HARDAWAY | trilogy

Chapter Thirty Eight.

KYLAN BURGESS

"Lyrewood High School's principal Carmen Richardson was reported missing today after not returning to work Thursday morning. Friends and family went by her place and saw no struggle, but found it odd that her vehicle was parked in front of the building her apartment is located since she's never missed a day of work. Authorities questioned her neighbors and no one saw her enter her home. There are no leads. She's a thirty-three year old African American woman with long black hair, brown eyes and approximately five foot five. You this woman on the screen, call the number below."

I was seated on the couch in my living room in only a black tee and sweatpants with a pair of socks. The flatscreen sitting on the Tv stand is playing the News Channel Nine, broadcasting the missing report about Carmen. Since everything revealed about her two days ago with the pictures being plastered all over the school, Carmen never returned Tuesday or Wednesday. Everyone start to notice, including me. We were all aware of her not quitting, nor getting fired, so we all knew something was wrong. Her aunt, I know from the block Memaw, filed the missing report.

She convinced the landlord to get into Carmen's apartment and her clothes, purse and phone was left there. No note, no nothing. You know something is wrong when a person phone is left behind. These days, nobody leave their cellular device. When I talked to Shawn about what it was about, he hadn't spoke about it to much. He only said what she said to everyone else that day. But I'm from the streets, I know it's more to the story than they both saying.

When someone knocked on my apartment door, I grunted lowly as I stood from my rib still aching from the beating the police had given me. I footed towards the door and looked through the peephole. It was Shawn. I could only see him rubbing and blowing in his hands from the cold air outside. Unlocking the front door, I pulled it open.

"Waddup, man?"

"What's good?" He stepped in, exchanging fold with me. I shut the door behind him. "How yo rib?"

"Shit, still hurtin'," chuckling I sat back down on the couch easily. "How you feelin?"

I know he been feeling down a bit with Carmen going missing. He expressed to me how he was starting to feel about her, even though he didn't expect to.

"I'm good, man," he removed his coat, "It feel weird cause it's Friday and I'm usually over there wit her. It's just— I don't know how to feel really."

"It's alright for you to feel fucked up about it," I assured him, "you prolly developed stronger feelings than you thought. You know her better than anybody right now."

"Man," he ran his hand down his face, "I don't know. I feel like I coulda done sumthin; helped in someway."

"Even I know she a strong independent ass woman. She wasn't finna allow you to save her or get in the middle of what she was in."