"Right then, I knew there was something different about you and I just...I needed to know you."
──・・𖥸・・──
Myrtle Beach is just one of those cities where you never know what you're going to get. One day it can be all smiles and rainbows, and the nex...
"Hudson!" Mom exclaims upon answering. "It's been too long! You and your brother haven't been calling enough, I've been worried."
I can't help but break into a smile. "I'm sorry, Ma. I've been busy."
"What could have you so busy you can't call your own mother?" she crossed her arms, one arched eyebrow raised.
How am I going to fit the best 7 weeks of my life into a few words? "A lot has happened."
Mom leans back in her seat. "Try me, Hudson."
"Well," I take a deep breath. "There's this girl—"
"A girl?!" She lurches forward, almost falling in the process.
I nod and my face heats up ever so slightly. "She's um...Ma, she's like no one I've ever met before. Like, no one can compare. Something about her is just...etherial. I even wrote a song about her."
"You must be pretty serious about her if you're dedicating songs to her."
"I am. She's even coming back to Chicago with me," I tell her.
Mom smiles, clearly buzzing with happiness. "I can't wait to tell your father! And I can't wait for the next two weeks to pass. I'm sure she's wonderful, sweetheart."
I wince at the idea of Dad meeting Dove. He's got such a critical eye for anyone who isn't Mom. I'm scared he'll be so harsh on her that she just turns away and hightails it right back to South Carolina. But I can't tell her no. My own anxiety is making up scenarios that may not even happen. Mom is always talking about giving people the chance to improve, and maybe he's undergone some massive change over the past few months. I doubt it, but anything is possible now.
"Yeah, I'm sure Dad'll love her. Honestly, I don't see how he can't, she's just so..."
Mom attempts to fill in the blank. "Perfect?"
I shake my head. "No, more than perfect, if that's even possible."
"I'm happy for you, baby. Well. I need to get back to some house work, but I'll check on you again later. I promise."
We say our goodbyes and then she's gone. It wasn't a long conversation, but it just made me even more excited to get back home. There's so many things I want to show Dove, so many things I want to experience with her. While vacationing in South Carolina is probably the best choice I've made in a long, long time, our lives in Chicago are going to be even better, I just know it. If I wanted to, I could sit here for hours and just daydream about all the possibilities.
Unfortunately, there's footsteps on the staircase and Damon appears. "Have you seen Dove?"
"She went to Coastal. Why, what's the matter?"
Damon's visibly confused. "Are you sure?"
"Positive." My gut is telling me something's wrong, but my brain hasn't completely caught up yet. "What's the matter?"
"Her car is still in the driveway."
That doesn't make any sense. It's been at least 30 minutes since she left, she should have been there by now. I get up and head outside, just to find that her gray Toyota is right where she left it. It doesn't even seem like it's been turned on today. Something happened, I don't know what it is, but this car shouldn't be here and she should be at Coastal. "Is she in her room?"
Damon shakes his head. "Adonis checked all over the house. There's no sign of her, Hud. She just...she vanished into thin air."
I don't believe it. I refuse to believe it. Within seconds, I'm back in the house, frantically tearing up every room I enter. I don't give a damn about cleaning it up, I need to find Dove.
But Damon's right.
She's not here.
I call her phone over and over and over. Each time it goes straight to voicemail.
She was fine this morning
She was here with me, talking about moving to the penthouse just thirty minutes ago. How is it possible for one person to vanish without a trace?
I don't know.
But I'm sure as hell going to find out.
──・・𖥸・・──
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