Dissapearance

chapter 1

Margo's POV

There was really no correct reaction to something as horrid as an event like this- death. Death of a young girl- a future taken away in only a second with no trace to follow and no person to blame. Everyone loved Amy. She was the star cheerleader, the star student but also the person to always break the rules first. She was the trend-setter, rule-breaker, beautiful, all around most popular and loved girl of the school. All the guys wanted to date her and all the girls wanted to be her, but on top of all of that, she was my bestfriend. Amy Nell O'Hair was a troubled, gorgeous, hilarious, fun girl with a great personality and an old taste in music. She inspired many and made many happy, but she also got herself into a lot of trouble- too much trouble.

Amy went missing the day before Christmas eve at precisely 12:42 AM. Now, she's been missing for almost a month, and no one can find her. Her face is plastered across the city, each corner is a new rumor of what could have happened. People spectated she was dead, injured, that she ran away or even that they saw her. None of it was true obviously, but people still talked, rumors still spread and Amy was still missing and suspected dead. Although authorities advised her family to accept that Amy was quite possibly dead, they refused and argued that she couldn't be. They were in denial that their daughter was most likely dead, and well, who could blame them? It had to be hard to think of all the torturous things that might have happened to her before she died. I knew the truth, though: she was dead, probably due to her own troublesome activities. Amy was prone to dangerous tendencies, giving strangers her address or phone number simply because they were attractive, drunk driving, and getting into many fights at school. She had many enemies with many possible motives. Maybe the suspect list was just too long.

"Margo?' I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of my mother's voice calling my name through the phone.

"Uh, yeah?" I replied, completely missing what she had just said.

"Were you even listening? I said pick up some milk, and be back in an hour."

"Okay," I responded, hanging up before heading towards the dairy isle, searching for milk. I scanned the isle until I finally found what I was looking for. I grabbed it instantly and made my way towards the check-out. My face was nuetral as I handed the milk carton over to the guy in front of the register, handing him the required money as well. As I did so, my eyes landed on a missing persons flyer for Amy on the front of the register. I picked it up and stared at it blankly.

"Amy Nell O'Hair, seventeen-year-old has been missing for three weeks and two days. Suspected dead. If you know anything about her disappearance, please contact this number immediately."

Below was a phone number and a picture of her laughing in a blue dress. That was from prom night. I remembered it pretty vividly. Amy had gotten extremely wasted and ended up banging some football player she didn't really know. I smiled at the memory of her waking up so hungover that she couldn't even talk and me laughing as I brought her water and an advil. I miss her- I really do. I miss our girl nights and her dragging me to high school parties just to get completely wasted and forget it all in the morning. It was pointless, but it was also a good time. What could I say?

"Excuse me? Miss, you're holding up the line," interrupted the guy at the register. I cleared my throat and nodded, mummering a quick 'sorry' to him before grabbing my bag and leaving. I soon found myself sitting on a bench outside the store, starring hopelessly at the flyer in my hands. It felt completely unreal, like a dream, but it wasn't. It was very real, and that was the scariest part. How could she just be here one day then gone the next with no warning, no evidence, no struggle? My mind couldn't help but wonder what might have occurred the night Amy disappeared. Did she get taken, drugged, raped? Did she suffer, or did she simply get tired of her parents as usual and run away? But if she did, why didn't she at least tell me before she did? She tells me everything. I sighed deeply, feeling extremely stressed over this whole situation, before I feel my phone buzz in my pocket with a text message. Assuming it is my mother telling me to hurry up, I stand to my feet without checking it and head home.

"That was quicker than expected!" my mom exclaims as I enter the kitchen with the milk in hand. Sitting it on the counter, I laugh and excuse myself up to my bedroom quickly. I plop down on my bed lazily as I reach my room and pull out my phone only to find an unexpected text message.

"Bet you missed me," it read. Although that message was already slightly strange, it seemed even more crazy when I saw who it was from- Amy. My eyes widened in both shock and surprise as I read the message, my thoughts instantly wondering who this could be. Could Amy possibly be alive, or was this some sick joke? If so, who was texting me and why did they find this funny? It didn't make much sense to me.

"What kind of sick f*cking joke is this?" I typed back, feeling anger course through me as I re-read the message over and over again. Whoever is doing this is absolutely cruel and terrible. It makes me furiously mad at the thought of someone joking about something as serious as this. A teenage girl is missing and thought dead yet some sick bastard is texting her best friend, pretending to be her.

"I didn't think death was a joke."