"You left him behind."

"SHUT UP!!!"

Jonah was shaking, tears flooded his eyes as his stomach turned. All he heard was static everywhere. And that stupid fucking voice. Jonah slammed on the break, opened the door, and vomited on the paved road. While outside the car, he heard a voice come over the radio. It wasn't the alternate, it was...Adam.

"Jonah?...You there?..."

Jonah tried to answer, but he couldn't get back to the radio before he heard static again.

Adam sat in the cold, lonely basement. Static flooded the room, flooded his thoughts. All he could see was the face that caused him this torment. The face who took him away, who made his mother take her own life, the face who ruined his life. He assumed his friend, his companion Jonah, had left him long ago. He had told him too, anyway. He tried to reach him over the radio but he got nothing in response. Nothing is worth the risk. No one is coming to save you. That's all he heard, that stupid fucking voice. Adam reached over and picked the radio up into his shaky, cold hands. He turned it back on, about to attempt one last time, or to at least apologize to his friend. The other radio turned on. At first, all he heard was static. Then...then crying. He heard crying. He had heard these cries before. Jonah? Was this Jonah? The static came back and drowned out the sobs. "Jonah?! Jonah please answer me...Jonah?"

Jonah had turned the car around. That voice didn't go away.

"He's dead. He's dead because of you."

He had heard Adam over the radio. He was alive. How had he stayed alive? He was always so fearless, was that it?

"I'M NOT FUCKING SCARED OF YOU!"

He tried so hard to sound brave, he needed to be strong. He needed to be fearless. He needed to be serious, for Adam's sake. His driving was reckless, he almost crashed several times. But nothing would stop him from saving his best friend. His ONLY friend. He just wanted them both to leave this god forsaken place, get some food and go back to their run down apartment. Just chill out and smoke. But this was real life. This wasn't a fun little fantasy.

Jonah finally made it back to the "client's" house. He had already figured it out, this wasn't a client. This whole thing was a trap. A trap he almost lost his life to. And now he has to make sure his best friend doesn't meet that fate either. He grabbed the gun they had kept underneath the driver's seat, and opened the door with force. He entered the house, and looked for the basement in a panic. "ADAM?! ADAM WHERE ARE YOU?!"

The TV kept flashing. That's all he could see. Static, then images, then him. He couldn't look away. This was where he had to be. He had no choice, unless he wanted to risk his own life. He wished he had left. Listened to Jonah. All he could hear was static and the voices. If only he could go back in time. He wished his mother was still here. He wished his friend was still here.

The basement door slammed open with great force, creating a loud banging sound. Footsteps rushed down the stairs, until they stopped right behind him.

"Adam?! Adam, are you okay?!"

The voice was that of his friend, Jonah. But he couldn't believe it. They said he left, they said he wouldn't come back. That he died. He didn't move, he felt like he couldn't. His head hurt. His eyes felt like they were going to explode. Everything hurt, he felt paralyzed.

"Adam, it's me, Jonah. It's me. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said any of what I said. I should've helped you and took you more seriously. But now we have to go. I'm not losing you to these...things. You can hate me forever, you don't have to forgive me. You can even leave, but right now we need to LEAVE."

"Go away."

"What?"

"Just save yourself. This is where I belong. I did the right thing, Jonah."

"You have to be kidding..."

"FUCKING LEAVE! Nothing is worth the risk, why did you risk your life?! Just go save yourself. Just GO!"

Jonah grabbed Adam by the wrist and pulled him up, forcing him to look at him in the eye.

"Adam, fucking LISTEN! I'm not leaving, not now, not ever. Either you leave with me or we BOTH die here. And I'd prefer we both leave alive."

"Jonah-"

"Adam, this isn't up for fucking debate."

Adam looked back at the TV, entranced by the static. He needed to be there.

"Adam...Adam you leave me no choice."

Jonah held the gun up to the TV, and pulled the trigger. The glass shattered, darkening the room and making a horrible, loud noise from the gunshot and glass shattering. Adam began shaking, he collapsed and began trying to pick up the pieces, and put them back together, cutting open his hands.

"ADAM!"

Jonah grabbed him once more, and dragged him up the basement stairs and outside of the door. He shoved Adam into the passenger seat and closed his door before entering the driver's side and collapsing into the seat.

"Jonah...Jonah I'm sorry-"

"Adam, save that for later. Getting us out of here is my only priority. It's okay. We're going to be okay." He reached over and put on the seatbelt of his friend before putting on his own and starting the car. He stepped on the gas pedal and began driving. Adam was breathing heavily, shaking and sounding sick. This was so unlike him. Having to hear this sound was the worst sound ever. He looked over at his friend. Somehow, the circles under his eyes got darker. His tear-stained face looked exhausted, as if he was about to fall asleep any moment.

"You can go ahead and sleep, we're safe. We'll be okay, I'll wake you up if I need to."

"Are you sure?..."

"Yes, I'm sure. Please, just rest."

Adam laid his head against the window before finally passing out.

Jonah found a parking lot, mostly abandoned. He parked the car and laid back in the seat for a few seconds before everything fully hit him. He opened the door and threw up on the road again. He started crying, trying to stay as silent as possible. He was exhausted. He hadn't slept in days, neither of them had eaten in a while either. His stomach hurt, it was turning at the thought of all the "what if"s in his mind. What if he had left him? What if he came back and he really was dead? What if HE had died before he could go back? What if their last exchanged words were really an argument? It didn't matter. He had his best friend back, even if just temporary. He sat back down and laid back. He had no plans to sleep, he just wanted Adam to have enough time to sleep. He grabbed a water bottle from the cup holder, took a sip, and sighed. It was 7am now. Time was going by so fast. Slipping away from his grasp of his senses.

"Goodnight, Adam..."

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