Looking for Something

Chapter 10

Just the other night

I thought I heard you cry

Asking me to come

And hold you in my arms

I can hear your prayers

Your burdens I will bear

But first I need your hand

Then forever can begin

-Michael Jackson

~~Sydney~~

"You know what we should do?" I look up at him and he has his eyes closed.

"What?"

"Go to bed."

"You right, but I am not that sleepy. Well, I don't feel like I am."

"What time is it?" He pulls his phone out of his pocket and looks at it.

"Three in the morning."

"Wow. And there is nothing good on TV." The living room light comes on and I lift my head off of Mickie's chest to see Chas walk in with her bathrobe on.

"You two are still up?"

"Yep, we can't sleep."

"Oh, me neither. I got hungry so I am going to get some more cake."

"I want some." I get off of Mickie and follow her into the kitchen. You know, my sister gets hungry a lot lately. She needs to slow down because her stomach is growing. "You know, I think Day Day has messed up like your whole eating pattern, because you eat way more than you used to. Like every time I have called or video chatted you for the past month and a half you are always eating or drinking something."

"Um, yea. I realize that I have started to eat more but Day is definitely not the reason."

"Oh, so you know the reason?"

"Yea." I can tell she does not want to tell me but I will figure it out. Is it really embarrassing or something? Okay, what does her always eating tell me? She can either be going through an eating disorder, too much stress, or...

"YOU'RE PREGNANT?" She hands me a fork and places a big chunk of cake in between us.

"SSHHH, keep your voice down! Dax does not exactly know this yet and neither does the rest of the world, so don't start telling everybody."

"Well, when do you plan on telling him?"

"I don't know. Two kids Syd? And we aren't even married yet?"

"Well, you aren't getting any younger! You were bound to start popping out my nieces and nephews at some point. Plus, if he loved you enough to stay for the first one, his love has got to be strong enough to stay for the second, right?"

"Maybe." Right when I am about to say more the doorbell rings. Chas and I both look at each other confused. "Who could that be at three in the morning?"

"I don't know, I will go see."

"Pause." I stand still as she reaches in the corner and throws me her bat. "Okay, now you may answer the door." I laugh as I exit the kitchen. I instantly feel Mickie behind me.

"Where are you going ma'am?"

"To answer the door."

"Right, because I am going to let you do that." He pulls me behind him and then opens the door. "What the hell?" I poke my head out under his arm and look down at the porch to see a a cute little teddy bear sitting next to a bouquet of roses and a note sitting atop.

"Aaaawwww, it is so adorable." I walk around him and go to pick it up. "I wonder who it is for?" I walk back into the kitchen and he soon follows me.

"Oooo, cute. Who's it for?"

"I don't know! But they left a card. Lets read it." I walk over by her and we read it to ourselves first.

"Oh my! I see ya, I see ya." Chasity elbows me in the side and winks at me.

"Chas, this is not funny. And no matter how adorable this teddy bear is, it is a little weird."

"Let me see." Mickie snatches it out of my hand. I just throw my hands in my face and prepare for the worst.

"Dear Syd,

Hey, I miss you...even though you technically just got in yesterday. Too shy to ever say anything at school, but I think you are the most beautiful, kind, smart, and talented girl in the world. Too bad your boyfriend is in the way, but the day he breaks your heart is the day I will come swooping in to save you, but until then...stay gorgeous and enjoy my gift.

-Sincerely,  Your Secret Admirer ;)

P.S. Yes I go to Barry, and yes I am now in Chicago with you. :)" He looks up with this crazy look in his eyes. "So you think you are sexy?" I walk around the counter and playfully hit him on the arm as he starts laughing.

"Shut up! You are not funny." He wraps his arm around my shoulders, and I wrap mine around his waist. "So, you're not mad?"

"Nah, not this time. This man couldn't even talk to you face to face. Therefore, I see no comp." He kisses me.

"Even if he could talk to me face to face, you know it would still be no comp. Cause you are my baby." I kiss him again.

"Ew, I am going back to bed. You two are going to make me barf." Chas gets up, carrying the plate of cake with her, and walks out of the kitchen. I laugh and shake my head.

"And her problem is?"

"She is pregnant again!" His eyes grow wide and she sticks her head back into the kitchen.

"I told you not to tell!"

"Yea but this is Mickie. He doesn't count in everybody." She rolls her eyes and walks to her room.

"Whatever, goodnight lovebirds."

"Good night!" We say it together as we hear her door close.

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~~Dominic~~

"Since we can't sleep let's go to our spot."

"Okay." She smiles up at me before going to get her shoes. I pick up the little note she got earlier and I read it again. I might have told her that I was not mad, but I am bothered. Who the hell sends a girl flowers and a bear at three in the morning all anonymously. If they go to Barry, how do they even know where she lives?

What if they start stalking her? Last semester was kind of stressful for her, and I want her to just relax this summer. Last thing she need is some psychotic stalker breathing down her neck. I hear her coming back downstairs and I place the note back down on the table.

"Are you ready?" She walks back into the kitchen looking at her phone.

"Uh huh." I grab her hand and we head out the door.

When we reach that bridge, we get out and go sit on the bench that gives us a view of the water. Reminds me of my dad every time we come here. He would run away here with me whenever he was fighting with my mom, I was fighting with my mom, my mom was pregnant and needed space, or when we needed to talk. For an hour we would just sit on this bench and just watch quietly, then one of us would speak first.

"What're you thinking about?" I look down to see Syd watching me.

"My dad."

"Was he your favorite parent?"

"Yea, I guess. But I definitely loved my mom just as much as I loved him."

"That's good."

"Who was your favorite?"

"I don't know. I ran to my dad whenever I was sad, but my most happiest times involved me and my mom. It balanced out though. Chas was a daddy's girl, and China stuck around my mom all the time."

"Yea, Hope was  like you. Her and my mom would always go out shopping and stuff together, or cooking or whatever, but she always hung around my dad. You wanna see something?" She nods her head yes and I pull out my wallet and pull out the two pictures I never leave behind anywhere.

One is of Hope and my mom playing in our front yard one summer. She was teaching her how to blow bubbles through the little stick or whatever. It was really sunny, and the wind was blowing their hair all over the place. Really beautiful picture. And the other one makes me laugh every time. Hope and my dad are sitting on the couch, her head is laid back on his chest, and his is laid back on the couch. Their mouths are wide open as they are sleeping. I feel Syd laugh as she passes the pictures back to me.

"Your family is adorable." I love the present tense.

"And I am sure they would have loved you, just like Hope does." She smiles at me.

"And I am more than sure my parents would have been happy to know that their daughter found a good guy like you."

"I wish I could meet them. I want to meet the people that made someone like you. They deserve all the praise in the world." Her smile stretches even wider and she covers her face. She shoves her face into my neck.

"Ugh, you know what you do to me." I trace my finger along her neck.

"Yea, it's what I live to do." She is about to say something, but then she gets a text. When she looks at it, the smile completely wipes off her face.

"The hell?"

"What?" I take the phone from her hand and it has a text from an unknown number that says:

Syd, you being on him like that is really hard for me to watch happily.

What the hell? I start looking around, but my car is the only one in the parking lot. I grab her hand and pull her towards the car. Once we are inside safely with the doors locked I pull off.

"Who do you think sent that?"

"I-I don't know." Her phone goes off again and I read the screen:

Why'd you leave?

Guess I will see you later.. <3

"Oh my gosh, Mickie...this is crazy. I refuse to believe that someone is stalking me. I refuse!"

"Syd.."

"NO NO, just---just change the topic, cut on some music, do something!" I look at her; she is scaring me. Her feet are up on the dashboard and she has her face in her hands. She just keeps repeating "Syd this is not happening...this is not happening". When we reach her house I park outside and when I open her door she stumbles out and I catch her.

"Syd, tell me what's wrong."

"No...just let me go--"

"Syd NO!" I pull her back in front of me and I hold her against the car. "You are not blocking me out...what is wrong?" She is not crying, but she looks zoned out, like she is re-living a bad memory.

"C-can we at least go inside first?" I give in and I let her lead me inside. When we finally make it to her room, she closes the door and just starts pacing around, while I look at her like she is crazy. "Okay, so my sister, in the past, was stalked before. He sent her flowers, and candy, and poems. Only difference is she knew who the guy was. He was some kid from high school, when she went there. So time went on and things started getting hectic. Filed for a restraining order, and he got mad so he kidnapped her. He took my sister! I thought I would never see my sister again and my mom was devastated, my dad was pissed, and China and I...well...I went looking for her. All I know is he had her locked in his basement for three days. What if that torture happens to me too?"

She looks up at me with tears in her eyes. Damn, I am still learning about this girl, and we have been together for three years. I get up off the bed and hold her.

"I won't let it happen."

"Sweetie, you can't beat psychotic unless you are psychotic. Just promise you will fight for me, alright?" She looks up at me, and I wipe the tears from her eyes.

"Aiight, let's just hope I never have to. You think it is the same guy?"

"Impossible."

"How so?"

"Because my dad shot him...and then we watched him die. Right there. In his own basment."

Damn.