McLennon Oneshots

Lost Boy

4th August, 1961

"A-And if you can't accept me for who I am, John... Then we just can't be friends."

They were the last words John had ever heard from Paul, and there wasn't a day where he didn't think about them. The way Paul looked at him as he said them... It was a look of hurt, regret, and sadness.

When the younger boy turned to walk away, John remembered how he felt. He cursed himself, knowing he should chase after the boy and tell him how he really feels. But he never did... He couldn't.

Because even though John did feel the same way about Paul, he just couldn't admit it. And he didn't.

So here John was now, walking up and down the Albert Docks, the last place Paul McCartney was ever seen. It felt like the milionth time he'd walked around the Docks, looking back and forth for the boy, even after two years.

Maybe Paul would never have gone missing if he would have never walked away from John, which meant he'd still be here. He'd be safe...

And it was all John's fault.

Even years later, John still believed it was his own fault. Why couldn't he have just told Paul the truth? Why was he so scared to say the words 'I love you too'?

"E-Exuse me, Ma'am..." John asked a woman, looking around 40 years old, who was staring into a shop window. She turned around at the voice.

"Yes, dear?" She smiled.

"Uh, I'm sorry to ask... But have you seen a boy anywhere around here with dark brown hair? He's about this tall." He demonstrated with his hand. "He might be taller now... I-I'm not sure." John sighed.

She could sense the desperation in John's tone. "I've seen many boys today about that height with brown hair... I'm gonna need more information than that, dear." She sighed. "Do you have a photo?"

"I-I think, but it's not very clear." He said, reaching into his pocket for his wallet.

John knew he had a photo of Paul, he carried it around everywhere with him, but he was always scared to show it.

When the boy went missing, it was one of the biggest stories in Liverpool at that time, and when the police closed the case, it felt like people stopped caring. He just became 'The boy that was never found', just like most of the other people who went missing.

John was afraid that if he showed the photo of Paul to this woman, she's stop caring too.

"Here." He held it out, looking away.

"Oh..." She said in a sad tone. "That's the boy who went missing a few years back, yeah?" The woman said, her tone soft.

John just nodded. "Yeah... It is." He sighed. "I'm guessing your answer is going to be no, correct?"

"I'm sorry, love." She sighed back. "And I'm sorry that the police closed the case too. Nobody deserves to go missing, especially not someone who seemed like such a polite young lad."

"Thank you, miss." He tried to smile, placing the walled back in his pocket.

"I hope you find him."

"I do too." He agreed, turning to walk away.

And she was right, Paul was such a polite boy, he didn't deserve to go missing.

And John didn't deserve him.

He carried on walking, coming up to another person, this time a man, who was staring angrily into the water.