Saving The Gone

Chapter 1 - The Diary

P A R T 1 / 3 : THE GONE GIRL

Chapter 1 - The Diary

Everything paused for me. It was like I couldn't move. I wasn't hurt, or in any mental sort of pain. Maybe it was because it came to me as a shock, or maybe because I never expected it. But whatever it was that I was feeling, I knew it was going to haunt me forever.

Wait, to explain it all I'll rewind a little bit in time.

So, for as I see life, we need to cherish the times and things that we have in the present. As well as we should expect the unexpected. Because it's never too late for things to change. Sometimes, we're living in a bubble of our own and then reality slaps our faces.

I -- Archer Bryant, was living my life just like any other normal person. And just like every other person I wasn't expecting the unexpected.

I woke up this morning thinking that I will be spending the day just like I do everyday. Which basically consists of me -- just like almost every other guy -- crushing on Evelyn Mosby. I knew I wasn't the only one but that didn't stop me. Because I could never blame anyone for seeing the perfection that Evelyn was. She was popular for a reason after all.

I skipped breakfast eager to see Evelyn at the bus stop as she did not only go to my college, but was my neighbor too. And for that I was considered very lucky.

I said goodbye to my mom and dad as I wore my glasses and hung the bag at my shoulder, rushing out of the bag. I was five minutes late. I had to run if I wanted to see her standing there.

And so I ran. I ran just thinking that maybe it will be worth it, if I'll get to see her. But the sad part was that I never got to see her that morning. Or for all the mornings that came afterwards. She was gone.

The time in the school passed really slowly, as me and along with me all the other people waited for Evelyn to show up but she never did. Nobody saw her that day and the rumor spread that maybe she was sick, even though her best friend --- Marilyn -- said that if she would have been sick, she would have told her.

The school seemed dull without her. It was like there was nothing to focus on. Nothing to look at or worry about at all since she wasn't here.

I really hope my feelings won't be taken in a wrong way, leading anyone to think of me as a cheap person with bad thoughts about a person with the opposite gender than mine, because everyone else felt that way too.

Everyone would follow her anywhere, or at least most of them said so. And now standing here in front of my parents and a few other people, I wonder if they would follow her to hell or heaven or wherever she was right now.

And that explains why I am standing here.

When I walked into my house from the door I could instantly hear a few people talking from the living room. The voices were too professional to belong to normal people.

I walked into the room and realized that there were total five people there. My parents, Evelyn's parents and one professional looking middle aged man.

As I walked in the room, it went silent and everyone looked at me.

I raised an eyebrow towards them as to ask what was happening.

"Evelyn Mosby. She's dead" My dad said, and Evelyn's mom burst out crying again as if she was just once again reminded of the tragedy that took place, as if she has forgotten about it completely before she was reminded.

And then, everything paused for me. It was like I couldn't move. I wasn't hurt, or in any mental sort of pain. Maybe it was because it came to me as a shock, or maybe because I never expected it. But whatever it was that I was feeling, I knew it was going to haunt me forever.

I saw her yesterday. She was fine.

The professional looking guy turned to me now walking towards me, as the sound of his shoes as he walked echoed the room.

"I am detective John. I believe you and Evelyn went to the same college, when was the last time you saw her?" He asked.

"Yesterday morning, she seemed fine to me" I shrugged casually, as if this wasn't effecting me. But for some reason, it was. More than anything ever did.

"Now" He turned around as he said "That isn't the only weird thing about this case. Another weird thing being that her dead body was never found"

"Then how can you say that she is dead?" My words were rushed and out of my mouth just as John was about to finish his sentence.

"Because" He started again "We found a letter that she left. Which read that she is committing suicide. Which, is another weird thing about this case"

My eyes went wide open with the shock. Suicide?

"But, we are not eager to jump to conclusions. There is a great possibility that she was murdered and someone wrote that letter in her place, hiding the dead body and pretending that it was a suicide" He said.

"W-who would want to kill her?" I stuttered.

"That's what I'm here to find out" He said eyeing me suspiciously. As if he believed that I was the murderer.

I turned around and went directly into my room.

I was suffocating. I found it hard to breathe and my head hurt. I needed to sleep and I knew it. So I went directly to the bed pushing away all the thoughts that tried their best to haunt my mind.

I dreamed about something really weird. And till my very last day, I am going to blame this dream of mine for all the goods and all the bads that happened in the coming time, along with all the things that I found myself doing that I thought I would never do.

I saw Evelyn in my dream. She was there. She sneaked into my window late night, wearing a bag and she saw me open my eyes and look at her.

"Shhh. Go back to sleep Archer. This is just a dream" She winked at me playfully as she went to the drawer that I never usually opened as it contained my old medicines and files.

She opened the drawer and she placed some sort of notebook there. And just like that, she was gone. Vanished.

I woke up sweating. Something about this dream felt weird. Of course, the whole of it was weird. But something about it was telling me that it was more than just a dream.

My whole body shook with fear and a shiver ran down my spine as I thought about the possibility. I forced myself to crawl out of the bed and my trembling hands opened the drawer and there it was.

The golden diary.