Far Too Young To Die

Chapter Seven

"Local student, Olivia Laing was reported missing by her family in the early hours of last Tuesday morning..."

The newsreader's voice echoed in Victor's head. She was gone. Missing. The one person who had always supported him and taken care of him and listened to him, was gone. And that tore his heart to pieces. Then he heard his own voice coming from the TV.

"Please find my sister. Olivia, if you can see this, please come back. I-"

He switched it off and threw the remote down, putting his earbuds in and playing a random playlist that she'd made for him. Not even that could cheer him up though. It reminded him of her. He remembered the countless nights they had spent scream singing the lyrics to the songs as they drove to get shitty fast food at midnight when neither of them could sleep.

A lump grew in his throat, remembering how happy they were then. How he smiled until his cheeks hurt, how he laughed until he couldn't breathe. He shed a tear when he remembered they'd never have those times again. He'd never be able to feel that kind of happiness ever again. There was no way she was alive now. Even if she was, there was no way she was in this country anymore. And even if she was in the country, it was clear that she didn't want to be found and if Olivia didn't want to be found, then all hope was lost.
He quickly wiped the tear away, but more proceeded to fall as he remembered their last conversation.

"Please don't go with him, please, Liv..." Victor pleaded with her as she pulled her jacket on. Olivia shook her head, sighing for what must've been the fifth time in that conversation.

His older sister stood at five foot eight, almost five foot nine. She moved her long, black hair that was a similar texture to Victor's out from under her collar, her eyes shining with excitement to see her boyfriend despite the fact she was fed up with her brother's protests to her going out. They were a bright emerald colour, brighter than Victor's forest green.

"Stop being such a worry wart, Vic. I'll be back by two. I promise." She said dismissively, tugging her boots on as she went over to sit next to Victor on her bed. He wanted to sleep there because that way, when she came home, he'd know.

"I have a really bad feeling about this, sis...I really don't think this is a good idea." He stuck to his guns, but Olivia would not give in to him. She wouldn't give in to his begging, she wouldn't pander to him. She was a grown woman, and could do what she wanted.

"You're not my dad, Vic. I'm going out and that's it," she hugged him gently. Victor breathed in her floral, musky scent as he wrapped his arms around her neck.
"I'll take you out for burgers tomorrow, how does that sound?" She suggested, and Victor had no choice but to agree. He knew his sister was way too stubborn to even consider giving in. He admired it at times, but now wasn't one of those times.

"Right, well I'll see you later, little bro!" She giggled softly, ruffling his hair before standing and heading to the bedroom door.    
"I love you!" She smiled, waving at him before heading out. That was the last time he saw her.

Before he knew it, he was sobbing with his knees up at his chest, sniffling pathetically. 'Quit crying!' He yelled internally at himself, but it didn't work. Tears fell from his eyes like a waterfall, and he couldn't stop them no matter how hard he tried. He felt his phone buzz in his lap, which caused him to quieten down a little as he looked at the now lit up screen. James.

'Hey! Come meet me down at the river. I've got some people I want you to meet.'
Was all he had to say. Victor didn't usually agree to these things, but he decided to give it a go. He had to get out of the house anyway, and he hadn't seen James in ages. With that in mind, Victor stood and slipped his boots on then headed out of the door.

That day, it was cold. Cold and windy and it was dull outside which was a sure sign that it was going to rain soon. It's funny how the weather can match your mood like that. Still, he felt a sense of freedom as he walked down the street and towards the hill leading to their meeting place. The river itself was hidden by some woods, which was his favourite part. He felt safe here and many people tend not to. It was pretty, despite the litter left by teenagers who came here to drink without their parents knowing. That kind of thing was never of Victor's interest. Edgy, he knows.

Once he got to the clearing, there he saw James. When they were younger, James was pretty short. Victor is about 95% sure that that boy had short man syndrome. Anyway, there were two other boys on either side of James. One was a redhead with a head of curls and blue eyes, the other was a brunette with hair that stuck up strangely, and his eyes were dark brown to match. Both boys stood at around six feet tall, and looked to be the same age. The brunette was particularly eye catching to Victor, he looked as though he hadn't slept in weeks and was ghostly pale, practically translucent. Even paler than the redhead, and that's saying something.

"So this is Laing?" The redhead asked, looking him up and down with curiosity. His voice was deep yet smooth, but that didn't intimidate Victor in the slightest.

"His name's Victor. But yeah." James nodded, moving close to Victor as he approached them. He looked up at them both, not saying anything just yet.

"Not a talker, huh?" The brunette boy asked, his voice low and gravelly. The younger raised an eyebrow. 'Just not a talker to random people like you, thanks very much' he replied silently in his head.

"Well, my name is Benji and this is Jack but everyone calls him Jacky-" the brunette boy, apparently Jacky, stopped the redhead in his tracks.

"You only call me Jacky. Literally no one else does." He rolled his eyes, taking a box of cigarettes from his pocket along with a lighter. He held the box out, offering the others one but no one accepted. He shrugged and took a cigarette then lit it, breathing in the smoke. Once he had done so, his shoulders relaxed.

"Anyway, I'll cut to the chase," Benji carried on after a moment.
"James was telling us about your dilemma, y'know, with your sister," this guy was treading on thin ice, and he could tell by the look he received from Victor.
"Sorry about that, by the way. We want to help you. If you join us, we'll do just that." He finished, looking at Victor expectantly. He was clearly searching for an answer that he wasn't prepared to supply. That's when Jacky, Jack, whatever his name is stepped in.

"Look kid, we have our own ideas about what could've happened. We could help, but we need you on our side." He said smoothly, stamping his cigarette out. It was almost as though he didn't care, but it was clear to anyone that he cared immensely.

This was taking a chance. He didn't know what James had told them about him, but he couldn't ask. There had to be a catch, there had to be an ulterior motive. They had to want something from him. However, Victor was sixteen. He was naive, and he only cared about getting Olivia back. He would do whatever it took to get her back safely.

"Fine. I'll do it."

And that's how it happened. That's how Victor basically fucked himself. Well, figuratively at least.