Crescendo

Chapter Seven

Most people have left already, so it doesn't take long to find a place to call my mom. I hit the 'CALL' button and wait. The few seconds it takes for the call to go through is practically a lifetime. I tap my fingers against my thigh as I wait. But it doesn't take too long once the call connects. She answers on the first ring, and I am apologetic immediately. "Mom! Hi! I'm so sorry! I started talking to some friends of mine, and I lost track of the time!"

"You know, Lauren," my mom says, foregoing the greeting. I know she's about to start with the guilt trip. Which irritates me, because I'm eighteen. I'm an adult now. And it's not like I told her when I was going to be back. Just that I was going to try to come home early. "We understand you're a legal adult now. And we know you want some freedom. And your dad and I don't care how long you're out for. But you have a phone for a reason, and when we text or call you, we expect you to respond. We are your parents, and we do worry when we don't know where you are."

"Okay, mom," I say, and part of me feels kind of bad for making my parents worry. But the other part is angry that I'm having this conversation with my mom when Claire is still MIA. "I'm sorry," I say begrudgingly and only because I want to get off the phone as fast as possible. "I didn't mean to make you and Dad worry. The music is just so loud here, and I didn't hear my phone when you messaged or called. And this is the first time I've checked it all night." There's a silence between us, and I know she's thinking these excuses don't matter. "Okay. Well, I'm going to go find Claire and head home. Talk to you later."

"Okay, honey," she says. Her voice is gentle, but I know I'm not off the hook. I know we'll discuss this in more depth later. "I love you. Be safe, all right? This is a dangerous time of night for driving. Pay very close attention to other cars."

"I know," I reply exasperatedly. "I will. Love you, too, Mom. See you in a bit." I hang up the phone, shove it in my pocket, and then I run back over to the boys. They're standing up when I get back, and they both look really worried. "Hey," I pant, pressing my hands against my knees and trying to catch my breath. "I'm sorry about that. I need to get going. I'm already out way later than I should've been." Wesley nods his head, and Conner frowns. "Will you guys help me find Claire?" I ask desperately. "I haven't seen her in hours."

"Of course," Wesley replies. He looks directly at me. "I'll search outside. You guys want to take the house? It looks like most people have left already, so I doubt it'll be as crowded as it was earlier."

"Yes," I say. And then I do something that surprises us both. I reach up and hug him. He's startled by my sudden act of affection, and so am I. But I have just spent most of my evening talking to him. Getting to know him. And he's so great. And I'm leaving, and I feel like I just wasted all of these years walking by him in the halls, acting like he's nothing but a shadow of Kev. For the first time in all the years we've known each other I'm starting to see him as Wesley. Just Wesley. Without Kev. I pull away quickly, grab his phone, and type my number into it. "If you find her, text me, okay?" Then I send myself a text from his phone, so I have his number as well. "If I find her, I'll text you."

He nods his head, not at all bothered by the fact I just added my number into his phone without his permission. That's, like, really rude, and totally against all forms of phone etiquette. But he just slides his phone into his pocket and says, "Okay. Good luck." Then he runs around the yard, beginning his search both for his best friend and mine. I take off at a run to the house, and I can hear Conner running beside me. It doesn't take much for him to keep up with me, as he's so much taller than I am. We make it to the house, I throw open the sliding glass door, and we dart inside.

Wesley was right. There are very few people left at the party. The loud music from earlier is still playing, but no one is dancing to it like before. There are still some people sitting on the couch and chairs. One couple is making out in a recliner, the light behind them turned off so you can barely see them. There's a guy I recognize from school on the floor. He's not passed out. He's just sitting there, red solo cup still in hand. His eyes look zoned out, and I can tell he's high off his ass. I've only been high once. Didn't care for how it made me feel. Haven't done it since. I see a few others passed out, but no Claire.