"Are you sure?" Sam asked me.

I was on the ground, stuffing all of my possessions back into my oversized duffel bag. I looked up at him. "Yes."

"Is it going to be safe?"

I sighed. I had already answered this question at least five times. I was flattered by his caring, but there is such a thing as going over the top. That's typical Sam. He would never in his life risk a harmless child.

I didn't answer him again, but I did pull out my cell phone, and I dialed my mother. She picked up the phone after only one ring, but I told her my news before she could say anything.

"Mom, I'm coming home."

After I said that, I hung up, wanting to give her time to absorb my words. My only hope was that she wouldn't think that I was joking. I doubted it though, she had seemed baffled enough just by the fact that she was hearing the sound of my voice.

I smiled softly as I slipped my phone back in my pocket. When I looked up, Sam was smiling back at me. Always happy if someone else was happy. It never failed for him.

I didn't know what to say to him now. We had lived together for what seemed like years, but in a good way. We had grown back together, and gotten much closer. Now that I was leaving, I didn't know which goodbye to give him. I didn't want any hollow words to pass between us, he had helped me out on a far too high scale than what deserved that. So, I decided to give him something that was rare for me. Throughout my entire life, he would only be the fifth person ever to receive this from me. A hug.

No words necessary.

As I climbed out of his window and down the tree to the ground, I almost uttered a laugh of astonishment. This would be the last time in awhile, perhaps even forever, that I would climb down the tree. It was then that I actually realized how accustomed I was to it.

I walked home instead of running, enjoying being able to take my time for once. It was almost winter now, and the air that circled around me was crisp and sharp against my skin, but I didn't mind. A lot of time had passed, but for me, it fell just like a heartbeat.

I savored every second of my walk, especially when I let people pass by me without a problem, because it's something I've never been able to do before.

When I walked up my driveway, I smiled when I saw that our gate was already open. I was expected tonight.

I walked through the gate and pushed the button that closed it behind me. That way, my parents would know that I was home.

Snow had come early, and now it was falling lightly, but I wasn't cold. It felt like heat was radiating from inside of me, traveling through my entire body, and warming it. My feet crunched in the snow with every step that I took up the walkway to the front door.

I decided to let my true emotions show, and a happy smile fell on my face as I rang the doorbell.

My mother opened the door and gathered me into as best of an embrace as she could with her protruding stomach, as my dad joined her in the doorway.

My mother kept me in her arms for a long time before releasing me. I turned to my father and gave him a hug as well.

"Welcome home," my father said with a smile, and my mother nodding, equaling his grin.

As I stepped inside I was overcome by the opulence of our home that I had forgotten while staying at Sam's house.

I couldn't help but plan all of the things that I would do now that I was home. Tonight I could watch a movie in our theatre, or maybe just lounge in the pool or hot tub. Tomorrow I could help my mom prepare dinner, and then play a few games in the arcade. Maybe I would even bowl a few rounds with my father.

Of course, I wasn't limited to that anymore. I was planning on getting my driver's license soon, now that I could handle taking the class. I could go Sam's or Clare's to visit, or have them over to my house. I could even go around town now, and go out to eat or got to the parks and walk around to my heart's desire.

My fantasies were interrupted when my father cleared his throat slightly. I smiled at how tentative my parents were acting toward me. They probably didn't want to scare me off again. I hoped that by tomorrow all of the tension between us would melt away.

"I'm going to go up to my room," I told them quietly.

Both of my parents nodded in assent. They would probably let me do whatever I wanted, just so long as I stayed home.

I walked slowly up the spiral staircase and into my room. I laughed when I saw that my bed was neatly made, even though I knew it hadn't been when I left.

I sat on the edge of my bed and sank comfortingly into my soft mattress. After weeks of opting to sleep on the floor, this was a dream come true. I gazed at the moon outside my window and smiled. I was finally home.

The next day I was home alone again. My parents reluctantly left to go to a big work meeting after I persuaded them that I would be perfectly fine alone. I think that I was doing well convincing them that my curse didn't control me like it used to, because they didn't put up much of a fight.

I was now sitting contentedly in our hot tub, the jets turned on full blast. I was facing the plasma screen TV and was watching an early Christmas special that I had found.

I groaned when I heard the doorbell ring, which meant that someone was outside of our gate, wanting to come in. It was probably a friend of my dad's or something. Not too many people visited us.

I sighed and stood up, grabbing a towel off the shelf next to the pool. I then pushed a small button on the wall that would open the gate, so whoever it was could get in now. We had one of these buttons in every room and hallway of the house, to make letting someone inside the gate and to the front door much faster.

As I was walking to the door I started drying myself off, and before I opened the front door I wrapped my towel over my bathing suit.

The moment I opened the door the cold air froze me immediately, and I felt even colder as I looked in the eyes of who was at the door. My eyes widened and my mouth fell at the sheer stupidity of her coming here.

I was standing face to face with my Aunt Stephanie.

After I got over my initial shock, I slammed the door in her face.

I could hear her shouting through the door. "Damia! I know that you're angry with me, and you have every right to be. I'm probably lucky to be alive right now. But I…I made a mistake!"

"Gee, I never would've guessed," I said.

"No, well yes, but something else too. And…I need your help."

I laughed sharply. "Why should I help you?" The woman was insane if she thought that I would be that forgiving. No human on Earth was that forgiving. Well, except maybe Sam.

"Because this concerns you too." She paused before adding on something else. "And it also concerns Anthony. I've seen how you act around him, and Clare and Brooke as well. You must care about them. Aren't you concerned with their well being?"

That stung almost physically. It was the perfect weapon against me. I sighed and slowly opened the door, allowing her to see me, but I in no way was inviting her inside. Even though the freezing air was causing my wet skin to turn to ice. "What is it?" I asked.

My aunt rushed. "Upon closer examination, my friends and I found out that the competition isn't what we thought that it was."

"What does that mean?"

"One of the judges, the woman, has a large estate out in a forest in the middle of nowhere. My friend found it, and she said she saw many teenagers inside. There's way too many of them to all be her children. She also mentioned seeing that boy who won, David, inside. There was also this machine…"

I cut in. "I don't see where this is going."

"Long story short, be very glad that you didn't win the competition."

I started to get uneasy at that. What reason could there possibly be for me to be glad that I didn't win. "Why?"

"I will explain everything later with Alina. Please, help me."

As much as I still hated her, this seemed like something that was worth listening to. I wasn't sure if I could trust myself being around her at the moment though. It could be dangerous to both her and her friend, whoever that was. I closed my eyes and thought everything through, going over possible outcomes of both choices.

After a while, I opened my eyes and nodded.