Lillah had been out for a jog. Another prom avoided and she honestly felt bad about it--if she only felt like she fit in better, she'd attend her last chance at prom night. However, she had no friends to go with nor even a date. She wasn't even asked, and she didn't have the courage to ask... So, with all the stress settling in as the sun set, she decided to run just as the doctor suggested. The cool sweat jumping off her figure with each stride and the loud rock music blasting into her wasn't exactly relaxing, but it gave her sore muscles to worry about instead. She wasn't thinking about her shitty high school experience--she was only lost in the run. 

Then, among her music, she thought she heard thunder. She didn't give it much thought; though, when she glanced up at the clear sky, Lillah slowed to a stop. Breathing heavily, she pulled the ear buds from her ears and looked around. [i]What was that?[/i] she thought, realizing she hadn't seen any lightening either. Just when she was allowing herself to think the [i]boom[/i] had merely been a sound affect in her music, the foulness of smoke reached her nostrils and she breathed deeply to confirm her uneasiness. "What the hell?" she uttered and quickly turned to run back toward the stench, her ear buds swinging over her shoulder. 

It was getting stronger, the smell of smoke. As she grew closer to her home, she could feel the temperature of the air rise. If it were possible, her heart-rate increased even further. "Shit!" she gasped aloud before following up within her head, [i]What's going on?[/i] It was growing harder to breath and her eyes were stinging when she could finally see...what was left of her house being burned to the ground. She only slowed down when she saw a figure stumble out of the front door, doubled over and coughing. [i]Oh thank God,[/i] was her first thought. 

She opened her mouth to call to her father when a hand clamped over her mouth and pulled her back. Scared, she lashed out, but the man was ready for that and hugged her arms so she couldn't hit back. She could kick, though, and she stomped her heel into his foot and followed up by throwing her head back into his nose. With a groan, her captor released her and she ran for home--but he caught her by the wrist and pulled her back. "No, wait--" he had protested, his attention over her shoulder. She cursed at him, trying to pull away; she was ready to strike again when his next words had her stopped in her tracks. "They'll kill you." 

Lillah had blinked at him, pausing in her struggle. "Wh-what do you mean?" she panted as she turned to look back at her home. Two men had appeared beside her father and...and they were dragging him back towards the flames. They had oxygen tanks or something, because they had a lot more energy than her father did. She gasped, forgetting about the grip on her wrist, and moved to run to his rescue. When she was pulled back, she gasped and shoved at the man. Between the run, the smoke, and the heat, though, much of her energy was gone. "Let me go!" she pleaded, fighting the dizziness. "I have to help him!" 

"You can't--we need to leave," the man answered, though his command was drowned out by the terrifying screams of a grown man being burned to death. 

"N-no," she fought weakly, gasping as if there suddenly wasn't enough oxygen in the air. She felt lightheaded--it was all too much. Gray dots danced in front of her eyes, growing bigger and darker...And then she was out. 

[center]-[/center]

The young woman awoke to a jolt. She was sitting against the cool metal of the inside of a van. There were other people--no, other students. At first, she opened her mouth to speak, but she stopped herself. They each had such pale, sober faces. Even the German Shepherd seemed down. She recognized most of them--particularly Henry and Raven. Her gaze lingered on the other girl's face for a moment before she looked down at the van's floor. She pursed her lips, recollecting the night's events. 

Lillah wouldn't allow herself to bawl her eyes out in front of these people, but she couldn't stop the tears from welling up in her light eyes and silently rolling over her cheeks. [i]No, no, no,[/i] she thought over and over again. She clasped her hands together tightly, her knuckles paling as she tried to stop herself from shaking. Every now and again, she'd draw in a long breath and just as slowly exhale. Otherwise, she was lost in her own angry clusterfuck of thoughts.

Eventually, she felt the van roll to a stop and after a delay, the doors opened to reveal the man who had probably saved her life. She quickly wiped at her eyes and gave herself a moment to collect herself as he ordered everyone off the van. She was on autopilot all of the sudden, which was common when her depression acted up. Apathy set in, replacing the anger momentarily and she found herself complying well enough. She handed over her phone, which her ear buds were still attached to and watched quietly as it was destroyed. 

And then he recited some lines, and the man was gone and one of the students spoke up--taking charge for the moment. Lillah only remained quiet, standing there and looking bleakly at the supplies they were left. She didn't have the energy to protest or even voice her concerns.