Memorıes Lıke These

Chapter Thirteen

I sat on mine and Lorna’s hill, looking out into the city view. Lorna had asked me to meet her there at 12:00, it was now 12:15. Where was she?

I waited a bit more, just sitting in the same spot. It had been a whole week since Lorna’s throwing up incident at my house, and she had had a few more things happen since then. Like yesterday, she fainted and nobody knew why and she woke up two hours later. And the day before that she claimed she was ‘really tired’ and literally couldn’t get out of bed. And even though she didn’t talk about it and covered them up, I had seen the large bruises forming on her hips.

I was really starting to get worried about her health.

I checked my phone. There were no calls from her, so I decided to call her myself. It went straight to voicemail. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

That’s strange. Where is she?

I waited for a few more minutes, thinking that she’s on her way and her phone is flat. But she doesn’t come.

Eventually I stood up and walked to her house. Noah should be home, maybe Lorna’s there too. After ten minutes I arrived and knocked on the door. I turned the handle, as I always just let myself in, and opened the door.

"Hey, Noah? You home?" I yelled out.

I heard the TV blast from inside the living room and I walked towards it. “Noah?”

Nobody was in there. 

I looked at the TV that was showing some music video and yell out again.

Where is everyone?

I looked back at the door, realising that it was unlocked when nobody is actually in here. I run upstairs and into everyone’s rooms. No one is home.

My eyes catch something in Noah’s room. I have been in Noah’s room two times. Once to get a book for Lorna when she couldn’t get out of bed and another time to look at his guitar, which is pretty wicked. But in all the times I’ve been here, Noah’s room door is always shut. Always. Even when he’s not in there. So it surprises me to see that his bedroom door is wide open.

I walk cautiously inside and I look around the room. His room is like mine, pretty messy. There’s clothes all over the ground and I don’t blame him, but the thing that freaks me out the most is the glass lying on the floor. And the home phone beside it.

The glass is broken into hundreds of pieces, as Noah’s floor is wooden, and water is surrounding it in a puddle. That’s when my heart starts beating irrationally fast and my mind goes all clouded and I run downstairs and out of the house.

And to the hospital.

Noah’s POV.

Two hours before. 

"Can I get you anything to drink?" I asked Cleo as she sat down at the dining room table. She smiled and requested a glass of water. I walked into the kitchen and started getting us a glass each when she spoke.

"Why have you never invited me here before?" She asked, looking around. "We always meet up at my place."

I leant against the kitchen bench. “Your house is so much better.” I laughed and went back over to the sink.

Cleo rolled her eyes. “It is not! There is nothing wrong with your house. It’s very cute.”

I handed her her glass of water and sat down beside her. I looked at her, taking all her features in. She had dark, black curly hair and olive skin and large brown eyes that were shaped as ovals. She caught me staring at looked at me strangely.