After about two hours of walking, Techno was starting to realize he had no idea what direction civilization was in.

He probably should have thought about that earlier. But he had been so scared, so consumed by the adrenaline thrumming through his veins when the little edge of the grate he'd been slowly chipping away at for months finally started to lift up enough for him to pry it loose. Techno had waited as long as he could stand, praying that Ma and Pa would go to town again. Or maybe they'd both fall asleep at the same time. They'd grown more careless over the years anyway. They thought he'd given up on escaping since that time they broke both of his legs as a punishment for trying to run.

They didn't know Techno had been so, so patient.

He'd been collecting things for a long time to build his confidence. Small pieces of bread or plastic bottles he could fill with rainwater that ran through the cracks of the walls. He had stolen a ruler once, that time Pa let him sit in the study. And Techno had spent a long time sharpening it against the rough stones of the basement. The plastic had a nice edge and he clutched it in his hand through two hours of walking.

Techno didn't know if they would try to catch him.

They always had before, but Techno hadn't really managed to escape this far either. There was that time he'd tried to sneak away when Ma was hanging laundry in the garden. She'd allowed him to sit outside with her and Techno had been young and stupid. He was only five years old back then, he was scared all the time. He wanted his parents.

His real parents, not Ma and Pa.

They'd get so angry with him for saying that. Techno heard Ma lament the fact they hadn't taken a younger boy, a sweet little baby whom they could have raised properly. Not Techno with all his silly ideas about the outside world and the people who birthed him. Techno, who remembered just enough to miss things, to feel homesick. Pa had shut that down though, he didn't want to deal with diapers and crying infants again. He said Techno was plenty old to learn.

That first time, he'd thought just running was enough. It wasn't. He hadn't gotten too far before Pa found him and brought him back. What Techno remembered most about that day was the way Ma held him, crying and rubbing his cheeks and sounding sincere when she said she was worried, because she thought she'd lost another son. But after that, Techno was barely allowed outside anymore. And they kept him chained up most of the time.

The few times when they didn't, Techno tried to get away. But since the leg breaking incident when he was punished, he'd stopped. It felt pointless.

Until the grate started to loosen. Techno realized he could make a little hole he could fit through. He could wait until an opportunity presented itself where he could get far, far away before Ma or Pa would even notice he'd left. He could find other people - anybody - and they would call his parents and Techno would see them again. He'd get his home back and his room and his bed and he wouldn't have to sleep on a dirty mattress that smelled like puke and piss anymore.

Except he was an idiot. He had no idea what direction the town was in and Techno had been walking for two hours in the dead of night. Cold would not describe what he felt anymore because he was simply numb. Techno wasn't wearing any shoes, he never got a coat. His stomach hurt because he couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten anything and he'd run out of water already.

At this rate, Techno was either going to die out in these woods or Pa would catch him again.

(Techno hoped it was the first. He would give anything not to go back to that house.)

He'd been trying to find his way through the trees for a while. All around the cabin, there were dense woods that Techno could get lost in. There was a dirt road, the road Techno knew Pa took when he loaded his truck and went into town. But he'd not dared to follow it because he was unsure if Pa would use it and find him too easily. Techno's plan had been to walk into the woods and then circle around, so he'd end up finding the road again eventually. Or maybe he'd find a different road, a different town. Anything.

That hadn't happened. He was exhausted.

Techno stopped to rest for a moment, crouching against a tree. No matter how much he rubbed his hands together, it didn't help his freezing fingers feel any better. He touched them to his face, exhaling at how prickly the skin felt. Like tiny little needles. A sore spot on his forehead made Techno hiss slightly. A couple of days ago, Pa had been very angry at him for messing up and he'd pushed Techno down the stairs. Techno hit his head when he fell. Things had been a bit blurry since.

A gunshot rang out from somewhere behind him.

Bolting upright, Techno looked back wildly. It was hard to pinpoint where the sound came from exactly but it had to be Ma and Pa. Nobody else came out to this area. They must be searching for him!

To his left, there was a little slope. Techno climbed up there. It allowed him to see his surroundings somewhat better, especially because the trees thinned out. Techno could peer into the distance, but he saw no signs of them. Not even a flashlight moving in the dark, his Ma's cries of worry and grief carrying on the wind. His heart was beating so fast it might be drowning out the noise though.

Techno turned, catching sight of something glimmering far below. He squinted at it, trying to make out what it was. It was very hard to see. Techno thought it might be a firefly at first, or a little piece of metal catching the moonlight. But then why would it be moving?

Techno watched the light disappear and reappear, flickering like a candle. It moved around the curve of something fluid.

It was a road, Techno realized. And that light had to be a car.

Without thinking about it, Techno took off running. His feet had been hurting for a while, both from how long he'd been walking and how the rough forest floor cut into his skin and made it sting. Techno might be bleeding, but that had been easy to ignore with the fear of Ma or Pa catching him chasing him onward. It was even easier when stumbling down the hill, trying not to lose his balance. Techno had to hold out his arms and slow down his momentum because he knew that if he fell, he might not get up again. And even if he did, the car might be gone by then.

On the other hand, he had to hurry. If he didn't make it down to the road before the car passed, the odds of another driving by in the middle of the night were very slim. Techno would not survive waiting until morning.

The gunshot pushed itself to the forefront of his mind while he ran, stubborn in how it drenched him in undiluted terror. Techno saw Pa use his rifle to shoot at rats sometimes, or other critters that came too close to the cabin. He said that they were vermin, polluting their livelihood. Then he would make Techno collect the corpses and burn them. Pa didn't want them to rot. Ma didn't like it when he made Techno do that, but Pa insisted he should make himself useful. Techno liked being useful. Mostly because Pa kept repeating they wouldn't feed a freeloader.

Obeying them, making them happy, being whatever they wanted him to be as their son. Techno had tried it all. It made his life easier, usually.

Not always, but usually.

Techno tripped on a root and his knee hit the ground, scraping itself raw. Techno's ankle burned, twisting in the wrong direction. He pushed himself upright and kept going, ignoring the sharp pain brought by every step. He could see the slope get steeper, but then it leveled out and he could make out the edge of the road.

There was another gunshot in the distance.

Techno's gut was twisted in knots, he thought he might vomit. Or maybe that was his brain playing tricks on him, rattling around his skull over and over. He couldn't think, he couldn't breathe. He had to make it to the road.

The car was so close that Techno could hear it. The bright shine of the headlights blinded him when his feet hit the asphalt.

Maybe in trying to make haste, Techno had not afforded a thought to stopping himself. He ran out into the road, arms waving desperately. A cry so animalistic it was more noise than word ripping from his chest because all Techno wanted was to not go back to those people, that cabin. Anything but that.

And then the screeching of the car's brakes cut through the air. Techno had time to blink before the impact, watching those two spheres of light grow and overtake him and blot out his reason. Thought and instinct both short-circuited into recklessness, relief even. All Techno cared about was not being caught again.

Some part of him must still be present enough to try and avoid certain death, or maybe the driver of the car had the foresight to try to swerve a bit. The car had slowed down considerably by the time it hit Techno, catching his hip and throwing him down. Techno's head bounced against the asphalt, making it explode with pain. He gasped and stayed there, too cold to move. He heard one of the doors open.

"Jesus fucking christ-"

Techno whined and curled up into a ball. They sounded like Pa, they did. He couldn't take it.

"Dad, what was that?" Another voice, younger.

"Wilbur, stay in the car!" The first voice spoke again, high and on edge. The commanding tone made Techno shake, made him want to cry. But he couldn't because his eyes hurt too bad for him to open them.

When a hand touched his shoulder, Techno screamed from the pain.

"Ah, fuck. Fuck, okay, uh, settle down." They drew away from him only for a moment. Techno didn't get a chance to be happy about it because a moment later they returned to scoop him up under his armpits. This time, it was barely a whimper that managed to come from him. "There you go, you're okay. You'll be okay."

"Dad?!" Techno flinched slightly at how close they were. He realized that the man had carried him over to the car and was putting him in the back seat, with the kid.

"He's in pretty bad shape," the man said. "Wilbur, can you grab that blanket."

The boy named Wilbur shuffled to the other side of the backseat. Techno finally managed to pry his eyelids open a bit, trying to make out shapes through the fuzziness. He couldn't see much though, not when he was being put down on his back.

A soft blanket was laid over him.

"He's hurt," Wilbur said, softly. Sounding… Well, Techno was having a hard time placing it. Wilbur didn't seem scared like he'd expect somebody to be when they almost crashed into some random person in the middle of the night.

"He is. We'll take him to the house to see what we can do," the father said. He was already getting back behind the wheel.

"Why was he out here?" Wilbur asked.

"I don't know. Put on your seatbelt, Wilbur."

"Can we keep him?"

Techno turned his head. Wilbur bent over him, carefully brushing some hair away from Techno's tear-stained cheeks. His eyes were a mid-toned brown with little flecks of yellow almost, reminding Techno of the honey Ma used to give him in his milk. They were looking at Techno.

Wilbur was smiling at him. Techno blinked back.

"I don't know yet," the father said. "Come on, put on your seatbelt. We need to get home."

Techno closed his eyes again when the engine made the car thrum beneath his body. It didn't hurt anymore, exactly. More like the numbness had spread all throughout him. He couldn't stop shaking. Wilbur was talking to him, whispering closer to his ear from time to time then speaking to his dad in a louder voice. Techno didn't catch a lot, his thoughts were all slippery and hard to hold. They drove for what felt like hours. Techno felt like he was dying.

If he was, dying was warm. And Techno wouldn't complain about that.

When they finally came to a stop, the man hoisted him from the backseat. They lifted him into a bridal carry this time, which was slightly easier for Techno's bruised and battered body to handle. Techno curled into them automatically and they exhaled, gripping him tighter. Wilbur laughed in response.

"I thought you said we weren't keeping him," he said teasingly.

Techno frowned.

"I said we need to know where he came from first," the man holding him answered. "We're not moving again, Wilbur."

Techno was slightly jostled as they carried him into a house. It hurt and he whimpered, but that couldn't really be heard over a third voice joining the conversation. Techno was having such a hard time concentrating, he wanted to cut it all out. He wanted to bury himself under the covers like he did sometimes in the cabin, so it was just him and the darkness around him. So he could feel safe, if only for a moment.

He barely reacted when he was finally put down. Techno sagged into the pillows, and into the person beside him. He didn't know who it was but he was too exhausted to care. Somebody held something to his mouth.

"You need to take these, sweetheart. They'll make you feel better."

The person he was leaning against was a woman. Her voice was soft and gentle, different from Ma's. Techno decided he liked it. He nodded, obediently parting his lips. If he didn't do as he was told, he got beaten or worse. So it would be a lot better for him to go along with what they wanted. She helped him swallow down the pills with a glass of water. The blanket from the car was still wrapped around him.

Techno didn't mind this. He really didn't.

But there was this urgency caught in his ribcage that felt like it needed to tear out of him. He forced himself to lift his chin, despite how badly he hurt. "My parents…" he muttered. He was close enough to the woman for her to overhear, because she tucked him closer against her chest.

"Did they do this to you?" she asked while holding him even tighter.

Techno opened his mouth, the words got stuck in his throat. He shook his head. "My real parents," he said. "They're not… I don't know where they are. Can you call them?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about that, dear." She said something else, though it wasn't at him. It might be at the man. Her hands were rubbing slight circles into his cheeks, trying to chase away the cold that clung to Techno.

He might have drifted off for a while. Techno wasn't sure, all he knew was that he closed his eyes and it was dark and quiet and nice. And when he did open them again, he felt a tiny bit better. Not a lot, but a bit. The medicine might be working because the pain had become distant and vague, allowing him to think a little clearer. He wasn't as cold anymore, somebody had put socks on him and combed his hair. The woman was holding him close, humming.

Techno kind of looked at her, confused. She didn't seem to mind his bewildered expression.

"It has to be him!" Wilbur suddenly yelled. "Dad, it has to be!"

Techno flinched, the loudness not appreciated even if he wasn't as miserable as before. The woman saw.

"Wilbur, look. He's fine, like we promised." She rubbed his cheek again, affectionately. "So you can go to bed now. We need to have a little talk with our guest."

"Wha-"

"That wasn't a suggestion," the father said. Techno noticed then he was in the room too. It was a small living room of some kind, though he could see several doors. "Come on, mate."

"Ugh, fine." Wilbur started to head towards one of the doors. Before he got there, he turned around, hand already on the knob. "But we're definitely keeping him, right?"

"We'll talk about this in the morning."

At his dad's words, Wilbur sighed but did leave. Techno sat up straighter, pushing away from the woman. It was hard at first because she was holding him, though then she reluctantly let him lean away.

"Uh, have you called my parents?" he asked. He hated how frail his voice sounded, scared.

"We shouldn't worry about that for now," the man said. He walked over to the couch, kneeling in front of it. "Are you hungry? I could make you some food. When was the last time you ate?"

"A while ago," Techno answered.

"I'll get you something then."

"I need to go to the police," Techno said, watching the man go. He tried to wiggle his way out of the woman's arms completely but she wouldn't let him go. "My parents are probably worried about me."

"Sweetheart, what is your name?" the woman asked. Techno craned his head to look up at her. Her eyes were a peculiar color of blue, close to purple.

"Techno."

"That's what we thought." The woman smiled wider, pleased with his answer. "We found your picture online. Though you look a little different now, don't you?"

Techno didn't get it. The meds didn't completely take away the headache.

"My name is Kristin," the woman continued. "You've met my son Wilbur, and my husband Phil. You don't need to worry anymore, you're safe with us now." Her hand gently touched his wrist, and the scar Techno had there from the chains. Ma and Pa took them off lately, but they used to cut into him constantly so Techno didn't know if the marks would ever go away.

"I… I don't-"

"The people who took you did this to you, right?" Kristin asked, voice dangerously low as her thumb ran slow circles along his skin. "That's no way to treat a child."

Techno swallowed. He always used to think Ma and Pa shouldn't do the things they did, but sometimes that became hard to believe. When they said they were treating him like they'd treat their real son - the boy who had died and who they had replaced with Techno - they said he should be grateful.

"We'll never treat you like that," Kristin promised.

Phil returned with a bowl of soup. He took a place on the other side of Techno, using the spoon to help him eat. Techno wanted to protest and say he could do it himself. But Kristin was holding him so tightly, and it felt nice to be cared for. So maybe complaining would make him rude. The soup was delicious anyway.

"T-thank you. For all of this," Techno managed to say between spoonfuls of them feeding him and doting over him. It was really weird. Though maybe not in a bad way. Techno wasn't sure.

It was so different from Ma and Pa though. And that meant it couldn't be all bad.

"Mate, you nearly gave me a heart attack." Phil laughed. "When you ran into the road like that…"

"Sorry," Techno said.

"Aw, sweetheart. No need to apologize. We know you were just scared." Kristin stroked his hair softly as she spoke.

"Yeah, no harm done. Looks like the worst you got is some bruises, by morning you'll be good as new," Phil said.

Techno licked at his lips. He was a little nauseous but he didn't want to tell them because he was scared they'd get upset. "And then you can take me to town?" he asked.

"To town?" Phil repeated, putting the empty bowl aside. Techno couldn't tell if he was actually confused by the question.

"So I can go to the police station," Techno said. "My parents-"

"Dear, do you know how old you are?" Kristin interrupted him.

Techno couldn't look back at her, soothed by the gentle touches of her fingers in his hair. Techno wanted to lean into it, but he was trying to think and answer. Which was harder than he expected.

Seeing him struggle, Kristin chuckled. It sounded a little sad, though.

"Techno, it's been almost four years since you've been taken."

Four years.

No, that… that couldn't be right. He knew it had been a long while. Techno knew the memories of his real parents became fuzzy and he'd grown a bit taller and it had been winter several times. But… But it couldn't be-

"And that means your parents are certainly not looking for you anymore," Kristin added with a smile. "So there's nothing that will take you away from us."

Techno's shoulders hunched up to his ears when he heaved. It caught him by surprise, a cough that turned liquid, soup spilling down his shirt and into his lap. A sharp inhale sent sour fluid into his throat, stinging at his nasal cavity. Then he vomited a second time.

Kristin didn't let go. She gently shushed him throughout.

"Fuck, he must have a concussion," Phil said.

"You did hit him with your car, dear," Kristin answered.

"Not on purpose."

"It will make him easier to handle, at least. Until he gets used to us."

"I'm sorry," Techno mumbled, too focused on his fear to comprehend their words. His eyes burned, hiccupy sobs threatening to break from his chest. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Please don't punish me, I'm sorry."

"No, sweetheart, no, it's okay. I told you, we're not like those people." Kristin rubbed his back. "We'll change your clothes and get you right to bed, okay? And then we can talk more about this when you feel better."

Too tired to protest, Techno could only cling to Phil as he was lifted into those arms once more. After hours of being cold, he wished he could burry into them forever.

They put him into a bed that was so soft, Techno couldn't help but curl up in it. And he could see Kristin smiling from the doorway.

"I hate that we're proving Wilbur right," Phil told her.

She laughed. It was a sound much easier to fall asleep to than the leaking pipes of the basement Techno was used to.