The Love Game

Chapter 4

Danny

Where was Lushia? She usually spends hours walking in that park, but she'd been gone for 6 hours. That's a really long walk. Surely she couldn't still be walking? I went outside to look down the street. She wasn't even on her way home. I called her cell, but groaned in dismay as I saw it laying on the table, staring at me as the song "Love Story" by Taylor Swift played. Lushia, where are you? I had to go and look. Taking the quickest route to the park, sprinting, I went down one of the many trails. So many ways to go! I tried to remember where I turned. Right. Left. Another left. Right. Middle. Left. Right. Another right. Middle. It became an impossible job. The trees were thickening. What was I doing? Trying to find someone who supposedly was walking for 6 hours in a matter of minutes? It would take much, much longer to find Lushia. She's probably starving. The sound of my own stomach growling made me sigh in despair. I should start walking home. I looked at my wrist, that had nothing on it. Damn! Forgot to put on my watch. I tried to pull a "Crocodile Dundee" and check the sun, but the long arms of trees blocked my sight of the sun. I turned back. But which way was back? I helplessly stood turning in circles. I remember walking past a tree. Yeah Danny, that helps a ton. I slumped down onto the path, exhausted. There wasn't a living being in sight. I had nowhere to go. I'm too tired to carry on. I'll just camp out here for the night, and try again tomorrow.

I didn't have a chance of finding a way back. Goodness knows how long I was running, or which direction I was running in. Without the time, a sense of direction, or, anything, I may as well just give up here. But I won't. I try going right. Right is always right, huh? Gotta be. Please let it be! After what seemed like a century, I finally found a clearing in the forest. I was hopeless alone. I sprinted like I'd never sprinted before. My legs took me as fast as I possibly could.

I banged on the front door. In my haste to find Lushia I forgot my house key.

"MUM!" I shouted into the keyhole.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming, I'm coming."

"MUM LUSHIA'S GONE MISSING!"

"What?" Mum stood staring at me in bewilderment.

"The last thing I saw of her was her saying she was going for a walk."

"Oh my."

"She was gone six hours, so I went to look for her."

"That explains the clothes..." Mum gestured to my dirty clothes clinging to my skin from the sweat.

"Mum we have to find her! You know she's like a little sister to me. Or more than that..."

"Alright. I'll call the police."

***

"So when was your last sighting of this girl?" An officer with a gold badge gleaming was looking down at a clipboard. We were sitting at the table. Mum and the officer had cups of steaming tea and scones. I was too ill to feel like eating or drinking anything.

"She said she was going for a walk. Six hours later she still hadn't come back. I went looking for her."

"Where was this walk to?"

"The local park."

"Any unordinary health conditions with this girl?"

I gulped. "Um, um, nothing, that we know about... She was in perfect health. Not pregnant or anything, yeah. Nothing, yeah."
"Danny...? Where did you get pregnant from?" Mum looked furious. She could tell when I was lying.
"Just an example mum!"
"Better be!" She tutted.