The room was suffocatingly silent, rain softly pattering against the windowpane. Simon sat on the edge of his bed, his mind racing. Fingers drumming nervously on his knees, he glanced repeatedly at his phone, willing it to light up with a response.

"Come on, come on, come on..." he desperately muttered to himself.

Hie was tempted to send another message, but resisted. He'd already reached out once, and the silence that followed weighed heavily on him.