Ava Langley

Warning: Mentions of death.

I remember when the news of your disappearance broke out in our small town. I stare at the old missing flyer behind the cashier as she rings up groceries. Ava Langley.

               Disappearances in our town were like winning the lottery. No one ever thought it would happen in our small community. Surprisingly, considering mostly everyone in town was always over everyone’s business like an overbearing aunt. Statistically it was impossible for it to happen with so many eyes out there. But it did.

               For weeks the entire town searched for you in the woods behind our school. Half our town believed you were possibly buried somewhere back there. The other half assumed you’d skipped town. It was well known that many teenagers in our old, little town dreamed of a better life, but your friends and family vouched for you. Hell, I did too. I told them you would never leave me. We were meant to be. We had plans to get married.

Although at a certain point in the investigation, they pointed fingers at every single man that you interacted with right before your disappearance. Any small reason to label them us a “suspect”.

I first heard about Kevin because on the day before the news broke out, he rang you up at the small corner store. They knew you dated him before me. Though I know he wouldn’t have been man enough to get away with something as complex as what happened.

They suspected me too, but your friends and family defended me. Your girls were saying how sweet I was with you. All the things I did for you. They knew about my love for you. They couldn’t fathom the idea that your extremely loving boyfriend would harm you.

They never found you, and because of this all the others began to suspect you skipped town and the police lost interest here.

I visited your mom right after and she explained to me that they were going to search for you outside the town in case you ran away. Resources here were pulled because the chief of police believed you had left and didn’t want to waste any men anymore to a runaway.

Your mother mentioned, since you were still a minor, a special unit would continue to search for you in the city. She cried. She feared you were gone. She prayed you simply ran away for a better life, but she knew you never would’ve left us without saying anything. She gave me a hug as she continued to sob. I shed tears as she silently cried to herself.

I walked alone in the dark. back to my grandma’s house. What they didn’t know was I was the one who hurt you, but only because you stabbed me first.

We had been together since the beginning of sophomore year after you had broken up with that loser Kevin, and yet you tried to leave me. It hurt me when you said you wanted to try new things and explore the world without me. You said it as if I was a burden and you didn’t want to waste your time. Like you didn’t want me anymore.

What about all those talks about our future? You agreed when I asked if you thought we would get married. You told everyone you wanted to wait until we graduated to get hitched, but it was all a lie.

You made your mother very upset about deciding to leave me. She didn’t deserve that. You made me do it. You made me hurt you. I wish that day had been different.

I still remember after our dinner date, the way your voice cracked when you whispered those horrible words. You said it would have been better if we ended our relationship.

 It was a huge stab in the heart. I even begged. I repeatedly cried how much I love you, but your eyes told me you would never reconsider. You were making rash decisions. I had to do something to keep you from leaving me.

You stopped breathing and stared up at me with fisheyes. Your beautiful eyes pierced into mine judgingly, but I knew it was better this way. I needed to make sure we could be together forever. The realization that I never had to share you with anyone ever again hit me and I smiled.

You continued to stare at me as I drove home slowly from the movie theater parking lot. I had to back the car into the house to keep anyone from seeing me drag you into the house, since you couldn’t move in your condition.

Grandma had been home, but she was glued to the living room couch, obviously. It helped knowing she had no intention of coming near the front door or stairs. It was an easy task helping you up the stairs. It wasn’t the first time.

Although the fear of you rotting hit me soon after. I went in search of a freezer big enough for your body. Fortunately, your friend Charlie had offered to sell me one of his giant chest freezers after he overheard me lying about why I needed one. He kept saying you were alive. I never liked him because he wanted you. Everyone wanted you but you were mine. I had laughed inside knowing he’d never know you like I do.

After grandma had died, I moved an extra freezer into the living room. Since it was just the two of us, I thought you’d appreciate having a seat in front of the tv for movie nights after dinner.

“Do you need a receipt,” the cashier says looking extremely annoyed as if that wasn’t her first time asking. I shook my head and carried out my groceries thinking of you. Your beautiful face.

“That was him?” she asked her coworker.

               “He was the boyfriend of the girl who went missing over 4 years ago.”

               “He was so weird. He was staring at the wall behind me without blinking.” the cashier shivered.

               “I heard the police suspected him, but they never found her, so they never actually arrested anyone.”

               “It’s always the boyfriend.”