Love Strengthened Us

Chapter 16

3 am

I stared at the time on my phone, trying to think. I had just woken up to complete darkness, it was obviously night, but I had no idea it was this late. 

I turned to look to find Sam, but what I found, was an empty bed next to me. Where had she gone? 

My head hurt and I was still a little sick from being hungover, but the memories started to flood back. It was as if something clicked in my brain, how or what, I wasn't sure.

Memory after memory, I was piecing this year back more and more and finally, I remembered the Sam the way I always had before all of this began. 

A sweet coffee girl I casually had sex with, that happened to turn into so much more.

I didn't even care about the fight earlier, I didn't care about football or anything right now. 

Where was she? Why is it so late and she is not here?

A flash of panic finally surged through me as I called her and waited for answer.

It didn't even ring, but it went straight to voicemail. 

Call again.

Same outcome. 

"What the hell?!" I yelled to myself, starting to become frustrated. Who do I call next? Who could know?

I called Danny and thankfully, it started to ring, but after a few rings, it went to voicemail too.

I called again, same outcome.

I ran a hand through my hair, worrying now more than I could ever think I would. 

How could I of gotten so drunk to just let her walk out the door without knowing where she was headed? How could I of let her go and not even care and wait this long to notice?

I was supposed to keep her safe, I promised I would be there, what happened?

'I'm just overreacting, she fine, she's safe. She's probably at her brothers or something' I thought to myself. But as I got a look at the date, it made me feel sick.

December 24. 

She was gone and it was Christmas Eve now. She wouldn't just up and leave, I know she loves me enough to at least not do that.

So I call again and again, with the same thing happening each time.

It's the that thing you do when you are in a panic. You know the outcome will be the same, but you hope that maybe, just maybe, something different will happen the tenth time, fifteenth time, twenty fourth time, but it doesn't. 

I had to of been twenty calls in when I finally threw my phone onto the bed, frustrated and panicked. 

A thought hit me, maybe I do call her brother. Maybe she stayed the night there and be back in the morning. It was possible.

A surge of hope lifted me up and I decided to call then and there.

Now I know it's not usually socially acceptable to call someone at three in the morning, but I didn't give a single fuck right now, I cared about where the hell Sam was.

"H-hello?" A tired and gruff sounding voice came through.

"Hey, Matt it's Julian, is Sam there?" I was not going to waste his or my time with small talk, especially this early when I knew he didn't give a damn to know how I was doing.

"Um, n-no? Why?" I could tell he was just in a deep sleep as he sounding very mumbly. 

"It's three in the goddamn morning and I just woke up after being hungover and plastered drunk and she isn't here and I'm freaking out." He was her brother, he knew her well, maybe he had some insight, I needed something.