Calming the Sea, Drifting Away

Five

As we drove, we passed towns and cities, huge forests, fields, lakes, rivers, streams, and just about everything else in the world. None of it seemed exciting to us, so we kept on driving.

Driving somewhere, getting farther and farther away from home, going out into the real world where I didn't have parents to protect me, where I had to take care of myself. It wasn't easy, but I couldn't change it.

We went south and stopped at the Grand Canyon. We used the bathroom, freshened up, stretched our legs, and ate something besides sandwiches for the first time in two days. Then we actually saw the Grand Canyon.

It was huge. I didn't expect for it to be half the size it was. I stared at it, amazed, for almost ten minutes. When I was ready to go, I turned to tell Liam, who had been really quiet.

He wasn't there.

"Liam!" I called out.

No reply.

I called his name again. Still, there was no reply.

Where was he? He definitely wasn't in the bathroom because we had just went. He was wearing a neon green Nike T-shirt, so it shouldn't have been that hard for me to find him, but it was.

After a while, I went to the car to get my phone so I could call him. I unlocked the door and reached inside to get it, but something stopped me.

I heard someone pounding on glass, and when I looked up, I saw him inside a dark van, yelling for help.

Before I could get out to help him, the van drove away. I hopped into my car and started the engine as fast as I could. Then I raced onto the street, determined to get my friend back.