“Ew, not for me,” Diogo said.
“So, how are you settling in, Fernando? Have you got your bearings yet?”
“I’m still learning my way around the city, but the worst is the cold.”
I laughed in agreement. “I’m hoping to get used to it, too, at some point. I don’t like the subway very much, but I admit thatthe cold has defeated me a time or two.”
Diogo was a little quiet, so I asked him how he was settling in at college.
“It’s nice that I don’t have to move out to go to school.”
“But?” I asked.
“It’s a little hard to make friends. A lot of the students live on campus, so they hang out together.”
“How about study groups?”
“I’m in a group, but they like meeting up late and then going out to parties. It’s just not my thing.”
I knew Diogo was still struggling with the loss of his mom. Having his uncle around was a great support, especially for the practical stuff, but it didn’t replace his mom.
Even though Diogo wasn’t LGBT, he really enjoyed coming to the Center to hang out with the other guys and girls and had made friends, but he didn’t share much about college with them. I wondered if he felt bad because a lot of the other kids didn’t even have a proper home, let alone attend formal education.
“I tell you what, why don’t you two come over for dinner this weekend? Diogo, there’s someone I want to introduce—”
My phone rang. I was going to silence it, but then I saw it was the number for Jennifer’s mom. The friend Lucy stayed with last night.
“Sorry, guys, I need to take this call, won’t be long.” I signaled for them to stay and walked over to the window that overlooked the street.
“Hello, Isaac speaking.”
“Hi, Isaac, it’s Jennifer’s mom. How are you?”
“I’m good. Did the girls give you a hard time last night? Or did they do the teenage thing, and you didn’t see or hear from them until they were hungry?”
There was a moment of silence, so I looked at the phone wondering if I had accidentally disconnected the call.
“Isaac, Lucy didn’t stay the night. She sentJennifer a text saying she wasn’t feeling well and was going to stay home. I was calling to see if she’s feeling better.”
I froze.
“She didn’t stay with you?” I said in a high pitch.
“No. Isaac. Is everything okay?”
“I’m not sure. She wasn’t home last night. Oh god, I need to call Lucy.”
“Let me know if she’s okay,” she said before disconnecting the call.
I felt chilly all of a sudden.
I rang Lucy’s cell, but it went to voicemail. I left a message asking her to call me back.
“Is everything okay?” Fernando asked.
“I’m not sure. Max’s sister, Lucy, is staying with us. She missed her sleepover last night, and I don’t know where she is.” I started pacing the office. “Oh my god, what if she ran away again?”
“Do you want us to help you look for her?” Diogo asked.
“If it’s not too much to ask. All our friends are abroad or traveling, so it’s just me and Max. Oh god, he’s going to think this is all his fault.”
I didn’t want to waste precious search time by waiting for Lucy to return my call, so I called Max.
His phone went to voicemail, so I grabbed my stuff and went to the hospital with Diogo and Fernando.
