Stand In The Rain

by DarkKnightGem

A love story between a girl and a possesed boy.

Stand in the Rain

Running, running. That's what I was doing. I don't know what I was running from, but I knew it wasn't pretty. It wasn't pretty because of three main reasons: One, it was hideous. A monstrosity. Two, I believed that this thing wasn't after me; it was after this weird necklace that I had found lying in the dirt on our campsite. And number three, the one that irked me the most. The monster, this monster, was once my best friend.

NEW BEGINNINGS

I stepped onto the open field, took a deep breath in and smiled.

It was early October and my friends and I, the posse we called it, decided to camp out for a week. It was really Lilith's idea; she's the outdoorsy one in the whole group. Personally, me being the total girly girl I was didn't exactly find it entertaining. I mean, what has nature have to offer to me? Definitely not those new stilettos I'd seen in a catalog.

"It's beautiful out here. Why do these scientists complain about global warming? It's pretty nice having 70 degree temperatures in October." Kozo said. Well, that's easy for him to say. For starters, my hair is totally wrecked from the humidity. It's gross but manageable, but I'd rather do without the scorching heat. There's a line between Winter and Summer, and I'd prefer it wouldn't be crossed. But, I had to admit, it was a breathtaking view.

We got to the top of the cliff. The few of us overlooked out onto the steep canyon: Violet (me!), Claire (the blonde next to me), Vera (one of the brunettes, the shorter one who had the cool glasses), Lilith (the taller blonde, behind me), Kozo (mohawk, can't miss him), Alyssa (the brunette with the purple highlights), Nolan (the flippy haired one with the skinny jeans), and Adam (another flippy haired rocker, except his jeans weren't as constricting).

All of us overlooked this steep cliff that seemed to go on forever. It was barely 6:00 A.M, and the view was beautiful. The sun was just rising, dusting the horizon with shades of peach, orange, and yellow, all in one. The sun looked like a ball of energy, the same ball of energy that we each had inside us that wouldn't disappear, energy of pure delight and excitement.

The light from the sun glistened off the rocks and it shimmered off the crystal blue river that ran through the canyon. The canyon represented our lives, we had such potential but we never exactly explored most of it. There were a few crooked places, but they were outnumbered by the unreasonable amount of perfect patches.

"This can be new beginning for all of us." I said, turning around to face the group that stood behind me. We'd taken a week off from our lives. The year is 2012, and we're all 17. We ditched a week of high school (don't ask about how we did it, that's a whole other story in itself… especially how Kozo pretended he was a mother-to-be… Don't ask, seriously.) just to be with each other. We all attended different schools: Claire and I were in Styvusant, Kozo was in Regis, Alyssa, Lilith, and Vera were in the Institute, and Adam and Nolan were at Sea.

Adam and Nolan had pulled their own stunt with the nuns to get them expelled for a week, and they were here with us. The rebels, they really didn't care about their records. They barely even applied themselves, the lucky idiots got it easy by being naturally smart.

"New beginning? As in?" Claire tested me. She did that often, even though we were good friends. Kozo usually egged her on. Despite that, I usually had a good answer to end her disapproval. Usually.

"What I'm saying is… we can just start out fresh. You, Adam," I pointed to him and he looked up unenthusiastically. "You can actually start respecting adults."

"Like that'd ever happen." He answered. I took it that he wasn't going to find interest in my new beginning sermon, so I ended my example about his behavior.

"Uh… Nolan, you, maybe you can stop wearing skinny jeans."

"I did that once in the 8th grade, remember?" He countered.

I thought back to that day. It wasn't such a good result.

"Right, scratch that. I thought I had some good point to this." Maybe it was just the way I had handled my situations. I thought my new beginning idea was good.

"I'll try it." Vera said.

"Me too, what's your plan for new beginnings?" Alyssa added. Claire snickered, "Alyssa, I bet you really have no use for a new beginning. What good would it do you? You'd probably carry out your life the same as you always have and always will. Always in a rut you are, Ally."

"Cut it, maybe she can change. There's always time for you to change, right Claire?" I mumbled.

"Why are we friends with her again?" Vera whispered to Lilith, talking about Claire.

"She's your friend, that's why." Lilith muttered back. "Oh, right." Vera answered.

I bet Claire couldn't hear. All that ego was clogging her ears.

UP THAT HILL

"Adam, c'mon, walk faster…" I muttered. I was eye level to the pockets of his jeans and it wasn't pleasant.

"Psh, I can't, Kozo's going slow."

"Kozo! Faster!"

He continued to move slowly. I shot his bum a look that could shoot a laser if I had laser vision.

"This is our campsite!" He turned to us and smiled fondly. The large area upon the small hill was cleared in the center with giant trees surrounding it. Crickets were chirping and a few birds were too, but it was 6:00 P.M. and the sounds were starting to die down a bit.

"The lakes down that path." He pointed to another path that resembled the one that we just came from. "Only a few yards away. Nothing big, but it's pretty cool to bathe in there. Just be careful with the piranhas."

"Piranhas you say? Well I'll be sure to wear a cup when I bathe." Nolan laughed, nudging me. I laughed with him, even though no one else did. Nolan and I were close, maybe brother and sister close or maybe relationship close. I don't really know for sure, but we were positive that we'd give up our lives for one another. We've known each other since we were 12, 5 years. We had a bond that the lovebirds Vera and Adam… Alyssa and Kozo… what they all shared with their respective partners.

"No-brain, you're quite the jolly one t'day. What's up with you?" Lilith asked.

"I dunno. I like the outdoors. It smells like victory and fun and stuff."

"It's not fun with all these bugs," I muttered, slapping a fly that landed on my arm. "Whoops, one on your forehead."

I slapped Nolan smack in the middle of his forehead and he blinked, shocked almost. Vera giggled, and soon everyone broke out into a chorus of laughter, even him.

"Thanks, Violet, but hey, there's one right there…" He slapped my cheek, but not very hard. We continued laughing, but no one found fun in that slap. They just stared at us, dumbfounded that we were in our own little world.

"Once was enough, Nolan," Claire said snidely.

"Yeah, what she said." Kozo added.

"I thought it was funny." I shrugged, and wrapped an arm around Nolan's shoulder, "You're always funny to me."

"Aw, thanks."

"Oh jeeze. Violet, you can't deny you like Nolan, and Nolan you can't deny you like Violet. Please just go out with each other already!" Kozo urged.

The rest of our crew started setting up camp, but he stared at us, trying to push the idea that we were in love with each other into our brains.

"We have other interests." I said.

"Yeah, but you can figure those out later. Guys, you're 17, you need to experiment; I think you're ready for each other. I mean look at Alyssa and me, we've had our rough spots but it's been 5 years! And then Adam and Vera, 4 years and they're still going strong.

"I wasn't supposed to say," He whispered, leaning in a bit further, "But Adam's gonna propose to her tomorrow night."

My eyes widened in glee. "Really?" I whispered loudly, almost giggling with delight. Nolan wrapped his arm around my shoulder in return as I slid mine away.

"She's so gonna say yes!"

"Yeah, but it only happened because they stepped up and went out with each other."

I had to admit, they were meant for each other, but I didn't know if I was exactly meant for Nolan. He was cute though… I mean, he looked different from all the other boys. He was kinder and I felt some sort of a bond with him. I had a brother-sister bond with Kozo, but I really didn't care for him as a love interest, but Nolan… I could make due with him…

"Kozo, I'm taken, remember?"

"Ah, yes, nothing more then by Eva. Right?"

"Yeah…-- "

"Do you like Violet more? Come on, you must, you've known her way to long to say you don't like her better then some girl that you met a few months ago in Chemistry."

"Biology," He corrected, "And it was last year."

I watched them argue back and forth as Nolan pulled his arm away from my shoulder.

"Sorry, Violet, but if I'm giving you the wrong vibes or something…"

"Not at all, Nolan." I lied. "You are taken and I'm going to respect that."

"Ugh, you guys are no fun." Kozo sighed and walked away, giving me one last glance that said, You're a lost cause.

WHISPERS IN THE DARK

"The girl that lay dead was his best friend, his only friend. She was found on this campsite, the one we're residing upon right now." Kozo glanced around at our paranoid faces.

"That's one heck of a story…" Adam whispered as Vera leaned into his grip.

"Yeah, quite a creepy one at that." Lilith looked over at Kozo, "Is it true?"

He shrugged, "How should I know? My older brother told me it. You know how he is, lying and all."

"But it sounded believable, I mean he only lies about certain things." Alyssa said. She looked at him with uncertainty in her eyes.

"Well, if it is, we're all in trouble." Claire yawned and slipped into her sleeping bag, "I'm tired. G'night."

"That's the cue for all of us to sleep." Vera said, moving away from Adam and collapsing onto her sleeping bag.

It was 10:30, and everyone was asleep except Nolan and I.

"The stars are really pretty." I whispered, smiling up at the night sky. It was dark, but you could visualize the clouds that once stood out in the baby blue sky. The silence of the darkness had been interrupted but Nolan's voice.

"Yeah, it's kinda cool."

"Kinda?" I laughed, "I think it's insanely cool."

"Whatever – "

"What's up between you and Eva?" I asked. I don't know why, it just seemed to come out. I looked over at him and he turned to face me. Arching a brow, her answered cautiously with another question.

"Why? Do you like me or something?" That's when it hit me. Did I really like him? I ran out of words to say, so I just laughed.

"Of course not, Nolan, I was just asking. I'm tired, I think I'm just loopy…" I rolled over and I heard him rustle out of his sleeping bag.

"Where are you going?" I whispered, turning back around to be face to face with his shoes.

"I just want to walk."

I sat up, unzipping my sleeping bag, "Can I come?"

"I think it'd be better if you stayed here." He walked off into the darkness, beyond the trees, down the path of impending doom of the creatures of the night.

I closed my eyes, trying to force the thoughts of him out of my head. They wouldn't leave. I tried to sleep, but still nothing. I couldn't focus on counting sheep, and I had a pounding headache that wouldn't stop. I lied face down on my jacket, which acted as my pillow, and felt the tears stinging in my eyes. I sniffled quietly, hoping that it'd blend into the silence of the night. I looked over at his empty sleeping bag and started heaving, crying louder. Throughout the next fifteen minutes, I just cried. I was pathetic, below pathetic. I never fell for guys. That just wasn't who I was, why was I falling for my best friend? I couldn't be so pitiful, so I sat up and wiped the tears from my eyes.

"It's gonna be okay." I whispered, reassuring myself. I needed it. I wriggled out of the sleeping bag and stood, wiping the dust and dirt that accumulated on my hands onto my jeans. I ran down the path that Nolan walked through, the wind from the momentum stinging my eyes, almost making it appear as if I were crying again.

There he sat, at the edge of the lake, staring over the horizon.

"Took you long enough." He said as I warily moved next to him, sitting to his right side. I hugged my legs to my chest and laid my head between my knees, facing him. He still faced the lake.

"That story that Kozo told got me thinking, you know? How much would that suck… loosing your only friend." He looked over at me, "You're not my only friend but it would sure suck loosing you."

"Aw, gee thanks."

"So you want to know why I'm with Eva, huh?" He seemed flat somehow, not bubbly like he was this morning. I wondered if he was bipolar sometimes, this happened pretty often.

"I wouldn't mind listening."

"Alright… me and Eva, you see we just like each other. Plain out and simple like that, and I'm pretty sure we can say we're in love with each other." He paused, seeing the pain stricken look that I knew was apparent in my eyes, "I can stop whenever you say."

I meant to say go on, but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out. So I just nodded.

"Like I said, we met last year in Biology. She's really cool and everything, she's like the whole package. She's my world. When I asked her out, you had to see the look on her face, she seemed so happy, and when she's happy I'm happy."

I sighed, "Okay, stop." I glared down at the dirt I was sitting upon and it seemed to glare back up at me.

We stayed in the silence for a few minutes before he stood. "I'm gonna go back, you wanna come?" He whipped out his cell phone, "It's 11:11, make a wish."

I closed my eyes and couldn't figure out what to wish for: for Nolan to break up with Eva, or for him to be happy with her forever.

THE STARS ARE LAUGHING AT ME

It's now 1:00. I've waited at the spot by the lake for almost 2 hours and still no one came to find me. I almost felt like crying again, but instead of crying I threw pebbles at the lake. They'd all sink on impact, but it'd take away stress.

My eyes felt heavy and my head pounded, but I tried to pay attention to the stars. Their reflections glistened on the open waters, but as the pebbles made impact, ripples of water overshadowed their sparkle and shine.

"Monster, how should I feel?" I whispered, quoting one of my favorite songs. I continued to fling pebbles to my delight, but then my pile ran out. I sighed and decided to head back to camp, but a flickering light caught my eye. I looked down and grabbed a chain from the dirt. A pendant of a black heart and a white star were attached with a golden cross that stood between them.

It was pretty, but I was wary about wearing things I'd just found on the ground. But this chain seemed different, like it made me put it on.

It fit perfectly around my neck and it even matched my outfit.

I quietly slipped back into my sleeping bag and pretended to close my eyes, but as soon as I did, I fell fast asleep.

"Wake up. Wake up, Violet," Alyssa said, shaking me awake. My headache hit me like a bus as I felt her unzip my sleeping bag. I rolled out and stared into a full sunrise.

"Isn't it fabulous?" She whispered, as if trying not to disturb the process. She hinted over to the path to the lake, "Everyone's down there. I was the nice one to come and get you."

"What time is it?" I asked, groggily as I sat up and stretched.

"5:30 in the morning."

I didn't want to tell her about last night, so I only nodded and told her I'd be down in a few. She smiled and nodded as she made her way back down the path.

I changed into my black and pink bathing suit and grabbed a towel and a bar of soap from my backpack. Halfway down the path, I realized I still had my chain on, but I didn't feel I needed to take it off.

"Hey, guys!" I smiled as they laughed at my joyous greeting.

"Morning, Violet!" Claire said, smiling. She was in the water along with Lilith, Kozo, and Alyssa. They waved, playing beach ball in the lake. Adam gave me a high five and Vera smiled at me as I passed them to sit with Nolan.

"What's up, buddy?" I asked as I sat down next to him. He seemed really tense, and he laid back onto the dew-soaked grass and stared at the sky.

"Nothin'."

I poked his side and he didn't move, just continued staring at the sky. "Are you alright, Nolan Zephyr Andello?" I asked. I used his whole name only once and a while, when I was actually serious about things.

"Fine, Violet Raina Hale," He sat up and looked at me and smiled, "Really."

The smile was quite convincing for any other person, but if you knew Nolan Andello, he never smiles so genuinely.

I arched a brow, looking over at him curiously, "Okay, who are you and what have you done with the real Nolan Andello?"

The thing, the person that sat next to me wasn't Nolan.

"You'll see soon," He said. He flashed me a devilish grin, which really wasn't his and his blue eyes seemed to get darker. Then they went back to their angelic blue and he continued that genuinely fake smile.

I quickly got up and slid into the lake.

"What's the matter, Violet? You look like you just saw a monster or something."

APPROACHING INSANITY

"Huh? Really?" I asked, "Why do you say that?"

"You're only pale and about to jump out of your skin…" Lilith replied.

"Nah, I'm good," I lied, my eyes roaming back to Nolan. A hand grasped my shoulder and I nearly went psycho, flailing my arms like one of those people that have to be contained in straight jackets to protect others from being killed by the insane.

"Whoa, Vie, calm down." Kozo yelled over my screaming and the crashing of the water around me. He calmly tried to settle me down by wrapping my arms behind my back and holding them there with his firm grip. I saw the beach ball float by me as Adam and Vera's torso's seemed to approach me. I looked up at them.

"What is up with you? I don't think scary stories before bedtime are good for you, Violet." Adam said, bending down so we could see eye to eye.

"Are you insane?" Vera asked as she bent down too. Her glasses slid down the bridge of her nose as she looked at me pitifully.

"Possibly," I muttered, looking away. Everyone was surrounding me except, you guessed it, Nolan. But he wasn't there, in the spot he was in.

"Where's Nolan?!" I shouted, and Adam and Vera backed up from shock.

"Right behind you…" Kozo answered, letting go of my hands. I flipped around, seriously questioning my sanity at this point. He was there, staring at me with frightened eyes.

"What are you doing here?" I asked scornfully.

"I've only been here the whole trip, Violet, I think you should come back to camp… I'll take you –"

"NO!" I screamed, running from the water, "Don't ever talk to me again!" I slipped onto the dirt and skidded into a pile of mud. I felt like crying again, but I didn't, I just stayed in place. I heard Claire's laugh from the lake, only hers, and I broke out into a blubbering, wailing child.

"You think we should call…" Kozo's voice trailed off, and from what I saw through the tears, Nolan shook his head and he was coming to talk to me.

"Vie, I'm taking you back to camp whether you like it or not." Nolan said firmly as he crouched down in front of me. He lifted my chin so I'd have no other choice to lock eyes with him.

"Please, I'm worried about you. You're never like this and I don't know why you've chosen to be so difficult with me." He reached down and played with the necklace that I'd found the night before. "That's really pretty," He said, feeling out the shape of the star and the heart with his fingers. I went numb, and I felt as if my throat had closed with anxiety of having him so close to me.

"Yeah," I managed to say, pushing his hand away from it. He refused to stay away, as he grabbed it again.

"That's hers," He whispered, almost inaudibly.

"Huh?" I asked, feeling left out from a few details. Who was he talking about? Was it Eva? Did Eva have one?

He shook the look out of his eyes, "No one," He then pulled me up and pushed me towards the lake. I stumbled forward, plunging into the water. I tumbled into the lake, landing on my bum. I could taste the blood seeping from my lip. I must've hit it somehow… or… scratched it on the sharp edge of the star on the necklace.

Lilith and Vera saw him push me, and their eyes widened as they rushed between Kozo and Adam. They turned and looked at me with quirked brows as they also rushed to help me up.

"What was that?!" Lilith yelled, angrily, glaring at Nolan.

"What?" He challenged, stepping towards us.

"No, guys," I whispered, looking down and seeing the crimson red liquid drip into the water, drop by drop. It seemed to explode into a lighter red, then wash out.

Claire, from what I saw between my eyes stinging from the salty water and from my tears which found a way from my eyes again, was standing there looking at me with an expression that said, Haha. You've lost again.

Yeah, you know what I lost, I thought, my patience.

"Claire, you know what?" I asked, standing up on my own. Kozo, Adam, Vera, and Lilith stepped back, and Alyssa seemed to step away from Claire as well. They lost interest in Nolan, and faced Claire, standing behind me.

"You're nothing but a selfish brat. No guy ever likes that, and I bet that Kozo doesn't, so it's not a good tactical plan!" I yelled. But my eyes widened, finally realizing what I'd just done. Her eyes widened as well, not in fear, but in hatred.

"I hate you, Violet!" She screamed and ran towards camp, missing the mud puddle that I'd unfortunately took a dive in.

"She's lost it." Kozo muttered to Alyssa, wrapping a tired arm around her shoulder.

At this point, I didn't know if he meant; me or Claire.

EVERY DAY HAS A HAPPY ENDING

Claire left before we got back to camp. She left a note on the campfire, which we didn't even read and set it on flames that night because we were starved.

"That means we don't need as much wood!" Kozo said as he started the fire.

I sat but my sleeping bag, wrapped in a towel. I blared a few heavy metal songs on my iPod until dinner was ready, so I was mostly out of tune of reality for about an hour. Nolan didn't acknowledge me, no one really did.

He was talking with Lilith, Alyssa and Kozo, laughing mostly. I sighed and moved over to lean on a tree, when I noticed a spider crawling upon my arm. I flicked it off. If I could flick away my problems so freely, that'd be quite an accomplishment. Maybe I could flick Eva away from Nolan. But then again, she's only a dead moth on my web of confusion.

I looked over to Vera and Adam. They seemed so happy. Adam was tickling Vera by the fire, and before I knew it, they were kissing each other, engulfed in the passion that burned in each other's heart. I closed my eyes the stung with unshed tears.

"Dinner, guys!" I heard Adam call over the voice of Matchbook Romance's lead singer.

"I'm not hungry." I said back, as if I was the only one he was talking too.

"Fine. But really, no one gives a crap about you anymore, all right? Stop playing pity queen because Nolan has a girlfriend, you'll be like Claire."

Nolan ignored that, continuing to eat the food that had been splashed onto his plate. Everyone else ate in silence as I raised the volume to the highest it could go.

"Seriously, Violet, please come eat." I heard Nolan's voice through the music, and something…something obligated me to go and listen to him. An unseen force picked me up off my rump and pushed me to sit next to him. He smiled as I sat, "Good girl." He said, as if I was a dog.

Kozo raised a brow, looking in my direction. He was just as confused as I was.

"So you listen to him now? Am I not sexy enough?" Adam asked. Vera slapped him, choking with laughter.

"Oh, Vera, I'll clean that up for you…" He said, pulling a little black box out of his pocket. He handed Kozo his plate, which he took on some sort of cue. He slid onto one knee in front of Vera. She placed a hand over her heart, smiling, for she knew what act was going to follow. Alyssa leaned over and planted a wet kiss onto Kozo's cheek, which he turned midway and got her upon the lips. Lilith awed.

I felt awkwardly out of place.

"Vera Arabella Recardi, will you take me to be your husband?" He smiled and added, "Please?"

Tears were streaking down her cheeks as she nodded, "I love you, Adam."

Where was my happy ending? I mean, I was happy for Adam and Vera, but I couldn't help it but to feel jealous of her. She had the guy of her dreams and she was going to marry him. But me? I'm a heap of insanity being practically controlled by the guy I like who happens to be taken by the girl of his dreams.

"I gotta go to the bathroom," I lied, making up the only excuse that I hadn't used in my first two days I've been here. I got up from my seat and quickly roamed down one of the other paths that I'd never taken before.

It was dangerous at night, that's what Kozo told me. But, I thought, who'd be out here? I walked and walked down a path that never seemed to end. The noises of the night, rustling of bushes, even crackling of leaves didn't seem to bother me. I heard some footsteps but they soon faded away once I got to my destination.

A small field, it was cleared out, seemed to be a battlefield in some battle in the Civil War. It was covered in shells from bullets, but then there was a knife. It stood out, so I ran over, halfway into the field and scooped it up.

I eyed it, feeling the tip gently so I wouldn't cut myself.

"That's the knife they used to kill you, Elizabeth."

UNANSWERED QUESTIONS

I turned around, and there he stood. Nolan's eyes were black as coals, his hair was windblown, as if he ran here at some unfathomable speed.

"I'm not Elizabeth, Nolan, stop playing games. You know I'm not in the mood as it is… and…and…"

"Nolan? Elizabeth, I'm not playing 'games', it's you… It's me, Samuel. Come on, Elizabeth, please, hand me the knife. We can make this better, I promise!"

I was scared now. I gulped as I hugged the knife to my chest, being sure not to leave a scratch.

"Elizabeth!" He yelled, catching me off guard. I let go of the knife and it slipped, catching onto my jeans and cutting a hole into the knee area. I wasn't scratched, but we both dived for the knife. I caught it by the hilt, but Nolan got the worst of it. He grabbed the blade and it slashed his hand; he pulled back instantly.

His palm was now seeping with the dark red sticky substance. I took a few steps back. In my hand, I had the knife that killed this Elizabeth and was now hurting Nolan. I didn't know whether to run and leave Nolan here to get help, stay with him to nurse him back to his own health, or just wait with Nolamuel…

He screamed as I watched him fall to the ground. "Elizabeth!" He yelled, but then I saw Nolan return. His eyes were that same shade of light blue, but they closed, fading away.

"Nolan!" I yelled, falling next to him. I dropped the knife about a foot away, but then I grabbed it again and cut the legs of my jeans off.

I pulled the sleeves of his jacket up, but I noticed something I hadn't noticed before. He'd slashed his wrists and they were still damp with blood. It wasn't noticeable through his black jacket…they were fresh, as if done only an hour or so ago.

I swallowed, took a deep breath, and wrapped his arm too.

"Nolan, please, wake up…" I leaned over and did something outrageously daring, which meant I'd just broke my promise to respect his wishes of being taken by Eva.

I leaned over and placed my lips upon his. I don't know if he felt it, but I just kissed him. Nothing big, just a kiss on the lips. But then I kissed each of his eyelids as I shed those tears that I locked up from before. They fell onto his cheeks and it looked as if he was crying too.

I lifted him to make him in an upright sitting position and then leaned him on my chest, as if he were a child. I stroked his hair, still crying, as I whispered continuously, "Nolan, I love you…"

"Violet – I … I don't know about you, you're really confusing, you know? But as of now, I'm in a relationship but I do … love you…" His voice had stopped my erratic heart, had helped lighten my heavy soul. He weakly stood up and I stood up to hold his hand.

"Nolan, I'm sorry, you're with Eva and you love her and I don't want to end your happiness, you need to be happy, Nolan!"

But at that second, he pulled his hand away, falling to the ground again. He was now holding his head, writhing in pain right before my eyes, "GET OUT, DON'T LISTEN TO HIM! JUST RUN!"

"No, Nolan, I'm staying here with you!" I cried.

"KOZO! ADAM! HELP ME! PLEASE!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, trying to calm Nolan down. I held him up, and he seemed tired. Like someone drained his energy.

Who loves me? Or who loves Elizabeth?

CUT SHORT

"Violet, what's going on between you and Nolan?" Kozo asked, sitting beside me. I was back at my spot that I was sitting at before I'd 'went to the bathroom'. Nolan was already sleeping soundly with Adam, Vera and Alyssa taking shifts to watch him.

"You know, Violet, I think your insanity is contagious." Adam said across the small campsite.

"Nothing, Kozo," I said, "Really, like nothing." He glanced sideways to me, making sure it was apparent that he didn't trust me.

"I'm just worried about him. I'm worried about all of us… And he's been calling me Elizabeth and he called himself Samuel – "

"Whoa, Vie, those were … the names of those people in that myth. Remember? The guy's name was Sam and the girl, his best friend was Elizabeth."

I let it sink in. Quietly, I looked over at Nolan, who was still sleeping. "Kozo, do you think that he's possessed by Samuel's spirit?"

"Why would you say that? The only spirit that's supposedly lurks around here is Elizabeth's."

I closed my eyes and leaned on Kozo's shoulder. He patted my knee, sympathetically.

"I'm gonna go sit with Ally." I moved away and he nodded towards her, "Come on."

"Fine," I stood up and walked over to where they were seated and I sat closest to Nolan.

"Are you all ready to head home?" I asked.

Ally, Lilith and Vera looked over at me like I was crazy. Kozo and Adam couldn't care less.

"Well, Claire went off the deep end." Vera said. I noticed the ring upon her finger. It was beautiful, it sparkled in the dim light from the flickering fire that was sure to go out soon. Adam yawned.

"Vie, we all know you like Nolan." Lilith said, hitting the topic that no one really wanted to touch upon at the moment.

"But he doesn't like me." I muttered, kicking a rock with my shoe. It flew and hit Nolan's shoulder. He rustled a bit, flipped over, and continued snoring.

We're a bit of a childish, immature bunch, so we all just started into a chorus of laughter.

"We live for moments like this!" Kozo laughed.

I don't know about you guys, I thought, but I live for people…not events, and everyone, all of you sitting beside me, I live for you.

"So, Vera, you know when you guys are gonna go get hitched?" Ally asked, smiling at the couple.

"Next year, Adam and I have to decide…" She smiled at Adam and he smiled back. They kissed quickly, like a peck on the lips.

Ally and Kozo quickly snuck a kiss as well, leaving me and Lilith looking at each other in an awkward silence.

"So. Uh…" She started, giggling, "Vie, marry me!"

"Oh yes Lilith!"

We both laughed, but we knew we felt out of place. I had to wake up Nolan, I wanted to fit in. I poked his sleeping bag and he moved a little, but turned to face me.

"Hey, Vie, whassup?" He slurred his words together; he was drunk on grogginess.

"Nothing much, Nolay-poo. You?" He smiled, but it wasn't fake, it was his smile.

"Nothing, really." He sat up, like the rest of us. We all surrounded the campfire, just as the setup as the night before. I leaned on his should and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I felt safe with him, even though he went crazy on me before.

"Do you remember what happened?" I whispered as everyone else was into and intense conversation about Guitar Hero 6.

"Yes, actually, I do." He looked over and smiled at me, as if to say, you're quite a sneaky one. I smiled back, although tensing up a bit. Everyone went silence, noticing our sudden conversation.

"Kozo?" I asked, "Do you know what time period the story about Sam and Elizabeth took place in?"

"Yeah, Civil War." My face cracked into a sly smile, "You're joking me, aren't you?"

I felt 7 pairs of eyes staring at me, "No, I'm not joking."

"If you were not paying attention, Vie, it was during the Civil War when Elizabeth was attacked in between a battle. She was running home and they mistook her and the South took her hostage. Samuel was a soldier, and he tried to save her, but they'd already kill her. Elizabeth was his wife.

"They had ten kids, but 5 died at birth. Samuel thought the best thing to do was to kill himself on the spot, but the South did that for him as he was running to Elizabeth's side.

"The last words he said to her were I love you." Adam finished, looking me in the eye.

I made sure of this: if I didn't want Nolan to fall into Samuel's fate, I'd have to make sure he'd never say I love you.

SILENCE IS THE KEY

I grabbed my sleeping bag and decided to sleep on the battlefield.

"You want us to come?" Kozo asked. "If you want," I replied, "But Nolan is defiantly coming."

"Fine, guys, we're gonna camp in the battlefield." Kozo said, "Take your sleeping bags. Leave everything that you don't find valuable, just make sure you take your necessities just in case someone comes bag stalking."

We lined up and walked down the path. I supposed we looked like the soldiers that once roamed around here. As we went down to the field, I remembered a line from a poem I'd read.

The forsaken land will never perish,

I am lost, but not forgotten.

The stanza reminded me of this ground.

"These stars, they're watching us." I said.

"They've only been out every night of our lives." Adam answered. I looked down, staring at my shoes as we walked. I slipped on a rock but caught myself mid-fall, and then I nearly slipped again. Ally caught my that time.

"Tipsy much, Vie?" Lilith laughed.

"Yeah, I'm drunk of being tired."

Nolan turned around and smirked at me, but then I noticed that glance again. Samuel.

I decided not to act insane and I subtly whispered, "Hey Sam."

"Hello, Elizabeth." He whispered back. "You know where we're going, just stay next to me and you'll be alright."

I held his hand, going along with the Samuel/Elizabeth thing. He looked at my necklace and smiled, "You still kept that, 'Liza?"

I glanced down and saw the necklace hanging around my neck, "Yeah, I kept it."

Noamuel and I dropped our stuff where we'd sleep.

"Come with me, I have to ask you something," I said, grabbing his hand and running across the field. He kept pace with me, but I snuck a glance at him. He was starting to look more and more unlike himself, and more of what I guessed to be Samuel. His hair started to get a few blondish highlights (which easily could be explained as sun bleaching, but it wasn't that easy to me) and his eyes were a darker brown instead of the light blue.

"Who are those people?" Noamuel asked before I could speak. I'd led him to a quiet corner, near the other end of the field. Everyone was just a speck in the night, that's how far away we'd strayed. I felt like a straying lamb, and I hoped no coyotes were out to get me.

"Family friends." I decided, smiling.

"And, Elizabeth, why are we here? The battle's going to start soon, and I don't think it's safe for us." He grabbed my hand and tried to pull me away from the site, but I refused to budge, "Sam, please, I'm fine!"

"No, Elizabeth, I don't need you to die! I lo – "

"I hate you, Samuel!"

That was the worst feeling in the world, saying that. I just couldn't, he can't say I love you and die, not yet. My heart sank as I saw the look in his eyes, even if it was Samuel and not Nolan, he was still there somewhere.

He searched my face for lies, but he found only worry. I was worried about Nolan… maybe even Samuel a little.

His stare went from soft to a hardened gaze as he slapped me across the face. It stung sharply as I fell onto my side.

"Elizabeth, do you remember what I've done for you? Do you even appreciate the effort I put into it?" He demanded harshly. I crumpled into a heap of distress on the grass, curling into a fetal position, reassuring myself that I was only having a horrible nightmare and that I'd wake up soon, back at home, in my bed, alone.

I closed my eyes and prayed to God someone was watching this. I didn't want to be called insane when I went back to the camp, that's all I needed to push me off the edge and actually become insane.

"Nolan? Violet? What are you doing?!"

SOMEONE'S WATCHING OVER ME

I opened my eyes, seeing Alyssa approaching with an uneasy look plastered on her face. Noamuel shot her a look. If looks could kill, Ally would've been halfway to her grave.

"Nolan, what's going on?" She stuttered, stepping back a few inches.

"It's Samuel!" He snapped, lunging after her. I watched in fear as she ran back to camp, terrified. Noamuel ran a few feet after her, but then he slipped and fell onto the ground. I got up and walked over to him, "Samuel, never talk to me again," I managed to spit, angrily, "You've caused me nothing but pain."

He stood and waved a finger in my face, "Elizabeth, are you insane?"

Haha, I thought, you don't know the half of it.

"Nolan, you've gone crazy!" I screamed, "You're not Samuel!"

He shook his head and started walking to the path he tried to lead me to before we started arguing.

"Where are you heading to?" I asked, pacing after him and grabbing his shoulder before he could continue moving. He stopped, but didn't turn.

"Please, Elizabeth," He cleared his throat before continuing, "I'm sorry, but you have to understand what you're doing to me." He turned around and gazed, deep into my frightened brown eyes.

"Samuel, I'm sorry," I said, wanting to look away, but I couldn't. His eyes were hypnotizing. Samuel's eyes, his eyes, I couldn't tell who was who anymore. "I have to go. Just come back with me and sleep." I brushed his cheek, seeing tears flowing down slowly, like a river starting to overflow during a storm.

It wasn't Samuel anymore, he was gone. It was Nolan.

"I'm scared, Nolan."

He nodded and hugged me to his chest, stroking my hair as I cried. He was aware of what was going on, but he had no control over it. We both decided that the battle was lost with Samuel. He would always be there, no matter what we would do.

Instead of wandering back to camp, we slept there, on the dirt.

"It's confusing, it's like I'm watching what he's doing through my own body. I'm still there, but I can't do anything, just watch."

"We need to see what's troubling this guy," I glanced over at him, "You're with me, aren't you?"

He nodded, but I could sense his fear. He stared up at the stars, like we did last night. He didn't talk, neither did I.

We just stared, thinking, until we fell asleep.

OVER MY HEAD

"Nolan, whoo hoo, its like 9:00 in the morning…" I said, poking his forehead continuously until he awoke. I'd been awake for an hour, but I didn't feel like moving. It was too peaceful to move, I'd missed everything being peaceful.

He yawned, lying in place, "My back hurts," He complained, rolling his neck as he sat up.

"Well, what do you expect with sleeping on dirt?" I asked, sarcasm biting at my words. It was weird for me too be so sarcastic so early in the morning, but I guessed it was just aggravation from sleeping on the dirt for another day.

"I expect a masseuse to be with me for the next ten hours getting these kinks outta my back, that's what I expect." He yawned again, starting to stretch. As I stood, I noticed how tall he was compared to me. He was at least a 3 inches taller, and I was 5'8''. I felt short.

We just stared at each other for about five minutes. The awkward silences had been taken to a whole new level at this point.

"So…" I muttered, looking down.

"Yep, uhm…"

"You think Sam's coming back anytime soon?" I asked. I wondered about Sam, he was quite a character; he'd knocked me down. He was pretty strong, I'm sure that wasn't Nolan's strength.

"I don't know, he's quite on the spontaneous side."

I knew that, so I sighed and nodded back towards camp, "You coming?" He shrugged, "In a minute." I let him go this time, watching him. Each step was like a pound onto my heart.

I turned and we parted. It seemed that this trip was separating us, very slowly, but we were still separating. By the time we got home, we'd say goodbye and part our own ways, to our own lives. But I wanted Nolan in my life, he had reserved a special place there ever since we were 12.

"Nolan, wait!" I yelled. I'd use Kozo's plan, the one I hadn't used for 5 years. He turned around. I ran over and gently pressed a kiss to his lips before he could protest. By the time I tried to pull away, he didn't want to.

It wasn't Samuel, it was him. At that moment, I knew that he was the one for me. I don't know about him though, he still had Eva, but my mind was set about this.

He slung his arms around my waist and I did the same around his neck. He was warm, but his lips were cold. Haha, I thought, I'm warming them up.

At last, we parted, but we didn't move, we just stayed in the hug. I laid my head on his chest as he twirled a few strands of my hair.

"But what about Eva…" I whispered.

"Doesn't matter, at least she did, … Violet…"

He seemed confused, "We'll just have to wait on it," He said indefinitely.

I was confused, he was confused… things were way over my head… but surprisingly, I felt good. It didn't matter that he was with Eva, all I knew was that we were in love. Eva was just a stepping-stone that he would soon step over to come to me.

He kissed me one more time on the top of the head as we departed our hug.

"You're still up for that walk?" I asked, changing the subject pretty well. He nodded, and we took hands in secrecy, walking away into another part of the field. I forgot about everyone else, and I'm sure they forgot about us. Maybe not Alyssa, though, she looked pretty scared. I don't know if she'll ever forget that, I know I never will.

"Did you see Alyssa's face when… Sam, you know," I started, not finding the right words to say.

"Yeah, I did, and I'm apologizing for what he did. It wasn't me, but it's still my body and he's been ravaging it." I looked at him, sternly, and he did look different. His eyes were now in a greener state of blue, and those blonde highlights were staying although it wasn't Samuel anymore.

"Yep." I concluded. "But blonde highlights are funky."

"Blonde highlights?!" He gasped, "I need a mirror!"

"Uh, I don't have one. How about we go back to camp and run down to the lake?" I asked him. He agreed, and we ran back to the side of the battlefield we were supposed to be on. We grabbed our bags quickly, slinging them over our shoulders almost in synchronization. All of our stuff was there, the group hadn't even taken it when they took their stuff.

"Weird. Not even a note," I looked at Nolan, "They aren't the type to do that, I think at least someone would've taken our stuff."

"Yeah, weird," He said, hiking up the trail. I followed after him, looking back. I saw something rustle in the trees very faintly, but as I looked it seemed to stop. I turned around, and the noise of twigs snapping and leaves crunching came about.

"Do you hear that?" I whispered, tapping Nolan on the shoulder.

"Yeah…" He muttered back.

But that's when I saw it. First there was one, then two, then five…

IN THE FACE OF DANGER

Five coyotes, all dangerously ravenous, circled Nolan and I. I didn't know what to do, I was insanely scared and I walked backwards, slowly, bumping backs with Nolan.

"Elizabeth, I'll protect you," I heard him say.

Oh, crap, not Samuel! I thought, my heart pounding. He might wreck Nolan's body, and I don't need to explain to his mom what happened to him!

"No, Sam, I've got it, run," I said, through gritted teeth; teeth of which that were much duller then the ones on the growling canines that were closing in on us.

"No, you have to run!" He yelled. Two of the dogs lunged at me, and the other three started attacking him. I had no idea what to do, so I started running. I felt them tearing at my shoes, my jeans, and then my legs, but I kept running anyway. It burned, feeling them pull at my flesh, but I had no other choice.

Noamuel, he was back there with three others, so I ran faster, running back to the camp.

"Thank God!" I screamed, grabbing Kozo's bag. No one was at our camp, but our stuff was there. I assumed everyone was down at the lake, so I ran in circles as coyotes chased me. I pulled the revolver from under his jeans, where he always kept it, and I started shooting at the dogs. I hit them and they yelped, falling. I ran back down the path that I'd come from, reloading at the same time. Noamuel was there, standing upon the pile of three dogs as I stopped and stared.

"How…"

"I'm skilled, Elizabeth, you underestimate me," He smiled, and I smiled back. He was barely scratched, but me, my legs were torn. Well, scratched, but scratched a lot. My shoes were in shreds and my jeans looked like shorts now.

Noamuel, on the other hand, only had cut his knee. One of the dogs whined, and Noamuel stepped harder onto its neck until I heard a sickening crack.

"That's not cool…" I whispered. He only grinned wider, "Some of the things in life aren't cool, Vie."

I was starting to forget the line between Samuel and Nolan, it was becoming hazy, as if someone had blurred the switching between them, "Nolan, you know how I feel about killing animals."

"You shot two of them up there, what difference is this?"

I blushed madly, looking down, "That's different, somehow, I know it is."

It seemed to hurt more when Nolan hurt the animals. He knew how I felt, Samuel didn't, and he's just using his condition as an excuse.

"Would you rather their lives over mine?" He asked, and for one moment, I actually thought I did.

"No," I mumbled, like a child. He had some control over me, I feared him like some children feared their parents.

"I'm gonna go find everyone else, you can do whatever." I walked away, angrily, hoping that it was apparent in my stance and in my attitude that I wasn't in the greatest mood.

"Bye, Vie." I heard him say behind me.

"Say it like you mean it!" I called back, not stopping.

"I hate you too, Violet."

WE'RE ALL TO BLAME

I continued walking away, furiously. How could he hate me? Did he mean it? I stopped and sat on a large rock, somewhere in the middle of the path. I glanced down at my hands, those of which were trembling with anger.

"Violet," I looked to the left and saw Kozo coming at me, not exactly who I'd hoped to see come apologize.

"Where were you guys? We searched all morning and we couldn't find you, so we went back to camp," He turned and looked around, "Where's Nolan?"

I shrugged and he patted my shoulder, "He'll come back, let's just go down to the lake. Alright?" He took my bag, which was unzipped, and his gun fell out. He picked it up and looked at me questioningly, "What … did you kill Nolan!?"

"No! Of course not. We just got attacked by coyotes – "

"So that explains the dead dogs on our campsite… gotcha.'

We walked up the path, past the dogs and left my stuff on camp. Everything there seemed in order, at least.

"We're at the lake again. Come when you're ready," He tossed me his gun and I caught it with ease, "If something else comes 'atcha." He laughed and waved, jogging down the path to the lake.

I decided to wait for Nolan. I called his cell once, which I found out was in his camp bag the hard way. I tried screaming for him, and that only attracted Adam who seemed annoyed.

"Forget him," He'd said, "He's taken anyway."

Then, I tried screaming for Samuel. That time, Alyssa came.

"Look, dude, you've got to stop listening to stupid ghost stories. We're all worried about you, so can you please come down to the lake so we can make sure you don't do anything stupid?" She looked at the gun at my side and swiped it away, "Like that." She placed it back in Kozo's bag and slung it over her shoulder, "I don't think we should trust you with guns."

"Fine, Alyssa," I lied, "I need to change and I'll be down."

As she was safely out of hearing range, I started back down the path to the battlefield. I thought as I walked, walked as I thought, whichever way you want to put it. He's Nolan and I'm Violet and we were supposed to be together no matter what. But now, it seemed to me as if Nolan was gone and some sort of big egoed freak was here to replace him for good.

People have told me he's bad news, but did I listen? No. I don't listen to people's opinions, but I think I should from now on. Maybe this was the part of Nolan that everyone was trying to save me from. Or maybe it was just something totally different.

But I can remember the times when he seemed so kind. We'd have awkward silences where we could just stare into each other's eyes without saying anything and it seemed as if everything had been said.

Before I knew it, I'd already been halfway into the field without even noticing it. So, I lied down and gazed up at the sky.

It'd been up there since the beginning of time, it had watched all the horrors of murder, all the happiness of weddings, all the death and chaos of war, but it never fell. I never understood the sky, through everything it's been through, it's remained the strongest thing in nature.

I wanted to be like the sky.

"Elizabeth, if you're out there, please come and speak with me," I whispered. No reply came, only a sharp wind. Then I heard someone's voice, other then my own, inside my head. I faintly wondered if I'd finally went insane, but then I figured I'd just called the ghost of Elizabeth. Maybe Nolan had called the ghost of Samuel, I mean why hadn't Samuel chosen to invade Adam or Kozo?

"Hello, child," The voice said to me in a sweet, old lady voice that reminded me of a grandmotherly figure.

"What is Samuel doing to Nolan?" I asked the wind. I guess she was pondering the question, because it took her a while to give me an answer.

"He's looking for my necklace."

"Oh, what does it look like?" I decided to ask, nervously. She described the necklace that was hanging upon my neck as if she'd been looking at it up close. She even described the chipped part of one of the stars points.

"It sounds pretty," I replied. I could feel her smile, "Yes, it's a nice necklace, but I don't know why he wants it so badly. He wasn't the one to give it to me. It was my son, before he's passed away."

She paused, "Samuel thought I loved him more, and in my opinion, he'd poisoned him. I think, now that he's dead, he's not limited by mortality. Now he can go to whatever lengths to destroy that necklace, and if he finds it, I don't know…"

She seemed to disappear as the wind faded away, leaving me anxious, nervous, scared… all in one. Just a heap of anxiety on the ground, yep, that's me.

CHAINS

No one found me until around 6:00 PM that night. Yeah, that was pretty long, but I'd slept through most of it. I was lacking energy, and I could barely think straight without dozing off at that point, so I'd persuaded myself to believe that hearing Elizabeth was only in a screwed up dream that I've had due to lack of sleep.

"Vie, what're you doing?! Everyone's worried sick and you're out here taking a nap!" Lilith yelled, poking me with the tip of her shoe as if I was some unimaginably gross unidentified object.

Vera was with her. They sat next to me as I sat up, "Dude, you're seriously scaring us all. Why are you doing this?" Vera asked, patting my back as if I were about to sputter something about some abusive relationship like those people on Oprah and Dr. Phil.

"I don't know," I lied. That seems like all I've been doing, lying. "I don't think you guys should stay here, I might be dangerous." I muttered sarcastically.

"No, we have to watch you. It's our job." Lilith said.

"So now I have babysitters?"

"You brought it upon yourself," Vera added, "And no, we aren't babysitters. We are insane people watchers."

"Ohh, clever." I quipped.

I dropped my head into my hands and they continued to pat my back. "Stop," I mumbled, "I don't need help."

"Yeah, you do. And we all want to get the best help for you."

I stood up, staring at them with fury in my eyes, "I'm not insane!"

They only stared at me, not believing what I'd just said. I turned around and walked towards the left half of the field, I'd never been there before.

"Where are you going?" Vera demanded.

"I dunno, but away from you guys!"

I broke out into a sprint, running as fast as I could. My legs burned and my eyes stung, but I knew they'd give up and get someone else to come find me soon. I ran, maybe for 15 minutes straight, but I ran.

They didn't follow me.

I'd found a short trail that led to a beach. It was pretty. The sun was setting over the ocean, casting out dark shades of orange and yellow. The water glistened, as fresh raindrops fell upon it. I didn't recall reading about rain in the forecast for this week, so it surprised me. I slid under a tree, snagged my iPod from my pocket, and listened to anything that it was on while staring into the heaving rain.

"Have you seen the other end of this beach? It's really nice."

I looked up and there stood Nolan, the person I really didn't want to see right now.

"No, I just got here," I grumbled, aggravated. Why did he always come in when he was least wanted? And what if Samuel came with him? Then what.

"Look, I don't want you to stop being angry with me. You have a valid reason, but I just want to say I'm sorry about killing the coyotes," He stopped, noticing I'd been tuning him out the whole time. He rolled his eyes. "Just saying, of course, you don't have to listen."

"I'm not," I retorted, raising the volume a little higher.

"Are you sure?"

I raised it higher. "Yes."

"How about now?" He was practically screaming; his voice bellowed through the open area.

"Still pretty sure!" I yelled back. The volume reached its limit, but my ears still found his voice and my brain still processed it as something I must hear.

"So then can you hear this?" He stopped for a moment, removed the headphone from my left ear and casually leaned in and whispered, "Love ya."

He put it back in and smiled as I moved over the other way, "You're not getting out of trouble that easily."

"I can try, can't I?"

I stood up and left him sitting on the ground. My hair was soaked, but my iPod was safe in the pocket of my sweatshirt. I put up my hood for the sake of it.

"No. You can't."

I walked down the length of the beach, not caring where I went as I stared down at my shoes, or what was left of them. I hadn't changed since the incident with the coyotes, so they were soaked with blood and dirt and sweat and dog saliva and sand and anything else you can possibly name in one sentence. My jean legs were gone, lost inside the dead body of a few coyotes.

My eyes were stinging with tears, I didn't know if they were from sadness and hate or the salt water in the air. But they were still tears. I felt Nolan follow me. He was trying hard, wasn't he?

SEA WATER REALLY DOESN'T TASTE SO GOOD

"Violet, come on."

The rain pounded on me, making his voice seem even more distant then it already was. We still walked for about 5 minutes. Then he stopped.

I stopped, turning around. The rain had made his hair stick to his forehead, and it rolled down his cheeks like tears would. Maybe he wouldn't notice me crying, but then I remembered that I had my hood up and that it would be noticeable because no rain would hit my face. Unless it came down sideways, which it wasn't. He stepped closer, close enough to touch my cheek. I didn't stop him.

"You're crying." He whispered, as if I didn't notice. I wiped the tears from my eyes, which just kept spilling anyway. It blurred my vision, but I tried to escape. I turned and ran, pretty far, until I hit a piece of wood and toppled around in the sand.

He held out his hand, but by the time I thought about it, I surrendered. I'd taken it and he helped me up, pulling me into some crazy hug that I'd always hated, but I returned it.

"Do you remember the time you pulled that stupid stunt to get you to stop liking me?" He whispered. I nodded.

"Did it work?"

I wondered. I don't think it did. I shook my head finally. He smiled down at me as he wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Buck up. We're only here for so long."

And then he disappeared.

It took me a long time to realize what just happened.

Had I only envisioned Nolan to calm myself down? Was I even talking to him? It seemed like he was there the whole time. Was it Samuel?

So many questions raced through my head, like the speed of light. It had to be real. I was dripping wet, and it was still raining.

And, come to think of it, I can't even tell anyone about it because everyone finds me utterly insane already.

I turned around and figured I was crying again because I saw a blurred figure approaching me. It was a woman this time, I don't think it was Vera or Lilith or Alyssa because this woman seemed too old.

"My necklace!" I heard the woman say, "You've had it? Take it off, right and quick!" She screamed, "Before he comes after you!"

I ran the other way. All right, I'm not fond of strangers coming up to me and talking about my jewelry. But, that's just me of course. I haven't run so much in my life, I've run and run all today.

I decided that she'd stop following me, so I stopped near a tree and slept. It was 9 PM anyway. Who'd care if I went missing?

FOUR

I woke up, it was around 5 AM. I surveyed the area, wondering if anyone would ever notice my disappearance. The lady, who I had assumed to be Elizabeth, was gone. Now I had two ghosts after me, and I had to worry about Nolan, and then worry about everyone else…

The weight of the world has happened to fall upon my weak shoulders and I'm stuck in a position where I can't do anything but sit and watch.

I was starting to wonder how long I could stay alone out here without cracking and throwing myself in the ocean, but guess who came to my rescue?

"Hey, Violet. You're insane, now you're coming with me," Adam grabbed my hand with his iron grip and literally dragged me along the sand like I was some type of rag doll. I tried to scratch at his arm, but he wouldn't let go. I followed along, only because I was afraid he'd rip my arm out of my socket if I didn't.

"Adam… let me explain…" I said through the pain of having my arm pulled.

He let go of me cautiously, and I fell backwards onto my rump.

"Violet, no, let me tell you something. I don't care about anyone but myself and Vera, and you're making her crazy," He wagged a finger in my face, "And it's driving her insane. You can't do this, and I won't let you." He yanked me up off the ground.

"We're done explaining."

He shot me a look that said if – you – say - one – more – thing - I'm – really – gonna – pull – your arm – off, so I obeyed said look and hushed up for the whole way back to camp.

Everyone stared at me like I was some mutant when we arrived. They all looked packed, ready to head home, only on the 4th day.

"What're we doing?" I asked.

"We?" Lilith said, questionably.

That's when I realized they were leaving without me. Before I could protest, Vera said, "You've only caused us trouble, and that's what we all need the least. This was supposed to be a fun trip, but it ended up being something much worse." They walked down the other path, leaving Nolan and my bags there behind them.

I found it pointless trying to follow them. At least I had my own car. But … if they took the keys…

I frantically jumped up and tackled my purse. I opened it, and there were the shiny golden keys, glistening up at me.

"Thank god…" I whispered, closing up the bag and laying it with the others that were there. I had to duke it out here, 3 more days. I was strong. I could do it.

But about ten minutes later, after hard thinking and instant coffee, I realized that I was deep in my own cow pie.

"They left? I thought they'd never leave." I watched as Nolan made his way to me. I was pretty sure it was him, I wasn't crying anymore so I could see straight.

I was the granite, I was strong, but right now, I'm pretty sure I was turning a bit spongy in the presence of him.

"Yeah, I might drive home too."

He sat next to me and leaned on my shoulder, as if nothing had happened, "Why? We still got 3 days here." He fluttered his long lashes, "Don't you like being with me?"

I quirked a brow, "Hah, not at the moment, no."

"Vie, what happened to the old days when you were all over me? Did they leave? Or are they just taking a break cause I sure miss them."

He was the one who was insane, not me.

"Nolan, are you okay?" I reached out to touch his forehead, but his arm shot out and grabbed me.

"Fine, just don't worry yourself."

He placed my hand back down at my side, leaning a bit closer, toying with the sleeve of my jacket, "Where was I?"

I couldn't help it at that point. I lashed my hand out, slapping him clean across the face. He backed up, as did I, and he stared at me, stunned.

"What was that for?" He demanded.

"For the future if you don't follow my lead." I whispered, leaning into his lips.

We kissed for about a good 16 minutes. Yes. 16.

EXCEPTIONAL TURNAROUND

The next day, Nolan and I just walked around. He remained Nolan for the day, and I started to see the blonde highlights were fading even though we'd been in the sun for a long time, and the effect should've made the highlights darker, not lighter. The day blurred, it was fun.

Now, it was 9:00. He was asleep next to me, and I'd reassured myself the next too days would fly faster then this one had.

Hah, I'd actually believed it.

I'd stepped out of my sleeping bag, stretching, when I noticed Nolan staring at me. "What're you looking at?" I asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"You're eyes, Elizabeth, have they changed?"

My heart sank.

"Sam, why do you say that?" I sounded a bit annoyed.

"Because they're dark brown, not black." He stood, lifting a finger and caressing my cheek. I pushed his hand away.

"Whatever, I guess they just change color."

He sighed and looked away, leaving me feeling bad just a bit. I looked away as well. We sat, just there, in total silence. Staring at the ground, about 15 minutes later, I said, "Nolan?"

"Yep, Vie," He answered, giving me hope.

"Can we go to sleep now?"

"Sure."

"No more Sam for the night?"

"Don't think so."

I looked over at him, "I don't believe you." I decided to fall into my sleeping bag and start to sleep, but then I felt his stare on me again.

"What?" I said, irritably. "I love how defensive you get," He smiled, almost laughing, "It's pretty funny cause it's over the stupidest stuff." His laugh bellowed through the quiet night, causing me to shiver almost unnoticeably.

"Yeah, well, stop starring and go to sleep." I pulled my jacket over my head, but I couldn't find a comfortable position. I turned to the left. I felt his stare. I flipped to the right, and I still felt his stare.

"Starring is not that cool." I said, facing upright with my jacket still over my head which muffled my voice.

"Yes it is, when it comes to you." He laughed again, causing me to shake with anger. "Quit it!" I finally yelled, yanking the jacket from my face and throwing it at him. It hit his chest and he caught it before it hit the dirt.

"Jeeze, calm down, I'm only joking," He unrolled the jacket from its ball and stood above me, placing it over me like a blanket. "I'll sleep."

He stuffed his long legs into the sleeping bag, "See?" He rolled to face me, zipping his bag. "No more playing, just sleep."

I still did not believe one word he said, so I faced the other way. How could I love him so much, yet hate him just as much at the same time?

I noticed it was starting to rain again.

"Do we have umbrellas?" I murmured. He shrugged.

"I dunno. We should check."

I sat up and he was already out of his sleeping bag. "Coming with?" He asked. I nodded. We walked into the distance, together. I didn't know how much of a huge mistake I was making…

CLIFF DIVER

We walked past the cliff as it started raining harder. I decided to walk to the edge. Looking down, I saw all the sharp edges, the hanging branches that were barren. I stopped myself from looking anymore, when I felt someone grab my shoulders. It was Nolan, or should I say for lack of better terms, Noamuel.

"What're you doing?" I hissed.

"What I should've done a long time ago, Elizabeth."

He pushed me, and I nearly stumbled off the cliff. I turned around, loosing my bearings as I slipped. My hand caught a rock, and I mentally thanked god for those rock-climbing lessons. Instinctively, I tried to pull myself up, but Noamuel was there. He stepped on my hand, and I let out a loud scream. My voice echoed through the canyon, the exact canyon that I'd be falling to my death. No one would remember me. Well, maybe they'd report me missing. Maybe Nolan would run away, knowing what happened. We'd both be missing. Everyone would mourn for a day, but the later it got, the more they'd forget.

You know how they say your life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die? Well, it's true. I saw everything: my mom, my dad, my brother, and my friends… Nolan, the old one (not this new deranged one)… I couldn't help but to start crying.

"Nol – Samuel, what're you doing?" I screamed through the howling wind, "Please, help me!"

"You didn't help me, Elizabeth – "

"No!" That was Nolan. It was like two people were fighting for control of the remote, Nolan's body being the remote, Samuel and Nolan being the controllers. He was fighting Samuel.

"Vie, listen, grab my leg!" I grabbed his leg with one hand, but the excessive force of his other leg was crushing my other hand. He moved that leg, and he grabbed my hand. The wind lashed at our faces, but I'm sure I saw him cry. It streaked through the dirt that stained his face.

He pulled me up while calling out, "I've won! You can't have me now!" As I grasped onto his warm body, he cried into my hair. I cried into his chest. I felt his heartbeat, and it matched mine. Fast, then slower, gradually going back to normal.

That's when we both realized; we'd won this battle. We hadn't figured out what was troubling Samuel, but we'd won.

"I love you, Nolan, don't let me go ever again."

"You too, Violet, let's stay here forever."

The End … Till the Next One 

Ungrateful Return

Crawling through the vents of an old wedding chapel in a black dress wasn't the greatest idea I've had in a while. I stopped, peering down over into a room. It was Adam talking to the priest, not the room I'd expected, but I listened in anyway.

"Leave out the forever hold your peace part," I heard Adam say, "We're having some insane people at this wedding."

The priest nodded.

I started to crawl, but something didn't feel right. I heard a sickening crack, and my heart fell. And so did my body, right in front of the priest and Adam.

"Like her." He said, almost calmly, but his face grew into something else I hadn't seen for a while, pure anger.

Wedding Day

The wedding had been scheduled for the last Saturday in August. Adam had just turned 18 in June; Vera was 18 since April. Alyssa, Lilith and I were bridesmaids. I felt quite special, standing in front of the mirror, a girl dressed in a beautiful black dress and flawless hair and makeup staring back at me. Her shoes sparkled in the sun, the silver rhinestones matching the silver ones that wrapped around her waist.

"Pretty." Said Alyssa, coming up behind me, in matching attire. Lilith was preening her hair by the mirror at the other side of the room. We'd been in a hotel for a few nights already; a lot of people were invited to this wedding. It was Ally, Lilith, and I in a room, Vera in her own, Adam in his own, and Kozo and Nolan in another. Kozo wasn't very fond of hanging in a room with Nolan, so he was in ours most of the time. Except now, he had to get ready for the wedding with Nolan whether he liked it or not.

"When is the limo coming?" I asked, hooking the earrings to my ears. I smiled at the girl in the mirror, and she smiled back.

"7:00."

"What time is it?"

"6:32."

Wow, I'd woken up early. Yes, people, we are talking in AM here. Very un-Violet, right? Wrong! I'd grown up a bit. I was still 17, but yeah, I'd grown up since October. I'd grown up mentally, and everyone started to believe that I wasn't insane.

Nolan had become Nolan again; it seemed to just be the camp that was getting to him.

"What an early wedding."

"Yeah, but the ceremony starts at 10. We get there at 8:00, we set up, we have a wedding and it ends at 11:30, we come back here and that'll be 12 ish, we wait for about an hour and just hang, then we go to the reception at 1. Party like a rock star."

"Who planned this?" I asked, shaking my hair until my bangs landed against my face perfectly, just the way I liked it.

"Well, me and Vera."

"Where was I?"

"Shopping with Nolan, probably," She'd added a scornful distaste when she said Nolan's name. She didn't approve of me hanging out with him, after the incident during camp last year.

"He's changed," I muttered. She wouldn't believe it.

"No, Violet, people don't just change." Her tone didn't remind me of Alyssa, it reminded me of my mother.

"Oh jeeze, mommy, calm yourself," I rolled my eyes, feeling her glance sideways at me. "Your funeral."

"Why funerals, its Vera's wedding day!" Lilith said.

She turned around, smiling.

I couldn't help but laugh. Only half her makeup was on, which made me laugh for some reason.

"You're so immature…"

"You love it."

"No, I don't.

"Yes, you do."

"I do!" Alyssa laughed.

We all laughed together. We're quite weird, I admit it.

But we all love each other in some way, through the flaws and all. That's how Vera found Adam, and how Alyssa found Kozo.

At that moment, I figured out what I would say at the toast. And yes, I think it would make some hearts melt.

LIMOS ARE PRETTY SWEET… SCHWEET

We didn't ride with Adam and Vera. The rest of us rode in a long, stretch limo, along with Brendan, Kozo and Nolan, the 3 best men. Brendan, my old friend since elementary school, was Adam's best friend. But the week of the camping trip, he couldn't come because he couldn't find a way out of school. His mom wouldn't let him go, so he obeyed, for once.

I laughed, ruffling his red hair. It actually moved.

"Whoa, Brendan, your hair usually never moves." He shook his head and it moved freely. "New conditioner, I assume?" Lilith said.

I caught Nolan glancing at me. We were walking down the aisle together, instead of him and Eva (they were still together, to my hatred…) because Vera didn't exactly know Eva. She was invited, but she wasn't a bridesmaid.

Lilith was walking with Brendan, and of course Alyssa was walking with Kozo.

There's a rumor going around that Kozo's proposing to Ally tonight. So many lovers, and I'm still here, single and hating it. Kozo had ran a ring by me and I asked him what it was for. He shrugged, said someday and walked away.

He'd done the same to Lilith, same ring and all.

"Do you remember when Adam and Vera had crushes on each other?" I asked. They all stopped talking, reminiscing on the past.

"I hate reminiscing, stop it!" Kozo yelled. I shrugged as he threw me a dirty look.

"It was so cute, love at first few sights…" Alyssa smiled, kissing Kozo on the cheek, "And then we started and it was all downhill from there…" Her voice trailed off into pet names.

"Vera was so in love. But she didn't 'wanna be the man'." Lilith laughed, "But here they are, getting married. Who would've thought?"

I wondered if Nolan and I would have such a fate. I wished.

"We promised never to separate from each other even though we'd go to high school." I looked around, "And we did a pretty good job of that."

"Yeah, we lost only one person."

I furrowed my brows, "Who?"

"Claire."

…Oh yeah, I remember her…

"Is she gonna be at the wedding?"

Just then, I jolted foreword, upon to Nolan's lap. We'd made a sudden stop, and I was the only one to go flying.

"Whoa, Hello there." He said. I smiled up at him kissing his cheek unto a chorus of awes.

Maybe I would get my happy ending…

CHEERY LITTLE CHAPEL

Like Alyssa had said, we were there around 8. I stepped into the hall and grinned, stretching my arms into the air. I felt someone come from behind and tickle me, and it was Nolan, who seemed to have found his playful side in all the happiness of a wedding chapel.

"Stop!" I squealed through laughter.

After he stopped, I decided to link arms with him. "We walk down this thing, and then we part…" I paused, walking to the front end of the room. He followed. "Here."

"Why must we part, Eliza?"

I stopped breathing, but he started laughing. "I'm kidding! You should've seen the look on your face!"

I sighed and looked towards the ground. He knew how sensitive I felt about that, especially since Samuel had tried to kill me, or Elizabeth… or Vizabeth.

"That wasn't cool." I muttered.

"Yeah, it was, your face was priceless!"

I looked up at him with an annoyed look upon my face. I wished I could've seen it: dark-piercing eyes upon his lighter brown laughing ones.

I lashed out and whipped my hand across his face. He grabbed it and looked at me, "Jesus Christ, Vie, I'm only joking!"

I didn't answer. I was paranoid about Samuel… did he understand that?

"I know not to joke with you anymore…" He rubbed his cheek.

"Look, Nolan, I'm serious about this," I got up in his face and whispered, "Samuel almost killed me and you're taking it as a joke? Not what I'd expect from you."

I turned around and walked away, feeling satisfied with myself. I heard his footsteps behind me.

"Vie, you need to learn how to take a joke!"

He stopped, but I didn't. I kept walking; outside of the chapel/church area into the garden outside for those outdoor weddings. I walked over to the gazebo and sat in it, thinking as I sighed. I came to the conclusion that Nolan thought my death was a joke and that he saved me just in the nick of time.

Did he really save me? I mean he saved me physically, but that mental scar of seeing his face with Samuel's expression upon it… I'm always going to have that in my mind when I think of camping and Nolan.

"Violet! Hey there."

I looked up and it was Vera. She was glowing, not literally, but you could tell how happy she was today. It was like an aura.

"Ready for the big day?" I asked, standing and smoothing my dress. I felt underdressed compared to that gown she had on. It was very unlike Vera to wear something with lace, but I guess that's what weddings do to you.

The lace traveled down the train of the dress. It was a sheer color of white silk; you could tell it was hand made. I almost envied her… for the dress and for the love she'd found.

She also had great makeup, and I wasn't used to seeing her with up-dos besides the occasional messy ponytail.

"I've been ready since I was 13, what can I say?" You could see the smile in her eyes.

I grinned, through my pain of being loveless on one of my best friend's wedding days. I mean, couldn't I at least have someone? Anyone!

…

Well, not anyone, but most people know who I want by now. His name starts with N, … ends in N, and has OLA in the middle.

"How's Adam?" I asked, "Is he ready? Did ya guys talk or anything in the limo?"

Well, of course they did, I thought, mentally scolding myself, Stupid.

"Yeah, we talked about what we're doing after this. We're gonna live with our parents until we can get on our feet…"

"Maybe you'll get enough money from this wedding?"

"I don't think so, I'll be in debt to my family for like ever with all these people at this thing. We probably invited people we never even met. But it's all for love and Adam, so I don't care much –"

"Your parents like Adam?"

"Yeah, he's nice to them. He usually is never nice to older folk, but I mean he gets along great with my dad, and he's a gentleman to my mother, so I guess it's a yes."

My parents hated Nolan, like everyone else. I was getting envious with each answer that followed my question, and in my books, if the conversation was with her asking me the questions would be different. It'd probably go something like this:

Vera: "Hey, Vie, ready for your big day?"

Me: "Holy crap, No!! I'm so nervous!"

Vera: "How's Nolan?"

Me: "He's a bigger wreck then me!"

Vera: "Did you talk on the way here?"

Me: "No… all we did was argue about what we're gonna do after this…"

Vera: "What are you gonna do?"

Me: "I dunno!!!"

Vera: "Do your parents like Nolan?"

Me: "They hate him. They tell him to get out of the house every time he comes and we get into arguments about him and how bad of an influence he is to me."

Not so great, huh? My future's halfway into the gutter.

SETTING UP

Vera and I headed back to the church. I had to start setting up, putting out the flowers and stuff, you know crap that people never wanna do so it gets thrown on my plate.

So, basically, I have a lot of crap on my plate right now.

I started to decorate, but with my attention span, in about 5 minutes I got bored and was looking for something cool to do. As in, not this.

"Hey, Verr… I'mma go to the bathroom." I lied, "Be right back."

I walked to where the bathroom would be, but I saw a vent. Nolan must've been in one of these rooms, I couldn't find him anywhere…so wouldn't this be a good time to find him?

I found a few boxes and stacked them upon a chair. I maneuvered my way up there somehow, with these giant heels that were unbearably cutting into my foot.

I was halfway into the vent when I heard someone's voice.

"Where is Violet?! Did she get lost on her way to the bathroom or something?!" I heard footsteps, Vera's footsteps, and I quickly shimmied into the vent and closed the door to it. I commando crawled a few feet, and then started through the duct.

Crawling through the vents of an old wedding chapel in a black dress wasn't the greatest idea I've had in a while. I stopped, peering down over into a room. It was Adam talking to the priest, not the room I'd expected, but I listened in anyway.

"Leave out the forever hold your peace part," I heard Adam say, "We're having some insane people at this wedding."

The priest nodded.

I started to crawl, but something didn't feel right. I heard a sickening crack, and my heart fell. And so did my body, right in front of the priest and Adam.

"Like her." He said, almost calmly, but his face grew into something else I hadn't seen for a while, pure anger.

"Uh… I can … explain…" I started to say, still on the floor. The priest looked at me with pity, but he didn't look like he'd stop Adam from killing me.

"Violet, I'm giving you 3 seconds to explain."

Before I could say anything, he yelled, "Vera's parents are going to have to pay for this! Do you understand that?"

It seemed to haze past me. I was so dazed by the situation, I barely heard what he was saying.

"Then I'll pay for them!" I heard myself say. But inside, the little voice in my head was screaming, NO! What's wrong with you!?

"Haha, Violet, you actually got me there for a second. You're so freaking annoying, and I hate you! Okay, get out! You're not cool, you suck, now get out!"

I looked at his merciless eyes, his tight lips, his angry stature. I got up, dusted myself off, and whispered, "Fine. Thanks for inviting me, or was that Vera's idea?"

Before he could answer I walked out of the room. I started down the hall when I heard someone call me.

"Vie, there you are!"

I turned around, standing almost face to face with Nolan.

When had he gotten so close? I wondered, And how could he just appear, like a spider or an ant crawling through a crack in the floor.

"Hey. I was looking for you."

He started rubbing the back of his neck, looking down sheepishly, "Yeah, I was looking for you too. I have to tell you something."

I wondered, faintly, if he was gonna say he loved me or something.

"Sure, I had to tell you something too…"

"I'll go first." He said.

"Okay," I nodded. I would tell him I was in love with him… and he would tell me the same thing.

Right?

"Is it okay if I walk with Eva down the aisle? Vera said it would be okay if it was fine with you."

EXPRESSIONS

"Uh…" I didn't know what to say. If I said yes, I'd be pounding myself for it later. If I said no, I really don't know how he'd take it.

"Is that a yes?"

"No," I whispered.

He looked a bit shocked.

"Oh… okay… Let me just tell her…"

He whipped out his cell phone as he started to walk away. I grabbed his shoulder, and he looked over back at me.

"You're gonna change your mind?" He said.

I shook my head.

"Then don't waste my time."

He turned and continued walking; dialing what I assumed was Eva's phone number.

"Nolan!" I yelled. He didn't stop, didn't even look back. "Come on, please…" I started after him, catching up and swerving in front of him to stare him face to face. Well, if I was the same height, he was a few inches taller.

"I didn't get to tell you what I wanted to say."

"I don't need to waste tim – Hey, Eva. Listen, babe, I'm sorry…" He walked past me. I started towards him again. Yes, I don't give up very easily. But my patience, well, let's say it's pretty slim.

I slapped the cell phone from his grip and it skidded across the marble floor. I wonder if it broke, but then I heard Eva's voice. It was like pins and needles in my foot, you know, that feeling that will come but when it's there it annoys the living heck outta you?

I walked over to it, looked down.

"Bye, hon." I said, slamming down on it with my heel. I felt proud, but then I remembered Nolan.

I turned to face him, and I saw that anger yet again. This time, though, it seemed to hurt more. It felt like my soul had been ripped to shreds.

"Violet, you know something? I truly think you're insane."

"Oh, thanks, it feels good hearing that by a possessed little pimp."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Did it ever occur to you that you're single?"

I stopped, my cheeks burning a bright shade of pink. I'd promised myself that I wouldn't ruin my makeup…

"Oh, Violet, please, I didn't mean it that way…"

I must've been crying. I turned and walked away, trying not to smudge my makeup at the same time.

"Violet… Vie…"

I turned around and he stopped, dazed to see me crying. He's been seeing me in tears a lot lately.

"You just don't understand what it's like when you love someone to death and you find out that they don't love you at all. And on top of that, they lie. Do you know how that feels like?"

He didn't reply, "Didn't think so."

I walked away, but he didn't follow. I felt like turning back and slapping him, but I didn't. I walked further, turning the corner into the corridor if the chapel.

"Vera, You said he could walk with Eva instead of me? You know how much I like him…and…"

She looked at me, arching a brow. "You broke the ceiling to this place, Violet."

I sighed and looked up, as if waiting for God to pity me.

"Yes, Vera, and I'm sorry, but…"

"I'm sorry too, but Adam and I have decided that you can't come."

I looked at her, confused, "What?"

"You can't come."

"Vera, I've helped you thorough this whole thing! And…what do you mean I can't come? I'm your bridesmaid and even if you did want Eva to walk down the aisle, you don't know her…and…and…"

"Nolan does. And she'll be enough to take your place."

I searched her face for answers, but nothing came.

"Is this a joke?"

"No, Violet."

I gulped, looking down at my shoes.

"Alright."

And I left the chapel, quietly, each step of the heel cutting into my heart.

RAINA RAINA GO AWAY

It was pouring as I stepped out of the chapel.

It was weird, you know? It's summer, but the winds were blowing and the rain was ice cold. I decided that I wasn't going to run back and beg for forgiveness.

No, I'd go back to the hotel… I'd make that reception. After all, it's a masquerade, right? No one will know it'll be me.

But, I'd have to do something to my wardrobe.

I went down a few more blocks, getting absolutely soaked. I checked my reflection in the window. It was nothing like the girl I saw this morning. The girl that was looking at me now had runny makeup and drooping hair. I kept walking past, noticing a few uneasy stares as I started to get into the center district of town.

I passed a few shops, but one caught my eye.

"Barber…" I read, deciding to roam into the storefront mom and pop type barbershop.

"Hello!" A woman said behind a counter, "My, my you look like you have to go somewhere important. What can I do for you, honey?"

"Uh… Can I get a short bob with long fringed bangs?" I asked. Right now, I had the best hair in the world: scene. Choppy layers and bangs… I'd always wanted it since I was little.

But this was dire, and I guess I could spare some hair here and there.

I pulled my hair from the bun and the woman inspected it.

"Honey, you have great hair. Why mess it up by cutting it so short?" She asked, fingering through the locks that were curled towards the end, straight at the top.

"Because… it's bothering me?" I said, which was a lie.

"Alright…" She said, cautiously, "Take a seat, dear."

I sat in the chair, staring at the girl in the mirror again. She looked like a wreck; she almost scared me in a way. But then I started, looking deeper, and noticed that it looked as if my eyes were brown, not black.

I turned away and remembered Elizabeth. Her eyes were brown.

I shut mine, hoping that it was just a figment of my imagination.

"All right, ready to cut that hair?" The woman said, returning with scissors and a comb.

"Yes…"

And one by one, snip by snip, my once long, shiny black locks fell to the floor. Dead.

She finished in about a half and hour, and I couldn't believe what I'd just done to myself. I looked nothing like Violet. My name should've been something luxurious and preppy like Brittany or Amber…

"Thanks. I feel much lighter now," I looked over at the lady and she smiled.

"You like it?" She asked, almost sounding surprised.

"It's pretty."

"Thank you, dear."

I handed her a $20 bill that I'd found in my purse. "No, thank you."

I walked out of the barbers, and now it wasn't raining. It was sunny. Again.

"Hmm… August rains bring summer shine…" I whispered, quaintly walking to the cab that I'd just hauled. "Sir, do you know 22nd Street?"

"Yes, ma'am, hop in."

I smiled.

"Thank you."

And I rode back to the hotel, while snipping at my dress. I'd cut it down to my knees, and I'd figured a way to de-attach the rhinestone belt that I wore around my waist.

"Thanks." I said, handing him what seemed to be a $50. I wasn't sure.

"Gee, thank you, Miss."

And he drove away with the bottom of my dress in the back of his car.

NEW IDENTITY

"Who am I anymore?" I whispered to myself. I'd gotten a new room at the hotel, took my stuff and brought it down there, and I took a shower. I'd passed another mirror and finally noticed the black of my eyes. They reminded me of cat's eyes, they were beautiful (not to sound conceited, though).

"At least that stayed the same…"

I walked around the room; it seemed too big for just one person. I jumped on the bed for a good five minutes, and then lied down because I almost hit my head on the ceiling.

"Did I deserve this?" I muttered to myself, "I mean, Vera's not the type of person to just kick me out… is she?"

I glanced over at the clock. The time read 12:33.

"Oh crap!" I yelled. I had to do my hair again and put on my dress and makeup… and my mask was in my purse (I'd bought it before I came here, I found some Michael's craft store … weird.). I wondered if they remembered me.

I could just picture Vera and Adam at the altar: their I Do's would be sweet and modest and their kiss would've been that of a new couple. They were shy when we watched, their best friends. So I wonder what it was like when it was in front of foreign relatives… or even their parents. I guess I'd never know.

I got up and ran to the mirror, almost slipping on the hardwood floors. I had socks on, which did not help.

I pulled the dress over my now messy hair. I had straightened it before, and I looked nothing like the original version of me. I quickly put on a light coating of makeup and grabbed my purse.

Am I going to make it? I hope I would, being late would make me stand out even more then I had to. I grabbed my shoes and ran out of the room and to the elevator. I quickly strapped them onto my feet.

"Uhh… crap…" I fumbled through my bag, searching for my invitation. "Where is it… where…"

I grabbed something and pulled it out, but immediately threw it to the ground once I saw it. I almost started crying. There, at my feet, lied a small picture of my friends and I.

The elevator stopped at the lobby, and I ran out. I almost bumped into a man.

"Excuse me…" I muttered, jogging past him. I heard him calling out to me. I looked back and he had the picture in his hand.

"No, no!" I yelled back. I don't know why. But I ran down the street and hauled a cab. I flicked out the invitation and handed it to the driver, "Can you get me there in 20 minutes?"

"Sure thing, ma'am, traffic's light, just came from that direction."

"Thanks."

I slid into the backseat and started to think about myself.

Where was Elizabeth? And Sam? I know, this isn't about me, but the thought just popped into my head. Were they gone for good? Or just hiding for the perfect moment to whip out their immortality and embarrass Nolan to death…

Did Eva and Nolan walk down the aisle together? I sighed and dropped my head into my hands. I still loved the heck out of him, and he didn't even notice. What'd I do to deserve such torture?

"Almost there." The driver said. I didn't even notice the time passing; everything seemed so fragile and crystalline… that if I'd let it pass with my noticing, it'd shatter into millions of pieces.

I glanced out the window. The driver was going pretty fast, so everything seemed like a blur. Crowds of people lined the streets. A few couples were hugging and taking pictures under the hot sun of the August day.

And I was here, in a cab, sneaking to one of my best friends receptions. It's an all time low for me, now, and I don't know how I'm going to get back to my high.

BACK AGAIN

I ran through the door of the large reception hall where everything was being held. "Wedding party?" I asked a woman who sat at the receptions desk. She pointed to two, large mahogany doors up a flight of stairs, "There, miss. Are you part of the wedding party who's gotten here late, because that's all that's inside right now."

"Uhh, Yeah." I said. I started to walk away, but then I heard her yell, "Miss!!"

I turned around, "Yes?"

"You have to find your name on the list."

She handed me a clipboard with a long list of names. Mine was under bridesmaid. I signed it quickly and headed inside, flipping my mask onto my face. I guess I didn't look quite like myself