The Disappearance of Leonard Osmond

Leonard Osmond was an ordinary nineteen-year-old. In a word: confused. In a few more: in the middle of an existential crisis. Who was he? What was his purpose in the world? Did he even have a purpose? Should he go to college, and if he did what would he major in? Should he get a job? Did he even care about his girlfriend at all? His parents constantly nagging him wasn't helping at all, either. So he did what any stressed, panicked young adult would do: packed a suitcase and began a soul-searching road trip in the middle of the night. The last thing he did before leaving was invite his girlfriend along; she agreed to the crazy plan.

Leonard's life on the road was not particularly notable. He met people, spent every night in a different location, all that sort of stuff. Life on the road wasn't difficult, but his journey led him nowhere in the metaphysical sense.

It led him to the middle nowhere in the physical sense, and it was then that the car broke down. It deposited them in a tiny desert town, population 30 on a good day. Fortunately there was a mechanic around; unfortunately repairs were going to take a few days and there wasn't any motel. Sure, there was that old boarding house, but... the old woman who ran it one day up and vanished. Probably died. But anyone who went to find her body never came back.

Leonard didn't want to take a chance and go there. He had seen enough movies to know that creepy houses never ended well. But his girlfriend insisted it was just a story, and she wasn't going to sleep on benches like a hobo. After a heated argument, Leonard finally caved in and they visited the boarding house.

And that, as you may have guessed, was the last anyone saw of them.