The next afternoon, I waited at a distance near his school and watched him head out with a small backpack. Instead of going toward the neighborhood where he said the party would be, he took a completely different route. He walked for about twenty minutes and eventually entered a small community center I’d never noticed before.
Curious and anxious, I stayed outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of what he was doing. After a few moments, I saw children coming and going, carrying art supplies, boxes of snacks, and even musical instruments. It didn’t look suspicious at all—if anything, it seemed like a lively, positive place.
