Considered Missing

Chapter 1 - After Auradon

Ava convinced herself that she had moved on. She tried to convince herself every day, though quite honestly nothing came from it. She couldn't help but watch the news on the first of every month to check on her hometown, hoping that it had finally recovered. Month after month she would have the same conversation with herself, "I'm just looking for updates, not getting reattached." But it had come to a point where she would look forward to the first and wait for it. She would mark off every day that passed on her Cultures of the World calendar in an obsessive state of impatience. It had been nearly five years since she left but her past consumed her, even more so than the overflowing workloads she dealt with at Beacon Heights.

"The Royal Guard, currently remaining retreated from the so called 'battle ground', continues to struggle in an effort to take back the kingdom of Auradon," a female newscaster narrated to two acute ears.

Ava, captivated by the image of a dilapidated Auradon before her, gripped a TV remote in the loneliness of her dorm room, sitting on her bed. Empty or half empty red Solo cups littered the space and her floor, each one linked to a memory she wished to forget. Sure, some were for Nolan. But really, he had been nothing but a loving distraction for her like many others. Not all were insignificant, but most were rebounds in one way or another. One night stands or drunk, impulsive flings. As soon as Jenny was out of her life, Ava crumbled. Nolan was her way of getting over Jenny and a way to occupy herself after getting to BHU. But she knew deep down that he could never replace her. She only ever had two real loves, but the list of people she'd had feelings for was never ending.

"Babe?" Caitlin let herself into Ava's room. The long haired woman instantly switched off the TV, not willing to risk any questions about what she was watching.

"Hey, Caitlin," Ava greeted awkwardly, her girlfriend's arrival unexpected.

"Hey, I just came to check on you. You weren't in class this morning."

"I just... wanted to sleep in, I guess. I was up all night—uh..." Ava looked around her dirty room, hoping to find an excuse.

"Studying?" Caitlin finished suspiciously, eyeing the red cups. "You're not slipping into old habits, are you?"

"No." She was quick to answer and the response she gave was rather unconvincing. "I'm fine, Caitlin, really."

"You can always come to me or Mona if you're having problems," the short haired girl offered, sitting down next to Ava. Caitlin reached to hold Ava's hands which still gripped the black remote.

"I just have a lot on my mind, that's all," Ava half lied with a slight head nod. There was plenty on her mind with the crippling weight of classes, the fate of Auradon, managing to pay for college, and staying out of sight. Both Evie Grimhilde and Lola Perez were still considered missing, and by the looks of it, neither would turn up anytime soon.