Chapter 5
Mimi turned around to face Lapizo and asked, "What's wrong? Are you alright?"
She watched Lapizo closely, waiting for an answer or a response that would indicate that he was okay. She wondered if she should get the doctor or someone to check on him, but her curiosity about the strange feeling in her stomach overpowered her concern for her friend.
Lapizo continued to sit with his head resting against the armrest. His eyes fluttered slightly and his breathing became a little ragged. He looked like he was about to pass out. Mimi moved closer to Lapizo, worried about him. She put her hands on his shoulder and gently pushed him backwards.
Lapizo collapsed onto the floor, and his entire body went limp. Mimi knelt down beside him. As she watched him lie motionless on the floor, she felt her heart begin to beat fast. She couldn't move. Something was terribly wrong. Something was seriously wrong. She wanted to run to a doctor or call an ambulance right away. However, instead, she stayed where she was and began talking to Lapizo.
She tried to sound calm as she spoke, "Hey, Lapizo. Can you hear me? Wake up. Please wake up. Don't fall asleep now."
Still lying prone on the floor, Lapizo's chest rose and fell with every breath. Mimi's hand was still resting on his shoulder, ready to pull him toward the couch, but it hung awkwardly by her side. Her face was covered in worry and fear as she kept staring at Lapizo without moving.
"Come on. Come on, buddy, wake up!"
Nothing.
"Wake up, Lazuli. Please. Please don't leave me." She reached down, picked up a handful of hair, and forced Lapizo's face upward, looking desperately into his eyes. She couldn't tell whether his eyes were open or shut.
Suddenly, Lapizo began crying loudly, letting out short choked cries as tears flowed from his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. Mimi could feel her own eyes filling with tears and her throat getting tight, threatening to suffocate her. She wiped the tears from her face, hoping she hadn't been seen. Lapizo continued to sob until his mouth opened wide and a scream emerged from his lips. He squeezed his eyes shut and screamed, "MIMI!"
"What?!" Mimi whispered as she held the boy's face in her hands, cupping it between hers. "Lazuli, talk to me. Tell me what's going on. Tell me how I can help you!"
Lapizo was shaking violently. He cried even louder. Mimi grabbed a tissue and stuffed it in her pocket. "Tell me what's happening! Tell me what I can do!"
"Mimi…"
She pulled Lapizo onto her lap. After wiping away his tears and brushing his hair out of his face, she kissed his forehead gently. "Yes, Lapi? What are you doing here? Do you want something? Would you like to eat something? I brought you some soup. It will cool you down."
Lapizo continued to cry softly. When he tried to respond, his voice quivered. "I-I d-don't know…"
"It's okay, baby. Everything is fine. Just take your time…"
Her voice trailed off when she heard a soft knock on the door. She got up from Lapizo and crossed the room to the front door. She opened it and saw two police officers standing outside. They stood tall and straight, holding clipboards. When they saw Mimi at the door, one of them smiled warmly.
"Hello there. How're you doing today? Is Mr. Lazuli home? We called before coming, but we weren't allowed to enter unless we had permission to come here…"
Mimi shook her head sadly as she let the two policemen inside. "He's not back yet. Have you guys found anybody else?"
One of the policemen nodded, "Yes. They've managed to locate a couple of friends of Mr. Lazuli's. One of them has gone missing, so they're hoping we can find them and lead us to their friend."
"Do you want to wait here while we look?" Mimi offered politely.
"That's okay, thanks, but no need. We'll be able to find them quickly," the policeman replied with a smile.
"If you say so… Thank you for calling me…"
Once the policemen had left, Mimi closed the door behind them. Lapizo had sat up and was looking curiously at Mimi, who walked back to the living room.
"Mimi?" Lapizo called quietly. Mimi turned around quickly. "You think we'll find them? Do you think you know where they are?"
"I… Don't know."
Lapizo sighed and buried his face in his knees. "Well, I hope so. I guess they must have really disappeared then, huh? But then again, why did he disappear in the middle of the night? If they didn't want to be found, that makes sense…"
Mimi sighed as well. "Maybe he just needed some time to think things through on his own. Or to remember something… I mean, you can't just keep running away forever. You can't make yourself forget everything. You just can't do that! At least, I can't."
Lapizo looked at her and gave her an amused look. "Are you saying I should just give up?"
"No! That's not what I mean. I just mean… Well… Maybe you shouldn't run away from anything anymore. Maybe you should go after him when he comes back."
Lapizo shook his head in confusion. "Why would I go after him, Mimi? It's not like he did anything wrong. Besides, if he'd wanted to run away from his problems, we probably wouldn'.