It Will Always Be A Game

01: Escape

When you're scared but you still do it anyway,
that's brave.

"You have to go, you have to leave right now!" He turns around to look at me.

"Shane please, you have to go right now," my voice cracks.

"What about you? What if the-what if they do something to you?!" His frantic voice fills my ears.

"Shane," I look at him, not caring about the fact that I'm crying in front of someone. For the first time in a long while.
"They can't do anything that I won't be able to handle," the first tear rolls down.

Not because I'm scared, but because he won't be there with me anymore.
The thought makes me feel sad, which makes me feel weak.

I do not like feeling weak.

His eyes follow my tears, he looks back at me with guilt and sorrow.

"I don't want to leave you alone but," he tries to compose himself, "anywhere we go, trouble follows us. I don't want to put you in trouble any more than we have endured," he turns his head away, a look of anguish etched across his face.

"I really don't want to leave yo-"

"Stop worrying about me Shane, I'll be fine," my voice breaks, "I promise."

"Hey," he holds my face. "This is not the end. We will see each other again. I promise.
I promise you, Alyssa."

I look down as a sob escapes my lips.
After holding onto my emotions for so long, I couldn't take it any longer. The pain was just too much. The pain my heart had been enduring for the past few months was too much for me to bear.

He pulls me into a hug, his chin resting above my head.

"You were never one to give up, no matter what. And after this day, I don't know what's going to happen to me, but I know that I'm gonna find a way, because I have no other choice. And you were the one who taught me that. So you have nothing to worry about, I'm taking a page out of your book, after all."

He takes a step back and gently wipes my tears and pain away.
It feels good.
To let my tears fall freely.
In front of someone other than myself.
"Please, you have to leave," my voice croaks.

He gives me a sad smile. "Goodbye, Alyssa. I'll... see you soon," his voice cracks as he lands a gentle kiss on my cheek.

He steps away and turns around. I want to scream. Demand him to not leave me alone. Not now. Not when I need him the most.

But I can't.

He gives me one last look.

I can't ask him.

It's for his good.

I can't ask him.

And he leaves.

The shutting of the back door leaves a deafening silence. My thoughts falter as I look at it.

He left.

I couldn't stop him even if I wanted to.

Would our lives still be the same if he didn't work for Carl?
If he wasn't thrown in this mess?

The loud sirens break my trance.

It's time.

I quickly brush the tears from my face and snatch the keys from the table. I check my pockets to ensure that I have my phone and the paper.
It's there.
I can't lose it.
Even though the coordinates are etched into my memory, I can't lose it.