𝘚𝘖𝘕𝘋𝘌𝘙 ⁽ʲ ᵐᵒˡⁱⁿᵃ⁾

𝘛𝘞𝘌𝘕𝘛𝘠-𝘛𝘏𝘙𝘌𝘌

The days following Elise's final breathing moments went by in one, agonizing blur.

Her initial response was a terrifying silence; not a single word was uttered the next two days, leaving each of the boys to find themselves in a deep pit of concern. What worried them even more, however, was the third day. Elise was nowhere to be found - the Molina residence empty, her own bedroom entirely vacant, and even Payton's house was a dead end.

It wasn't until Julie's school day drew to a close that Elise appeared in the studio again, lifeless eyes and blank face.

The boy's opted to give her space for the remainder of the day, but they didn't have the luxury of any more time to spare. The next day, they knew exactly where to find her.

At noon, the boys of Sunset Curve appeared just beyond the doors of the courtyard where Julie ate lunch every day. Just as expected, a small glance through the window confirmed the location of the girl they were searching for.

Elise's eyes were locked onto Julie's, though her girlfriend's were not locking back. They gazed straight through her, it was almost physically painful. The sandwich at Julie's fingertips remained almost entirely untouched, the courtyard was otherwise abandoned. If she'd only warned her sooner, maybe she wouldn't have to go through to extent of the emotions she was feeling now. Somehow, Elise was set on the fact that this was her fault.

As creepy as it sounded, she'd been watching Julie for the last two days. It's all she could bring herself to do, being around the other had always comforted her, even now. But this time the comfort was accompanied by the heaviest weight her heart had ever felt - but she deserved it, didn't she? It was her own little way of holding herself accountable, a torture that eased her mind.

She couldn't cry; she could hardly feel anything but guilt.

Since Elise disappeared four days ago, Julie had seemed to be just as lifeless as her counterpart. The sight of the boys left her on the brink of tears, the knowledge that they could now have what she couldn't left her near-shattered. How could she bare to face them? The jealousy ate at her head, her anger getting the better of her. But the boys understood, they kept their distance.

If they went in and spoke to her, Julie would see them. And her anger would double, knowing that Elise was there. So how could they get her attention?

Their futile attempt to wave their arms through the window was thankfully thwarted when a certain long-haired skater appeared beside them, features and stance indentical to the rest of them.

"I came as soon as I got a moment. Caleb told me, and..." He took a deep breath, eyes moving to the floor beneath his feet. "I'm sorry. How can I help her? This is my fault, if I can even begin to make up for it..."

Despite the air surrounding the past few days, Alex actually managed to smile. He wouldn't let it show, but without Willie, he was hurting even more. Luke didn't know what he would do without his own boyfriend at his side, (now resting his sad head on the taller boy's shoulder), and Willie had been Alex's own anchor through his entire afterlife. Any anger they had held towards him dissipated in the space between now and their last interaction, noe that he gave them their last hope.

"Actually, yes." Alex spoke, stepping to stand beside the newcomer. "Elise isn't doing well, we haven't been able to get to her. But we need her, and we can't go out there without Julie seeing."

"And what would be even say?" Luke's voice cracked slightly. "We don't know what we're doing either."

Willie smiled, a sad and forced gesture, and nodded his head. Ever since the two had found out how him and her mother had related deaths, their bond had grown into something deep. They didn't speak much - they barely knew anything about each other - yet still the tie between them was unbreakably tragic. They felt the same pain.