Basically, the second we got to my room Armin passed out on the bed. It was kind of funny how much he still behaved like a little kid. He was nineteen. I looked at the clock and it read: 11:13 pm. Driving to the beach and back took longer than I had expected it to. I remembered I needed to go see my Dad. He said he needed to talk to me about the crystal implant I had. I ran upstairs to the main floor, then into the garage. Once entering, I moved the shelf closet to the garage door. It was heavy. Below it was a door leading underground. I opened it and climbed down to my Dad's office-lab. That was where he did all his work. It was originally a storm shelter but he converted it into his personal laboratory.

Once I reached the bottom, I stepped onto the rock-hard concrete ground. I could smell an odd aroma traveling throughout the air around me. My Dad was sitting at his desk, looking through a microscope. He looked up at me. "Ah Y/N, come sit down," he said. "Did I do something wrong?" I asked. "No, no. It's fine. It's just about the crystal."

I sat down across from him and questioned, "What about it?"

"Well, there are two things. Unfortunately, I only have disappointing news for you." I asked him what he meant. Dad placed his thumb and pointer fingers to his temples and sighed loudly. "Well, for one, local law enforcement found out about my experiments, so that's frustrating."

"Okay, so what'd they think?"

"They're pissed we didn't share the information and that we weren't using it for purposes that benefit the public," he snarled. "Can't I just talk to them about it?-" I was interrupted. My father said, "They won't listen. Believe me, I've tried to reason with them. I told them about my research and how it's supposed to benefit the world of science but they're too stubborn. I'm afraid they're planning on doing something big. They want my research and they're out to silence me. You know how secretive the government can be. They've covered up plenty of important things before because of their own agenda. I worry you might not see your mother and me again. Please stay in Armin's time until your use is up."

"What do you mean my use is up?"

"Oh yes, the second thing," he sighed, "I was looking back at my notes from our initial trials using the crystal and I realized something." I felt nervous. What did I not know before using that thing? Was it dangerous? Would I die? I asked him what he realized and he told me, "The crystal was never meant to last this long. It was supposed to be a temporary thing. It was never intended to allow someone to permanently reside in another time. I'm surprised it's allowed you to time jump for this long. My initial hypothesis estimated that it would likely perish within a few months, yet somehow it's lasted well over a year. It'll only last so long. Once your time's up, you'll have to come back here. It doesn't matter if you try to stay because it will pull you back into your respective time." I could literally feel my heart skip a beat. He couldn't be serious, could he? I was devastated by what I was hearing. Not only was I going to lose my family to government corruption but I was going to lose my life with Armin too? 

I asked, "Y-You mean I have to leave everyone I love? Can't I just bring everyone from Armin's time back here?" "No," he stated, "the crystal will put everything back in its place. Anyone in an incorrect time period will be rejected by it, from what I know."

I wanted to cry but I felt like I couldn't in front of my Dad. If he knew how much I was going to miss them he'd do anything, even sacrifice his own life, to get me back with them. So, I kept my emotions inside, attempting to conceal them. "H-How long do I have? You said it wasn't supposed to last this long so how long do I have left?"

"Uh, let's see... it's November so if last December... eleven... so seventeen minus eleven is... Well, I predict that you have about six months. I mean that's just a guess. It could be longer, could be shorter. More likely shorter, though."

My stomach knotted itself up. I felt sick and words couldn't escape my throat. I wouldn't even get another year with Armin. I wouldn't get to celebrate another birthday of his. I wouldn't see his smile again or be able to hear his beautiful laugh. I stood up and walked over to the ladder I climbed down when I first entered the office. "I'm sorry, Y/N," he apologized, "I know how much the people there mean to you. If I could find a way to keep you there I would, but I can't. As long as there are people in this world that want me dead for what I've learned, I won't be able to settle down and make another crystal for you. Additionally, being able to successfully implant that crystal was a rare occasion. I don't know if I would even be able to do it again, or if your body could even handle it. I'm not sure if I'd even want to risk it."

"It's okay, Dad," I assured him. Tears trickled down my face and I kept my back turned toward him so he wouldn't see me crying. "Goodnight," I muttered, trying to compose myself. My last word hitched as I began climbing up the ladder. I was utterly heartbroken. I would have rather died than have to leave Armin. He was my life. He was an extension of myself. I honestly knew that we were meant to be. We were soulmates. I pushed the shelf back into place in the garage and wiped away my tears with my wrist. I sniffled, headed for my room.

I didn't even know if I could look at Armin again without completely breaking down. I remembered that close to when we first met, I was planning on leaving. Armin was devastated enough when he barely even knew me. I couldn't even imagine what would happen when I broke the news to him. I opened the door to my room, letting in the hall light. Armin was sleeping quietly in my bed. My throat clogged with tears I was holding back. I covered my mouth with my hands and fell to my knees.

I couldn't do it. I wanted to stay with him forever. I couldn't leave him. I let a cry escape my hands, accidentally. Armin groaned, sat up, and rubbed his eyes. "Y-Y/N..." he grumbled. Armin opened his eyes wider and looked at me. He was confused and at first, couldn't make out what I was doing on the ground. "Y/N, why are you crying?" he asked. "I'm not," I lied. I sniffled, rubbing tears away from my reddened eyes. I turned off the hall light and closed the door. Armin seemed more awake and alert. He was worried about me. I hated being the cause of his worries. Armin said in a concerned tone, "Y/N, I know something's wrong. Come talk to me."

"Go back to bed, Armin. We should talk about this another time."

I sat down beside him and he wrapped his arm around my back. "Tell me, please," he begged. "No," I snapped, "let's go to bed."

"Y/N-"

"I'll tell you when the time is right. I don't think it ever will be but I'll tell you when I'm ready. Just please don't bring this up again. Respect my privacy."

Armin couldn't say anything. He wanted to respect my feelings and privacy but he also wanted me to be able to talk to him. Didn't I always press and press? Didn't I always demand him to talk to me when he didn't want to? He always ended up being honest with me, no matter what. Something was wrong with me. How could he be so honest and genuine with me but I couldn't with him? I felt like a terrible girlfriend. Thankfully, at least for me, Armin decided to drop the conversation. I wiggled out of his grasp and lay down. He lay down behind me and hugged my back. Armin didn't know what he was doing to me. He was making it even harder to say goodbye.