A New Journey Awaits

Chapter 24

    Evna's POV
    I woke up in the hospital. Back in the hospital? Really? I gradually remember what had happened at the the school. I remember that Jim and his friends had killed Angor Rot. I sit up as I hear footsteps approaching.
    "Evna! Are you ok?" Jim, Toby, and Claire all came in.
    "Yeah, fine." I say bluntly.
    "What happened back there?" Jim asks.
    "Nothing you need to worry about." I say, irritated. I start getting out of the bed. I'm still in my normal clothes.
    "What are you doing?" Toby asks as I dig through my bag, making sure I have everything.
    "Leaving."
    "What? Where are you gonna go?" Toby asks.
    "Somewhere I should have gone a long time ago. You won't be able to find me there."
    "We can still track you on your phone." Claire says.
    "No you can't."
    "Uh, yeah we can." She scoffed.
    "No you can not." I said trying to get through to her.
    "How do you figure?" She asks. I throw my phone on the ground, stomp on it then I throw it up in the air and shoot it with a pistol. "Where did you even get a pistol?"
    "Doesn't matter." I say, jumping out the window.
    "Evna, why are you doing this?"
    "You killed the last bit of what I considered family. Angor was like a brother to me. A year after my dad died Desta left to be safe, but Blinky and Arrrgh left for no reason. Then I met Angor, and he made sure I was safe. I don't know why, but he'd always protected me. You don't know what that's like, do you? Leaving your family at the age of 5, you're dad dying 1 year later. Trying to protect him by going into a hell-hole, and failing. Then have your best friend die in your arms a week after being reunited with them after 6 years. Having just one hope left, only to find out that their dead, too." I say, trying to hold back my fists. "I am all alone."
    "That's not true! You have us." Claire protested.
    "You guys have killed enough of my family." I say, jumping about 3 feet to the outside. "I'm out of here." I say. I run to the cave of stalklings. When I get there, they can tell something big is happening, so they become uneasy. I grab a pillow case to put all of my pictures into. I place them in the case carefully. I grab some extra outfits and put them into the pillow case, too. I say my goodbyes to the stalklings and head out of the door.

    Jim's POV
    After Evna left we just kinda stood there. Not really sure what to say. Then Claire asked a question.
    "What caused all this?" She asks.
    "Well," neither me or Toby know how to answer, cause we know it's our fault. "we'll talk about that later." I say. We leave it at that. Then my mom walks in.
    "Where's Evna?" She asks, clueless to what had happened.
    "That's a long story." I respond.
    "Ok...?" She isn't sure what to say. The rest of us just kinda stare out the window where Evna had left. After a while we left, but we didn't go back to the school. We went to my house. We went to my room. Tobes was picking things up, I was putting them away, and Claire was lying on my bed, lying upside down off the side. She was video calling Mary and Darci.
    "Hey girls, what up?" Claire greets.
    "What was that?!? You just up and left us, the ambulance left and you ran out on us!" Darci exclaim.
    "Evna had a cough attack, I went to go check on her."
    "What's up with Ev? Is she ok?" Mary asks.
    "Yeah, she's out of the hospital. She left without reason. She said she was going where no one could find her." Claire tried to tell the truth without giving away our secret.
    "No, she said where we can't find her. Anyone else could find her probably." I correct.
    "Ohh, you're with Jim!" Darci exclaims, assuming we got together. "First the kiss, now this? Oh, you two will be married in no time."
    "Darci, Toby's here, too." She pointed the camera his way, he waved.
    "Oh, hey Toby!" She called.
    "Hi!" He called back.
    "Do you ant ideas where she may have gone?" Mary asks.  
    "No, I assume she has a great hiding place though. And we can't even track her, she deliberately broke her phone. Just so we couldn't find her!" Claire pouts.
    "Hey, maybe the five of us can form a search party!" Mary shouts. I look at the phone then at Tobes slowly shaking my head. He looks like he wants to do it. I hold up a sigh reading: put the call on mute. She puts it on mute.
    "We can't do it." I say.
    "Why not?" Claire asks.
    "Well, if we did go, who would protect Trollmarket? Who knows how long we'd be gone. And my mom?" I say.
    "He makes a good point, he's the one that protects Trollmarket." Tobys states. "If we left it would be defenseless. And do you remember the state Blinky was in while Jim was in the Darklands?" He asks Claire.
    "We can take them with." She offers.
    "So, you, me, Jim, Blinky, Arrrgh, Mary, and Darci? How do you think your friends'll react."
    "You make a good point."
    "Yes I do. You know why? Cause I'm AWESOME!!!" He yells. We laugh.
    "Well maybe he won't be in a state because he'll know Jim is safe." She obviously really wants to go on this search. I sigh.
    "How about the four of you go, and I'll stay to protect the Trolls."
    "Then who's gonna protect us?" Claire asks.
    "Toby, of couse." She laughed. Me and Toby frown. "Oh. Your serious. Ok, fine." She goes back to unmute the call. "Change in plans. Just us and Toby, Jim's not coming." She explains.
    "Oh, ok." They seem a bit disappointed about the fact that I'm not going. "Jim, please?" The 2 girls yell through the phone.
    "Please?" Toby and Claire plead with the other two teens.
    "N- uggghhhh!! Fine." I sigh in defeat. "If Blinky doesn't agree with this then I'm not going." I whisper to Claire and Toby.
    "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be cool with it." Toby assures quietly.
    -LATER-
    "See, I told you he'd be chill." Toby says.
    "Yes, you're right. I'm so dearly sorry I ever doubted your oh-so high people knowing skills." I joke.
    "So let's go pick up the girls." Claire says. We walk over to Darci's house. Claire knocks on the door.
    "Hey girl!" Darci exclaims. "Mary, come on!" She yells.
    "Does anyone know how we're gonna get around? We got grounded from our vehicles." Mary sighed pointing to herself and Darci. "Hey, Jimmy, aren'y you old enough?" She asks as we begin walking.
    "Well, yah, but we still don't have a way of transporting ourselves anywhere. Also I only have a permit." I say.
    "Actually, don't you have that cousin in Minnesota? She has like, 2 Jeeps, 3 Pick-ups and a bus?" Toby asks.
    "Oh, Dasin? Who also has a motorcycle, speedboat, a duck, and a soccer mom car?" I ask.
    "Yes! HER!" He exclaims.
    "Toby, WE'RE IN CALIFORNIA!" Claire yells.
    "Can't you tel-" he cuts himself off. "your mom to drive us down there?" He finishes nervously.
    "What were you gonna say?" Mary asks.
    "What I just said is what I wanted to say." Toby replies.
    "Ok what's going on, Claire?" Darci asks. "You, Jim, and Toby have been hanging out together an awful lot. Us girls used to be inseparable. What gives?"

I love stoping on cliffhangers.