When Charles is left home alone for the first time, he is ecstatic. Not long after his parents leave, however, he begins to receive a string of increasingly strange text messages.

"I want to grow up" Did you say it when you were a kid? I know I did. Have you regretted growing up at some point in your life? Have you wished you could be a careless child once again? I know you have. Everyone has. The more you grow the bigger the challenges, the obstacles, the pain. Life gets serious. You get serious. You forget to smile at the morning sun shining down your face. You are too absorved by your problems to notice the beautiful world surrounding you. And when life gets hard, you wish more than anything to turn back in time and be that small child who did not know anything when he said "I want to grow up"

Tanis is the loner emo girl, no friends, only bullies. Cutting daily. Until friendly, mysterious Jared Leto comes along. He seems to stop the pain, and Tanis' life finally seems to be getting better. Until a tradgedy strikes, so massive that Tanis finds herself going back to her old ways. Can Jared save her life one more time? DISCLAIMER: I do not own 30 Seconds To Mars. I also don't own Oakton, Virginia (or wherever Tanis lives lol). All I own is the plotline and all the characters that aren't Jared or Shannon. I'm putting it here because I can not be arsed to write it at the start of each chapter. ^-^