The Long Way Home | ORIGINAL

Three

          It was Friday night, about 11 PM. Louis was at her window, just as she had expected. Adair grabbed her backpack that she had stuffed full of clothes, food, and supplies of what they would need for the next however long, then smiled and let him in, hugging him quickly and embracing the feel of him against her. She winked at him and finished packing, a few final touches before following him back out the window smoothly.

         The two of them ran to the treehouse to meet Lizzie and Cam. Tonight they were leaving, and Adair wasn't looking back. It was going to be hard, but it was for the best. Her family needed Sage back, and she was willing to do whatever it would take.

         "Alright, so how are we doing this?" Adair asked as she climbed into the familiar structure that her and Louis had spent so many moonlit nights talking in. She looked around at the people she cared about most in her life. Her best friend, and her cousins.

          "You guys are going. We're staying with them, leaving when they leave." Lizzie responded, giving Adair a sad look as the two of them realized they would not be making the confusing journey together. It was going to be just her and Louis. Out in the world.

         "What? Why aren't you guys coming with us?" Louis asked, shaking his head vigorously. "You helped us up to here, and now you're just leaving us to fend for ourselves?!" He looked at Cam in disbelief.

         "You can't be serious, Louis." Cam replied, giving him a look of incredulity. "You guys have been able to take care of yourself for long enough, it's time you gained some experience for yourselves."

         "So I guess this is goodbye?" Adair proposed, tears welling up in her eyes. Her and Lizzie embraced, and then Adair wrapped Cam in a hug.

         "It's only goodbye for now." Cam reminded her, holding her back by the shoulders. "You'll be fine, Adair. You can take care of them." He winked, and Louis led the way out of the treehouse down into the dusky night.

         The moonlight glanced off the windows of the house as Adair and Louis climbed to the ground near the treehouse and turned their backs on the life they had known, taking the first step towards a new part of their lives, the unknown.

         "So where exactly are we going?" Adair posed the question cautiously, knowing that Louis was probably stressed out right now. He got irritated easily when he was tired or stressed, and right now, he was both.

         "Here." He handed her his phone, which was beeping quietly at a slow rate. There was a big green dot on the map, sitting still for now, but Adair knew it was the tracking chip they had given Lizzie and Cam to help follow the Nightmen. A long blue line showed the path to their destination, a small town off the coast of New Jersey.

        "We've got a ways to go..." Adair trailed off, looking at Louis worriedly. He shook his head and held his hand out for his phone. She handed it over willingly and smiled at him genuinely. Louis repeated the action, but his grin looked more like a grimace in the pressure of the moment. "Hey, it's okay. We'll be fine. How have you been doing?" She attempted to change the subject, hoping to calm him down.

         "I'm alright, just nervous about how this'll go. If we mess up and you get killed, I'd never forgive myself." He looked at her, sorrow covering his features and his eyebrows crinkled in concern.

         "I'll be fine. You don't have to worry so much about me Louis, we both got each other." She placed a hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eyes. He gave her a grateful smile and they stopped for a second. "Just don't worry about it, okay?"

         Louis swallowed slowly, not looking away from her crystal blue eyes, and nodded. "Alright." His voice cracked, and his face turned a bright red color. Adair giggled, and they started off again. The night was chilly, it seemed to stick to their clothes and cover their faces, but in a pleasant way. Louis laughed, running into the night and whooping emphatically.