The smell of freshly fallen rain wafts into my nose. I close my eyes, savouring the smell of it. The scent of nature. The one thing I haven't had the opportunity to fully enjoy in the many years I have went through. Until now. Rain. Symbolising despair, sorrow, melancholy, desperation. But it also signifies hope, another chance. A new beginning. It all depends on a person's perspective.

A strong gust of wind blows into the room, making the hem of my shirt billow. My dark hair falls all over my face, into my eyes and mouth. I pull my hair back and hold it in place with my hands. My eyes scan the room for any other signs of mess the wind might have caused. Nothing. Hardly surprising, considering there are barely any items in this minute room.

I push myself up and approach the opened window, attempting in vain to pull the glass pane shut with my available hand. Having no other option, I let go of my hair and the wind blows in my face once again. Looking away, I place both hands on the window pane and put my weight on it, forcing it down. It slides into place with a loud thud, making it seem almost as though I had dropped something heavy. My hair falls to my back, several stray locks of hair falling over my shoulders and onto my face. I brush them away with my index finger and tuck the strands of hair behind my ears.

I walk back to the foot of the bed, my footsteps resounding through the room. The soft mattress atop the metal frame of the bed dips as I put my weight on it. I run my fingers through my hair, combing it, attempting to untangle the many knots that the wind might have tied previously. There are none.

The rusted hinges of the door creaks as the door is pushed open. Someone enters the room, closing the door gently behind her.. The sound of her heels clicking against the wooden floorboard echoes through the room as she closes the space between the door and the bed.

"I've brought some food for you," Key says quietly, setting the dull grey stainless steel tray that she is holding in her hands onto my lap. "Sorry it's not much. We're short on supplies."

I shake my head, a gesture to tell her that it's enough. "I'm not hungry," I reply, my voice barely louder than a whisper.

She places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes it, supposedly a sign of reassurance, though I feel anything but. I pull away, not wanting to receive any sort of pity from anyone. All the comfort I want - no, all the comfort I need - is for Wil to be conscious once again.

I chew my bottom lip. "Please wake up, Wil," I breathe, the words not meant for anyone else's ears but my own.

"What?" Key asks.

"Nothing," I reply, turning away from her.

A moment of silence passes between us. "You should eat something, even if you don't want to. What with you being on the run and such. You never know when will be the next time you are able to have a proper meal. You'll need your energy." With that, her swift visit is over. I watch as the door closes - almost soundlessly - behind the girl.

I glance down, surveying the meal that she had brought for me. A piece of bread, a small bowl of lukewarm broth and a cup of water at room temperature. My stomach grumbles at the sight of the food, although I have no appetite at the moment. I realise that I haven't eaten properly in several days.

I pick up the metal spoon beside the ceramic bowl, scooping a spoonful of chicken soup before bringing it to my mouth. I swallow. The moment I do, I can feel the warm liquid go down my oesophagus and into my stomach. To be honest, it makes me feel slightly better, although I can still feel the hollowness inside. I drink the rest of the broth slowly - not quickly enough to seem like a glutton nor slowly to savour every drop - breaking the bread into pieces, dipping it into the savoury liquid, to go with it.

After finishing my meal, I take a sip of water to wash it all down, before placing the whole tray by the bedside table that is pushed up against the wall, right in front of the window. I let out a sigh, gazing out the transparent material, one that separates me from the outside world, and into a seemingly black abyss. It's too dark to see anything. The sun has set. I have been too preoccupied to notice.

The soft sound of groaning reaches my ears and I advert my attention towards the direction of the sound. "Wil?"

His response is another low groan, his voice thick with pain. I approach the bed and sink to my knees, reaching my hand out to stroke his face gently, my eyes alertly looking for any signs of consciousness.

"Wil?" I repeat. "Wil? Please, Wil. Please wake up."

No answer.

I rest my head on his chest, my right ear pressed up against the thin fabric of his shirt, listening to the steady beating of his heart. A familiar sound that never fails to bring me out of my distress, even in the midst of a raging storm. Even if everything else is tumbling down all around me.

"Miri? Are you okay?"

I jump a little at the soft whisper, slightly startled by the sudden question. My eyes wander to Wil's. Instead of closed eyelids as I expected, I find myself staring into two brown pools, filled with both warmth and pain. I smile a little.

"You're the one who has been out and you're asking me if I'm okay?" I tease, a hint of relied eminent in my voice. "You're awake. You're finally awake," I mutter.

He returns my smile with one of his own. "Well, I need to know whether or not you are fine or I will never be able to live with myself." He pauses, contemplating something. What? I might never find out. Suddenly, his face darkens. His warm eyes are no longer there. Instead, they are replaced by a cold, hard gaze, looking almost as if they are layered with the thinnest of ice. I gasp, afraid that I had said or done something to him to make him react this way. "What do you mean I was unconscious?"

"Umm..." I mumble, hesitant, wondering if I should disclose that piece of information to him, wondering if it'll do him any good, wondering if he'll just shut down if I do. I decided that, despite whatever his reaction might be, I should. After all, he has the right to know. It's not like he lost his memory or anything of the sort. "About... Almost twenty-four hours," I reply, my answer sounding more like a question than a statement.

He runs his fingers through his hair casually, giving me the impression that he is distressed. Maybe he is. He sighs and I quickly turn my attention elsewhere, to anywhere else but him, my eyes darting all around the room, not knowing where to look at. Several moments of silence passes between us. Tears gather in my eyes, threatening to spill over. I brush away the tears with the back of my hand before they had the chance to fall to the ground. After all, no one has done anything I detest or that pierces my heart recently. But I know, deep in my heart, that the tears I shed means more than merely a heartbreak.

I'm crying for Wil, for the both of us, as I know he won't.

I'm crying because I know exactly how he feels.

"What happened?" he whispers, so quietly that I almost missed him say it.

I suck in a deep breath of air to calm my accelerated heartbeat. "Do you really want to know?"

"Yes," he answers without hesitation. "Please, Miri."

I close my eyes and sigh.

"Please," he repeats.

I nod my head in agreement, giving in to his plea, his request. "Remember when you injured your shoulder in the tunnel and I was trying to stop the bleeding but passed out instead?"

He nods.

"Uh..." I pause, deciding not to mention anything about my unusual dream. "When I awoke, I found you lying in a pool of blood. I attempted to carry you, or, at least, something along those lines, but I failed miserably. Then, I heard several people discussing us and how to capture us and I panicked and Key - the girl who is letting us stay here - dragged you through a camouflaged tunnel in the sewers and I had no choice but to follow her as she had you and she let us stay here and I've been here ever since, worried sick about you." When I finish, I am breathless. I soon realised that I have no taken even a single breath of air since I started. No wonder I kept stumbling over my words.

Wil looks away, his face solemn. I gulp, swallowing the lump that has been forming in my throat since I started recalling these recent events. A pit in my stomach starts to form, making me feel guilty for no apparent reason. After all, the whirlwind of events that has happened was and forever will be out of my control. So, why worry?

Even though I know this, why do I still feel like everything is all my fault?

My lips tremble, willing myself not to cry. I look down, my hair falling over my face, shielding it from any prying eyes. I bury my face in the palms of my hands. For some reason, they feel moist. Then, I realise that it's because I'm crying.

A strong pair of arms wrap around my body, pulling me closer to his body. I feel him wince at the effort it took for him to envelope me in a hug. I know that I should be concerned by the fact that it might injure him further. But at the moment, my judgement and actions are too clouded by my overwhelming emotions.

The only place I want to be is right here, in his arms.

I shift my body so that I am facing him. "I'm so sorry, Miri. I did not want to make you upset," he whispers into my ear.

I shake my head in response. "It's not your fault. I was just overreacting."

"No. It's my fault," he insists. "I shouldn't have reacted the way I did when you told me what had happened. I should have received the news in a more mature manner. I was thinking about all the horrible things that could have happened to you, all because of my own carelessness. I should've been more careful so I would not have hurt myself. I'm sorry, Miri."

My hand reaches up to his arm and I hold onto it tightly, glad that I still have Wil to cling on to. "I'm still here, right? I'm still fine." I pause. "Don't ponder on the past. We're both okay and that is all that matters right now."

"But it's my fault" he replies, guilt coating his voice.

I shake my head. "It's not your fault, Wil. It's not your fault," I repeat. "It's just an accident. Accidents happen all the time."

He doesn't reply. Instead, he gestures to his side, a silent invitation for me to lie next to him. I plant my hands on the ground and push myself up, climbing onto the bed, between him and the wall, the springs in the mattress screaming in protest as I do. I rest my head on the pillow, merely inches away from Wil's head.

He turns to face me, though I can see how hard it is for him. His breaths are laboured, a thin sheen of sweat covers his forehead. Nevertheless, he reaches out and caresses my face gently.

"Rest, Miri."

"It's fine. I'm fine. You're the one who needs to rest."

"Please, Miri, you need some sleep. I can see how exhausted you are. I can see it in your eyes. You're worn out, Miri."

"No," I refuse, firm to my decision. I have no time to sleep. More like, I can't sleep. There are too many things to think about, too many issues to ponder on, too many possibilities to contemplate. I need to. If not me, then who?

"Miri," he says, a serious look on his face."Please.. Please do me a favour. Get some rest. At the rate things are going, you'll need your energy."

That is the exact same thing Key said to me. Do they know something I don't? No, that's impossible. How can they? They haven't officially met yet. I push the thought out of my head. "But I-" I begin. However, Wil cuts me off mid-sentence.

"Please," he begs.

I sigh, recognising the tone he is using, knowing that there is no use to argue with him. He won't back down until I submit to his request and, more often than not, I give in. And the both of us know this. Noticing my agreement, relief floods his face. I close my eyes, trying to fall asleep. Surprisingly, it takes a lot less time to do so than I thought it would. Maybe I am more tired than I let on.

"You'll be safe, Miri. I'll make sure of that. After all, that's what friends are for," Wil mumbles quietly, as if it were meant for his ears alone.

Those are the last words that reach my ears before drifting off to slumber land.

Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. :) I haven't proofread this yet so please point out anything you think can be improved on okay? Thanks! Also, the next few chapters might be slightly slow but it's necessary. I'm on holidays now so I'll try to post twice next week as opposed to once. No promises though.

Please vote, comment and follow me if you haven't already. I really appreciate the time it took for you to read my work. :) Share this novel around for me? Thanks :D I love you all. See you! Have a great week ahead!

xoxo, Angie