ellipsis

chapter one...

I got the call in the dead of night.
I was deep in sleep when the vibrating of my phone violently rocked my whole night table, causing me to wake up with a start.
Groggily, I reached out to check and see who called, for the call had been ringing for so long it went to voicemail.
It had been Aud's mum.
At 3 am? She wouldn't call me if it wasn't absolutely necessary-
that's when my heart dropped to my stomach and my hands began to shake.
I immediately expected the worst, or what I thought was the worst.
Did Auden get in a car accident? Was he missing? Was he in the hospital? Was he alive?
With weak and shaking hands, I struggled to pick up my phone and punch in the pass code.
I called Mrs. Rodgers.
One ring. My breath was shallow. A what happened? She had to pick up.
The blood had drained from my face after I saw the missed call, but I felt especially light headed as no one picked up on the second ring.
I sat there, helpless on my bed, my breath coming in shaking whisps when she picked up.
"Mrs. Rodgers- is everything okay?"
I asked, trying to suppress the panic in my voice.
The loud sobs from the other end told me differently. Were there police sirens in the background? I must've imagined that- my breath caught and I told myself again. Everything was fine.
"Do- Do you want me to come to your house?" I was confused and scared and-
My question made her cry harder, and I could tell by the stammering that made it's way through the sobs that she was trying to answer me. I took it as a yes.
My stomach felt like it was eating itself. Holy shit what was happening.
"I'll be right over." I said apprehensively. Vomit rose in my throat, but I swallowed it down.
Even though my hands were rapidly shaking, I had to drive over to their house.
I silently slipped out the front door, careful not to wake my mum, who was sleeping.
Feeling sicker with every mile, I drove into his neighborhood.
Anticipation and fear were gnawing on my insides, forcing stinging bile to rise up in my throat and making my stomach turn as if it was being whisked with an electric mixer.
You couldn't miss his house.
Well- before tonight it easily blended in with the nice little houses that surrounded his. Nothing special.
But tonight it was a showstopper, thanks to the intensely bright lightshow brought to you by the Orlando Police Department.
I choked down a sob as I saw the police cars, and I did a quick mental count of how many there were.
Seven- maybe eight.
What the fuck was happening.
I parked yards from the house, since the many OPD cars blocked the driveway and the sides of the streets.
The door flew open, I could see it from where I parked.
A tall, dark police officer walked out of the door, his expression solemn.
I fumbled with the keys and burst out of the door.
"Excuse me sir!" I shouted at him as he began to get in his car, surprised at the sheer panic in my own voice.
"How can I help you ma'am?"
I blinked slowly.
"What happened?" My voice got oddly high on the last syllable.
The police officer, who's badge read Officer Mason, took a deep breathe.
"Are you a girlfriend or sister?"
He asked. I nodded at the first.
I felt a bit surprised that he guessed my relation to Auden. I was his girlfriend.
Officer Mason looked uncomfortable and shifted his weight from foot to foot.
"The young man who lives there," He began. I felt all of the muscles clench in my body.
"He, he committed suicide."
And suddenly I relaxed, and my stomach felt better and I realized that my head had been pounding and I felt the color flood back to my face.
So this was all a joke.
"Ha-ha that's not funny though." I told him. Even though I knew it was just a joke, something felt strange inside of me.
It was almost- like something cracked inside of me.
"No, ma'am. Auden Rodgers committed suicide last night at approximately midnight. This is not a joke."
I frowned, feeling my face contorting in a way it never had before.
"Stop messing around- don't you have better things to do then play pranks on people?"
I didn't know why I was saying these words. Most of me didn't believe him- couldn't believe him. But the part of me that did was scared.
"Look- Look!" I began to sound hysterical.
I was shaking harder then ever as I slowly lifted my heavy arm to point to the front door.
"Look, I'm going to go get Aud, okay? And you can meet him and we'll all laugh and go home okay?"
A strange smile crept across my face, it was not natural and not my own.
I ran towards the house, glancing over my shoulder every once and a while at Officer Mason.
My legs felt like jelly, and occasionally my knees would buckle, but I kept going.
Finally I reached the front door, and pulled it open, not surprised that it was unlocked.
"Where is he?" I exclaimed, as soon as I saw that there were several people crowded in the living room.
"Oh-" Mrs. Rodgers moaned through her sobs.
"Oh, Baylee."
And then reality hit.
And everything went black.