three.

I wake up.

That's all there is to it, really. It was a brief breath of respite, but now I'm left to fend for myself until the next moment of sleep comes.

The sun nervously peeks through the corner of my window. I guess I was out for more than nine hours… a lot more, by the looks of it. I bury my head into my pillow. I don't care what time it is; I just know it isn't time to get up yet. It probably won't be, ever. It's not like I have things to do. At least, I think I don't… and then I remember the letter.

The letter. I know it's somewhere in my pocket, tear-soaked and wrinkled from being crumpled before. It was the kind of letter that only meant one thing. It meant she was gone, and there was no bringing her back. Sometimes you'll run into old friends elsewhere, but you can just tell. They aren't the same. I can't explain it, but you just know that something happened. That something changed. So when you get that final letter, you know your friend's fate is already set.

And the letter came in. I shouldn't have held on to it, but I couldn't help it. Goodbyes aren't my thing. I'd rather cut my hands off than have to let go, but sometimes you don't have a choice in the matter.

Really though, I never saw it coming. Maple was happy here. She didn't even think once about leaving, or at least from what I knew… and I knew a lot about her. We were close, or so I thought. That's the thing about it. You never really know when to expect these things. They happen– just like that, and then they wreck you. I guess some things never change, no matter where you are. But this time, it's different. Maple isn't gone forever; she's been mere feet away from me all this time.

Then why hasn't she said anything? She knew all about Isaac, so wouldn't she have noticed when she moved into Topaz? I know people change, but I really don't think Maple could take everything we had and toss it in the trash. I admit I wasn't the best person I could've been for her, but she would never kill our friendship like this… would she? Maybe there's more to this than I can understand right now. Still, I can't let this sit around for much longer. I have to talk to her– maybe not now, but soon. I have to know what happened. It's not a good enough reason to get me out of bed though, at least not now. Between the gentle rays of sunlight and my covers, I found heaven, and it's something I'm not ready to give up yet. You know, maybe this 'being awake' thing really isn't as bad as I've made it out to be. Well, I think that… and then comes the knocking.

"Alice!"

It's Pelly. There's no doubt about that; I'd recognize that voice anywhere. She's almost never outside of town hall, so I don't know why she's at my door, but I really don't want to find out. That would involve walking downstairs, and there is no way that's going to happen. Hopefully she'll think I'm out and–

"Alice, I know you're in there! It's an emergency!" she calls.

God, can I not enjoy myself for once in my life without distraction? It seems Pelly isn't shutting up or leaving anytime soon, so I guess I don't have a choice. I push myself out of bed and hobble down to the front door as quick as my tired body allows. I get there pretty quickly. Pelly notices, but I suspect that has more to do with the racket I made, rather than her attentiveness. I push my door open.

It's not even open an inch, and Pelly is already babbling, "Alice, I'm sorry. I'm SO sorry please don't be mad or sad and I know this is going to be really hard to take in but oh my goodness I don't really know how to tell you this and–"

"PELLY," I say, and with my grumpy interruption, she quiets down, "Geez, just tell me what happened." The door is fully open now, and my arms are folded nervously in front of me. I haven't seen Pelly this flustered since… well, never.

"Alice… I don't want to be the one to break the news to you, but someone has to. Well, you see… sometime overnight, we received news from Rover that Topaz… that Topaz…"

That Topaz what? My heart sinks. Did they find Isaac dead? No, they couldn't have; I just saw him yesterday. "Just tell me, Pelly. Come on… spit it out."

Pelly takes a deep breath and calms down. She looks me in the eyes. I see something in her that I've never seen before… is it pity or sadness? Maybe a little of both. She's shaking, visibly shaking, and that scares me.

"Topaz… was rebuilt. Topaz and all of its residents are no more."