Let Yourself Fall // sequel to My Ethan Karpathy

Chapter 99.

A/N: IM HAVING A FREAKOUT BECAUSE ETHAN LIKED MY PHOTO LIKE WUTT.

*monday night*

ETHANS POV:

The last couple of days have been as boring as usual. We are leaving for New South Wales tomorrow morning and are both fidgeting on the couch, trying to focus on the TV. Chris is staying the night so that Holly can drive us to the airport early. I packed the little wooden box full of Paisley and I's memories in the middle of my suitcase so it doesn't get broken. It's just in case, and I want to be prepared if anything does happen. Even if I get a glimpse of her, I want to be ready. I need to get her back. I honestly don't know where she's gone, but there's a possibility. I have this little theory that she's going to be waiting at Jai's and when I step in the door, she will come running to me. I know that's not true, so I try not to get my hopes up.

"You guys should probably get some rest." Holly yawns, leaning on the doorframe.

"Yeah, alright. See you in the morning." I say just as sleepily, turning off the TV. My night is filled with Paisley and our memories. There's this feeling inside of me. This feeling telling me I will find her. She could be anywhere in the world, but hopefully she's near. I want her to be safe, I don't want her to feel alone.

***

We are woken up by Holly banging on the door. Chris groans as he stretches awake. There's barely any light coming in through the gap in the curtain, it's almost dark outside. I realise today is the day that we go to Jai's, and I can't help but feel nervous. I'm sort of getting used to flying, but usually Paisley is with me. The line at the airport wasn't very long, and Chris and I just said goodbye to Holly. We pass through security and walk down the edge of the airport, trying not to get mobbed. Turns out we are more famous than we thought. We are both wearing hoodies, but we don't want to look suspicious. The plane ride was bumpy, there was a lot of turbulence. It doesn't seem to bother Chris, so I was trying to act brave and not scared at all. The landing was surprisingly smooth, and I was able to relax with the wheels on the ground. Chris has just been listening to music and playing on his iPad the whole way, he hasn't really spoken to me. I'm actually glad, because he never saw how scared I was. I wish Paisley was here. We were near the back of the plane, so we got off relatively fast. We are hit by a sudden hit of warmth as we step out into the air. We make our way across the ground to the building, where we walk up the ramp and into the terminal. When we get to the top, we look around and can't see Jai or Alana, Jai's mum. We take a seat on the lounge area and wait until the announcement over the loudspeaker sounds, telling us to collect our luggage. We still can't find them. While we are walking to the luggage, Chris receives a call.

"Dude, where are you?" He asks.

"Oh, shit, okay. So where are you parked?" He asks.

"Umm.. Alright. We will collect our stuff and meet you there. Good luck." he says, hanging up.

"Jai got mobbed coming into the airport." he sighs. How do girls even show up just like that? Their dedicated, I'll give them that.

"Well fuck. Does that mean we can't get out?" I ask.

"No, he went back to the car and they followed him." he explains.

"So you're saying that there's a bunch of screaming teenage girls crowding around Jai's car? We can't just show up." I say.

"Well, we're gonna have to." he sighs, walking faster towards the carousel.

We grab our stuff and head out into the car park. There's no problem finding the car, it's the one with the girls crowding around it. I'm not sure how we're supposed to get there.. I think one of the girls turns around and spots us, because another wave of screaming comes along. I see Alana get out of the car and rush over to us. She picks up our suitcases and mumbles something about how annoyed she is. She shoves her way through the girls and shoves our stuff in the boot. Jai hops out the car quickly and pushes the girls back while we get into the car. I can hear people taking photos. I'm expecting a spam in a minute. I shove right over to the other side and try not to look out the window. Once everyone's back in, Alana winds down her window.

"Move, Please!" she yells, surprising calm. She starts to back out as girls jump out of the way. Once she's out, she speeds away faster than usual. I'm just glad she didn't hit anyone. Once we're out of the airport, everyone relaxes and Alana even breathes a sigh of relief.

A/N: I can't even remember if it's Alana or Alanah but one of my friends names is Alana and autocorrect and all. I don't care right now, just roll with it.

We drive out onto the busy early afternoon streets of Sydney. I'm aware that it's about an hours drive to Campbelltown, but I'm not complaining. I'm ready to have a good time, I'm ready to forget for a little bit. At the half an hour point, Alana pulls into a petrol station. We sit in silence until she disappears inside to pay.

"Have you heard from Paisley?" Chris asks randomly. I stay quiet.

"Nope, nothing." Jai says.

"Does anyone know absolutely anything? Has anyone been talking to Brai? Does he know anything?" I ask, surprising myself.

"I don't know." Jai replies.

"Holly knows something. She never went to the police." Chris announces.

"Then she's at someone's house. She's safe." Jai replies, almost as though he wants to change topic.

I don't want to argue, I've done enough of that. But at least she's safe, and she'll return to me as soon as she's ready.