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Owen swallowed. There was nothing on the street aside from a sole double decker bus, harshly illuminated by the scattered street lamps. His earlier good mood at having made Noah proud of him for figuring out the clue from the dining hall faded, lost to the eerie atmosphere.
Noah was the first one to break the silence.
“This looks too easy,” he said, eyeing the bus warily.
“D-do you think he’s in there? The ripper?” Owen asked, even though deep down he already knew the answer.
“Most definitely,” Noah said with a grim frown.
They both exchanged an uneasy look. Owen took a deep breath and readied the burlap sack from the dining hall, glad that he had the foresight to take it with him earlier.
Owen took the first few steps into the bus with Noah closely behind him. He was so close that he could occasionally feel Noah’s arm brush up against his back. Even though Noah often tried to act unbothered by things like this, it was somewhat reassuring knowing that he wasn’t the only one feeling freaked out.
“Hello? Anyone there? Of the murderous and killy kind?” Owen said with a nervous hitch to his voice.
The lights in the bus had been shut off, leaving the interior to be completely dark. Each of his steps creaked ominously as he went further down the aisle. His eyes darted across each of the rows as he tried to find any spot where the ripper might be hiding.
It was hauntingly quiet in the space, so when he heard the sudden sound of rustling fabric and a sharp intake of breath from behind him, he nearly jumped.
“Little buddy?” He called out worriedly as he turned back, readying the burlap sack in case it was the Ripper with his friend-but there was nothing there. Where Noah had been, there was now an empty space. He was alone.
Owen gasped, feeling the panic begin to set in.
“Noah?! Where are you?”
He couldn’t stop himself from stammering. He had been on edge the entire day, first with Al missing, then Tyler disappearing on them, but the thought of it being Noah…
He quickly looked around the bus, but it was difficult to make out any details on account of how dark it was. He stumbled a few steps forward, but when he finally caught sight of Noah, his relief was only temporary.
A dark figure that could only be the ripper was fighting to hold Noah down. They had a ghastly appearance. Owen could hardly make out any of their features other than their piercing gaze.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Owen shouted, his anger growing. “Get away from him!”
Owen ran forward and the ripper tensed. Thinking quickly, they threw Noah into the nearby driver’s booth and slammed the glass door shut before dodging to avoid the impact.
Owen skidded to a stop, momentarily dazed. The ripper sensed their advantage and moved to grab onto one of the bus’s poles and spun themselves around it to kick Owen directly in his center, making him stumble and nearly fall.
Owen gritted his teeth. “No one locks my little buddy in the corner and gets away with it. Nobody!”
Owen tried to use the burlap sack to deter the ripper but they jumped back, making a guttural sound deep in the back of their throat. There was something inherently unsettling about the ripper’s movements. They were almost animal-like in their agility as they strove to dodge Owen, likely realizing that they wouldn’t be able to take him on directly.
Owen grabbed onto one of the bus seats to steady himself, feeling his frustration grow.
He knew that he couldn’t give up. Noah still needed his help! There had to be something he could do…
The sound of Noah pounding on the glass broke him out of his reverie.
Noah’s voice was muffled and he couldn’t make out what he was saying. However, he could see that Noah was pointing frantically to one of the seats near him.
Owen’s eyes widened as he followed Noah’s line of sight. A fire extinguisher.
Owen brightened. As he moved to grab a hold of the emergency fire extinguisher though, the ripper must have sensed his intentions. They dove forward as well, sending Owen hard against the floor.
They both fell into a heap, struggling to get the fire extinguisher between them.
“Get…off…!” With a tremendous amount of force, Owen used his knees to slam the ripper flying backwards.
The ripper fell back with a surprised grunt.
With a grin, Owen turned the nozzle to the ripper, who looked up in panic.
“Time to put you out!”
Owen pressed down on the lever and the ripper was doused in a giant cloud of white.
In the confusion, Owen threw the burlap sack over them. They struggled against it, but Owen was able to tie it shut. Once the deed was done, Owen quickly moved to unlock the driver’s compartment.
A rare smile covered Noah’s features.
“Hey, alright Owen-”
Owen cut off Noah by pulling him into a tight hug.
“I’m so glad that you’re okay.”
Noah let out a shaky exhale. “Yeah, me too,” he admitted.
Despite Noah’s understandable tendency to worm himself out of Owen’s hugs, they stayed together for a few moments.
Eventually, they took a step back and Owen tried to covertly wipe his eyes, hoping that Noah hadn’t noticed. He suddenly felt embarrassed. “Um, sorry. I don’t know why I reacted like that,” he said with a weak huff of laughter.
Noah laughed and Owen looked up, a little hurt, until he saw Noah’s expression. “Are you kidding? I didn’t know you had so much fight in you, big guy.”
Owen felt a jolt of warmth go through him. “Ah, really?” Owen asked, a little flushed. “I didn’t know what I was doing half the time. I kind of just followed my instinct. For a little guy, he could sure pack a punch!”
“Tell me about it…” Noah winced, rubbing his shoulder. “But, hey, thanks. I wasn’t looking forward to spending any more time in that cramped compartment.”
Normally, Owen would react enthusiastically and probably pull Noah into another hug, but somehow, this moment felt...softer. “Of course. You know I would do anything for you, buddy.”
Noah covered his face. “Ugh, dude, how do you say that stuff with a straight face?”
Owen grabbed onto Noah, rubbing his hair, who protested weakly. “But it’s true!”
Noah fought him off, looking slightly irritated, but he had a small grin.
The moment was interrupted by a muffled groan from the sack.
“Oh, right…” Owen said. He gave the bag a wary glance. “Um, what should we do with him?”
Noah shrugged. “Take him to the plane, I guess?” He smirked. “With this guy, it should be our ticket to first class.”
“Woo!” Owen cheered. He threw the sack over his shoulder, with a muffled protest from the ripper. Noah snorted and Owen grinned brightly.