Summer crept up on me. I wasn't ready yet. School is my safe haven. I sit in the cafeteria watching the other kids talking and laughing with their friends about their big summer plans.
I sit at the table in the farthest corner of the cafeteria pretending to listen to music while secretly listening to everyone. This is how I have spent every lunch period for the past three years. Nobody notices me. Not even my twin sister. She is skinny, pretty and perfect. Me and her are polar opposites. She's on the cheer team, has a ton of friends, then there's me. I have maybe three friends and I wouldn't be caught dead in a cheer uniform.
While I sit alone at my table listening, I hear people's secrets. Who's sleeping with who, who cheated on who, but most interestingly, people telling their deepest darkest secrets to their best friends.
I know everything about everyone. But, no one knows I know anything. As the lunch bell rings, people either rush to their class or outside for a quick smoke. In the past three years at this school, I have learned almost everyone's routines. I go to class, where I also sit in the back corner of the room.
As bad and lonely as school is, I'd rather be here then at home. Being invisible at school surrounded by self-centered people who I won't remember in 10 years is one thing. But, being invisible at home. That's a different kind of hurt you wouldn't understand unless it happened to you personal.
After school, I start my walk home. "Mariah, wait up!" I hear my sister Sara call from behind me. Maybe if I keep walking, she will think I didn't hear her. "Mariah!" She says again right behind me now. "What?" I say as I turn to face her. "I thought you might want some company" She says in her perky cheerleader voice. This is the first time she has tried to walk home with me. Something is up. "I'm fine thanks" I say with a noticeably fake smile. She walks beside me anyways.
The whole walk home she tells me about Meghan. Meghan has a habit of stealing other cheerleaders' boyfriends. Sara, who doesn't have a boyfriend hasn't had a problem with her; until now. Sara tells me about how Meghan is putting a huge wenge in the team because everyone hates her which I already know.
When we finally get home, I hurry to my room. I put in my headphone a drift away with the familiar sounds of Mozart and Bach.
I awake to the sound of a thud. The only light coming in from the moon outside my window. I slowly tiptoe towards my door trying to make as little noise as possible.
When I open the door, and look down the hall there's nothing but darkness. I go back to my room and check my phone. 3:00 AM. I lay back on my bed and tried to sleep. My mind keeps circling back to the noise. What could it have been there was no one in the hallway, and at this time of night everyone would surely be asleep?
By the time 6:00 AM comes around, I start to hear my house come alive. I hear my mom and my sister talking while they head to the kitchen, but no dad. My dad should be heading to the shower by now to get ready for work. 6:30 rolls around and still no sound of the shower running.
I decided I might as well get up. I grab my shower bag and head to the bathroom. Then I hear my dad. "Can I grab a shower first I slept in" He asks with a pout. I move out of the way and head back to my room. I drop off my shower bag, since I can't have a shower, I head to the kitchen.
When I walk into the kitchen my mom and sister aren't there. I call out to them but no answer I head to the living room. They are both standing in front of the T.V staring. I look to see what they are so invested in. Then I see it. "Local teen missing" with a picture of Meghan.
Sara has tears streaming down her face, my mom looks like she's about to pass out. No shower now no breakfast either. I head back to my room.
Just as I'm about to close my eyes to try and catch up on the sleep I missed earlier Sara walks in. "I can't believe Meghan's missing" she says still crying. "She probably not missing," I say. Knowing Meghan, she most likely hanging out with a boy. "Nobody has seen her since lunch yesterday. She didn't go to her afternoon classes and didn't go home." Sara says. Every time she talks, she cries harder. I groan and roll over to face the wall. Sara huffs and walks out.
Once Sara leaves it hits me. I don't think I saw Meghan after lunch either. I usually notice her since most of the school drama is based around her. My stomach starts to turn, maybe something did happen to her.
I get up and head to Sara's room to make sure she is okay. "Sara," I say as I slowly open her bedroom door. "Is it okay if I come in?" "Yeah, I guess." She says quietly. "Look, I'm sorry about earlier. I know she's your friend. Are you okay?" I ask with sincerity. She shrugs but doesn't answer. "Is it okay if I sit with you?" I ask trying to be a caring sister. She nods and continues to stare out the window.
Sara's room doesn't match her personality. Her walls are an off-white color. I think I heard her call it eggshell once. Her bedsheets and blanket set are a light grey. I actually kind of like her room. However, it doesn't look like it would belong to the bubbly blonde cheerleader.
After what feels like an eternity of staring at the walls of her room Sara speaks. "How does someone just disappear like that." My social skills aren't the best however I'm pretty sure she wasn't actually asking. Then she turns to me. "Seriously, I think about, we know pretty much everyone in this town. No one would take her, and it's way too small for her to be lost. So how did she disappear?" Okay, that was actually a question. "Well maybe, and please don't get mad, but what if she decided to ditch and start her summer off with a party and got a little too drunk and couldn't make it home?" I say. "Maybe, but let's talk about something else literally anything else please." She says dragging out the please longer than necessary. I sit on her bed and listen to her talk about cheer and how she can't wait for cheer camp and how excited she is to finally be a senior.
The next morning, I wake up and my back is so sore. It takes me a minute to realize I'm on the floor. I must've fallen asleep in Sara's room.
I walk to the kitchen and once again my mom and Sara aren't there. They are in the living room, eyes glued to the T.V again. "Now two local teens missing." With a picture of Libby, another girl on the cheer team. I look at Sara she looks devastated. I sit on the couch and watch T.V with them. "Police are asking the community to come together and help with the search party, in hopes to bring both girls home." The news reporter says and Sara's face lights up. "We have to help," She says looking at me and my mom. Great.
After breakfast, me, my mom, and Sara head to the police station. Once there we get assigned a zone to start looking for Meghan and Libby. Our zone happens to be around a park that is commonplace for teenagers to hang out.
"This is pointless, they never hang out here," Sara says when we get to the park. "I think the police are just making sure." My mom says. I roll my eyes. Sara is probably right; she knows them better than the police do. "Where do you think we should look?" I ask but Sara doesn't answer.
After circling the park at least 40 times, we decide to call it quits for the day. "We will try again tomorrow, I promise." My mom says to Sara as we drive home. "Mom what if they got kidnapped, they could be anywhere right now. What if I never see them again." Sara says while sobbing controllably.
Once home mom announces that she's going to start making dinner. "I'm too upset to eat!" Sara says and heads to her room. I think about following her but I don't think I have it in me to fake being concerned any longer.
It's not that I hate Libby or Meghan, or that I would want anything to happen to them. But the truth is I'm more concerned about the fact that two girls are missing from the town I have always felt safe in.
"Well?" My mom says loudly breaking me out of my thoughts and back to reality. Crap, was she talking to me? "Sorry, mom what did you say?" I ask. "I asked if you could help me with supper since Sara can't today?"
I follow my mom to the kitchen. I'm not a very good cook Sara is definitely better. Hopefully, mom will do most of the hard stuff. "We will keep it simple tonight, pasta with meat sauce." My mom says. Thank god!
We finish supper just as I hear my dad's car pull in. "Do you want me to see if Sara changed her mind?" I ask my mom. I need to escape this kitchen. She nods and I head to Sara's room.
I knock on the door, but no answer. "Sara," I say through the door, still nothing. I crack the door just enough to pick in. Sara is laying on her bed passed out with her shoes on. She looks younger somehow. My mind goes back to when me and her were about 4 or 5. Back when neither one of us cared about being cool and we were still best friends. We use to play outside climbing trees in the woods at the end of our street until dark. I would never admit it but I miss my sister sometimes. Not the popular cheerleader. I miss the girl that climbed trees, caught frogs, and didn't care about getting dirty.
I walk back to the kitchen and tell my parent Sara is sleeping. "Do you want me to wake her up?" My dad asks my mom. "No, she had a hard day I'll make her a plate for whenever she wakes up." My mom says.
After dinner, I hurry to my room. Without Sara, my parents have nothing to talk about other than me. They have never asked me so many questions before. What book Am I reading? What are my plans for the summer? Am I excited to be a senior? Do I still think college is a waste of time? I tried to answer with all one-word answers so they would stop talking. It didn't work. They still keep talking. I'm drained. I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.