R.I.P Elaina

"Ten..fifteen minutes," Karina decided, glancing back at her foster mom who was sleeping on the couch. As long as she didn't wake up.

"Alright, I'll wait in the car." Zerrick walked down the steps and got back in the car. Bad, bad idea...But oh well, here went nothing.

Karina ran up the steps and shoved clothes, toiletries, everything she'd need into a duffel bag she'd used for track last school year. Then she went back down the stairs, scrawling a quick note for her foster mother, and running outside to Zerrick's car. She hopped in on the passenger side like when the'd gotten sodas, and closed the door behind her. She smiled slightly over to him. "I'm done. DId you time me?" She joked.

Jamie: The rest of my night passed uneventfully, mostly consisting of me pacing the house until a rediculous hour of the morning when i pretty much collapsed from worry and exhaustion. When i woke up later (not really the next day, since id stayed awake well into it....) my parents were still not home. Good. I showered and changed my clothing out of habit, but i suddenly felt trapped, stifled in the house. I needed air. I needed to get out. I left the house and began walking. Where? I didnt know, i didnt care. I was pretty much just going wherever my feet took me. Eventually i wound up at the park. It was deserted right now, which was unusual, but i certainly wasnt objecting. I went and perched on one of the swings, puching myself back and forth slightly with my feet, thoughts milling around in my head. I had to talk to someone, eventually...... it would liekly be an awkward converstaion, but there were too many unsaid words trapped inside me right now, and i knew if i didnt get them out, i may just be driven mad.

Jace chuckled and shook his head. "I actually think that there's some glass still in my arm," he said, letting go of her hand and lightly touching his elbow, picking out three pieces before figuring he was clear. "I think I'd need to find something to tear."

Elaina winced when he took the glass out. "Doesn't that hurt?" She asked softly, before turning away and looking up at the loft place. "There're beds up there, beds mean sheets, sheets are for tearing...come with me to look?" This place still made her nervous.

"Nah, not really," Jace said softly, staring at the jagged bits of glass on the floor. "Yeah, I'll come up," he said, following her to the ladder and letting her go up first. They got to the loft area and he took a deep breath. Instantly, his nose was filled with the scent of must and mildew. "Maybe these sheets aren't so good," he said.

"We don't have much to choose from," Elaina pointed out. There were two single beds. She tugged the sheets off of one of them and tore a strip of the yellowed-ish fabric. She walked over to Jace and took his arm gently, wrapping it up then knotting it. "There. Better?"

Jace felt gross, having the old fabric covering his arm. He peeled it off and shook his head. "I think I'll be fine," he said. And it's not even bleeding," he reasoned. He had been holding his arm very still in a poition where it wouldn't bleed. "I just don't want to get some infection from old sheets," he said,

"Jace." Elaina bit her lip and sighed, running a hand through her hair. "My sheets with that guy were dirty from...well, you can imagine...all the time, and I haven't gotten an infection. How's your arm going to heal? I don't care if you say that you're fine."

Jace shrugged. "It'll heal if I leave it alone," he said. "I just don't want some funky mold bacteria socializing with my open wounds and blood," he said. "It. Will. Be. Fine," he said slowly, emphasising his point. Truthfully, it still burned.

Elaina hugged herself. "If you say so," She said, giving up. She looked around the loft area a little then yawned. "I'm tired, long...day. Night. Whatever it is. I lost track of time in that place -- no windows."

Nicola went through most of the rest of the day in a daze. So much had happened and she had no idea what to do about it. Her secret was out. Everyone knew she was a murderer, and it scared her. The next evening she found herself alone in the house, dad was at the bar or somewhere, she wasn't really sure. The house was starting to feel like it was closing in on her, like she was going to soffacate. Grabbing the phone she quickly dialed Jamie's cell. "Hey Jamie." She said feeling awkward. "Wanna go do something? I feel trapped, need to GE out of the house."

Jace nodded to one of the beds. "Sleep," he said, looking back to her with a small smile. "I won't let anything hurt you," he said, sitting in front of one of the matresses.

(I imagined it was evening/ late afternoon.)

(it is. she's just tired xD)

Elaina shook her head. "I don't want to close my eyes." She bit her lip, sitting down on the other mattress. She knew it was silly, but if she closed her eyes she was afraid she might be back there, without Jace. Mostly being without him again scared her.

Zerrick gave her a half smile. He started the car and slowly pulled away, not wanting his rather loud engine to wake Karina's foster mom. Since they weren't all that far away from the interstate they were soon faced with a choice. "North or South?" He pulled to the side as they looked at the signs. He really had no plan of where to go. No family wanted him after Juvy, so he and Karina were on their own.

"Hmm." Karina thought on it for a moment. "The south gets really hot, and the north gets really cold. If you had to choose, would you rather be hot or cold?"

"Mmm, not sure. We could hit a beach, or go where we could ski. Always wanted to learn how to snowboard." Zerrick thought hard about it, but the only conclusion that he could come to is that he didn't care. Anywhere was better than Oklahoma.

"Beaches aren't good for gingers," Karina mused, referring to herself. She wasn't as ginger-y as some people, but she did have the hair and kind of the skin. "Let's go with the north -- snowboarding sounds fun."

"Okay, North it is." Pulling back onto the highway, I took the ramp that would put me heading North on the interstate. I settled back for the ride and set the cruise. "So, how much money did you bring?"

"I don't know...some," Karina said, looking at Zerrick sidelong. Should she tell him how much? A thought occurred to her that maybe he'd only let her come along so he could take her money, kill her, and keep going. "Why?"

"Cause I don't exactly have a ton, so I'm not sure how long it will all last. And no, I'm not gonna steal your money and kill you." He knew that the thought had crossed her mind. And why wouldn't it? He was a convicted killer, and she had no idea why.

"I never said you would," Karina said softly, wanting to reach out and touch his arm to assure him. "I'm really not afraid of you, Zerrick."

"You should be." He said softly, under his breath. "Why did you come?" Zerrick looked over at her and studied her face for a minute before looking back to the road. She wasn't like everyone else. She seriously didn't show any fear around him, even knowing what he was capable of.

Karina paused before speaking, looking down at her hands. "You want to know the truth?" Her heart sped up. It'd probably be awkward if she told him, wouldn't it?