"Look, I get that you hate me. The feeling is mutual. But your rage is making you blind—or rather, in this case, deaf—and it's going to get us... you killed."
"Oh, I won't die," Hazel said with confidence.
"B-but I can't say the same about myself. I just want to live, to survive, just like you, and the only way I know how to do that is by clinging to others. So please, let me cling to you," Kayle pleaded, falling to her knees.
Her words moved Hazel, and she decided to look past her hatred and asked,
"And what do I get in exchange? You're nothing but a burden to me."
"I won't be. I swear I'll change, get stronger. I have to. To live. It's what my mother would have wanted."
Hazel clicked her teeth. As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn't deny seeing resolution in Kayle's eyes.
But...
"No." Hazel remained firm with her decision. "We go our separate ways."
