Part 12: Gone. Gone in a flash. It didn't seem real...like I knew that tomorrow morning, Jim would be setting the mahogany table for breakfast, and lay out the pancakes drenched in maple syrup, the newly-picked strawberries from his garden, and the freshly-squeezed orange juice he makes himself. But some things, no matter how hard you wish for, may never come true. The man in the front seat scratched his shiny, stark head while steering the car with the other and mumbling about being unfairly treated. "You have something in your hair," Jaraan whispered as he pulled a leaf out of my dark, tangled hair. I gasped as I reached for the leaf I knew too well. Even though it was old and crusted, I saw, written in careful black handwriting, the word "DEVLIN". "What does it say on it?" Jaraan asked, since he didn't know how to read. "Uh- brave," I replied, staggering my speech a bit. I felt the shriveled-up leaf leave my hand, caressing me as Devlin took it in his own hands, studying it closely. "It says 'Devlin'," he looked at me with a baffled expression on his face. His forehead creased slightly and he tilted his head toward the side, looking back down at the soft leaf in his hands. "Because you're brave," I said after a moment, gazing down at the leaf myself. "Like that leaf. It was the leaf you picked for me." He continued staring down at the leaf. "You are, too," he whispered finally. "No, I'm not." "Yes, you are! You have to take care of yourself and your brother! I could never do that." "Well, you've lost your whole family! Without Jaraan..." Tears start welling up in my eyes. As I felt the first one fall, I tore myself away from Devlin's gaze, not wanting him to see me cry. "You are brave," Devlin reassured me. "Shut up!" the man in the front yelled, shaking his head and mumbling again. "You don't have to do this," I said after a moment. "Aamina," Devlin whispered harshly through gritted teeth. I whipped my head around at him, staring profoundly. "You said you were being unfairly treated. You don't have to do this," I repeated. The car skidded to a stop, the tires screeching on the gravel road. The man turned around, staring at me with his unusually grey eyes. He raised his hand up and smacked the side of my face, the impact sending me into the side of the car, and knocking me unconscious.