Chapter 7 : Missing Stephanie.

I woke up one Sunday morning to my wife bending over the kitchen sink. One of her hands covered while the other holding onto the faucet.

“Hey, you okay?”

She sighed, watery eyes looked up at me. “Don't know. I-” The sentence was cut short as my wife heaved. With a violent lurch, she threw up into the sink.

I came to her side, rubbing her back as she continued to vomit. Her hair got in the way so I gathered the damp locks in my hand and held them up. “Baby, what's wrong?”

She could not even utter a single word. At times the the puking would stop and she would rinse with water only to start vomiting all over again.

When the churn of her stomach finally died down, Taeyeon slumped back and leaned weakly against my body.

“It's okay baby. I've got you.” I held her with one hand, moving to get a glass of water. But Taeyeon was too weak to stand on her own, I had to hold her up.

“Steph.” The corner of my eyes caught the figure of my daughter. She was standing on the stairways. “Get Taeyeon a glass of water, please. Get a washcloth and wet it too. She just vomited.”

Stephanie didn't move.

“Steph.” I turned around, carrying Taeyeon's weak body in my arms now. “A little help, please.”

She didn't budge. Eyes gazed down at us while her hands visibly gripped the railway tightly.

“Steph!”

She turned around, running upstairs without a word.

“Lie down, babe.” I eased Taeyeon's limp body to the couch. We just got back from a physician, one day after she almost passed out in the kitchen.

“I'm sorry. I should have gotten you checked sooner.” Her forehead felt clammy when I gave it a kiss. She didn't respond, just closing her eyes and held my hand tightly. “I'll make you chicken soup and hot tea to go before you take the medicines. Hold on, okay?”

She nodded.

“Do you want me to carry you to the bedroom?”

“No. I don't want to be on the move anymore. It's nauseating.” Her voice cracked. “Just get me a blanket, please.”

“Okay.” I kissed her cheek, rubbing her arm up and down gently before standing up. “Rest, baby.”

When I got to the second floor of our unusually quiet house I noticed that the door to Stephanie's room was slightly ajar. I took a blanket from the linen closet in the hallway before getting inside my daughter's room.

“Steph?” I called out. Her phone, in its sparkly Minnie Mouse case, was there by the pillows on the bed but she was not in the room. She was not in the bathroom either. A quick glance at the Hello Kitty's clock by the bedside table told me that she was supposed to be home some hours ago.

I checked Stephanie's daily schedule pinned on her closet's door. She was not scheduled for any extracurricular activity nor additional class today.

When I came back to the living area, I tucked Taeyeon under the blanket before heading to the kitchen. Stephanie wasn't in the kitchen eating snack or ice cream like she always did almost every afternoon.

I opened the door to the porch, in case Stephanie was outside, sketching as usual. Dark clouds shaded the whole backyard but Stephanie was nowhere to be seen. I checked my phone. No message or missed call from her either.

“What's wrong? Wh