June 10th, 2022 - 2 weeks before the incident

It wasn’t uncommon to drive around with Ezra for fun and with no pre-planned destination. That’s what we always did, especially in the summer. As soon as he had gotten his license, and saved up enough for a car, Ezra was always on the road, and always dragging me along with him. Loud music was a given, and good times were always the unplanned plan. He always had a knack for finding the humor in every situation. And he knew how to make you laugh, hard. Belly-aching, tears running down your face laughter.

Not today, though. Today, Ezra was unusually silent as he drove our regular route along the outskirts of town, out toward his uncle’s cottage on Lake Euclid. His uncle rarely uses it and had basically given Ezra an open invitation to it during the summer months. We hang out here a lot. It is our go-to place to get away from town, the noise, life in general.

I want to ask him what’s bothering him but, he’s never been one to open up. He is notorious for brushing it off with the excuse of there being “more important things to talk about”, and quickly changes the subject. Though, I don’t know if I have ever witnessed him this quiet before. Considering that I have known him since we were 8, that’s saying something.

I decide to take a shot at lightening the mood and give him a hard time about this stupid keychain he keeps on his car keys that I had given him as a joke when he was saving up for it. It was a miniature purple and blue dragon trinket, attached to a standard silver key chain ring. Some of the color worn in spots, and a black scuff on the tail where I’m pretty sure it had been ran over. “Dude, why do you still have that thing? You know that was a joke when I gave it to you, right?”. His eyes stayed on the road. I continued, “I literally found that in the parking lot behind school the same day you were whining about me never doing anything for you” I made air quotes at that last bit. I nudged him playfully, “so, I got you a gift for your new car” I said, forcing a chuckle. His face remained stone, not even a smirk or subtle acknowledgment. Then, without a word, he quickly unclipped it from his keys, placed it in my hand and bluntly stated, “here, have it back then, Ophelia”. Shocked at his reaction, and use of my full name, I kept the keychain wrapped tightly in my palm, and endured the rest of the drive in silence.

October 4th, 2025 - Present Day

I was frantically pacing the bedroom, tossing pillows and clothes from the bed, tears already forming in the corners of my eyes. I couldn’t help but to think back to the day Ezra had given it back to me. The “stupid” keychain. He had been so cold about it when he shoved it into my hand without a word. Now it was the only piece of him I had left.

"Where is it?” I whispered under shaky breaths. "I just had it last night!” The frustration rising in my voice, I began emptying the contents of my purse onto the bed, shuffling through and tossing any irrelevant items to the side.

Panic was setting in as I could feel my heartbeat growing louder, quicker. As I continued rummaging through every inch of every corner of the room, I hear the faint creak of a door opening. I turn to find a stunned and concerned Shiloh standing in the doorway. “Is… everything okay?” He asked, looking as though he was a little afraid to say anything at all. I don't think he had ever seen me in quite this state of disarray before.

“You haven’t seen a dragon keychain charm anywhere around the apartment have you?” I had practically shouted at him. His eyes widened, surprised at my tone. “I, um, er—“ he stumbled over his words. “I don’t think so, or didn’t notice one anyway.” It was clear he was trying to tread carefully as to not upset me any further. Concern on his face, he asked, “where do you remember seeing it last?”

I attempted to recall the contents of my day; it was long and work was stressful. Honestly, I think I tried to blur most of it away, steering my focus toward getting home and sleeping away this dumpster fire of a day. I tried to visualize my morning. When did I grab my keys? I asked myself. I swore it was on my keys, that’s where it always was. Except for at night. At night, it rests under my pillow, where it has for the last two years. It is the only way I can sleep without nightmares. I can’t go through this again, I NEED to find it, I thought to myself, the panic beginning to worsen.

“You okay over there?” Shiloh’s words stopped my spiraling train of thought short. I had almost forgotten he was there or that he had asked where I had last seen the key chain. I brought his question back into focus. “I know I had it last night but, I can’t for the life of me remember if I put it back on my keys this morning”, I finally answered.

“Put it back?” He asked, a slightly puzzled expression on his face. “You don’t leave it on your keys?”. I hesitated answering, debating on whether I felt like telling him that I sleep with it under my pillow. Not to mention the backstory of why I sleep with it in the first place, and the events that lead up to it. It was a loaded question, with an overloaded answer. Shiloh was only my roommate, though I would probably call him a friend. I had barely known the guy a year. He knew basic background only; surface-level family crap, where I grew up, small talk. Nothing of significance or containing intimate information. I had to ask myself if I was really ready to tell this story. And was he ready to hear it? Over a stupid keychain, afterall.