Dreams Of Fame
1.27 - The Search for Summer
José sat at his kitchen table, his head wracked with guilt. The ring he was going to propose to Summer with sat there, twinkling, almost as if it were mocking him. He had to admit it to himself. He’d overreacted. He’d been cruel to Summer, and he knew, somewhere deep inside, that because of him she wasn’t okay. Hell, after all that, he’d gone and forced Beatrice to return to space. That wasn’t cool.
He’d come to realize that even if Summer’s motives for starting the relationship weren’t the greatest, they’d started to build something great together. He wouldn’t have bought a ring for just anyone. So, now, he had to man up and go apologize for everything. It was the only way things could ever begin to be okay again.
José took a deep breath, swiped the ring from the table, and headed out the door.
He was at Summer’s house way too quickly. Despite everything, the house seemed almost… peaceful. He’d really come to see the place as a second home during his time with Summer. He loved all the people who lived in it, their quirks, even the house’s obnoxious purple walls. Talking to Summer that way may have just been the biggest mistake of his life.
José knocked on the door. No one answered. He knocked harder. Still no one. Getting desperate, José tried the doorknob, and to his surprise, the door opened. At the dining room table, Zoe sat with an unfamiliar man.
“Now, you see this room here? I want it to be an art classroom. I don’t care if the arts aren’t supposed to be important at the high school level, I just think they should be! People can make such pretty things everyone can appreciate- oh! Hi José!”
José waved. “Hey Zoe. What are you working on over here?”
“We’re working out plans for my school. It’s gonna be, like, my way of giving back to all the people who bought my books. I’m excited!”
José nodded. “Sounds like a great idea to me.”
Zoe turned back to the man sitting across from her. “Sergio, I think you understand my vision, right? Go on out, bring the plans with you, take the rest of the day off. You deserve a break.”
Sergio waved his thanks to Zoe and headed out the door.
“Have you seen Summer?” José asked.
Zoe shook her head. “Not since yesterday… she got really drunk, and Travis decided it’d be safer for her if she was locked in her room… so maybe she’s still in there?”
José nodded. “Let’s go and check.”
Zoe and José headed downstairs. Jo and Giovanna were playing a game of Simon Says at the dining room table, and José smiled and waved as Zoe tried Summer’s door. It opened.
“Huh. It’s already unlocked?” Zoe murmured.
She pushed her way into the room, and José followed. The room, was, unfortunately, empty. José turned to Zoe, and all she could offer was a shrug in response. The two headed out, and this time, José decided to ask someone a little more sane.
“Jo, have you seen Summer anywhere? Zoe said Travis locked her in her room yesterday, but…”
Jo shook her head. “I’m sorry, José, but I haven’t seen her at all recently. Last I heard, you two weren’t on good terms, so why are you asking? Also, everyone here is pretty pissed that you forced Beatrice and Liberty to go to space, so I’d be careful hanging around here.”
José smiled awkwardly. “I may have just made one of the biggest mistakes in my life.”
Travis rounded the corner, and did a double take when he saw José in the house.
“José!” he exclaimed. “I didn’t expect to ever see you here again. Or at all, for that matter. Could you please explain to me why you even began to think that it was okay to expose Beatrice, forcing her to seek Liberty’s help in getting to space? Our kids are without their mother right now, José.”
“I’m sorry, and I know that’s important, Travis, and I promise you, you will get your apology and explanation, but right now, I need to apologize to Summer,” José said. “Zoe said you locked her in her room, but it looks like she got out somehow?”
Travis shook his head. “I never locked the door. I told her I did, but I didn’t. I’d never lock someone anywhere they didn’t want to be, not after what Giovanna went through. No one deserves that. She was free to leave at any time, and I guess she did.”
Giovanna’s eyes suddenly lit up as she tuned into the conversation. “Oh, Summer? She left yesterday after bad Zoe came to the door. She said something about… taking her man? Summer seemed really upset…”
José turned to Travis, eyes wide. “Do you have any idea where she might have gone? She’s been gone since yesterday, I’m really concerned.”
Travis frowned. “Uh… other than the local bar, her only other frequent visit was your house, somewhere she clearly isn’t… so…”
“How about this; Giovanna and I will search the park, Travis, the kids are at school, so you can search the bar, and José, why don’t you take Zoe and search the neighborhood?” Jo piped up.
“That’s a great idea,” José smiled. “Come on, Zoe, let’s go.”
“Wait… Granny, you’re saying that Patel was here?” Zoe said loudly.
“Zoe. Now isn’t the time,” Travis said firmly.
Travis mouthed the word go to José, and José got the message. He grabbed Zoe’s hand, and had to more or less drag her away from Giovanna. Summer was what was important right now. Not Zoe Patel’s attempts to remain relevant.
Hundreds of thousands of miles away, on Sixam, Liberty looked gloomily out at the landscape.
“I hope everyone at home is okay…” she muttered.
Beatrice sat down beside her. “I’m sure they are, Liberty. Travis is great at keeping order in that house."
“But… what about my kids, Beatrice? Little Jacob and Clara? I’m sure they miss me, how could they understand that I’m far, far, away, helping a friend?”
“Hey now,” Beatrice said gently. “I doubt you’ll be away for much longer. And you can explain this all to them when they’re grown! Clara and Jacob are your kids. I’m sure they’ll turn out as well mannered and understanding as you and Travis.”
“I sure hope so…” Liberty sighed.
Back home, Travis wandered into the Blue Velvet, a local bar Summer was a regular at. He definitely stood out, walking in alone at midday. Well, if anything, he’d be memorable, and the bartender would remember to keep an eye out for her.
“What can I do for you?” the bartender asked gruffly.
“Did a girl stop by last night? Long, light blonde hair? Blue eyes? Tall, sort of cheerleader looking? Probably way too dressed up.”
“You talking about Summer?”
“Yes, actually!” Travis said, shocked.
“She’d a wild one, that’s for sure. But she wasn’t here last night. Why are you asking?”
“She didn’t come home this morning,” Travis frowned.
“I’ll keep an eye out,” the bartender promised.
“Thank you!”
In the park, Giovanna and Jo weren’t having any better luck. Jo had trouble keeping Giovanna from getting distracted, but bit by bit, they walked around the park. Unfortunately, there was no trace of her.
“Jo? Can I go look at the fish in the pond now?” Giovanna asked.
“Sure. Go ahead, Giovanna,” Jo said.
She sank down onto the nearest bench, and let out a deep sigh. Sure, it was no secret that she wasn’t particularly fond of Summer. But she was still worried for the poor girl. And she was disappointed she wasn’t able to produce some magical solution that would find her.
“I come by this area all the time!” Zoe said cheerfully as she and José walked through the last bit of the neighborhood they hadn’t covered. “The flowers are especially pretty!”
“That’s nice, Zoe,” José said, exasperated.
He scanned the field they were in, a field that was right next to Jo’s house. They’d made the entire loop. They’d even visited the area immediately around José’s house in addition to the immediate area. And, despite all of that, Summer was still nowhere to be found. Quite frankly, the stress was nearly killing José. He knew that he was the reason for her disappearance. If she hadn’t already been down, she would have been able to fire back at Zoe Patel with ease, and she would have been the one who walked away, defeated. Because of him, Summer hadn’t been herself.
“See this, tree, over here?” Zoe said, standing next to a giant tree that was different from all the others. “Sometimes, I talk to it, and I feel like there’s someone talking back to me!”
José didn’t even have the energy to commend Zoe on her weird behavior.
“I’m going to go home, Zoe,” José said. “It’s right over there, so I’m sure you can make it back once you’re done with the tree.”
“I can,” Zoe smiled. “Go home, José! You look exhausted.”
José nodded slowly, and turned away. He headed towards Summer’s house. While he had no hope, he was ready for everyone to gather and reveal that they’d found nothing. It was bound to happen. Just… no matter what, he hoped that wherever Summer was, she was okay.