In My Dreams - Bill Kaulitz Story

28. Worried

When we arrived at the reception, we saw David sitting a bit further down in the bar. He was busy talking on the phone, but it was immediately clear that he had noticed us when we entered. We quickly walked over to him, and I could see concern on David's face as he was engaged in the phone call.
"David, we can't find Elise anywhere," Tom said immediately, without beating around the bush. "We checked her room, but she's not there."
David abruptly ended his phone call and turned his attention to us. He stood up from his seat and approached us with a serious look. It was evident that he had noticed our worried expressions.
"Hey, what's going on?" he asked as he put away his phone.
Tom, Georg, Gustav, and I exchanged a brief glance before Tom explained, "Elise is missing. She wasn't in her room, and no one has seen her."
David furrowed his brows and seemed to ponder for a moment. "Have you looked everywhere? Maybe she just went out and will be back soon."
"We thought that at first too," Georg said, "but we can't find her anywhere."
David seemed to think for a moment, and his expression remained unchanged. "Come on, guys, Elise is probably somewhere. Maybe she just went into town. Give her some space."
Tom, Georg, Gustav, and I looked at each other in surprise. This wasn't the response we had hoped for. After all, Elise had been missing for a while, and it was unusual for her to disappear without saying anything.
"David, we've looked everywhere," Tom said with a hint of frustration. "And the fact that she's not responding to messages or isn't in her room is really worrying us."
David still didn't seem to take our concern seriously. "You guys are overthinking this. Elise is an adult woman; she can take care of herself. Let's focus on the tour and make sure everything goes smoothly."
"David," I corrected him, "Elise is actually only 17 years old. She may seem mature, but she's still a teenager."
David frowned for a moment and seemed surprised. "Oh, I thought she was older," he mumbled. "She comes across as so mature. But let's call her manager; maybe he knows where she is."
He took out his phone and called Elise's manager. As he spoke with him, I held my breath, afraid of what he might say. The conversation seemed to take longer than expected, making me even more nervous.
When David finally hung up, he looked at us seriously. "Her manager has no idea where she is. She didn't have any appointments or obligations for the rest of the day, so no one knows where she went."
While David remained calm, I couldn't suppress my concern. "David, we really need to worry," I remarked. "What if she's been recognized by fans? Or what if something bad happened? Maybe she's been kidnapped or worse..."
My thoughts wandered to the possible dangers Elise could be facing, and I felt the fear gripping my chest. Tom and Gustav nodded in agreement, and we all agreed that we needed to take action quickly.
David tried to reassure us. "Let's not jump to the worst-case scenario right away, guys. Elise isn't as well-known as you; the chance of her being recognized isn't that high. Let's first try to figure out where she might be. Maybe there's a simple explanation."
I was anxious and didn't want to wait any longer. "I'm going outside to look for her," I said determinedly. I wanted to take action and find out where Elise was. However, David stopped me with a calm hand gesture, expressing his concern. His experience as a manager prevented him from panicking.
"Bill, wait a moment," he said with a serious look. "I understand that you're worried, but let's try to find Elise first without causing too much commotion."
Although I understood that David's words were logical, I couldn't completely suppress my concern. My thoughts continued to race, and I just wanted to know where Elise was and if she was safe.
As we stood in the hotel lobby waiting, the tension continued to mount. Fortunately, Paul, Elise's manager, quickly arrived in the lobby. He had a concerned expression on his face and greeted us with a firm handshake.
Paul agreed that we needed to be cautious and not create unnecessary commotion. "Let's first try to reach Elise on her phone," he suggested. He took out his phone and called Elise, but there was no answer.
Paul looked at us and said, "Let's wait a bit before taking further steps. Maybe she's just somewhere in the hotel and doesn't have her phone with her."
While we waited in the hotel lobby, time slowly crawled by. The concern in the group grew with each passing moment. We had decided to wait until 10:00 p.m. before taking further action.
The hotel's security team had been informed and was keeping an eye out. They assured us that they would do their best to help find Elise.
David had said that if Elise hadn't returned by 10:00 p.m., we would go to the police to file a report. No one wanted to think about that possibility, but it was better to be prepared for the worst.
We sat in silence, sharing our thoughts and concerns with each other through occasional deep sighs and nervous glances. Seconds ticked away as we all waited with bated breath for news about Elise.