Sage wandered the dark streets of the city for hours. When his head began to throb and his hand began to ache, he sat on a bus stop bench to rest.
"What am I going to do?" he asked the sky, staring at the clouds as though they held the answer. He couldn't go back to the hospital – Rowen would ask him why he had run, and he would be even more closely watched. He couldn't go home to Mia's house – Ryo would be there by now, and he would know Sage wasn't supposed to be there.
Despite the pain in his head and hand, he hauled himself off of the bench and started walking again.
Homeless men and women watched the blonde carefully as he stumbled by, guarding their possessions. A police car passed by silently with a man in the backseat. Sage plodded onward, with no purpose and no place to go.
Finally the pounding in his head became too much to bear. He found a dead-end alleyway between two buildings and huddled in a corner.
"Please, stop hurting," he moaned. Sage held his head in his hands. The throbbing wouldn't stop; his hand hurt; he had nowhere to go. These thoughts kept circling around in his mind until he wanted to scream.
There were footfalls coming his way. The teen looked up at a dark figure standing in front of him.
"You awake?" the figure asked.
Sage could only croak in response. His voice didn't seem to work anymore.
"You look hurt. Can you move?"
Sage shook his head. The movement sent waves of pain through his skull. He clutched at his head again, praying for the pain to go away.
"C'mere, kid."
A rough hand grabbed the blonde's arm and hauled him up. He had to brace himself against the wall to stay upright.
"Thanks," Sage muttered. He closed his eyes.
A sharp pain sliced through his ribs. It cut deep; he could feel it all the way to his back. Sage screamed as he fell over, unable to maintain his balance with such excruciating pain.
He felt someone digging in his pockets, taking everything they found. Through the darkness that clouded his thoughts, he heard footfalls retreating into the main street.
On his face in the dirt of the dark alleyway, alone and dying, Sage cried. He cried from the pain. He cried because he would never see his friends again. His tears soaked into the dirt beneath his face, and his mind went totally black.