My Way Home Is Through You

"What the hell do you mean I can't report a person missing for less than twenty-four hours?" Bob growled into the receiver of his cell phone. "He's been gone without any contact for about twenty hours now, isn't that close enough?"

Mikey sat on the couch with Anna huddled between himself and Frank. They had tried to distract her with movies and games, but to no avail. The longer her father was missing, the quieter and more withdrawn she became. Gerard, becoming antsy from sitting with her all day, had only gotten a slight nod from her when he asked if she was hungry.

The singer was busy in the kitchen, rooting around the cabinets to find something to fix for lunch... Or dinner... He wasn't even sure what time it was now. Finally, he sighed and pulled four boxes of macaroni and cheese out, then grabbed a pot to boil water in. After filling the pot with water and setting the burner, he slipped quietly back into the living room.

"Hey, sugar," he said gently, kneeling in front of the little girl. She had stuck her thumb in her mouth, and he knew he would get little out of her now.

"Do you like mac and cheese? How about that?"

The soulful brown eyes looked sadly up at him, and Anna slowly nodded.

"Hey," murmured Mikey, pulling her into his lap. "I bet your daddy just got stuck somewhere, babe. He's okay."

Anna remained silent, laying her head on his shoulder. Gerard glanced up at his brother, exchanging a worried look.

"Fine, damn it, I'll call back in another four hours! Thanks for nothing!" Bob shouted, closing his phone with a snap. He heaved a heavy sigh and turned back to his friends.

“Well, they won’t file anything until he’s been gone for a full twenty-four hours,” he spat angrily. “I don’t know what else to do, guys.”

“Hey, Miss Anna,” Frank said suddenly. “What do you say to laying down for a little while? You can try to get some rest while Gee fixes us some macaroni.”

Anna shrugged, and Frank lifted her from Mikey’s lap and carried her to her bedroom. Tucking her in, he whispered, “Hey, don’t worry, babydoll. Everything will be okay.” He kissed her forehead and left the room, closing the door behind him.

When he returned to the living room, he found his bandmates staring quizzically at him.

“Sorry. I just didn’t think she should be in here while we were talking about Ray being missing,” he said. The others nodded.

“So...” Bob began. “What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know,” Frank said. “But she’s not doing well. I don’t know how much more of this she can handle. She’s not even speaking at this point.”

“You don’t think she thinks he’s...” Mikey gulped. “I mean, after her mother...”

Gerard shook his head. “I couldn’t tell you what she’s thinking, man. But Frank’s right, she’s not holding up so great. I just hope she’ll be able to bounce back from this once we find him.”

Bob looked up at him dubiously. “Gee, do you really think we’ll...?” His voice trailed off.

“Oh, we’ll find him,” said Gerard, setting his jaw. “Whatever it takes, we’re going to find him.” He turned and headed back toward the kitchen.

“But first, the kid’s gotta eat. Back to the macaroni.”