What Happened to Charlie?

chapter one

0.2

The hours dragged on and I watched the skies turn into different sets of colors then into darker shades. I've been zoning out, all that seemed to stick on my mind was what happened to Charlie.

Of course I didn't know what happened to him. How could I? I was just that normal girl who was infatuated with him. I told Mr. Wrens the same thing, then our small talk ended with a small sigh from his lips and him smiling slightly and telling me to be careful always.

I left the room, buzzed with the thought of Charlie missing. Even if I was just a girl he didn't know and that i'm just another one of those girls who likes him, I genuinely cared.

The feelings that I have for him wasn't simply just feelings. They were like stars bursting in my chest whenever I hear his name. It was like seeing the sun for the first time.

It wasn't just a crush.

Then I went in my next class, Math. I didn't listen, all I could hear was my own breathing. Everything else was just a blur. That went on for the whole day.

Throughout the day, the school was gossiping about it. A series of questions and rumors were spreading.

"What happened to Charlie?" They all asked.

Were they really concerned? No. They just wanted to fit in.

Some people even rumored that Charlie was kidnapped. Some said that Charlie rebelled against his parents and ran away. There was another rumor that he was murdered.

The last one worried me.

But there was only one person that really cared besides me and Charlie's parents. Greg, his best friend ever since middle school.

I saw Greg in the hallway this morning, he was outside the principal's office. His light brown hair was disheveled, he was pale, he had dark bags under his eyes, his clothes were wrinkled and some buttons of his blouse were unfinished. All in all, he was a mess.

When I walked passed by him, he looked at me. His eyes were slightly red. We kept eye contact for a few seconds before Mr. Wrens came out of the room and held his shoulder, ushering him inside.

When school ended, I walked home alone, as usual. But I wasn't the only one who felt alone that day, I saw Greg. He was still walking in the same route as he did with Charlie. Greg's head was kept down and his shoulders were slouched.

The whole situation was tougher for him.

It was the first time I felt alone, usually I could see Charlie and Greg walking home together a few feet away from me. It was different now.

I mustered up all my courage and started to walk faster. Then I was beside Greg.

He stopped in his tracks a few seconds after he realized I was beside him. He looked at me with a blank face.

"I don't know what happened to him okay?" He said with a sad yet hard tone. "So can you please keep your pity for yourself and leave me alone? Don't act like you care."

But I do care.

Then he walked away and I was left there, standing alone looking at nothing.