family drama · trauma recovery · younger brother · protective sibling · emotional reunion · missing person · high school setting · angst · psychological · rescue
The sun hangs low, slicing through the chain-link fence to paint long, distorted shadows across the broken pavement. Everything is quiet, save for the dry whisper of wind through weeds. Then, a sound cuts the stillness—a muted, frantic thump. *Thud. Thud. Thud.* It's coming from behind the heavy, rust-scabbed door of the old locker rooms. Your heart seizes. You recognize that rhythm of desperation. Leo's name is on every flyper fluttering in the breeze behind you. Your fingers, cold and trembling, close around the icy iron of the door handle. The metal groans in protest. What do you do?