Jason

I wasn’t sure even where to start. I had Zayn’s last name, but I had no clue who his grandmother was. It was overwhelming. Five hundred Andersons lived in the area. Should I go alphabetical or call all the people who were women?

Dianna was covering for me and had done most of my chores while I sat in our bathroom and dialed on a burner phone she’d picked up for me. The first person told me to F’ off. Then I called and got an answering machine. I called eight other people before it was time for dinner.

My dad didn’t say anything about me being gay. It was odd. Once my mom got home, he acted like nothing weird had happened. He was almost jovial. When he saw me, even if we were alone, he seemed happy as a clam. It was weird.

Dinner was another case in point where things got weird. My dad talked about how proud he was that I was working this summer. I wanted to stand up and scream at him, asking him what the hell was wrong with him. Instead, I smiled and answered questions about the store though I still kept my money secret. They didn’t need what I’d earned, and I wasn’t ever going to reveal anything to them. I’d learned that lesson.

That evening, I made a few more calls as I sat on the bathroom floor, my back against the wall. Dianna took over at one point when I needed to unload the dishwasher. She said Mom was suspicious because of my absence. I couldn’t stop though. This was more important than pleasing Mom.

I came back in and Josh was in the bathroom with Dianna, making calls too. We hadn’t found Zayn, but we’d gone through sixty numbers. I felt good until I realized we’d only gone through sixty and we had five hundred and fifty total to get through.

I lay in bed, wondering if I would ever find Zayn again. Josh came out of the bathroom and stopped with the light behind him so I couldn’t see his face. Before the thing with Dianna and the camp, he and I were nice to each other, but we weren’t friendly. Now, we actually talked.

“I just called ten more. I’ll call tomorrow, too. We’ll do shifts, making sure one of us is in there calling all day.”

“What do you think is up with Dad?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

“He hasn’t said one word about me being gay. He’s acting like he thinks I’m a good kid. You heard what he said at dinner tonight. It’s weird.”

“Yeah, it is weird. I don’t know.” Josh came into the room and dropped to his mattress. The light was still on, and I wondered if he would shut it off.

Dianna stepped into the bathroom and stood in the doorway. “Hey, I’ll wake up early and get my chores done so I can call starting at nine.”

My heart swelled with something I couldn’t identify. “Why are you two being so nice?”

Dianne shrugged. “We may not have always been nice to each other, and we’ve had some weird issues in our family, but you’re our brother, and we love you. This guy, Zayn, he’s important to you?”

I nodded, my throat closing as I thought of Zayn. “Yes, very important.”

Dianna smiled, her eyes staying on me. “Okay then. He’s important to us. We’ll make sure you can talk to him again. If he can be found, we’ll find him.”

Tears stung my eyes. This was how a family should be. I’d been selfish and hadn’t asked about the marriage thing.

“So has Dad or Mom said anything about you marrying that guy?” I hoped the answer was no, but I feared for her.

“They haven’t. I haven’t looked for anyone to date either. I don’t really want to get married anytime soon. I kind of want to live a little.”

“What are you going to do?” Worried about her future, I feared what would happen if Dad and Mom tried to force her to get married.

“Well, for now, nothing. I guess I’ll just see what happens.”

“Are you going to get a job?” I wondered if my parents would even let her work.

She came in and sat on the floor, leaning back against Josh’s bed. “I start at the diner down the street next weekend. I’m also enrolled to do the cosmetology program at Tech out by the mall.”

Shock pulsed through me. “Wow, they are actually letting you do that?”

“Yep. I got financial aid and all. They aren’t trying to stop me.”

I wondered how long the good stuff would continue to happen in our family. On one side, I didn’t think it would last. On the other, I wasn’t going to complain about how awesome it was for my sister to have something that looked like a life.

“What about you, Josh?”

“I’m moving to Atlanta, and I’m going to be working at a hospital. Then I’m enrolling in firefighter school in October.”

“That’s awesome.”

“It is. I’ve got a good chance of getting in.”

I smiled at my brother and sister, happy they would have a chance in life to do something other than suffer under my parents’ thumb. They may have to deal with false starts, and they might have to ask for help, but they were on a good path. He prayed his parents didn’t freak out again.

Dianna stood and stretched. “I’m tired. I know we’ll find him. Don’t give up hope, little brother.”

“Thank you. Really, you two helping me is amazing.”

Dianna came over and patted his shoulder. “Little brother, you saved my life. I can’t thank you enough for that. What you did, really, it was amazing. This is just a small repayment for what you had to suffer through.”

Dianna left the room, and Josh didn’t say anything more. I drifted off and woke refreshed. Hope of finding Zayn twisted through me. There had to be a way to find him.

My work day started at ten, but Josh and Dianna would keep calling while I wasn’t home. If they found Zayn, they would tell him how to find our house, the store where I worked, and give him the address of the church where my dad was pastor. With that information, surely Zayn would find me.