Lunch swung by and I rushed to meet Connor outside. I got in his car with him and we drove to Erin's quickly.
In the front was a shiny black Rolls Royce Phantom and Connor and I were parked away from it, when we saw it we looked at eachother nervously. "He's home." He said.
I hopped out of the car and ran to the front door, thinking to knock before I barged in, and as my fist went in the air the door was swung open by a cleaner. "He's in his study, she hasn't come back yet but Mrs. Norman is in the dining room."
"Thank you." I told him and rushed to the dining room with Connor at my tail. I saw her mom then, the beautiful woman who passed on her looks to her neglected daughter. She sat there with pearls layered around her neck and perfectly manicured fingernails the color of the dress she got married in.
Connor cleared his throat behind me, startling the woman. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Norman-" I began.
"Oh god, you scared the life out of me! When did you two get in here?" She asked calmly.
"Uh, just now-"
"Oh, I see. Aurbey isn't very happy at the moment, he just saw the front lawn, my goodness... That reckless girl can't ever do anything right." The lady chuckled jokingly.
"Mrs. Norman, Erin is missing." I said flat out and Connor gave me a look.
Her mother's forhead creased and she stood up. "Since when?"
"Friday night. There was a party, and-"
"For godsake, she knows not to throw a party!"
"Your daughter is not here." I said slowly with a large amount of frustration in there, knowing she definetly caught it but I didn't care.
"Why didn't you call?"
"We did." Connor groaned.
"Well her car is here." Mrs. Normal said, and as she did we heard low footsteps walk down the stairs and I turned around and watched Erin's handsome and jackass father approach us, looking very unhappy.
"Oh you, you're the one that called, right?" He asked passively. That rich bastard.
"Aurbey, they say Erin isn't here."
"Good, she should be at school. And so should they."
"No, she's lost." Mrs. Norman repeated and it still didn't seem to catch the man's attention.
"She's a smart girl, she knows her way back."
"Aurbey, our child is missing!" She said, shouting this time and I noticed how the more she said it, the more she realized what was going on and I watched as panic filled her sudden motherly eyes.
"What do you mean missing?"
"We've looked everywhere but she's no where to be found. We searched all weekend and her car is still here. We waited for you to come back so we could tell you." Connor said.
"Why are there tire tracks in my lawn, can you brats answer that for me?" He grumbled lowly and Mrs. Norman, upset by his carelessness, began to cry. He threw down the pen he had in his hand on the table and looked at us angrily. "See what you did?" He snapped.
"Do you even care about our daughter, Aurbey?" The woman cried.
"Daniella, I care. Sit down, she's probably fine."
"It doesn't matter if she's fine, we don't know where she is!"
I could only stare at the jackass in front of me and wanted nothing more but to hit him. "You two should leave." He said.
"I'm calling the police." Mrs. Norman said.
"How long has she been gone?" The man finally asked, but only because he wanted to know if it was okay to call the police.
"Since Friday night." I told him.
"And you've looked everywhere?"
"Yes, we can't find her and she hasn't been home since."
Mrs. Norman was already speaking to the police when I answered. "I'd like to report a missing child." She said, giving all the information I gave to her.
Mrs. Norman finished the call and went into the kitchen, calling us in behind her. Mr. Norman followed also, but she wasn't very happy with him so he kept his distance. "You two must be starving." She said between sniffles, wiping underneath her makeup-filled eyes. I noticed she was shaking as she opened up the pantry door, and her husband called the cook in, but Mrs. Norman told him to go back to what he was doing. "I've got it, Aurbey, I'm not useless." She snapped to him.
He looked even more angry and grumbled that he'd be in his office, not saying a word to Connor or me. She turned around and smiled sadly at us when he was gone. "What do you kids want to eat?"
Connor and I shared a small glance asking eachother what was going on. Her mother never really bothered much with us. Sure, when I was over she'd take us out to a spa or something like that, but it was weird watching her cry. "Uh, I'm fine, thank you." I said, feeling the empty pit in my stomach, but ignoring it because I just felt sick with worry.
"Oh surely you haven't already eaten, you're getting so thin, honey." She said in honesty.
I looked down at myself and wondered if she was right. Food would do my stomach some good considering I began to faintly see my ribs. I wasn't thin, I never was, but if I was starting to be that wasn't the best sign.
But I couldn't bring myself to even smell food. "I'm fine, I promise."
"I'll just have a sandwich." Connor said.
We sat by eachother after the sandwich was made, while Mrs. Norman propped her elbows up and held her chin, staring at the table in thought. Connor finished his sandwhich and checked the time. "We should get going." He said, standing up and I did the same.
"Yeah, thank you for letting us over."
"And thanks for the sandwich."
Mrs. Norman gave us that same sad smile, "Thank you for telling us."
"If we hear something, we'll call you."
"And if she comes by I'll give you two a call." Mrs. Norman said and suddenly pulled me in for a hug, shaking on my shoulder.
It was such a miserable hug, a scared one and it surprised me to see how quickly her motherly instincts kicked in. Just twenty minutes ago she was acting as if we weren't there and the next thing I know she's crying on my shoulder. I felt the strange motherliness of it and I wanted it to stay for a while so I could understand it for a second. I gave her a hug back and she squeezed me tighter, sniffling more. When we both pulled back she apologized and touched my face. "You're such a pretty girl, you know? I'm glad Erin has friends like you two."
I've never seen her like that before, nor have I ever been told how good of a girl I was before for a friend. When we said goodbye I sat in Connor's car as he drove us back and I thought over how strange it was to witness as she changed so easily for her daughter- and didn't even know it. I wondered if my mother would be like that, if she was alive. I wished I knew her, and it put me in a worse mood.
"We're back." Connor said. "Short trip, but pretty dramatic, huh?" He said, trying to lighten the mood, but we both knew it was a strange sight. "Are you okay?" He asked.
I shook myself from my thoughts and nodded. "I'm fine."
We walked into the school together and we both had five minutes. I took my time, mentally and physically exhausted. I didn't pay attention in any class, I was too busy thinking over where she could be.
"What are you doing after school?" Connor asked as we walked to my locker.
I gave him a shrug, since I really didn't know. "Well do you want to go over there again?"
"She said she'd call us if she heard anything." I reminded him.
"Right."
"Why don't you just come over and we can figure out what we want to do."
"Alright, I'll come by a little late, since I have to stop by Cole's for a while."
"That's fine." I said and he pat my cheek.
"It'll be okay." He promised, but I knew he was saying it to himself too.
When he left the hall I opened my locker and almost collapsed into it, literally. I went dizzy and tired from the lack of both sleep and energy. My head pounded and every noise began to make me shiver in misery. I just want to go home.
"I see you've left the school again." Mr. Grant sighed out from behind me.
I didn't say anything as I was leaning forward into my locker and covering my ears. "Diana?" He said, his voice going back to the unusual gentleness. No, I didn't want to talk to this stranger who liked to lie to me. Or who liked to confuse the hell out of me, I didn't want to see him and have my mind wonder away from Erin, because he made me stop thinking. "Are you-"
"I'm fine." I said, straightening myself up and grabbing my things.
"Diana," He said again in that deep voice of his.
"What?" I sighed.
"You're not supposed to be leaving during school-"
"What are you going to do, give me detention after you already force me here for tutoring?" I said rudely and watched carelessly as his mood went from calm to angry.
"Don't talk to me like that, and yes I will give you detention for that. Meaning you'll have to sit down and do nothing for an entire hour, now tell me, would you want to do that or tutoring?" He asked lowly, his head looking down at me while he spoke.
I lifted myself up on my tippie-toes and glared at him, suddenly feel delusional and angry. "Neither." I answered in a low tone, and lowered myself to walk off without another word or glance.
For the rest of school I was gone, barely trying or paying attention, and my teachers noticed, of course they didn't say anything, but I saw the look of worry in their face.
People should be worried about the person who is missing, not me.
I walked to eigth period with Connor, feeling lonely without Erin. "You need to wake up." Connor said, snapping his fingers in my face. "Mrs. Howard kept looking over at you, she was probably freaking out at how tired you are."
"People get tired Connor-"
"Just hold on until after school, okay? You should take a nap when you get home."
But Erin. "Alright." I said, of course not promising anything.
"I'll come by after." He said, pulling me into a hug which I returned quickly.
Then I walked into my classroom, feeling strangely about how my teacher was at my house the previous weekend. And how I backtalked him and walked away just hours ago.
Inside his classroom everything was spinning, and before I sat down I wobbled and almost fell over, having Ryan grab me before I did. "Oh god, are you okay?" He asked as I held my head to rid the spinning.
"Yeah, I'm... I'm fine." I said, letting go of him and leaning forward on my desk, supporting myself with my hand.
Ryan put his hand on my shoulder and asked again if I was okay, but his voice was swimming in my ears along with everybody elses. I heard as the bell violently rung, I heard Kara's voice in the distance asking what was wrong with me, and Toby's just beside me calling my name.
But it was the man's voice that broke the swarming and everyone silenced down. "Stop talking." He demanded, and his voice was right next to me. "Everyone sit down." He said, but stood beside me and put his hand on my back. "Diana," His voice said calmly. "Do you need to go to the nurse?"
He's being so nice all the sudden, after I was so rude to him.
I tried to gather up words, I tried to stand up straighter to look at him, to see how his eyes were looking at me, to see if they were filled with the same casualty it had been lately, or the same teacher-like dominance. But when I looked back at him his eyes looked so kind, and he stared back at me in such a gentle way.
"I'm okay," I said finally, "I'm sorry, I'm okay." I shook my head lightly and he backed up, allowing me to sit down.
"If you need to go just say so." He said quietly to me.
I only nodded and quieted down the pounding of my head to his voice. When he began the lesson I payed attention to the usual grumbling of his teaching and for some reason it calmed me. It took away the worry of my friend for a while, but I couldn't figure out if that was good or not. I was supposed to worry for her, of course. But it felt good to just listen to him speak and I stared at my desk, fearing if I looked up, the bright florescent lights would make my head pound harder and faster.
It ended after fifty-five minutes though it seemed like eternity and longer because of the random blanking out I felt. The bell rang and I sat where I was, hearing as everyone left. "Hey," I heard Toby's calm voice sit in Ryan's desk to talk to me. "Connor told me about Erin."
I opened my eyes and looked at him. "Do you have any idea where she could be?" I asked the stupid question quietly.
He looked at me sadly and shook his head. "I'm sorry."
I closed my eyes again and ran my hands over my face. "I'm sure she's okay." I said, knowing we both knew I was talking only to myself, and hoped that she was okay.
"I'll call you if I hear anything." He promised, leaving the room before everyone else.
The sound of the door shutting after Toby made me jump. "Diana?" He's been saying my name so much lately...
I sat up to prepare myself for getting out of my desk but I heard as he stood up. "You don't have to get up." He said, coming over and pushing Ryan's chair next to mine and sitting next to me. "Hey," He said, put a hand on my knee and another to touch my face. What was he trying to do to me? He definetly was not supposed to touch me like that. "What's going on?" He asked in concern.
I looked at him, meeting his gentle eyes and I felt the crashing of sleep hit me as the warmth of his eyes relaxed me. I wondered to myself why I was so tempted to reach out and hug him. "Nothing." I was able to get out.
He frowned and his thumb brushed over my cheek as his eyes scanned over my face. "Like hell it's nothing." He said back, but he didn't sound angry. "You look like you're on the verge of passing out."
I sighed. I feel like I'm on the verge of passing out. "I'm fine." I said back, my eyes focused on the floor since his eyes were too intense with the unusualness of being sweet and kind.
"Look at me." He said.
I did. "Are you okay to drive?"
Oh god, I could barely open my eyes. "Yeah." I lied.
"No you're not."
"Then why'd you ask?" I sighed out tiredly.
"Do you need me to take you home?"
A small, tired and delusional smile took over me and I blinked. "I thought I had detention."
He chuckled quietly too, matching the sudden sorrow that overcame me. "I'm sorry for that."
He put me in shock, never ceasing to do so, and I felt my messed up self almost collapse onto him and I threw my arms around his neck. "No, I'm sorry." I told him, shutting my eyes and feeling myself fall asleep on him right away.
A new kind of comfort took me as his arms wounds around my back and he shushed me. "You're tired, Diana. I'm not going to get mad at you for that."
I didn't say anything and stayed like that, leaning over into him with my face in his warm neck. He smelled so good. It made my mind wander off... to when he used to get mad at me... for anything. For everything. For breathing. But then there he was, hugging me back, and being sweet.
"Come on," He said, pulling me up with him. "I'll take you home."
But I didn't want to go home.
"I don't want to go home." I sighed out.
"Come on." He repeated, allowing me to take my things and follow him to his car. I let myself in and he asked me where I wanted him to take me. I said anywhere but home, and anywhere but my brothers' house, and then I fell asleep in the passengers seat.
...
I woke up on my bed. But it wasn't my bed. The room was sophisticated looking, and dark blue. The bed I layed in was covered in white comforters, and they didn't have daisies on them. The room was clean and empty. On a doorknob was a hung up dress-shirt, and a pair of folded pants at the corner of the bed.
I looked around and felt confused for a second, but after I took a deep breath and took in the scent of my teacher. "What the hell..." I whispered to myself and rubbed my eyes, swinging my legs over the bed and getting up, feeling extremely weak and shakey.
I opened the door and light spilled into the bedroom from the hallway. There was silence as I passed door by door and into what looked like the living room. It was small. It was cozy.
Entering the living room, I saw as Mr. Grant's eyes were dressed with glasses and scanning over papers, holding them while his pen danced around his fingers subconciously. As I stepped into the room his head snapped up and he looked at me. "Oh, hey." He said dumbly.
I leaned against the wall, afraid my knees would give out, and looked around the room. "Uh- I- uh... I... brought you to my place." He stumbled cutely. I looked at him and smiled.
"Thanks." Was all I could say, because I was so thankful he thought about me. I was thankful he cared.
"Are- uh- are you feeling okay?" He asked, removing his glasses. I didn't even know he wore glasses.
"I didn't know you wore glasses." I blurted.
He stared at me for a second, but then smiled and dropped his pen. "Am I handsome?" He asked lowly.
I gave a short laugh and shrugged. "Are you?" I joked.
He raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his chair. "I didn't think so before, but..."
"I'm an ego booster." I said nonchalantly.
"So you were lying?"
I bit my thumb nail and looked around his apartment. It was nice, and clean, except for the corner he sat at, at his desk that was stacked with papers and a computer and pens. "How did I get here?" I asked suddenly.
"I see you're changing the subject..." He muttered. "I uh, I brought you."
He carried me.
"Thank you." I said to him, trying take a step forward but wobbling on my weak legs. He stood up and went to me, catching me as I fell forward.
"Have you eaten today?"
I said nothing and focused on what it felt like to have his hands at my waist and his breath by my ear. "Diana?"
"Hm?"
"What's going on?" He asked in, once again, concern.
I walked to his couch and and sat down tiredly with him beside me. Thinking about the matter made me scared. It reminded me of worry and responsibility, and most of all worriful thoughts. What if she was kidnapped? What if she was...-
"Diana." He said deeply, his voice hitting my face and I leaned back on his couch and closed my eyes miserably.
"She's... She's gone." I said. "We can't find her."
"Who?"
"Erin." I groaned out and brought my knees to my chest and leaned against the arm of the couch. "At the party Friday night..." As I spoke he reached around me and it was magnetic how I just leaned against him when he did. His hand went to my hair as it had that same Friday night when he was drunk. Only, he wasn't drunk this time.
Hadn't I just reminded myself that things would go back to normal?
"I couldn't find her. So I left with Cole, then me and Connor spent all weekend looking for her. And at lunch today we went to her house and her parents got back, so we spoke to them. We still can't find her." I said and closed my eyes.
"You haven't slept since then?"
I shook my head.
"You haven't eaten?"
I shook my head again.
"Oh, Diana..." He sighed and I let myself fall into his side and he had his arm around me in comfort. "Why not?"
"I feel sick."
"Probably because you're hungry."
I didn't say anything and felt myself falling asleep on him, and I didn't want him to let go, but he did. "I'm making you something to eat." He said.
"No, it's okay-"
"Shut up." He said, and left me on the couch. I let out a laugh and leaned back to make myself comfortable and fell asleep almost instantly.
When I woke up he had a sandwich in front of me but I turned away and he groaned. "Don't be difficult." He said, touching my hair again.
"You're my teacher." I suddenly said. "You're not supposed to touch me like this." I sighed out and he stiffened, pulling back and clearing his throat uncomfortably.
"You should eat." He said awkwardly.
"I shouldn't be at my teacher's house." I went on.
He didn't say anything and instead leaned forward in the couch I layed at, running his hands over his handsome face. "I'll take you back." He set the plate on the coffee table in front of the couch and stood up, "Come on."
I didn't move.
"Let's go."
"I never said I wanted to leave." I said, sitting up and shakily rubbing my eyes.
"You're right, you shouldn't be here."
"I shouldn't do a lot of things." I sighed.
It seemed to frustrate him and he breathed in deeply, and turned around to stare at the wall. "What do you want?" He asked, almost miserably.
I wanted to forget about my friend, I wanted to do wrong things and many of those things were with my teacher. "I want a lot of things." I said softly.
He turned around and looked at me, wearing a button down white tshirt with a black tie and the same pants he worked in. He looked tired and I began to feel bad for how difficult I'd been.
"I'm sorry." I blurted.
His face went soft in confusion and he shook his head. "You're delusional, eat something and then go back to sleep." He adviced me.
I reached out for the sandwich, peanut butter and jelly, and as soon as I took a bite I turned a mixture of hungry and sick. I kept eating until it was gone and I rubbed my dizzy eyes again.
"I've got water." He said, handing me a bottle which I took thankfully. "Are you good?" He asked.
"I'm fine, thanks."
"You can go back and lie down of you want." He said, mentioning his bed.
I shook my head, because I didn't want to be alone. "No, I'll stay in here." I said.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah." I yawned and lied back on the couch.
My mind didn't have time to process anything else, and I fell back to sleep to the silenced sound of Mr. Grant writing on papers.
...
When I woke up the second time I was awake and normal. I stretched in the couch and looked around, seeing the blank television, and in the reflection was a tired looking man who clicked his pen frustratedly, staring at papers.
I groaned from the tight feeling and rolled onto my back, stretching out my legs and feeling heat surrounding me uncomfortably. My shirt was twisting in the back and riding up in the front, and the cool air didn't do much to kill my sudden temperature.
I stayed in that position, staring at the ceiling and threw my hands in my knotted hair. "I feel like shit." I muttered tiredly.
"Language." Mr. Grant said from his desk and I sat up to look at him and he looked up from behind his glasses, still hovered over his papers.
"What time is it?" I asked.
He leaned back in his chair, stretching out and looking attractive while he did, taking off his glasses. He brought his wrist up to his face and shook his watch, reading the time. "Seven-thirty."
I shot up quickly and checked myself for my phone. "Oh god oh god..." I said to myself, remembering the meeting with Connor.
"What's the matter with you?" He asked me, suddenly in worry.
"Where's my phone?" I asked.
"I don't know." He said.
"Oh my god..." I breathed out and ran into his room to see if it fell out anywhere but saw it was no where in sight. I went back to the living room and bumped into him while I did. "Ah..." I groaned.
"Calm down," He told me. "It's probably in my car." He said, taking his keys and walking to the door. "I'll look, stop freaking out, I'll be back." He said, and left me in his living room to admire his book shelf that sat against the wall. It still hadn't sunk in completely that I was in his house. I had slept on his bed, on his couch.
My mind wandered off to innapropriate things, like what he did when he felt alone, or how he washed his hair in the shower...
"Found it." He shut the door behind himself and I flinched, feeling my face heat up the slightest. Of course he caught it, because he caught everything. "What are you thinking about?"
You.
"Where is it?" I asked, ignoring his question and seeing as he pulled it away when I saw and reached for it. "What are you...-"
"Tell me what you were thinking about."
"It's none of your business." I said, reaching for it as he pulled it higher away from me.
"It is if you're in my apartment."
"Oh, just give me my phone." I groaned, stepping on his shoes to lift myself higher. My hand went around his arm and I reached the best I could, having an excuse to be so close to him.
"Tell me first." He said, pushing at my waist, holding me back.
"This isn't fair, you're like a beanstalk."
He rolled his eyes.
"Don't roll your eyes at me." I said dryly, making him chuckle.
It was so unfortunate, because for a man who rarely smiled, he had the most beautiful smile. "Diana." He simply said, looking back at me.
"You don't want to know what I was thinking about." I argued plainly.
He raised an eyebrow. "Then why'd I ask?"
"I was thinking about you. Happy?" I said, reaching against but he took another step back.
"No, not quite."
"I'm not elaborating." I said blandly, crossing my arms.
"Guess your not getting your phone back."
As he turned away from me, I grabbed onto his tie and pulled his face close to mine, seeming to make his breath stop. "What are you-" He began nervously.
"You have pretty eyes." I said smoothly, watching as the heat unravelled through his caramel-colored warmth. "Do you remember when I said you were handsome?" I began, watching as he was frozen. "You were about to say something to me, but my phone rang, remember?"
He blinked.
"What were you going to say?"
His left hand wrapped around my wrist that held his tie and he stared back at me. He opened his mouth to speak, but I saw his grip around my phone loosen and I snatched it from him immediately letting go of him and walking back quickly.
He glared at me and went after me. "Clever girl." He said as I ran into his room and locked his door. "Get out of my room, I think you need a lesson on how to seduce someone properly."
His huskiness made me shiver and I was almost frozen from his words. Oh god, it was actually so fun to flirt with this man. I replied in a shocked giggle and scrolled through my phone, seeing Connor texted me and said that he went by and I wasn't there.
I replied quickly and apologized, saying I was at Austin's and knocked out from sleep. When my phone went back in my pocket I heard him tap the door.
"Come here, Diana."
He knew what he was doing.
"If I don't?"
"You'll see." He growled seductively.
I laughed again. "What, are you gonna force me?"
"You need to be careful with how you talk." He warned lowly.
I opened the door slowly and peaked at him. "Why? Does it bother you?"
"Diana."
He stepped forward, pushing the door back and next thing I knew he was against me, pushing me back with his chest. Was it bad to say I liked it? "Charlie?"
My legs hit the bed and I almost fell back, but he grabbed me just barely before I did. "You were thinking about me, huh?" He said lowly, holding me so close.
My face was already warm and I watched his face as it looked at mine. "Mm hmm..."
Mr. Grant leaned more and more into me and I felt as my hands gripped his shoulders, trying not to fall back onto his bed. But he was doing it on purpose, holding my waist and his face was closer and closer. "Tell me they were appropriate thoughts." He growled.
I was about to groan from how much his tone turned me on, but I stayed calm and stretched my fingers to his neck and brushed them up to his hair, and I made him shiver. "And if they weren't?" I matched his tone, but quieter.
He leaned in closer and I was then pressing into his bed with him hovering over me. This wasn't right, but I knew that was the last thing either of us cared about.
"Then lie to me." He almost groaned out, his lips by my ear and in my hair. His hands slowly, so slowly, slid up my side and I tugged on his hair.
We both said nothing and it annoyed me so much how he hadn't yet put his lips on mine. "Charlie?" I sighed out.
He groaned shortly in response, leaned back to stare into my eyes. "Are you gonna kiss me yet?" I asked boldly and even then he looked surprised, but surely enough he began preparing my position for it and slid his hands to my thighs and pulled me closer, his nose brushed against mine and his lips not yet on mine.
But he didn't fucking kiss me.
He pulled away and smirked. "That, sweetheart, is how you seduce someone properly." He said to me and stood up, pulling me up too. I felt so stupid then, but just rolled my eyes.
"Nice one." I said sarcastically.
He opened his mouth to speak, but my phone rang, always interrupting him. I reached into my pocket and saw it was Andy.
Oh things turned awkward fast...
Charlie cleared his throat, "I'll... leave you to talk alone." He said, his sexy tone completely gone.
I didn't say anything as he left the room and I answered the phone. "Hey." I said, sounding happy to hear from him.
"Hey, how've you been?" He asked casually.
I guess it was safe to say I missed that man. "I've been good, I missed you." I said normally.
"I missed you too. How are things?"
I sighed and sat onto Charlie's bed. "I want to say good, but it wouldn't be true."
"What's wrong?"
I layed back on his bed and stared up at the ceiling, remembering how just seconds ago that asshole was over me, almost kissing me. I should have just kissed him, dammit! "Erin...-" I froze while I spoke. She was still missing, and I was at this man's house, wishing he kissed me instead of looking for her. "She's missing."
"Oh, god, Diana, what do you mean?"
"She's been gone since Friday night."
"Have you went looking for her?"
"Yes, everywhere."
"Wow, I'm so sorry..." He said, seeming to be deep in thought. "Why don't you come over, we can figure something out together, alright? I'm sure I can find some people to put up some searches."
My heart warmed up with thanks and I smiled, tears forming from a mixture of emotion. "Oh Andy..." I sighed. "That means a lot to me... Thank you so much."
"It's not a problem, really. I'm sorry she's missing..."
"When do you want me over there?"
"When ever it's convenient."
I thought things over and ignored the imaginary magnetic force to my teacher and sat up. "I'll be over there in an hour."