Do It If No One's Watching

Chapter 17.

I woke up the next morning with a thirst for knowledge. My alarm didn't even have to wake me up, that's how excited I was for school. I got up at like four and started getting ready, even though my bus didn't come until seven.

...Did you believe that? No? Oh, maybe that's because that's literally the farthest thing from the truth.

I didn't have to wake up the next morning because I never went to sleep. When my alarm sounded, I just turned it off and kept laying there in my bed. I never got up, I laid there for about two more hours. I eventually fell asleep at like eight in the fucking morning, but as you probably could tell, I really wasn't in the mood for school. So I didn't go.

My mom didn't mind. She knew what had happened without me having to tell her. Even though Stephanie and Amanda had only gone missing the day before, the entire town was talking about it. I wouldn't even be surprised if I'd found out that the entire state was talking about it. This was the biggest thing that happened in Hinckley since...forever.

My dog (whom I creatively named Dog) woke me up at about three. He was jumping on my bed and licking my face as I yelled at him to get off.

"Fuck off, Dog," I groaned. He, in fact, did not fuck off. He stayed in my bed for like ten more minutes until I actually got up and went downstairs. I heard the TV on, which was strange because I knew that my mother wasn't home.

"Hello?" I asked. No one answered. "Hello?" I repeated. The fact that no one answered scared me. I knew for a fact that my mother never left the TV on if she wasn't watching it because she would scream at me whenever I did. 

Also, I was really fucking paranoid because of the thing with Stephanie and Amanda. I know that it really had nothing to do with me, but they live in the same town as me, they're teenage girls too, they went missing the night before. It was utterly horrifying. It literally could've been me. 

But despite all of my fears surrounding that, I walked into the living room at looked at the couch. Even though I was petrified, I'd rather get murdered now rather than later. I'd rather face it now than sit in my room scared shitless, wondering if there was someone dangerous in my house and whether or not they planned on taking me like they took my friends.  

...And it turns out that there was no reason for me to be scared at all. It was fucking Wyatt.

He looked up at me and smiled. I furrowed my eyebrows. "You asshole!" I exclaimed, walking further into the room. I picked up a cushion from the couch and threw it at him. "You know that I'm scared out of my fucking mind right now!" 

He smiled and then turned off the TV with the remote that sat next to him. "Why?" he asked. "You think someone's gonna get ya?"

I rolled my eyes. "That's not fucking funny," I said. "Something might have happened to Stephanie and Amanda." He smiled and looked down, shaking his head. "Why are you smiling?" I asked with a serious tone in my voice. It pissed me off that he didn't seem to care about the fact that my friends were literally missing.

He shrugged. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked. I felt myself getting angrier with every word in that question.

"Because my two friends just went missing and you're smiling while I'm obviously freaking out," I told him. He clicked his tongue and stood up, making his way over to me. "Go away," I said as he put his arms around me.

"Stop," he said smoothly. I didn't resist as he wrapped his arms around me. "I'm only joking around because I know that they'll be safe." He pulled away from me, looked at my face, told me, "Everything will be okay," then went back to hugging me.

I'd been trying to convince myself of those words for the past 24 hours, the fact that Wyatt was saying it didn't make any difference. It happened so quickly. We were hanging out after school and then they were gone just twelve hours later. I just can't...

...Wait. How did Wyatt get into my house anyway? My mom couldn't have let him in 'cause she leaves for work at like six in the morning and I know damn well that Wyatt doesn't wake up before then.

"How did you even get in here?" I asked.

He pulled out of the hug and then shrugged. "Through the front door," he said.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "My mom locks all the doors before she goes to work."

"Oh, yeah, well," he began. "I came around at like noon and checked all of the doors but they were locked. I knocked a few times and I was like screaming your name, but you didn't answer. Then I remembered that David has a lock picking kit thing, so I went home and got it. And here I am."

I laughed. "So you didn't go to school?" I asked.

"Nope," he said. "I wanted to be here when you got up."

I smiled at that because even though he was taking the whole Stephanie and Amanda disappearing thing way too lightly, he still cared enough to be there for me. I know that I shouldn't be as shaken up over their disappearance as their parents and their families, but I still was. And it was just nice to know that my boyfriend was there for me.

However, even though it was amazing that Wyatt was there for me, I just wanted Stephanie and Amanda to be there too. Although Wyatt was the most important to me, I felt that I still needed good trustworthy friends as well. I felt like I specifically needed people like Stephanie and Amanda in my life. And by saying that, I'm not saying that didn't want Wyatt. I wasn't taking him for granted or anything, believe me. I'm just saying that I didn't just want him. Because I'm fully aware that my relationship with him (and/or anyone else) could change in an instant. And whether they intend on it or not, anyone that you associate with could leave you or be taken from you. And in my recent experience, I mean that figuratively and literally.

I truly loved Wyatt and I loved the fact that I was dating him. I loved the fact that Wyatt was always there for me. But sometimes it just feels like he's only there for me because he feels like he has to be. And I feel like we get along so well because he agrees with me no matter what I say or do. That's why I like to be surrounded by sincere, genuine people like Stephanie and Amanda. They tell me what they think even if they know that it will make me mad.

The way I look at is that Wyatt is the most important person to me. But Stephanie, Amanda, Lauren, Martha, and (sometimes) Evelin are still (not really Evelin but I already included her, so) fairly important to me. It's good to have other people, you know? It's good to have the people that you think you need, and it's good to have the people that you just enjoy being around. It's like Stephanie and Amanda and the Elms. They need each other, but I'd like to think that they enjoy being around me as well.

Stephanie is Amanda's rock, Amanda is Stephanie's rock. Lauren is Martha and Evelin's rock, Martha is Evelin and Lauren's rock, and Evelin is Lauren and Martha's rock.

...And of course, Wyatt is mine.