(A/N: Sorry for the POV change here, just thought it'd be better if the first chapter was Sage's POV and the rest was 3rd person. Thanks for reading, by the way! :D)
"Sage, wake up, honey!" Sage's mother, Hailie, called. "It's time for school!"
"Give me five more minutes..." Sage said, covering her head with a plump pillow.
"No, sweetie! I woke up late so you have thirty minutes instead of an hour! And I've got to be at work early, so I have to get ready too."
"Fine.." Sage mumbled as she sat up and stretched.
She got up and looked in the closet. Her wardrobe was just comfortable stuff like yoga pants and oversized T-shirts, but she also had some skinny jeans and crop tops that she borrowed a year ago and never returned. She slipped on a blue shirt and some ripped skinny jeans and went to the bathroom to straighten her hair.
'I wish I could just go somewhere without all of these horrible people. I think I just need a break from them. I think I need a break from even all of humanity...' She thought as she observed herself in the mirror.
"Analise and Emily, come get your lunch! And Sage, your bus is here!" Sage's mom yelled from the living room.
Sage grabbed her bag and ran. Not to the bus, of course not. She had other plans. She waited for the bus to pass and then got on her bike and made way to the calmest place in Riverside; Mount Ebbot. She had packed her bag with some water bottles and sandwiches for a small picnic. It's the only thing she could think of doing while away from everybody.
When she got there, she laid out her blanket. She has had this oversized blanket since she's been in the orphanage. Alice had given it to her when a new child had borrowed hers. It was handmade with the sun and clouds on one side, and the stars and shining moon on the other. She slept with it every night.
'Finally. Alone at last.' She thought. 'Well, I don't feel very alone. But this is as close to feeling alone as I'll ever get so I might as well make the best of it.'
Sage unzipped her bag and pulled out two ham and swiss sandwiches and some water and placed it on the blanket. She took a bite of a sandwich as she observed the foggy, yet beautiful, views that Mount Ebbot had to offer. By the time she finished one sandwich, she was already full. She packed up her things and decided to take a closer look at the views.
She suddenly felt very cold, so she wrapped up in her blanket and walked towards the cliff. She started to feel unusually calm. Too calm. She knew she should be aware because there are coyotes out here, but she couldn't fight it. As she was walking, her shoe got tangled in a band of vines, causing her to go back to her usually aware self.
'Dammit.. I'll just fix that...'
Sage bent over to undo the vines. But when she stood up, she lost her balance and fell over the edge of the cliff. She screamed and grabbed at a ledge, but her hand slipped and before she could think about what just happened... black.