when the party's over ~fransykes~

Chapter 20

Hey everyone, sorry for not updating for so long but I would just like to say that I've entered this book in for the wattys and a couple other opportunities so I would really appreciate it if you could comment and like so this book can get more exposure. Thank you <3

Oliver's POV

10 days josh had been missing for. 10 days.

Just 240 hours and yet it felt like a lifetime. I swear I've aged more in these last 10 days then I have in the last 10 years of my life.

I haven't been to school since, though the police tell me too. They say it's no good for me to skip school and mope around all day but I disagree.

My mums been trying to support me as much as she can, although it's hard when she works so much and still has to take care of my brother too.

My dad just leaves me to do whatever I want, in fact I don't think he's said a single word to me in days. I guess it's kind of hard for him to watch his son just sit there doing nothing all day when he wants his child to grow up to be successful or something.

My father was the kind of parent that wants all their children to go to university, become a doctor or a lawyer and then buy a fancy mansion with an expensive car for their picture perfect family to live in. Unfortunately for him, I doubt I'll even pass my GSCEs let alone get into university, and my brother wants to go to art collage to be a photographer. Ah well, I guess he'll just have to get over his dreams of his kids being what is regarded as traditionally successful, as most parents do.

Matt and I had devised a plan over the last couple of days. We were sick and tired of the police brushing Josh's disappearance under the rug, thinking he had just ran away or something. Every day that Josh stayed missing, the slimmer the chances of me ever seeing him again became.

Tonight we would initiate our plan.

I would start with the south side of town, beginning at the youth hostel centre and making my way outward towards the strip of clubs and eventually end up at the park. Matt would tackle the West side of town, starting with the gas station and making his way towards the blocks of flats on the other side of town.

This would take a couple of days, even with the two of us splitting up, the city was a big place and there was a lot of potential places Josh could be staying. This was made even more complicated by the fact that Josh could be staying with someone or sleeping rough, we literally didn't know where he was.

He might not even be in this city anymore, for all we knew he could have hopped on a train and completely left. But I didn't want to think about that now.

As soon as sunrise hits I'm out of bed and getting ready. I shower and brush my teeth at lightning speed, turning the water onto the coldest setting possible to make sure I didn't stay in there too long.

Showers were a really dangerous place for me to be in right now. It seems like every time I stand under the waterfall of hot water my mind fills with 100 different conversations with Josh I could have done differently. I should have been better, I should have complimented him more, I should have told him I loved him when I had the chance.

You see my problem? I can't stop my mind dwelling on the past. Somedays I stand there for hours, just lost in my own head until the shower overflows and the bathroom goes cloudy with steam.

That's exactly why today I took a cold shower, to stop me staying in there all day and wasting the precious time I have to go find Josh. The only good thing about this whole shower situation is that I've had lots of time to think of what I'm going to say to Josh when I see him again, starting with I love you.