Drawing the Line

Chapter 12

Cameron tapped his index finger on his lips as he called Rylie for the fifth time that day. No matter how many times he called, it would go straight to voicemail.

He sighed as he twirled his phone in his hands and stared blankly at the TV. Joel was beside him on his couch, watching his friend moping around at his condo the fourth day in a row.

Cameron had called him frantic on the second day and told him that he couldn't get a hold of Rylie. When Joel tried to call her as well, he got the same response. She had disappeared from their lives.

"Joel, do you think something happened?" Cameron looked at him pleadingly. Joel didn't know how to respond since he felt partially guilty.

"Don't worry, I'm sure she's okay. She would've called if she wasn't right?" He patted him on the back but Cameron still had a concerned look on his face.

"Then maybe it's me, it's my fault. Maybe I'm not the person she thought I was. I'm too passive, too weak..."

"Stop it, Cameron! There's nothing wrong with you! You're a great guy with a lot to offer! Whatever it is, I'm sure it has nothing to do with you!"

Cameron gave a weak smile and mumbled a thank you. He sank back into the couch and went back to staring blankly at the TV screen.

Joel ran his hands through his hair and let out a soft sigh. This was his fault, and he knew it. She was probably scared of him telling Cameron, so she felt it was best to run away. But what was he supposed to do? Let her be assaulted?

Cameron, who was an introvert and had a hard time connecting with others, had found someone he actually liked, and he had to stick his nose where it didn't belong. He groaned internally.

When he thought about it, Rylie wasn't a bad person. She seemed to be genuine when it came to Cameron. She does have a bit of a shady dating history but the circumstances that they met weren't planned. It was all a coincidence. If she could change Cameron, what's to say he couldn't do the same for her?

He let out another sigh and stood up, "I'm just going to go for a little fresh air, I'll be back in a second."

Without making eye contact with him, Cameron nodded his head.

As Joel took the elevator down to the main floor, he thought about how his actions and curiosity changed everything so suddenly. He knew he had a tendency to baby Cameron but he was just looking out for him. Maybe this was something he had to learn the hard way...

When he stopped his train his thought, he noticed he had wandered quite a distance from his place. But at least he was able to rationalize his guilt a little.

Joel figured that was enough time and turned around to head back. He only took two steps before he felt a drop of water on his right cheek. Looking up at the sky, he realized it was starting to rain. He quickly assessed his surroundings for somewhere to take cover but spotted someone in the distance he knew, someone he was just thinking about.

With no umbrella, jacket or coverage, he ran after her in the rain but just as he was about to reach her, she sprinted off down the road. Not giving up, he dashed after her; she hadn't seen him approaching so where was she going in such a hurry?

The surroundings around them drastically changed but Joel didn't notice until Rylie made a sharp left into a house in shambles.

There weren't many people in the streets, but he could see why. It was not a neighborhood many people would want to walk through themselves at night. The roads had lost their colour and were filled with many cracks; the sidewalks were uneven, and the houses were small and crowded together.