I let out a scream when I see that my best friend is laying on the ground, looking lifeless. I don't even think before rushing to his side, sitting down while panting.

''Travis!'' I scream, grabbing his shoulders roughly before shaking them to make him wake up, but he just lays there without moving. ''Please, wake up!''

My eyes get stuck at his blue-shifting face. His full bottom lip has a small cut with some dry blood around it and I discover a similar cut on his forehead. His dark hair is dirty and it's hard to even recognize that this is my best friend. I move my trembling hand towards his neck, taking a deep breath before holding my finger under his chin to feel his pulse. My eyes widen when I don't feel anything. After moving my finger a bit, I finally feel his pulse. Oh my god, he is alive.

''Travis, please just wake up!'' I cry out, watching as my tears drop and land on his gray hoodie, creating small dark stains on it. When nothing changes, I lean my face down onto his chest, starting to sob uncontrollably. His body feels cold against my cheek and so... lifeless. Why? Why did this have to happen? Why didn't I help him? I could have done anything just to stop this, but I didn't. I sit up again and watch the boy as he looks as lifeless as before. It's insane that this is the same person that I used to hang out with everyday just weeks ago.

Suddenly, he lets out a cough. My eyes widen as I put my hand under his head, holding it up as he opens his eyes. Is this a dream?

''Ember,'' he whispers with a raspy voice, almost too weak for me to hear. He sounds broken. Everything about him just screams out the word broken.

''Oh my god, Travis!'' I outburst, my voice cracking before pulling his body towards me, holding him tightly against my chest. I start to cry even more if it's possible, hugging Travis tightly. It doesn't take long before I hear how he is crying as well, making my broken heart hurt even more than before.

''I'm sorry,'' he cracks out.

''It's okay,'' I breath out while panting, moving my hand to his head. I just want to scream at him, ask him where the hell he's been, but I just keep quiet. If I would tell him how worried we've been, he would freak out and not open up about everything.

''My leg,'' he whispers and I don't understand what he means until he folds up his jeans, exposing his dark skin. There's a big scar on it, making me cringe from the blood that's sipping out from it. I cover my mouth when I realise how deep it looks and there's a white area around it. It's infected.

''We gotta get back to the others and get you to the hospital, can you walk?'' I ask him, putting my hand on his back but he immediately starts to look scared.

''We can't go to the hospital!'' He outbursts, making me furrow my eyes and bite my lip while my heart starts beating faster.

''Why not?'' I ask stupidly, making him suck in his scarred bottom lip.

''They can't find out,'' he says quietly after a while.

''Who?''

''My parents,'' he says.

''What? They already know that you are gone!'' I say, desperately. ''Everybody knows! If you don't go to the hospital, you will die!''

''You don't understand,'' he says quietly, shaking his head. ''You don't understand.''

I look at him, waiting for him to explain what he means, but he keep repeating the earlier sentence, making me confused.

''You don't understand!'' He suddenly screams, his eyes wide open before starting to shake even more.

''Hey! It's okay!'' I shout, trying to make him hear me but he just keeps shaking, his eyes locked behind me.

''You weren't supposed to find me! Why haven't I just killed myself already? Everything would be peaceful,'' he says, making my heart drop as I feel more scared than ever.

''Don't fucking say that ever again!'' I say before forcing him towards me again. I'm so scared. I'm so scared of losing him. I just want to hold him forever and protect him for any obstacle in this world. I don't won't him to ever feel pain again.

''I love you so fucking much,'' I mumble. ''I need you. We all need you in this world.''

The combination of my words and the way I rub his back slowly apparently calms him down because he doesn't shake anymore.

''I love you, too,'' he mumbles into my shoulder as I hug him tightly.

''Oh my god!'' It's Billie. I don't turn around but I can hear how she rushes over by my side, putting her hand on Travis's back.

''He is here! Kevin!'' She screams, her voice filled with panic. I look at her and she looks really scared, almost like she would do anything to just travel back in time and live like we did before everything happened. I can't even think before I hear two more people running towards us, making me bite my lip as I stroke Travis's hair, jsut trying to make him feel a bit okay.

''Travis!'' Kevin outbursts before almost pushing me and Billie to the side, hugging his best friend with tears in his eyes. Julia is sitting next to them with her hand on Travis's back, looking like she's about to break down.

''Kevin,'' Travis mumbles with a shaky voice while carefully putting his arms around the brown hairer boy, closing his eyes. I put my hand on my forehead, wiping the layer of sweat away. My eyes are stuck at Kevin and Travis as they keep holding each other close, making my heart ache because we were lying to him. Did we make the right choice? Or... did we even have a choice?

Suddenly, I hear a loud noise behind me. It sounds like multiple people running towards us and I immediately understand what's going on as I turn around. I discover more policemen than I can count and almost as many dogs, barking really loud. They have found us.

''Everybody, back away from him!'' One of the policemen screams as they approaches us but I can't seem to leave Travis's side.

''I said, back away!'' He repeats and I suddenly feel how someone grabs my arm roughly, pulling me away from Travis. Of course, it's Billie. She keeps her grip on my arm as I try to get back to the boy laying on the ground.

''Let me go!'' I scream, my voice cracking sligthly. I feel how Billie wraps her arms around my torso tightly, turning around so I'm not facing the crime scene anymore.

''What are you doing? They will arrest you!'' She screams, cupping my cheeks as she forces me to look at her.

''I can't leave him!'' I outbursts before managing to turn around to face Travis again. My gaze shifts to a tree far away where I discover a couple of ambulance men, making me look at Travis. I try to rush to his side when he starts screaming and squirming in the policemens grip, but Billie holds me back tightly, forcing me from doing so.

I can't do anything but just watch as the ambulance men carry Travis away, making tears fall down my cheek. Suddenly, Kevin walks up to us.

''How did they find us?!'' He shouts, making my heart beat even faster than before.

''Kevin, I can explain,'' Julia startss.

''Was it you?'' He asks loudly, turning around to look at his girlfriend that's standing next to him.

''It was all of us,'' Billie says, making him look at all of us.

''You lied? They knew everything all the time?'' He asks, sounding even more angry than before.

''Kevin, I can explain!'' Julia repeats, grabbing his arm but he swats her hand away from him.

''Don't touch me! I'm so fucking done! I'm not talking to any of you again!''