All Chapters of The Final Hide-and-Seek: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

I obediently curled up and squeezed myself into the cramped suitcase.Over the years, I'd long since gotten used to treating it as my own secret hideout. Whenever Mom had a breakdown and smashed everything off the table, Dad would shoot me a look, and I'd climb right in. I'd zip it shut and pretend I couldn't hear a thing.Like a game of hide-and-seek, I started counting, quietly preparing to count all the way to a hundred thousand. But this time, I didn't finish like I usually did.My limbs went stiff and numb from being twisted up for so long. My knees pressed tight against my chest, making it hard to breathe. I clawed at the gap near the zipper with my small hands, but no matter what I did, it wouldn't budge."All of Ellie's things are in the suitcase, right? I'll put it in the car."Dad's voice drifted in.Hope flared inside me. If I hurried up and apologized, maybe I could beg him to let me out.Then, the world spun. I felt the suitcase being lifted and flipped upside down,

Chapter 2

The closer the car got, the more visibly Mom's body trembled.It had been nearly five years since the earthquake. The area had long since changed, with new buildings rising one after another. But the stretch where my sister and I had been that day was still a wasteland of rubble.I still remembered how my parents had clawed through the ruins like they'd lost their minds that day, tearing through stone after stone until all ten fingers were slick with blood."Ellie loved barbecue chips, so I made sure to buy extra. And I brought plenty of chocolate milk, too." Dad took the food out of the car and set each item on the rubble.Mom's eyes were already brimming with tears. When she saw Dad lift the suitcase out of the car, she lunged for it, but he held her back."Just let me look one more time," she begged, her voice raw with desperation. Dad's brows furrowed, his eyes full of exhaustion and heartache. He rested his hand on the combination lock, hesitating.My heart leapt into my t

Chapter 3

The flames climbed higher, and Dad tossed the teddy bear from Mom's arms into the fire.Mom's face went white. She spun around and threw herself at the suitcase, stumbling as she wrapped her arms around it."Please. Just let me stay with Ellie a little longer."Tears streamed down her face as she begged, practically groveling. Dad's expression twisted with pain.Guilt hit me out of nowhere. If my parents opened the suitcase and found my body inside, they'd be furious. I just had to go and die today of all days and ruin Ellie's send-off.My soul circled frantically around them, helpless. But all I could do was watch as Dad pried the suitcase from Mom's grip and, like he'd made up his mind, kicked it straight into the fire.The flames crackled and popped."Wait. That's not Ellie's suitcase!" Mom suddenly screamed.Her hand trembled as she pointed at the suitcase in the fire, absolute certainty in her voice. "Ellie loved pink stickers. Her suitcase had a Hello Kitty one right on i

Chapter 4

Dad froze. He hadn't processed what was happening yet.But I recognized one of the women, the one with glasses. She was the director of the orphanage I'd visited recently.At the time, she'd crouched down and asked me gently why I wanted to come to an orphanage. I'd stammered, eyes on the floor, fidgeting, "M-My mom and dad aren't happy when I'm around."She paused, startled, and tried to ask more about my home life, but I clamped my mouth shut and ran. I never expected her to actually track down where I lived.Another woman stepped forward and pulled an ID badge from her pocket. "Hello, I'm with child protective services. We'd like to ask you a few questions about your son, Landon Corwin.""What about Landon?"Mom heard my name and detonated. She glared at the visitors with venom and let out a mocking laugh. "Child services? Landon's really got some nerve, getting other people to fight his battles for him. What, did he go around telling people we abuse him?"The look on her

Chapter 5

Dad collapsed to the floor and sat there, blank, for a full minute. There was a daze in his eyes I'd never seen before, something lost and unmoored. Then, he braced himself and got to his feet, swaying.As if nothing had happened, he gathered every one of Ellie's belongings from the suitcase, stuffed them into a garbage bag, and hid it away.He left the house and took Mom to the doctor first. Along the way, the "medium" sent her a message."I've divined that your daughter's spirit has let go of her attachments and moved on to her next life. Before she left, she asked me to pass along a message.""Really? What did Ellie say? She's going to be happy this time around, right?" Mom's eyes lit up instantly, and the tears spilled over."She said not to worry about her. She wants you to look toward the future."By the time Mom finished reading, tears were streaming down her face. But by the time they arrived at the therapist's office, she'd calmed down considerably.The doctor did a qui

Chapter 6

A deathly silence spread through the car.The veins stood out on Dad's hands as he gripped the steering wheel. His gaze darted toward Mom, watching her reaction with painstaking care.A flicker of confusion crossed Mom's face, like she was still processing what she'd just heard. But the moment my name came up, her brain seemed to default to the same place it always did, the place where I was permanently tied to hatred. She frowned again, and that familiar fury settled back in."Landon? I almost forgot that little wretch existed! What kind of stunt is he pulling now? He can't stand that his sister's finally at peace, huh? He just has to make our lives miserable?"And now he's got the nerve to team up with someone and fake his own death? If he wanted to die so badly, he should've died years ago. The earthquake should've crushed him!"The curses came one after another, vicious and relentless.But I let out a long breath of relief. Thank God. Mom didn't realize I was actually dead.

Chapter 7

Dad finished his account calmly, then followed the officers to where my body was.My father, who was always composed and in control, seemed to come apart at that moment. His feet stopped at the doorway and wouldn't move. He had to take two deep breaths before he could make himself step forward.And then, he finally saw me.It had only been a day, and I was already a lifeless corpse. The surface of my body was badly charred across large sections, and parts of my hands and feet were missing entirely. But the worst of it was my curled-up torso and my twisted face, so warped that no expression could be made out anymore."This is Landon?" His voice came out rough, like he couldn't believe it was me.The officer didn't answer. Dad's gaze drifted to the corner, where the blackened remains of the suitcase sat, unmistakably the same one he'd carried out that morning.The room went dead silent. Then, a shrill, piercing voice cut through it."Where's Landon? Tell him to get out here! Is he

Chapter 8

Mom and Dad were both held at the police station.If it hadn't been for Mom's hysterical outburst, Dad probably could have handled everything on his own. He was a brilliant lawyer, after all, with no shortage of lawyer friends. This was just an accident, and with the right words, it could have stayed that way.But the officers brought in a lot of people for questioning, including Mrs. Gallagher, the orphanage director, my teacher, and some of the neighbors."The parents were always telling him to go play hide-and-seek, and Landon would just climb right into the closet or the suitcase without a word. Then, they'd say not to bother with him, just let him stay hidden. The whole thing was odd.""But they really didn't pay much attention to the kid in general. They wouldn't even call him for meals.""That family didn't like their older boy. Anyone could see it.""His wife was always wandering around the neighborhood talking to herself. She seemed normal enough at first, said she only

Chapter 9

My mother wasn't always like this.In my memories, she was a warm, brilliant professor, every bit as impressive as my lawyer father. She used to read me history stories and teach me what it meant to grow up into a good person. Whenever Ellie and I got into arguments, she'd sit us down and set us straight without ever taking sides.But because of me, she became volatile, irrational, and even cruel, like right now.Without any warning, she lunged forward and grabbed the mouse from the officer's hand, then started cycling through the surveillance footage herself.When someone moved to stop her, the senior officer waved them off. So, everyone just stood there and watched as she clicked through date after date.The footage showed the same thing over and over. Mom was completely unhinged, and Dad was exhausted, trying to calm her down.And then there was me, in every frame, quietly appearing at Mom's side.I always showed up when her emotions weren't running as high. I'd wait until sh

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