Jacob

I couldn't focus on my studies for a long time. I kept checking my phone every ten minutes to see if Mr. Kevin called me, but he didn't. I was so worried about him, especially that he didn't contact me since I called the police. I wondered if he got in trouble or something. I thought about going to the location which he told me about, but I was afraid that maybe it was a bad idea. He warned me not to go to that place no matter what happened. I couldn't make the decision without his permission. I tried to call him many times, but his phone was turned off, and he certainly didn't reply to my messages. I closed my notebook and huffed as I got out of my room. I needed to do anything to distract myself. Television was the first thing that came to my mind. I turned it on and flicked through channels, hoping to find something nice to watch instead of some crap.

"Jacob, do you want to eat your dinner now?" Mom yelled from outside.

"No, mom. I'm not hungry at the moment," I replied.

A couple of minutes passed before mom entered the living room and sat down next to me on the couch. "Honey, are you okay? You don't seem like yourself today. You're not acting well since you came back from college. Did anything happen?"

I shifted my weight so that I could face mom. Her eyes were full of concern as she cupped my face between her warm hands.

"Not really. I've been overthinking lately," I admitted.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"Remember my new friends whom I met at university this year?" I started.

"Yes, those three boys and two girls, right?"

"Yes. Actually, they have been kidnapped since a couple of months ago, and we haven't found them yet. Their fathers called me today and told me that they could find them, and they haven't contacted me since then. I'm really worried," I mumbled.

Mom's eyes widened as she gasped in shock.

"What the hell? Why didn't you tell me all of this?"

"I didn't have a chance to tell you. Plus, you don't even know them, mom. You just heard about them from me. Why do you care anyway?"

"How could you say this? Of course, I care. They are your friends and they are too young to go through this."

"Yes, I know. I feel bad for them. I miss seeing them at university every day. I just hope that their fathers can find them," I sighed.

Mom pulled me for a warm hug. I really needed it. I had been overthinking for so long and I wanted to calm down for a bit. My phone rang loudly, making me pull out from mom's hug to see who it was. I hoped that it would be Mr. Kevin or something, but unfortunately, it wasn't. It was a strange number calling me at that time of the night. I pressed on the answer button, then slowly lifted the phone to my left ear.

"Hello?" I said.

"Hello, Are you Jacob Young?" A harsh male's voice asked me.

"Yes. Who is talking?"

"I'm officer Jack. I'm sorry to inform you that Kevin and another two men have had an accident and they're now in hospital."

My heartbeats suddenly raced inside my chest. I stood up from my place and quickly snatched my keys from above the table.

"Could you please tell me about the location of the hospital?"

The police officer explained the address to me as I was wearing my shoes, then hung up.

"Jacob? What's wrong?" Mom asked, running towards me.

"I have to visit Mr. Kevin in the hospital. He had a car accident."

"Oh lord! This is too bad."

"I have to go now. I'll call you later if I have a chance," I hastily said, before exiting the house and running towards my car like a jet.

I revved the engine and drove at the highest speed. I hoped that Mr. Kevin would be well and didn't have any serious injuries. I wondered if Julia and my other friends knew about all of this. I parked in the hospital's parking lot and climbed out of the car. I looked like an idiot bumping into people while rushing to the reception, but I couldn't care less. I wanted to see Mr. Kevin as soon as possible.

"Hello, please I want to know which ward is for Kevin Garcia," I said to the receptionist.

"One minute, please," She answered me with a small smile, checking her computer.

I waited impatiently, looking around me everywhere, waiting for an answer.

"Ward number 100 on the third floor."

I headed for the elevator after thanking the lady. I pressed the button for the third floor. The elevator was fast, so I arrived at the floor in no time. I got out of the elevator before going to the right and searching for ward number 100. The hospital was huge and I could get lost in its wide floors.

Reaching the right ward, I entered after knocking on the door and receiving the permission to get in.

"Hello," I greeted as I closed the door behind me.

His face lit up after seeing me, and so did mine.

"Hey, son. Thank you for visiting," Mr. Kevin smiled, trying to get up and push his back against the headboard.

"Don't move please. You have to rest," I stated, trying to help him to lie down again. "I'm really so sorry for this. I hope you get well very soon. Any news about my friends?"

Mr. Kevin sighed in sorrow and I noticed that his eyes became watery. "Yes, we found them and knew who kidnapped them, but Julia and Sally refused to come back with us. They are on their side now."

"What? This is impossible! Why would they do this?" I gasped, not believing any word. How the hell could they leave their families and friends to live with kidnappers? They had been kidnapped for a couple of months and they should get back to their families, and get back to their normal lives again after such a long time.

"I don't want to talk about this right now. The damn kidnapper has brainwashed our daughters and ran away with them. We couldn't catch him," Mr. Kevin mumbled and couldn't resist his salty tears anymore.

"I'm really so sorry. I'm at a loss for words to be honest. I never expected this to happen. What about the guys? Josh, Nick and Daniel. Did they run away with them too?" I asked.

"No, thank God that we could rescue them. They are in another ward though."

I sighed in relief. At least, they could rescue some of them. I didn't imagine that I could lose two of my friends that way. I was shocked.

"How long will you stay in the hospital?" I wondered.

"Three weeks at least. Nothing serious though. Just a couple of injuries and bruises."

"I will always be here for you anytime you need anything," I smiled, rubbing his shoulder for comfort.

"Thank you so much, Jacob. You really did a lot and I truly appreciate it."

"No worries."

Mr. Kevin pulled me for a hug. I could hear him sobbing against my chest slightly. I felt sorry for him. I felt sorry for Julia and Sally too. I never wanted any of this to happen. Our hug was interrupted by a knock at the door. I pulled away and gave him a weak smile. He returned it back, but it was much weaker than mine.

"Come in," He said after wiping his tears away.

A young pretty nurse entered and smiled at me. "I'm sorry to inform you that your visiting hours have ended."

"Oh! I didn't check on my other friends," I sighed, checking my watch.

"You can visit them any other time soon."

"All right."

I looked at Mr. Kevin for one last time. He nodded at me slowly and smiled. I could tell that he thanked me again with his eyes. I waved to him, then got out of the hospital. I climbed into my car and as soon as I pulled out from the parking lot, my mother called me. I ignored her call and focused back on the road. I didn't have any energy to talk. I kept thinking of Sally. I knew that we didn't know each other for long, but I hadn't realized that I liked her that much until now. She was beautiful, attractive, smart and funny. I felt comfortable around her. I wished that I could spend more time with her, but fucking life took my dream and threw it away. I just wanted to see her one last time.

I parked my car and quietly entered the house. Mom came running towards me with a worried expression on her face. I felt so bad for leaving her like this, but I really couldn't answer her phone calls.

"Jacob? Why didn't you answer my calls? I was worried about you and it's almost one in the morning. Why were you late?" She asked, and her tone was between angry and worried.

"Sorry, mom. I couldn't answer you," I simply replied, heading for my bedroom.

"Why? What happened? Are your friends fine? Did their fathers manage to find them?" Mom asked nonstop as she followed me to my room.

"Mom, please! Just leave me some time and I will explain everything to you tomorrow," I said louder than I wanted.

I jumped on my bed and lay on my stomach. I didn't even bother to change my clothes. Mom didn't say another word and left my room furiously. I could hear her entering her room and slamming the door shut behind her. That day was too hard for me.

Only a couple of minutes passed before my eyelids became heavy and I fell asleep, dreaming of the last day when I saw Sally at the nightclub.