Where's Warren?

“I never thought that I would be looking for Warren. He was always so...on his feet.” I shared with Mrs. O'Kain, now sitting in a well air conditioned restaurant. It was 2:00pm, and I knew we were nowhere near done searching for him.

“I understand, Daisy.” Mrs. O'Kain murmured half-heartily. She stared at her untouched hamburger with sadness in her eyes, a new piece of tissue clutched to her heart.

“I miss him...so much...”

“So do I. He's my son.”

I looked at Warren's young mother, who seemed to have aged about 4 years in a matter of a day. Her youthful glow was replaced by a dark, sullen aura. Faint worry lines graced her once smooth forehead, and her usually glossy lips were chapped and cracking. Even her colorful wardrobe had taken a turn due to Warren's sudden disappearance, going from vibrate pinks, yellows and blues to wary dark blues and purples.

Sighing, I swirled my french fry in the damp of ketchup I placed on a napkin, suddenly losing my appetite. Seeing her like that was depressing, but I bet seeing the thoughts in her mind were even more depressing. She loved her son more than anything and she doesn't even know where he is, doesn't even know if he's breathing, she was completely and utterly broken.

“I love him you know,”I said softly, wanting her to know that I feel her pain.

She lifted her haunted golden eyes and nodded slowly. “I know, and he loves you too. He's always loved you, from the very beginning. From the moment he laid eyes on you, he knew you two would be best friends....”Trailing off, her eyes got that lost look in them again as if she was recalling the day we first saw each other. Both forced into 'cute' kid clothing for the first day of school, we'd easily found each other from our identical pouts. Immediately, we'd bonded. We became best friends, promised our devotion to each other, past our deaths. We'd remain inseparable forever.

Slowly, I realized that was the first time we'd actually been out of contact with each other for more than 12 hours. Ever since childhood...we'd always communicated. 24/7. And then...

Warren, my rock, was out of reach. The realization knocked the air out of me. I couldn't see him. I couldn't talk to him. I didn't know if he was okay. He could have been dead. He could have been tied up and was being tortured then. Hurriedly excusing myself from the table, I ran to the bathroom and allowed a series of dry heaves/cries to rack my body. Fat tears rolled down my face as I felt like I was suffocating slowly, and I had to lean against the wall for support.

God, the things my only best friend made me feel. He'd been the only one to break through my wall and see the real me. And I loved him for that; I loved him for being my best friend. And that's why his disappearance hurt so much, even if it had only been a day.

Desperation clutched my stomach tightly. I had to find him. I had to know he was okay. I couldn't stop till I found him. I would do whatever it takes.

I waited until I could finally breathe again and splashed some cold water on my heavily flushed face. I stared at myself in the mirror and again tried to trigger any memory of the party...of Warren. I attempted to force any memory forward, I gritted my teeth, my hands gripped the sink in anger as nothing popped up. Groaning, I pushed myself off the porcelain and walked out of the bathroom, back to the table.

Mrs. O'Kain was alternating between nibbling on a french fry and sipping on her sprite when I spotted her. I settled back down in my seat from across the booth and rest my hands in my lap. I could feel her eyes on me, scrutinizing me the same way that Warren did when he knew I had been crying. He must have gotten that from her.

Taking the last bite of fry, she sighed and sat back.

“I don't know where to look,” I admitted to her softly. “I just....can't remember what happened.”

It took Mrs. O'Kain a minute to respond. “I can't be mad at you Daisy, you always kept an eye on Warren...I'm surprised you hadn't lost him before this.” A dry laugh emitted from her throat.

I was too, to be honest. Warren always had been a busy body. He couldn't stay in one place for long if he didn't have to....which only made it harder to find him. I sighed, running my hands through my hair. Tomorrow, I had to face school alone. That was the first time since what seemed like forever that Warren wasn't here, by my side.

“Come on, Mrs. O'Kain. Let’s keep looking.”

“Well where do we start??” Her voice was shaking, yet her eyes glowed at the thought of searching for—and hoping to find—her son.

“The teen homes, orphanages, jails across the state...hospitals,” My voice trailed off towards the end, the image of Warren lying in a hospital bed near death lurked in my mind. Pain shot through my heart, almost bringing a fresh wave of tears to my eyes. No. Warren's fine. I told myself and chose to believe it.

I'd find my best friend, if it's the last thing I did.