“What happened, dude?” Asher asked.

“They asked if I’d like to stay anonymous when they release the news.”

“What’d you say?” They all looked over curiously.

“I said I’d like to stay anonymous.”

Dilly scratched his chin while pondering, “I think that’s for the best. With the UEE coming up and the death of your grandfather just recently, I don't think being on the news would be good for your mental health.”

“Why do you look so pale though?” Troy asked while poking his food.

William paused while getting more hashbrowns.

“I was just surprised to hear from the police. I don’t think you need to go over to my place anytime this week since the case is still ongoing.”

“Sounds good.”

They finished breakfast and headed off to buy things for William to pack before sending him off.

“I really have to thank you Troy, I’ll be sure to pay you back sometime soon.”

“No problem man, just think of it as an early birthday gift.”

William hugged Troy and the rest of the crew before hopping onto the bus.

The bus thrusted forward and the people on the bus complained. The wheels kicked the dirt up and they took off.

As the trees flew past his thoughts wandered back to earlier.

They had found his neighbors wife murdered next door. His neighbor had planned to pin it on him. He felt terrible that he didn’t go over and say something to the arguing couple.

Maybe if he had stopped him from getting angered to the point of killing his wife she’d still be alive. He had met her on only a few occasions but he still felt terrible.

She was a frail and short lady who loved to cook, and she had prepared cookies when she’d first moved in. Since they lived so close to each other she would drop off food if they had extras.

He didn’t cook much so he was happy to get a home cooked meal.

They stopped here and there and the hours flashed past. His stomach was so empty it stung, he took out a sandwich he prepared earlier.

The bread was soft. His mouth watered as he took a bite.

The cucumbers were sweet, and the lemon juice added a tang that the mayonnaise and cream cheese creaminess helped to dilute.

It was perfect for a light snack.

He ate his two sandwiches down to the crumbs and watched as the buildings became progressively smaller.

As the cities became towns he slowly started to doze off.

As his eyes closed shut the bus shook like a storm out on the sea and his eyes flew open.

His head slammed forward hitting the back of the seat in front of him.

His nose made a cracking sound and blood spilled from his nostrils coloring his shirt.

“Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck! It hurts!” His eyes stung and he let loose a couple of tears in pain.

Everyone on the bus stood up and made their way outside. As he stood up and was pushed by the crowd his nose dripped blood.

“Jeez you're getting blood on my bus. Here take this tissue.”

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The driver threw a crumpled napkin in his hands and went back to leading the people out of the bus. As his feet landed on the ground a woman's scream pierced everyone’s ears.

William grimaced and looked over, a deer had smashed the front of the bus.

“Great! Haha, my bus is fucking destroyed. How am I supposed to fix this?!” The driver laughed angrily and kicked the front tire of the bus with his shoe.

A dull ‘pop’ rang and the wheel let out a whistle as air slowly seeped out. The driver's face went red and he looked on the verge of exploding.

The man let out a long exhale of breath and continued examining his bus.

“Looks like we’ll have to call for help. Does anyone’s phone have service?”

Everyone began holding their phones to the sky and walking around. As more and more people couldn’t get service they began to panic.

People couldn’t help but complain as the cold slowly eroded their warm layers of clothing.

“I got service!” A woman yelled and began to call for help from a nearby town. Everyone’s mood lifted and they all cheered.

Soon a bus met them at the hillside and people got on.

From there was smooth sailing, they all got a place at an inn in the town and laid down for the night. The new bus would help the rest of the people get to where they were going.

William took out his phone from his bag and quickly dialed a number.

“Sorry I was held back. Our bus ran into a deer.”

“It’s fine, I can only stay so many days in town though, so you need to get here by at least tomorrow.”

“Got it.”

After a few more minutes catching up, he hung up and started to unpack his things.

Tomorrow came quickly, he had his complementary breakfast in the lobby and began boarding the bus soon after.

Through many bumps and turns he finally made it to the little town of Merlo.

Almost everything looked the same as the day he left.

The town only had six buildings still running and a few houses. The young men and women had already left and the older generation was slowly dwindling.

As his bus came to a stop and he hopped off he was crushed in the arms of a burly man.

“Willie my boy! It’s been so long! Who knew you’d come to visit after so long? What’s it been? Three years?”

“Yep, three! Please let go of me now, I’m suffocating.”

The burly man let go of him and William deeply sucked in a breath. His face was already blue.

“Willie, I heard what happened to old Bahis. He was a one in a million person, I don’t think I’ll ever find someone as great as him in this universe. So Willie I hope ya live up to his great expectations. Have I ever told ya-“

“Yes yes yes, you’ve told me all the stories of grandpa when he was kid. Shouldn’t we be getting to the old house, Mr.Albert?” William had to stop the old chatterbox else he’ll be sitting here till dark.

“Let’s get a move on then!” With a smile that made him look like an idiot, the older man raced to the stables, William could only stumble along with his weak stamina.

By the time they made it to the stables William was already doubling over trying to catch his breath.

They hopped on their horses, William who hadn’t rode in a while was slow. The chilly wind smacked their faces like tiny spears and their breath trailed behind them.

As they rode through the dirt path and made it to the house, they both hopped off.

“I’ll leave ya to it for now then. My grandson is coming down in a few hours so I’ll ask him to help ya out later.”

With that Albert ran off with his horse.

William put away the horse in the old barn and went inside the house as he cleaned the dust and grime away he found jewelry and other trinkets that brought back memories.

Especially the old necklace of a tree. It was passed down from his grandfather to his eldest son to the next then till the next.

He had wondered what had happened to the old thing, it was his luck to find it under the old sofa and in the little box under the floorboards.

As he continued to wipe and move things, someone knocked on the door. He opened it without much thought and was soon once again smothered.

“Will! It’s been forever!”

“Ugh, let me go Finny!”

“You’ve been gone for how long, and this is how ya treat your friend?” Finny shed fake tears and let him go.

Taking a step back William could see how much the young man grew. Finny was still growing even as an adult, only three years had passed and he grew another four inches. He stood at a whopping 6’4.

The two caught up a bit and then went to clean. By the time they were done half the house had been emptied and the valuables were put away in a safe.

Finny soon left after giving him food supplies.

William walked into the backyard and tightly tucked the coat into his body. It was cold but William just had to look at the old river bed.

With a flashlight in hand he stared at the water's surface, he could only smile in nostalgia.

This peace didn’t last long though.