Maybe AJ came home because she was homesick? Wanted to be with her highschool friends, and obviously wanted to see her siblings. No doubt she wanted to see her Mom as well. While some kids could walk away from everything, at 18 it just seems so difficult. I truly wanted to believe she had just up and left it all behind. I sure didn't want to hear that a body had been found. My hope was she hear something, found something, was just fed up and decided to get away from it all until she could think through to the next step. Even though my gut was telling me this wouldn't be true, I wanted it to be true so bad! I wanted AJ to return home safe, and reunite with Zach and rebuild their relationship. That was my hope.
I'm shattered, and I didn't know AJ.
My daughter is much like AJ in pushing herself, and striving for excellence. Though this pressure she places on herself has led to panic attacks because we all know you can't control everything, and have everything go the way you want it. She is 19, but knew she wasn't ready to leave for a university after graduation. Academically, sure. Emotionally, no. I didn't push it. She is attending Community College, and wants to transfer to University in the future, but she realizes that the partying, the dangers in Universities, the trying to fit in, find a good roommate that you get along with and has the same academic goals as you, etc. is difficult, and not something she's ready to tackle. Now many kids DO leave for colleges at 17 and 18 without a problem. From what little I could see into AJ's life at college, she wasn't truly enjoying it. She wasn't thrilled with the dorm situation, she missed her support system, she was thrusting herself into sports, and trying to keep her mind occupied with her studies. She was thriving for perfection, and with that comes great pressures. I even noted that AJ is a nail biter in many of her photos. While not a huge flag, it does point to inner difficulties she was dealing with, IMO!
At any rate, with Spring Break, most colleges have the dorms empty. AJ would have had to come home, or stay with a friend. I don't think the option was there to remain at the dorm through Spring Break.
This all just breaks my heart.