Phoenix ✔️

Chapter 16: Come Back

"Your brother and sister? Elena and Dom?" he asks. I raise my head a little and nod. "I haven't seen them in three years. I want to see them again and be with them, Mark. I miss them," I tell him, with tears forming in my eyes. The thought of going another day without seeing my family drives a stake into my heart. There is nothing more that I want than to just know that my family is okay, and that they're waiting for me to come back. Mark sighs.

"That's perfectly fine, Nicole. Go on Whitepages and look them up. They should be there, and you'll probably get a phone number. Just in case your family changed a number here and there," he says.

I raise an eyebrow at him. "How's Whitepages going to be my answer?" I ask snarkily. I really doubt that it's that easy to find someone's contact information just by a few searches and a few clicks.

He smirks. "I've looked myself up on Whitepages. It's effective. They got my number and my address down and it was on point. I think you should try looking up Dominic or Elena on there," he says.

I sigh. "Fine. I'll do it. I'll look them up. Should I do Elena or Dom? Because I don't know if Elena married Roy yet," I say.

He smiles. "Atta girl. You should probably look up Dominic, because I don't think that he's changed his name. Elena may have married Roy, so I don't know if her last name will be Roy's. But, that's just my two cents. I'll be right back with your things. The IPad is right next to you, and there's no password. Go ahead and entertain yourself," he says, and he walks out of the door.

I lift a bandaged arm up and my hand hits the IPad on the dining table. My fingers wrap around the edge and I pull it towards me. I prop it up on my lap, and I press the "home" button. I unlock it, and I immediately go to the Google app Mark has.

I press it, and then I type "Whitepages." When I find the website, I type in "Dominic Wilson, Santa Ana." I do so, and there are only a few results for that. One of them shows his birthday, "April 12," and says, "Related to Elena Wilson." My heart starts to beat like crazy after that. It doesn't take long to get the answers I need, and it brings me one step closer to connecting with my family once more.

For some reason, I want to call Elena first. She's a lot less busy than Dom, and not only that, she lives closer to me than Dom does. She'd get me out of here as soon as she possibly could. I click on Elena's Whitepages, and then her number shows.

My eyes meet the phone on the table, and my sore hand grabs onto it. I drag the phone to my side, and I apply my fingers to the number keys. I glance over at the number displayed, and I press the appropriate numbers to reach Elena.

When I dial them, I look at the phone. This is my chance to see them again. I hope that the number is correct, and that I can hear her voice again. Without any further hesitation, I press the "call" button, and I press the phone to my ear. With each ring, the butterflies in my stomach flutter faster. My heart beat starts to accelerate to an uncontrollable pace.

Will Elena be happy to hear from me? Has she moved on and forgotten me? Will she take me in with open arms? Eventually, I hear the line click, and the same familiar voice says, "This is Elena Wilson speaking. How may I help you?" I exhale deeply.

I could recognize that voice from 100 miles away. She's just so familiar and so distinct. I've struck gold.

"Hello?" Elena asks. She sounds like she's going to hang up if someone doesn't talk within the next two seconds.

With my voice shaking, I say, "Elena. It's me."

A gasp escapes Elena's lips when she hears my voice. The sound of her whimpering brushes my ears. "N-Nicole?" she asks, and I can hear her voice breaking.