Chapter 13: Broken

Rating: T

Date: Monday, February 11, 2019

A/N: I really struggled with this one, but I decided what I want to do. This is what I would consider the last chapter, but I will have one more that will serve as a sort of... epilogue. It's a bit depressing but I found that I like it this way. Enjoy!

Broken

"Dude, what's up with you today?" Victor finally asked during their last period of the day.

"What do you mean?" Garfield looked up from his paper, one hand clutching his forehead and the other laid on the desk.

Victor gawked at him. "Have you not seen yourself today?"

"... Did I do something wrong?" he muttered, his voice lower than usual. It was as if all the life had been sucked out of him.

Victor sighed, "You got here late this morning and didn't even come up with a snarky excuse for it. You stared out the window for most of the period. You barely even acknowledged me the whole time! Kory asked me about you during passing periods because, and I quote, "You no longer ooze the delightful aura you used to." Then, during lunch, you barely even joined the conversation! Not to mention, you didn't even voice the fact that Raven didn't show up. You didn't ask about her. You didn't talk about her. It's like you didn't even care! I'm worried here, Gar. Please talk to me. Did something happen? Is it something about your health?"

"No, dude. You're way off." Garfield shrugged, "I just had a bad night yesterday… And sorry Vic, I don't feel comfortable talking about it just yet. I'll tell you, but I need some time to think for myself. It's personal."

Victor scrutinized his expression cautiously. Then, he sighed and nodded. "Alright, dude, whatever you want. When you're ready to talk, I'll be here," he sent him a small smile.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Tara asked him as they calmly rocked on the swing set in their childhood park. The sun was coming down creating a blend of warm colors on the horizon, and there was a gentle breeze that caressed Garfield's expression and relaxed him.

"About what?" Garfield questioned, feigning nonchalance. But it didn't work on Tara.

"You don't fool me, Gar. There's something up. I want to know what it is," Tara claimed, her eyes scanning his own.

Garfield sighed and looked down. She had always been excellent at reading him. "I kissed Raven yesterday."

"Really!?" Tara squealed. She grinned widely and lightly elbowed him, "I thought you said she'd never be interested in you."

However, when Garfield didn't react and instead kept his eyes fixated on the ground, Tara furrowed her eyebrows. "Was it that bad of a reaction?"

"She rejected me," Garfield confessed. "But the thing is, it was weird. She kissed me back, and she even confessed she had feelings for me too, in her own Raven-like way."

"And then..?"

Garfield's expression scrunched up as if he were reliving the moment, "Then she told me we weren't compatible. That I was an idealist and she was a realist. That we would both end up being hurt. That she was already forcefully engaged to a family friend and there was no way to stop it," Tara frowned at that. "And I kept insisting, trying to give her options. But…" his voice cracked. "When I asked her if she was just going to push me away in a fit of anger, she told me we were never that close to begin with."

The silence was deafening, and Garfield stared into nothingness, his hands clutching onto the chains of the swingset and his feet burying into the sand below. He could feel Tara's eyes on him, but she didn't say anything for a few moments.

"Gar, I don't really know what to tell you…" she admitted. "But I do find it weird… You said she kissed you back, and that she confessed her feelings. Isn't it possible to report her family to the police? I'm pretty sure arranged marriages are illegal, and if she really wanted it, wouldn't she try just a bit harder to stop that marriage?"

Garfield processed her words before replying, "I don't know, honestly. Raven is used to pushing me away…" his voice trailed off.

"Could it be possible that she told you that to push you away?" Tara suggested.

"Told me what?"

"That you weren't close. If she knew she'd hurt you that way, then maybe she was hoping you'd give up on pursuing her," she explained. "I know because it sounds like something I would do."

"That… Actually sounds a lot like Raven," he voiced. "But if that's the case, my efforts to win her over would probably be useless."

"Gar, I'm going to be straightforward with you. You've been caught up on Raven for half a year now. Even when we were dating, you were never this obsessed with me," Tara told him. "Now you know she shares your feelings, and the only reason you can't be together is because of family issues. Don't you think it's worth insisting after you've come this far?"

Garfield reflected on her words, "Yeah… You're right."

"I know I am," Tara snickered. "After all, I'm way smarter than you," she teased.

"Hey, Vic, have you seen Raven today?" Garfield caught up with his friend during their passing period.

"Sorry Gar, no clue where she is," he shrugged as he headed to his next class. "And I thought you were mad at her?" he arched an eyebrow.

Garfield shook his head, "It was something stupid, and I want to apologize for it."

"Aw man, she better not be in a bad mood because of you," Victor tsked in disapproval. "I'm going to psychology next, so she should be there. Just wait for lunch, bud."

Garfield hesitantly nodded and buried his hands inside his pockets sheepishly, "Okay…"

Art class felt like an eternity to Garfield. Their elderly teacher, Mrs. Wright, took up most of the class explaining their last project of the year and retelling random stories from her youth. When it was finally lunchtime, Garfield practically burst out of the classroom doors.

He hurried into the lunchroom, but his face quickly fell when he realized Raven wasn't at their usual table yet. She was generally the first one there. Maybe he'd gotten there too quickly?

After grabbing his lunch, he walked to the table and waited while impatiently tapping his fingers on the wood. When he heard someone approach him from behind, he turned around expecting to greet Raven with a huge smile. Turns out it was just Dick and Kory. While Dick stared at him with furrowed eyebrows, Kory greeted him with the same delight.

They took a seat across from him, and Dick asked, "What's up with you today?"

"Just waiting for Raven…" Garfield answered, sighing in disappointment. "Have you guys seen her today?"

Both Kory and Dick shook their heads.

"I don't think Raven's here today," Victor plopped down on the seat next to Garfield. "She wasn't here for psychology."

Garfield frowned, "But she wasn't here on Friday either…" he murmured/

"Perhaps Raven is sick?" Kory tilted her head.

While his friends continued discussing the possibility of Raven's whereabouts, Garfield's head felt like it was spiraling. Questions and scenarios popping into his head like a tsunami. What if she had left? What if she and her family had moved to another city? What if Malchior had taken her to get married elsewhere? What if…

"Gar!" Victor exclaimed, and Garfield jerked in his seat.

"What?" he looked up with wide eyes.

"You zoned out," Dick pointed out.

"Sorry," Garfield replied, his voice lower than usual. "I just… I need to go…" he suddenly jumped from his seat and hurried out of the cafeteria without another word.

He wasn't sure where he was going, but he needed a place to clear his thoughts. Maybe he could skip class? Or sneak out of the building? Or call Tara?

His mind was bombarded with so many thoughts that he completely missed the person turning the corner and violently crashed into them.

"Sorry, I-" his voice trailed off when his eyes met hers. "Raven…"

Raven intently glared at him and pushed him aside to walk by, but Garfield caught her wrist and pulled her back.

"Gar, let me go. I'm not in the mood," she muttered.

"I need to talk to you, Rae." He wasn't about to let her run away, not again.

"We can talk later, but not right now," she tried to snatch her hand back but his grip was tight. The aching on her wrist wasn't helping either.

"Why not? I need to talk to you now," he insisted.

Raven grimaced, her eyes practically lighting on fire. "I said not now," she snarled.

"I'm not going to let you push me away anymore," Garfield frowned.

"Let me go," she demanded through gritted teeth.

"I'm not going to let you close yourself off," he insisted.

"God damn it, Garfield! I told you to let me go," Raven used her free hand to push him away from her. He stumbled back, his foot getting caught on his other and his body plunging backward. The back of his head crashed into the ground rather harshly. For a moment, his vision blurred, and Raven appeared to split into two images. Then suddenly she was hurrying down the hallway.

He stumbled on his soles and hurried after her, barely managing to keep his balance.

"Hold up, Rae!" he called out, though his feet didn't seem to cooperate, and he slipped onto his side when he tried to turn the corner.

"OW!" he screeched as he attempted to grip the side of the lockers but only ended up scraping his wrist against the metal corner.

Garfield thought she had already rushed off, but to his surprise, she was on her knees next to him.

"Hold still," Raven murmured, and his eyes trailed down his arm until they landed on his wrist.

Blood. Lots of blood. Just looking at it made him feel dazed. "I feel woozy," he managed, his tongue dry and his limbs weakened.

"Don't look at it. It makes it worse," she whispered. She helped him to his feet and towards the girl's restroom.

"Am I going to bleed to death?" he asked, though he was only half-joking.

"Don't be ridiculous," Raven rolled her eyes. "You'll just lose a few more brain cells." She rolled up his sleeve and hastily began to clean up the wound in the sink. She used some bandages from a first aid kit (which he had no idea where she'd acquired from) to wrap around his wrist to stop the bleeding.

"Who knew we had a doctor in the house?" Garfield smiled as he watched her work.

"Shut up," she only murmured. Then, she slipped the first aid kit into her backpack.

"Can we talk now?" he asked hopefully.

Raven sighed and locked the bathroom door. She went through all of the stalls before finally acknowledging him properly, "Quickly please."

"Rae, I want to give us a try," he started.

"Garfield, I already-"

"No, I'm not going to let you push me away. It's not going to work, no matter how many hurtful things you say," he interrupted her. "Rae, you already know I really like you. And I know you also like me. I'm aware of your issues at home, but I can help you. I don't know how useless you think of me to be, but I'm not a complete idiot. If you need me to talk to your dad or-"

"No," she barked.

Garfield furrowed his eyebrows, "You don't want me to talk to your dad?"

Raven breathed out, "You won't understand my situation, Gar."

"What do you mean? Can you at least tell me and let me decide that?" he begged. "Rae, I know there's something wrong, and I want to know what it is."

She turned away and lowered her head, "I can't. Please stop insisting."

Garfield approached her carefully. He placed a soothing hand on her shoulder, but she didn't direct her gaze at him, "Come on Rae, I know we're at least friends. Even if you might not consider me a close friend."

Raven didn't reply, and Garfield lightly turned her to face him. He grazed her palm with his finger before picking it up. Her eyes were still fixated on the ground, and he sighed. He frowned as he inspected the ring on her finger. He couldn't help but think that he could do so much better. Then, his eyes caught sight of something below her sleeve. He cautiously rolled them up and examined the bruising around her wrists. It was faint, but it wasn't old. It looked like the bruising he had found on her all those months ago when he had first suspected that she was in trouble. When she had convinced him that she was fine. This wasn't a few months old. And she wasn't fine.

"Let me guess, you fell and hit your wrist?" Garfield couldn't help but let out, his voice tinged with frustration.

She didn't answer him, and it only made him feel angrier. "Rae, who did this to you?" he asked. Silence. "Answer me, Rae, or I'll tell someone," he threatened.

"That's none of your business," she growled.

"It is my business!" he retorted. "Someone's hurting you, and I want to know who it is!"

"No one's hurting me, Garfield," she glared daggers at him. "You're making things up."

"I know what I-" his voice died out in the midst of his scream, and his hand clutched the side of his face as an abrupt throbbing pain erupted inside his skull. A dizzying sensation enveloped his head, and he couldn't tell whether the world was spinning or whether it was him spinning.

"Gar?" Raven asked, her voice suddenly tinted with concern. "Are you okay?"

He tried to assure her that he was fine, but all that he managed was a clutter of gibberish. Her hand grasped his, and her sharp indigo eyes pierced into his own. And it was the last thing he saw before the world went dark.

When Garfield opened his eyes, his vision was overwhelmed by white light. He could hear a distant echo in the distance as if someone were talking in a cave miles away. The sound was so faint he couldn't recognize what they were saying. Then, his ears popped and the ringing he hadn't noticed in the background gradually amplified until it was all that resonated inside his head.

The light shifted into a white blur, and he recognized the wall in front of him. His vision cleared, and he instantly knew where he was. The hospital.

He could see two people conversing from outside the window of his room. The beeping of the machine next to him calmed him, and he managed to take a breath. He tried to say something, but his mouth was incredibly dry. Then, the voices grew closer, and the door opened.

Lucy walked in with Rita not far behind. When his adoptive mother realized his eyes were opened, she let out a blissful cry and dashed towards him. She took his hand and caressed the side of his cheek, "Oh honey, how are you feeling? Are you okay? Is anything hurting? Can you feel all of your body? Can you see? Can you breathe?" she began to bombard him with questions.

"If you keep grasping my hand like that, I probably won't be able to feel it," he grinned. His voice sounded dry and raspy, and it hurt a bit to talk.

"Oh honey, I'm so glad you're okay!" Rita hugged him.

Garfield managed to place a hand on her back and rub gently as if he were the one consoling her.

Lucy smiled from her place in front of the bed, "Glad to see you're back with us Garfield."

"... Back?" he questioned, his voice growing clearer.

Rita's grip loosened, and she retreated. Her eyes were glassy, and she sent him a gloomy smile. "Oh Garfield," she placed a hand on his cheek and watched him with loving eyes. "You… You almost died."

Garfield furrowed his eyebrows, his mind not properly processing the information. "What do you mean I almost died..?"

"You had an episode in school," Lucy explained. "It was probably the worst one yet," she told him. "Your friend said you hit your head really hard. We determined that was the cause for it. The impact on your skull set off a chain reaction and when your body tried to combat it, it triggered your illness from its dormant state. The ambulance barely managed to get you to the hospital. Your heart stopped, but the doctors brought you back. The unfortunate news is that you slipped into a coma state."

Garfield breathed in, unsure of how to take the news. He was afraid to ask, but he did anyway. "How long was I at?"

"A week, Garfield," Rita blurted out. "We were so afraid that… you weren't going to wake up."

Garfield felt tears accumulate in his eyelids, and he clutched his mother's hand, "Is it… Is it contained?"

Lucy frowned, "We're not sure. The results are inconclusive. Your illness has always been complicated. It's baffled the doctors. We can't predict whether it's returned to its dormant state or whether it's still active. We're going to have to keep you here for a few weeks."

Garfield sighed, but he nodded. He knew he couldn't refuse. It was for his own good even if he didn't like it. "Do my friends know?" he asked Rita.

She smiled and nodded, "Tara and Victor have been coming here almost every day to check on you. Your two other friends, Richard and Kory came to visit you twice. The rest of your pack tried to visit you all in the same day, but we had to bring them in one by one since big groups aren't allowed."

"Has…" his voice cracked. "Has Raven come?"

Rita sighed, and her gaze hit the ground guiltily. She opened her mouth, but she found that she couldn't say the words out loud. She shook her head.

"Oh…" he murmured, a flood of disappointment enveloping his stomach.

"She was the one who called the ambulance," Rita explained. "She rode here with you, but… She hasn't come back to see you," she frowned.

Garfield remained silent, and he swallowed the knot inside his throat.

"Don't worry though," Rita reassured him. "Maybe when she finds out you woke up, she'll come to visit you."

"Maybe…" he whispered.

Raven didn't visit.

Two weeks passed, and both Victor and Tara came in daily. Kory and Dick came by a few times a week, and he got visits from his other friends every now and then. But the only person who didn't come to see him was Raven, and though he tried to ignore the sensation of hurt pooling inside him, he couldn't. It was a mix of emotions—anger, frustration, apathy, hurt, and love. Despite everything she'd done, the intense feeling of love remained.

He had always been told he wore his heart on his sleeve. That he got attached to people too quickly, too easily. That he was going to get hurt or taken advantaged of one day. That it would only bring about pain. Garfield had never believed them. Not until now.

Day-by-day, he sat bored on the same bed, barely allowed to get up to stretch his legs. He could only eat soft foods and only drink water. He barely got an hour of television and video games per day. There were several board games set on the bedstand by him, but after a dozen games with both other people and himself, he grew tired of them. He also slept a lot as it seemed to be the only thing he could do.

One night after visiting hours as he was getting ready to go to bed (well he was already there so it was more like he was getting ready to sleep), he heard the door open. He thought it was Lucy at first, and he muttered something about being asleep, but she didn't answer. He opened his eyes, and what he saw both made his stomach drop and pool with excitement.

"Raven," he uttered.

She closed the door behind her and approached him slowly as if she were scared to hurt him. He wasn't sure how to react, so he kept his expression blank.

"I heard you were awake," she said.

Garfield snickered, but it was rather cold. "What? Now all the sudden you want to visit the sick boy?" he snapped.

Raven didn't emote as usual. She took a seat on the chair by his bed, her hands clutching so hard to each other than her knuckles were practically turning white. "It's… complicated," she replied.

"What? Visiting a friend when he's in the hospital is complicated?" he laughed. "Raven, even I can come up with better excuses to Ms. Evans."

"I know it doesn't excuse my actions," she admitted. "Gar… I came to-" she stopped in mid-sentence as if contemplating her words. "To…"

"To what? Hurt me some more?" he snarled. "Tell me how glad you are that I'm here because I can't bother you?"

"No, Gar," she spoke softly. "To tell you the truth."

Garfield shut his mouth, and he waited for her to continue, hesitant on whether he could trust her. She had already lied to him once about the so-called truth.

"My father… Is a very bad man," Raven began.

"Don't use your family to excuse your actions Raven," he suddenly blurted out. "Even I don't do that with Steve, and he's a jerk."

Raven shifted in her seat, and she ignored his comment. "He's involved in some risky business. He uses his persona as Trenton as a way to hide his wrongdoings." She paused as if taking a breath. "You've heard of Trigon, haven't you?"

Garfield felt his stomach contents start to swirl, "Yeah. One of the worse drug lords and human traffickers in the world. What about him?" He had a bad feeling about her next words, and it was unfortunately correct

"My father…" she looked down. "Is him."

A dizzying sensation settled inside his head, and Garfield wasn't sure whether he was going to pass out again. "Trigon… is… Trenton… Your… What?" he stammered.

"You heard me correctly," she reiterated, her eyes fixated on his so intensely as if she were attempting to read his reaction. "He's my father. Trenton is Trigon. He hides behind his worldwide business because it's convenient. What you heard Malchior talking about that day… He wasn't talking about alcohol. He was talking about victims of human trafficking."

Garfield was completely stumped. He wasn't sure what to say. Finding out your friend and crush was being abused was one thing, finding out she was also the daughter of a worldwide crime lord was on another level.

"I didn't want you to come to my house or to find out more about me because I'm dangerous Gar. I'm extremely dangerous, and my destiny… It's already set. There's nothing I can do to escape my father's influence. That's exactly why we can't be together," she continued.

"But… Can't we go to the police? You can't live like that! He hurts you! He's a criminal! He's-"

"A demon, but I'm the daughter of a demon," she replied. "Gar, I've done things in life I regret, from a very young age. My father's influence has already corrupted me. Going to the police would be useless, both because I'm turning myself in and because Trigon isn't so easy to capture. He has eyes and ears everywhere. He's evaded the cops for decades now. A teenage girl running into a police station and telling them her dad is Trigon?" she scoffed and looked down at her lap. "It's futile."

"You're not a bad person Rae," Garfield assured her, his hand gently grabbing hers and caressing it.

"You don't know that Garfield," she muttered. Her eyes locked with his own. "You don't know that. It's what I make people think. It's what I'm good at because I have to be. In my world, it's how survival works."

"Rae," he whispered. "You can't do this alone."

"Pulling someone else into this," she sighed. "Someone like you. Someone with a family, friends, a good life. It'd be a homicide."

"But why can't you have those things?" he squeaked, his voice utterly defeated. He already knew the answer.

"You already know why, Gar," she smiled, but it didn't make him happy. "You made me happy, at least for a little while. You made me forget about everything even for a few moments, even when you acted like an idiot. I'll never forget you for that, Gar," she grasped his hand tightly.

He wasn't sure what compelled him to do what he did next, but his lips crashed into hers desperately as if it were a goodbye. His hands clutched the sides of her waist, pulling her closer, aching to embrace her, to touch her, to love her, and to assure her that everything would be alright. But that was a lie.

Their lips moved against each other's hungrily—like they'd been starved from affection for long enough. It was a longer, more passionate, more heated kiss than the first. The world seemingly stopped around them, and they forgot about everything. Their lives. Their problems. Their insecurities. Their faults. Everything was gone. It was only the two of them.

They pulled away practically gasping for air. Garfield sent her his usual goofy grin, and Raven smiled at him. A genuine smile that sent shivers all across his body. A smile solely dedicated to him.

"Wow…" he only managed. "You look so beautiful when you smile," he confessed.

Raven's face turned crimson, and she cleared her throat, her eyes looking anywhere but at him. He found it cute.

Then he laughed, and Raven furrowed her eyebrows. "What's so funny?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

"I don't know…" he shrugged. "It's just that we're both kind of fucked up in our own ways, and it's weird… The fact that we found each other. You said that we weren't compatible, that we were so different, but really, we're not that different, Rae. We're both so…"

"Broken," she finished for him.

"Yeah, broken sounds like the right word," he chuckled.

"Well…" she thought for a moment. "There's always that saying."

"Which one?"

"Light shines brighter through a broken glass, and I think that really fits you, Gar," she smiled.

Garfield let out a small laugh, "Rae, I don't think you're too far from that either. No matter what you think, I think you have a good heart. No, wait. I know you do."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, why else would you have let me into your life?"

"Garfield, I practically tried to push you out of it countless times," she rolled her eyes.

"Good thing I'm stubborn, huh?" he grinned. "But I feel like, you could have easily set me in my place. Said something really mean from the beginning, completely ignored me, or humiliated me. But you didn't, Rae. You put up with me. I call that a good heart."

Raven laughed, and it was the most heavenly sound his ears had ever heard. He almost didn't catch her sentence because he was so baffled by her laugh. "You see too much good in everyone Gar. It might get you killed someday."

"I'm already set to die," he joked. "I think it's a good thing. Without it, I wouldn't have had the guts to approach you after all."

"That's true…" she nodded. "Gar, I hope you find a nice girl in the future."

"I hope I don't," he retorted with a grin.

Raven's eyebrows scrunched up in befuddlement, "Why-"

"I already found one, Rae," he grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. He planted a light kiss on it and he murmured, "And I'll wait until she can see that too."

Raven sighed, but she didn't argue with him. Not this time.

For a moment, an expression of hurt passed through her eyes, but it was so fleeting he barely caught it. When she smiled again, he simply decided to let it pass. He wished he hadn't.

She left a few minutes later, stating that she had snuck in and that she didn't want to get caught. They kissed for one last time before she rushed out of the room, and Garfield slipped into a deep slumber in which he dreamt of them rocking on a hammock together watching the waves of a beautiful beach, her head buried in the crook of his neck and their hands clasped.

The next day, Victor showed up early in the morning, which wasn't his usual time. He brought a box of chocolates as Garfield had insisted he snuck some in. After all, he hadn't had sweets or junk food in almost a month. They talked a bit about how school was going, how they now sat with the whole crew in their old cafeteria table, how Dick and Kory were practically attached at the hip.

When they were finally done with their chat and after a rather intense game of checkers, Victor got up to leave as he had to help his dad with some business at the shop. They said their goodbyes, and before Victor could walk out, Garfield exclaimed, "Say hi to Raven for me," with a goofy smile.

Victor froze in place, and he turned to look at him, his expression blank, "Huh?"

"I said to say hi to Raven," he repeated.

Victor fumbled with the doorknob for a few moments before his mouth opened to answer, "Gar… I don't want to break it to you like this but… Raven left yesterday."

Garfield stared at him, "What do you mean?"

"She was set to leave," he explained. "Something about a family emergency."

"... What..?" he gaped.

"I'm sorry, man. They told us she unenrolled from the school, that she wasn't coming back for next year. We were all pretty disappointed. She didn't even say goodbye. I can't tell you how much Kory cried about it."

Garfield had stopped listening halfway through the sentence, and he could only hear alarms blaring inside his mind. He grasped the sheets of his bed, tears forming at the corners of his eyes, but he contained them. She had come to visit him. She had come to visit him to say goodbye. It was why she had told him the truth. Why she had kissed him so passionately. Why she had chosen not to argue with him this time.

She was gone, possibly forever.

"Gar… Are you okay?" Victor approached the bed.

"Just… Give me some time alone Vic, please," he begged, his voice losing its momentum.

"Okay…" Victor murmured, his eyes full of concern. He glanced at him for one last time before walking out and closing the door behind him.

"Rae…" Garfield murmured, tears trailing down his cheeks. He didn't recognize the aching feeling surrounding his heart or the sickening sensation inside his gut, and he hated it. Why had he been such an idiot? She had obviously come to say goodbye, but he had been so blinded by his delight of seeing her, he hadn't realized. And now she was gone, and it felt like someone had dropped a boulder on top of Garfield and stabbed a knife through his chest.

It hurt. It hurt so much.

Needless to say, he wasn't very excited when he was released from the hospital, and everyone could only wonder why. During his last week of Junior year, he spent most of his time moping, dazing off in class, playing with his food, and simply staring off. Thinking about her. Why she had left.

Then came their last day. Garfield walked into English early for once and took a seat next to Victor. His best friend watched him intently, his expression twisted with concern, but he didn't say anything. They had already asked enough times, and besides, Victor knew why he was upset.

Garfield spent his time staring out the window, and he noticed for the first time, that the elderly lady who usually crossed the street around the same time was gone. He wasn't sure why, but even that set off an unsettling feeling inside his stomach, and it made him feel even more horrendous. He looked away, too uncomfortable with the view, and he settled with staring at his fingers, deep in thought.

He found himself smiling at the memory of meeting Raven. When he had run into her that first day, all of the awkward moments they'd had, all of the times he had annoyed her to gain her attention, he remembered every detail. God, he was going to miss her so much.

But despite the feeling of desolation her departure had left him with, he held onto a much more intense sensation. One that fueled him through every passing day, one that revitalized him every morning, that chipped away at the pain little by little. A feeling that had nurtured him throughout his life, and one that would continue to nurture him for the years to come. One that he'd wished Raven had had, for she might've stayed with him if she did. She might've accepted his offer to run away together or it might've just brightened her life even by a teensy bit despite it being a shithole.

Hope.

Because after all, as Raven had told him, light shines brighter through a Broken glass, and hope could only revitalize that first spark.

A/N: Yeah so that was... Intense. So let's discuss my plans for this story. Yes, I'm planning a sequel. It won't be set in high school but instead when they're older. I decided that I want something a bit different for these two. Right now, it just felt like a high school sweetheart cliche story, and I didn't want it to be that. So, I decided I actually want them to be a little older and see what happens with them that way. I don't have solid plans. Suggestions would really be welcomed on this! I'm going to write one more chapter after this, but I'm not sure when I will update it. I will mark this story as complete, however, since this is technically the end of this part at least. Like I told a few of you, I didn't plan a fairy tale ending from the beginning, I wanted something a bit darker, but I didn't want any deaths of course. I hope you liked the story! Please, I would appreciate some final reviews on the story as a whole with suggestions on how to improve. It would really help my fanfictions in the future. Thank you all so much for reading this! It was definitely worth coming back to fanfiction. T'was a great adventure.

I will do a final round of responses to reviews on the next chapter, but I will only respond if it's a question or if you directly ask for me to respond. Thank you so much to my reviewers! You guys really encouraged me so much through this story! Love you all!

PS. Hope you're not too disappointed by the ending, but I felt it necessary to set up the next part. I also didn't think fighting crime as big as Trigon was very realistic for high schoolers.