friend or foe

"This is really scaring me," Amanda said out of the blue even if Elliot was still there, and she didn't like him very much. She didn't even know why. Perhaps it was the thought that he'd somehow taken Ellie away from her. Not that she was obsessed with Ellie or anything, but they'd almost been best friends. Or at least she thought so. She didn't know anything, anymore.

"I just wish I could have, you know, done something. I guess." She shrugged feeling sad and gloomy so suddenly.

"Like what?" Kyle was solemn about the whole thing with Ellie being gone, and Elliot was chewing his fingernails which Amanda thought would be the last thing he'd be doing.

"I wish somebody had told me about this Ryan guy, " Elliot then said while Ellie's Dad was in the kitchen on the phone with the police.

"Well, he was in town. Looking at the University or something." Kyle shrugged.

"Still," Elliot shook his head. "If I'd only known."

"Kelsey said they were friends. They grew up together." Amanda told them who felt so tired and restless. She was sure she couldn't sleep. And the baby was kicking like crazy.

"He was no friend of hers. She couldn't stand him. I don't know how she could have gone off with him." Kyle pointed out as he sat there on the couch channel surfing as if something might be broadcast on the news about them.

"I so hate this," Elliot looked sad and perhaps sick of himself. "I should have just taken her. Not care what anyone said. I just thought, she was OK with it. You know."

"You're a guy. You can only do so much, you know," Kyle said so coldly that Amanda kicked him in the ankle then.

"Ow. What was that for?" Kyle asked.

She gave him a sore look. He knew what that was for.

"I think you better go to sleep," Kyle told her. "It does you no good to worry about this crap with Ellie. Its probably nothing. It always is."

"You don't have to talk that way about her, you know." Amanda stared at him. "She's my friend and she's your friend too. And if I ever see her again, I'm-I'm going to-" Well, she didn't know what she might do. She felt bitter about this. And there were things she wanted Ellie to know. If they were going to be friends, she was going to have to stop being so-so crazy about Elliot. But then when she thought about it, maybe that wasn't it at all. Maybe it was the fact that Ellie just didn't want to be alone without a guy. Why did she have to be this way?

"Sorry, just get some sleep." Kyle gave her a pat on the back. He was right. She really did need to rest.