Chapter 8: Convincing Bobby

The house was quieter now, with just the sound of the occasional creak in the old wooden floorboards and the murmur of voices from the next room. Andy’s parents were still gone, but that wasn’t what had me feeling uneasy. It was the pull—the strange gut feeling telling me I had to leave.

I stared out the window, looking out at the field beyond the house, where the two-track trail began to fade into the trees. The sun was starting to dip lower in the sky, casting long shadows across the yard, and something about the way the light hit the woods made it feel like it was calling me.

“Why do we have to leave, though?” Bobby’s voice broke into my thoughts, pulling me back to reality.

I looked at him, trying to find the right words. “I just... I don’t know. It’s hard to explain. I feel like... like I need to go. Like something’s out there, and we have to find it.”

He stared at me, his arms crossed over his chest, a skeptical look on his face. Bobby was always the realist, the one who wanted proof, who needed facts before making any decisions. That’s why he was so hard to convince.

“Are you serious?” he asked, shaking his head. “You’re saying we need to leave now based on... what, exactly? A feeling? A hunch?”

I rubbed my temples, feeling the weight of the strange urgency that had settled in my gut. I couldn’t explain it—couldn’t make sense of it myself. But I knew deep down that we couldn’t stay here.

“I don’t know how to explain it, Bobby. But the aliens... they’re after me. I don’t know if it’s because of something I did or... or if it’s just something bigger than that. But we have to find something. I think it’s out there.”

I pointed toward the two-track trail leading into the woods. The noise I’d heard earlier was still ringing in my ears, faint but constant, like a hum or a distant engine running. The kind of sound that gets stuck in your mind. “I heard it. It’s over that hill. I swear.”

Bobby’s eyes narrowed, skeptical but not entirely dismissive. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, then paused, his gaze flicking to the door and back at me. He didn’t want to leave. I could see it in his face, the hesitation, the uncertainty. It wasn’t logical. It didn’t make sense. But I couldn’t shake this feeling, this pull that was stronger than anything else.

“We’re just kids, man. We don’t know what’s out there. We don’t know if this is some kinda... I don’t know... dream or if you’re just getting caught up in whatever this alien thing is. I’m not—”

David, who had been playing with Tony in the corner, suddenly jumped up. “Hey, don’t be such a party pooper, Bobby! You’re seriously telling me you don’t wanna go check out a real live alien ship? We could be like... explorers, or some kind of UFO squad. Think of all the stories we could tell.”

Bobby shot him a look, and I could see the tension in his shoulders. David, being David, couldn’t help but make a joke, even when things were serious. But this wasn’t the time for jokes. This wasn’t a game.

I swallowed, trying to calm the churn in my stomach. I couldn’t lose Bobby. He had to understand, even if it sounded crazy.

“Bobby, listen to me. I can’t explain it, but I know we have to go. Please.”

Bobby hesitated again, his gaze flicking to the window where the fading light reflected off the trees in the distance. His brow furrowed in thought, and for a moment, I thought he was going to say no, that we should just stay at Andy’s and let the world go on as it had. But then his eyes softened, just for a second, and I knew he wasn’t going to be the realist this time.

“Fine,” Bobby muttered, though I could hear the reluctance in his voice. “But if this turns out to be a waste of time, I’m not letting you drag me out here again, okay?”

David, always the optimist, grinned widely. “He’s in! Let’s go, Bobby. You don’t wanna miss the chance to be famous for discovering alien life.”

Tony, who had been standing in the corner with that look of confusion on his face, suddenly wandered over to us, tugging at Bobby’s shirt. “When’s Mommy coming home?” he asked softly, his voice small in the quiet room.

Bobby looked down at him, his tough exterior cracking for a moment. He crouched down, ruffling Tony’s hair. “Soon, buddy. They’re just... out for a little while. We’ll see them soon.”

But Tony didn’t seem to understand, his little face scrunching up as he repeated, “I want Mommy now.”

David leaned in and whispered to him, “You know what, Tony? Let’s go find her. You, me, and Bobby. We’ll bring her back.”

Tony’s big brown eyes lit up, the sadness melting away for the moment as he nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah! Find Mommy!”

And in that moment, Tony’s innocent excitement was enough to push Bobby over the edge. He stood up, took a deep breath, and looked at me, finally resigned. “Alright, alright. Let’s go. But I’m not saying we’re not crazy. I just hope we don’t end up getting abducted. I’m not getting probed by any aliens.”

I didn’t know if we were going to get probed, or if we’d find what I was hearing, but the feeling deep in my gut hadn’t stopped. It hadn’t let up, and that’s what I had to trust.

I nodded. “Let’s go.”

And just like that, the four of us—me, Bobby, David, and Tony—were walking out the door of Andy’s house and into the unknown.