Recap: "If you do not let Layla go, you will both be ejected from the Resistance to the Outside."

"Very well then," I spit. 

He bows his head. "I will intercede with the Five on your behalf." I gape at him as he turns and leaves the room.

~~~

Later that night I crawl out of bed and sneak down the hall to the room of the Five. 

"Eval, you did what?" that is Darren's voice. "We told you she is too obsessed with the child!"

"Yes," Kimberly agrees. 

"She is," Andrea adds. 

"Eval, you must go back and-" Drew starts. 

"I envoke Rockblood!" Eval interrupts with a dead voice, as one who is faced with the very last choice. 

Dead silence. 

Finally, Kimberly explodes. "Do you have any idea what you just did!?! YOU FOOL!"

What is Rockblood? I wonder. 

"If that girl does not survive and Ara cannot save her... you will... your blood... you will die," Drew whispers. 

Eval will die? 

He did that for me, I realize. He invoked Rockblood for me. And if I do not live up to this... Eval will die because of me.

"I know," Eval whispers back into the overhanging silence. "But... I have to. Ara and Layla need each other in ways that we cannot comprehend. I think, nay, I know, that Layla will pull through. Besides, the keyword in that sentence is if, Drew. I believe in them. And anyway, my life is not worth so much."

"Since when do you value your life so little?" Darren asks. 

"You are either a fool, you love the girl, or you have a death wish. Which of these is it?" Andrea says. 

Silence. 

And then...

"Her name is Ara! If you are going to keep bringing her up, you might as well learn her name," Eval bites out. 

"Which is it, Eval?" Darren asks in a way that makes it clear that there is no choice. He must tell them. 

Eval straightens and sighs. "I love her," he says defiantly.

~~~

"Eval you know the Five cannot be married," Darren states softly, but at the same time unrelentingly. 

Or is it Drew? I do not know. I no longer know who is whom, and my thoughts have fragmented into millions of shards, spinning around. 

Eval loves me? But what about Cora? 

What about me?

Do I love Eval?

My thoughts are interrupted by Kimberly. 

"...step down," she is saying. 

Who will step down? Eval? He cannot. He must not. He will not. No, oh no-no-no. He cannot do this just for me. I am not worth it. No!

"I know," Eval says. 

NO!!

"But she does not love me anyway," he sighs. "So it does not matter. And somehow we've gotten wayyyyy off-topic. Ara and Layla shall remain together until Layla is healed. Then Layla shall begin to train."

The other Four shake their heads. 

"I fear for you," Darren says. "This will not end well."

"It will."

~~~

My legs ache from where I crouch in the dust. Eval is up ahead, laughing in the sunshine. Cora and Orla are hiding nearby. We trick Eval, but he cannot find us. I relax my legs and lean into the tree I am hiding behind. Slowly I peek around the edge, and Eval tags me. 

"I got you!" he laughs. 

"No fair! You cheated!" I cry. 

"When?" he asks, smirking. 

"I saw you peeking when we hid!"

"All's fair in love and war," he grins. 

I playfully slap his arm and he grabs my hand. Our eyes meet, unbidden, and in his blue eyes, I see something I should have seen before. 

I was too blind. 

"Ara! Eval! Hey lovebirds, come over here!" Orla shouts from near the stream. 

"What is it?" I ask as we walk over to her. 

"Look at that!" 

In the stream lies a heart made of rock. Eval pulls it out and hands it to me. 

What is going on?

All of a sudden the sky turns black, and clouds roll in. It begins to pour. Orla and Cora run for it, but Eval pulls me under a tree. Lighting splinters the sky, and thunder breaks the clouds. 

"I got you," he says. 

And he does.

~~~

I wake in a cold sweat, wide awake at though it is the middle of the day. Cora, Orla, and Layla's deep breathing comforts me, and slowly I begin to fall back asleep. 

My final thoughts are these:

Eval loves me. 

He cannot.

It is to dangerous. 

He declared Rockblood.

Layla must live. 

For me. For Eval.

She our missing piece. And I fall asleep.

                                                                                      ~~~  

  Do I love Eval?

This is my question.  I do not know the answer to it, but I hope to someday find it. I know I will. But reluctantly I slide out of bed, nor wanting to be late for Mrs. Gray's class. (remember her?)  

I grab Layla and some clothes and stand up. My feet hit the cold floor but my eyes are met with a colder sight.

 Cora knows Eval loves me.

She will not look at me. 

And though I thought she was in the room last night, she was not. 

She will not look at me. 

I just lost a friend.

She will not look at me. 

But slowly, I begin to see that I have been losing Cora for a very long time. 

Cora will not look at me. 

Hey guys promise I'm a nice person lol!!!! Sorry this didn't get out till today my wifi went out right as I was typing the last words and it only saved half of it!!! Whaaaaa. Also I spent like a half hour sticking sharpies in my hair lol. I'll post a picture of it. Also( again) I'll do a double post today as payment lol. Sorry about the she will not look at me she will not look at me yeah you get it. Sorry!!! 

ILYGSM!!!! THANK YOU!

Now just because I want to, I'm tagging @MallowmeltGirl579 .

She is awesome! Guys go follow her. Also check out Enhanced, by @Nikkipait . It's really good,  but the s word is mentioned once. ( just an FYI for younger readers or whatever)