Forgotten Memories

Chapter 16: Strange Reasons

-Aria-

". . .I was laughing at you because declarations of love amuse me, especially when unrequited. . ."

Ugh. I can't concentrate enough to read right now, especially with Alex sitting less than 5 feet away.

The train isn't so bad after all. I brought food with me, so I'm good. The whole trip, I think of Hope. I know she likes Luke, but I can't seem to find a good enough reaction inside myself. It's like I don't even care. I shouldn't anyway.

Sometime after midnight, the train reaches the station we get off at. I stumble off the train and see a hooded figure standing on the other side of the station. Other than Alex, him, and me, it's deserted.

I walk over to him, hauling my suitcase behind me. I sigh nervously. "Uh, I'm Aria."

He nods his greeting. "Good morning," he says in a gravely voice. He doesn't sound old, but I can't see his face. His fedora is shadowing most of his face.

I smile a bit. He seems fairly nice. "Did you come because of Mark?"

He nods. "It'll be a long way until we reach the Bradford residence, so you can rest on the way there." I nod. I'm surprised Alex didn't say anything. He wouldn't shut up on the train.

We walk out to the parking lot and into a limo, but that's all I remember before I fall asleep, dreaming of home.

••••••••••

-Luke-

I spread all the contents out and frown. What the heck should I be looking for? Apparently Hope thinks the same thing, because her eyes are wide open. "So, what are we looking for?"

I shrug. "Let's find out."

I grab the diary and Hope grabs the sticky notes. I lay on the floor to read silently while she starts read out loud. "My 6th grade crush had always been a friend of mine, and his name-"

I sit up. "Is it written in blue?"

She shakes her head. "No, it's purple."

I lay back down. "Then it's Rue's." I open the diary to the first page and am about to start reading, when she reads another purple sticky note.

"Luke had always been a pain in the butt, but I can tell he likes Aria." She laughs. "Wow. This was a secret? I'm pretty sure everyone knew."

I roll my eyes. "You know what? Come here. You're distracting me. Let's read the diary together."

She shrugs. "Okay."

She ends up next to me on the floor, with my arm around her. I sigh and start. "Hello there. I'm not gonna start with the typical Dear Diary sentence, so don't expect me to. This is not a diary, but simply a journal of sorts." I stop for a sec and laugh. Hope frowns and turns, so we're face-to-face. "What?"

I smile. "Can I do this in a high-pitched voice? It'll fit the mood."

She rolls her eyes. "Whatever."

Giddy, I turn back to the journal thing, since apparently, it's not a diary. "Okay. Uh, where was I? Oh yeah. Wait-"

"Oh," Hope cries, "give me that! You're so slow." She whacks my arm and takes the journal. I laugh. "What was that about?"

She shrugs. "You annoy me." She clears her throat and starts. "Today is my birthday. My best friend Luke gave me this journal because he says that if I'm not gonna talk to actual humans, I better talk to something. He annoys me half of the time." She laughs. "True."

I scowl. "Just read."

"Ahem. Okay. My birthday is going pretty badly, but everyone else seems to be having fun. A kid just took my pen, Rue just scared the stuffing out of me, and Luke ran off, so I have no one to talk to. All the other little kids are sticky. But oh well. My parents told me that 10 year-old birthdays should be fun, but without them here, how could it be?"

I frown. "I never realized."

Hope sighs. "It happened eight years ago. No need to kill yourself over it."

I shake my head. "I know, but still."

Hope continues. "Next entry. Presents suck. I got clothes from my grandma, clothes from my aunt and uncle, and clothes from my mom. I only got one actual good present from Luke. He got me this journal."

I sigh. "What are we supposed to be looking for here? Skip through, look for something related to traveling."

She nods. "Okay, but it'll take a while."

I groan. "We don't have time. We need answers. She wouldn't leave just like that. There was a reason for this, and I'm pretty sure it's in here."

••••••••••

-Hope-

"Maybe she doesn't want to be found."

He stares at me. "What?"

I shrug. "She didn't mention a destination or anything. If she did, you would've found her by now."

He blinks. "What if she did?"

It's my turn to frown. "What?"

He sighs. "I don't know. Let's keep looking."

We've nearly read all the diaries and sticky notes, but they're all about random stuff. We start examining the items.

"Sticky notes, diaries, glitter, pens, pencils, glittery pens and pencils," Luke starts listing, rolling her eyes. "This is girly stuff. Why would she leave this for me?"

I shrug. "Keep listing."

He sighs. "Scissors, black-woah."

I look up from the diary entry I've been reading. "What?"

He grins. "I found a blacklight."

My eyes widen. "That's it."

He frowns. "That's what?"

"What are they used for?"

He stares at me like I'm stupid. "What do you think? It's for finding hidden-" realization dawns on him. "Oh. Hand me the letter."

••••••••••

Hey there! Sorry my chapters have been so short lately, but I'm kinda-sorta running out of ideas. . .

Anyway, thanks for reading so far! Thanks for the people who vote and comment, but I'd really appreciate it if more people did too.

Again, if you have any ideas, please comment them! I'd love to hear them.

Thanks!

-Ash