i am really, so very sorry for updating all late. um...i'll be typing different POVs soo, one way to tell when it switches is with the long line thing..._ yeeah. enjoy!

It is around mid November in this tiny town. The skies had darkened early today, and the wind has gotten even frostier. The lights of a local cafe illuminated softly through its glass windows. At the far booth, sat the blond headed Ken. He dozed off with his head held up by an open palm. No other soul but him and the old cafe owner. The old man was wiping the counters while the cheap television was on. The evening news was on.

"The children that were reported missing last week still haven't been found; and the investigators haven't gotten any leads what-so-ever as to where these children have gone. Some have even called it quits on the search. Families and townsfolk of the missing children are outraged by the investigators' lack of duty."

Ken's ears perked at this. He opened one eye and watched with slim interest. The screen now flips to a large portrait with tiny squares. Faces of children appeared on them.

"This picture shows all of the missing children. In just three weeks, fifteen children have gone missing. This is the first time in eight years that children have gone missing. This is remarkably a small number compared to the last incident of missing children."

The screen flips to another picture, similar to the previous one; only this time, they're different children. Ken's both eyes widened when he saw a familiar looking boy.

"Turn it off," he told the old man, though it was more of a low murmur.

"As you can see, eight years ago a very similar tragedy befell our country. A total of forty-two children disappeared without a trace."

"Turn it off," he said sternly; but the old man continued with his wiping.

"The children are presumed deceased by their families; though the actuality is that they are frightened of the thought that their children are still alive, trapped someplace. It has been a possibility that the children were all kidnapped. A family proclaims that they are being held captive so-"

"I said to TURN IT OFF!" he slammed the table with his fists.

The old man flinched in surprise, but right away he grabbed the remote and pressed the 'OFF' button. The television went off with a click. The last thing on the screen was a close up of the kidnapped children of eight years ago. One of the children zoomed in was that familiar child.

"I'm sorry, Ken. Didn't hear you there," the old man apologized.

Ken sighed, "It's fine, old man. Forgot you were hard of hearing."

The old man noticed the boy's trembles. "You must've been shaken up at hearing the news of the missing children, huh Ken?"

With a scoff, Ken stood up and headed for the door. "They aren't 'missing'. They were kidnapped." And with that, he left.

The bell chimed as the door opened and closed.

Crowds of students poured out of the school's gates after the sound of the dismissal bell. I was fortunate enough to not get squeezed on my way out. I turned left, opposite of the direction to the house, and began walking away from the school. By the time I'd reach the corner, I was expecting to see Ken; but as the last three days, he wasn't there. Where'd he go..?

To be honest, I wasn't really surprised; though I was curious of where he could've gone.

Today was Friday, so I was free. With nothing to do at the house, I'd wander the streets if I wanted to. But the weather was a bit chillier, and I've been avoiding the market street as best I could. I seriously wanted to avoid anything to do with that place...for now.

So with no other place to go, I head to the library. Once there, I was greeted-as always-by the aroma of coffee and the owner. As I've mentioned before, this library is always isolated during the weekdays. So I wasn't the least startled by the small group of guys huddled by the bean bags. What startled me though, were their appearances. They looked dead beat, their bags under their eyes were very prominent. Not only that, but they also looked-what's the word?-wild. Yes, wild. Like they've just escaped from cages and were on the run. Again, not very surprising.

With a silent sigh I decided to forget my ritual reading and settled on having something to eat. Stepping over to the cafe section of the library, I walked up to the counter to order something.

"This is rare: you eating," the owner remarks, pulling off his headphones.

I shrug, "Don't feel like reading today. Umm, I'll take the vanilla sundae."

"A sundae during this weather? You're really something, kid," the owner chuckles and leaves out the back. He returns a minute later, sundae in hand. "Here you go."

"Thanks," I say, placing a few extra bucks for him. I take a seat on a lone bench near the entrance. Popping off the plastic top, I dip my spoon and take a bite. Bad idea. Now I know why people let the ice-cream melt in their mouths. I clutch the side of my head as I wait for the painful brain freeze to wear off.

After a few more brain freezes, my mind started to wonder about those wild boys. Where did they come from? What did they do for a living? Were they from neighboring towns? ...Hm, now that I've thought of it...the news have been mentioning something about an increase of refugees. The cause is still unknown, though poverty and gangs being the problem is a thought. In my opinion, these refugees could be connected to those supposed missing children...or not.

Feeling bored of my thoughts and interested in those wild boys, I eavesdropped; although I don't think it's such a crime, seeing that they're talking pretty loudly. Sadly I could only catch bits of their conversation.

"...had no choice but to leave."

"-runaway-"

"-gotta find him."

"...where is he?"

"-next town-"

"-nearby?"

"...need info from him..."

"-seen with..."

"-some guy with a white beanie..."

...Ookay. For the conversation to make some sense to my delicate mind, I summed it up.

These wild boys were/are runaways from a nearby town. They're heading for the next town, but they need information from a guy they can't seem to find. This guy they're searching for has been seen with another guy that wears a white beanie.

For some reason I could feel stares boring into my head...Wait...

I feel the top of my head. Crap. I'm wearing my hat. My hat is a beanie. And it's white. Quickly but discreetly, I stand up to throw away my sundae-which I'd finished a while ago. Waving goodbye to the owner, whom I doubt heard anything while wearing those headphones, I left the building. With as much normalcy as I could, I walk down the sidewalk. By the time I turned the corner though, I ran for it. Back at the library, as I headed towards the door, I caught a glimpse of the wild boys; their eyes were following my every move. Tall picket fences sprang up beside me. Easily hurdling over them, I hid behind them. They were stacked together tightly, so I couldn't really see through them. I staggered back when I heard running footsteps.

"Where'd he go?"

"I'm pretty sure he went this way."

"I'll check over here. You guys go that way!"

"Right!"

The footsteps went right past my hiding spot. I sighed in relief. What could they want from me? Geez...A loud growl sounded behind me. Aw geez, what now? I turned back, only to be face to face with a big dog. I think they're called Rottweiler's. "Good dog," I murmur, totally unfazed with the intimidating thing. It growls back more aggressively. "Stay," I begin taking steps back, though it only causes the thing to snarl. In a flash, I scurry over the fence as it snapped at the space between us. "Stupid thing!" I growled back after landing on my butt. Landing hard on the pavement on your butt hurts, a lot. The dog starts barking and scratches at the fence. Luckily the wild boys weren't nearby. Guess I got lucky...

I decided that the library was best to be avoided after that incident. I really didn't want anything to do with street punks; especially when they looked as wild as Ken. Although...Ken's much more-I don't know-tame? Anyways, my weekend was pretty much ruined. When school started again, it was the same as last week: no Ken. During that week, a funny thought came to me one night. What if Ken was one of the missing children? Heh, hilarious, right? He's more of a stray than a runaway; to me at least. Geez, it's pretty boring without the guy...

gah, too short ==. sorry. i'm getting too distracted lately. if the story seems like there's no plot, then you're probly right. but please stay tuned! you'll be surprised by the stupid twists and WTF moments i'll type-and the horrid vocabulary, heh...