--Six time award winning novel by June D. Silver-
"Hidden truths are unspoken lies"
As a straight A student, Finnley never got himself into trouble. He goes to school, runs track, hangs out with his two best friends Cristian and Emma and studies; a...
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– 4 months before the disappearance –
Neon lights flash all around me, the beat of the music making my stomach tremble of vibrations. Which isn't a good thing since I've had way too much to drink already. The night escalated pretty quickly, which isn't uncommon for me. Before I went out, I went to Jaimie's house and we already did a couple of drinking games while watching TV. By the time we got in the city, I was in the least a little tipsy, swaying from left to right, laughing over stupid things.
What bothers me most is the fact Emma bailed on me, promising to help me talk to Julia. I was supposed to call her when we were about to go out, but she didn't answer her phone when I did, three times in a row. Stupid little me even tried to get Finnley to come out, but he wasn't answering his phone either. I know they both were doing homework, Finnley tutoring her for French; which she hates.
So, here I am with Evan. Jaimie hooked up with a girl he's been eyeing for a while now, while Felix left with his girlfriend. I stay behind with Evan, who is a bit boring since he never likes to dance, or meet strangers, or do anything other than drinking.
It's past midnight, my curfew is in less than an hour and I might as well go home right now, but I don't feel like going just yet.
Because Julia is a couple of meters away from me, animatedly talking to one of her friends. I'm still contemplating on heading over to her and just try to seduce her. But it's the never-ending battle to yes or no do so while she is surrounded by her friends. I don't want to make a fool out of myself and maybe it's best if I put this on hold until I'm a little less drunk and a little more clear-minded. Or until either Emma finally helps me, or Finnley introduces us. Which I have been begging him to do for the past couple of months already; with little to no avail.
"Cris, I'm heading home." Evan grabs my shoulder to make me turn around. "I don't want to be home late again. My parents will ground me and we have a match in the morning."
"Yeah, right, okay." I shrug. "Maybe I should head home too..." I search the crowd around us to find either Felix or Jaimie, but both are nowhere to be seen at this point. "Or else I'll be by myself."
"Not hooking up are ya?" Evan chuckles. "You're so tame lately."
"I've set my eyes on one particular girl." I grin. "And I don't want to be known as a player or whatever."
"But Cris," Evan laughs out loud. "You area player." He ruffles my hair. "You're just one of those fuckboys. Why do you care? You never had trouble to seduce a girl you like. What's different about this one?"
"She's a good friend of Finn and I don't want him to think I'm using her. He needs to introduce us."
"Why do you always care what Finnley thinks about your rep?" He shakes his head in disapproval. "Finnley is a shy, nice guy. But he's totally different from you. Why do you still hang out with him?"
