Chasing Tide (A Merman's Tale And The Human Who Desired Him)

MATTHEW IS MISSING.

Chapter: 146.
*****

He didn't want to believe Matthew had left, without congratulating him, without a kiss, he didn't even wait for the ceremony to be over. Was it work? Was there an emergency? He left without any of his men. How is that even possible? Maybe he was still in the toilets. Maybe he's locked himself in. His mind went over a million and one scenarios as he ran, sprinted even, the sounds of his heels echoing in the empty halls, eyes scanning every corner and by the time he reached the men's rooms he had started walking faster than a normal human being can walk, his steps were heavy and fast. As soon as he reached the men's room he slammed the door open, startling the poor guy inside, who looked shocked at Alexander's sudden entrance but Alexander didn't seem bothered by his hateful questioning glares rather he pushed past him, running straight for the stalls and yelling for him.

"Baby, you in here?" He would ask with each stall he invaded. His lungs burned from lack of oxygen but he ignored it as tears blurred his vision. Matthew was nowhere. The only faces he saw were of other men doing their business and yelling cuss words when he would force their doors open or try to look under the stall.  The more time passed the more hopeless he felt and the more desperate he got to locate Matthew. Since Allison's kidnapping, he has had problems looking for any of them, if they were to do as little as wandering off without informing him, he would lose his mind. He knew that they would be fine, they always turn up somehow... someplace but knowing this wasn't helping and neither were the anxiety attacks or the constant headaches he gets during. Alexander knew it was going to take all his strength and effort just to keep his sanity together until he saw Matthew. When he reached the end of the stall and still no sign of him, he dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone once again, dialing Mattew's number but just as it has done the last one hundred times, it went straight to voicemail. 

Once again Alexander left him a message. "Where are you?! Please pick up! Call me back! I'm starting to be very worried here..." He kept repeating himself but eventually gave up. Sighing he put his phone back inside his pocket and began pacing the bathroom. Just as he walked back to the entrance, he collided with Easton's broad shoulder, nearly knocking him over, the latter yelping a little bit before steadying Alexander.

"Woah, easy, Bossman!" Easton exclaimed, holding Alexander steady by the biceps before letting go and taking a step back. "Jesus, you're sweating bullets!"

Alexander groaned softly rubbing his temples and he looked up at his best friend and then down at the floor, trying to calm his nerves which only increased tenfold. "Hey, hey, easy, Xander, just breathe, look at me, look at me..."  Alexander followed his best friend's instructions, keeping his eyes locked with his green ones, trying to focus on anything besides the sound of his heartbeat beating out of his chest. "Breathe, Xander, in and out...." Alexander inhaled deeply and slowly released the breath and exhaled, he nodded at his friend. "Good... good man, It's going to be alright." Alexander looked at the ground again and swallowed thickly before replying weakly.

"He is not in here," Tears welled up in his eyes and Easton exhaled worriedly, staring behind him to meet the worried faces of Allison and Michael; however, none of them knew where Matthew had gone from where he was.

"Do you know why he isn't picking up my calls?" He questioned. "Do you have a clue where he could have gone to?"

Easton stared at him for a moment before shaking his head. "Not really, dude, but it's alright don't worry we'll find him..." Alexander smiled tightly at his friend's words before pushing past him.

"Thank you, East." He replied, turning to Michael who was addressing one of the bodyguards.

"Find him." He ordered and the guard nodded and proceeded to tap away on his iPad and Alexander slowly began to walk away from the hall. 

His heart was beating so quickly that he couldn't feel it anymore. The panic was getting the better of him and the fear and concern were overwhelming his senses. He was so lost, so anxious, not to mention scared too. What if he got hurt? What if he got attacked again? Oh god. Alexander felt his heart ache in agony, a wave of dizziness overtook him making his head feel like it was spinning while his knees went weak. He gripped his shirt tightly, the fabric slipping beneath his hands and his eyes stung, threatening to start watering from the pain. He squeezed them tight, breathing heavily but it did nothing, not to ease the pain, not to make him forget his fears, not to quell his panic attack. Nothing worked; there was nothing he could do. He felt helpless, completely useless.

He knew he loved the man but at that very moment, he realized that he could not live without Matthew in his life. Without him, he would probably lose control over himself. Without him, his emotions will overwhelm his rationality. Without Matthew, he would break apart and crumble, unable to face the world. He needs him. More than anything. So much that he doesn't understand it. His entire life since he became a part of it had been consumed by him, his thoughts, and his worries. Matthew changed everything. He could laugh, he could play, he could be happy, his dreams, all of them, have been made possible by him. Matthew has woven their lives together, two sides of a coin, one can not exist without the other. 

Realizing now that he has always needed him and always will. Like it has always been like that. Always meant to be like that. A tear escaped his eyes unbeknownst to him and fell, rolling onto the white tiled floor. Alexander let out a whimper and then a cry. His knees gave way and his body hit the floor, his eyes closing, his whole body trembling. "Mattew," He whispered into the air as Easton grabbed both his arms and easily picked him up from the floor.

"We found him," Ken said, coming around the corner, pointing to the screen of the iPad and showing a red spotted mark in their faces.

"Let's go," Michael ordered and Alexander couldn't do more than a nod.

All the while they rode in the Escalade, Alexander lay unresponsive in his seat as though he had fallen into a deep slumber. Michael, Easton, and even Allison all engaged in a conversation that barely registered in his mind because he knew that whatever they were saying, his brain wouldn't comprehend it, he couldn't process it, couldn't hear, couldn't feel, couldn't think. He was stuck in a trance. He should be happy that they have located him but his emotions have eaten too deeply he wouldn't be soothed until he is staring into those magnetic ocean blues.

When they arrived at a rather familiar building and Alexander slowly got out of the vehicle, his eyes widened when he realized where they were. Looking around the old school nothing has changed from the last time he was there. Yes, the building looks as though it had aged but otherwise everything stood the same. 

His old university and where he had first met Matthew D'Aureville.