R.I.P Elaina

Jamie: More and more hidden problems appeared from the diary. It was almost overwhelming. But i knew if we stopped, there would always be doubt, always be people wondering what else was in the diary. It was hard to hear, but maybe... maybe it was for the best that this all come out. At least if we knew each other's problems, we could be there to support each other. For better or for worse in the end, maybe now we could understand one another a little bit better.

"She's safe." Illia said, breaking the uneasy silence in the room. She was sure of it. Her capitalization had given it away. Elaina was safe! Across the room, she saw Jace's eyes fling open. She supressed a small smile and showed them all the diary entry. "She's safe."

Karina smiled, but then glanced at her watch. It was time for her to go, and she guessed the others had things to do today, too. "So, who's keeping the diary? At least for now."

"I will."

Illia's head snapped up to look at who had spoken. Jace. Illia bit her lip and her fingers tightened around the book. Reluctantly, she handed it over to him.

"Take care of it," she said, her words holding a tone of seriousness. It would be safe with him. After all, he was Elaina's best friend. It was obvious in his eyes how much he liked her, cared for her. Part of her felt hurt, thouhg. She had always thought she was Illia's best friend. So much for thinking.

Jamie: Knowing that she was safe was a huge relief. Id been struggling to come to terms with the idea of her being dead ever since she went missing, but now.... well, that was one worry off my shoulders. One small certainty. But.... where did we go from here?

Zerrick looked around at his closest friends who now seemed foreign to him. "So now that all of this is out, what do we do?" He was pretty sure that no one knew, but he needed to ask. His heart was heavy and he couldn't get over all the things he had just heard. And Elaina, was she really safe? Or was all of this just a sick joke?

"I say we all go home and think things through... Maybe we can talk tomorrow or something... I dunno," Illia said, burying her face in her hands. maybe they could all figure out their issues that way, finally pass some of the guilt or shock or whatever else they were feeling.

Jamie: I nodded, sighing a little. "That sounds like a good idea." i said. But i wasnt sure i was going to go home. My parents were both at home today and i didnt feel like having to deal with them right now....

Zerrick sighed and stood up. "Yeah, okay." He gave one last glance at everyone, then walked out and left in his Mustang. He didn't go home though, but straight to the place he always went to think. A small abandoned airport on the other side of town.

Jace left, too, the diary in his hand. He sighed as he walked home, which was only a half a mile from Illia's. He got home and sat on his bed, running a hand through his hair. Next to his bed was a small, drawstring backpack. It had his pills and phone charger in there, everything he'd need.

Jamie: I stood, heading for the door. "Well, im off too. See you guys later." i said. I walked home and stood across the street, surveying my house. The car wasnt in the driveway, and something was taped to the door. I walked across the street and up to the door, reading the note. Oh..... they'd taken Lillian to her soccer game. Id forgotten about that. It seemed so insignificant compared to what had just happened. It was a big game, semi finals for the season or something, and they were playing a team a few towns over, but the game was late. They were staying in a hotel overnight and would be back the next day. I was relieved. I didnt want to deal with my family on top of all this. My little sister i could handle. She didnt judge me, she understood.... but my parents... they only ever criticized. Their absence was a weight off my shoulders. I went inside, but couldnt settle. Eventually i pulled a bunch of ingredients out of the cupboards and fridge, making brownies for lack of anything better to do, expertly measuring and mixing the ingredients. Cooking was calming, and i was really good at it. As i worked, my mind kept wandering off, my focus straying, specifically, to Nicola. She'd probably just been trying to be nice back there. I appreciated it, but i had to wonder what things were going to be like now. My greatest fears seemed to be coming into play.

Going into one of the abandoned terminals, Zerrick lost it. Picking up a chair he threw it through the nearest window. "How could you do this, Elaina?" he screamed through his tears. "I trusted you!" For the next several hours, Zerrick screamed, cried, and threw things. His chest was burning with anger, then sadness, then regret. Finally, he just slumped against the wall, tears still pouring down his face. He could never go back. He could no longer face his friends, who even now probably hated him anyway. There was no other choice but to leave.

That night, the figure slunk back into town. This time, however, their destination was different. They needed the diary, and knew that whoever had it must be important to Elaina. It must be entrusted to someone important.

With the use of their stalker tendencies, they discovered Jace had it. So they cracked open his unlocked window and slithered inside. Carefully, they covered the sleeping boy's mouth and took the diary from his room. Then they snatched him up and jumped out the window.

The figure was strong yet light on their feet, landing like a cat.

---

When Jace woke up, he'd be in a room with a door and no windows. There'd be nothing in the room but a mattress on the floor.

What he wouldn't see, wouldn't know, was that Elaina was close.

So close that if he listened hard, he might hear her humming to herself on the other side of one of his wall's.

Jace woke, rubbing his eyes in the darkness. Where am I? Home? No... He searched the room and got up. "Hello?" He yelled. "Is anyone there?" He sat on his bed, feeling defeated. He leaned his head against the wall and for a second, he thought he heard humming. But his imagination was sick like that.

Elaina was startled from her humming. She hadn't heard a noise in a long time. Besides the noise of -- she shivered and wrapped her thin blanket tighter around her shoulders. She wouldn't think about that, she didn't need to think about that until the man came in the night like he did every night.

The yell had came from her left. She pressed her palm to the wall. "Hello?" She called out loudly but yet still softly. She wasn't sure if the man was here. He had taken a new victim? Maybe she wouldn't have to sleep with him tonight, someone else would give him his fill.

Jace's eyes widened. He had heard someone. His brain wasn't playing tricks on him. "Hello?" He called through the wall. He pressed his ear to the wall hard, listening. "Who's there?"

Elaina's heart sped up. Someone else was here. She wasn't alone anymore, even if she couldn't see them. "Do you work for /him/?" She asked first, being careful. What if they were trying to trick her into thinking someone else was here? Being trapped here for a month had left her paranoid.

"Who's him?" Jace asked. "Listen, my name is Jace, I don't know how I got here or when, but I just want to know that 'm not alone," he said, sounding quite pathetic. He felt a pang of guilt, Elaina's diary still on his bed. He shouldn't have taken it. Now no one will know.

"Your name is...Jace?" Elaina asked slowly, her eyes going wide. She licked her lips, her mouth feeling dry. "I know a Jace...knew a Jace. My name is Elaina."

Jace swore his heart stopped for a second before it picked up even faster. "Elaina! I'm Jace. Your Jace," he said. And to prove it, he decided to tell her something. "We got your diary."

"Jace!...They got you, too?" Elaina said, happy to know it was him, then shocked, then upset. Her hands curled into fists on the walls. "How?"

Jace shivered. He had thought she had been dead, then the diary entry... Now this. His thoughts were rushing at a million miles an hour. "I don't know, Elaina. And I know this might be a bad time, but I missed you."

Elaina's resolve faltered and she bit her lip to hold back tears. "You have no idea how much I missed you all. I've been all alone, wondering how all of you are, and it's driven me crazy. The diary was the only way to try and get a message to you, but look where it's got us?" Now he was trapped, too. "I'm so sorry, Jace."

Jace shook his head, but the motion was in vain because she couldn't se it. "Don't be sorry. It's not like you planned this," he said. "And the others will surely notice that I'm gone and there will be some sort of search." To hear her voice was like taking a drug for Jace. Especially after such a long time. He had missed her more than anything. He didn't even want to count the nights he cried himself to sleep, figuring she was dead.

(Elaina looks like Lily Collins with dark hair. Just FYI)

"Hopefully...the things that happen here ...it's a scary place, Jace," Elaina's voice cracked on the end. "But I'll try to keep them focused on me and not you. So you're safe...I'm so glad you were safe. All this time, I mean. I thought I was going to get out and you were going to be ...dead."

"At least we're getting to talk a last time."