Henry wakes up to something very unusual… absolute silence.

He stretches out and rubs his eyes, gathering his bearings. He was surprised that his hearing was still working after the loud music at the party last night. He was still wearing his clothes from the night before because he was too exhausted to move anywhere but to bed.

He'd had an awesome time, dancing, talking with his other peers, watching games of beer pong, hanging by the pool and pond, taking pictures and getting to know Violet. Henry had spent most of the night with her and he was absolutely amazed that she wasn't some wild party animal. She did let her hair down, dancing and socializing, but she didn't drink or do drugs. In fact, she drank punch with him and even introduced him to some of her friends. Her friends were very intoxicated and were putting their hands on any boy in their sight, including Henry himself. He tried to stop their advances, but he did end up in a few grinding sessions with some of them.

Henry felt out of place most of the night. He didn't know the songs very well; he didn't know what was considered "dancing" and he was forbidden to go near drugs or alcohol. He had been offered some, but he turned them down. His mind flashes back to a moment during the party that stood out to him.

…

"I told you no, I don't want any!" Henry shouts at a guy over the music.

"What is wrong with you?" the guy, who was too old to be in high school groans. "This is stuff is top billing."

"I don't care," Henry says, trying to get around the guy who was standing in his way of escape.

The guy turns red, clearly high beyond belief and becoming angry by Henry's refusals. His heart began to race, thinking he might have to fight to get away.

Suddenly, Violet comes up to him and grabs his arm. "Henry, there you are, we've been waiting for you to come and play beer pong, everyone knows you're the best."

Henry is speechless, not knowing how to respond, but Violet drags him away from the man. His face is burning red because of Violet touching him. She pulls him through the crowds of hot, sweaty and drunk teenagers, who are screaming their lungs out to the music. A couple of girls try to coax him over, but Violet guides him away from the flashing lights and loud music. They get further away from the house, down by what might be a small pond or a brook. By the time she stops, the music is merely a deep beat and there's finally a relief from all the lights, so much so that he can see the moon and stars.

Henry lets out a sigh of relief and Violet lets go of his hand. She moves to the water's edge and Henry sees her remove her shoes. She sits on the bank and dips her feet into the water. She lets out her own deep sigh of relief.

With reluctance, Henry goes and sits down next to her, taking his shoes off and dipping them in the cool water next to her.

"You're welcome," Violet says in a playful voice.

"What? Oh yeah, thanks for saving me back there."

"Not a problem. I knew if you were on your own for too long, someone would come after you, try to coax you into buying drugs. Happened to me the first time too. Gary is the neighbourhood drug dealer and always finds his way to all the parties, hoping to make some cash. He doesn't know how to take no for an answer. He's a real jerk."

Henry is speechless. He sees Violet's face glow in the almost full moon. He thinks she looks very beautiful, her hair pulled back into a ponytail with curls. Her make-up is a little smudged from sweating, but nonetheless, she looks pretty.

"This happens to all newcomers at parties; they try to humiliate you for not joining in on the illegal activities. They'll call you a buzz kill and you won't be invited to any more parties. That's why I said you were good at beer pong, just to give you some cred." she explains. "Otherwise, they'd call you something very unpleasant or just make things worse for you."

Henry remains silent for a little longer.

Violet sighs heavily again. "I don't know why I keep coming to parties like this."

"You don't like them?" Henry asks.

"Not really, they're so loud and everyone thinks you need to be drunk or high to have a good time. The first time, Julia had a party like this, I was called a wimp, among other things because I refused to drink or do anything stupid and dangerous. The only way I got around it was that I pretended to binge drink and claimed I threw up all night in the bathroom. In reality, I was reading in the locked bathroom, waiting for my sister to come pick me up."

Henry was surprised by Violet; he had assumed that she was like a lot of girls her age, into boys, make-up, parties, drinking, smoking, dressing in provocative clothing and not caring about anything. But Violet was very different. He saw that she was drinking punch like he was, she was dressed rather conservatively, as if to not draw attention to herself, and wasn't decked out in layers of make-up.

"Not what you expected huh?" Violet asks.

"W-What?" Henry stammers.

"The party?"

"Uh yeah, it's really extreme and very loud like you said."

Violet giggles softly. "That's why I brought you down here. I always come down here when I can't stand being near my drunk friends or creeps anymore. I like the quiet and if gives me some privacy and solitude. It allows me to appreciate the smaller things in life. No one's trying to hit on me, no one wants to grind with me, no one is trying to… you know?"

Henry nods, mostly understanding what she was saying. Violet puts her cup to her side and lifts her skirt, going deeper into the pond. Henry swallows and follows her, rolling his pants up.

"I love when you can see the waxing moon," Violet says. The white orb above them reflects against the surface of the pond, rippling as the two move about in the water.

"Over there is The Big Dipper and there is Perseus," she points upward. Henry looks up in awe as she names the different constellations above them.

"My dad likes to say I have stars in my eyes and he's right," Violet says quietly. "I just like to be in open spaces, gazing at the abyss."

The two of them are quiet for a few moments, staring up at the vast stillness of space.

Henry swallows and then looks at Violet for a long few moments. He liked her and she clearly liked him. He decides to do something spontaneous.

He scoops up some water and playfully splashes her. She shrieks at first from the cold, but then she splashes him back. Then it's all out war. The two are laughing, becoming soaked but having fun while doing it. For the first time, in a long time, Henry is smiling and enjoying his time with his new friend…

When they come out of the water, both are drenched all the way through and a little cold as the autumn air rustles through the surrounding trees and water plants. They sit out on the bank of the pond to dry and then they lay back on the grass, where Violet tells Henry more about the stars and some of the stories behind them. Henry just listens with his eyes wide in fascination, not at the stars, but at the girl with the amazing laugh. The sounds of the party are non-existent to them now, it's as if they are in their own little world. They talk for a long time, about themselves, but Henry doesn't have much to say about himself that is very happy compared to her. Violet has a complete family; parents, an older sister and a younger brother. She's in the band at school, even though she sucks at the clarinet, and part of the synchronized swimming team, which he already knew. She loved science, and obviously, astronomy was her favourite. She came from a Christian family and liked to help the poor when she could. Henry is so amazed by this girl; she has the most amazing life and he envied her in every way. He originally tried to shut down her attempts at getting to know him, but she coaxes more out of him in one evening, that what his mother could get out of him in a month.

Eventually, the two fall silent, having gotten to know each other very well by the end. They sit on the quiet bank, listening to the crickets and the unfortunately loud beat coming from the party.

Henry sits up and Violet soon follows. They sit next to each other and Henry's heart races. He turns to look at Violet and thinks about kissing her. The problem is, he's never done that before and he becomes sweaty and nervous. He admires Violet's deep brown eyes and sees the moon reflected in them. His face and ears turn red again, he was thankful it was dark so she couldn't see how nervous he was. His breath became heavy and he leaned in. Violet closed her eyes, Henry does too.

Except they end up bumping noses and Henry leans back, very embarrassed. He apologizes to her, knowing he just blew his shot with a girl he liked and he's on the verge of tears. However, Violet wasn't going to give up so easily. She cups her hand around his flushed face and guides him towards her. Their lips meet for a moment and Henry's heart explodes in happiness and joy. This was his first kiss and it may have gone wrong at first, it was everything he had imagined and more. It was very romantic and it was a girl he really liked.

They kiss for a few moments before they lean apart. Henry smiles and Violet does too.

…

Henry could still feel the kiss on his lips. He meant to text Violet after she gave him her number, but he overslept a lot. The problem was, the apartment was too quiet. He didn't expect to hear his mom come in last night and he knew better than to disturb her, knowing she probably had a hangover.

He goes into the kitchen and gets himself some cereal. It's almost noon. He turns on the coffee machine in case his mom needs something to lessen the pain.

He opens the curtains in the living room, letting the afternoon light in and kicks back with his cereal. He turns on the T.V., keeping it at low volume, and watches a show their DVR recorded the night before. He texts Violet and asks how her friends were. Violet told him she knew better than to disturb her friends while they were nursing hangovers. Henry told her his mom probably had one too.

The afternoon passes slowly, Henry plays a few video games, showers does some homework and still doesn't hear anything from his mom's room. The coffee becomes cold and Henry doesn't see any sign of his mother. He knows he has to go to swimming practice later and he needs a ride from Emma.

At about 3, he goes to pack his gear and he sees that his mom's room is empty. Very empty, the bed is still made, it hasn't been touched. Henry gets a little nervous; he checks the bathroom or anywhere else his mother might be, but the apartment is small so it's unlikely that she could've passed out somewhere he wouldn't have known about.

He texts his mom but gets no response. He calls her phone but gets voice mail. He tries again a few minutes later and still nothing. It's very weird because his mom always keeps her phone on in case she's needed at work or he needs her.

He then assumes that she might have crashed at one of her friend's place. He goes through Emma's phone book and finds her friend's cell phone numbers. He tries Regina first.

"Hello?" a scratchy voice asks.

"Regina?"

"Yes, Henry is that you?"

"Yeah, I was just calling to see if my mom was there."

"No she's not here, she didn't come home last night?"

"No."

"That's very weird. You should try Elsa and Anna's. Elsa was the designated driver last night and she may have taken Emma home last night."

"Okay."

"Talk to you later."

Henry finds Elsa's number and calls.

"Hello?" a sweet voice answers.

"Elsa?"

"Yes, Henry is that you?"

"Yes, I was calling to see if my mom was there."

"No… I thought she might've walked home last night or taken a taxi. She left the bar when no one was looking… I was worried but I was more worried about my inebriated sister and Lacey."

"Is Lacey there with you?"

"Yes, she is. I've been trying to text your mom too, asking if she's okay. I called her too, but I'm getting voice mail."

"So am I,"

"That's so unlike her," Elsa says, mostly to herself. "She might be at Ruby's, but try her at your own risk because she was the drunkest out of all of the others."

"Okay," Henry says.

"If you can't find her, call me back," Elsa says.

"Sure, bye," Henry says.

He dials Ruby's number, but he gets voice mail. He tries Granny's diner too and Granny tells her that Emma did not come home and neither did Ruby last night.

He tries everyone else on her contacts list, but no one has seen his mom. Aurora suggests that he call Killian. She may have gone to his apartment by mistake.

Henry sighs, knowing he doesn't want to call the man who is replacing his dad now, but it's getting late and he needs to find his mom.

"Hello?" an Irish voice says from the other end.

"Hi, Killian?"

"Hi Henry, what can I do for you?"

"Is…is my mom there?"

"No, I haven't seen her since Thursday, why?"

"Because she's not at home and she's not at any of her friends' houses."

"That's very odd," Killian says.

"I need to find her in order for her to take me to swim practice."

"Have you tried Regina?"

"Yes,"

"Elsa…?"

"Yes. I've tried everyone."

"That's very odd. I'm just hoping she didn't get arrested or something."

Henry's heart drops when he says that, he can't imagine his mom behind bars.

"I'll try to get through to her. Try Mary Margret and David son."

Henry hangs up and calls them. He gets a no from both. It's getting late and Henry asks if David can drive him to swim practice. The officer agrees and he would try to get through to Emma while he was in the pool. Both sound very concerned that Emma has left Henry to his own devices and is not answering her phone.

…

During the swim practice, Henry tries his best to focus on his backstroke, but he keeps looking up at David in the balcony area, calling and texting, trying to find Emma.

"Faster Swan, Faster!" the coach yells.

Henry does get to see Violet again and she gives him a warm hug, but he can't enjoy it as he's still worried about his mom. Violet notices his distance, but she doesn't have time to question him as she has a math test to get ready for and had to rush home to start studying.

David takes Henry to their place for dinner and Mary Margret is equally worried, she's pacing about the kitchen as she cooks, frantic and nervous. The three of them hardly say anything at dinner, just that David was trying her phone seven times during the swim practice and still got voice mail. He checked the hospitals, the station, the homeless shelter and anywhere else Emma might've ended up. Mary Margret mutters that something must be wrong. All of them knew Emma would not disappear like this, leaving Henry alone.

David is reluctant to drop Henry off at the apartment alone and Mary Margret insists they should all go back to the Swan apartment in case Emma was back and freaking out about Henry being gone. The couple packs an overnight bag and takes Henry back home. None of them speak as Henry tries his mom's phone three more times, becoming more frantic and uncomfortable.

The apartment is dark when they get there and David begins going through the place, looking for some sign that Emma was there. He calls Lacey and Ruby and asks what bars they went to last night; he hopes that maybe Emma is still there or they know where she is.

Suddenly, there's a knock at the door and Killian enters. He looks just as nervous as the others. He's shaken and looks as if he's been crying.

"Any sign of her?" he asks.

"None," David says. "But I'm going out to the bars that they went to, maybe they can give us a clue to where she went."

"I'll come with you," Killian says. "Two people can be advantageous."

David agrees and the two men leave.

Henry sits on the couch, trying to watch a TV show, but he couldn't concentrate. Where is his mom? Could she have run away? Was she hurt? Was she dead?

Mary Margret made some hot chocolate for both of them, with whipped cream and cinnamon on top, but neither can drink it.

The night becomes later and later and Mary Margret suggests that Henry tries to lie down for a little while. At least she wasn't insisting he go to sleep. She agreed to stay up with both their phones in case Emma called or David.

Henry lays in his bed for a long time, listening, waiting. Mary Margret sat outside in the hall, trying to keep it together, while the baby kicked at her insides. She became more and more exhausted and weary with worry. She knew Emma would never disappear like this without telling someone.

When the door opens, Mary Margret rushes, hoping it's Emma, but the two tired men walk in instead.

"Nothing," David says. "We found her bug downtown, but other than that, nothing."

"We asked the lads at the bar and they said the bouncer saw her walk behind the bar and he never saw her again."

Mary Margret begins to break down. She collapses into her husband's arms in grief and in fear. Her best friend was missing. David and Killian were on the verge of tears as well. David helps his wife to Emma's unused bedroom to lie down before she hurt herself or the baby. Killian is exhausted and looks down the hall to see Henry peeking out. Killian wishes he could comfort the lad in some way, but he knows it would only make things awkward. He reaches for his phone and dials the police.

"Yes, I would like to report a missing person…"