If You See This Boy

It was December and I was only four. A new boy had moved in just down the street from me. He was six and was going to be turning seven in a few days. He had a pair of blue eyes that reflected the cool chill of the snow that covered the ground of Cheshire. He was someone I would never forget.

"Mum! I'm gonna go play with Louis!" I shouted as I haphazardly threw on my grey coat and wrapped my blue scarf around my neck. My curls were a mess but I couldn't begin to care. It was a good day and I was excited to go outside.

"Be safe Harold!" she called as I ran out the front door with my boots barely on my feet. 

I stumbled through the snow down to the cultasack at the end of the street to find the Tomlinson household. My gloved hand slammed down on the doorbell about three or four times before the boy I was looking for opened the door.

His brown feathers splayed across his forehead from beneath his knit hat. "Harreh!" he squealed. His red jacket covered arms wrapped around me as he pulled me away from his home. 

"What are we gonna do today Lou-Lou!" I chanted as his gloved hand slipped into mine. 

He grinned back at me as we ran in between the houses. "I found this really cool hideout!" he exclaimed. His eyes gleamed with excitement as my brown curls flopped against my forehead. Snowflakes dotted our eyelashes as we left the neighborhood and entered an area I hadn't been to before. Trees enclosed this small wooden shack. The windows were broken and it was more than safe to say that it hadn't been used in months. 

"Isn't it awesome...?" Louis smiled brightly at me before his hand slipped from mine. He pushed open the shacks door to reveal a stack of Power Ranger figures and a small pyramid of Legos. 

I gasped at the glorious sight. 

We played for a few hours before my stomach began to grumble loudly.

"Want to go back?" Louis chimed after a little while of my tummy's cacophonous roaring.

I shook my head furiously, "I wanna play more!"

He giggled at me before standing and setting his Power Ranger down. "I'll go get some snacks then and I'll be right back promise!" he pulled his red knit hat back down on his head and left leaving me with out the vision of his name sewn into the back of his hat. 

I continued playing with the little figures and the Legos for a while before I began to realize that it was darkening outside. The little shack was no longer warmed by the daily sunlight and Louis still hadn't come back. Sleepiness overwhelmed me as I began to become afraid. I was alone and it was getting dark. 

I cuddled into the corner of the little shack with my little knees tucked into my chest for warmth. Tears welled in my eyes as I sat there. 

Eventually all the light of the day had disappeared and I was still alone. My lip quivered as I cried. I wanted Louis to come back and walk me home. It wasn't like him to not do what he promised especially when it came to promises he made to me.

"Harry!" I heard a man call from a distance.

"Louis!" I heard someone else yell out.

I stood from my little corner and ran from the shack with the Power Ranger that Louis had been playing with. 

"Harry!" my mum yelled as she ran to me from where a large group of people were walking through the trees. Tears were on her cheeks as she wrapped me up in her arms. 

"Mum!" I cuddled into the warmth of her coat as the other people went to the shack looking around inside it.

I caught a glimpse of Louis' mum crying as his dad tried to comfort her. Why were they crying? Louis had gone home earlier.

"Baby boy, do you know where Louis is?" my mum looked down at me. 

I shook my little head in confusion. 

My mum took my home after that while the group of people stayed around the little shack with flashlights searching the area. She cradled me against her chest before she set me down in front of the fireplace so I could warm up. 

I fell asleep there with Louis' Power Ranger held tightly against my chest only to awaken the next morning with my normal excitement. I didn't think to change my clothes as I ran to the kitchen and barely managed to grab a blueberry muffin from the tabletop. I ran for the door, "Mum! I'm going to go play with Louis!!" 

Her arms wrapped around my waist and hoisted me away from the door just as I opened it. She shut the door quietly and got down on her knees in front of me. Her small hands cupped me cheeks as a sad look overcame her face. 

"Mum? Louis' waiting for me...!" I tried to push her away but she wouldn't let me. 

"Sweetheart... I need to tell you something and I don't know if you will understand, but I need you to listen, okay?" she whispered as her fingers tucked curls behind my ears. 

I looked at her in confusion. 

"Harry... Louis can't play with you anymore."

I pouted out my bottom lip angrily, "Why? He's the one that was being mean!"

She smiled weakly before attempting to push more curls out of my face, "Harry, Louis is missing."

It was after that, that photos of my dearest friend began appearing everywhere around town. It was after that, that we weren't aloud to play outside alone anymore. It was after that, that Louis' name was only said in hushed tones out of the hearing range of the Tomlinson household and out of the hearing range of any child that knew the boy. 

I may not have fully understood it then but I did know that a part of me was missing and that part would always be missing.

A Note From Kaity: So, what do you all think? Comment if you think I should continue. I have some ideas for where I would like this story to go. Poor LouLou has become the boy on the milk carton.

Comment if I should continue. xo~ Kaity

AUTHOR'S NOTE AS OF 2017: On January 1st, 2018, IF YOU SEE THIS BOY will no longer be available for purchase on Amazon. If you would like a copy, please purchase before that date. Thank you for reading!