Vanished in Thin Air.
It was a
common sunny day in Louisiana, “nothing interesting
to do at sight” though
Matthew.
Matthew was
an average 16 year old, he enjoyed video games, reading, school. However, he
wasn’t the type to go out with friends every weekend, he’d rather stay home and
focus on school work all day. He was tall, 6”2ft, short black hair, light skin
and some stunning blue eyes that could reflect the universe in them.
That day, a
normal Saturday of July, was one of those days where he would stay home, bored,
listening to music all day. His parents told him thy were going to take Lizzy
to the park, they asked him if he wanted to go but he responded with a simple
“no, I’ll just do my homework for Monday”, to which his parents agreed and
headed to the park, locking the door. Lizzy was Matthew’s 5 year old sister,
she was a little girl with blond hair and eyes like honey. She was really
energetic, causing her to be quite entertaining to hang out with. She was
always laughing, playing, running, just like any girl her age.
It is
necessary to point out that Matthew and Lizzy weren’t actually siblings, Mr and
Ms. Jones weren’t even their parents. They were adopted, Matthew was adopted
around a year ago and had already settled down really well. Meanwhile, Lizzy
came into their lives around 6 months ago, making being in the house more
enjoyable. She filled every room she was in with sunshine. Part of the reason
Matt loves his sister so much was how curious she was, and him, wanting to be a
future college professor, answered every question with patience.
The
starting of a car engine woke him out of thoughts, he realized he’d been zoned
out for some minutes and decided to go upstairs to do the homework he stated
was going to. He began with math since it was the one that resulted more
difficult for him, he started the music and let time fly by.
•••
Matt was
just finishing his last piece of school work, it was
science since it was the
one that was easier for him. Nevertheless, the strong sound of the door going
opened with unusual aggressiveness made him flinch in his chair. Fear filled him
as he picked a small pocket knife and headed down stairs, but he stored it in
his pocket once he realized it was just his parents.
They were agitated as if they had been running, “What’s the matter?!” Matt asked with noticeable concern covering his features. “Is Lizzy here?! By any chance?!” Said Ms. Jones, almost screaming. “No, you locked the door, no one has come in.” He said, starting to get anxious by how worried his parents seemed.
They were agitated as if they had been running, “What’s the matter?!” Matt asked with noticeable concern covering his features. “Is Lizzy here?! By any chance?!” Said Ms. Jones, almost screaming. “No, you locked the door, no one has come in.” He said, starting to get anxious by how worried his parents seemed.
He saw how
Mr. Jones went straight for the phone and dialed those three really familiar
numbers, each one emitting a beep sound
as they were pressed.
9 1 1.
“911,
what’s your emergency?” Answered the operator at the other end of the line. “My
daughter’s gone missing!”, as soon as the young adolescent heard those words he
felt realization sink in, a knot forming in his throat. He wanted to cry,
scream, throw everything at sight but he just stayed there, face empty without
clear emotions showing. So many things traveling through his head, but he was
just freezed.
•••
20 minutes
had passed since Mr. Jones called 911, two policemen showed up at his door
askin to come in. Of course, they were allowed inside the property, they asked
some questions and left, stating that they would investigate further.
Matthew
felt so helpless, he still couldn’t digest the idea of
losing his little
sister, the one he looked out for so much.
He started
to blame himself, “if I had just gone with them, if I had just agreed to go to
that park” he thought. What he didn’t know is that it was most definitely not
his fault, but he ignored reality.
By Juliana Restrepo, Step 9, Part 1.
