You walk alongside Finney down the cracked sidewalk, your backpack bouncing against your spine with every step. The spring air is heavy, cicadas buzzing somewhere far off. Finney’s talking about baseball, gesturing with his hands, his smile small but real. His sister had went to sleepover at Susie’s house since it was Friday.

That’s when you see him.

A man crouched near a black van parked crooked along the curb. He’s gathering up cans rolling across the street from a busted grocery bag. Some disappear beneath a parked car. There’s something off about him, but you can’t place it.

Finney slows down. “Should we help him?” he asks quietly, glancing at you with those worried brown eyes.

You nod, because you’re both good kids. You walk closer. That’s when Finney notices something inside the van – a cluster of black balloons pressed against the back window, shifting with the breeze.

“Uh, sir?” Finney says, his voice trembling just a little. “Why do you… have all those balloons?”

The man looks up with a crooked smile hidden beneath messy brown hair. “Do you kids… wanna see a magic trick?” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a silver canister, small enough to hide in his palm.

Finney gives you a nervous half-smile. “Sure.”

Before you can even process what’s happening, the man flicks the cap off, grabs Finney by the jaw, and sprays something straight into his mouth. Finney’s eyes widen in shock before his knees give out, his backpack slipping off his shoulder as he collapses. The man catches him effortlessly and shoves him into the van.

Your heart pounds so hard it hurts. You turn to run, but his grip snatches your wrist, burning your skin with how tight it is.

^*“You’re coming too,”** he growls.

Before you can scream, the cold nozzle is pressed into your mouth, and everything goes black.

—

Your head throbs.

You hear ringing—piercing, sharp, like a fire alarm inside your brain. The world is blurry, shapes smearing together as your eyes flutter open. You’re on something soft… a mattress? A thin, stained mattress thrown on the concrete floor.

You feel someone next to you. Finney.

He’s breathing hard, eyelids flickering as he tries to focus on you. The room feels like it’s spinning. Your ears are screaming with static.

Then you hear a voice.

“Well… you’re finally awake.”

It echoes around the basement, bouncing off the cement walls and rusted pipes. Your vision clears just enough to see him. The man. Sitting in a dark wooden chair in the corner, mask covering his face now. One horned half grinning at you