2074

Epilogue: Clara

"It's okay Alyx. We'll help you get past this. All the way."

Just like that, it was over.

What did we learn from this experience? Honestly, we learned a lot. Like we learned how to skip a hell lot of school. If only we got kidnapped when it was September, not August.

Eh, I guess it wasn't a fictional scenario after all, like I thought back when I first got kidnapped. But I guess it was a reality.

A lot was clouding our minds, as we didn't know what Jonathan did, and why he did it. But we had one last week of summer, and we had to prepare.

As Xander, Rafael, and Juem all disappeared before the end of Grade Seven, we had to make up some crazy lie to tell everyone why Xander and Juem were gone for so long...

And why Rafael didn't come back.

After all of that, everyone really forgot about it. No one cared that Clara's house was supposedly "set on fire, but saved at the last minute." No one cared that Rafael ran away to "live on the island with the random cavemen."

Everything was back to normal in everyone's eyes. Except that it wasn't. It was a horrifying tragedy for all of us, knowing the truth. Sure, it doesn't seem that dramatic, and you probably think that we're just crybabies.

But it was traumatizing. We weren't prepared for this. Especially Al and Xander. They knew everything.

But they never told us.

We never asked.

But it showed in that last week of summer that they were really affected by what happened. They would hit us up in the middle of the night, wanting to talk on the phone for hours on end.

They would have random panic attacks. They would start crying.

Al would start speaking to herself.

We'll never forget the year of 2074. Not after Jonathan.

After the last week of summer, Fing knocked on my door. "Hey... Clara? Is that your name?"

"That's right. What is it?" I asked. I still didn't trust him.

"How are all of you?"

"Good..." I paused. I didn't know what he was doing.

"Alright. I just wanted to know. I probably won't see you ever again, because I'm taking a job at a

local high school, possibly- no, prolly not the one you'll go to. So I just wanted to say goodbye. Give my regards to the rest," he smirked, laughing.

"Okay..." I said. But before he left, I asked him one more question. "Do you miss Jonathan?"

"I do, but I definitely don't miss that job!" he called as he walked away.

Well, I suppose that's the end of it.

Or, well, I supposed it was the end of it.

On the last day of summer, we decided to meet up at the park.

I saw Al and Xander looking at a piece of paper. The one they read the day that Jonathan... You know, died.

So I decided to walk up to them. The message seemed quite important.

"Hey, Al. What's in the note?"

Xander handed it to me, bespectacled eyes formed into a bittersweet expression. "Here, Sylvia."

"Oh! Let me see, too!" Sylvia ran up to me.

"Count me in," Juem laughed.

We all gathered around the note,

and I looked down to see

some words that I would

never, ever forget.

The note that Al had read:

Dear Everyone,

I'm sorry. I can't bear to live with myself anymore. Everyone, all the 111 kids that I've failed haunt me. I can't deal with this anymore. The only way to freedom is this explosive in my office.

However, Al, specifically, I need to say that you were the one that helped me the most, Finley being second. When I had lost Clara and Sylvia, I had thought that I didn't deserve to be in this world. But you helped me. I could've died there, but you gave me the strength to move on.

Xander, I don't know how I failed Rafael, but I did, and I feel disgusted for it. I'm a vile, horrible, human being.

I'm sorry

I'm sorry for

I'm sorry because

I'm sorry. I don't

I'm sorry, I didn't

I'm sorry, I'm done.

I don't know how you will ever forgive me, but I hope we can reconcile in another life.

Al,

Xander,

Juem

Clara,

Sylvia,

And Finley.

Good luck on your journey, and may we meet again and truly reconcile,

Jonathan Woods.

"This confirms that he wanted to kill himself... Right?"

"Yes," Al grimaced.

"I can't believe that I caused..." Sylvia looked down at her hands.

"It happened to all of us," Xander said. "Even Al, who escaped three times, partly caused this."

"I'm ashamed," Al said, a single tear trickling down her cheek.

"There's nothing we can do now though..." Juem patted her shoulder.

"..." I thought about it for a second.

Should we have escaped?

Or should we have helped Jonathan?