When I woke up, Ritchie was sitting on the chair next to the couch. "And she wakes!" he hoots.

"Hey, hotshot," somebody said, walking into the living room.

Darrel.

"Geez, Louise, woman," Jake said from the floor. "You've been asleep for two days!"

"I have?!" I exclaimed, sitting up. I had a slight headache.

"Yeah," Darrel said, "You went to sleep that night you beat the crap outta that guy, and you slept for a whole day. It's noon now." "

"A day and a half," I muttered.

"What happened? Like when you fell?" Ritchie asked. I didn't care that Jack and Darrel were there - they wouldn't understand anyway.

"There were so many things at once. The weird clicks I told you about? I thought a bomb was going off. After you left, this guy started flirting with me, and I... defended myself."

"Yeah," Ritchie said, "I was there for that part."

"I still don't know what they mean," I added, shrugging.

"Would ya look at that..." Darrel trailed off, looking out the window.

"What?" Ritchie asked, running to the window. Jack followed. I got up and looked.

There was a knock at the door.

"I got it," I said, but Ritchie ran in front of me.

When he opened the door, the same rich kids that jumped us a few days ago were there.

And Henry was behind them.

I pushed Ritchie to the side, "What are you doing here?"

"Give me the laptop, Claire," Henry replied.

"No. What are you doing here?"

"I'll kill you just like I did them."

"Who? Who did you kill?" He only smiled. "Henry..." I warned.

"I'll kill you," he repeated.

I shook my head, "I don't care."

He pointed at Ritchie, "Then I'll kill him."

I didn't take my eyes off Henry. "Go," I said to Ritchie. "Take Darrel and Jack and go."

I saw him shake his head out of the corner of my eye, "No. I'm not leaving you."

"Ritchie, you barely know me."

"And I already love you, so, no, I'm not going anywhere."

Henry grinned, "You've been gone for a long time. You might wanna go back home and see what's happened since you left."

He ran into the house then, so I grabbed Ritchie's hand and my backpack from the couch and ran out the back door. I saw Darrel and Jack run back towards Ritchie's bedroom window. I could only hope the rest of the rich kids wouldn't go after them.

I ran in whatever direction my feet would carry me and I felt a sense of deja vu. I was already out of breath when I saw the kids in front of us. We were blocked on all sides - there was more behind us. I looked to my left and saw a tall wall - it was placed around a factory. On the right, there was an alley.

Our only hope.

Then, I discovered it would be our death.

A dead end.

I still ran, though - where else could I go?

Then I saw a door.

"Claire," Ritchie said frantically, his eyes wide, "what are we going to do? There's no way out!"

He couldn't see the door.

I opened it just be sure - a staircase.

"How did you do that?!" he asked, terrified. I grabbed the baggie out of my backpack,

"Eat a drop of this. It's our only hope." He warily did as I told him and looked astonished as he stared at the wall.

"A staircase," he whispered. "It's a staircase." I grabbed his hand and the bag again and pulled them both in.

"I have to go back," I said.

"To the future?" Ritchie questioned.

"Yes, Marty McFly!" I exclaimed, "It's been three days! Joe is no doubt worried sick! That, and Henry is after us! You're slow, aren't you?"

"But-" Ritchie started, but he stopped himself.

"What?" I asked.

He shook his head, "He'll definitely go there."

"Then we'll stop him," I said, "we'll run all the way to the police station."

He nodded, "Okay."

"Let's try this," I suggested. I thought the stairs into an escalator, and, sure enough, they started moving. Then, I made it go faster, and watched the doors go by. I thought 2005, so the stairs would stop when I got there.

When I made it, I slung the door open and found I was in the Alley. I didn't have time to look back or answer Anthony, who was shouting at me.

I ran to the police station - it was mere blocks from the Alley because Joe is an idiot - and busted through the door when I entered.

"Henry is coming," I said to all the bewildered officers in front of me.

A few officers pulled out guns and handcuffs. "Good work," one of the officers said, "you led the prime suspect to the station."

"Prime suspect for what?" I asked.

He looked at me like I was a kicked puppy, "The murders of Joe Montana, Charlie Bailey, and Frank Sinny. And... your disappearance."

For a few moments, I stood there with a blank expression, then it sunk in: my brother, my best friend, and one of my only other friends were dead.

The officer kept talking as tears welled up in my eyes, "You've been missing for days - Bernie Greene reported it. They-They found the bodies four days ago. Joe was in an alley and Frank and Charlie were in the bike shop a little ways down the road.

"All three of them were stabbed. Joe's was in the neck and the other two got it in the stomach. I'm sorry."

The thought of them dying just made me lose it. I broke down into sobs, sinking to the floor with every shaky breath. Crying, I slammed my fists on the floor, like a toddler throwing some sort of tantrum. I could see Ritchie crouch down in front me through the blur of tears, but I couldn't make out his expression.

He grabbed my wrists, then sat next to me, putting his arm around me. So I laid my head on his chest and sobbed into his shirt.

I tried to think them back to life, but nothing changed. I can only control time.

They were dead. And there was nothing I could do about it. I was completely helpless.

"Claire," Ritchie said after a few minutes.

"You're shirt..." I trailed off, looking at the dirt and tear stains on the front of it. What a weird thing to worry about at a time like this.

"It's okay," he assured me, helping me off the floor. "But-"

"No, it's not!" I snapped.

He pulled me into a hug, "Claire, we have to move."

"What?" I dumbly asked.

"Henry is coming, and, whether there are police or not, he'll try to kill you," he replied, lifting me and bringing me to the back of the station.

I could see him from our spot on the floor. Henry ran in with his gang (from the present). All of them had guns. The police threatened to shoot, as did he. They were trying to give him a chance and I bitterly didn't want him to have it.

"I just stabbed Anthony... better go see if he's still alive."

Oh, no.

He shot at an officer, but missed, so the officer shot at him.

It hit him in the hip.

The rest of his gang started shooting, but they hit no one in vital places. All five of them were injured within minutes.

Ritchie helped me up, "We should get out of here." He carried me out, seemingly unnoticed through the chaos.

An ambulance was coming and we knew if we were seen leaving, they would bring us back in for questioning.

I did not feel like answering questions.

So, we ran.

We didn't stop when we got to the Alley. We didn't stop when we got to Charlie's bike shop. We didn't stop until we got to my dingy apartment.

It wasn't always just mine...

Joe lived there with me, but he was always out. Sometime he'd stay at Anthony's or Frank's. Bernie lived with his mom and she always pinched Joe's cheeks when she saw him, much like our grandmother.

I miss her, too.

Why do people have to die...?

Anyway, the apartment.

It wasn't as tiny as the Alley, but it wasn't a mansion, either.

We had a living room that went into a kitchen, two bedrooms, and a bathroom.

I took a shower and changed into clean clothes, then Ritchie showered as I sat in the living room.

What am I supposed to do? I thought. I can save them somehow, but how? I barely know anything about being a Traveler.

I could go back to the year before, but it's November, and that would take forever. I won't survive, and I do not want to meet past me. And Joe would never listen to me. Who knows what would happen? I could cause some sort of paradox...

What if I turned back time just a little bit? They died three days ago, after I left, so I could turn it back.

I could go back to when Ritchie went to bed in his own room. I could leave then. He'd forget me, but I could always go back. Do exactly like I had this time. Just without everyone dying...

So, I thought back to the moment Ritchie walked into his room. How the couch felt. How soft the blanket on top of me was. The smell of his living room.

And I opened my eyes.