CHAPTER EIGHT: BIRTHDAY DISASTER

"Hehehehe… hahahahaha!"

I looked frantically around me to find the source of the laughter, even though it was nothing but pitch black. Fear grasped my heart, but I did my best to keep it at bay, despite my franticness. My eyes scanned the darkness closely, hoping I would catch sight of the perpetrator.

The laughter came again, only this time, it sounded much closer. I felt my heart skip a beat, nearly jumping out of my skin. The fear within me grew stronger, making it much more difficult to stay focused. What made it worse was whoever was laughing has been able to move around without making a sound, despite it being much closer than it was previously.

"Are you having fun yet?" asked a familiar voice from within the darkness, saying it in a mocking, yet playful tone. A chill went down my spine as the words echoed throughout the darkness.

Shadows began zipping through the darkness. Though it happened so quickly, I was barely able to see them. I couldn't make out what they were. However, what I was able to make out was that the shadows were taller than me. Just like the perpetrator, the source of the shadows moved without making a single sound.

"Wanna play a game?" asked the voice. As if on cue, glowing red eyes broke through the darkness.

I jumped, my heart skipping several beats. The eyes were looking down at me, almost blinding me. My body began shaking. I did my best to keep it under control, but it proved to be a difficult task for me.

A shadow moved passed behind me. I looked behind me to see nothing there. Another moved from the corner of my eye. I turned and once again, there was nothing. One by one, shadows began moving around me. I turned to look to find nothing there every time. It felt like an eternity of torment before I lost my footing and fell on my back.

The eyes vanished, leaving behind only darkness. That laughter once again echoed throughout the darkness. I looked all around me. Nothing. Not even a single shadow zipped around in the darkness. I felt relief wash over me. I wiped my head with the back of my right hand.

'Jesus Christ, what is going on?' I thought to myself. 'Why is this happening? More importantly, who keeps laughing in that pitch-black darkness?'

"Behind you," came that feminine voice. "You lose."

I froze. Fear washing over me once more. I didn't want to look behind me, but I knew I had to. I looked behind just in time to see something shiny plunge into me.

"AHHHHHHH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, sitting up in my bed quickly. I began gasping for air as if I had just run a whole marathon, my heart beating rapidly in my chest. I looked around to see that I was in my room.

'Stupid nightmare,' I thought angrily to myself. 'Why do I keep having these nightmares?'

However, I knew deep down that I wasn't going to get any answers. As frustrating as that was, there was nothing I could do. All I could tell was that they all featured this strange rabbit with red eyes. Why was the question? Did they have some kind of meaning to them? Maybe some kind of… warning? I'll never know.

A thought came into mind. 'I wonder what time it is?'

I grabbed my phone that was on the computer desk. I flipped it open and saw the time. I blinked a few times to get rid of the fog that was clouding my vision.

'Oh, it's 8:03 AM,' I thought to myself. It took a moment for it to click in. My eyes widened at the time, realizing the situation at hand. 'Oh, shit! Lisa!'

I removed the covers off of me and hopped out of bed. I ran out of the bedroom, slamming the door shut behind me. I ran down the hall, down the stairs, and entered the dining room.

"Shit, sorry I-" I stopped mid-sentence when I saw no one was in the dining room. "…overslept?"

I blinked a few times to see if I was seeing things right. I was. There was no one in the dining room. I turned my head, analyzing to see if I could catch sight of anyone. Nothing.

"Mom? Dad? Lisa? Where are you?" I called out, hoping to get an answer. I got nothing. I walked into the kitchen to see if they were in there.

The kitchen was empty. However, there were signs of a disturbance. There were dirty dishes in the sink, giving me all the confirmation I needed. At some point, they had breakfast, but for some reason, they didn't send Lisa to come wake me up.

A wave of uneasiness washed over me. It wasn't at all like them to do something like this. If I had to guess, something big must've happened for them to do this. But what?

I caught sight of something on the refrigerator. It was something white with doodles on it. A piece of paper. I walked over to the fridge and ripped the piece of paper off of it. I checked the contents very carefully.

"It's a letter," I said to myself. I checked more carefully. It looked like to be my dad's handwriting. He had a habit of always writing things in cursive. I began to read the contents of the letter.

"Mihael,

After the fiasco last night, your mother and I had talked a bit and decided what will be done today. I will be taking Lisa to school while your mother goes out to deal with a few matters. We will be back by 4:00 PM.

As for you, you will be cleaning the whole house while we're gone. I expect it to be spotless by the time we get back. I need you to wash the dishes, clean the kitchen, dining room, living room, hallways, bathrooms, and bedrooms.

If they aren't done by the time we get back, you will be staying home. This is the price you have to pay for your behavior. FYI, you will have to make your own breakfast. You know where to find the cereal.

See you soon,

Dad"

I stared at the letter, a wave of emotions washing over me. Anger at the things that had to be done thrown at me, as well as the time limit. Hurt at the idea of being left behind if I wasn't done in time, despite me hating the Pizzaplex. Understanding due to knowing that these were the consequences for what happened. At the same time, it was still hard for me to process all of this.

I knew my father was strict when it came to punishments, but this was a bit much. Then again, I kind of brought this on myself. At the same time, it wasn't right for them to hide it from me, despite how I would react. That was hypocritical for me to say, but I had good reasons for doing so. But…

"UGH!" I cried out as I fell onto the floor on my back, my arms and legs spread wide out. I lay there for a moment, my mind slowly processing all of it. "Better get this over with."

*A FEW HOURS LATER*

I vacuumed the last bit of carpet in my bedroom before turning it off. I wiped the sweat off of my forehead, a wave of satisfaction washing over me.

"There, all done," I said aloud. I carried the vacuum out of the bedroom and placed it in its usual spot; the hallway closet that was close to my parent's bedroom.

I grabbed my phone from my pocket and checked the time. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that the time was 3:34 PM. I made it in time.

I wiped the sweat off my forehead once again before I entered the bedroom, grabbing my towel from on top of the dresser. I headed over to the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I stripped, getting the sweat-drenched clothes off me. I entered the tub and turned on the water. The water came gushing out of the shower head, washing away all of the sweat and grime off of me.

I sighed before I began washing myself. As I did, my thoughts went to what happened back at the Pizzaplex yesterday. I smiled at the memories. I never thought I would have fun playing golf at the Mega Pizzaplex out of all places. Lisa was right about one thing.

My thoughts went to Roxanne. I felt my cheeks heat up at what she did before my family and I left. Never in a million years did I ever expect Roxanne Wolf, the keytarist and an animatronic of all things in the world, to kiss me on the cheek. To top it off, she called me 'her favorite'. It was all mind-blowing, to say the least. A special gift at that.

'Why am I Roxanne Wolf's favorite?' I thought to myself. 'I'm not someone very special or anything. 'I wasn't a WWE fighter, a police officer, or anything of the sort. I don't get it.'

I turned off the water and stepped out of the tub, water dripping and trailing down my body.

'I will think about it later,' I thought to myself. 'Right now, I need to get dried. I might take a nap. I'm exhausted.'

I grabbed my towel and began to dry off. As I did, I walked over to the sink where the small glass container of Q-tips was sitting. Once I was dried, I wrapped the towel around me and grabbed two Q-tips. I cleaned out my ears and threw them away.

I wrapped my towel around my waist before I exited the bathroom. I walked across the hallway and entered my bedroom, closing the door behind me. I pushed the small button on the knob to lock it. I sighed softly as I removed the towel from my waist. I folded the towel and placed it on top of the dresser. I put on the pajamas I had on yesterday and walked over to the bed. I hopped onto it, the bed creaking as I landed on my back.

I put the covers over my body and closed my eyes. I was out within seconds.

"Mihael… big brother, wake up," a soft voice whispered. I stirred in my sleep, groaning loudly as I did. I opened my eyes to see I was lying on my left side and Lisa standing beside the bed.

"Oh, you're back from school," I said softly as I slowly sat up in my bed. "How was it?"

Lisa stared at me for a moment, looking as if she was debating whether to tell me or not. I couldn't blame her for that. I wasn't the type of kid who would tell family members about how my school days were like. But then again, I had my reasons for not telling them. Even if I did, I would say that my day was good, even if it wasn't.

"It was okay," Lisa finally said. She paused for a moment. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

It took me a moment for it to click in. "Oh, yeah. Happy birthday, Lisa."

She smiled a weak smile. I didn't. I knew something was bothering her. Something deep down told me that it was probably last night's fiasco. If so, oh boy.

"Mihael, can we talk?" she asked.

"About what?" I asked, playing stupid.

"About last night," she replied, confirming my suspicions. It took all I had not to groan, though it was going to come up eventually.

"Lisa, I don't want to talk about it," I said firmly. "I'm still mad that you guys hid it from me."

"Because we knew how you would react," Lisa said.

"That still doesn't change anything," I retorted. "Just because I don't react the best way doesn't mean you guys had to hide it from me. It's just not right, no matter what you say."

Lisa sighed. I waited for her to say something. She never did. Not that it would've made anything better. I didn't care how much she tried to justify it, it won't make it a right.

"Dad sent me here to come get you," Lisa said simply. "You have 10 minutes to get ready. If you're not ready by that time, we will be leaving without you."

With that, Lisa walked away and exited the bedroom, closing the door behind her. I stayed where I was for a moment before I hopped out of my bed. I walked over to my dresser and searched for clothes to wear.

As I did, the idea of being left behind came to my mind. The very thought didn't sound appealing as it originally would. If what had happened these past few days didn't happen and if it wasn't Lisa's birthday, I would've been very content on being left home alone and not having to go to that wretched place. However, since it was my sister's special day, it would be inconsiderate of me.

I sighed and grabbed a white T-shirt, along with a pair of blue shorts. I put them on as well as a pair of socks. I closed the dresser and walked out of the bedroom.

"Something bad is going to happen," I said to myself as I closed the door behind me. "I just know it."

We arrived at the Pizzaplex in 15 minutes. The parking lot for the place was full, as usual. It would be a miracle if my father found a parking spot. I felt my stomach churn at the sight. It was very disgusting to see the Pizzaplex so busy.

"We're here," my father said.

"That's nice, even though we could've had it at a place better than this dump," I said sarcastically.

"Mihael, please, that's enough," my mother pleaded. "Don't be like that. It's your sister's birthday."

I rolled my eyes but didn't say anything. I was still mad at my mother and father for hiding it from me, just like Lisa. I didn't think anything in the world would make it right.

My father pulled into the parking lot and began to search for a parking spot. I watched as he slowly grew more frustrated. I really couldn't blame him. Finding a perfectly good parking spot in this dump was almost impossible, especially when it came to any special event. It was a giant middle finger to any poor unfortunate soul who couldn't find one.

"Gotcha," my father said as a parking spot became visible. Without hesitation, he pulled into it, taking the spot for future cars who would be looking for one.

He turned off the car and hopped out. We all followed after him. I looked at the Pizzaplex, a wave of anger washing over me. It took all I had to keep myself together.

We began to walk over to the complex. As we inched closer, that feeling I had on the day of Evan's and many others' disappearance returned. I felt a little sick to my stomach. Something bad was going to happen. I prayed it wouldn't be us who lose someone very important or anyone else's for that matter.

We reached the main doors of the Pizzaplex. We opened the doors and stepped inside, the feeling growing stronger than ever before.

'Please God, let nothing bad happen today,' I prayed in my head. 'Please… let no bad happen.'

The Lobby was packed, as it always has been. My ears rung from all of the loud screaming from the overexcited kids. I felt the urge to scream at them to shut up, but I held my tongue. I was already in enough trouble as I already was.

"So, where is this party taking place, Dad?" I asked. He turned his attention to me, his expression hard.

"It's being held at the Atrium," my father said, his tone hard. "I hope for God's sake that you behave yourself."

I mentally rolled my eyes, holding the words back. I looked around to see if Roxanne was anywhere. The animatronic wolf was nowhere to be seen. I was slightly taken aback by this. After what's happened for the past few days, I was expecting her to come out of nowhere and greet me in some manner.

'Guess she might be busy,' I thought to myself. 'Probably for the best. It wouldn't be a good time to see me anyway.'

"Okay, everyone, let's go," my father said. "Wouldn't want to be late."

With that, we headed up the stairs that led to the elevator that would take us to the Atrium. My father pushed a button. We waited for the elevator to come up. As we waited, I looked to see some of the kids giving me slight glares, the very same kids who no doubt saw what happened yesterday with Roxanne Wolf, the animatronic wolf who kissed me on the cheek.

I mentally rolled my eyes once again. To be honest, I found it to be completely ridiculous. I had no doubt if life was an anime, the kids would be giving me the 'I will kill you' look that most jealous girls would give when they see a rival kiss their crush. It was funny to see it on TV, but it was a whole different story when it happens in real life.

A ding snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked in time to see the elevator doors open. We stepped inside. My father pressed a button and the doors closed. The elevator began to move, taking us to our destination. It always felt weird taking the elevator. It was like something was pulling or pushing down on your body as if your body was made of rubber, like Monkey D. Luffy.

A ding signaled to us that we finally arrived at the Atrium. We stepped out of the elevator, officially entering the place where the party was being held. I wasn't surprised to see the whole damn place packed with kids, many of them around middle school age. This sight alone was enough to confirm that Lisa invited almost everyone from her school, many of them no doubt her friends.

The Atrium was this large dark purple room with blue assets, packed with rows and rows of tables with balloons that seem to make up the dining area. It was filled with different neon lights with a neon star on the ceiling, and what appeared to be a stage. On different floors, there appeared to be different attractions that people could go and visit. The room was beautiful, I couldn't deny that.

"So, where do we sit?" I asked. My father pointed to a table that was sitting in the center of 4 tables that stood at the top and bottom corners of the center table. It was fitted with balloons, a cake, and many party decorations.

"Right there," he said simply. We walked over there. As we inched closer, a few of the kids that were sitting there looked in our direction.

"There you are, Lisa!" a boy with a slight belly, second chin, and brown hair named Robert Fisher called out. Lisa ran over to him and gave him a hug with the other kids following suit.

I smiled at the sight. I met Lisa's group of friends a few times and I would say, they were very nice kids, despite them pulling a few pranks on me whenever they would come over for a sleepover. It kind of reminded me of the semi-friendship that I currently had with Roxanne Wolf.

"Hey, kids!" I called out as I walked over to them. They all turned their attention to me.

"Hey there, Mihael!" Robert and the rest of the kids called back. "Nice to see you!"

Robert walked over to me with something in his hands. I couldn't tell what it was, but from a distance, it looked like to be a piece of paper. Something told me that whatever the reason it was for him to walk over to me, it might have had something to do with that piece of paper he had in his hands.

"How are you?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

"That's nice," he said. "By the way, I have a question."

"What is it?" I asked, genuinely curious as to what the question would be.

"Are you friends with Roxy?" he asked right off the bat.

I stared at him, time feeling like it had slowed down. Out of all the things I was expecting, that was a question I wasn't expecting to come out of his mouth. At the same time, I had a feeling as to why he would ask that. No doubt Lisa had been telling people at her school that I was befriending the animatronic wolf. She really had something coming for that.

I shrugged again. "Somewhat. Why?"

He handed over the piece of paper to me. "Because I found this on the table. It seemed to be addressed to you."

I retrieved the paper and looked at it closely. The paper looked like it was folded a few times, like a letter. I read the letters that were written on it.

TO: MIHAEL PATEL

FROM: ROXANNE WOLF

A wave of surprise washed over me. The paper turned out to be a letter from Roxanne Wolf herself. The surprise washed away, quickly replaced with a feeling of curiosity and confusion.

'Why would she leave me a letter?' I thought to myself. 'Guess I better open it to find out.'

I opened the letter and began to read the contents that were waiting to be read inside.

"Mihael,

If you're reading this, then I was unable to greet you at the Lobby due to time constraints, which is the worst. I heard that your sister was having her birthday party here today at the last minute, which I think is exciting.

Due to this special occasion, my friends and I have a very special performance planned out for Lisa. I can't wait to see you two, especially you, Mihael. Keep your eyes out for me when we appear on stage.

See you soon,

Roxanne Wolf ❤️"

I couldn't help but smile. That explained why she didn't greet me at the Lobby. Something told me that before I woke up, either my mother or father drove to the Pizzaplex and alerted someone higher up that my sister was having her birthday party here. Stupid as it was, I had to admit, it was kind of clever.

"Mihael," I heard my father say behind me. I snapped out of it and turned to look at him.

"What's up, Dad?" I asked, curious as to what he wanted.

"Lisa needs to use the restroom," my father said. "Can you walk her over and make sure nothing happens."

I was taken aback by the question. I looked to see her doing her best not to do the potty dance. It took everything I had within me to not laugh at the sight. However, if I was in that situation, the idea of someone laughing at me for doing the silly dance wouldn't have made me feel good.

"Okay, Dad," I said, stuffing the letter in my pocket. "Come on, Lisa. Let's go."

With that, we headed over to the elevator, beginning the journey over to the bathroom.

"Don't take too long in there, you get me?" I said firmly as Lisa and I reached the restrooms.

"Yes, Mihael, I hear you loud and clear," she said sarcastically, playing with her ears as to say 'I'm not deaf' before darting into the bathroom as if her life depended on it.

I stood beside the door, the wait for her to do her business had now begun. I could only hope that Lisa wouldn't take too long. It was bad enough that her birthday party was being held here, but it would be even worse if I had to stand here and listen to the sounds of someone either taking a piss or shit in the restroom.

As I waited, I thought about everything that led up to this moment right now. Of course, I was still mad at them for hiding it from me like that. At the same time, I kind of understood. I really didn't handle certain situations well, overreacting to them basically. For all they knew, my reaction could've been way, way worse than it previously was. It still didn't make it right to hide it.

My thoughts shifted to the letter Roxanne left me. Once again, I couldn't help but smile. From the looks of it, Roxanne has taken a bit of liking to me, maybe even more. I couldn't help but imagine the disappointed look Roxanne must've had when she couldn't greet me in the Lobby today as she has done for the past few days. It was kind of crazy.

I snapped out of my trance and knocked on the door.

"Hey, Lisa?" I called out. "You almost done in there?"

I waited, expecting her to reply back. Nothing. I got silence. This caught me off-guard. Lisa wasn't the type to go silent like that. It was very uncharacteristic of her.

"Uh, Lisa?" I called out again. "Everything okay in there?"

Once again, I got nothing but silence. Concern began to bubble up inside of me. Something deep within my gut told me that something wasn't right. Whatever the reason was for Lisa's silence, it was anything but good. If anything, it might mean something absolutely terrible. Even worse, something told me that this wasn't some kind of sick joke.

I grabbed the handle and opened the door. I poked my head inside.

"Lisa, are you okay?" I called out. Once again, I got nothing in response. I felt the need to go in there and search for her myself. I didn't like the idea of going into the restroom, but something urged me to do so. "Oh, man."

I took a deep breath before I fully stepped into the restroom. The restroom was a large room with at least 4 stalls, 4 sinks, and 4 mirrors. There was a silly-looking robot in the form of a wet floor sign sitting in the far corner of the room.

I walked over to the first stall and knocked on it. Nothing. I pushed the door open to be greeted with an empty stall. I walked over to the second and did the same.

Empty.

I walked over to the third and opened it without even bothering to knock on the damn door.

Empty.

My heart began pounding in my chest, a wave of fear washing over me. The worst-case scenario began to play in my head; one that had my sister going missing. I shook it out of my mind and went over to the last stall.

I rested my hand on the door and prayed she was in there. I didn't care how much trouble I was going to get. As long as she was in there, that's all that mattered.

I knocked on the door. Nothing. I pushed the door, the door slowly opening. My fear grew when I saw the result…

Empty. Nobody was in there.

"Lisa…" I whispered.

I stared at the empty stall, the silence deafening me. The gears in my brain turned as my brain itself was trying to process it all at once. I fell onto my knees as it slowly clicked in.

Everything felt like a dream… No, more like a nightmare, like the ones I'd been having for a while now. I pinched myself in the right arm, hoping it will wake me up. A surge of pain flowed through my arm, making me flinch. That was enough for it all to sink in.

"Oh no," I whispered before I back onto my feet and charged out of the bathroom. I ran past people, looking left, right, up, and down for any signs of her. "Lisa! Lisa! Lisa, where are you?!"

I stopped running, looking frantically for my sister.

"LISA!" I screamed fearfully, my shout echoing all throughout the Lobby. "WHERE ARE YOU?!"

I tried to think of any place she could be. The fear made it difficult for me to think of anything. If only I paid far more attention and not gone into laddaland, this situation wouldn't be happening right now. How could have I been so stupid and so God damn oblivious?!

Something immediately clicked inside my head. I knew what had to be done right now. If I waited any longer, the precious time that was left to find her was getting flushed down the toilet.

"I gotta tell Dad!" I said to myself. With that, I ran straight for the elevator, pressing the button multiple times as if it was going to make it come faster.

It felt like time was mocking me right now for the amount of time it was taking for the elevator to arrive. It was saying to me 'I don't give a shit. I'm going to take my precious time. Your little sister can wait'.

A ding echoed through the room. The doors opened slowly as if to mock me. I hopped in and pressed the button for the Atrium. The doors closed and I felt the elevator begin its trek. I tapped my foot rapidly, impatiently waiting to inform Dad of the news.

The elevator dinged before the doors slid open. I ran out of the elevator and aimed my attention at the table where my dad was.

"DAD! DAD!" I shouted as I ran over to him. My father ran over to me.

"Mihael, what's wrong?!" my father demanded. He must've noticed that Lisa was missing because his eyes widened slightly. "Where the hell is Lisa?!"

"Dad… something happened!" I cried. "Lisa's gone missing!"

I could feel hundreds of eyes locked on me. A deafening silence filled the room, one where you could hear a pin drop from a mile away. Nobody did anything for a moment.

"Lisa's… gone missing?" my mother asked slowly. I nodded.

As if it finally clicked in their brains, all of the kids and adults began screaming, trampling over each other. Balloons began to pop all at once, the tables and chairs falling over.

Without a moment to lose, my father pulled out his phone and began to dial. He held the phone to his ear, a hard expression on his face.

"Wesley, it's me, we have a situation!" my father said. "Bring back-up over to the Pizzaplex immediately!" He hung up the phone and looked at my mother and I. "You two, get out of here right now! I'm going to do my best to get everyone out as well! I will go search for Lisa!"

"Let me help you look for her!" I urged. "It's my fault this has happened!"

"No, Mihael, you're not!" my father barked. "This is a situation the police have to handle! Now, get out of here with your mother!"

I stared at him, the gears in my head turning. He didn't just tell me 'no'. This is my sister we're talking about here. Lisa Patel, a girl that I grew up with for most of my life. One of the most, if NOT, important people to me. He. Fucking. Did. NOT!

"HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!" I screamed at him. "THAT'S MY FUCKING SISTER WE'RE TALKING ABOUT! I'M NOT GOING TO JUST SIT HERE AND DO NOTHING!"

"That's enough, Mihael!" my father shouted angrily. "Rebecca, get him out of here!"

"No, I'm not going anywhere!" I shouted before I felt my mother wrap her arms around me and began dragging me out of the Atrium. "What are you doing?! Let me go!"

She never did. She continued to drag me out of the room and out of the Pizzaplex while my father began the search for Lisa.

"Let me go!" I demanded, trying to get out of my mother's grip. "I wanna help find Lisa! It's all my fault!"

"Mihael, stop it!" my mother pleaded. People were watching the spectacle, but none of us cared. "Calm down! They're doing all they can to find her!"

Her pleas fell on deaf ears. I continued trying to get out of her grasp so I could go in there to help find my sister. It was all my fault she's now missing. If only I had paid more attention, Lisa would still be here.

The sound of the main doors opening caught everyone's attention. We turned our attention to the doors to see the cops, my father, and a man I'd never seen before step out. I waited for the news, my eyes beginning to sting.

"Everyone, I'm afraid I have some bad news!" the man announced. "I'm regretful to inform you that we were unable to find any traces of Lisa Patel. Due to these circumstances, we will be closing the Pizzaplex early. It will be best to head on home."

My mind became numb, the very sense of reality becoming a distant memory. My body became heavy as if it waited a thousand pounds. My vision became blurry as I felt tears well up in my eyes. The weight of the man's words struck me like a bullet.

"NOOOOOOO!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. Everyone turned their heads in my direction. I felt my mother loosen her grip on me, allowing me to break free as I made a break for the doors at a speed I never knew was even possible, my right arm reaching out. "LISAAAAAAAA!"

Everyone caught on to what I was planning. They all did their best to hold me back. I began thrashing my arms violently.

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" I shouted as my vision became too blurry, making it impossible for me to see. "I HAVE TO GO IN THERE! I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE UNTIL MY SISTER IS FOUND!"

"Mihael, stop it!" I heard my father shout, though I couldn't tell where it came from. "There's nothing we can do for now! Get a hold of yourself!"

"LISAAAA!" I shouted, my throat beginning to hurt, the tears streaming down my face like waterfalls. "PLEASE! I BEG YOU! GET BACK IN THERE AND LET ME HELP! IT'S MY FAULT! IT'S ALL MY DAMN FAULT!"

I suddenly felt something wrap itself around my chest and legs. I felt myself being held up as if I was being carried away. I began thrashing and wiggling violently in an attempt to break free.

"NO, LET ME GO!" I shouted. "PLEASE! WE CAN'T LEAVE! LISA'S STILL IN THERE! LET ME MAKE THIS RIGHT!"

"Everyone, get out of the way right now!" I heard my father command loudly. I continued my attempt to break free, refusing to go anywhere.

"Mihael, calm down, please!" I heard my mother pleading from behind me. That was all the confirmation needed to know that it was my mom who had their arms wrapped around my chest.

I heard the sound of a car door opening. I strengthened my attempt to break free. I felt my mother's grip on my chest loosens a little bit, but not enough for me to break free. I felt myself being stuffed into the car, landing on my left side before the sound of the door closing followed it.

"NOOOO!" I shouted, my throat feeling like it was on fire. "LET ME OUT! WE CAN'T LEAVE! NOT NOW!"

"Mihael, stop it right now!" my father barked. "I hate having to leave as much as you, but we have no choice! I will continue the search for her tomorrow!"

"Mihael… please…" my mother pleaded, her voice cracking. I wanted to scream, but I couldn't find the strength to do so. In fact, I couldn't find the strength to argue, fight, etc.

I collapsed, covering my eyes with my hands and my mind blank. I couldn't stop myself from wailing, the pain becoming unbearable.

"Lisa…" I whimpered. "Noooo…"

Everything happened so fast that it became a blur. I pleaded with my father to go back and continue the search for Lisa when we got back to the house. He didn't budge. I had no choice but to relent and go to my room. Everything went dark after that.

"Mihael!" cried out a familiar voice. I opened my eyes and looked around to see nothing but darkness.

A powerful fear gripped me. Even though I couldn't see anything in that blasted darkness, that didn't stop me from trying to find her. My instincts to protect were overpowering anything else I had.

"Lisa!" I called out, the fear and panic present in my tone. "Lisa, where are you?!"

"Mihael!" cried out the voice from behind me. I looked behind me to see Lisa running in my direction. "Over here!"

I began running in her direction, adrenaline coursing through my veins. I didn't care about anything else. All I cared about was reaching my sister. To wrap my arms around her and cry my eyes out, knowing she was safe.

Something emerged from the darkness. My blood turned to ice when I saw that it was the same rabbit that kept popping up. I began to run faster to reach her. That's when I noticed something. It didn't matter how fast I ran, I wasn't getting any closer to my sister. The rabbit, however, was inching closer to her in seconds.

"LISA!" I cried out, tears building up in my eyes.

"Help me, Mihael!" Lisa cried out before the rabbit pulled out a knife and lunged for her.

"LISAAAAA!" I cried out, reaching my left arm out for her. My vision was blurry, making it difficult for me to see. I wiped my eyes and felt the familiar wet sensation on them.

I began gasping for air as if I had just run a marathon. I looked around to see that I was in my bedroom. Confusion washed over me.

'How did I get here?' I thought to myself. 'I remember being at the Pizzaplex and then…'

It took a moment for it all to come back to me. I felt tears well in my eyes as it struck me like a truck. Lisa was missing somewhere inside the Pizzaplex.

"Lisa…" I whimpered. "Oh God… Lisa…"

The tears began trailing down my face harder and faster. Lisa, my little sister… missing. The one thing I feared had come true. Why did it have to happen now… out of all days?

'How… why?' I thought, my tears refusing to stop. 'How could this have happened? If only there was something I could do…'

Something clicked in my head at the thought; an idea. One I never thought of in a million years. Yes, there was indeed something I could do. My anger began to swell up inside me, a fierce determination swelling up along with it.

'What am I doing?' I thought bitterly. 'Laying here in bed; trying to sleep the night away while something could be happening to her right now.'

I clenched my hands into fists, wiping the tears away. I knew what I had to do. I wasn't going to wait until morning for my father to continue the search for my sister. I wasn't going to sleep knowing this.

'Hang in there, Lisa,' I thought to myself as I hopped out of my bed. 'Your big brother's coming. But first, I'm going to need some supplies. Better safe than sorry.'

I removed the covers off of me and hopped out of bed. I checked to see that I wasn't in my pajamas. Rather the ones I chose to wear for the Pizzaplex, including the socks. I slowly walked out of the bedroom, checking the hallways.

"Coast is clear," I whispered. I tiptoed to my parent's room as quietly as possible. I reached for the doorknob, grasping as softly as I could. I slowly twisted the knob. The last thing I wanted was to wake up my parents.

I opened the door, peaking my head to see inside. The master bedroom consisted of a Queen-sized bed, a large rectangular-shaped dresser that stood beside the door with a large screen TV standing proud and tall on it, two nightstands that stood beside each side of the bed, a closet on the left wall, and a door that led to the bathroom for this room on the right wall.

I focused my attention on the bed. My parents were out cold. Even though that was the case, I had to be as quiet as I possibly can. Whatever I needed was inside this room.

I tiptoed into the room, not closing the door behind me. I tiptoed over to the bed, my heart pounding rapidly in my chest. I couldn't believe I was doing this. If it was anything different, I wouldn't have even considered the idea. However, the fact it concerned my sister made this situation different.

I reached the closet where my dad kept most of his things in. I opened the door as slowly as possible. Slight creaks echoed through the room, making me cringe. I looked behind me to see if my parents had woken up. They didn't. I sighed mentally before opening the closet fully.

The moonlight shining into the room made it slightly easier to see inside. I looked for a bit before I found what I was looking for; a cardboard box containing a few of my dad's belongings. My dad was the kind of person who would rather store his things in boxes rather than something else. My only guess is that he believed that it would be easier if he did so.

I opened the box and reached inside. I retrieved the leather belt that had the ammo pouches. I strapped it around my waist before making sure it was secured tightly. When it was, I retrieved the vertical shoulder holster and put it on as well, strapping it tightly. With that done, I retrieved 6 boxes of the .44 Magnum ammo. I stuffed 5 of the 6 boxes into each of the pouches, keeping the sixth in my right hand.

I closed the box before closing the closet door. I walked over to the nightstand that stood to the right side of the bed where my dad was sleeping. I slowly opened it with my free hand and retrieved one of the guns that happened to be one of my dad's favorite guns; a 6-inch barrel Colt Anaconda.

I closed the drawer and slowly tiptoed out of the room. A loud creak midway to the door stopped me in my tracks, my heart pounding very fast. I turned to the bed. None of them woke up. I didn't sigh in relief. I tiptoed out of the room, closing the door slowly behind me.

I tiptoed down the stairs, making sure to not make any noise. When I reached the bottom, I laid the gun and ammo box on the floor. I grabbed my shoes and put them on. I looked at the front door to see it was locked. I unlocked the door before grabbing the keys to my truck, along with the gun and ammo box off the floor. I opened the front door as slowly as possible. Only enough to where I could slip out. When it came to front doors, they were the ones that were the loudest at night.

The door creaked, making me cringe. I stopped and listened for any signs of my parents waking up. Nothing. I continued to open the door, the damn thing creaking loudly as possible, no doubt trying to get me caught.

I stopped when the door was halfway open. I stepped outside and slowly closed the door. I walked over to my truck and used the key to unlock the driver's side door. I hopped in and closed the door. I opened the cylinder of the gun with caution. To my surprise, the gun was empty. I opened the box and retrieved the 6 cartridges. I stuffed them into the holes before closing the cylinder. I opened the glove compartment and stuffed the box inside before closing it. I placed the gun into the holster, making sure it was secured.

"Okay, let's go," I said to myself before turning on the engine. I pulled out of the driveway and began driving in the direction of the Pizzaplex. "Hang on, Lisa! I'M COMING TO FIND YOU!"

Author's Note:

Here it is, guys! The chapter we've all been waiting for; the night where everything went wrong, starting the events of Security Breach! :D

This chapter hit me the hardest. I almost cried when I wrote down Mihael's pain and grief over Lisa going missing. I wonder; would you guys have reacted the way he did?

I hope you guys are excited because the next majority of the chapters will be taking place during the events of Security Breach. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! All constructive criticism is appreciated and I will see you guys in Chapter Nine! :)