"Christmas Day, I said, 'What if this was just a dream?' And I walk downstairs, and he's sitting on a couch," said Tameka Harris, Daniely's mother.
But it wasn't a dream.
That nightmare is still a reality for Harris months into the search for her missing son out of Fresno County.
[Ads /]
Corey Daniely was last seen on his birthday, August 7, as he left a home in Kerman.
Since then, radio silence.
The Fresno County Sheriff's Office elevated Daniely's case to a missing person with suspicious circumstances in September.
But the investigation is still ongoing.
Daniely is 33 years old, a father, a musician, and a son.
"There's not a day that has gone by these last almost five months that I don't wake up and just wish this was a dream," said Harris.
Daniely's mother says she's feeling two emotions: hurt and anger.
She endured the holidays without her baby boy, also known as 'Crumb Dread,' for the first time.
[Ads /]
"I wasn't able to hear his voice for Christmas. I wasn't able to hear his voice for Thanksgiving," said Harris.
The Fresno County Sheriff's Office says after interviews and a search warrant, all leads have dried up in the case, and now is the time for anyone to come forward with new information.
"Maybe somebody who was there that night feels that they were dishonest, maybe somebody didn't speak up when they should have, these are all things that we need people to kind of have your morals take over," said Tony Botti with the Fresno County Sheriff's Office.
Botti added they want to get justice for Daniely and his mother.
"We just need more answers, and we really hope deputies are going to continue to work this, and we really hope that we can deliver her a message one day, whether it be good news or bad news, but just so she can rest or put her mind at ease," said Botti.
[Ads /]
While Harris knows leads are slim for law enforcement, she's still wishing for a miracle.
"There are several times that I have texted him or called him on Instagram, just saying, 'Hey, I miss you!' And just a glimmer of hope of 'Hey, maybe he could pick up,'" said Harris.
When she's feeling heavy, she turns on tunes like this one from Daniely's Facebook page.
"Getting ready for my commute to work, I will put on one of his songs, and it kind of gets me pumped. It gives me that drive. Then I have a conversation with him like, 'Son, I'm not giving up on you. This is another day,'" said Harris.
If you know anything about this case or where Daniely may be, you're asked to call the Fresno County Sheriff's Office.
For news updates, follow Brianna Willis on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.