Author's Note:

Okay guys, here's another one... I actually had to cut a lot of stuff out of it, because... well, it was too much for me! I want you guys to get through it without choking on tears! So, this is the tame version... VERY tame, lol :) And I threw in some lighter stuff at the end! I want to hear from guys, because I love to hear what you all have to say! So, to thank those of you who reviewed...

Guest (Jen)

- I'm sorry the last chapter broke your heart! Here! *stitches heart back together* Thank you so much for reading, and reviewing! Hope to hear from you again:)

mrsbishop21

- Thank you! I'm glad it affected you! And don't worry, Eric loves Lia, even if he hasn't said the words yet (don't worry, they're coming!), he's disappointed, but more than anything he was embarrassed that they knew about his past, and he just wanted to forget.

NL92

- Holy crap! Thanks for saying that was amazing! hehehe, don't worry;)

Craseelix1190

- You have no idea how much I just loved reading your review! It made me squeal, coz, well... Fire and Ashe is one of my favorites! (guys, please go read it if you haven't already, it's awesome!) And, yeah, I know. Like, I've had to redo so much of my writing, because I just couldn't get through it! Like, I was crying so hard for what THIS chapter was supposed to be that I couldn't even see my computer screen! So, I've toned it down, considerably:) Thank you so much! ILY

sharonmayes353

- I know! And we've only skimmed the surface! (that's all I'm saying, because I'm saving a bunch of stuff for down the road;) ) Thanks for the review!

RisughXD

- Girl, ILY! :) Thank you so much! Breathe, slowly. In through the nose, out through the mouth. There, better? :) And thank you:) Yeah, I thought it would be interesting; I haven't seen anyone else do that, and I'm trying my hardest to be as original as possible. Here's more! (And guys, please go read The Last Scene, it's freaking awesome!)

interdictum in aeternum

- No, it's not wrong! I know what you mean! I like to see Eric suffer, too, but only because I hate to see him suffer, catch my drift? lol, can't believe I just said that shit, lol :) Thank you so much! I'm glad it's not completely unbelievable and yeah... horror story past was what I was going for, lol :) Like, I'm rereading your review right, like I always do, when I go to reply on here, and like, I'm crying from your compliments! Like, I just- *bawls in corner from wonderful, unexpected compliments* ILY! :)

murmelinchen

- Murmy! Hi! :) Thank you so much for the review of Chapter 18! :) I know you been really busy, but I hope you're having fun! And here's a big hug for when you get time to read this! *HUGS YOU SO TIGHT YOU SQUEAK* Now, EVERYBODY go read Last Resort, She will be his downfall, and Murmy's songfic: I cannot lose what is not mine ALL of them are awesome! :)

Guest

(unnamed) - You are right on! Like, to explain a bit: Lia thought Four might know about the scars, he didn't so it was new information. Lia had an idea that he might be the "victim" from a horrifying case when her father put the accused couple out on the streets, but she HAD to know, ya know? Like, ya know. And Lauryn didn't really believe it, at first, but she wanted to help Lia out, because she knew that either way, the girl wasn't gonna drop it. I mean, it'd be better if Eric never knew they knew, right? Except then Four can't stand not knowing, and he confronts Eric after finding the scars for himself, and he feels kinda cheated, because he told Eric about Marcus, and he's done so much for Eric, ya know? And that's why Eric left his exercize early and walked in on Lia and Lauryn's conversation.. *WHEW - gotta catch my breath now!* lol :) Yeah, they all shoulda known better, but I hope that clears it up a little bit:) Thanks for the review!

Onyx Thanatos Theodore Lerins

- I'm sorry! I can't make any promises! I mean, his hourglass it's getting pretty low though... Thank you so much, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story! :)

kadejenkins141-kj

- An obsession?! Wow! Astounding?! OMG! You're IN LOVE WITH IT?! AHHHHHHH! Thank you so so so so so much! I love your review! Please don't hesitate to continue to leave feedback, it really brightens my day:) I hope you haven't gone insane during the wait! :( Here, read this!

Alright, guys, thanks so much for all of your reviews! I can't get enough! I love them! Any new readers please fave/follow/review and I always respond :) I hope you guys enjoy this, and I hope I toned it down enough, but I couldn't just throw EVERYTHING out, I needed to get across some stuff, lol :)

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Eric's POV:

It wasn't real.

I never went to Dauntless, never met Four, Lauryn, or Lia. I never became the leader, that I'd thought I had. I never escaped; never got away. Hell, I even imagined that thirteen-month stint in the looney bin.

It was another hallucination; a result of their sick experiment.

Clearly, the only reason they agreed to take me in, was because they saw an opportunity to do what they had been begging, and filling out applications for, for years. Dean and Claudia have been researching the effects of total sleep deprivation on animals, but it was never what they really wanted to find out. They wanted to know what the lack of sleep over long periods of time did to a human; and I am that human.

I am simply an experiment to them; nothing more than a test subject to observe.

How did I ever get so lucky?

I wish I could go back to that hallucination... I was dying in it, but, it was better than this. Maybe, if I focus really hard on what I remember from it, I'll end up back there...

I squeeze my eyes shut tight, my face probably turning red from straining to reenter the life that my imagination had created.

"Stay awake, Everett!" I hear Dean shout, close to my ear, before I feel the burning sensation on my shoulder blade, and my breathing stops momentarily, as my body seizes up, shaking, from the electricity running through me. "Keep your eyes open! I don't want to have to do this to you, but you aren't giving me a choice! Stay awake!"

The currents rippling through me are suddenly gone, and my eyes shoot open, as I struggle to catch my breath, grinding my teeth together from the lingering pain of the shock. "I- I, I'm a- awake!"

"You know you aren't supposed to close your eyes; not even for a second!" Claudia glared at me, before exchanging a glance with Dean, and nodding her head a bit. "I'll get the ear piece."

Damn. I was only trying to get back in the hallucination! I don't want to go back to that room... "P- p- please!" I beg with widened, fearful eyes. "I- I, I w- wasn't, wasn't th- th- thinking! I- I, I w- won't d- d- do it, do it a- again, I- I s- s- swear!"

My attempts are futile, as Dean hauls me up out of the chair by my bound wrists, all but dragging me to what was originally supposed to be my bedroom. All that room has been used for is more torture; they use my own mind against me. It seems like it is taking longer than usual to get there...

I don't bother struggling against the man, as he forces me down to the floor and leans me against the wall in the empty room; there is no furniture, no windows, no anything. Dean bends down to restrain my ankles with the plastic ties, when Claudia enters the room. She places the small, metal ball in my left ear; the device detects when I'm on the verge of sleep, and sends a shock through me, but it doesn't burn.

"Pl- please d- don't, don't l- l- leave m- me in, in h- here a- again!" I try once more, pleading with my foster parents, hoping for an inkling of compassion from the couple that are strictly focused on their research.

But, I'm never that lucky; I'm shit out of luck.

"Learn to keep your eyes open, Everett," Dean responds, cooly, before they exit the room, slamming the door behind them.

I wait, trembling, in the corner.

I know what comes next.

The lights begin to flicker momentarily, before I am surrounded by darkness.

"F- f- fuck..." I know it's only a matter of time; the hallucinations will start soon. The thing is, once they start, I don't realize that they're hallucinations anymore; they are real. It doesn't take long.

I hear what sounds like fingernails scraping along the length of the wall, the sound growing louder, the closer it gets. My heart is racing, frantically, as I strain my eyes to attempt to see through the blackness engulfing me. I hear a dark, low chuckle, and I freeze.

"Who is there?" my voice has risen a few octaves from the fear of what it is that I can't see, and the chuckle turns into hysterical laughter. I momentarily catch sight of two, small lights moving towards me, and it strikes fear through my bones, as I realize that they are eyes. "G- get, get away from me!"

"Everett!" I snap my head to the right, when I hear the soft, female voice that sing-sung my name, and she giggles. "Everett..."

"Everett!" that was a man's voice, coming from what I assume is the direction of the door. More and more voices join in, singing a chorus of my name in a dark, overlapping melody; it's all jumbled together.

"Leave me alone!" I scream, my voice raw and gritty, and I can feel myself trembling in terror.

"Everett." That's my dad!

"Dad!" I laugh in relief, as the blackness falls away, revealing my father and mother sitting on a bench in the sunlit courtyard outside at Erudite. "Mom!"

Their smiling faces take over my mind, and I run towards them, longing to be near them. "Everett!" my mom laughs, as I barrel into her, hugging her tightly. I feel the wind pick up around us, blowing my mom's long, blonde hair into my face, and I laugh as I spit the light-colored strands out of my mouth.

I turn to shake my dad's hand, and when I do, I realize that we aren't standing in the courtyard, anymore. We are on the roof of what appears to be a very tall building, thus the reason the strength of the wind increased. "What's... going on?" I inquire, an uneasy feeling gripping my insides, as I peer down over the edge calculating that we must be at least a hundred stories up. I turn around quickly when I hear two, loud BANGs, and the smiling faces of my parents are replaced with grimaces of pain.

"No!" I scream, when I notice the bullet holes staining their foreheads, torrents of blood pouring from the wounds, as their bodies begin to melt away. I watch in horror as my parents dissolve, like brass in a melting pot, their bones and muscle turning into one, grotesque puddle.

I take a step back, in horror, and then I trip over the edge, and my body is falling through the air.

Third Person POV:

"I- I'm, t- t- trying!"

Cordelia and the red-headed woman exchange a confused glance, when they hear the young leader's pained shout, only slightly muffled, coming from the other side of the door. "Trying what?" Lia asks, her gaze on the entry to the blonde's apartment.

"F- f- for, for wh- what?!"

Lauryn and the amber-eyed girl press their ears against the dark-colored wood, listening intently.

"N- no I- I- I'm, I'm n- not..."

"Is he talking to himself?" the dark-haired girl questions the Dauntless-born instructor, with wide eyes, confused about what is happening.

The green-eyed woman jiggles the doorknob, to no avail; Eric had locked the door, and only a few people had keys to all the rooms. "I don't know!" she exclaims, both of the girls jumping when they hear a bone-chilling scream from Eric. The sound of pounding footsteps approaching their location causes the two to look up, as Four skids to a halt by them, and he pounds on the door with both fists.

"Fuck!" he shouts, pulling at his mussy, brown hair. "This is my fault! I fucking had to ask about those goddamned scars..." He groaned in frustration, before turning to address the women present. "What happened?"

"I overstepped a boundary," Lia admitted, with tears in her eyes, not bothering to swipe them away, and instead let them fall, soothingly, down her pale cheeks. "I wanted to know, just for the sake of knowing... Eric showed up early, and found it."

"Four," the red-head said, urgently, as she bore her eyes into his own honey-brown orbs. "Eric is talking to himself, and he's locked the door."

"I- I, I'm a- awake!" the blue-eyed man's terror-filled voice drifts from the other side of the door, once again.

Tobias hurriedly pulls the ring of keycards from his belt, finding the correct one, and sliding it through the box on the door. The entryway popped open, and the small group cautiously entered the young leader's domain.

"Eric..." Four tried, gently, to gain his distraught friend's attention, as he slowly approached the blonde instructor. The state of the man was frightening; his icy-blue orbs were unfocused when his gaze snapped up to the brown-haired instructor, and his entire body seemed to be vibrating uncontrollably.

"Hey guys! Let's-... what the fuck is going on?!" Uriah rushed to Eric's side, attempting to catch the other man's gaze. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's stuck in his head..." Tobias asserted, sighing, and rubbing at his tired eyes with his fists. "I don't know how to deal with this... this hasn't happened, before."

"P- p- please!" the blonde begged Tobias, with widened, fearful eyes, his breathing labored. "I- I, I w- wasn't, wasn't th- th- thinking! I- I, I w- won't d- d- do it, do it a- again, I- I s- s- swear!"

"What do we do?!" Lia asked, the tears flowing freely, as she wrung her hands. She felt so useless, and so guilty, and she knew that this was ultimately her fault. She was one who had brought up Eric's scars to Four. She was the one who had asked Lauryn to gather information, because she just had to know. Cordelia had never felt more selfish in her entire life.

"Maybe we could-... No," Uriah perked up, but his face fell, and he sighed. His brow furrowed together in concern, taking in the way the young leader's hands were shaking, and his slightly glazed over eyes that were full of fear. He didn't know what to make of this; but he did not like it, not one bit.

"What, Uriah?!" Four barked, his voice raising a bit, in annoyance, as he glared at the slightly darker-skinned Dauntless-born. "We're fresh out of ideas, so, please; enlighten us."

Uriah took a deep breath, closing his eyes briefly. "What if... what if we put him through his fear sim? Maybe... maybe it would snap him back? Like, I don't know..."

"That actually sounds like it's worth a try," Lauryn quips, raising her eyebrows, and looking to Tobias for confirmation. The brown-haired instructor glanced back down to his blonde friend, who was staring up at him, but not seeing him, and nodded, once.

"Uriah, help me out here," he ordered, moving to grab the blue-eyed man's left arm, pulling him up from the floor, as the dark-skinned boy grabbed his right arm. Four did not like the way that Eric was acting; it was more than unlike Eric... It wasn't Eric; it was Everett. "Guess there was more than one reason he decided to use a different name..."

The girls trailed behind, as the other men all but dragged the young leader down the hall, ignoring other member's stares and inquiries of concern. It didn't take long to reach the fear training rooms, and Uriah pushed the door on the right open, before the men hauled the blonde over to the metal chair, leaning him back against it.

"Pl- please d- don't, don't l- l- leave m- me in, in h- here a- again!"

"What the hell is he talkin' about?" Uriah asked, as he watched the brown-haired instructor prepare the syringe, and quickly injected the blonde's neck with the fear serum. "Don't leave him in where? Who is he talking to?"

"F- f- fuck..." Eric's voice trailed off, as his wide eyes fluttered shut, and the others moved to watch the monitor, crossing their fingers, and hoping against hope that this would work.

"Learn to keep your eyes open, Everett," a man with black hair says, cooly, before him and a chubby woman exit the room, slamming the door behind them.

A skinny, teenaged Eric, with dark, sunken eyes, cowers in the corner. The lights begin to flicker momentarily, before every inch of the room is surrounded by darkness.

Tobias turned the volume up on the side of the screen, the loud sound of scratching filling the small room. The much younger Eric could barely be seen in the darkness, but he knew that it was pitch black for the blonde. The brown-haired instructor felt a chill run up his spine, when he heard a low, menacing chuckle.

"Who is there?" Cordelia listened intently to her boyfriend's slightly scratchy, and cracking, teenaged voice, as it rose a few beats above what was probably normal for the blonde at that age. Her breathing picked up when the dark chuckle from the unseen entity turned into hysterical laughter; a horrifying sound.

"I think... I think we're seeing his current hallucination..." Four informed the other three, as his eyes stayed glued to the monitor.

Lauryn caught sight of what appeared to be a pair of beady, glowing eyes in the darkness, as the sound of scratching grew in volume, as well as the insane laughter.

"G- get, get away from me!" Eric screamed, in the simulation, attempting to scoot farther back, but he was leaning against a wall, and he had nowhere to go.

"Everett!... Everett..." Uriah heard the sound of a young girl, calling out in a sing-song voice, that was light and airy; that just made it even more creepy to hear.

"Everett!" a man's voice boomed out the speakers on the monitor, as more voices joined in, overlapping each other, and growing to an almost-deafening volume.

"Leave me alone!" the young leader screamed, through the simulation, his pubescent voice raw, and gritty, as he trembled, pushing his frail body back into the wall.

And just as quickly as the horrifying scene began, it switched. Tobias watched as the blackness fell away, and the sunlit courtyard at Erudite headquarters filled the screen. "Everett."

"Dad!" Simulation Eric laughed, as he caught sight of a young couple sitting together on a bench in the grassy courtyard, before sprinting towards them. Lia thought that the casual button-down, white shirt with a dark-blue vest, and dark blue slacks, looked good on Eric when he didn't have piercings and tattoos. "Mom!"

"Everett!" the blonde lady that must have been Eric's mother let loose a light, tinkling laugh, as the boy in blue ran into her, squeezing her, tightly. Lauryn couldn't help but smile at the contagious grin on Eric's youthful features, but she frowned when the scene changed, only slightly.

Eric and his parents were stood on top of a roof, and at the moment, the younger leader seemed unaware of the difference in scenery. The blue-eyed teenager laughed, as his mom's blonde hair flew into his face, and he spit out the strands, with a light giggle. The blonde boy turned towards his father, and his face instantly turned to an expression of confusion.

Uriah watched in curiosity, and concern, as his instructor's thirteen-year-old self, peeked over the edge of the roof, and saw just how far down the ground was. It must have been a hundred stories or more. "What's... going on?" the young blonde inquired, before jumping at the loud thundering of gunshots.

Simulation Eric turned around quickly, and Cordelia noticed the smiling faces of his parents disappeared, simultaneously, and their expressions twisted in pain. There was a small, round hole on each of their foreheads, and blood poured from the wounds.

"No!" the younger Eric screamed, as he watched the scene before him, in horror.

"Oh my god..." Uriah stated, his face going pale, as he watched the young leader's family begin to melt; their bones, flesh, and clothing pooling together on the ground in a thick puddle. Simulation Eric took a step back, with widened eyes, before he tripped over the edge, and his body was falling through the air.

"He's in! He's in!" Four announced, pumping a fist in the air, and breathing a sigh of relief. "He's in his regular sim... we just have to wait for him to finish, now."

"Are you sure?" Lia asked, quietly, worried that it hadn't worked, that Eric would still be stuck inside his head, or worse.

"I'm definitely sure," Tobias assured the group, pointing to the young leader's on-screen vitals. "See that part of his brain, right there?"

Lauryn, Cordelia and Uriah leaned in to look, nodding when they saw the red and yellow glowing areas.

"That's the lateral amygdala, it's the main part of the brain that processes fear, and see this right here?" Four used his pinky to point at another location on the scan on the side of the monitor. "These blue veins were lit up red when he first went under; they're neutral now. Those were memories. He's in the regular sim, and he's almost done."

"Hey..." Uriah said, slowly, as he squinted his eyes at the image of Eric's brain on the monitor. "What's that? Is that..."

"What, this?" Four inquired, seeking confirmation, with a raised eyebrow. "That's what is killing him. It's called a Chr-."

"Chronic Subdural Hematoma... caused by Traumatic Brain Injury," the darker-skinned boy finished, all eyes falling on him, as simulation Eric tried to outrun the pack of angry dogs on the main screen of the monitor.

"How...?" Lauryn started, an incredulous expression on her face, as the group stared at the Dauntless-born.

"I'm part Erudite, remember?" Uriah grinned, cheekily, as he folded his arms over his chest, before his face fell, and scrunched his features. "But, that's not how I know what this is... My dad was a transfer from Erudite, did ya' know that?" he laughed a bit, remembering how crazy him and his brother's dad had been. "Yeah... my mom had CSH... my dad and I spent countless nights researching, and reading books on neurology... we made some progress, but... we couldn't save her in time."

"Uri, I'm so sorry!" Lia supplied, hugging the other boy, tightly, with tears still in her eyes. She wasn't used to seeing a crestfallen Uriah; it was something foreign, and alien, on the usually joyous initiate's face.

The darker-skinned boy smiled, softly, as he pushed the amber-eyed girl away from him. "I actually continued the research, ya' know? I've got like ten, two-inch binders full of notes, and formulas, and calculations... I was working on a device that was non-invasive, but I couldn't get the formulas right."

"A device?" Four said, his eyes watching as simulation Eric pushed his way through a hole in the ground, gasping for oxygen. "What do you mean?"

"Okay, so I've always been fascinated with radiation, right? And, like, who doesn't think gamma rays are fucking cool?" the dark-skinned boy asserted, shifting his weight, and leaning against the table that held the computer and monitor. "It's a small, round machine, that attaches itself with four pins with small grapple fixings on the end. Anyway, the idea was for a laser to block the nerves, and then dissolve the damaged veins to clear the area and completely heal the hematoma, but... I tried it on several rats, and... well, it didn't turn out so good."

"Meaning...?" the red-headed woman asked, raising an eyebrow when she saw Eric's ex making fun of him on the screen, and everyone laughing at him.

"The laser was supposed to only target the affected area, and pass through the other tissues and bone, but I couldn't get the formula right. It ended up killing the rights, because the laser cut through every bit of organic matter. It left half of their head with a crater, just like they were shot, point blank, with a shotgun," the darker-skinned boy admitted, with a frown. "Dude, what the hell is he doing?"

The group turned their attention back to the monitor, just in time to see Eric slit his wrists open, and smiling, before he fell to the floor, and Lauryn's frantic voice could be heard calling for help.

"Uriah, I might need help with him, he's gonna wake up," Four announced, as he moved to hold Eric's left shoulder down, and the Dauntless-born boy moved to the young leader's right side.

The dark-haired girl and Lauryn, held their breath as the screen went dark, waiting for the blonde to wake up, with their fingers crossed.

Eric's eyes flew open, and he blinked rapidly, as he took in his surroundings, as he struggled to bring his heart rate back to normal. He didn't remember putting himself through the fear sim... "Oh... yeah."

"Hey, it's alright bro," Four said, relief flooding his features, when he was sure that his friend was all there, with them. "We didn't know what else to do... it was Uri's idea."

The blonde didn't know what to say; he was embarrassed, and he was frightened that he had lost control, again, after six years. His mind got the better of him, this time; it would not happen again.

"Eric, I'm so sorry... I'm so, so sorry," Cordelia said, her voice strained, remembering how the young leader had thrown her out of his apartment, and told her to leave. She did not want to lose Eric over her stupid decisions. "Please, forgive me? Please? Don't leave me..."

"Wh- why w- w- would I, I l- leave y- y- you, L- lia?" the blonde shrugged the other men off of him, and he sat up, scooting to the edge of the seat, as he looked up at the dark-haired girl with a confused expression.

"B- because... I invaded your privacy, majorly," Cordelia informed him, honestly, averting her gaze to the floor, as she remembered his furious, and pained expression when he found out. "It was way out of line... beyond out of line."

"L- look, c- can we, can we j- just f- f- forget a- about all of, all of, all of th- this? M- maybe we c- can t- t- talk l- later, b- but... c- can w- we j- just f- f- forget a- about th- this f- for n- n- now?" the young leader pleaded, chewing on his bottom lip, and wanting nothing more than to not be in that small room, with all eyes on him.

"Forget about what?" the red-head asked, forcing a small smile on her face, and tilting her head to the side.

"He wants us to forget ab-," the darker-skinned Dauntless-born began, before being shoved by the brown-haired instructor. "Hey!"

"Fucktard..." Tobias breathed, shaking his head, and rolling his eyes at the dark-skinned initiate. "Seriously, dude?"

Eric felt the corners of his mouth twitch upwards, and then he began to laugh; a full, belly laugh. A genuine laugh. "I- I'm, s- s- sorry!" he managed to get out, between his high-pitched cackling. "Th- that, that w- w- was p- pretty, pretty f- fucking f- f- funny!"

"Hey! Let's go smoke, and jam!" Uriah suggested, glad to have been a part of the source of the young leader's humor. "Just like normal, yeah? Besides, all the guys are probably waiting for us, over at your place."

"Y- y- yeah..." the blonde said, moving to stand up, and heading towards the door. "I- I, I've a- actually g- g- got s- some- something I- I, I w- want u- us to, want us t- to d- d- do."

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"Eric, you're a fuckin' trip!" Lauryn squealed, as she watched the young leader twirl Uriah around before throwing the Dauntless-born boy on the couch, for the fifth time, in a row. "I want a turn!"

The blonde gave the red-headed woman a wide, cheesy grin, before grabbing her, and proceeded to spin her around, as well, while everyone else held onto to their sides from laughing too hard.

"Hey, what about me?" Lia pouted, with slumped shoulders, once the green-eyed woman rolled off the worn piece of furniture. "I want to play."

"Hmmmmm," the blue-eyed man hummed, as he stroked his chin, thoughtfully, before winking at the dark-haired girl. "W- wanna, wanna p- play, h- huh?" Eric's eyes lit up when Cordelia's beautiful, amber eyes twinkled, and she nodded her head. "O- okay."

The Candor transfer gasped when she was picked up, and thrown to the couch; she had expected to be twirled, first. She opened her mouth to speak, but instead giggled, when Eric hopped on top of her, peppering her face with kisses. "Eric! It tickles! It tickles! It- oooooh," the dark-haired girl stretched her head back, as the blonde attacked her neck, nipping and sucking at the sensitive skin.

"H- having f- fun?" the blue-eyed instructor mumbled against Lia's ear, and he smiled when he felt the smaller girl shudder beneath him. Eric ground his growing desire against the amber-eyed girl's core, a moan escaping his lips, needing more friction.

"Ten points says they forget we're here, and start fucking on the couch!" Sassy called out, to which Uriah, Marc, and Lauryn responded with a 'You're on!'. The blue-haired girl went to pull out her tablet to tally their bets, but was stopped by the brown-haired instructor.

"Guys?!" he called out to the clearly horny couple. "Fucking wait until we're gone!"

"S- s- sorry!" Eric giggled, the high-pitched sound causing the others to join in. "L- let's go, let's go d- d- do th- that s- song I- I, I w- wanted to d- do!"

"I can't wait to see this!" Lauryn exclaimed, jumping up and down, and clapping her hands, excitedly. "You're my favorite music!"

"Which song?" Tobias inquired, as they made their way into the young leader's music room, the other's taking their positions, and Sassy moved behind the soundboard.

"All of them!" the red-head stated, as if it was obvious. "What about you? You have a favorite?"

Marc and Eric set out tuning their guitars, while Violet stood patiently waiting with the bass guitar, having already tested it, and Uriah spun the drumsticks around in the air, catching them when they fell.

"I love all of them... I actually have a secret stash. But, my favorite song has got to be 'Pages',"** Four admitted, as him, Lauryn and Cordelia, settled on the floor, in front of the small band, this time.

"Ready?" the blue-haired girl asked, as Eric moved to stand in front of the mic. The blonde nodded, in confirmation, and Sassy started the recording.

As the five tics started the countdown, Tobias leaned over to whisper in Lauryn's ear. "You have got to see this! Just watch, he freaking loses it!"

"Loses what?" the red-head inquired, cocking her head to the side, her brow furrowed in confusion. Four didn't have time to answer, as the countdown was finished, and Uriah began a heavy, and fast drum roll, the others joining in, in unison.

Lauryn watched in amazement, as the blonde instructor's fingers flew up and down the fretboard, bending the strings, and pulling off, and picking over the pick ups so fast that his hand appeared blurry. She watched as he closed his eyes, his face already portraying several different emotions, in succession.

"I feel fine, and I can smile

But I feel the anger coming

It's underneath, I don't know why

It's always overflowing

It's a constant fight deep inside

And I wanna forget it

"I confess, I'm always afraid

Always ashamed

Of what's inside me

I confess, I'm always afraid

Always ashamed

Of what's inside my head!"

"Damn!" Lauryn exclaimed, as she watched her blue-eyed friend move all over the place, tossing his white, electric guitar around like it weighed nothing, not missing a note. She knew what Tobias was talking about now; Eric let go of everything that wasn't him, when he played. She could hear it in all of his music, she just never guessed it would be like this; she could do this all day long.

It didn't escape her, the content of the lyrics; they were sad, and they were honest. She wondered if the others felt it too, or if it was just her being high...

"And I can breathe, and I still feel

But not the way I want to

I'm on the edge, I don't know how

I can escape this nightmare!"

Sassy was on her toes, sliding the pushers for the necessary effects on time, every time, not missing a beat. She switched between alternating a ringing effect, and harmonics, multiplying Eric's voice at different tones; it sounded like there was more than one person singing, but there wasn't.

"I confess, I'm always afraid

Always ashamed

Of what's inside me

I confess, I'm always afraid

Always ashamed

Of what's inside my head

What's inside my head!"

Tobias never tired from watching his friend, the stuttering, mystery musician, let go like this; it was really something. Besides the fact that Eric was probably the single, most-talented musician and singer in all of Dauntless. He knew that he would still be listening to Eric's music, long after he died; too young, too soon.

He wasn't going to take these opportunites for granted; there was an expiration date stamped on the blonde's forehead, and he was going to try and commit every second he spent with the young leader, to memory. Especially, moments like this; moments when Eric drowned everything else out, and was just simply Eric.

"Oh, I'm wasting away

It's part of my instinct

I'll run away from everything I hate

Take this away, help me escape

Take this away, I confess!"

The red-head was taken by surprise when Eric suddenly started screaming, mid-lyric, and the raw sound cut through her being, causing chills to wash across her skin, sprouting goose bumps.

"Innocence! Innocence! Innocence!"***

** Pages - 3 Doors Down

*** Confession (What's Inside My Head) - Red