"YEEEEEEAAAAAHH!" I scream. I wanna win, so I CAN BE KING OF THE PARTY! WOOOOOOOOOO!

"Okay, go when I get to three. Ready? 1…2…3!"

I grab a little baby glass that is near me, and drink the entirety of its contents. I do it again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. With each baby glass, I feel gooder. I FEEL ON TOP OF THE WORLD!

I drink another baby glass. Again. And again. And again—

"TIME!"

I finsih the last byaby glaz and then slam it down. Then, I feel dizzy…like, really dizzy.

Den, Daaaanielll grab my arm, and puts it in the sky. I stumble on my feet to stay balanced.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this guy right here just did twenty consecutive shots! HE WINS!"

The other people and the table clap.

I scream, and jump up on the table. 'WOOOOOO! I'M THE KING OF THE PARTY!"

Daniel smiles, and then hands me a full boddle of clear stuff.

"This bottle of rum is for you, Mr. King. Now drink up, AND HAVE THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE!"

"WOOOO!" I scream.

I take the cork out of the bottle, and toss it aside. Then, I drink what's in the bottle— I'M THE KING OF THE PARTY!


~ 1 Hour Earlier ~


*For three hours, Alfie drank so much that it was hard to believe he didn't have alcohol poisoning. During this time, Noah and Charlie also introduced him to Marijuana in a smokeable form, something Alfie quickly came to love and enjoy using. Many different things had also happened between the drinking and weed smoking: Alfie had danced and danced and danced on the dance floor, made out with several different guys and girls, played beer-pong, had a drunken, emotional, heart-to-heart with Noah, Charlie, and few other boys he didn't know, swore that Robert Frobisher-Smythe was hiding in the basement attempting to bring Ammutt back, which led him to try to get everyone in the house to leave for safety, convinced himself and others that Nina Martin was never the Chosen One, but he was, ordered a pizza, and when the delivery guy showed up, he screamed at him because he wanted Chinese Food, went around to every clock that he could find in the mansion and smashed them, so he could stop time and stay at the party forever, crashed through a glass door, fell into a swimming pool and couldn't get out for ten minutes because he, "forgot how to swim", and then, he followed Daniel and some other boys into a bathroom to snort cocaine, because he had begun to feel tired, and needed something to wake him up so he could drive an unconscious Charlie and drunk Noah home.

Needless to say, he was wasted and high beyond recognition.*


(Alllfiiiieeee's P.O.V.)

I'M ON TOP OF WORLD!

TEEEHEHEHEHE I LOVE PANCAKES!

WEEEEEEEE

I SWAAAAAAY TO THE MUSIC ON ZA DANSE FLOOR, AND JUMP ROUND TO DA BEEET.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I feel a hand on me shoulder. It's Nooah.

"NOAH!" I SCREAM AND HUG MY BUDDY.

He hugs me too, and hands me keys.

Hehehehehehehe, his keys are jiggly!

"Bro, Charlie passed out, and I'm too drunk to drive. You gotta drive us home, man."

I place my hand on his shoulder for reassurance. "Dude, I just did that fancy white stuff that makes you stay awake. I got this."

He laughs. "That's good bro. Help me drag Noah outta here and then we can leave."

I giggle. "K. Whereth he?"

"On the couch ofer there."

I dance my way to the couch, and see Charlie is drunked out on it. Also, a girl is grinding on him.

Noah taps the girl. "Hey, go fuck someone else. We're leaving."

Da girl shrugs, and walkth away from my boy Charlie. Then I grab one of Charlie's arms, and then Noah grab the other. Then we drag Charlie thru the dance floor with us to his car.

"Does we have to leave?" I askth NOah

He laughs. "Yeah. My mum will kill me if I'm not home by midnight. She doesn't like it wen I get all fucked up."

I laugh. "Ur so fucked up tho. What r u gonna do?"

He laughs. "Dunno. Imma just gonna go with the flow."

I laugh and then we drag Charlie through the door.

I turn and face ma partay peeps. "PEACE OUT PARTY PEOPLE!"

A few people cheer, and then we leave again.

We stumble down the driveway to Charlie's car. We throw him in da back seat, and then I take the king of driving seat, and Noah takes the co-driving captain seat.

I turn the car on, and turn the radio up loud. Then Noah screams.

"Fuck, it's 11:45," he sayth, "I hath to be home in fitteen minutes."

I place my hand on his shoulder reassuringly. "Dude, I can get ya home in fifteen minutes. It okay, man."

I press my foot on the gas pedal, and speed off.

Hehehehe, weeeeeeeeee! This is so much fun!

I drive the car very fast. I look down and the car tells me I'm going 90 k per hour!

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

I drive and go weeee out of Daniel's nayborhood, and over a bridge, and see a pretty red light up ahead.

"Thanks for racing me home bro. U is a good dudeeee."

I smile, and drive thru da the red light. Then I see another shiny light in my pocket…

"ALFIE OH MY GOD!" Noah screams

I look ofer and sees a car heading towards Noah's side. I try to make the car go weeeeeee faster, but the other car hits us. It crashes into us.

Shiny glass goes flying everywhere. Oh my god!

Then, I see another car slam into the car that hit us, and our car moves without me footing the gas pedal. The force causes us to move faster, and then we go flying off of the bridge…


~ Present ~


I jump back in horror.

Oh my god…what the hell was I doing? How did I let myself get so drunk? And high? I don't do any of that stuff!

And that car accident? Did we really go off of a bridge?

"Alfie, are you okay? You look like you just saw a ghost." Noah questions.

I gaze at the massive bridge above us in terror.

"Guys…something's not right…I just remembered our accident…I drove us off that bridge." I stammer.

Noah and Charlie gaze at the bridge, and then back at me.

"Alfie, what are you talking about? If we drove off that bridge, we'd be dead right now. We're alive, and perfectly fine. You must be thinking about something else." Noah replies.

I'm about to respond, but I'm interrupted by the sound of sirens in the distance. Then, I see an ambulance and a police car pull up along the side of the road.

"Oh thank god!" Charlie cheers.

The three of us stand up, and hurry toward the cars. We watch in anticipation as paramedics climb out of the ambulance.

"Oh thank god you guys are here," I start, "I'm not sure what happened, but I think we were in an accident—"

As I am explaining this, the paramedics run right by us.

Huh?

"Hey, I was talking to you!" I shout.

They ignore me.

What the hell?

Noah and Charlie and I gaze at each other in panic. Why aren't the freaking paramedics listening to us?

They charge deeper into the field, as if they were looking for something…

"I found one! Bring a stretcher!" someone calls out.

The three of us hurry toward the sound. Why do they need a stretcher?

Oh my god.

We stop in our tracks as we see the sight before us.

Charlie lets out the most terrified, blood-curling scream I have