𝐎𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐞

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐍𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧

"We've tried looking everywhere, and we can't find him. What if he's... what if he's gone?" Nevaeh said with a teary voice.

"Don't say that!" Mariah cried.

"We can't just stand here and act like it's not a possibility that he's somewhere dead. And we can't keep sitting here crying over it either. We need to continue to get our ass up and search for him," Jamal yelled with a determined tone.

"Latrell, you know Jamir. Do you have any ideas on where he may be?" Mariah asked with a hopeful expression.

"No, I don't. I'm trying to think of something," I said, wracking my brain for any clue as to where Jamir could be.

"Well, do you remember what the last thing y'all talked about was?" Nevaeh asked.

"He told me that he doesn't love me anymore and that he was only using me to get over Daijon," I said, feeling a lump form in my throat.

"Daijon? Why would he bring that up? Jamir hasn't mentioned him in months. He's too scared to even say his name out loud," Mariah said, looking confused.

"What if?" Jamal began, his voice trailing off as he thought. "No, that can't be true."

"What is it? Tell us!" Nevaeh urged, her eyes wide with anticipation.

"What if Daijon really is alive and he's got Jamir?" Jamal said, his voice rising with excitement.

"Oh my god, that's crazy. Daijon's been dead for months, Jamal. You know that," Mariah said, shaking her head.

"Yeah, that's true. But what if he's not? What if he faked his death and he's been hiding out all this time?" Jamal said, his eyes gleaming with the possibility.

"Do you really think that's possible?" Nevaeh asked, looking at Jamal with a mix of fear and hope.

"I don't know, but it's worth looking into. Maybe we can find some clues about where he is or what he's been up to," Jamal said, standing up from the couch.

"Okay, let's do it. But where do we even start?" Mariah said, wiping away tears from her face.

"We'll start by going to his mother's place. Maybe one of us can talk to her to get more information on his death. We can make something up and say we're a friend of his who didn't have the mental capacity to go to his funeral," Jamal explained, his voice shaking with emotion.

"Me and Nevaeh will do it," Mariah said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Yeah, if Daijon is alive and got Jamir, then I can't help but feel that this is our fault," Nevaeh said, her eyes welling up with tears.

"Don't be ridiculous. None of this is your fault," I said, trying to comfort them.

"But it is! We're the ones who forced Jamir to talk to Daijon! None of this would have ever happened if we just respected his feelings," Mariah cried, her body shaking with sobs.

"I was a jerk to Jamir back then. I don't blame you all for wanting better for him. If I was you, I would have done the same! But what you two are not going to do is blame yourselves for something you had no control over," I said, pulling them into a tight hug. "Now, we have to focus. We need to get him back home to his mother. To his friends. To me and himself as well."

"Latrell is right. Where does Daijon live? We need to get to his house as quickly as possible," Jamal said, his voice firm with determination.

"I know where," Nevaeh said, taking my car keys from my hand.

"Then take us there," I said, my voice catching in my throat. As we piled into the car, I couldn't help but think about all the times Jamir had been there for me. All the times he had held me when I was crying. All the times he had made me laugh when I was feeling down. And now, he may be gone. My heart ached with sadness as we drove towards Daijon's house, unsure of what we would find when we got there.