"Friends for life!"
"Yeah… for life."
The two young men sat in the dark, their laughter low and easy, the kind shared between souls who have weathered too much together. For a moment, peace settled over them like a heavy blanket, pressing down on the silence that filled the space around them. They were alone, far from the world, nestled next to the crumbling walls of an abandoned hospital, where shadows pooled in every corner, and the air was thick with a stillness that felt wrong, almost suffocating.
Then the silence shattered.
Ethan’s scream sliced through the air, raw and sudden. He clutched a crumpled napkin to his arm, blood seeping through his fingers, dark and urgent. The laughter was gone, replaced by a cold dread that settled in Alden’s chest. What had happened here? What kind of twisted bond were they caught in? Alden wanted to look away, but there was something magnetic about the scene—a hint of danger, a question left hanging in the dim light.
To understand, we need to go back. Let me take you to day 6,200 of this story.
Ethan and Alden—inseparable since grade school. They were each other’s shadow, closer than brothers. They shared dreams, secrets, and the burdens of their lives. But even the closest friendships carry secrets, and even the truest bonds can crack under the weight of what’s left unspoken.
Alden was ambitious, his dreams as vast as the sky, but he was cautious—wary of risking too much, afraid of reaching for something that might pull him under. Ethan, though, was different. The frustration of poverty simmered inside him, morphing into an obsession for wealth, an almost desperate hunger to escape the confines of their small town. That hunger drove him down darker paths, to drugs and risky schemes that Alden couldn’t understand but felt compelled to stick by.
On that fateful night, Ethan had a plan to steal equipment from the old, abandoned hospital—a desperate scheme that he promised would pay off. “Come on, Alden,” he had said, the excitement crackling in his voice. “This is our shot. We’re just gonna grab some stuff, sell it off, and we’ll have enough to get out of here.” His eyes glowed with ambition and something deeper, something darker.
“Are you sure about this?” Alden’s voice had been hesitant, a shadow of doubt flickering behind his eyes.
“It’s a quick in-and-out. No one will even notice we were there,” Ethan assured him with a grin, waving off his concerns.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Reluctantly, Alden followed Ethan into the darkened corridors, where broken equipment and dust-filled air told stories of a place long forgotten. For a moment, he could almost believe in the thrill, the feeling that maybe this could be their break. But that feeling was fleeting. They had barely gathered what they needed when the flash of blue and red lights illuminated the windows, the wail of sirens piercing the still night.
“Run!” Ethan shouted, taking off with Alden close behind, panic flooding his veins. They sprinted through the shadows, the narrow corridors funneling their desperation. Alden struggled to keep up as Ethan led the way, his heart pounding, adrenaline and fear mingling in his veins.
The cops were gaining on them, their footsteps echoing down the hallways, closing in. Ethan threw a glance over his shoulder, his face twisted in determination. Then, as they burst out of the hospital doors and into the moonlit night, Ethan did something unexpected. He turned, hurling insults and taunts at the cops, his voice carrying through the stillness.
“Come on, try to catch me!” he yelled, his voice laced with defiance. “Think you can keep up?” His insults were deliberate, his eyes flicking toward Alden for a brief second—a signal, an unspoken plea for him to keep going. Alden understood; Ethan was giving him a chance to escape.
Alden’s heart twisted as he continued running, propelled forward by Ethan’s sacrifice. He sprinted through the darkness, his footsteps heavy with guilt and fear, the sounds of pursuit fading behind him. He barely dared to breathe until he was far enough away, hidden from sight. When the silence finally settled, the weight of what had just happened bore down on him, pressing against his chest.
Hours passed before he could muster the courage to try reaching Ethan. He dialed his friend’s number over and over, but each call went unanswered. The dread that filled him was like a pit, deepening with each failed attempt. What had happened to Ethan after he’d drawn the cops away?
Haunted by the unanswered questions, Alden returned to the scene as dawn began to break, the dim light casting long shadows across the broken pavement. The silence was oppressive, amplifying the dread that gnawed at him. As he searched the area, his heart caught in his throat when he finally spotted a figure slumped against the side of the hospital.
“Ethan!” he cried, rushing over to his friend. Ethan’s face was pale, his arm smeared with blood, and his eyes were clouded with pain. He was clutching a crumpled napkin to his arm, the makeshift bandage soaked through.
“Just a scratch,” Ethan muttered, his voice strained. “I took a fall while I was running… thought I’d lost them.” He looked up at Alden, a weak smile breaking through the pain. “Guess I wasn’t fast enough.”
Alden felt a surge of relief mixed with anger. “Why did you do that?” he demanded, his voice barely above a whisper. “Why did you risk yourself like that?”
Ethan’s smile faded, replaced by a weariness that seemed to reach into his very soul. “Because someone had to make it out, Alden. One of us has to get out of here, and I couldn’t let them take you down with me.”
Alden’s throat tightened, words of gratitude and frustration tangling together, making it impossible to speak. He sat beside Ethan, his friend who had risked everything to buy him a chance, and for a moment, they sat in silence, the weight of their choices pressing down on them.
“Friends for life,” Alden murmured, his voice thick with emotion. Ethan’s eyes met his, and despite everything, a flicker of their old bond shone through.
“Yeah… for life,” Ethan replied, his voice barely a whisper, but filled with a quiet resilience that cut through the pain.
They sat together, side by side, as the first light of dawn washed over them, illuminating the path they had chosen—the path that had brought them to this moment, and the uncertain future that lay ahead.