If You See This Girl [JENLISA]

The Reality Where You're Still Here

Author's Note: READ THIS! I start this chapter in the present tense because that's what it is, it's what is presently occurring. Lisa will start telling her story and it becomes italicized. It will switch back to normal font whenever something in the present is said.

I wrote this story because I wanted people to focus on the reality of these types of situations in real life.

"Every 40 seconds, a child goes missing or is abducted. Approximately 840,000 children are reported missing each year and the F.B.I. estimates that between 85 and 90 percent of these are children."

I am warning you, if you don't think you can handle this, please stop reading here.

You don't know how scared I was to publish this chapter.

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REALITY

re·al·i·ty

/rēˈalədē/

The world or the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them.

How far would you go to escape reality?

...

Lisa's POV

Morning tumbles in with hazy streams of light filtering through the windows and the smell of pancakes. "Lili hon, wake up!" Jennie's voice wakes me as a tired smile forms on my lips. Things are okay.

I stumble from the bed and make my way quickly down the steps until Jennie is in sight, "What do you need me up for this early today, my dearest Nini?"

"If you're going to be mean about it, just go back to bed," Jennie frowns as she leans over the pan, her hands outstretched to block my view of the pancakes. She tenses up as I put a hand on her back.

"I'm sorry baby." a smile warms her lips as I gently move her aside and press a kiss to her lips.

Jennie is silent after the kiss and she rests against the countertop, her arms crossed. "I just wanted to make you breakfast is all," she says quietly in a mumble that I probably wasn't even meant to hear.

"That means everything to me." I lean over and Jennie blushes as she looks away.

A small smile turns up the corners of her lips, "Well, it would mean everything to me if we could eat breakfast together."

"Excellent priorities you have, Nini," I grin at her as she begins flipping the pancakes to the other side.

She stays close, her warmth nearly burning my skin from where she stands at my side, "Lisa what was your dream about?"

There's a certain quiet that settles around the kitchen and it feels too much like the air of a hospital, "Nothing."

"Nothing," Jennie repeats as she moves toward the fridge.

"Yeah," I quietly affirm. The conversation dies there and Jennie falls back into silence as I focus my attention on getting plates from the cabinet.

Reaching into the cabinet, I pull out a couple plates. A nervousness settles in my chest as I stare down at the unfamiliar plastic dishes, "Jennie, did you buy these?"

Fiddling with the thick tan plates, I turn around to look at her. "No, no, no..."

I let the plates fall to the tile floor as I try to sort through my thoughts. There's something wrong. Everything is wrong, I think desperately as my eyes take in the different cabinets, the table that isn't the one Nini and I purchased at the antique market the month before, and there's definitely no Jennie standing there with her normal, cute expression.