Rain pattered against the window of the car she rode in. Tallula and Cato, her two older siblings, conversed quietly in the front seats. Conversation was not what Anna wanted to indulge herself in right now, though.

A shiver went down her spine merely thinking about her circumstances. In about five minutes tops, Anna would be back in her old town. The dainty, but comfortable, Beacon Hills. Sure, it was nice. But Anna never loved it. She'd been at home in a beautiful place before. A cozy but huge house in North Carolina, where she was happy with her siblings, mother, and father.

Mother and father.

Pain hollowed in her throat and chest, like a prickly ball that made her insides sting. It'd be an understatement to say their loss made her want to die. Like any other kid, Anna loved her parents. She adored their hard work and the love they expressed to their family, but unlike any other kid, she'd been the cause of their death.

That might be stretching it, but Anna couldn't help but think it. If only she'd done this, or if only she'd said that, her parents might be alive, sitting in the car with her right now. Maybe it'd be a cloudless sky, and the rain falling from the sky would actually be the water sloshing in her cup and going up her nose when she'd try to drink it over a bump in the road. They'd laugh. All of them. Her mother, her father, her sister, her brother, and her. Most importantly her, she hadn't genuinely laughed for what felt like ages, the kind of laugh that made you gasp for air and make you feel like nothing else in the world existed. She missed it. And that was one of the reasons she was returning to the small town in California with what family she had left.

If there was anyone that could make her laugh when she cried, make her feel safe in the most dangerous situation, make her heart rate slow down in a time of crisis, it was Isaac Lahey. In the beginning of freshman year, she had hated him. The feeling was pretty mutual. But after being partnered together for a month long project, they grew on each other and became the other's best friend- and only friend.

That's not the point.

Before Anna knew it she was falling for him, and not in stupid crush way where she would blush if he hugged her, in a way that she expected hugs from him. He was her number one person, and she'd better be his. She loved him, at first she thought it was because they were so close as friends, but after he had kissed her for the first time, she knew it wasn't.

As if just the blink of an eye had passed, Anna's car pulled up in her old driveway. Instantly her heart hammered in her windpipe, stealing her breath. Nerves bounced around inside her. Why was she so nervous? She had no idea.

Maybe she was worried something would happen, like the house would be taken from them, or Isaac had moved- or what if he lost feelings for her? It'd been a longer that they were apart than they were together, but not a day went by that she didn't think about him. And being forced from his loving grasp had caused a wound so deep and fresh she didn't think it'd ever close.

And it didn't. Now she could only hope Isaac had felt the same way, because she didn't know what she'd do with herself if he didn't love her anymore.

Stepping out of the car, Anna's feet touched the ground, rain cast a billion droplets on her head, not lifting her spirits whatsoever. She stared at the house in front of her, no lights were on, the porch swing looked like it hadn't been used in forever. Both of the two visible stories seemed like ghosts wandered among them. But it was home. And she couldn't wait to be in it again.

A hand on her shoulder made her jump, pulling her from her thoughts.

"You okay, Little One?" The voice of her older sister calmed her immensely. Tallula's eyes were filled with sympathy and worry.

Anna let a small, unconvincing smile grace her lips as she nodded her head. It didn't matter though, Tal could always see right through her.

"Grab your luggage," She said. "When we get inside I'll make you some soup and help you put fresh sheets on your bed. But first we got to get out of this rain, it'll ruin that pretty shirt you're wearing- and I was the one who gave you that." Tal raised her eyebrows, her lips curving upwards in a grin, and Anna couldn't fight one off her own face. Warm soup and clean sheets did sound kind of nice, so she walked past a thick stream of water and towards the back of the car where Cato was picking up suitcases effortlessly and positioning them on the ground.

"Well, whatcha waiting for bozo?" He said placing the last bag on the wet ground. "Grab yours, I want Tal's soup too."

Anna laughed and grabbed her suitcase, rolling it up the doorway, her hand hovering above the knob with a key ready in it.

"Well, here goes nothing that's a whole lot of something." She muttered.

She shoved the key in and twisted, opening the door to home full of memories.

"So... are you excited for school?" Tal asked from the couch.

Anna shook her head. She stared into the flames that flickered in the fireplace, letting the warmth sting her face until she couldn't bear it a second longer.

"Why not? You'll see Isaac again."

Instantly Anna felt herself tense up. Isaac was a sore subject. Of course she was excited to see him- or maybe excited was the wrong word. She couldn't wait until she was buried in his arms, she couldn't wait to feel his lips on her forehead or his hands run along her back, but she was gone away so long the mere thought of him hurt. She was so nervous to even think about their reunion she wanted to throw up.

She never told Tal and Cato she was in it past the "just friends" stage, but it was obvious they knew. She thanked God silently they didn't tease her about it.

"I don't know." Anna muttered.

"Stop with the dramatics." Cato groaned. "Just walk up to him in the hallways and say hi."

"It's not that easy."

"Then make it."

Anna rolled her eyes. "Alright, I'm turning in for the night. I'll see you guys in the morning."

She shuffled over and hugged Tal for a second too long before standing up and walking to the stairs. The climb up was dreadful, even though there were only twenty of them at most.

She ripped her pants and shirt off, stretching before slipping into shorts and a thin tank-top and climbing into her bed.

The fresh sheets felt nice against her skin, but Isaac's arms would've felt better. Sleeping in this bed alone didn't feel right and she hated it.

She picked up her phone, going to her contacts and pulling him up. Her heart wrenched at the sight of it. He was so close now, but so far. What would she even say if she decided to call him? "Hey, Isaac! Long time no see, huh?" or "Hi! I'm back in town if you ever want to go for coffee?"

Tears welled in her eyes as stress and frustration choked her, teared at her.

She violently clicked her phone off and threw it to the end of her bed, letting her head fall onto the pillow. With all the mixed emotions she felt, she thought sleep would never come, but with her first big breath she shifted into a dream.

Their legs ran as fast as track racers, their lungs burning and yearning for the right amount of air. But still they laughed and struggled as they took sharp turns in random hallways of the Beacon Hills Museum.

"Where's the damn exit?" Anna cried as Isaac grabbed her hand and yanked her down another corridor.

They stopped, gasping for a breath they knew would take ages to catch.

"You need to dust that." Isaac panted as he pointed towards the huge book in her hands. "it's slowing us down."

"No way!" Anna turned her body away from him and hugged the book tightly. "I need to see what happens! I need to see what happens to the boy and the girl he calls Princess."

"Fine." Isaac snatched the book from her hands. "Then let me hold it. This thing is like half your weight," He paused. "Princess." He grinned.

With no strength left she let go, laughing and leaning against his chest as her hair got increasingly wet and sticky from sweat. He pulled her in, rubbing circles on her back before they heard the footsteps of the three museum guards again.

"Go!" Isaac grabbed her wrist and once again, they were off.

If Anna thought in Isaac's point of view, this was probably one of the most scary and exciting moments of his life- but she... she was laughing the whole time. Or at least most of the time.

"Oh no." She said. Tears filled her eyes and air escaped her already empty lungs. Panic filled her chest and crept into her voice. "Isaac it's a dead end. Isaac no, I can't get caught. You know what will happen if I get caught!"

"Hey!" He said to her as he put the book under his arm. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Calm down. Deep breaths, okay? I'll find a way out, I'll find us an exit."

He looked around frantically, more scared for her than he was for himself- even though he knew what would happen if his father ever found he had gotten into trouble with the police. The guards footsteps increased in volume and panic surged through him until he looked up. Ah, him and his master ideas.

He lifted her up so his arms were clasped right under her behind. She pushed once, twice, three times, four, and on five the vent at the ceiling came loose. Quickly Isaac grabbed hold of her legs and boosted her into the small space, then pulled himself up after her. He closed the vent carefully, just as the guards came down the hallway stumped as they had been.

He held his hand tightly over her mouth, she sat between his legs hugging the book. It felt like hours they stayed like that, tears from her swollen eyes pooling in his hand until he felt like it was safe enough to drop it. A small sob escaped her lips, instantly shattering his heart.

"They can't catch me, Isaac. They can never catch me. If I'm caught it's over. Everything in my life is over." She whispered.

Isaac had hated hearing her say this, and thinking of telling anyone this part of the story if he ever opened up to someone. He hated the thought of people calling her dramatic for her words and tears. No one would ever know what she really meant when she said that, what she was risking and what she had to lose. It pained him to even think about it for a glimmer of a second.

"They won't." He whispered into her hair. "I won't let them. I promise."

Instantly the scene in the dream shifted, and Isaac was running without her. Anna wanted to call out to him, but it was like she was watching him through a movie screen, what she saw was simply a scene and she couldn't physically interfere with it.

Isaac ran- and fast. His feet stumbled down stairs and then across the pavement in a huge dark room until he was washed in the dim light of a bus.

"Derek!" He called out. "Derek!"

He breathed heavily as he stared at a silhouette hidden in the shadows. A pair of glowing red eyes made Anna's throat close up.

"What's wrong?" An alarmingly calm voice spoke.

"My dad. I think he's dead."

The mysterious person stepped out of the shadows, the color in his eyes replaced with worry. "What did you do?"

"That's the thing." Isaac shook his head. "It wasn't me."