JUDAH's POV : I didn't remember much about my childhood. The memories came in and out. Sometimes they came in flashes when I least expected it. Sometimes they came to me in dreams. Some were really nice dreams. While others were what you call a nightmare. I remembered this one time when I was little, my mom and I lived in a small house near the beach. I remembered hearing the sound of waves in the morning, and the smell of the ocean was so thick. "Daddy, look what I made," I was five years old. I just finished building my first Lego bat-mobile and I couldn't be more proud. I was running around the house in excitement, couldn't wait to show it off. "That's great, son," dad said with his back turned to me. He was hunched over a working table, drawing and scribbling down a bunch of writings on a large piece of paper. I stole a peek and I noticed that he was drawing something that looked like a house. "Jaden, come here, daddy's trying to work," mom said as she picked me up and car

TAYA’s POV : As I was making my way home from Judah's house that night, I was missing him more and more. I couldn't stop myself from replaying the words he said on our last conversation and thinking about what he was doing out there. I knew I wouldn’t be sleep anyway, so I decided to go to town. It was past 10 PM and I was back to the dark and familiar alleyways towards Castro's. The guys at the door took one look at me and they knew that I wasn't twenty one. As they were glaring deadly glares at me, I knew better than to try getting in. But, luckily I spotted the bouncer guy that I met before and he seemed to remember me as well. I went over to him and asked him to get Ava to come out. He was annoyed to see me at first, but I gave him twenty dollars and he became much more cooperative afterward. "Any news?" I said as soon as Ava slipped out the back door. She was wearing a black cropped t-shirt and ripped skinny jeans. In her mouth was a lit cigarette and her red hair was tied in

TAYA's POV : - - - - - ONE WEEK LATER - - - - - "What do you mean you're not going to the prom?" Hallee was fuming. If I were telling her this face to face, she would have gone all physical and started smacking my head, claiming that I had lost a few bolts. Thankfully though, it was over the phone "It means I'm not going," I repeated myself. "But... it's the prom!" "I know it is," It was the morning of the prom and I couldn't be less enthused. I kept checking for news about Mr. Harrison and nothing came up, so I'd assume he's still alive and well. That was a good thing. Judah going rogue must mean that he knows what he's doing. But still, Judah couldn't be reached and I had given up all hope that he would be back for the prom. And so, I called Hallee up and I told her that I wasn't going to leave the comfort of my room today. Sorry prom, but you're canceled, I said to myself as I glanced at the long golden dress hanging on my bathroom door. "But Tay, we got our dresses. We re

TAYA's POV : Senior Prom – A Night to Remember. The big banner in the middle of the room said it loud and proud. Our school went all out this year, renting this huge ballroom at the Harrison Resort, and the ballroom had been transformed into what looked like a Met Gala. The air was full of glamour and glitz. The room was donned in tall chandeliers, silky silver fabric hanging on the roof, a shining disco ball in the middle, and all these pretty people in their awesome dresses and suits were dancing through the night. The prom marked a monumental time in the lives of teenagers all across America. Some people dubbed it our coming of age moment, and others claimed that it was the grandest night of our teenage lives. So much pressure to put on a night. I spent the first hour of the night dancing and laughing away with Hallee, Gabe, and Jesse. I suppose this was the reason that made prom so special, it was our last big event that we could have together with our friends. After gradua

TAYA's POV : At first I thought about jumping down, but then my brain kicked in. Take the damn stairs! My feet turned on their heels instinctively. I was feeling a mix of emotions as I ran down the staircase— angry, happy, confused, relieved, everything all at once. "Judah...?" I stopped as I finally reached the last step down. "Wow, you look amazing," he shook his head from side to side as he studied me, "Love what you did with your hair," It really was him, nonchalant and cool as always. But I was not cool. I couldn't contain it anymore. Tears rolled down my face and my hand went to cover my mouth in disbelief. I wanted to speak but I was rendered speechless. I had so many things I wanted to say. Too many. I wanted to scream and yell at him too. But everything fell away the moment I saw his face again. "Hey, why are you crying?" he said as he closed in on me. His arms stretched out as he was about to hug me, but I quickly stepped back and shoved him away instead. "You left