" When Adius left the house that night, he had no idea of the storm brewing in Hope. He didn't know of the things that were on her mind, he didn't know what she was going to do. What he did know, was that when they finally met up later that night, she seemed fine.

She had changed her clothes at some point and even done her hair. She had looked more like herself then than she had in the last few months. She looked beautiful, and the sight of her calmed him. "Hey," She had whispered as he walked up to her, the mulch sinking beneath his feet. She was swinging lightly on the yellow rusty old swing set, her legs crossed at the ankle and her toes pointed under her pretty black maxi skirt.

Weaved into the curls of her hair was a red rose crown that she had probably made herself. She waved at him as he sat on the swing beside her. "Hey," He had replied. He didn't feel like he was dressed for the occasion, but then again, it didn't matter how he looked because Hope always managed to outshine everything and everyone around her.

When she stared at him, he noticed a bit of black lining the bottom of her eye. "Are you wearing makeup?" He smiled as he pointed to her face. He liked that she was trying again, even if he couldn't figure out why.

She had gone to wipe at her eye with a little bit of a huff. "No, actually." Adius noticed that her tone had gotten a little dejected, so he had stood up and started to push her swing. A startled laugh had left her and filled him with something warm. Just being with her made him feel like he was at home.

So the two had spent the majority of that night just being with each other.

They swung on the swings and hung upside down on the monkey bars. They ran around the jungle gym and hid in the little tree house.

Adius had loved every second of it.

Until things turned dark.

They had started to walk to the store to get a few things to snack on when Hope had asked what time it was. "Umm..." He pulled out his phone and read the time. "It's eleven-fifteen. Christ, my dad's going to kill me when I get home." He had laughed, but Hope had stilled.

Licking her lips, she had said, "Adius, I want to tell you something."

"Yeah, you can tell me anything. You know that." That was it. It was finally time for the big reveal that Adius had been waiting for for only God knows how long.

He was ready to sit and talk and listen. But then she pulled her hand away from his. "Actually... I have to go." Then she tried to run away, but Adius was so sick and tired of her running from him. She was hiding something, and she was so close to finally spilling it that Adius could almost taste the non-toxic relationship that would have surely followed the revelation.

In an act of frustration, he had run after her and grabbed her by the wrist.

And she had screamed in agony.

Releasing her, he found that his hand was covered in something sticky and dark. Hope had whimpered as Adius stared at his hand in horror. "Corrina... Are you okay?" He had finally found it in himself to ask.

The girl had crumbled to the ground, gripping at her arm, the arm that he knew would be covered in the same liquid that was clinging to the skin on his palms. She faced away from him, but from the shaking of her shoulders, he knew that she was crying.

Walking up to her cautiously, he tried to pat her back, he tried to console her, but she scampered away at his touch. Had he done this? Had he hurt her? "Adius... I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I have to go." She got up and tried to run.

And again, Adius reached for her, but his time he forced the girl to face him.

He stumbled back at the sight.

"What the hell?" He had whispered into the cold night air. Her eyes...

Corrina began to back away. "No... Don't look at me, just listen!" She had screamed hopelessly. He couldn't take his eyes away from her face. It was the fuel of nightmares. She was a nightmare. "We- We'll be back, Adius. Warn them! If things don't change, he'll make us come back!" The same substance that covered his hand began to fall from her mouth, yet she didn't choke on it.

"What's wrong with you?" He hadn't known what else to say as he watched the skin on his girlfriend's face peel like an old label. He pinched his arm, his skin throbbed in response. "This has to be another daydream," He had mumbled to himself, blinking deeply.

He was going crazy.

She shook her head, her eyes filled with all of the answers, yet the boy couldn't see a single one of them. She took another step back. "Don't look," She pleaded. But he couldn't tear his eyes away as she took another step. He wouldn't dare. Not when he was so sure that the world was going to go back to normal at any second.

By the time he realized what she was doing, it was too late.

One last, "Don't look." left her mouth before she threw herself in front of a honking truck. Her head hit the windshield with a terrifying crack. A scream left his mouth. One, two, three, four wheels ran over her bleeding body in two different places.

Tires screeched and brakes worked overtime to pull the vehicle to a stop, but it was too late.

She was gone.

And all he had done was stand there and gape. "