I'm Your Boogeyman

October 21, 2013

A/N: Happy New Year! So far, mine has been. My snowman (there's snow in Washington State, finally) hasn't melted or been killed by a ruthless child or car door yet, and that's kind of my only worry. In loving memory of Gerard the Snowman, who was brutally murdered and enucleated (and eaten), I built Kurt the snowman. It was Jamie, but then I decided to call it Kurt in loving memory of Kurt Cobain. 

Breakfast the next morning was awkward. There was no real reason, it just was. Aunt A/N looked sleep-deprived, Uncle U/N looked worried, and you were curious. You hadn't slept because of what Michael was hiding. You really wanted to know. You needed to know, for the sake of... well, you didn't know what the sake was for yet, but you needed to know. 

"I think I might go to Wally's today, get some stuff for Cooper. Food, a collar, some toys, that sort of thing." You announced, biting into a solemn-tasting pancake. 

"Okay. We've got more errands to run today, so text us when you leave and when you come back." Aunt A/N replied. "We won't be back until late. Probably eleven or so." 

"Well, it's not like I have anyone to throw a party with, so the house should still be standing when you get back." 

You all sat in silence after no one laughed at your remark. Suddenly, something interrupted your train of thought. 

A very loud beeping, followed by something a flatline tone came from all of your phones. An AMBER Alert. 

AMBER ALERT

NAME: Y/N L/N

MISSING: 9/31/2013

AGE MISSING: Y/A

AGE NOW: Y/A

SEX: Female

HAIR: H/C

HEIGHT: Y/H

FROM: H/T, H/S

COUNTY: Y/C

RACE: Y/R

EYES: E/C

WEIGHT: Y/W

LAST SEEN:  Livingston County, Haddonfield, IL

A/N: Y/A is Your Age, H/C is Hair Color, Y/H is Your Height, H/T, H/S is Hometown, Home state, Y/C is Your Country, Y/R is Your Race (i.e Caucasian, African-American, etc), E/C is eye color, Y/W is Y/W. Yes, this is missing child AMBER alert form. For the U.S, anyways. I can't confirm any other countries. 

How were you missing if you were seated right here? You had been seen yesterday, had you not? Yes; yes, you were. You saw many people, and, unless you were a ghost, they saw you, too. You'd been to lunch, to see a movie, and you'd walked all over the place. You were not missing. 

"Oh, great. We gotta go." Uncle U/N hurriedly said, standing and dumping his pancakes into the trash. "Y/N, go grab a hoodie and get into the car." 

You stayed seated. You were stubborn, and you weren't going anywhere until you knew why you needed to go. 

"No. I'm not going until you tell me why." You folded your arms, and sat with an unamused look on your face. 

Truth be told, you were afraid. That was a given. What wasn't given was just about everything else about this situation. If you were missing (which, you weren't), why wasn't the alert sent out earlier? Anybody in town could call the police and say, "Hey, Y/N's not missing. I saw her at the theatre yesterday!", so why didn't they? 

"Get in the car and I'll tell you then. We don't have time for this." He began to raise his voice. "Now, get a hoodie and get in the car!" 

"No!" 

"Y/N, don't argue. Just, do what your Uncle says and we'll explain everything. I promise." Aunt A/N cut in. 

She had a much softer approach, which was different. Usually, she seemed uptight. U/N was the relaxed one. It was as if they had just switched minds. 

"Go on, everything will be fine." 

Almost as if you were in a trance-like state, you rose from your chair and drifted into your room. You didn't want to, but you did. You didn't just grab a hoodie, though. You grabbed a backpack. In that back, you put a flashlight, your wallet, and shoved the box of items (documents, photos, and all) into the bag. It wasn't a large box, and fit well. You grabbed the hoodie and slipped it on, as well. 

Just as you reached for your door, you thought. Why had you put the flashlight in there? 

Were you planning on running away? Yeah, I think you are. But, won't you get found? Not if you do it right. What else do I need if I run away? Oh, you should get a first aid kit. Maybe a knife, too. Yeah, just in case. And running shoes. You need those. 

Before you could even process your thoughts, you were putting on running shoes. 

What if this is the wrong choice? No, it's not. It'll be safer. You don't know what's happening. U/N is planning something. He's bad! You need to get away. But, what about A/N? What about Cooper? A/N will be fine. A/N had a dog. His old leash and collar are under her bed. 

How did you know that? How did you know any of this? It doesn't matter. Just get out!

The next thing you knew, you were laying on the ground beside your Aunt's side of the bed. Sure enough, a box was there, and it was labeled 'Wally'. It contained the leash, you realized upon opening it. But, the collar was small. 

Her dog died when it was a puppy. 

How did the dog die? How do you think? I don't know. That's for the better, then. Go get the first aid kit. It's under the kitchen sink. Oh, and there's a pocket knife in the drawer on U/N's side of the bed. Get that first. 

You grabbed the leash, collar, and the pocket knife. It had your father's initials on it. Why does he have this? Use your imagination, it's not important right now. Now, the kit?  Right. The kit. And Cooper. Get the kit first. 

"Y/N, are you ready?" Aunt A/N asked as you declined the stairs. 

Suddenly, your trance-state broke. 

"No. I'm not going anywhere without Cooper." 

A/N sighed and looked at the puppy, who was sitting by a vent. "There's a leash-" 

"And a collar under your bed. I know. I have it." You interrupted. 

"How did you know that?" She asked. 

"I dropped my phone while I was in your room once and I saw it." You lied. 

She didn't question it. She just shook her head and headed towards the bathroom. "U/N is out back. He's on the phone. Wait in the car." 

"Cooper, come here, buddy. We're gonna go on a walk." You coaxed Cooper towards you, and the collar slid on. It fit well. You clipped on the leash and walked him over to the the sink. You put the first aid kit in your backpack and stepped out front. 

You took a deep breath and looked around. You glanced at the car, back out the house, and booked it.