Friend Forever

The Second Day

  Later that day, the walk back home remained silent between Amber and myself, as the sun shone brightly down upon us, and the breeze pushed back our hair. We turned onto my street, as it had been about ten minutes since we left the school, and I knew my parents would be having a timer started, knowing and hoping I would come home the exact time I usually did. And you could bet, if I came home any later, they would be ringing up the police so fast it could make anyone's head spin. So fast that by the time they got ahold of someone I would be walking through that very door, and they would have no choice but to end the call.

I was rather quiet walking home with Amber, unlike the usual chatter I always contained around her. My head just span around the events that occurred in the day, from the test I had been pulled out from, to the conversation with the officers.

"Have you seen a strange man wandering around town?"

What were they asking? What did they mean by that? That he is back? Why? Why would he be back? If he took Carly why not just leave town? What did he do with her? If he is back in town, does that mean she's no longer with him? Does that mean......

"Mallory?" My name was shouted while I finally snapped out of the daze, my attention following back towards Amber, her fire engine orange hair breaking in my eyes, as if a flash of light. They adjusted quickly.

  "Sorry, what was that?" I asked her, tilting her head a bit as if in pity of some sort, and I only kept my head straight on, watching my house start to weather away from the trees and open up.

"What's up with you today? Ever since this morning you have been.....off. Is it because of the talk you had with the police?" She asked, my memory moving back towards that discussion as I let my head answer for me. "What did they ask you?"

"We just......spoke about Carly," I only mentioned a small part, one she had already figured out most likely as we kept our pace the same. Her head nodding away, the long chains wrapped around her neck jingling with the gesture. One necklace of hers in particular, a black corded necklace with a dark crystal tagged along as the pendant was the main one standing out, as the other smaller necklaces only flattered it. I liked that necklace of hers a lot as a matter of fact. She had great style, truly.

  "Still?" She asked, almost confused as I shot her a quick glance of surprise, slowing my pace as I met her face.

  "What do you mean?"

  "Oh.....I......I didn't really mean anything by.....that," she tried insisting, her noticing my shock from her small question, her knowing it tipped me off.

  "No, tell me. What did you mean by that? What, are you surprised they are still looking for her or something?"

  "Well, sort of, I guess," she tried brushing her answer off easily, not so harsh as our walking stopped completely, for I only looked at her in confusion, a hint of anger as well. How could she say that?

  "She's not dead, Amber. I know she isn't. She can't be. She's out there, somewhere, they just have to find her. Don't ever say she's dead or anything close to that. Just don't," I shot her the same look of utter unbelievability, for she didn't say the words, but I knew what she meant by her small comments. I knew what everyone thought. They all believed Carly was dead. Killed, buried somewhere deep underground. But she couldn't be. I didn't want her to be. There were times myself I thought I was the only one that believed she was alive; her own parents starting to have doubts. For I had heard them speak of it, during the many visits I had with them over the last three years.

  "I don't know what to think anymore, honey. There has been no sight of her, no word at all,"  Carly's Mother had explained to me on a visit I had only had recently, for I had stopped by on a sunny day after school, her parents more than happy for that visit. They had expressed many times of the joy they had when I visited, feeling closer to Carly almost when I came over, for I reminded them of her. I could understand, for when I was younger we used to play together all the time, me spending most of my life living at their place. Feeling as if their second daughter in a way. I enjoyed those visits as well, for I felt closer to her there too.