Monday morning at around 9:15, Yusuke was awoken by the sound of his cellular phone ringing.
(Yes, Yusuke got a cell phone—because I say he did.)
He grumbles some incoherent statement about how "dumb school days" shouldn't even be there to bother people or something along those lines, until he remembered—he usually skipped anyway. Reaching into his school bag, which rested against the wall, right beside his bed, he pulls out his cell and answers it with a groggy, "Hello?"
"Yusuke?" He recognized the voice right away. "What, Keiko? I'm trying to sleep. I'm tired, so don't count on me being there. Just tell that idiot of a teacher to go ahead and count me absent." He heard Keiko sigh on the other end. "No, Yusuke…I'm calling because Amara and I were supposed to have an overnight on Saturday."
"Well that's great, I'm so glad I was woken up for that wonderful news." He responds sarcastically as he falls backwards onto his mattress, but he could tell that she sounded worried, and that made him a little anxious. "Yusuke, that's not the point. She never showed up. I called her house, but nobody answered. I tried her cell phone, but it was turned off. I'm kind of worried—I mean, Amara would call if she wasn't going to show up, no matter what the reason, right?" Yusuke was quiet for a little while, thinking. "Well…maybe she got sick and didn't want to be bothered, and she didn't call because she was resting all weekend." He suggests, really hoping deep down that it was nothing more than that. Of course it was nothing more. Keiko let out a breath, not seeming satisfied with the idea. "I guess so…" She says hesitantly. It was Yusuke's turn to sigh, doing so as he sat up. "Why don't you just come out and say it? You think she's missing. I'll tell you what: give me some more time to sleep and as soon as I'm ready I'll go over to her place and see what I can find out."
"Oh, Yusuke, thank you so much!" Keiko exclaims, obviously relieved. Yusuke could hear the bell in the background, indicating that the next period was beginning at school. "Call me when you know something! 'Bye!" She says hurriedly before hanging up the phone. Yusuke scowls and hangs up as well, but he didn't go back to sleep as he said he was going to. He stares out the small window above his head for about a minute, then stands up and gets dressed.
About fifteen minutes after getting off the phone with Keiko, Yusuke stood outside Amara's house, staring at the slightly darkened windows. He then continues on his way to the front door, knocking loudly so that someone might hear. "Hello?" He calls, after no one answered the door. Opening it slowly, he looks around inside, but where there would normally be at least one pair of shoes in the entryway, there was none. "Um, hey, I'm coming in…" He calls again, removing his shoes before stepping up one step and entering the hall. Looking around, he listens carefully for any sound, but the house was completely silent. He thought it was empty too, before a pale young woman came floating down the stairs. She stares at Yusuke for a moment, blinks, and then waves her hand back and forth. He blinks as well, and then waves back hesitantly. "…? You can see me?" She asks, now just a couple of feet in front of him. "Um, yeah, should I not?" He watches as she circles him, when he suddenly noticed that she didn't seem to be walking, and her movements flowed way too much for her to be anything except… "You're not a ghost, are you?" He asks, and by now she had stopped circling and was standing in front of him. "Yes, I am. That's why I was surprised. Amara has been the only one able to see my husband and I for many years." Yusuke laughs a bit. "Heh. Yeah, well, imagine my surprise seeing a ghost coming down my friend's staircase. I thought for a second I had the wrong house." The young woman laughs softly, then smiles gently at him. "Oh, but I assume you came here to see Amara. I'm sorry, but she's not here." Yusuke glances around a little, getting a good look at Amara's house. "I heard…do you know where she is then?" The pale woman shakes her head. "I'm sorry, no. She left early Saturday morning, and all she told my husband and I was that she needed to go somewhere to get away for a little while. That's all." Yusuke was thoughtful for a little while, and noting his silence the young woman murmured an apology.
"Nah, don't worry about it. I think I know where she might be. Hey, I'll see you around then." She nods and smiles, then waves. "Good bye for now. I hope to see you again some time."
"You bet!" Yusuke responds, smiling before he slips his shoes on and makes his exit.
Yusuke spent the rest of the day looking in all the places he thought Amara might be, but with no luck. He had looked in the arcade, at the park—looking everywhere—and even the school, but still he had seen no sign of her. He was sitting in his room wracking his brain for ideas, when his cell phone rang for the second time that day. "Did you find anything out?" It was Keiko, sounding anxiously excited about getting news about her friend. Yusuke was a bit hesitant with his answer, already giving the bad news away without even saying anything. "No, huh?" She asks quietly, though it was really as though she was answering for him. "No. And I looked everywhere!" Now she sounded worried. "Maybe I should come over tomorrow and we can search together." Yusuke shakes his head. "No, you can't miss school. You're the straight-A student remember? Missing a day would count as something, and nothing good. Don't worry about it. Get some sleep. I know a few more places and I'll check them tomorrow. Keiko, I'm sure she's fine." He adds, almost able to feel her tension and worry over the phone. "This is Amara we're talking about. She can handle anything."
"I know…but I'm worried. Why would Amara just vanish all of a sudden?" Keiko murmurs, growing more worried by the minute. Yusuke didn't know how to answer her question, so he just pretends as though he hadn't heard her by trying something that he knew would calm her down. "I promise to have her call you once I find her tomorrow, ok? Now go to sleep." Yusuke says confidently, sounding sure for her and himself that he was going to find her. He heard a sigh on the other end, but it was as though he could see her nodding. "Ok. Good night, Yusuke." With that, they hang up, and Yusuke tosses his phone on the carpet before allowing himself to fall backwards on the bed. He had been lying about having ideas of where she could be—he was clueless. No, that wasn't accurate. He did have a few clues. Staring at the ceiling in silence, he became very deep in thought, trying to remember everything Amara and the woman at her house had said. "…'Go somewhere to get away for a little while.'…The fire…" He murmurs aloud, trying as hard as he could to think of something. After a few minutes he groans, unable to think of anything. "Damn!" He growls, closing his eyes to try to rest his thoughts for a little while…
Suddenly, it clicked. He knew where she was. Yusuke's eyes fly open and he sits up straight, jumping off of his bed. He runs for the door, grabbing his key and shoving it in his pocket, tugging on his shoes while still trying to move his feet. Once he had them on, he turns around and closes the door, locks it, then dashes as fast as he could in the direction of the only place she could have gone.
Bwahaha! Ugh, damn. I just realized how short my chapters have been, but if I went on any further, they would be too long! Ah well, cest la ve (such is life). I've already typed out the next chapter or two, so I should have that up not long after this one. Sorry I haven't updated in so long, but I was so busy with school, finals, and so on, trying to get my grades up, that I really just didn't have time. So, I'm sorry, everyone! I 3 you guys!
Next time, on Unbalanced Kisses…
He quickly grabbed her around the waist and pulled her from the door, covering her mouth with his free hand to stifle the scream she had been about to release.
"Don't bother. So far from what you call 'civilization', who do you think could possibly hear you? You would only be wasting what precious breath you have in those delicate human lungs of yours." With her hopes of her cries for help being heard shot, he lets a low chuckle escape him as he proceeds to pull her further from the door.
(Uh-oh! I guess you'd better keep reading if you want to find out what happens! )