Leo hadn't seen or heard from one of his closest friends in months. At first, he figured they were just busy. Then the days turned into weeks. The weeks turned into months. Texts went unanswered. Calls never connected. Their social media had gone silent, and nobody seemed to know where they'd gone. Every person Leo asked gave him the same response. "I haven't heard from them either." It didn't sit right with him. He'd spent months asking around, hoping someone knew something—anything—but every lead ended the same way. Nothing. Eventually, life forced him to keep moving, even if the worry never really left. It was well past midnight when Leo finally looked away from his laptop. Final exams had consumed his entire evening, and pages of notes were scattered across his desk. His apartment was silent except for the faint hum of the heater and the occasional tapping of rain against the windows. His mom had gone to bed hours earlier. Leo rubbed his tired eyes and reached for his drink. Scratch... He froze. A faint scraping sound came from the window beside his desk. He glanced toward it. Nothing. Probably a tree branch. He returned to his work. Scratch... scratch... The sound came again, longer this time. Leo slowly looked back toward the window. His apartment was on the fifth floor. There weren't any trees tall enough to reach it. His stomach tightened. "...Nope." He stayed perfectly still, listening. For several seconds there was only silence. Then—Tap. Scratch... Something was definitely outside. Leo carefully pushed his chair back, trying not to make a sound. Every horror story he'd ever heard suddenly felt much more believable. Another scrape dragged across the glass. His pulse quickened. Who—or what—could possibly be outside a fifth-floor window? Swallowing hard, Leo stepped closer. The curtains were still drawn. He hesitated. "...This is either going to be really stupid..." His hand slowly reached for the curtain. "...or really weird." He pulled it aside in one quick motion. For a split second, he nearly jumped out of his skin. A figure clung to the narrow fire escape outside the window, one hand raised as if they'd been trying to get his attention without breaking the glass. Leo stared. Then his eyes widened. "...You've got to be kidding me." It was the friend he'd been searching for. Dirty, exhausted, and looking like they'd been through far more than a few months away. They managed a weak smile before speaking through the closed window. "...You gonna let me in?" Leo didn't even answer. He was already unlocking the window.