Your "Friend" Owen

Recently, I have been looking through my scrapbooks and files, containing many reminders of memories from my past. I was a very spoiled child back then; my parents were often paying a lot of attention to me, buying me almost everything that I ever wanted just to make me satisfied. They even gave me access to a computer, which changed my life for the best. I still use computers today, actually, but only to chat with close friends and play games here and there.

When I wanted to look for a game without having to purchase one from the local store, I often payed attention to the internet. From there, I got introduced to games such as Disney's now-defunct Toontown Online, which I personally liked because of the cartoony setting it had. I also played Roblox, when it wasn't as big as it is now.

I created my first Roblox account on August 9, 2008. There were a lot of things that I were able to do; play games, make buddies, customise a "funny-looking" avatar, and even chat with others on a forum. The forum had been split into different sub-forums, each hosting their own topics. I used to hang out often in the Off-Topic sub-forum. Basically, it was the place for talking about anything but Roblox. From here, I could talk to random people about other games without it getting moderated by one of the site's administrators.

It was also the place where I met a user who went by the name "OwenWantsFriends". Guessing by the username, I was thinking that he had felt lonely, and he needed some people to talk to and make him happy. I spoke to Owen, and tried to add him as a friend. He happily agreed, and we talked a lot on the sub-forum. It was all going well; telling by a picture I drew of his avatar, I possibly drew it for him as a gift.

I found that very picture in one of my files today. It's a little dusty, and there are a couple of stains in that paper, but I could still see what it was regardless. From the looks of it, Owen's avatar wore a t-shirt that read: "If only I could fully escape the pain of the real world." It was a shirt that strangely was accepted by a content moderator, presumably due to a rush. I didn't really bother too much about what it said back then, but now, as a twenty-two year old man, that message seems kind of worrying to me.

I also had this memory where I spoke to him whilst he seemed to be having a mental breakdown. I can't remember too much of what he said, but I do know that he said "why" a lot. The messages were later deleted by a moderator, who gave Owen a 24-hour ban since what he was saying was deemed 'unsuitable' and 'not allowed on Roblox'.

When Owen returned, I wanted to cheer him up a little. I created a model of his avatar made in Roblox Studio. He was amazed, and he said that "I was one of the greatest friends that he had ever had". A very heartwarming message that I have never forgotten since he said it.

A couple of days later, Owen sent me a private message. Luckily, I can still access this private message since it hasn't been deleted unlike how the forums have. Despite a few hashtags due to the now-obnoxious chat filter, I got the point of the message. The message reads:

"Alex. They're coming for me. The ###### people, they're coming for me. They want to ######### me! Please, help! HELP! January ##..."

Interestingly, Owen had posted a date of January ##. I'm not sure what the actual date was, since the number is now filtered, but I do know that it was some sort of date after January 9, 2009 and before February 1, 2009. I left no response to his message, unfortunately. But can I still leave a message to him now? I can't.

His account is now terminated, with the account's page being replaced with a 404 error page.

I have no information about the current whereabouts of Owen. My possible theories are quite sinister, actually; I believe that Owen had been abused by his parents or other guardians. The date mentioned in the message could be the very day when he met a terrible fate after all the abuse. I will never forget Owen though. He was a great friend for a little while. I enjoyed talking to him despite the rough moments here and there, and will always be one of the only things I remember from classic Roblox.