A small frown creased Collin's forehead.

The door to his apartment was unlocked, and he was sure he had locked it in the morning when he left for work.

He swung it open. The flat was quiet. Still. But today there was no mess. Lanky stood upright, like the proud skinny boy he was, all pillows were where he'd left them yesterday. The breakfast he'd made for Max was missing, the empty plate in the sink, but everything else was still in the fridge. Including the meat that Max seemed to like so much. Raw or not.

"Max?" he called out. "I have dinner." His dwindling hope showed in his voice, when he squeaked the last word.

The bedroom and the bathroom were just as quiet and just as empty. Max was nowhere to be found. His clothes were still in the drawer he'd emptied for him, but the jacket wasn't hanging on the hook by the door.

Collin's heart sped up, and by the time he reached the narrow table in the tiny foyer, it was thudding in his chest so hard, he thought it'd bruise his ribs.

The spare key to his apartment, one that should be in a wooden ball with a turquoise swirl running through it, was gone. Max left.

Where did he go? Could he find his way home? Did he even want to come back? All of those questions rattled in his head on loop. Oh god, did he cover his ears and his tail?

With his pulse pounding in his entire body, Collin ran out of the apartment. He stood there in the middle of the snowy street, cold pinching his cheeks, unsure where to go, what to do. He tried to think of a reason for why Max left. To get that breakfast, bacon sandwich? To walk around the park?

Collin swore in his mind. He should have given Max more to do. Maybe then he wouldn't leave by himself, risking getting lost in the freezing city.

Snow crunched under Collin's boots, his unzipped jacket flapping in the air as he ran. By the time he reached the park, he was heaving and the untrained muscles in his thighs burned. Wide eyes scanned the area. A couple walked down the alley, holding gloved hands and chuckling at something one of the girls said. Not too far behind them, a kid animatedly told his dad about the dodgeball match he'd helped his team win. He swung his arm, imitating a throw so strong it was almost a miracle that shoulder stayed in its socket.

But even though Collin followed every path in the park, Max was nowhere to be found.

A cloud formed in front of Collin's mouth with each jagged breath. Icy air burned his lungs. His pulse never stopped thudding, and he felt a headache coming.

The large, rectangular building was in the distance. The mall. His second, and last, chance to find Max before he would run out of ideas. Too fast for his liking, but these were the only two places Max and he went to and the only two places that Max seemed to enjoy. After that, the only thing that was left was to just get into the car and drive around every street in the area.

Racing thoughts were already wondering what next. What if he didn't find him anywhere? Could he call the police? It'd draw attention to a guy who wasn't exactly human. It was something they needed to avoid, but… Would he have another choice?

He rushed to the escalator, then ran up it, pushing past other people and throwing 'excuse mes' left and right. He dashed straight to the cafe he'd visited with Max, and ignoring the queue, he stopped at the counter. Out of breath and with wild eyes, he shoved the first person in line—a college aged guy who growled a 'watch it, dude' his way, and was about to break into a rant about cutting in line, but Collin wasn't listening.

Instead, in a panicked voice he asked, "Have you seen a guy I was here with a couple of days ago? About this tall—" his fingers moved about a half a foot above his head "—fit, big. Brown hair, brown eyes, dark green jacket, good looking." Each description flew out of his mouth, chasing another. No room to take a breath. Not like he could anyway. Tension pressed its cold fingers against his throat, blocking his airway, barely letting anything through.

"No, sorry," the young cashier replied.

Collin's hands dropped to his sides in defeat. "Thanks," he barely squeezed out.

"There's a guy in a green jacket over there," a girl in the middle of the line said, pointing behind them.

A tall male was walking away from them and past the sports' store. Blind and deaf to everything around him, Collin sprinted after the man.

"Max?" he called out. "Max!"

He grabbed the man's wrist and pulled it. But when the other turned around, it wasn't Max. Just a bearded individual, staring at him confused.

"Sorry," Collin murmured. "I thought you were someone else."

Collin circled the mall a few times, but there was no trace of Max ever being there. Tears prickled at his eyes as he walked home without his new friend by his side.