Another Quest

Rachael and Stefan stood side by side in front of the Founding Farmers restaurant, Stefan's eyes scanning the surroundings with varying degrees of interest. 

Rachael's attention, however, was captivated by her phone, her gaze fixed intently on the screen for what seemed like an eternity. The silence between them was strange, punctuated only by the occasional murmur of conversation from passersby.

It wasn't until Stefan's subtle movement beside her that Rachael finally raised her head, her eyes narrowing slightly as she met his gaze. Stefan made it obvious that he had been attempting to surreptitiously glance at her phone.

But upon being caught, Stefan quickly stepped back, wearing a mask of nonchalance as he endeavored to maintain his composure.

"I wasn't trying to pry on what you're doing," he hastily said when Rachael's gaze intensified. "Just..."

"I know, you're just curious," Rachael said. "Many people have dug their own graves by meddling with other people's affairs."

Her gaze lingered on Stefan for a moment before returning to her phone.

"I said I wasn't trying to pry!" Stefan protested. "I haven't seen you hold a phone before, so I thought it belonged to Mike."

"Oh, was that the reason?" Rachael said, her eyes widened in guilt. "My bad, I thought you were trying to pry."

Stefan ignored her, his face flushed with embarrassment.

"I'm really sorry. I guess I was being too emotional," Rachael said.

"You're really apologizing?" Stefan said in wonder. "You're being weird, just stick to your normal self." He met her pleading gaze and shook his head. "It's so unlike you to apologize, looking like that."

"Whatever, suit yourself!" Rachael hissed, her hand instinctively reaching into her pocket to deposit her phone.

"What are we even doing here? Won't you allow me to go home?" Stefan said, his face turning petulant. "This is kidnapping, hope you know how many years you're spending behind bars?" 

"I'm underage, just letting you know in advance," Rachael replied, glancing around. A sigh of relief escaped her lips as her gaze eventually came to rest on a figure approaching from across the street.

"Finally, there she comes," she murmured. Stefan's gaze followed Rachael's, and he watched as Christina crossed the road. 

"Hey, I saw your text. Did you guys wait long?" she asked, her eyes scanning the duo.

Rachael shook her head slowly. "We just arrived, shall we go now?" she replied, her tone dismissive.

However, Stefan was not ready to let the matter drop. "Wait, wait, wait a moment!" he exclaimed. "Did you tell her to come here?" he asked Rachael.

Rachael nodded. "Is something wrong?"

"Why would you call her after everything that happened?" Stefan sniffed. "Do you think her father would let her out of his sight!?"

Rachael's eyes widened in realization, her gaze darting to Christina before returning to Stefan. "You mean..."

"Yes! She's being tailed!" Stefan cut in, his teeth clenched as he scanned the surrounding area. "Slowly turn around, then your 11 o'clock." 

Rachael and Christina followed his direction, slowly turning around. When they did, they caught sight of a suspicious man hiding behind a car parked on the other side of the street.

"Dammit!"

"He's not the only one, I'm sure of it," Stefan added, still scanning the surrounding area. "We need to do something to get rid of them."

"Whoa, Stefan! I didn't know you're such a smart cookie," Rachael complimented, her lips slowly parting into a wide grin.

"This is no time for that, why are we even here anyway?" Stefan inquired.

Rachael's grin faltered, and she hesitated for a moment before responding. "You met someone here a few days ago."

"Hmmm… Yeah, Augustina."

"We're meeting her father today."

"Then we should go at once," Christina chimed in.

The trio began to make their way down the road behind them, leading to Tina's house. However, it wasn't long before Christina and Stefan halted. It was as though they had suddenly snapped out of a trance-like state.

"Wait a minute!" Stefan shouted. "Are you kidding me? Tina's house? We'd all be roasted if we went there, it's like walking into a trap with our own damn legs!"

"It's because of Mike, you're having trouble concealing his disappearance, right?" Christina asked Rachael.

Rachael nodded in confirmation. "My mom is very intelligent, it's only a matter of time before she catches on," she said.

"Whoa! So we're asking Tina's dad for help? Tina's dad of all people in this freaking world, Rachael?" Stefan exclaimed. "Perhaps you've forgotten. Mike stole the box from his house, and now we should walk in there with our own legs?"

"We need all the help we can get. And Tina's father is the only one I could think of," Rachael replied. "It's high time we come clean in front of him and seek his help. He's the only one that could understand the situation after all."

"Still! Do you think he will help us? After everything you guys have done?"

"We can't know for certain unless we try," Christina rejoined. "First thing first, we need to get rid of those CCTVs on my tail."

Stefan whirled around, scanning the area for any CCTV cameras. "Why are we getting rid of CCTV cameras? Are they part of the plan?" he asked.

"Shit! I thought you're intelligent Stefan," Rachael hissed in exasperation. "She's not talking about the actual CCTV cameras, she meant the guys monitoring her every move."

"Oh, sorry," Stefan said, scratching his head.

"So what's the plan?" Christina asked. The girls turned to Stefan, their eyes awaiting his response. Stefan recovered from his embarrassment, and a mischievous smile danced in his eyes.

"Here's the plan…"

*****

Mrs. Smith's eyes scanned the empty rooms and went downstairs; as she looked around the sitting room, her gaze finally came to rest on her husband, who was descending the stairs.

"Where are the kids?" she asked.

"Are you seriously asking me that?" Mr. Smith quipped. "Didn't you come out here before me?"

"They're not in their rooms, where could they have gone this early morning?"

"Where else could they have gone? School of course! They must've gone to school already."

"It's Saturday, darling. Students don't go to school on Saturday."

Mr. Smith's face turned sheepish, his eyes dropping as he rubbed his hands over his face. "It totally slipped my mind," he muttered.

As he turned to head back upstairs, Mrs. Smith's gaze fell upon the clothes he was wearing, and her lips parted in a gasp. "Omg! You haven't changed, Honey! Since elementary school!" she exclaimed.

"I don't want to talk about that!" Mr. Smith snapped, his tone gruff as he attempted to deflect the conversation.

"I can still remember that you went to school on Saturday. What a bookworm," she said playfully as she intentionally goaded her husband.

"I miss those days, I'm sure you do too," she continued. "I can't help but laugh every Saturday when I see you with 'I've forgotten today is Saturday's' look on your face."

Mr. Smith turned around to face his wife, his face flushing with embarrassment.

"Stop provoking me, woman!" he grumbled. "I know today's Saturday. Is there any offense in forgetting something?"

"Not really. But if I hadn't told you today's Saturday you'd have really gone to work," Mrs. Smith said, grinning. "You're so lucky to have a wife like me, otherwise, who could've put up with your weirdness?"

Mr. Smith's patience finally wore thin. "I said I don't wanna talk about it, you son of a bitch!" he thundered as he lurched at her.

But Mrs. Smith escaped from his grasp. She stood a few inches away from him, separated only by the sitting room's sofa chairs. "Do people call a woman 'son of a bitch'?" she asked, laughing hysterically.

Mr. Smith could no longer tolerate the teasing, and with a final, exasperated glance at his wife, he stomped upstairs, his footsteps thudding on the stairs like a drumbeat.

As he entered his room, he yanked open his drawer and pulled out his iPad, his fingers flying across the screen as he launched a CCTV app.

"Let's see where you guys went this early morning," he muttered, his eyes scanning the footage with growing unease.

As he watched, his eyes widened in terror, his breath became ragged, and his hands trembled. His legs struggled to keep him standing as if they had turned to jelly beneath him.

"What the hell is this!?" he tried to scream but his voice was silenced by overwhelming fear.