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❝ and what hurts the most is
people can go, from people
you KNOW, to people you
DON'T ! ❞

people you know, selena gomez.

AT THE MENTION of the baseball player's name, jaelin tensed. a million questions ran through her mind but one stood out: is bruce really alive?

the baseball player was caught off guard. he hadn't remembered his name the second her got there a while ago. like he said, it's the first thing they lose.

"..yeah..bruce." he said as if he just got told the biggest news ever, "i-i'm bruce. your arm is mint. you almost had me."

"did the phone ring for you?"

"it rang, but none of us heard it. just you." bruce told him with an unseeable frown, "the grabber hears the phone too, but he doesn't want to believe it."

"why are you calling me?"

"..your arm is mint. you almost had me. i'm glad it's you."

a moment of silence passed until bruce spoke again, "finney?"

"yeah?"

"there's a dirt section on the floor of the hallway where the tile is loose." bruce started as finney turned his head to see it. jaelin followed his gaze towards the hallway floor, still confused as ever.

"okay.."

"dig down underneath the foundation. i tried, but there wasn't time for me to dig up and out the other side."

"will we have enough time?"

bruce ignored the question, "give the phone to aylin."

finney shifted on his feet but nonetheless brought the phone towards jaelin. the girl looked at it with raised brows.

"he wants to talk to you." finney told her. she carefully took the phone into her hands and brought it to her ear, as if a single pressure on it would break it.

she hesitated before speaking, "..hello?"

"aylin." bruce quietly said. she couldn't see it, but a small smile formed on his face at the sound of her voice.

jaelin's breath hitched, "brucey? how..how is this possible? are you alive?"

"still using that nickname, huh?"

jaelin let out a breathy chuckle, glad that she was able to hear his voice one more time. though, she remembered that was one of the last things he said to her before her went missing. that was enough to make her frown.

"i just wanted to say thank you. for believing in me. even if it was baseball, or something else." he said sincerely. jaelin put her hand over her mouth as she felt the tears forming in her eyes.

"if only i walked with you to your house, brucey. it could've been me instead. you don't deserve this." her voice got quieter.

"no, and you don't either. it's not your fault."

jaelin wiped the tears away from her eyes and took a deep breath in and out. she didn't know how much she needed those words from him; the guilt was eating her alive.

"you're going to make it out. both of you." he affirmed. jaelin looked towards finney who patiently waited for her to finish the call.

she smiled slightly and nodded, "yeah..i'm sure we will. i just wish you were here. well, not here, but you know..alive."

"..me too, aylin. but this is me saying a proper good bye."

jaelin's heart dropped, "wait, can't you stay on the phone longer? please don't go, bruce, please."

"..we'll always look out for you."

at this point, jaelin had tears spilling out already. she was desperate for him to stay on the phone, even if it was only for a minute or two. she had too much to say in such little time.

"bruce, please. just a little longer. what do you mean we? do you mean the other boys? will i be able to talk to you again?"

she was greeted with silence, and then the sound of the line ending. bruce was no longer on the phone.

jaelin shook her head, "hello? bruce? are you there? bruce?"

when she finally accepted he wasn't there anymore, she wiped her tears and put the phone back. finney came up to her and gave her a quick hug before going over to the hallway.

jaelin followed him once she calmed down. she saw him kneel down and break off a loose tile on the floor, revealing dirt underneath.

"bruce said to dig down underneath the foundation." finney informed her whilst breaking off more loose tiles.

jaelin nodded and knelt down next to him, helping him dig out the dirt. it was like a system: finney would remove the dirt and jaelin would take it and flush it down the toilet.

although they did this for a while, it was a decent distraction from earlier and a good way for jaelin to try and clear her head.

once they dug a decent foot or two down, finney got one of the rolled up carpets from next to the toilet and the two used it to cover up the hole.

the mere fabric also made jaelin grimace, knowing what else the grabber used it for.

BOTH TEENS WERE sat against the wall furthest from the phone. finney rarely got sleep, not wanting to miss another phone call. even though jaelin told him the ringing would definitely wake him up.

so alas, finney was sat there, staring at the black phone whilst jaelin fiddled with her necklace. it was around morning time, and the two were starving.

suddenly, the sound of footsteps walking down the stairs was heard. finney and jaelin both scrambled to get up, not wanting to be anywhere near the grabber. they stood in front of the mattress as the door opened.

the two saw the grabber with his usual full mask on with a tray in his hands, "i made you two some breakfast."

the two teens shared a look as jaelin pulled a face. sure, they were hungry but who knows what the grabber could've put in that.

"what did you put in that?" it was like finney read her thoughts and voiced it out loud.

the grabber looked down at the food, then back up at them, "salt and pepper."

jaelin wanted to laugh at his bluntness. couldn't he have put a bit of seasoning at least?

though, if he really didn't poison the food, she'll take what she can get. she couldn't be picky in her situation.

the grabber looked at them before placing it on the floor, "oh, eat it. don't eat it." he then looked up from the tray, "you're already down here. what do i need to drug you for?"

the grabber then turned around and left, leaving the tray of food on the floor. it wasn't until jaelin took a good look at the food that something about it made her rack her brain.

she remembered something about sprite and scrambled eggs, but she just couldn't put her finger on it. she stared at the food on the tray, trying to scan her memories for where she heard something about the particular food.

meanwhile, finney noticed that the grabber didn't lock the door. he narrowed his eyes before going past jaelin and towards the door. he put his hand on the triangular shaped handle, only being able to open it an inch before being cut off.

he heard the sounds of ringing again and abruptly turned around, gazing upon the black phone again. at this, jaelin was brought out of her trance and focused back on finney.

she watched him hesitantly let go of the door handle and make his way towards the phone. she look at the handle in confusion, not knowing why he was by the door in the first place.

she guessed the phone rang again and followed him. he picked up the phone and brought it up to his ear. as usual, she stood by the side, hoping that whoever was on the other side could help them.

luckily, that's exactly what the paperboy intended to do.

"hello..?"

"don't go upstairs."

ׅ𖥔 ۫ iloveblondead speaks ! ⋄ 𓍯

PAPERBOYS TIME TO
SHINEEE

i love aylin sm like girly
is legit kidnapped & still
criticises the food LMFAO
tbh as she should that shit
looks nasty😭 & finn gobbled
that up w a side of toilet water
HELP ME

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