I was a normal kid, I always hung around smart friends and would always do activities that aren't dangerous or we knew could put us in bad places. We all cared about each other and our futures. We work together to try and be vale victorians at school. We take care of each other and make sure if we need help, there's always someone there. We ́re all super close and we've been best friends since elementary school.

There was Marcus, he was into sports. He was always at the gym or the local rec center picking up basketball games with random people. John was a bookworm, he had his interests in reading and learning. If you called him and asked him what he was doing, it was guaranteed that he was reading or just finished a book. And then there was me, Chris. I just went with the flow in everything. I worked and I was a busser at a local Italian restaurant. I wanted to be a server really bad though so I try and show my bosses that I am capable of doing so. I was a hard worker and in my free time I loved to just lay back in my bed with snacks and listen to music or play video games. The neighborhood I lived in wasn't bad and I was surrounded by nice people.  So when the day something strange happened I was very confused.

There were stories and events occurring around the small town I lived in about people mysteriously disappearing. It wasn't known who was going to disappear and nobody knows how or why they are. But everybody lived in fear that they could be next; knowing that there have been 146 people to randomly become missing. I was scared just like everybody else. I didn't know what to expect going to, or from school. I was afraid to be outside and I did everything I could to be aware of what im doing and where I go.

I had a long day with my buddies at a festival that was going on. We were there all day and we had a lot of fun. There was music all day, good food and fun people everywhere. It was a blast. I yawned as I sat in the back of Marcus ́s truck and I looked at the time to see it was 11:00 pm.

¨You should come on over to my house right now and spend the night you guys, ̈ John said with excitement all over his face. His smile and encouragement was an abundance of energy.

̈ I'd love to man but I have work in the morning at 8 ̈ I replied with a small frown on my face.

¨I would too but I told my mom that I would help her with something early morning so I ́m just gonna stay in tonight ̈ exclaimed Marcus with a crooked smile.

̈Alright don't worry about it. ̈ said John in a tone which didn't sound delightful.

We arrived at my house and I said bye to all my friends, I haven't felt so tired in a long time and sleep was the only thing I could think of. I walk into my house and there was a smell that was leading me to the kitchen. The smell was extravagant and breathtaking, which made my stomach grumble louder than it already was. and it took my mind off of how tired I was. It was a very familiar scent and I was hoping that it was what I thought it was. I looked at the table and there it is. The delicious apple pie that my mom always made when I was a kid. I felt confused and saw a letter along with the apple pie. It read:

Dear Chris,

Your dad and I went out for a little vacation and we ́ll be back in a few days. I made this just for you. Make sure you lock the door whenever you go somewhere and try not to destroy the house! There's food and everything you will need. Take care

Love, Mom

I was confused and didn't know what to think but then I remembered how tired I was. I decided I was going to take a shower and then come back and eat a slice or two of the delicious pie and go to sleep. I go into the bathroom with a fresh pair of underwear and some pajamas to put on afterwards. I hop in and take my shower. Not even 5 minutes in and I heard a weird noise which was definitely coming from inside my house. I felt scared and wide awake.

My eyes were as open as they could be but then I thought to myself, ̈ i'm just tired, im hearing things¨ then I heard another sound. It sounded terrifying, like a groan of zombie. I stood still. I felt my heart getting heavier and beating faster. I wanted to move and act like what was happening isn't happening  did I leave the door unlocked? I question myself. I heard shuffling and thuds. They sounded heavy. I turned the water off and put on my pajamas. I tried to be as quiet as possible even though it was explicit as to where I was. I open the door to the bathroom and I walk out as the steam from the hot shower followed me out.

I tiptoe through the hallway to see where the sounds are coming from. My heart beats faster and faster as I get closer to the end of the hallway. I peak my head around the corner to look into the kitchen to see my pie half eaten. I heard more groaning sounds coming from the basement. Which is also where my room is. I felt sweaty and vulnerable to something tragic happening. I checked the door to see that it is locked but then I saw that the kitchen window was wide open. I then questioned if I should leave or try and see what the mysterious sounds were. I decide to man up and go check it out. I walk downstairs with a bat that I grabbed from a closet upstairs. I creep down trying not to make one sound and then I see something I was not expecting.

It was a bear.

A huge black bear that was going through my things. It didn't look like a regular bear though. It looked as though it was talking and it looked like it moved easily like a human. I heard growling noises and it started to walk to the staircase where I was. I turn around with celerity because the bear was closing in rather fast. I was halfway up the stairs when I heard a loud clunk sound. I realized I hit the wall with the metal bat in my hand and I stop in shock and fright.

I hear a loud ̈HEY!̈ From right behind me and my heart drops. I slowly turn around with my eyes wider than an owls spotting prey. The bear is walking up towards me just like a human would and he asks,

̈Whats the bat for?¨

I couldn't come up with anything to say. I felt like I had so much to say but I couldn't grasp my mind around the thought that there is a talking bear in my house right now. I try to say hello but my voice cracks and I stuttered so much I can't get the words I want to say out. He gives me a weird look like its normal what he's doing. ¨I ate some of the pie on the table, I hope you don't mind. It smelt so good I couldn't help it.̈ chanted the bear. ̈ ̈The name is Harold.¨ I stood there still with a faint expression on my face.

̈ ̈ I'm going to call animal control now ̈ I said with chattering teeth.  

¨NO!̈ yelled the bear with a very angry look on his face. ¨I mean, please don't. That's what everybody does. It makes me upset and I kind of make mistakes when I know animal control is coming. Im sure youve heard of the missing bodies. Yeah, that's my confession. But I don't harm the people. I sort of just take them to my hideout. Its underground. They ́re fed, and i get them plenty of water. But they freak out and say the meanest things. And honestly, it  makes me feel like my life is in jeopardy. I need your help. I need to let all these people go home. But they won't listen to me.

Can you help me?¨ ¨I m-m-m mean I guess.¨ I replied. ̈ ̈Great!̈ Can we go right now?¨ I hesitated and didn't want to make the bear mad but I was so exhausted. ¨We can go first thing in the morning? I'm so exhausted I had a long day. You can stay the night if you would like ̈  I then felt somewhat comfortable with the bears presence even though I was still very confused on how this wasn't just a dream. ¨Okay I guess ̈ said the bear. ̈ ̈ I'll just lay right here for the night.¨ It laid down in the corner of my basement on a pile of dirty laundry. ̈ ̈Okaÿ I said. I didn't have much else to say. But as I was laying down I felt very paranoid that I was going to be one of those people trapped next. He could be setting me up and I wouldn't even know. But my chances outrunning or winning a fight against him was very low. So I just had to hope everything would go well.

The morning came I was awake before the bear. I was thankfully still in my home and I was in perfect condition. I poked the bear a couple times with the bat because I was still scared to get close to it. It opened its eyes and stood up. ̈Hï the bear said while yawning. I was still very scared and confused. ̈ ̈Hellö I replied. ̈ ̈ I'm ready to go ̈  I said with a concerned look on my face. ̈okay sounds good ̈ replied Harold. We walked out of my house and he told me to follow him. I felt super sketch about everything but I followed along. He took me through a bunch of lowkey spots and I felt so hidden and lowkey. I could tell that he was smart about where he chose to go and the route he took. I followed him for about 14 minutes and then I saw a big hole. He told me to jump in and that its like a slide so i'll be okay. I hesitated and started to move back from it but I felt a push on my back and I fell into the dark mysterious hole. He was right. I slid down and I landed softly in a large chamber.

I heard him sliding down yelling at me to watch out. I dove as far as I could because the thought of a giant bear landing on me didn't sound pleasant at all. He landed softy also. He stood up and dusted himself off and told me to follow him again. I felt very nauseous and scared. The chamber was big and there lamps everywhere. I don't know how they worked or how this bear had power and electricity but he did. We walked through and I heard a large crowd of people talking. I was intimidated by it for the people did not sound happy at all. I continued to follow Harold when I heard somebody yell, ̈ he's back ̈ with anger. He told me to stand next to him so I sped up to follow him at his speed. He told me to tell them that everything is okay and that he's going to let everybody go but they can not say one word. I saw everybody pointing at me and whispering. I start to speak and I immediately get interrupted by somebody screaming to get them out of there. I start to rant

̈ It's okay, you guys are going to be able to leave. But my friend here has a big favor to ask of you guys. He wants me to ask that you guys don't tell anybody about this and that if you forget everything, hell be grateful. He has emotional problems and doesn't really know how to express his feelings. Trust me I'm confused and scared just like you guys are. But he is not a bad bear. He's really caring and actually very nice. So once these gates open please do not bash on him.̈ Everybody kept quiet and nodded their heads. I then heard the gates start to slide open but Harold was nowhere to be seen.

A light flashed on where there was a tunnel that looked like an exit. The people start to run and trample through. They all left and the gate closed and the light turned off. I hear heavy footsteps coming towards me and I turn around to see Harold. I could tell he was sad and I asked what is wrong. ¨You knew that I had emotional problems?¨ he asked. ¨well yeah, it was easy to tell ̈ i replied. He then started to tell me about how he wishes he wasn't like that and that his communication skills were very low. I told him that talking instead of getting angry was easier and then he began to say that it's hard to talk when everybody just gets scared and calls for help immediately ̈maybe it's best if you didn't try to surround yourself with other people, maybe other bears would be smarter to be around.¨ I preached to him. He then sighed and  tells me thank you.

As soon as he was about to speak again the tunnel flashed with lights and yelling men with guns in their hands. They yell for me to run as they shoot tranquilizers at the bear. He runs away as none of the darts hit his flesh. He escapes and the men come and grab me. They pull me out of the chamber onto the surface of the city and tell me to go home. I do and the whole way I think about Harold and if he is okay. It was a bad way to be dismissed from him but it was probably for the best. I go home and lie down and fall asleep. I was so exhausted and needed rest. So much happened in the past 48 hours and I was stressed. I woke up the next morning to my parents home and they come in my room and ask me if I was okay. I said yeah and went upstairs and got something to eat. Everything seemed clean and I was confused. There was a note on the table and I unfolded it and read:

Thank you for everything. I came by and cleaned up. I'm going back to my family in the woods. You taught me alot and im thankful for it. I hope everything and everybody treats you well. I'll try and stop by if I can sometimes. You ́re a great friend.

-Harold

I felt happy about that. But I was confused on how he wrote that. Who knows but I was glad he was safe. I ate my breakfast and went back to the basement and fell back asleep again.