Shaw ran down the track behind her school, the hot May air blowing around her. She was trying to clear her head, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Root, who was laying in the grass in the center of the track, staring up at the stars. Shaw could admit that she was running to clear her head, running to have some quiet.

She'd turned 18 three days ago, on the last day of the school year. It was fitting to have an ending and a beginning on the same day. Her internship at the hospital was over, too, and Shaw was disappointed. Control said she could come back during the next year. They'd grown close over the few months she'd been there. Shaw had asked for some advice about Root, and Control had suggested talking to her. She and Root hadn't talked at all about what Shaw was going to do, what they were going to do. Shaw took a curve, speeding up.

Alica and Nathan hadn't kicked her out, but she was pretty sure that had more to do with their weird magic than any sort of familial feeling. She and Root had still not talked about what happened at the lake, either. In fact, they hadn't really been talking about anything recently.

Since that day at the lake, Root had been different. She was always annoyed, and any time Shaw said something she didn't like, it turned into an argument. It was like Root was a whole new person. Shaw wasn't sure if it was something she'd done, or just something Root was dealing with. She didn't have the emotional awareness for it.

Running down the long side of the track, she looked over at Root. She'd sat up, crossing her legs in front of her. Root frowned at her as she ran by, and Shaw turned back to the track. They'd mostly just been having sex and spending time doing homework. Shaw didn't know if she could keep doing this for much longer.

When they'd started sleeping together, it had been fun and light, and even when she'd caught feelings, it had been nice. Now, every day was stressful, and Shaw needed something to change if she was going to keep going with Root. She thought again about taking a trip, and taking Root out of town. Maybe if she and Shaw spent some time one on one, in a new place where they'd have more to talk about, Root would get over whatever she was upset about.

Shaw slowed down, coming to a stop a few yards down the track from Root. She looked up at the sky, taking in the almost perfect view of the sky. There were no clouds above them, and only the orange lights surrounding the track dulled the stars. She sighed and started for Root.

Dropping to the ground in front of her, Shaw tried to smile. "Hey," she panted, out of breath from the run. "What do you want to do tonight?"

Root shrugged. "Nothing. I'm tired."

"You're always tired," Shaw joked. "Hopefully now that school is done, you can get some rest."

"People get tired, Shaw," Root snapped, glaring at her. "I'm under a lot of stress right now."

Shaw sighed and held her hands up. "I know. Sorry."

They sat in silence for a moment, Root staring down at her hands and Shaw staring at Root. Shaw licked her lips, wondering if it was even worth it to bring up the trip. At this point, it felt like she could just leave for weeks, and Root would be happier that she was gone. She wouldn't do that, though. She couldn't be someone else who left Root behind.

"So," Shaw tried again, "I was thinking about what to do now that I'm 18 and the school year is over…"

Root just raised her eyebrows. "Any decisions?"

"I was thinking of taking a trip-"

"Of course," Root interrupted. "You want to leave."

Shaw frowned, shifting in the grass. "I mean, yeah, but I -"

Root climbed to her feet, brushing the dirt and grass from her butt. "Forget it. Just go. I don't need you anyway."

"Root, relax." Shaw stood up. "I'm not leaving you. I just want to spend some time away from this town. You should come on the trip with me."

She scoffed. "I'm not going to be your charity case. Go on your stupid trip. Have a good life."

She turned away from Shaw, but Shaw jumped forward, grabbing her arm and pulling her back around. "Root. What's wrong? Do you want to break up? Did I do something?"

Glaring at her, Root pushed Shaw's hand away. "Since we've met, I've been worried that you were going to get sick of me and leave, just like my parents. I was worried that you'd die on me like Hanna. Now, I can't even bring myself to care. You're already gone."

Shaw stood in front of Root, shocked. All she'd been doing since spring break was trying her best to be what Root needed. She couldn't understand what Root was dealing with, but she'd been there every night and tried her best. Why was Root suddenly convinced that Shaw was going to leave her?

A cool breeze blew past Shaw, swirling around Root and lifting her hair from her shoulders. Shaw's stomach started to hurt the same way it had when they'd first met, and the hair stood on the back of her neck. She saw Root's eyes fading to red, and she held her hands up defensively.

"Ok, Root, calm down." Shaw took a step backwards. "Look, I'll give you some space if you want it, but I'm not going anywhere. Why are you being like this?"

"Like what?" Root asked her, crossing her arms. "You're the one being difficult. I can't believe you'd abandon me after I told you about my parents."

Shaw clenched her jaw. There was something about Root that made her uneasy. She was hard to look at, like the wind blowing through them was making her less real. That feeling of secondhand anger overwhelmed her and Shaw took a deep breath. She ran a hand over her ponytail, trying to think of what to say. Root was taking everything she said the wrong way. Shaw tried to be as clear as possible.

"I'm not going to take a trip. I'm going to stay here all summer and we can spend time together."

Root rolled her eyes. "Don't torture yourself on my account."

"Root, stop it," Shaw ordered, moving forward. "You're being difficult on purpose and I don't know what to do. I'm not leaving you, and you need to stop acting like I am. You've been angry for weeks. You need to calm down."

"Stop telling me to calm down!" Root covered her ears with her hands, the wind picking up around them. "My parents used to do that all the time. Whenever I was angry, or upset, or too excited, it was always 'calm down, Sam.' 'Take deep breaths, Sam.' 'Don't get too emotional, Sam.'" Root's eyes were almost totally red now. "I'm tired of pretending I'm fine, and my name is Root! I'm in charge now!"

A strong wind shoved Shaw backwards and she stumbled away. Root was getting caught up in her magic now, and Shaw wasn't sure how to fix it. Even if she had experience with emotions, this would probably be a difficult situation to navigate. She swallowed hard.

"Root," Shaw tried, "I'm not trying to silence you. I just think we need to be careful until we figure out why things get weird when we get upset. Why don't we go home and talk this out?"

"Leave me alone!" Root screamed, her voice echoing on the wind. Large drops of water started falling from the sky. "Just go!"

Shaw planted her feet, drawing herself up to her full height. "No. I'm here for you, Root. I care about you and I'm not leaving you. Root, I promise to be here for you. I promise to protect you from whatever is happening. If they were here, I'm sure Harold and John would say the same thing."

"They have each other," Root answered her. "They don't need me. No one does."

"I do," Shaw said quietly. Her voice was carried to Root on the wind. "I need you. You're the only person in this town I care about. In the world. I can't leave you behind, because I don't have anyone else."

Root smiled at her, her dead, red eyes threatening. "There it is. A last resort. An only resort. You're only with me because there is no one else."

"That's not what I meant," Shaw said. The rain started to fall harder. "Stop twisting everything I say. This isn't like you. I think your magic-whatever is messing with your head."

"Go away, Shaw," Root sighed, closing her eyes. The red light was visible through her eyelids. "If you still care in a few weeks… Well, I might be around."

"What does that mean?" Shaw asked, stepping forward. "Are you going somewhere? Don't do anything rash."

A loud flash of light, and a crash, made Shaw spin around. A tree had fallen onto her car, crushing it. The sky was pouring now, Shaw's clothing soaked through, and now she didn't have a car to get home. Looking over her shoulder, she froze.

Root was gone. Shaw looked around, trying to spot her, but she wasn't anywhere. The sky flashed again, and Shaw ran off the field, toward home. She had no idea what was happening, but she'd promised Root that she was going to protect her and Shaw always kept her promises.