(Don’t leave is chapter one)

It’s been two days since El left, and I still can’t find him. He simply vanished, every single person I ask has the same answer

“Elijah? No I haven’t seen him in a while.”

Or: “oh yeah, him? Nope. Haven’t seen him.”

I even went to the factory where he used to work, they said he quit and they hadn’t seen him since.

I was going to find him though, even if it took two years. He was the only thing I had left.

I couldn’t give up. Elijah and me are both orphans, though we aren’t technically related we are still family. We had a sister once, she died of an illness a year ago, thinking of her still makes me cry. Her name was Camila, and she was a bit like my mother a bit like my big sister, she was the oldest and then it was Elijah and then me. I’m the baby, Literally. they found me on the street when I was barely a year old, wrapped in a filthy old blanket, my lips blue with the cold. I almost died, but Camila saved me. At the time she was only eleven years old, and El was four.

When Camila died we didn’t know what to do, she was the one that held us up. The real tough one. I never realized how much we needed her until she wasn’t there. But we survived, because that’s what we do. We suffer but we survive.

And now not only have I lost Camila but I’ve also lost Elijah. But the difference is that Elijah can be found. And he will be found. Whether he likes it or not.

“Excuse me miss,” I say to a random women on the street “have you seen my brother? He’s about this tall,” I say motioning my hand, “he has reddish brown hair and brown eyes, and his name is Elijah. have you seen him?”

“Uh, no, I’m sorry” she says ducking her head, but not before I see something in her eyes, something that makes me suspicious.

“Please, If you saw anyone who looks anything like the person I described you have to tell me!”

“I-I can’t, goodbye.” She says and turns around to leave.

I stand there for a moment watching her walk down the street then sense snaps black into me, she’s the only lead I have I can’t just let her go like that.

I hurry behind her making sure that she can’t see me or hear me. I duck behind a stall as I see her head swivel around, I wait for a bit then peek my head around, she’s not there. I panic for a second thinking that I’ve lost her, but a few moments later I see her curly blonde hair bobbing up and down in the crowd, I hurry after her vowing to never make a mistake like that again. She sidesteps into an alleyway, I follow her keeping a safe distance. There’s an old door that looks like it’s about to fall apart, she knocks on it, I can hear a series of loud banging behind the door and what sound like footsteps. Someone opens the door and ushers her inside, the door closes. But not before I see a face. A face of someone I know very well, Elijah’s face.