Finding Ford

chapter four

"Save your advice, 'cause I won't hear." -Selena Gomez, The Heart Wants What It Wants

FORD IS STILL MISSING THE NEXT DAY, THE DAY AFTER THAT, AND THE DAY after that. At this point, the small town has gone full out on trying to find him. The last scandalous thing to happen like this had to be the murder of Ford's mother, which is to this day unsolved, which is what is really worrying people.

That's not worrying me, though. The thing that's weighing so freaking heavily on my mind is why? No matter how hard I try- and believe me, I've sat in my room for hours trying- I just can't figure out for the life of me why Ford would just leave. Sure, he seemed pretty distraught after talking to his Mr. Stevens, but if getting distraught is enough to make him want to leave, he would have been on the highway out of here five minutes after his mother's death. I just can't imagine how if that didn't drive him out of here, an upsetting conversation with Mr. Stevens could.

Of course, I've considered the possibilities. Some are more realistic; like perhaps he was being a teenager, and wanted to rebel. Some are more obscure; maybe he got kidnapped, or abducted by aliens. Either way, it's wracking my brain.

Everyone at school is just as interested. People are coming up with crazy theories, and although I don't want to believe them, the more times I hear, "I'm tellin' you, we're gonna find Wilson's dead body floating in the lake any minute now," the more times I'm actually starting to consider it. It's not like I can exactly avoid it; everywhere I go, Ford is somehow brought up in the conversation. Take now, for example.

"Maybe he found some chick and decided to run off with her," Jas suggests, rummaging through her books.

"Didn't he just break up with Victoria? Like, two weeks ago?" I retort. "I seriously doubt it."

Jas heaves a deep breath, pulling out the textbook she wanted. "Maybe something to do with his mom?"

I bite down on my lip, knowing that if Jas is bringing up Ford's dead mom, she's taking this seriously. "I mean... I don't know. I always though he took her death really well."

"People can be deceiving," Jas points out. She beams as James approaches our lunch table, giving him a peck on the cheek. "Hey, babe."

"What're you guys talking about?" James asks, stripping off his leather jacket, leaving him in a white tank top.

"Wilson," Jas answers plainly.

"Some guys are saying it's only a matter of minutes until they find his dead body," James says, wiggling his eyebrows and grinning like a maniac.

"That's not funny, James," I deadpan.

James shrugs. "It's probably not going to happen. I'm sure he's fine. But, like, c'mon. We need more.... activity in this town. It's so fucking boring. So props to Wilson for actually giving us something to talk about."

"Yes, cheers to Wilson," Jas laughs. Then she actually lifts her juice box, and James lifts his Gatorade. What the hell, I think, lifting my water bottle. Cheers to you, Wilson. You've swept us all off our feet.

x

"Ava Jackson?" Mr. Hilmer pokes his head through the classroom door on Monday. "Could I talk to you?"

Murmurs explode through the classroom like an atomic bomb. The principal coming all the way to an upstairs class to see a student is, yeah, a little more than strange. There's a knot in my stomach as I get up, but then Mr. Hilmer clears his throat and says, "You may want to get your things."