we pulled up outside a small restaurant and headed inside. the warm delicious aroma welcomed us and without wasting any time, the six of us walked straight to an empty booth at the back. we took our seats and waited. I felt an itch to ask about the argument I had witnessed earlier today but decided against it. I then decided to instead busy myself with surveying my surroundings. It was a cosy-looking restaurant with only a handful of customers besides us the floor had a checker theme. the tiles were black and white and the tables were round giving the feel that this was a place that most families went to when I looked at the people around, I noticed that about five families were confirming my hunch. soon a girl about my age walked up to our booth, "Hi welcome to Feastiez, may I take your order?" She said happily instantly shifting the mood from a grumpy, gloomy one to a happy one. her happiness was so contagious that in a matter of seconds, we all had smiles on our faces well, all but two, Miles and Noah decided that they weren't about to pretend to like each other and to make matters worse, I had sat in between the two of them. " Um, I will have two hot dogs and a milkshake," Seth said with a smile. it was the first time I had seen him smile today and I must confess that that smile was absolutely cute I quickly looked away so that I would not be caught staring. next, it was Alex who said, "Uh, hi, I would like a burger, beef and a soda." then we all went around giving our orders, Max ordered a chicken burger and a soda. I asked for a pizza and lemonade while Miles and Noah asked for a burger and a hot dog respectively. when the meal was over, we paid and I headed home after bidding the group farewell. I clutched my back tightly as I walked down the street and turned a corner, the feeling that I was being followed started creeping in followed by fear. so I quickened my pace till I was sprinting. I made a few random turns to try and shake off the person following me and soon felt that I was no longer being followed. When I looked around, I realised that I was in a part of the city that I did not recognise. New York City can be beautiful at night but it can also be terrifying. I pulled out my phone to find my way home but my battery was dead. feeling hopeless, I tried to retrace my steps and found myself back at the restaurant. I hailed a cab and thirty minutes later, I was walking up the steps of my apartment that I lived in with my brother Andy. As soon as I opened the door, I saw my brother sitting on the couch with Miles next to him and the two seemed busy pouring over some official-looking documents but as soon as they saw me, they hastily put the documents away. okay now I'm suspicious, what is everyone hiding from me? Deciding to figure it all out tomorrow, I headed to my room and got ready for bed. Fifteen minutes later, I returned to the living room in my pj's and took a seat on the couch opposite the one Miles and my brother sat on.
the following morning at school when I entered school, I did not find Miles anywhere in the hallway or at his locker. but I suspected that he might already be in class so I went straight to class. but he was not there. Now, I have never been worried about Miles before but I had this weird feeling that he was in mortal danger and I could not shake it. for the rest of the day, I could not focus on anything else. On my way to my next class, I bumped into Miles I ran up to him and gave him a bear hug. and he winced and groaned. I immediately pulled back and looked at him. I quickly noticed that he was slightly hunched over and was clutching his side. he had a pained look on his face. " oh, thank God I found you Char, we need your help." he said in barely a whisper. " why? who are we and why do you look like you just rode the elevator of doom?" I asked in one breath making him groan. he then took my hand and with shaky steps, led me outside. once there, I saw the other four guys and they also looked just as bad as Miles. " we need your help," Noal said and then let out a cough. and soon fell to the ground. I stared in horror as the others also struggled to help him into the car and limped into the back seats themselves leaving the driver's seat empty. it then dawned on me that they wanted me to drive them to God knows where. following Miles's instructions, I soon pulled up next to a small bookstore. we made our way into the store and found a man in his early thirties who rushed toward us and supported the guys one by one to the back of the store. Upon reaching the back of the store. instead of seeing stacks of books, I saw medical equipment and a few beds on which all five boys lay. I looked over at them and they had fallen asleep. I looked closely at Noah's sleeping face and despite the giant gush on his forehead, he still dashing, the frown I had thought was permanent was no longer displayed on his face, and he looked peaceful as he slept I silently stood in a corner as I stared at my best friend wondering what he'd gotten himself into because I had never seen him like this since we were little. I would just have to wait till he woke to satisfy my curiosity