Looking to her left, Danielle saw shapes moving. Suddenly curious, she moves over to the doorway and looks through the glass. There, sitting on the bench near her building, was Lane talking to a girl in a cute dress.
Suddenly feeling like Danielle needed an outlet, she decides to open the door and approach the duo.
Lane sees her coming and smiles. "Hey there." He says.
The girl he is talking to looks over at Danielle and smiles, with a questioning gaze. "Hi." She says.
"Hey," Danielle says. "I just happened to pass by and I saw you so I thought I would take the time to come over and see what was up."
Lane smiled broadly from ear to ear.
"I'm glad you did Danielle." He looks over at the red headed girl he was talking to. "This is Amber. She is in my history class. We are assigned to the same seating row in class and I just happened to see her outside and decided to say hi."
"Yeah," Amber laughs. "We just happened to see each other and decided to chat ...... but actually I have to get going. I'm already late picking my sister up from work. Maybe I will see you two around." She backs up then looks at Lane. "You have my number Lane. Call me."
Lane smiles and nods. "I will."
He waves Amber a good bye then looks at Danielle. "What are you doing up so late?" He asks.
"Trying to study," Danielle responds. "But it's not going so well."
Lane looked concerned. "Really?"
Danielle nodded.
"I haven't been doing very well in over four days. My friend Misty was kidnapped four days ago and I've been working with the police and scouring the campus and beyond trying to find her or traces of her everywhere."
Lane's mouth drops. "Really!"
Danielle nods again. "Yes."
"Her and I were attacked by her brother and got separated somehow during the chase and she hasn't been seen since. Currently I'm supposedly being stalked by the creep because he approached me one night while I was out getting groceries at the grocery store. I called the police but they didn't get there fast enough. I haven't had any social outlet or any breaks since. I'm tired, have dark circles under my eyes, and scared to even go to the bathroom by myself."
Lane looked on very concerned. "I imagine class hasn't been very productive either." He says.
"No it hasn't." She responded.
Lane offered to buy her a drink. Danielle accepts. "Thank you."
"I was just about to get a drink when I saw you outside with Amber and decided to say hi."
Lane smiled. "Really!"
Danielle smiled back despite herself. "Yeah."
"You know, if you need help studying for classes, I don't mind providing some time. I mean, you can't lose yourself in the process of worrying about your friend. You'll never find her if you don't take care of yourself."
Lane states.
Danielle smiled again. "Yes I know." She responds.
"Would you like to start now?" Danielle asks, half joking. "Calculus is kicking my ass."
Lane smiles from ear to ear. "I would love to Danielle."
Danielle considers it then motions for him to follow her back through the door of her dormitory. "I'm allowed to have a male visitor. I'm one of the dorm advisors. With it comes special privileges," she says with a smile.
Lane smiles back. "Cool."
In they went.
Lane made himself comfortable on her bed and grabbed her calculus book. Danielle sat at her small desk.
Soon her and Lane were pouring themselves into math problems. Before either of them realized it, it became midnight. Danielle was amazed.
"God Lane, we got so much done. I swear you could become my new study partner if you wanted to."
Lane smiled, laying on her bed. "Thanks."
They make eye contact.
"Want me to come by tomorrow?" He asks. "I could continue to help you study."
Danielle nods with a smile. "Please do. Come around five."
Lane smiles. "ok." He gets up off the bed and tells Danielle where to leave off for next time in her calculus book. They talk for a few more minutes then Danielle tells him goodnight.
"Goodnight Danielle. Get some sleep. Don't worry about your friend. They'll find her. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems." He then winks and exits her room. She allows him to find his own way out, having given him a pass and directions on how to exit the building. Danielle soon afterwards slept peacefully for the first time in a week.
Lane and Danielle met everyday after that for the next week. Her grades continued to soar. Misty's parents came by in the middle of the week and set themselves up in one of the guest houses on campus. The director of the college set it up as a gesture to help find one of his missing students. Danielle met with them early every morning and banded together with the community and searched for Misty and for her brother for four straight hours each morning, combing the wooded area Danielle and Misty had been pursued.
