Anger bubbles so violently within me that I almost have to turn around to my room with the bile slowly crawling up my throat. Tears blur my vision as I shake my head, forcing myself into the elevator. I clench my fists so tightly that I wince at the sharp pain of my nails cutting into my palms. "Who is Fitz to tell me to wait?" I voice out loud, finally externalising my emotions. Hurt pounds against my heart as I sink lower and lower, reaching the ground floor after a few painful moments.

When the doors open, I stumble out, suddenly wanting to attack something. Whirling around, I pound my closed fists against the closed metal doors. Tears now streem down my face freely as I slam my hands against the cool wall of metal, falling into a hole of anguish far worse than others I've fallen down into. A sob escapes my lips as I slow down and eventually let my bruised hands slide down and stay at my side limply.

"I hate this," I choke out between sobs. Stepping forward, I lay my head against the doors, focusing on the cool sensation of metal to skin instead of the whirlpool of thoughts in my head. At this point, my hands throb slightly from my.... moment. Taking in a few deep breaths, I gently wipe away the tear stains on my face, gasping for air.

"Sophie?"

I whirl around to see Steven staring at me with a sympathetic look on his face. His eyes soften more when I silently wipe at my face, merely praying that he doesn't comment on it. Instead, he stretches his arms out, still quiet. Even though it all, he stays silent, merely looking at me as the currently hurting girl that I am.

Fresh tears well up in my eyes, and a choked-up sob escapes my lips as I rush towards him, hugging him tightly. I cry even harder when the pathologist returns my hug, an unspoken understanding between the two of us lingering in the air. Guilt reminds me that I'm soaking Steven's clothes and bothering him, but I don't let go. "I hate him," I breathe out, my whisper quivering as I try to take a deep breath.

"Shh," the pathologist coos, rubbing the back of my head, "no, you don't."

I close my eyes tightly, knowing that he's fully correct. Another fit of crying takes over, and I sob even harder, "No, I don't."

"It's hard," Steven continues, giving me a moment to catch my breath. "But just wait a little longer. Remember that he'd do the same for you."

I sigh, tears now silently rolling down my cheeks. Once again, he's right. It hurts to let them win for a bit longer, but I can manage one way or the other. Closing my eyes again, I hug him a bit tighter, "...okay."

...

After that, the rest of the day is a blur. Fitz and I don't see each other much after the whole ordeal, which in turn raises concern from the Altruistics and Sovereigns. The longer I stay up, I realise that my eyes burn from crying earlier, and my eyelids weigh down on itself from exhaustion. Before anyone can question me, I bid everyone good night and good luck for the trial, which everyone solemnly accepts. Then I slip away from the rest, secretly grateful that I'm alone.

Once I'm on my floor, I quickly step out, unaware of my surroundings. My hand brushes someone else's as I exit and as they step onto the elevator, and I stop. And by the sound of it, he's stopped as well, and both our breathing hitched. Neither of us dare to move, to breathe, or to blink in that moment. My heart races wildly as my eyes begin to betray me, new tears welling up in my eyes. I can feel his eyes boring into the back of my head, yet I refuse to meet them.

A few more seconds tick by before we both hear the elevator ding, followed by the automatic sliding of the metal doors. My body tenses as I feel the urge to turn around, my fists clenching tightly. I sigh when the doors close, heavier than usual. Now alone in the hallway, I almost turn around and go back to the others, despite wanting to be in this exact scenario a few minutes ago. Shaking my head, I make my way to my room, ignoring the droplets of water streaming down my face.

I enter my room, extremely drained from merely being awake for the past few hours. Begrudgingly, I get ready to sleep and trudge over to my bed, which looks too inviting. Collapsing onto it, I slowly turn my head to face the ceiling. The darkness beckons my deeper thoughts and emotions to my surface, forcing me to face some things that I wished to keep down.

A tear automatically slides down the side of my face, and I sigh, realising that the majority of my day today was crying. At this point, do I know why I'm crying? Is it because I have to relive everything? Is it because Jacob may walk out as a free man? Or is it because life is just so hard at this point that I don't know anything?

Another tear falls down my face, and I cover my eyes with an arm while a sob escapes my lips. Still lying on my bed, I can almost hear my heart and brain tear themselves apart with everything going on; frankly, I'm surprised that they've managed to hold on for the past three years.

...

The girl finds herself in pure darkness, disappointed that she always ends up in this pitiful setting. Almost on instinct, she searches for the teal-eyed boy. He's bound to show up at some point, she thinks to herself. He always does. And sure enough, she finds herself standing a few feet in front of him, his eyes being the only illuminated thing amongst the black.

"You have a choice," a voice whispers, making them jump. Frantically, they scan their surroundings to put a voice to a face to no avail. Sighing, the two stare back at each other, now equally confused. After a few seconds, the voice continues, "You can walk away, stay where you are, or go to him. What do you choose?"

The girl frowns while the boy says nothing, "Why?"

"Because something happened that you two need to talk about."

"What do-" The girl cuts herself off when she relives the last time she saw the boy. A deeper and indescribable feeling of shame cuts harsh in the girl , causing her to instinctively hold a hand to her heart. Her breathing quickens as his cries- his tears of fear- haunt her.

"Talk," the voice intercepts, bringing her back into reality.

"It hurt," the teal-eyed girl starts after a deep breath. "It really hurt when you couldn't trust me... you hated me." Silence, so she takes the opportunity to continue. "And you tried to run away from me, and you cried at the mere sight of me."

The boy merely stands there, silent as always. Anger wells up inside of her at his lack of response. Frustraition mixes bitterly with hurt and sadness, bringing forth a new round of tears. Why can't he just say something? Anything? Why is he just staring at me, ignoring the pain I'm feeling and the tears I'm crying?

"You thought of me as a monster!" she shouts, her heart breaking a bit more. "How could you!? I tried to make you understand, but I'm just a demon to you!"

More silence.

At that point, her heart has taken too much. Wearily, the little girl turns around and takes a few steps the other way. Neither the voice nor the boy stop her, so she continues for a few more seconds. Finally, she turns around, dejectedly staring at him. "Why is it so hard for you to just..." She doesn't finish her sentence, but the darkness filled in the blank for her.

Before the girl can comment on his silence, the voice speaks up, "He won't be able to speak. It's now your turn to, not his."

The girl nods, walking forward. "You worry me at times. You like to wait. But what will happen if you wait too long, hm? What if you wait and wait and wait, and suddenly, you find yourself waiting forever, regreting the past?" The boy's eyes widen, so she continues, "What does waiting mean for you?"

"What does it mean to you?" the voice asks, quickly flipping the question back to her.

"It means... something more. It's like waiting for it to come to you and running after it at the same time. So for me, I'm stuck in the same place, not moving because the other side isn't coming closer. It's not distancing itself from me anymore, but it's not coming closer either." The girl sighs, looking down, "Sometimes, I have the urge to just... go, you know?"

"Then why not go?"

At that moment, the boy and girl make eye contact, and they immediately know why. No one speaks, but my darkness fills the blank in anyways.

...

The next day is even more chaotic. Everyone's rushing around, trying to make sure we're not leaving anything essential or crucial behind. Steven and Caroline also decided to join us, which the six of us agreed to happily. It's almost a madhouse, watching everyone scramble and burst in and out of different rooms. My head also begins to throb when I'm unable to keep up any longer.

Soon enough, we're in three cars, speeding past miles and miles of land that started to blur into random lines of colour. I sigh, my eyelids threatening to close from boredom. I'm in the car with Fitz and Mr. Wallace, and no one's talking. No one's willing to talk either, so we sit in an uncomfortable silence that would be even more uncomfortable to break.

Leaning back in my seat, I risk a glance at the male Percipient, who seems equally as bored as me. His brown eyes glaze over, barely paying attention to anything around him. I wonder if he also sees lines of colour outside his window or if he's just so out of it that everything mixed into one massive colour. Despite my curiosity, I stop myself from saying anything and just turn away, returning to mindlessly staring out the window.

Are you ready? Fitz's voice fills my head suddenly, just as the tangible landscape blurs. My hand grips onto the door handle so tightly from being startled that my knuckles turn white, just like my face. My heart racing, I choke out a breath quiet enough to avoid attracting Mr. Wallace's attention. Quickly, I glance over to my left and see Fitz's apologetic look.

I don't know, I tell him truthfully. I'm tempted to open the door and just tumble out. You?

He visibly shrugs, I want to put him away, but I don't want to do that myself. I'd rather have the jury and judge make a reasonable decision than testify to help them make that decision. We make eye contact for a moment before looking away.

Same here, but we'll get another chance, I transmit. Some day, we can really deal a blow to Nixsift. I then think back to my encounter with Steven. Settling with the prospect of waiting, I smile gently, satisfied with my final decision. He'd do the same, I tell myself.

Yeah, staring with Jacob, Fitz says. When I furrow my eyebrows in confusion and stare at him, it hits me. We're using that test tube, he transmits, either not noticing my shock or ignoring it. We're going to put him away for as long as possible. He deserves the worst.

I shake my head, But isn't Nixsift still out there? Shouldn't we wait to use that on them?

Yeah, but I realised that we've been waiting too long. We have a chance, so why not take it? He then takes my hand in his, using his thumb to gently rub circles on the back of my hand. He's not going to be walking anytime soon, Sophie.

I look at him and smile. Let's go, then, I tell him. I then look back at the land passing by, deep in thought and trying to think of ways to utilise the test tube with a hopeful grin on my face. Realisation suddenly hits me, though, and my grin falls as soon as it appeared. I turn my head away from Fitz before he can question anything.

Because if what Jacob told me was true, then this test tube wouldn't just keep him in prison.

He may die from it.