20 minutes after Rikki had stormed out of the house, Emma gives Cleo one final hug and reassures her that everything will be okay and that Rikki will eventually calm down and be more reasonable about things. Rikki usually needs more time to cool off from arguments and blow off some steam than the others do, especially when it comes to situations where their mermaid secret is in danger of being exposed. Emma thinks that Rikki's extra sensitivity on this particular issue most likely stems from when Doctor Denman had almost captured the three of them. Zane had also been involved in that incident, completely betraying Rikki's trust, causing her to become even more guarded than she had been previously. However, Emma does somewhat agree with some of the points that Rikki had made about the risks versus the rewards when giving certain information to the police, but she isn't about to tell Cleo that.
Once Emma has said her final goodbye to Cleo, she quickly leaves the Sertori house, leaving Cleo all alone. Kim is staying over at a friend's house today, and Cleo's dad is working until 9 pm tonight. Honestly, Cleo feels a little relieved to have some time just to herself. The last 24 hours have been extremely stressful, and she just needs some time to clear her head and calm down from the argument with Rikki.
Cleo grabs a snack from the pantry in the kitchen and then walks back into the lounge room. She picks up the remote and sits down on the couch before turning on the TV. The first channel that comes on when Cleo switches the TV on is playing a news programme. The story they are currently discussing is titled at the bottom of the screen as: "local teenage boy missing". Cleo's heart sinks, realising that Lewis' disappearance has already made national news. Cleo sighs sadly as she settles into the couch and turns the volume up to hear what the news presenter is saying.
"-17-year-old male with blond hair was last seen at his home residence at 4:30 pm yesterday afternoon. However, according to friends and family of the missing teen, the teenager was planning on heading out to Mako Island last night. Police have begun searching the island, but there have been no signs of the 17-year-old as of yet, nor has the boy's boat been spotted around the island. However, the police have confirmed that there has been evidence of people being on the island last night. Additionally, it is still unknown whether or not the boy has drowned. Police will continue investigating, with the lead detective, Ian Jenkins, believing that the boy's disappearance can be classed as suspicious. If anyone has any information on Lewis McCartney's disappearance, please call the number on the screen." The female news announcer states solemnly as pictures of Lewis start to show up on the screen.
Cleo's breath hitches in her throat as an image of her and Lewis with his arm wrapped around Cleo's shoulders, both of them wearing Santa hats, shows up on the television. She immediately recognises the memory associated with the photo; it was taken at Christmas last year. She had spent lunch with Lewis' family at the McCartney house (which is where the photo was taken), and then the couple spent Christmas dinner with Cleo's family in the Sertori household. It was a great day that Cleo remembers very fondly. At the time, it had only been a few weeks since Lewis and Cleo had gotten back together after Charlotte, so it was very much still the honeymoon phase.
Not wanting to listen in for any more bad news and rumours about what might have happened to Lewis from the news report, Cleo hurriedly turns the TV off. Well, trying to distract herself by watching TV turned out to be an absolutely horrible idea. Now she can't get the smiling images of Lewis out of her head, already desperately missing seeing his loveable and goofy expressions in person, even though it has only been a day. Adding to that point, wherever Lewis is right now, Cleo is certain that he isn't happy or carefree as he was in the photos that the news programme just showed, and that thought breaks Cleo's heart. She hates to think about the fact that Lewis could be out there somewhere, cold, hurt, terrified and alone. Would he think that Cleo is looking for him? Would he want her to? Or would he think that she's not trying hard enough?
Cleo is so wrapped up in her own guilt and anxiety-inducing thoughts, she barely notices the minutes tick by, which then turns into an hour. Then two. She only snaps back into reality when someone knocks loudly and abruptly on the front door. Confused, Cleo gets up from her position on the couch and walks to the front entrance. The mermaid hesitates for a moment, not sure if she really wants more visitors right now. However, Cleo decides that she should at least open up the door to see who it is. Reluctantly, the brunette unlocks the front door and opens it up, revealing Lenny McCartney standing on the other side, much to Cleo's surprise.
"Lenny? What are you doing here?" Cleo frowns in confusion.
"Hi, Cleo. Sorry if I've disturbed you," Lenny apologises quickly.
"No, no it's okay. How can I help you?" Cleo smiles reassuringly.
"I just wanted to talk to you for a bit, if that's okay with you?" Lenny asks hopefully.
"Yeah, of course! Come on in!" Cleo says as she opens the front door open wider and gestures for Lenny to enter the house. With a grateful smile, Lenny walks over the threshold and makes his way into the living room. Cleo quickly follows after him once she closes the front door once again. She watches as Lenny paces around the room for a few moments, fidgeting with his hands uneasily.
"Can I get you something to eat, or drink?" Cleo asks politely.
"No, no, it's okay. Thank you for offering though," Lenny responds, finally stopping his fretful pacing and goes to sit down on the couch. Cleo walks over and sits down next to the second oldest of the McCartney brothers.
"So..." Cleo begins, feeling a little awkward.
"So," Lenny chuckles as he stares blankly at the window in front of him.
"What did you want to talk about?" Cleo asks gently. Lenny sighs before responding.
"I just... well, it's about Lewis. I'm really scared for him. I just can't feel like I can talk about it with my mum or brothers though. They are stressed enough about it as it is, and I'm trying to be strong for them, you know? I haven't actually really told anyone about how I'm feeling yet... and it's been really hard." Lenny admits tiredly, still staring out the window.
"Yeah, I understand that. You've always been the strongest one in your family, keeping everything together and preventing things from falling apart entirely. It mustn't be easy for you, Lenny. And now, this thing with Lewis... no one was expecting this. You don't have to put on a brave face all the time, Lenny. You have to let yourself feel your pain as well." Cleo replies softly, reaching out her hand and clasping Lenny's hand in hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. Lenny smiles a little and gives an appreciative squeeze of the hand back.
"I just don't know what happened. Lewis used to tell me everything. But, in the past few years, I've noticed that he's been growing more distant. I figured it must just be the normal teenage thing, but then a couple of months ago, Lewis started acting more and more strangely and being much more secretive." Lenny continues to explain.
"Yeah, you told me that on the phone almost a month ago," Cleo nods, remembering the distressed conversation the two of them shared and where they came to the conclusion that Lewis might have been cheating on Cleo.
"I just can't help but feel that whatever was going on then is somehow related to Lewis'... disappearance," Lenny says, his voice shaking a little as he glances over at Cleo with anxious and fearful eyes. Cleo bites her lip nervously, not knowing what to say. In all honesty, Lenny is probably right. Lewis' disappearance probably does have something to do with him being a merman. Cleo is even starting to have a small, but horrifying suspicion that possibly Denman could be behind this somehow. Unfortunately, she can't exactly explain any of this to Lenny.
"Do you know what's been going on with Lewis lately? Anything at all? Has he been caught in some sort of trouble? Please, Cleo. I have to know." Lenny asks desperately, voice filled with panic and fear for his little brother.
"I wish I knew, Lenny, I really do..." Cleo sighs, feeling useless. She hates lying to Lewis' brother like this, especially seeing how much pain Lenny is currently in. Cleo has to remind herself that the truth will probably only make Lenny feel worse in the long run. That's even if he decided to believe Cleo in the first place. It's more likely that he would want to send her to a psych ward.
"I think you know more than you're letting on," Lenny comments abruptly, completely taking Cleo by surprise.
"What?" Cleo asks, blinking in shock.
"I know I'm not the mad science genius like Lewis is, but I'm not an idiot either. I get the feeling that you and the rest of Lewis' friends know what has been happening with Lewis lately. Sure, you probably weren't aware of it at first, but I have a strong feeling that you guys have figured it out." Lenny says, staring pointedly at Cleo.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about." Cleo stammers nervously as she shifts uncomfortably in her seat, crumbling under the pressure. Lenny raises an eyebrow sceptically, clearly unconvinced.
"What aren't you telling me? You love Lewis too, right? You want to find him, don't you? If you tell me everything, we can try and find him together! Whatever it is that Lewis has been hiding, it can't be as bad as you think. I mean, the worst has already happened, Cleo. Whatever secret you guys were hiding won't scare me off or anything like that, I promise. I just want Lewis home, and safe." Lenny pleads.
"Of course I love Lewis, and of course I want to find him!" Cleo protests indignantly, shocked that Lenny would even suggest otherwise.
"Then what are you not telling me?!" Lenny yells as he jumps to his feet, staring down at Cleo angrily, fed up with all of the secrets and lies.
"Nothing! I've got nothing to tell you! I don't know what's been going on with Lewis, okay? I know just as much as you do!" Cleo retaliates as she too jumps to her feet and begins to walk towards Lenny and reaches her hand out to squeeze his shoulder in an attempt to calm Lenny down. However, before Cleo's hand can even brush against Lenny's shirt, he pulls away quickly, glaring at Cleo with sadness and disappointment.
"I don't believe you. Whenever you're ready to talk about what's really going on, I'll be here to listen. But until then... goodbye, Cleo. And if I were you, I wouldn't come around to our house." Lenny snaps harshly. Without another word and ignoring Cleo's protests, Lenny turns around and storms out of the Sertori house, becoming the second person to violently slam the front door shut that day.