The Missing Pages

Chapter 10

It is a Saturday so Maya showers and gets dressed early. She usually sleeps in on a weekend. Weekdays she would work (not anymore obviously) so weekends were her days to chill and catch up on Riverdale. She walks into Amy's room. Amy jumps up and shuts her laptop down hard.

"Jeez Maya you scared me!"

"Sorry, I forgot to knock. I was just going to tell you that I will be out. I'm going to see my brother."
Maya looks down at the laptop and smirks.
"What are you hiding?"

Amy looks down, her cheeks are red.
"Well I've met this girl..."

"Oh my gosh, show me!" Maya exclaims as she sits on her bed.

"We've just started talking Maya, it's nothing serious."

"What is she like?" Maya grins.

Maya's phone buzzes so she pulls it out to check.

Can you meet me outside the parking lot like now... It's urgent! Also bring a pair of gloves X.

"Right I'm going to go babe but don't think I will forget about this conversation." Maya stands up and points her finger towards Amy.

She laughs. "Of course I will tell you! But I'm going to stay over at my parents tonight."

Maya smiles. "I'm glad they are making an effort."

If only her mother did the same.

Maya gets to the parking lot and she recognises the car straight away. She opens the car door and sits inside the passenger seat.

"What's up?" She asks.

"First of all, what the hell were you doing trying to get inside the girl's room?!" Katie questions.

Maya sighs as she leans her head against the seat.

"I was just desperate Katie... I wasn't thinking straight and I know it makes me look even more guilty."

Katie leans over and opens the glove compartment. She takes out a plastic wallet with a purple book inside.

"What?" Maya looks at her confusingly.

She holds the wallet up. "This is Ciara's diary." She exaggerates on the word this.

Maya looks at her in shock. "What are you doing with that! You can get caught!"

"I sneaked in his office when he was asleep. Besides, he won't know if anything went missing because he's gone to visit my grandma today."

"But why have you got this?" Maya asks.

"Well did you bring gloves?"

Maya takes out her gloves from her coat pocket. "Now can you tell me why?"

Katie puts on some gloves and opens the wallet. She places the purple diary on her lap.

"We don't want to leave any fingerprint marks left behind now do we? Anyway so I was having a look through her diary and it just doesn't seem right."

"What do you mean?" Maya is all ears. She shifts in her seat to face Katie.

"Well she wrote about loads of things. Family issues, reasons for moving away, boys, books and many other typical things. Then she wrote about how she liked the idea of starting a new chapter in her life and that she will only mark down the happy things. Now have a look at this."

Katie hands Maya the diary and she opens it.

"Look at that." Katie says.

Ciara wrote about many positive things after that. She wrote about how  happy she was making amends with her family. She wrote about how she is starting to date again, how she was beginning to find herself. Katie turns to the next page and frowns.

"Exactly, that was my reaction!" Katie says.

A couple of pages were torn out.

"That's not all. Keep turning."

Maya turns the pages until she stops at a specific page.

She doesn't acknowledge me... It's like she doesn't care about anyone but herself. Why does Maya Anderson Hate me so much.

The part that James read out at the station.

"I don't get it." Maya puzzles as she looks down at the diary.

"Well I think someone is trying to frame you for the murder. I mean, she talks about the best days of her life but then you're suddenly mentioned. It just doesn't connect and the writing style is different."

Maya closes the diary and puts it in the wallet.
"Take this back before your dad notices."

Katie grabs her arm.

"We will find out who did this Maya."

Katie drops Maya off to her mum's house. She thanks her and walks up to the red door. She knocks three times and a few seconds later a short guy with bright blue eyes opens the door.

"Who are you?" He asks.

Maya scoffs. "And who are you?"

"It's okay Sean." Maya's mum walks up to the door. She has a silk gown on and her hair was up in a bun.

"It's been a long time since you've come. This is Sean." He takes out his hand. Maya looks down at it and back at her mum.

"And I don't care." Where's Mason?"

Her mum moves away and lets her in. The house looks exactly the same. She takes off her shoes and walks up the stairs until she gets to the first door. She knocks but nobody responds. She knocks again and says,

"Can I come in?"

Soon as she says that, the door swings open.

"MAYA!!!" Mason embraces Maya and she laughs.

"I missed you Mase."

He lets go and walks towards his bed.

"Then why didn't you come see me?"

It have been almost two weeks since she has come to see him.

"I'm sorry Mase. I just had a lot to deal with." She sits down next to him.

"Can you play with me?" He holds up the Xbox controller.

She spends a few hours playing  Tekken with him. He tells her about school and how he likes to spend the days in his room now because he's not fond of Sean. The new boyfriend.

Maya's mum walks into the room and leans against the door.

"You should come more often Maya."

"Don't act like you care." Maya doesn't make eye contact.

"I do care, I know what's been happening and I-

"You know but did you call do check up on me?" Maya interrupts her. She looks at Mason who seems uncomfortable. She kisses his forehead.

"I'm gonna go now, I'll see you soon Mase."

"I hope it's very soon" he hugs her and she smiles. Her smile fades as she looks up at her mum. She waits for her mum to walk out and then she walks out after her.

"I didn't think you would want to talk to me." Her mum says in the corridor.

"You still didn't make the effort did you mother?"

She looks at her mother's perfectly manicured nails and her hair that is now blonde with brown streaks. Maya looks exactly like her mother. She has blonde hair and green eyes and the same beauty spot under her left eye.

"Did you dye your hair for Sean?"

"Don't be silly Maya. Sean is a good guy."

"You've known him for less than 2 weeks." She scoffs.

"You should get to know him, he is great with chil-

"I don't need another fucking father. I had one and you made him go away." Maya is right in front of her mother's face as she says this. She steps back and walks down the stairs. She puts her shoes on and Sean is there with a bagel in his hand.

"Would you like some?" He asks.

"Oh fuck off." She rolls her eyes and walks out.