Eli nodded and began to talk again." When Tyler…killed me. I didn't die. I could see and hear everything. And I didn't know why. I was so scared and confused, Clare. It was…terrifying. So I just stood there, over my so called dead body, and watched the aftermath of my death."

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"Tyler?" The voice asked. Tyler looked up from Eli's body to see a dark mass approaching him. It was Julia. He didn't know what to do with Eli's body and Julia was walking faster and faster towards him. He quickly pushed the body off to the side and hoped Julia wouldn't see it.

"There you are." She said when she finally reached Tyler. "Mom sent me out to find you." Julia explained as she pointed her flashlight at Tyler's face, making him blink. "I saw you walking into the woods with another boy and I-"

She let out a gasp and her hands shot up to her mouth. The flashlight tumbled onto the ground and flashlight pointed in the direction of where Julia was looking. She could now clearly see the mangled body that was carelessly lying on the ground. She immediately recognized the face of the boy.

The boy that she had secretly loved for many years lay motionless only a few feet away.

"What did you do?" She questioned. She didn't look at her brother when she spoke. Her eyes never left Eli's body.

"Julia…"

Julia fell to her knees in the front of Eli. Her hands wrapped around his torso. She brought her face down to his chest pressed her ear against his heart.

She heard nothing.

Her head shot back up at Tyler.

"What did you do?" Her voice echoed throughout the woods. Tears had begun to fall from her brown eyes; they swam down her face and dripped off of her chin. Tyler jumped slightly, he was caught off by the harshness in her voice.

"I did nothing." Tyler said. He showed no emotion, which only infuriated Julia more.

"Don't lie to me Tyler!" She spat.

Tyler walked over to Julia and pulled her up by her arm.

"Go home." Tyler snarled. "Now."

"No." Julia pulled her arm away from Tyler. "I'm going to the police."

Tyler grabbed her arm again. "You are not going to the police. You are going home and forgetting everything that you saw." Tyler said forcefully.

Julia didn't say anything. She looked back at Eli's body and let out a sob.

"Go home, Julia." He pushed her away from him. Julia turned around and walked away from her brother.

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"Did he just leave you there? How did your family find out?" Clare sat up and pulled her knees up to her chest. She then rested her chin on her knees.

Eli couldn't help but chuckle. Clare was like a little kid. She was curious and passionate and she asked so many questions. Questions upon questions upon questions. But Eli didn't mind. He liked the fact that Clare was so curious about him. He liked the fact that someone wanted to hear what he had to say.

"No. Tyler didn't leave me there. His truck was parked down the road. He drove it up to where my body was and then dumped me in the back of the truck, like my body was some sort of animal. I didn't know what to do; I didn't know what I was, so I went with him. I sat in the truck next to my body and Tyler ended up driving to my house. He parked down the road a little. He probably didn't want anyone to see him. When he walked around the back to get my body, I tried to say something to him. But he didn't hear me. I yelled and screamed but he didn't hear a word that I said. I hadn't figured out how to control who can hear and see me yet. Actually I didn't figure that out until a few years ago. So, I just watched as he dragged my body to the back porch of my house. Tyler pushed my body up the steps and carelessly placed it in front of the back door. He went to his truck and got a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote on the paper and placed it next to my body. Problem Solved the paper said." Eli shook his head.

"Because that's all I was to my father. A problem."

Clare was going to say something but decided against it when Eli began to speak again.

"The worst part of that whole night…was having Felicity find me on the back porch."

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"What do you mean he's gone?" Felicity snapped at her father.

"Just that. He's gone. He ran away, I went up to his room to tell him to get ready for dinner and he wasn't there." He said. His voice showed no concern, no worry.

"How long has he been gone? Do you know where he went?" Felicity ran her fingers through her hair. Her breathing started to pick up pace. Elizabeth walked over to her sister and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"I don't know how long he has been gone and I most certainly do not know where he went." Felicity's glared at her father in complete disbelief. He was acting so calm and confidante. He was certainly not acting like a father whose child is missing.

"He'll come back. Don't worry. He probably just needs some times to himself. That's all." Elizabeth whispered into Felicity's ear.

Their mother, Melinda, stood a few feet away from her three family members. She was silent. She still could not wrap her head around the fact that her son had run away. For sixteen years she's watched out for him, she's protected him. She admits that sometimes she could be a little forceful and bitchy…but that was only to protect Eli. And now, he was gone. She knew he wouldn't come back. Hell, if she had the choice she would have left her husband years ago. He was nothing but abusive and hateful. But she needed him, he gave her a house to live in, food to eat, he provided for her. She couldn't leave.

Felicity shrugged her sister's arm off of her shoulder. "I'm going to go outside for a minuet, I just need some air." Felicity walked over to the door that leads to the back porch.

"I think I should go call-"

Elizabeth was cut off by the sound of Felicity's scream.

Elizabeth and Melinda quickly ran to the back door.

Felicity was sitting on the ground, Eli's body sprawled across her lap. She cleaned the blood off of his face with her sweater.

"Eli? Can you hear me?" She whispered. He didn't respond.

"Elijah, wake up." She whispered again. He didn't respond.

"T-This isn't funny Elijah. Wake up now." She tried sound forceful but her voice quivered. Eli still said nothing.

Felicity feverishly pressed her fingers against Eli's throat, trying to find a pulse. She felt nothing. Her eyes began to blur by unshed tears.

Her mother and sister appeared behind her but she paid no attention to them. Her finger's pushed deeper against Eli's neck, she needed to feel a pulse.

He's not dead.

He's not dead.

That's all that went through her head. She felt her mother sit down next to her. She saw her pick up the piece of paper that was placed next to him. She heard her father ask Elizabeth what was going on. But all she could focus on was the boy that was lying motionless on her lap.

"Felicity, I think he's-"

"Shut up!" She screamed. The tears she was holding back fell slowly down her face. Her nails dug into Eli's black cotton t-shirt as she pulled his body closer to hers. Her body was trembling with anger, with fear, with astonishment. She couldn't bring herself to face the reality that her brother was dead.

"Not him. Not my baby brother." She chocked.

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Eli bit his lip when he finished telling Clare about Felicity.

"I wish I could have down something. I wish I could have spoken to her. But I didn't know how." He said.

Clare wished that she knew how to comfort him. He looked so broken.

"Why don't you talk to her now?" Clare asked.

Eli shook his head. "I don't want to do that Clare. Everything is easier if she doesn't know about me. No one is hurt. No scars are reopened."

Clare nodded her head. "Thank you for telling me Eli. I know it must be hard for you to think about. But I'm thankful that you trust me."

"I'm thankful that I found someone I can trust." Eli smiled a rare, but beautiful smile.

Clare blushed and looked down at her lap.

"Clare-Bear! I'm home." Clare looked at the clock. It was 7:00 already. She looked back at Eli who was still smiling. She didn't want to leave, but she had to.

"I have to go…" Clare mumbled, she moved off of her bed and smoothed out the wrinkles in her clothes. She walked towards her bedroom door, but before she could turn the knob, she heard Eli's voice.

"Clare, you don't have to move out. It's your house now."