Status: updates when inspiration and free time collide.

Out of the Wreckage

Breathing was Easy.

Jake paused as he passed by his sister’s empty room, his hands dropping to his sides and his backpack dropping to the floor. He gently eased the door open and sighed, wrinkling his nose at the stale smell of the air in the room. Jordan usually had some kind of wax burner on, so he room perpetually smelled of some delicate, floral potpourri…that is, when she still lived under this roof.

Jake slowly made his way into the room, pulling his shirt off and wiping his sweat off with it. He had just come home from cross-country practice. He smiled, remembering how Jordan would complain about his after-practice stench. His smile quickly fell soon after and he wondered what exactly what he was doing in her room. Just because Jordan rarely came home didn’t mean he could come and mess her room up whenever he wanted. She made that clear during her last visit... which was a whole year ago.

Jake couldn’t help himself, though – he missed his sister, and being in her room made him feel closer to her somehow. It certainly brought up fond memories of her. He gathered up his things and shut the door, making his way to his own room. After tossing his practice bag down on the floor and placing his backpack on his desk, Jake sank into his beanbag with a sigh.

He had just started to play some XBOX when the phone rang. Jake rolled his eyes, remembering that his parents weren’t home at the moment. He decided he ought to expend the effort to get up now, considering that whoever was calling had called three consecutive times without leaving any voicemails.

“Merrick residence,” Jake answered the phone brusquely. He had to run all the way down to the kitchen to answer the house phone. This had better be something important.

“Is this Mrs. Genevieve Merrick?”

“Uh, my mom’s at work, but I can take a message…”

“Very well,” the female on the other line replied curtly. “Please inform your mother – well, your sister has gone missing.”

Jake’s mouth went dry and he had to hold onto the kitchen counter to support himself. “What do you mean, missing?”

Jake slowly but surely slumped to the floor as the person from MICA continued to explain the situation.

Apparently, Jordan had been missing for two weeks now. The first week, she told her roommate that she was feeling sick and stopped attending classes. The second week, her roommate had seen neither hide nor hair of Jordan in their dorm at all. Jordan completely moved out of the dorm and left a note that said she was taking a year off from college to figure out what she wanted to do with her life.

Jake was seething by the time he hung up on the woman from the college. Jordan could have at least talked to her family about it. Jordan could have at least talked to him about it instead of leaving without a trace. Jordan was extremely thorough. She had cleaned out her banking accounts, she hadn’t used her debit or credit card since she first went missing… she didn’t even take her car with her.

Jake dialed Jordan’s cell phone number, praying to god she would pick up.

“Stop calling. I can take care of myself. I just… I need this, alright? I need to get away...Bye.”

Jake scowled at Jordan’s blanket “goodbye” message and hung up on her phone. Rubbing his face tiredly, he tossed the house phone onto the tile floor of the kitchen without much care. Jake spent half an hour or so sitting on the cold floor wondering why the hell his sister decided to put her college life on hiatus.

The last time he’d seen her, Jordan was already interning for a rather prestigious photographer. She had so many credits that, on paper, she was a college junior as an incoming freshman. Jordan wasn’t taking any general classes when she got to MICA. All her classes were very major-specific already. Why would she…stop?

Jake’s thoughts were disturbed by the doorbell. He got to his feet to see who it was – a UPS guy. “Package for Jake Merrick,” the man droned, holding out the clipboard to Jake. Jake was about to protest that he wasn’t expecting a package, but then he saw that at the top of the return address was his sister’s name. He signed the paper on the clipboard, took the package, and shut the door almost rudely in his haste to open whatever Jordan had sent him.

He was rather disheartened to find, nestled in paper and foam packing peanuts, Jordan’s phone. Further investigation of her phone revealed that Jordan had deleted all her calls, all her text messages, and all her contacts. The only missed call she had was the one Jake himself had just made today, and according to the box, this had shipped two days ago. There was, however, a draft in her text messaging.

hey little brother.
hope all is well with you.
i know i said i’d be back in a year, but i probably won’t.
don’t worry. nothing bad has happened to me.
well, i wouldn’t call it bad, i…i’ve just changed a lot.
i’m afraid i’ve changed in ways that our parents won’t accept.
just…give me some time to work things out.
don’t look for me. don’t contact me. and don’t tell anyone about this message.
love you, baby bro.

With a frustrated sigh, Jake texted himself the draft, then deleted it off Jordan’s phone. He could follow her first two “don’t”s, but he certainly couldn’t follow the third. Jake pressed his seventh speed dial and waited patiently, keeping his fingers crossed that it wouldn’t go to voicemail.

Unfortunately, it did, but that would have to do for now.

“Hey, Zack, it’s Jake. I’ve really got to talk to you. This is fucking urgent, man. It’s about Jordan. Please call me back when you can. Ok, thanks…bye.”
♠ ♠ ♠
thanks for reading; hope you liked it!
this is in the present.
i have an idea in mind, but...i don't want to write a fucking telenovela -_-
i don't know, i just try my hardest to write things that seem
down to earth and somewhat real/feasible/plausible, but
the drama i have in mind would work SO well for this!!!
sigh. anyways, feedback would be lovely and greatly appreciated!
where do YOU think jordan is now?

also, many many thanks to:
swampy
sophia rayne
lipstick lullabies
darcey's loving life
flyingbirdd.
mycarelesswhisper
beccathecookie
hachie
jonaslover100

for the recommendations!
dang, that list keeps getting longer and longer,
do you guys really like my writing that much?! ._.