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Vanished
Amanda's world came crumbling down with one phone call. She had no idea what to do with the information that had just been handed to her. She was in a state of shock, and had an ongoing debate in her head about whether she should believe the man from the phone call or not. If she did choose to believe him, and it turned out to be a lie then she might be walking into a dangerous situation. Although, if she decided not to believe him, and he turned out to be telling the truth then her sister may still be out there, and in danger. Amanda gripped tightly onto the necklace that hung around her neck as she contemplated what her next move would be.
As Amanda held onto the necklace her eyes wandered down to the picture that hung so innocently on the wall. The image was of her and Jenny days before her disappearance. The two of them were laughing towards each other without a care in the world. A rollercoaster of emotions seeped through Amanda's body as she memorized every single detail of the last frozen memory she had with her sister. At that exact moment, Amanda decided that no matter the consequences she needed to know the truth. She needed to know if her sister was still alive.
As her thoughts clouded her mind, Amanda couldn't help but think about everything that had happened to her throughout her life. She felt like the world has been against her from the second she came into this imperfect world. From abandonment, psychological, and physical abuse, to losing her sister. Amanda has experienced it all. She has felt broken more times then she could count.
Amanda and Jenny are exactly two years and four months apart, and ever since Jenny was born the two sisters have been inseparable ever since. When Amanda was just ten years old and Jenny was eight years old, they were both abandoned by their biological mom. One day all three of them had gone on a quick trip to the farmers’ market. Their birth mother had told them to sit in the corner and that she would be right back. Unfortunately, she never made it back to them. Amanda and Jenny were left alone at the market for hours until Amanda decided she should tell a lady that was passing by, that she and her sister were lost, and that they needed help finding their mother.
The girls were taken back to the police station, and were placed in foster care. While in foster care the girls experienced traumatic situations that girls their age should never have to go through. When Amanda and Jenny turned fifteen and thirteen, they were adopted by the Johnson family. All of their prayers had finally been answered. They had finally found a place they would call home.
The morning after Jenny’s disappearance the family had felt like their hearts were just torn out. Amanda had tried explaining to them what had happened that night, but she was in distress trying to piece together every single detail. Unfortunately, she could only recall so little that it wasn't enough to steer the police in the right direction. For five years Jenny’s name was treated like broken glass. No one dared to speak her name, or talk about anything relating to what had happened. Amanda had blamed herself over and over again. For the longest time, she stayed up every night wondering what went wrong that day.
When she received this phone call, as strange as it might sound she felt like she finally caught a breath of fresh air. Even though her heart felt like it was in her throat, she sensed an opportunity where she could finally find out what happened to Jenny. A few minutes after the man on the other end had hung up the phone, Amanda had finally decided what she wanted to do. She quickly gathered her thoughts and headed towards the door and got into her car. As she did this, she couldn't help but think about that man she had seen earlier today. He was standing behind a tree across the house, staring at Amanda with so much anticipation. She wondered if he could be connected to the phone call or to Jenny.
As Amanda headed towards the destination the man on the phone gave her, she picked up her phone and called her best friend, Carly. Carly and Amanda had been friends since Amanda and Jenny's adoption. You wouldn't have guessed them ever becoming friends because they are complete opposites. Carly is a blond, private school girl that doesn't know the sky from the ground, but although their personalities don't match their friendship was rock solid.
“Hello,” Carly said with a hint of laughter as she picked up the phone.
“Hey Carly, are you busy?”
“No why what up?”
“Okay don't freak out but today after dinner someone called me, a man called me saying something about jenny and how could I have thought she just disappeared out of thin air he was making it sound like he knew what happened to her or like he knew where she was”
“Amanda! What! No, what are you doing? Jenny is gone, he's just playing with your head. Please turn around and go home.”
“I can't! What if he's telling the truth and she's still out there! It was all my fault, and I need to find out what happened.”
“Oh Amanda please be careful.”
“I will, I just needed to tell you just in case something happens.”
“Nothing is going to happen!”
“Hopefully you're right. I love you.”
Amanda hung up the phone and felt a giant knot form inside her; she was suddenly getting a bad feeling about this as she approached her destination. It was an old motel deep into the woods. As she pulled into the driveway, she saw the motel sign at the entrance, it was flashing on and off as if the electricity was about to give out any second. The thought of her being alone with this man sent chills down her spine.
Amanda parked her car and called the number that had called her earlier today. On the first try, it went straight to voicemail. Amanda tried again and on the second ring, the man answered.
“Hello,” I said, attempting to hide my quivering voice.
“Hello beautiful” creepily said the man on the other end.
“Where are you? I'm here, I need to know the truth.”
“Step out of your car love, and I'll tell you everything you want to know.”
Amanda hung up the phone and did as the man told her to. She couldn't risk making him angry. As she stepped out of her car, at first, she couldn't see anyone in the distance. It was so dark, cold, and foggy. As she was about to get back into her car, she saw a shadow move through the trees by the motel. When all of the sudden the shadow becomes a person. A man wearing a hat, and a black hoodie. It was the same man as the one she saw at the house. Shock flowed through her body.
“Mandy, how nice to see you again I've missed you.”
“Stop! Tell me what you know.”
“You have no clue what happened the night you two girls decided to go camping do you?”
“No, I woke up and my sister was gone”
“Well she's never really been gone, you're closer to her than you think.”
“PLEASE STOP TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!,” Amanda said with cracks in her voice
“I'm not going to tell you anything you foolish girl, I came for you, that night I tried to grab both of you, but your sister fought me to the point where you were about to wake up. She definitely fought but not hard enough to save herself.” the man said as he lunged towards Amanda
“NOOO PLEASE!” Amanda’s scream echoed through the air
Amanda ran towards her car as fast as her legs could take her; she pushed her way inside and locked the door in a hurry. Amanda has always been a shy girl too afraid to speak up about anything that was happening to her in her life. After what had happened tonight that girl was no longer a part of her. As Amanda drove away from the motel, she stared coldly at the road in front of her. She knew Jenny was alive, and she was willing to go as far as she needed to find her sister.
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Dear Fiction Editor,
I am submitting my fiction piece entitled “Vanished” for consideration in Teen Ink
I am currently a junior at Bishop Heelan Catholic High School and I am submitting this piece for my creative writing class. I have always had an interest in writing and have developed new skills throughout my classes. I am set to graduate in the spring of 2022 and I am beyond excited. I have created many memories throughout my time in high school and I'm ready to see what the future has in store for me.
Please recycle my manuscript if it does not fit your editorial needs. I hope to hear from you soon.