He went back home right after his friend go back to class. He wanted to be with Alyssa, with his little sister.

He feels he shouldn't have left her to begin with but Layla... He needed to see her, to hear her voice, to be with her even if he can't really be with her. And if he was still alive it would be what he needed to do, right? Leave Alyssa and go to school. It's the routine. And he didn't leave her alone. Elizabeth stayed with her.

  Elizabeth... A teacher that dedicates her life to teach children with autism. Thomas remembers how careful he needed to be when he presented her, his idea of Alyssa being taught at home, to his parents. He needed to convince them that Elizabeth was just a normal teacher, which she accepted to help him with. Their parents were suspicious at the beginning but Thomas insisted and they ended up accepting. It was four years ago. Since then Elizabeth has been Alyssa's teacher, staying with her at home until Thomas arrives. Winning his gratitude forever... Not that it matters now that he is dead.

  He runs to his home, a part of him wanting to see Layla through a window while passing her house, or maybe even find her still in the street. But he didn't and his little sister is awaiting him.

  He enters in his house through the door, without needing to open to it, and goes to Alyssa's room. And the scene in front of him makes him freeze. Alyssa is on the floor near Elizabeth, attentively listening to what the last is explaining to her.  It is the typical, the floor is usually the selected place for them to be. But his father sitting on the floor slightly away from them breaks the normality of the situation. What is he doing there, near them?

  Elizabeth stops talking and asks Alyssa to do something Thomas doesn't listen to because he is too worried watching his father. And while Alyssa starts doing what Elizabeth asked, Elizabeth gets up, her dress rustling while she does so and gets close to Thomas' father; an action that Thomas does too so he can hear the murmured conversation between them.

  "She needs someone with her all the time, ready to help her every time she may need someone," Elizabeth is saying, "Thomas told me she uses to have nightmares and go to his room. Now she can't go there because she'll not find him and the fear will not go away. She will need you or your wife."

  His father glances at the girl, peacefully writing something on the page of the book, before looking at Elizabeth again, a tormented look in his face. "I can't, I don't know what to do."

  "Then you need to find someone who knows. Your son was a father to her more than you ever were. Now he is not here anymore. Don't you think you should start acting like a father?" Elizabeth's voice, a voice that was always so sweet and calm while talking with Thomas, is so cold that makes Thomas shiver.

  "I can't adopt her out. Helen needs her daughter to stay connected with reality," he says, his voice broken, which surprised Thomas. He had never seen his father letting someone talk to him like that.

  "You find a solution or I find someone who will, Mr. Hale. Thomas was an incredible boy, what he did during so many years to keep his sister well is unbelievable, its beyond words. He was everything to her - a brother, a parent and a friend - and never complained. The world lost one of its brightest lights, a boy that could have grown and become an extraordinary man, when he died. I will not his sister lost the opportunity to have a family, doesn't matter how wealth you are, do you understand?"

  Thomas feel the tears in his eyes when he listens to the old lady's words. He had no idea Elizabeth had such a beautiful idea of him and he feels somewhat happy that she cares with his sister enough to want her to have a real family - someone that cares and accepts her as she is. But at the same time, he wants to make her get out, go away and doesn't come back because if she takes Alyssa away, she will oblige Thomas to choose between going with her and staying with Layla. And Thomas doesn't want to choose. Even if he is dead, even if he's already left both behind, he doesn't want to know which option he would choose.

  "Maybe Désirée could stay with her for some time while we process everything that happened and accept the news..." His father whispers, looking at Elizabeth with a hopeful expression.

  She raises an eyebrow, "Désirée Knight?"

  He nods. "She is my friend and her daughter cares a lot about Alyssa. And of course you would keep teaching her so you could keep an eye in everything and see if she is okay."

  "Alright," Elizabeth says, "but let me make myself clear. I am not doing that for you. If it was for you, the child would be out of this house before dawn. I am doing that for Thomas, because he loved you and your wife and would want his sister to stay with you."

  The wave of relief Thomas feels is more like a tsunami, taking away a burden Thomas was starting to feel on his chest. Making Thomas wonder if it is not wrong to feel relived because his sister will stay, if she wouldn't be better with other family, able to accept her.

  But feelings can't be controlled. Observing his speechless father and the deadly, hateful glare Elizabeth is sending him, Thomas feels nothing more than relief.