The Lifeguard

Chapter 12

Few days passed, and today is finally the day that I will be able to get some answers, hopefully. Sean found Emily, and he was able to set a date for our meet up. He said Emily was excited to see me, but I don't know if I am.

"Going somewhere?" asked Connor when he sees me walking in the lobby.

"Hi," I smiled. Connor approached me. "I have to take care of something... with Sean. He's giving me a ride," I lied to him upfront. I feel bad about keeping secrets from him, but my gut tells me to keep him out of it.

"A date?" he asked.

I rose my brows, and chuckled. "Of course not. It's not a date. Don't worry, okay?"

"Okay."

"Wait. Are you jealous of Sean?"

"Ha ha." Connor rolled his eyes at me.

I smiled. "Is that a yes?" Connor rose his brows. "Okay, then. I will see you tonight."

"Alright." Connor smiled, although it was a fake one. I already learned the difference between his actual smile and when he fakes it. Now, it was very obvious that he wasn't happy about me going out with Sean. I can't blame him. I've been lying to him too.

I smiled, and gave him a quick hug. "Bye." After we hugged, Connor watched me walk outside.

Sean went outside of the car as he sees me approaching him. "Hi," he greeted, while opening the car door for me.

I greeted him back. Before I went inside the car, I looked over at Connor and smiled. He waved, and I finally went inside.

After the car ride, Sean and I arrived at the restaurant. "We're here. You okay?" he asked. "If you changed your mind, it's okay. I can tell her something came up."

"We're already here... I'm fine," I told Sean.

"Okay. I'll be waiting here."

"Are you sure? You don't have to stay here. You can come with me."

Sean shook his head. "It's fine, Zoe. You should talk to her alone." He smiled. Sean gets out of the car, and opens the door for me. I thanked him. "Call me when you need anything," he says before I went inside.

As I was walking inside the restaurant, I could feel my heartbeat rising. I can't tell if I feel nervous, or scared. I'm not sure what to expect from this, but I know for sure that however it goes, it will be helpful. I continued walking until I saw a girl sitting down by herself. I looked at her to make sure it was Emily. I still remember what she looks like, and since then nothing really changed on her appearance. Emily stood up when she sees me, and she formed a smile. I smiled back, as I walked closer.

"You must be Zoe," she says, while still smiling. I gave a nod. "I'm Emily. It's nice to meet you." Emily offered to shake hands, and we did. "Please, sit down." We both sat down. A waiter approached us afterwards. He started serving us food. "Sorry. I already ordered food. I hope you still like carbonara. Chloe mentioned it before." Emily smiled.

I smiled back. "Yeah, no problem. I still do."

Emily and I started talking about Chloe. She talked about Chloe's life when she was still alive. She said Chloe enjoyed her college years. She wasn't a party girl unlike most girls. I knew that. Chloe has been focused on her academics more than anything. She goes out sometimes, but she never lack on her academics. It was her number one priority.

After a while, Emily and I finished our food, and moved to desserts. "Was she happy?" I asked Emily.

"She was very happy. She dated a guy named Alexander. They were the cutest couple in the campus." She smiled. I never knew Chloe had a boyfriend. She never mentioned anything to me about a guy. Few second later, Emily's smile turned into a frown. "Until everything changed."

"What do you mean?"

"Chloe and Alexander broke up. I don't know the reason behind their break up, but all I know is that they were forced to break up. Chloe never said anything to me afterwards. I never saw her smile again until she disappeared," Emily explained.

"Disappeared?" I asked, feeling confused.

"Chloe left. I never heard of her again. I don't know where she went, or what happened to her. I tried to ask around but no one knew where she was... So I looked for Alexander, but he was gone too. I figured they were together because they were both missing," she added.

"Where can I find Alexander?" I asked.

Emily paused. I could see the sadness in her eyes. "He's gone," she finally answered. "Chloe and Alexander were in a bad car accident. Alexander had severe injuries, but he survived the accident... When he found out that Chloe didn't survive the accident, he was devastated. He survived the accident, but there were complications with his surgeries."

"No. That's not right." Tears started falling down on my cheeks. "Chloe didn't die from a car accident. She died because she was ill."

Emily held my hand. "I'm sorry, Zoe, but it's the truth. Chloe died from the car accident. I'm really sorry."

"I should go," I finally said. "Thank you for your time." I was preventing myself from crying, as I take out my wallet in my purse.

"Don't worry about it," says Emily. I nodded, and stood up. Emily stood up after me and wrapped her hands around me. "If you need anything, just give me a call. I'm very sorry."

"Thank you."

I was about to leave when she called my name. "I have a box of her things she left in the dorm. I figured you should have them. I will drop the box to the hotel if you wish."

"I would like that. Thank you." I tried to form a smile but I couldn't.

I thanked her again before I went back to the parking lot. As I was walking my way to the car, Sean was outside, leaning on his car. He walked to my direction when he sees me approaching him. When he got closer, he looked at me and wiped the tears. Sean placed his hands around me, giving me a hug. From that moment, more tears started coming out. I felt betrayed from my parents. They lied about Chloe's death. They kept the truth from me for three years.

"Thank you." I thanked Sean when we got back to the hotel.

"Will you be alright?" he asked.

I nodded. I got down from his car. Sean left when I got inside the lobby. While I was walking inside, I spotted Connor sitting down in the lobby. He was probably waiting for me.

He approached me. "You alright?" he asked.

No words came out, instead I just threw myself at him, hugging him tight. Few seconds later, I let go. "I'm okay." I lied to him. "I'm just really tired."

"Okay. You should rest now, " he smiled.

I fake smiled.