Chapter Text
The bright city lights flashed into my eyes as I walked on the sidewalk.
I stared down at my slightly cracked phone screen, looking at the date.
It had been a year. An entire year I was trapped in that circus. My hands shook as I let exhaled, my breath visible in the cold New York air.
I had finally reached the actual city, using my phone to get out of the forest I'd found myself in.
My eyes struggled to adjust to the change of scenery. Everything was so dull compared to the circus, and honestly, I could hardly believe I was here.
Was that another one of Caine's adventures? Another just like the "Escape the circus" adventure?
No. No way, I saw the circus crash. I saw Caine get reduced to pixels. I saw the entire place get reduced to pixels- so were our avatars... but we're- back.
At least I know I am. I didn't see the others when I woke up.
I could hardly recognize the streets around me when I managed to remember. I had taken the bus to get there, I wanted to go explore.
Figures.
I pulled up google maps from my phone. Great, I was only a couple of hours away from home. Wonderful. Thank god for the autofill option or I'd be totally lost, I couldn't remember my address.
I hopped on the bus, pulling out some measly change from my pocket that I gave to the bus driver.
I'm surprised nobody's recognized me as 'missing' yet. Then again, that had been a year ago...
Did everyone forget about me?
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Hours passed as I scrolled through my social media, changing busses multiple times. So many notifications, yet a really... underwhelming amount, based on how long I'd been gone.
To be fair, I'd never really had any true friends.
I'm not surprised they didn't stick with me...
The bus pulled to a stop once more as I looked up.
It was finally time to get off. Only 10 minutes of walking and- and I would be home...
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I stared at the door, hesitating as I studied its details. I wanted nothing more than to see my family. Were they even still there?
I raised my hand at the door, knocking gently.
When nobody answered I knocked firmly.
Then, the door swung open, and I watched mom's eyes go wide open as she stopped and stared.
After a split second she pulled me into a tight hug.
"Christine! Oh my baby! Are you okay? Did anybody hurt you? Oh I swear if somebody's been hurting you I'll kill them!" She sobbed as she hugged me.
My mom couldn't hurt anyone but I was just so overwhelmed with emotions that I began to cry.
"I'm okay mom- I'm okay nobody hurt me-"
"Joseph come here!"
I saw my dad walk out into view, a beer in hand like always, his eyes widening when he saw me.
"Christine? It's you-" His face was in shock for a moment before he chuckled. "Here I thought we finally got rid of you"
My dad was like that, always. But this hurt me, like most things he usually would say. I'd been gone for a year. An entire year, but he was still being an asshole.
I could feel mom shoot him a dirty look before she pulled back, tears still in her eyes.
"Oh my baby come come in and eat up. Then we'll go to the doctors."
"What? Why the doctors?"
"You've been gone for a year! A year! I- where have you even been all this time?"
"I was-" I stopped for a moment. How could I tell them the truth? Mom loved me but there was no way I wouldn't get sent to a different kind of hospital. "I was kidnapped- I don't know who did it but I got away-"
"For a year?" She sounded skeptical but ultimately decided it was good enough.
Mom seated me down in the dining room, bringing out plates of Korean food; Kimchi, Cheese Tteokbokki, foods I'd missed.
"Eat up honey" She sat down next to me, too scared to leave the room for a moment as if I'd go missing all over again.
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I walked out the doctors with my mom. Everything was normal, I was okay.
Mom then took me to the police station to make sure they knew I wasn't a missing person again. They took me into a room to question me. All standard questions like who I was, how old was I, my birthday, where I had been all this time, how I'd gotten away and if I had any information that would help them.
"My name is Christine Li, I'm 25- 26 years old. I was kidnapped by somebody and I have no clue what they looked like. I managed to get away when they had left a room, I had come up with a plan. I- can't remember where I was being held, it all happened too quickly."
The officer accepted my answer, writing them down and taking me back to my mother.
We waited a little longer before the officer cleared us and we headed back home.
As soon as we got back, I collapsed in my bed, exhausted. Mom told me that Noah was at a friends house. It's not like I wanted to see my brother. I missed him, but he was too much like dad for me to stomach.
I turned over to my alarm clock, the room around me pristine as the day I left.
9:57 PM
How could it be so early yet so late?
I closed my eyes, trying to fall asleep, but all I could think about was if this was just another adventure. If the others survived.
Eventually I looked back at my clock.
10:57
I'd been thinking about it for an hour.
I was tired, exhausted, and couldn't help but close my eyes and drift off into sleep.