Austin had hardly slept that night. He spent most of it staring at the screen of his phone. Noah had not called yet.
He woke up in the morning and the first thing he did was grab his phone hurriedly from his nightstand; no missed calls..no messages.
His stomach churned and a migraine was starting to manifest itself in his head. He tried to call Noah but it was still the same result âdead silence.
He threw the blanket off of himself and jumped off the bed, rushing out of his room. He rapped Nicky's door incessantly and since it was still morning and most people were still asleep, the noise travelled further.
Nicky came flying to the door angrily and yanked the door open. Her hair was sticking out everywhere, her clothes were disheveled and her eyes were bloodshot. She looked like she hadn't slept for days.
"What!" she growled at him.
"You look like something straight out of The Walking Dead!"
"Is that what you woke me up about, you moron?" She shouted at him, then realized what a bad idea it was before she cradled her head in pain, "Ow! Stop making me shout, my head hurts." She was wise enough to whisper this time.
"Why?"
"Hello? Hangover!" She said patronizingly.
"Has Noah called you..or texted you, by any chance?"
"Why would Noah call me?" she asked slowly. She was clearly still sleepy, judging from how her eyes couldn't open all the way, "And why do you look like crap, did you even sleep at all last night?"
"Me?" Austin asked incredulously.
"I haven't looked in a mirror yet but I'm sure you look worse." She gibed.
"Whatever, I'm worried about Noah." Austin sighed.
"Why... what happened?"
"I haven't seen or heard from him since Max and I left him last night."
"I told you that I saw him drinking beer with those guys."
"I know...I went there and didn't see him anywhere."
"Don't be such a drama queen!" She dismissed his fears, "Maybe he had to get away from the rain and his phone ran out of juice, was too drunk to recharge it and â"
"He was last seen with Jesse!" Austin cut off her prattling in frustration.
"What?" Nicky asked more seriously.
"Somebody told me that Jesse came by and insisted that he wanted to talk with Noah...and then they left together."
"Well, I don't think you need to worry, Jesse couldn't possibly do anything to Noah. Noah would crush that goddamn putz like a bug!"
"Do you remember what happened the last time Jesse was around any of us when we were drunk!?" Austin asked insistently. His face was contorted into worry and fear, and a hint of confusion.
"You really think he would try any of that again?"
"I don't want to wait around and see if he does or does not. I'm freaking out here!" he yelled.
"Shhh..keep it down, some of us are not really awake yet!" she cringed her nose and frowned at him.
"Sorry...what am I gonna do?" he whispered, "I can't just sit around and wait for him to call."
"Are you ok?" Nicky asked, watching as her brother's face got redder and he was starting to sweat. He looked like he was about to pass out.
Austin nodded at her and leaned against the jamb of her door, "I'm fine."He said, but he was hyperventilating.
"No, you're not!" She said, "You need to sit down."
He slid down slowly against the wall, his eyes fixed on the floor but he was not really looking at anything. He sat down and hugged his legs close to his chest. Nicky went and slid down beside him, patting his knee gently.
"I need to do something!" he said.
"What can you do?"
"I don't know, but I have to know he is ok.. I remember when Jesse drugged me, it was the worst experience of my life! You know...the helplessness you feel and don't even get me started on the time when Jesse tried to take advantage of me. I don't know what I would have done or what would have happened to me if you hadn't been there," he said. "And now...it's like a déjà vu moment. I keep thinking that, maybe, Noah is going through that again..that, perhaps, he is passed out somewhere without anybody there to help him! If that fucking dweeb lays a finger on him, I will kill him! " He expressed exasperatedly, "I need to see him."
"Then go to his place and see if he is there."
His face lit up a little, "Why didn't I think of that!" he asked while he stood up in a rush.
"Because you're an absolute idiot." Nicky said like it was the most obvious thing.
"I gotta go!" he said as he started walking away towards the stairs hurriedly.
"Where are you going?" Nicky asked as she stood up as well.
"To Noah's, of course."
"You haven't even washed your face..you look like death!"
"I don't have time for that..i need to find him...now!"
"Slow down, bro." she told him, "At least, brush your teeth!"
"What's wrong with my breath?" he asked her then breathed onto his cupped palm to find out. He scrunched up his nose after sniffing it.
"Let's just say, it would kill a family of wasps."
"Yea, don't think yours is any better." Austin back sassed, "And I don't need to do all that, all I can think about is Noah!"
"That's great," she said. "But if you are lucky to find him well and kicking âwhich you will, one look and smell of you..and he will not be thinking about you anymore."
"Fine, I'll do it..but only because you're so evil!" Austin said reluctantly then ran quickly into his room.
He cleaned up in record time and was out the door in less than ten minutes. The shirt he had on was worn backwards and his shoes were on the wrong feet.
It was just before seven in the morning and the neighborhood was very silent. Most people were still asleep.
The ground was still wet from the downpour from the previous night and it was still very cold. Austin did not read much into the cold as he drove off quickly, probably breaking every speed limit.
His mind was solely on Noah. He hoped against hope that he would find Noah at home. The thought of anything happening to him was extremely nerve-wracking. The first thing he would do if Noah was even slightly hurt, would be to eviscerate that little numbnuts and then feed him the intestines.
The drive to Noah's was not that long and soon, he was pulling up in the Dawson mansion driveway. He did not care to shut off the engine as he hurriedly headed for the doorbell and rang it.
When nobody answered immediately, he put his finger on the button and pressed persistently. Either everybody in the house was deep asleep or they were simply not home. That wasn't anything out of character for this particular household.
Austin was just about to give up and go back when he heard the shuffling of feet coming from the foyer. He stood there and anticipated for Noah to open the door.
A very ghostly looking Michael opened the door, trying to rub sleep out of his eyes with the back of his hand.
"Do you realize what time it is!" he spat angrily.
"Sorry to wake you â"
"What the fuck do you want, Austin!"
"Is Noah here?"
"Dude, if you were looking for an early morning fuck, you should have at least bothered your dumb boyfriend or climbed up the window in his room!"
"What?!" Austin asked, looking at him like he had lost his mind.
"Whatever, man, do what you want but don't disturb me..It's freezing and I fucking need to sleep!" He retreated back into the house, leaving the door open for Austin to enter.
Austin followed him in, "You do realize that we still have school, right?"
"What's your point!" Michael uttered, obviously irritated.
"You're gonna be up anyway."
"Please go find your boyfriend and when you do, keep it down...the walls are pretty thin!" he quipped.
"So, he is here?" Austin enquired, his heart picking up pace as he waited for Michael's slow answer.
"Where else would he be!?"
"I don't know.. I've been trying to reach him since last night but he isn't picking up."
"Don't get your ugly boxers in a twist, check his room."
Austin did not say another word. He ran up the stairs and straight to Noah's room âhe was quite familiar with it by now. He threw the door open with an anxious smile and looked straight to the bed, but it did not look like it had been slept in. It was still spread and there wasn't a single dent in it.
The smile immediately fell and was replaced by a frown as he went for the bathroom. There was nobody in there either. He even went as far as to check under the bed. Noah was not in any nook or cranny in the entire room.
He left quickly and went to Michael's room, rapping on the door.
An even grouchier Michael opened it. He was glaring hard at Austin as if, if he stared hard enough, he would somehow manage to make Austin's head explode.
The strong beating of Austin's heart was stronger than the daggers Michael was throwing with his eyes.
"Noah is not there!" he said loudly, not minding Michael's state of mind.
"Man, I am this close to beating you within an inch of your life!" he said while making a gesture using his forefinger and thumb. Michael threatened seriously.
"I'm not joking, douchenozzle!" Austin lost his cool. He did not appreciate Michael acting all bratty while he was freaking out, "I think something's wrong!"
"What are talking about?" Michael asked, calmer this time.
"Really?" Austin retorted, "You still aren't connecting the dots!"
"Hey, I'm awake this early in the morning..what more do you want from me!"
Austin rolled his eyes and placed his hands on his hips, "I think something bad happened to Noah last night!" he spelled it out for him.
"That's ridiculous, what could happen to him...and why!?"
"Do you know that new kid, Jesse?"
"I don't know, I've seen him around." Michael shrugged.
"He was the last person to be seen with him. Since then, nobody has seen or heard from Noah."
"Big deal, I know my cousin..and if there is anything he is good at, it is picking up any available piece of ass and disappearing to god-knows-where to bang. After that, you will hear from him after two or three days because he was somewhere really drunk or high till he couldn't even read the GPS code on his phone ."
"What are you talking about?" Austin asked.
"Trust me, he is fine. My parents have been dealing with him for ages. I'm surprised he didn't escape rehab for those two months!" Michael continued to speak like it was nothing, "He is a sex, drug...alcohol and everything-in-between addict. Sorry to break it to you but I'm sure he is out getting a fix. Guess he is just not that into you!"
"Don't talk about Noah like that!" Austin seethed.
"I'm actually not screwing with you," Michael continued. "He hasn't told you yet, has he?" he asked, noticing the blank look on Austin's face.
"Told me what?"
"Back home, Noah was a total ho-bag. He had this guy he was very close to," Michael narrated. "They were inseparable! Noah slept around however much he wanted but at the end of the day, it was always the two of them against the world. They did literally everything together..and I mean everything ! They did every kind of drug together and even, at one point, got involved with some mob organization. Noah even took some money out of his trust and bought a brothel, which he co-owned with that guy..pretty sure they still own it.
"Word has it, Noah went completely insane. That friend of his was using him, and Noah let him because he trusted him with his life. It's kind of sad, really, but he kicked everybody out of his life except that one person. He was in love. My parents found him eventually after he was arrested and instead of jail, they convinced the judge to let him go to rehab before he was discharged into their custody.
"He talked a lot about how rehab did him no good and that this façade is just for a little period of time until he finds a way to get the rest of his trust from my parents and then disappear...just didn't expect it to be so soon."
"You're lying!" Austin insisted, not believing a word Michael was spewing.
"Why would I lie?"
"Because that is what you do best!" Austin shouted agitatedly.
"For someone who went to rehab for drinking and other stuff, he sure does drink a lot!" Michael responded evilly, "Or haven't you noticed?"
"If what you're saying is true, why would his parents not do anything about it."
Michael's facial expression changed to a dull look and he averted his eyes to the floor, "I've already said too much."
"Really, you can't even tell me that!"
"It's not my story to tell."
"Screw this, I'm gonna look for my boyfriend and make sure he is alright!" Austin said stubbornly.
"Fine, but get ready for me to say 'I told you so'!"
Austin ignored him and stormed out.
He slammed the door of his car hard then slumped in his chair. He was pissed off, but he was not sure at whom exactly. There were a number of candidates: Michael, Jesse...Noah, and even himself.
He banged his fists on the steering wheel and closed his eyes. He did not want to believe a word that Michael had said.
It was a horrible thought but he wished that Noah was in trouble instead of doing the things Michael had just described.
He remembered all the sweet words Noah always spoke to him, how many times he had professed his love for him and how it had felt every time.
He even thought back to the first time they had made love.
It was magic.
The way Noah had looked into his eyes as he pleasured him the way he had never been ever before. That one shock of electricity coursing through him when Noah kissed every inch of his skin tenderly while riding him in a way he never would have deemed possible.
Nobody could fake that connection, unless he had been dreaming it all. He knew in his gut that Noah loved him but he was not able to dismiss those other voices in his head âMichael's being the loudest.
This was way too much to take before breakfast but the way things were going, his stomach was not going to be able to hold anything down.
He was a nervous wreck.
There was one thing he knew for sure, he had to locate Noah. He was not going to play quitter and just simply sit on the sidelines while he let the greatest love of his short life slip between his fingers without an explanation.
He hadn't felt the tears cascading down his cheeks until a drop fell onto his lap. He even hadn't realized how much he needed Noah in his life until that horrible story was told to him.
He stared into open space for a few long minutes before he decided to go back home and get ready for school. He had absolutely no idea what he was going to do but he knew he would need help from someone.