It was 4:30 a.m. Less than two hours until sunrise, and yet the group had made the decision to give themselves five hours to sleep, relying on the fact that they were safe in this room.

Miles was relieved that they had that many hours to get some rest, but it wasn't nearly enough. Five hours was nothing on his usual seven or eight hours, and after not getting a wink in so long, he was confident his body was ready to sleep for more than an entire day. Alas, that was impossible - they didn't have the time to spare.

Though the group had wanted to all stay as close as possible for safety, it wasn't easy to do so with so little places to sleep. Luca took the couch to sleep on, and to save space Eira and Aaron shared the double bed in the bedroom. Gathering all of the bedding they could find - pillows, sheets, blankets, everything - Miles and Lia made makeshift beds. Miles slept in the bedroom - on the floor - with Aaron and Eira while Lia slept out in the main room with Luca.

By 4:40 a.m, everybody had settled and were quickly drifting to sleep.

Slumber was quick to claim Miles, for no matter how much was on his mind, it was just impossible for him to keep his eyes open any longer. Trying to get comfortable on his bedding, he rested on his left side to avoid hurting his right shoulder any more.

His sleep was fitful. Rapidly, Miles found his mind filling with images he had no control over: blood, Harvey, guns. Bodies everywhere, the ringing sound of bullets piercing the thin air.

Harvey was in his arms again; eyes open, chest rising and falling. Somewhere inside Miles, though he was just trapped in a dream, he felt such a real spark of joy - Harvey wasn't dead. Not in his dreams, anyway. Harvey was bleeding, but alive. Hurt, but alive.

Alive, but dying dying dying.

Emotions in dreams were peculiar - to some degree, Miles was consciously processing the thrill that coursed through him to have found Harvey alive, but the rest of the excitement felt artificial. He'd wake up, soon, and it would all dissolve. Dreams weren't real experiences, were they?

The image returned: Harvey was dead. Really dead. Again, returned the feeling of emotions in limbo between truth and fantasy, but the emotions were negative this time.

Another gunshot.

Hands around his throat.

Miles' breath was stolen from him and replaced by pain. The ground was cold beneath his bloodstained shirt.

No breath, no breath, no breath, just pain. The fingers around Miles' neck became knives, digging into his skin and drawing blood. His vision was growing dark. Somebody was screaming, and for a moment Miles thought it was him, but he didn't have the breath left to get out even one small sound.

Was he still dreaming?

His vision flashed red and black. He couldn't breathe. He could almost feel his heart slowing.

No breath, just pain.

Then Miles realised he was the one screaming, but not in the dream.

He jolted awake, shirt soaked in sweat, hair and eyes wild.

He was yelling for hardly a second before a hand clamped over his mouth and he fell completely silent.

Miles could hear his heartbeat.

In his ear, there was a whisper. "You're okay."

Aaron.

Miles, trembling, closed his eyes and told himself over and over that it had been a dream. He wasn't dying, and Harvey wasn't coming back to life.

A dream, a dream.

Fingers trembling, Miles lifted his hands to touch his bruised neck. Aaron's hand slipped away from his mouth.

"You're okay," Aaron said again, voice hardly a whisper.

Keeping his cool hands pressed against his neck and letting his eyes stay closed, Miles agreed quietly, "I'm okay."

Aaron didn't reply, letting Miles slow his breathing and compose himself wordlessly.

Everybody else was still fast asleep; Aaron had managed to silence Miles soon enough to keep everyone else from waking.

It was 5:45 a.m. It was still dark outside.

Aaron, who had previously been crouching beside Miles, now stood up and extended a hand to Miles, who took it without asking why. Miles was still shaking, and his knees wobbled when he stood, but Aaron kept a hold of his hand until he was sure Miles could stand without the assistance.

Miles, even though he was half lost in a sleepy daze, didn't like how Aaron's hand lingered on his own for just a second longer than necessary.

Aaron crossed the room to a window and opened it immediately, and Miles followed him. The cool air instantly gave Miles a sense of tranquillity he hadn't known he'd needed so badly. He closed his eyes and breathed it in deeply, leaning against the edge of the window, resting his head on the wall.

"Miles, what's on your mind?"

"You'd rather not know."

Outside, a lone dog let out a long, single melancholy howl.

Miles opened his eyes slowly and eyed the full moon. When he looked back at Aaron and found the boy watching him already, he noted how when Aaron's eyes glittered like they were doing now, they held a magically uncanny resemblance to the starry night sky.

"I've always wanted to run away," Miles said suddenly, and he realised immediately afterwards that he didn't know why he'd said it. It had just seemed appropriate.

He was surprised when Aaron murmured, "Me too." Aaron cast his gaze out the window, and another cool breeze ruffled his blond hair. "Run away somewhere nobody would ever find me. Somewhere I'll never be... Altered."

Miles smiled, then. A smile similar to the ones he'd shared with Aaron earlier that night, when they'd been wandering the streets alone. "If only a world where that was possible still existed."

"Maybe it will again, one day," Aaron said hopefully. "Maybe that's what this all is. A big wake-up call. Whoever - or whatever - has orchestrated this must have a reason for it. Maybe it's time for change."

Miles wanted to believe what Aaron said. He himself was so close to being sixteen, and the thought of the Alteration still terrified him. Perhaps there was a future for him without being Altered. "Thanks, Aaron."

Aaron tipped his head, surprised. "What for?"

Miles hesitated. He didn't know what he'd said that for. He was too drowsy to control anything that came out of his mouth, apparently. "For not letting me wake anybody else. Did I wake you?"

Aaron's expression melted into an easy smile. "No, I was already awake."

As Miles eyed Aaron, he could tell the boy was lying.

"Are you ready to go back to sleep yet?" Aaron asked quickly. "We'll both need it for tomorrow."

Miles, casting a glance back at his bedding, nodded his head slowly. "Yeah."

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+1111 Words.

((Banner credit to itsnothardtodreamx))

I'm so sorry that this chapter was so uneventful, it didn't really move the plot forward in any way except letting the boys spend a fraction more time together. I've actually written like thirty chapters in advance and I promise this story keeps moving pretty quickly after this.

I hope you still enjoyed it! Please vote and leave a comment letting me know what you thought!

- Reb <3