Flashback
824 Words
I had come home from a long, stressful day at work to find my brother, Branden, gone. No big deal. He normally leaves to go on his so-called “dates.” He’d be with a girl for a few nights before leaving and finding a new girl. He never stayed for a long-term relationship, so he would jump and run before he caught feelings for some pretty, nice girl. He was an amazing person and a loving brother, but after his girlfriend told him that he was worthless before dumping him, he decided to not trust relationships.
I messaged Branden to tell him that I’d be out the next day because I had an important meeting with my boss. Now normally Branden responds quite quickly unless if he’s getting “busy” then he leaves me on read, but after a few hours of no response, I started to feel a thick sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I grabbed a glass of whiskey and brushed it off. I finished the glass and decided a nice hot shower would be relaxing. It would also give Branden more time to respond.
While in the shower thoughts began rushing through my mind. I tried calming my mind by thinking of the water but with no luck. I decided that if he hadn’t responded before I got out of the shower and ready for bed, I’d call him. I took my time, well attempted to take my time, but the worry was eating at me even more than before. I finally finished my shower, hopped out, and instantly checked my phone. Still, no message. I hit the call button hoping for an answer, but to no avail. I tried a second time. Still, no answer.
Next, I called my mother to let her know what was going on. On the fourth ring, she answered her phone all groggy. “Mom! Somethings wrong!”
“Katherine? What’s going on?” Instantly my mother went from groggy to anxious. I could hear my father moving around in the background, so she must have woken him up.
“Branden is missing. Like normally he’s gone throughout the night with some girl, but he always instantly answers my texts or calls. I tried messaging him several hours ago, but he still hasn’t responded. I’m getting worried ma. I feel it in my gut. Something has happened.” At this point, I was pacing a hole in the floor and stumbling over my words trying to get them out. Nervous sweats were starting to form on my hairline and my hands were super clammy.
In the background, pa was asking what was going on, so mom explained the situation to him. “Hunny, give it until noon today. His phone may just be dead, okay?”
I moaned in frustration, but I didn’t argue. I wish mother and pa night and spent the rest of the night pacing the living room. By the time eight o’clock came around the stress had completely taken over. I tried calling Branden one more time. Then I remembered, I had his best friend’s number and his ex-girlfriend’s number still on my phone. His best friend told me that he hadn’t seen Branden in a few days. After I got off the phone with his best friend, I called his ex, Sammy. I asked Sammy if there was any chance Branden came back to her. She said no and then hung up on me.
Noon came around and there was still no sign of Branden. I called ma again and told her. This time she started to panic. She told me to go to the police and file a missing person’s report, so I did. I gave the police all the information on my brother that I had, including a picture I saved in my wallet. They posted the missing person’s report and released me.
On my walk back home, I went from panicked to worried to scared. Branden was everything to me, and if something happened to him, I don’t know what I would do. That’s when I began to cry. It started slowly at first, with just a few tears, but as soon as I walked through my front door I broke down. I fell against the door and slid down. By now the tears were streaming down my face. That’s when it clicked, my brother was missing.
There was no way I was going to be able to eat anything or sleep another night, so I pulled a double shift at working, hoping it would keep me distracted long enough for good news. However, at the end of my long shift, there was no good news. No messages or calls saying that my brother had been found. The only news that came through was that Branden’s truck had been found, empty.
That day was the first day of a long search…
- Writer
