CLOSED STARTER | @ravenousdiaster

This isn’t real. The one thought running through Douglas Blackwood’s mind in that moment. It couldn’t be - it can’t be. His best friend was missing. How was one supposed to live with that? You hear about it too often: you watch it on the news, see it printed in newspapers, missing person posters planted around the city, you share the posts from pleading, desperate family members to spread the word. But you never expect it to be you or the people you care about. Until it is. He should have known when he never replied to his countless text messages, or returned numerous voicemails that something wasn’t right. The knock at his front door with policemen on his doorstep wanting to ask him questions was what finally made him realise that this... This was all tragically real.  Dougie was trying his hardest to keep himself together, to stay strong, but it was all he could think about. He couldn’t sleep, couldn’t eat, could barely breathe; suffice to say, he wasn’t coping very well. Unable to keep still, his footsteps brought him in front of the door of his best friend’s girlfriend, a shaky hand balled into a fist knocking against the door. He couldn’t imagine what she must have been feeling right now, and despite how he felt, sick to his stomach, he needed to see how she was doing. If he could do anything to help. (He doubted it.) Shifting his weight from one foot to the other as his heart pounded against his chest, the door opened shortly. Before she could get a word in edgeways, he was already off, the words fell freely from his lips.

“Hey,” Dougie managed to croak out, lips forced up into a weak, watery smile. Clearing his throat then, tears already stinging his eyes, he continued, “I’m sorry for just - for just uh, you know, showing up here unannounced. ah -”  He exhaled a shaky breath, words getting caught into his throat. Keep it together, Doug. He carried on. “I just wanted -- I -- how are you holding up?” Truthfully, he didn’t know where else to go. All he knew was that he didn’t want to be by himself, so sought out the only other person who could completely relate.