Joel had only just started to feel a little calmer.

Andrew’s energy had been a lot, but not in a bad way. Joel wasn’t sure if he liked him yet, but he definitely noticed him, and that was a new kind of scary. He’d considered following him to the buffet. He didn’t, though. Not yet. Instead, he’d drifted toward the window, watching the rain fall.

Then the lights went out. It got quiet. He clutched his sketchbook tighter. He didn’t scream. He didn’t even gasp when the doors wouldn’t open. He watched Andrew move across the room, flashlight cutting through the dark. Joel couldn’t bring himself to move toward anyone. If he was going to panic, he wanted to do it quietly.

And then the computer on the table began to glow. Joel’s first thought was Why is that plugged in? His second was It’s not. His third thought never formed, because light exploded. And then he blacked out.

—-

Joel stirred, eyes still shut. He could tell there was grass beneath him, and sand too. He opened his eyes slowly. The sky above him wasn’t blue. It wasn’t any color, really. There were cars too. Hundreds of them, sticking straight up from the ground like they had grown that way.

Joel sat up, disoriented. His sketchbook had landed nearby. He nervously reached for it.

[i]Where am I? What happened to the ballroom? To Andrew? To-[/i]

Then, he heard a voice. “You’re awake.”

Joel turned, startled. A small creature was standing just a few feet away. It had Cream colored fur, floppy ears, big round eyes. It vaguely looked like a puppy.

“Um …Hi?” Joel whispered. His voice cracked slightly.

The creature tilted her head. “You’re Joel, right?”

He blinked. “How do you—?”

“I’ve been waiting for you.” Her tone reminded him of the counselor at the grief therapy session he went to.

Joel gripped his sketchbook tighter. “I’m sorry… I don’t understand what’s happening. Is this… is this a dream?”

Salamon shook her head. “It’s real. You were brought here for a reason.”

“That sounds like something people say before everything goes wrong,” he said before he could stop himself.

Salamon’s expression softened. “You’re scared.”

He nodded.

“That’s okay,” she said. “You don’t have to be brave yet. You just have to stand up.”

Joel looked at her, this strange, small being who spoke like she knew him. And somehow… he didn’t feel afraid of her.

He swallowed hard and stood slowly. The sketchbook stayed in his hand. “You… know my name,” he said again, quieter this time.

“Yes,” Salamon said. “And I think… you’re going to be important.”

Joel chuckled nervously. “I think you might be the first person to say that and mean it.”

“I do mean it,” she said. “Come on. The others are nearby. We’ll face this together.”

Joel didn’t say thank you. He just nodded, and walked with her into the unknown.