After a while had passed of Justin sitting on the edge of Cameron's bed, he finally talked to himself, "I have got to pry my ass off this bed," and he did just that. There was an imprint on the bed from where he'd been there for so long. He asked Frank for a ride and almost felt bad, but Frank was always willing to take the opportunity to go see Cameron."Thanks for this," Justin said when they got in the limo. The sedan still reeked of the bleach they were using to clean the blood out, and that wasn't good for their breathing. "Of course, kiddo," Frank said. Justin had really started to also grasp onto the feeling of Frank as a father figure as well. His heart lifted a little whenever Frank called him "kiddo."He smiled at Frank and clutched the journal tighter to his chest, wrapping his jacket around it. He was almost afraid that something would happen to it before he could get it to Cameron, before they found out the information; he needed to protect this at all costs.

"Sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is just say no," Cameron's mom had said the same words to him that Madison just had. "What if I can't?" Cameron asked. He was fourteen at the time, and he'd had an old friend confide in him. "What if I don't have a choice?"Christy put her hand on Cameron's hair, gently stroking it. "You always have a choice."Now, Cameron had realized that wasn't always true. He'd been into life or death situations, and sometimes, he had to live when he would've gladly chosen death. That's such a sad thought for a seventeen year old, Cameron thought with a bitter taste in his mouth."What exactly am I saying no to?" Cameron dragged himself back to the present. He'd gotten too caught up in the memory that he'd already forgotten."If you're going to try and bust out or not," Madison said.He glanced down at his arm. They'd taken most of the gauze off. The regular nurse that checks on him informed him that it was healing well, but he'd need to continue

He finally found the ending hallway. There was a man at the desk in front, wearing purple. He was speaking to someone on his earpiece, clearly upset. "No, I don't know where he is. If I did, don't you think I would've told you?" A moment of silence. "No, I would. I don't want to lose my job over some regular damn kid, but definitely not Hendrickson's." They know I'm gone. I knew I wouldn't get so lucky. With an ever-growing lump in his throat, he melded into the commotion of the hallway. He glanced at the doors, and with a moment of luck, he found it.PI--right there on the door. It was the sign that Madison told him to look for, but of course, there was a guard directly in front of the door. I need a distraction. He snuck into the room next to him, giving no more than a quick glance to the old woman laying in the bed. He pulled out his HoloComm and sent Madison their code word for when he needed help: MONSTER. It seemed fitting, since this entire operation was run by a monster. Withi

"Justin, what the hell!" Cameron ran over to pull the boys apart. Justin raged in a way he'd never seen before. "Mads, help!" He called to her. He didn't have the strength to pull them apart on his own. She grabbed Justin under his stomach and pulled him over."Stop!" She cried at them. Shane's blood was coating all four of them. The metallic tangy smell doused the room, and it was only a matter of time before the fork came out of his shoulder. Before he knew what was happening, Cameron felt his face jerked sideways with the force of a punch. That was a punch, you moron, he thought to himself. The bruise was already creeping up on his jawline. He didn't know who punched him, but he got angry now too--just angry in a different way. He couldn't find himself to forgive whoever punched him for a long time because everyone in this room knew he was hit on a regular basis. With all the furiousness of a boy who'd spent the last three years being beaten and abused, with all the strength that

When Cameron woke up to the sound of his alarm blaring “Highway to Hell,” he always found it ironic how relatable that song really was to his life. He always felt like he was on the highway to hell, and no one would be able to redeem him. Brushing his hair out of his face, he groaned and dragged himself out of bed. Hey, how is everything going? He shot to Justin. Carly and Justin never left his mind. Hey, you up? He saw he had a text—not from Justin, but from Madison. Hmm, he thought to himself. That’s weird. He typed back; I am now. Sorry. I had a late night last night. She responded Yeah me too. Are you able to talk on the phone before school? Cameron didn’t know what the hell was going on, but he said he’d talk for a few minutes. Pulling her up on videochat, he saw where she looked like she’d just woken up too. “Hey,” he said while yawning. “Hi,” she said awkwardly. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he said, “Sooo, did you need something?” “Uh,” she said, then threw her