"Hello?"

Photo by Mike Meyers on Unsplash

PLACE: my parents' home in Ashdod. 

TIME: 4 AM this morning.

The phone rings. (When the phone rings at 4 AM, you answer it.) 

Caller: "Good morning" 

Me: "It's not morning." 

Caller: "I'm calling from the police. Is Daniel there?" 

My dad volunteers with the police once a week and gets up at this ungodly hour.

Me: "No".

The phone rings around 5:30 AM. I don't get it. The phone rings around 6:30 AM. I don't get it. (The phone may have rung around 7:30 AM, I've lost count.) 

The phone ring at 9:00 AM. 

It's my cousin, "Hi" (me: "Hi") 

Cousin: "Did I wake you?" 

Me: "Yes."

Cousin: "Oh.... I waited until 9:00 AM."

Phone rings at 11:00 AM. "It's the police calling for Daniel."

Me: "He's not here." 

Police: "Oh. We were worried. We tried reaching him all night." 

YES, I KNOW.