Chapter 4: Disappearance

(16:30pm...)

Well, after that scuffle with the 'Queen' of North Ashfield High, I was in pretty bad shape. Luckily one of the teachers, (a nice and friendly male in his early 20s) found me and took me up to First Aid to get me cleaned up. He wanted to know what happened so I told him, carefully choosing my words as I did so. Usually some of the leader's female victims would have broken down emotionally after their assault, but me, that wasn't going to happen. Like I said to Dad on the phone, I'm a tough cookie.

It was now the end of the day, and I had just come out of the school building, feeling relieved that I was able to head home. To the far right was a large group of kids waiting for their local bus to come and get them. I could hear murmurs coming from the left and without guessing, I realised that group just happened to be gossiping about my brutal assault.

Not cool, guys. Not cool.

"Hey guys, did you hear about the Queen's recent attack that happened at break-time today?"

"Oh my god, yes! It was on that weird girl with the so-called 'autism'."

"Guys, I was there when she came out of the library with that teacher. She had a broken nose and there was blood everywhere!"

The rest of the group gasped and snickered, wearing massive grins. Meanwhile, I honestly couldn't believe what I was hearing. Clearly these guys didn't know what autism actually was, and I wasn't going to walk over to them and show how hurt my feelings were. So I decided to give myself a goal to achieve.

Alright, when the time comes, I'm gonna get the confidence to gather everyone together and tell them about my condition and the difficulties I went through. Hopefully that make them understand...

It sounded perfect. I just needed to wait for the right time. I quickly crossed the road onto the pavement and began making my way to the subway station, trying my best to ignore the constant chats about what happened to me earlier.

"Was there a lot of blood?"

"Yup, there was a lot. You should have seen it, it was all over her t-shirt too!"

"Well deserved."

Calming my breathing, I just continued on. The journey on the pavement went on for a little while longer until the staircase leading down into the subway, revealed itself. I took a couple of steps down, looking back at my school which had almost disappeared from my view. After a while, I turned round and descended the staircase.

I really can't wait to get back...

As soon as I reached the bottom, I took in my surroundings. The walls were a dull grey, making their bright notice boards stand out and make themselves known. Already there were thousands of people weaving their way through the massive crowd that had formed just a few hours ago. It was like a normal, regular subway station. I began making my way towards my destination; a platform which would send me the train I needed to get back to the King Street Line in South Ashfield. It was simple, just go through the turnstile at the end, head down a staircase and I'm there.

Soon, I reached the turnstiles in a different area which seemed to be surrounded by silence. There were small groups of people here and there, some of them my age. I knew that I wouldn't get anywhere if I struck up a friendly conversation with them, so I tipped my three coins into the machine, and went through. I descended a shorter staircase and eventually, the platform came into view.

"Bingo." I said as I got off.

I could see some students from my school waiting for their train on the far left; some of them looking at me with cold glares and spitting insults at me.

Just ignore them, just ignore them...

Waiting patiently for my train to come, I began thinking about what I could do later once I got home. Mum would be pleased to see me as always, and I would be pleased to see her. I'd tell her about the incident I had, and we'd figure out a way to resolve things. Maybe if I get time, I could fire up my PS3 and play a little bit of Sonic's games, just to keep my mind of everything that had occurred at the school today. It was only a little while longer, before the kids at the end really started to spit their insults at me, this time much louder. But luckily, my train was arriving so I just kept myself together and turned my back to them.

"Hey lady, go to hell!"

"Don't ever come back to our school!"

"You don't deserve anything good in life!"

Why...? Just why?

The train then eventually stopped and the doors opened. I stepped onto it and searched for a place to sit; nearly all of the seats were taken but there was one left which happened to be close to the door which lead to the exits. I sat down, setting my backpack onto my lap and took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Suddenly, I was briefly startled when a loud noise indicated that the train was now moving and it finally set off.

"Phew..." I breathed, letting out a sigh of relief.

I watched as the platforms faded into rapid colours going at a high speed. The other passengers just chatted about their daily lives whilst I remained in my usual state of silence. Life was pretty damn tough with my condition, every day I would be known as the 'weird kid with autism' and I would try so hard to make everyone understand. But every attempt became a failure.

There has to be more options... There has to be...

It was still a long way to go before the train stopped, so I decided to quickly grab my IPod, jam in my headphones and listen to some favourite songs of mine. I scrolled through my playlist which seemed to be endless and eventually found one. Closing my eyes, I let a small smile appear as I heard a voice singing. Just breathe, kiddo... Just breathe... The others were still chatting in their groups, whilst taking in their surroundings. We all didn't know it, but the train seemed to go more faster. Eventually it stopped at the King Street Line platform with a screech, making me open my eyes and take out my headphones in temporary shock. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

A second noise then erupted, indicating that the doors had opened and already, the others were walking out. I placed my IPod back in my backpack, slipped my arms through its' straps and began making my way out of the train.

Now all that's left is to get up that escalator...

Once I got it, I took one step and remained still as the escalator took me and several other people up to the exit. It was a long way up and all I could do was look around. "Almost there..."

I thought about how Sonic might be doing; maybe he was probably in Soleanna or Empire City, kicking Eggman's butt in an epic never-ending battle. Just like my idol, I wasn't a particularly huge fan of the villain. Ever since I heard the nickname 'Baldy McNose Hair', I've been addressing him as that non stop. Literally every time he came on screen.

Such a cool nickname...

Eventually, I got off and came face to face with the final staircase that would take me up to the streets. I made my way up and immediately set my sights on my apartment building which was a few metres away. As I entered the double doors, I began sprinting up the staircases as fast as my legs could carry me. Soon enough, the front door of my apartment came into view. Getting out my butterfly keys, I placed one into the lock and turned it, opening the door.

"Hey Mum, I'm home!" I said, cheerfully as I closed the door behind me.

No answer. I expected my mother to come out smiling and say "Hello Megan!". But I got nothing ... Just silence. "Mum?" I asked with concern lacing my tone. I began searching in all of the areas; living room, bathroom, bedrooms and storeroom. But she wasn't there. I then discovered a note waiting on a small cupboard in my room with two sentences written in red ink:

Don't call for help!

Walter.

"No..." I whispered, slowly becoming more and more panicked. "No, no, no! Nononono!"

Breathing heavily, I paced around the room, trying to calm myself down during the attack I was having. Why? Why did Mum have to go missing? Why?! Who was this 'Walter' dude?! Unable to control myself any longer, I let out a loud panicked scream and pounded my fist into my bed covers. My day was so bad. I got a broken nose and beaten up by the Queen, only to come home to discover that my kind and sweet mother had mysteriously been taken away. I instantly ran into the living room and grabbed my mobile phone out of my pocket, dialling Dad's number and pacing to and fro nervously, waiting for him to pick up.

"C'mon, Dad!" I groaned in annoyance and concern, mentally begging him to answer. "PickpickupPickup!"

But unfortunatley, he didn't answer which influenced a voice mail to appear. REALLY?! I know you're at work right now and I feel bad for interrupting but ... Please please Pleease answer me, Dad! Mum's been taken!

Just as I was about to dial his number again, I heard a noise coming from outside my front door. I instantly ran and looked into the peephole, just to see what was going on. Someone draped in blue was bending down, apparently picking something up that he dropped. As he pulled himself up to his feet, I realised who he was and my eyes widened with shock.

What the?!

The person outside my door was not a person, but an animal. It was a hedgehog who looked about twenty four years old. A calm and mature adult instead of the hyperactive and cheerful teenager he once was. I could tell that there was still a hint of the teenager in him somewhere. Instead of being a regular brown colour most hedgehogs are, he was draped in a bright blue. His emerald green eyes matched mine perfectly and I could definitely see that whenever he smiled, it would reveal his kind and friendly personality.

Sonic... He's real...

"Oh man," The adult hedgehog groaned in frustration. "I hope my luck changes before Tails and I have to go to that party."

He looked at my front door for a little while longer. It was almost like...he was making eye contact with me. Like he was actually looking at me with a friendly grin. But then, Sonic walked away. Maybe to get going to a restaurant or head out to face Eggman once again. I turned from my door, closing my eyes tightly and taking the realisations in. Suddenly, a loud crash came from my bedroom, making me open my eyes again and jump slightly in shock.

What was that...?

I made my way over, threw open the door and discovered a huge gaping hole punctured into the wall next to my cupboard and mirror; accompanied by the voices of children and the sobbing of a woman. "What the hell?!"

On the floor in front of it, was a loaded pistol and a set of ten bullets. I bent down and gingerly picked them up, placing them in my backpack along with my IPod and headphones. After I got back up, I continued staring at the hole, filled with confusion. "I wonder if Mum was dragged through here by whoever took her?" I pondered in thought. There was only one way to find out.

With my weapon of choice safely with me, I lifted myself up and crawled through the hole.

Don't worry, Mum. I'm coming, just hang in there...