Little Fox in Big Trouble

One

“Bris, are you watching the news again?” My roommate called as she entered the apartment.

    “Another girl went missing, Jess,” I said, biting my lip. “That’s three, this month. All of them near campus, too.”

    “You worry too much, girl,” she told me, laughing. “You need to get out more, Bris. Honestly, you’re too serious. Come out with us tonight. You need to get laid.”

    I rolled my eyes at my roommate. We had been best friends all through high school. We both took advanced courses in, so our schedules were nearly identical the entire four years. Jess really let loose when we hit college and moved out of our parent’s houses, though. She liked to party, and it was a source of constant aggravation for her that I didn’t. “I’m good here. I have a paper to write, anyway.” I told her.

    “Of course you do,” she said, rolling her eyes as she slipped her black pumps on. Her short red dress hugged every curve she had and looked amazing on her. Of course, everything looked amazing on her. She looked more like a super model than an undergrad. “Suit yourself, lady boredom. Bye.”

    I shook my head at the closing door as she rushed out, likely to head downtown and bounce from one club to the next until she found some guy to take her home. It was no use trying to talk her out of it, so I didn’t bother. I just prayed to whatever gods would listen that she came home in the morning. Only, this time she didn’t.

    I woke up at 7:00 the next morning, just like I always did and headed to the bathroom. The one good thing about Jess’s party girl lifestyle was that I never had to wait for the bathroom in the mornings. She wouldn’t wake up until noon; she took afternoon classes unless she absolutely had to take an earlier one. She had gotten lucky this semester, and only had one morning class, but it was on Tuesdays and today was only Monday.

    After I showered, I brushed my teeth and combed out my hair. Then I scurried back to my room wrapped in a towel.  It’s not that I cared about Jess seeing me, but sometimes I got surprised by her booty calls when they couldn’t go back to his place.  I got dressed in a loose, scoop neck t-shirt and tight black jeans, threw my wavy black locks into a messy bun on the back of my head, and slipped into my sneakers. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and on impulse, I decided to throw on a bit of make-up. Most of the time I didn’t bother with it, but this morning had a certain buzz in the air. It felt like something was going to happen, and I figured it couldn’t hurt. Besides, Jess was right about one thing, and I was tired of spending every night alone. It’s amazing what a good mascara and tinted lip balm can do for your confidence.

    On my way out the door, I peeked into Jess’s room, like I do almost every morning, just to make sure she was home. Her bed was empty. “Okay, okay, don’t panic,” I told myself as my heartrate picked up speed. I yanked my cell phone from my back pocket and dialed hers.

    “Hey, this is Jess,” her voice said brightly.  “Leave a message.”

    “That’s okay. Maybe she stayed the night with last night’s hook-up. Her phone battery could have died, right?” I said, trying to convince myself that this was totally normal and not at all a bad sign. Shit. I was pacing, now. I just kept seeing those missing girls on the news. All of them beautiful young women with bright eyes and vibrant smiles. Just like Jess.

    “Stop!” I hissed at myself. “It’s probably fine. Try her again after class.” It didn’t feel fine, though. It felt very not fine, actually. Everything in me was screaming.  She was gone and I had to find her. I grabbed my messenger bag and walked out the door. Jess had stayed out all night before. It really wasn’t even that uncommon. That’s what I repeated to myself over and over again all through my 90-minute psychology class. Honestly, I don’t even know what the lesson was about. I barely made it through the whole class. As soon as I was through the door and into the hallway, I tried calling Jess again. Twice. It was still going straight to voicemail, and I was really starting to panic.  “Jess, It’s Briseis. Are you okay? I’m really worried. Please, call me back.”

    I was crying, now. Hot tears were trailing down my cheeks and I couldn’t stop them. I rushed through the halls as quickly as I could with my vision blurred by tears. At least I tried to navigate, what I actually did was walk right into a wall. I mean, I thought it was a wall, but as I lifted my eyes I was met with a black t-shirt, with a smudged wet spot where my face had hit. Which, incidentally, was right in the middle of a broad chest.

    “Woah, are you okay?” the wall said, as he gripped my arms to hold me steady.

    “Yea, sorry,” I mumbled, trying to press forward.

    “Not so fast,” he said, “are you sure you’re okay? Look, there’s a bench right there. Let’s take a seat and you can tell me about it.”

    “No, I have to get home. I have to see if she’s there.” I told him, although I didn’t really think she would be. Jess never let her phone die.

    “Okay, well let me walk you home.  Do you live around here?”

    “What?” I asked, finally looking up at the source of the voice. Oh, my gods! He was gorgeous. For a moment I stared in stunned silence into emerald, green eyes and I forgot how to breath. His dark hair curled around his ears, his cheekbones could have been carved from marble, and his lips just begged to be kissed. Wow, girl. Get your head out of the gutter. I had to find Jess! “Look, no offence, uh…”

    “Troy,” he supplied.

    “Seriously?” I laughed. Of course his name was Troy.

    “Uh, is there something wrong with Troy?” He asked.

    “Nothing at all,” I said. “Okay, Troy. I don’t know if you watch the news, but I don’t think it’s the best time to give random guys my address.”

    “Trust me, I know,” Troy said, bitterly. “My sister is missing. I was just hoping that maybe I could help you not end up that way, too.”

    “Your sister?” I asked.

    He gestured toward the bench, again. This time, I sat.

    “Yeah.  She’s been missing for a couple of weeks, now.” He said, sliding his hand through is hair.

    “Were- I’m sorry. Are you close?” I asked him, trying to gauge whether he was telling the truth or not.

    “We’re twins,” he said with a small, brief smile. “I’ve literally never gone more than a couple of days without seeing her. She’s my best friend.”

    His voice cracked on the last word and I decided I believed him.  With a quick and silent plea to the gods that I wasn’t wrong, I stood. “Come on, then. I need to go see if my roommate is home.” I gestured to the hall in front of me and started walking.

    It was only about a 15-minute walk to my apartment from the university, so I didn’t drive unless the weather was likely to be bad. We walked most of the way in silence, listening to the leaves crunch beneath our feet. I always loved this time of year, when the temperature started to drop and the leaves turned to a kaleidoscope of different shades between yellow, orange, and gold. The air was crisp and refreshing today, as well, but I couldn’t enjoy the beauty of it.  My nerves were jumping at every sound, every flutter of movement in my peripheral vision. 

    “So, is that why you were crying? You’re worried about your roommate?” Troy asked, quietly.

       I only nodded, afraid that tears would burst from my eyes again if I dared to speak.

    “Well, let’s hope she’s there, then.” He said. Though he didn’t sound very hopeful.

    By the time we reached the apartment I was shaking too much to get my key into the second story door. After searching the parking lot for Jess’s blue Honda Civic and not seeing it, my nerves ratcheted up even higher. Troy gently pried the key from my fingers, unlocked the door, and pushed it open gesturing for me to go inside.

    “Jess!” I hollered as I entered the apartment. I kicked my shoes off and hurried across the living room to the short hallway. Her bedroom was on the right and the door stood open, just as I had left it. I knew she wasn’t there at this point, but I stepped into her space, anyway. There was no sign of her being here while I was in class, either.

    “She’s not here,” I said. “She’s gone.”

    Troy placed his hand on my shoulder and gently propelled me toward the couch. “We don’t know that,” he told me. “Why don’t you try calling her.”

    I did as he suggested, and held my self together long enough to dial her number.

    “Hey this is Jess,” she said. “Leave a message.”

    The tears immediately sprang to my eyes, again, and my breath hitched in my chest. “Jess, please,” I begged, “It’s Briseis. Please, call me back.” I was truly sobbing by the time I ended the call.

    “Briseis,” Troy murmured with a small smile. “The girl Achilles took as a prize from Troy.”

    I barely heard him. All I could hear was the blood racing through my veins as my heartbeat pounded in my chest.

    “Briseis,” Troy said. Urgently, now. “Briseis, breathe.”