Either his magic had a mind of its own, or Ghent was standing too close to the target. The window never got a chance to crack as he expected it to, it exploded, putting him into immediate danger.
	Before he could register what was happening, Ghent felt himself hitting the pavement. The ground's impact was mostly broken by his backpack, the articles of clothing packed inside helping to cushion the fall. 
	From where Ghent lay, he could only stare at where the window used to be, fragments of glass hitting the shield Elayra so wisely summoned for them. Her magic held up well, nothing was able to touch them, not even the rain.
	Underneath the safety of the shield, Ghent remained frozen in place. His blue eyes were wide with fear, and he was very well aware of the disaster so narrowly avoided. 
	Inside of the shop, the tallest mannequin tipped over into the ones beside it, resulting each crashing to the ground in a domino-like effect. Ghent cringed to see the destruction, pained to envision the cost of damages. 
[b]	"You alive?"[/b]
	The question and sudden pour of rain brought Ghent back to his senses. "Y-yeah, I think so ... " Face paler than usual, he looked himself over to check for injury. Finding nothing new, he turned his attention towards Elayra, fearing that she'd taken a hit to save him. To his relief, she appeared unscathed, and -- to his delight -- perhaps even worried. 
	"Why?" Forgetting how afraid he was two seconds ago, Ghent smirked widely and propped himself up with his elbows, inches away from her face. "You worried about me?" 
	The teasing didn't last long. Right after he so obnoxiously asked, the alarm in the boutique went off, alerting the surrounding shops that something was amiss. Terrified of being caught or spotted, Ghent scrambled to his feet, offering Elayra a hand up. 
	"I can't believe I'm guilty of vandalism." Adding to Ghent's stress, the unmistakable sound of a gunshot sounded several blocks away. "[i]And murder! [/i]Come on, we have to get out of here!" 
	Without a second thought, Ghent broke into a run towards the alley right as a car rounded the corner. It wasn't just any car, it was a sedan. [i]A black sedan.[/i] A cold feeling of dread sank in. Ghent didn't need to look, he felt it in his heart. The driver was Mrs. Saxon. 	
	Keeping his head down to avoid identification, Ghent continued to run as fast as his legs would carry him. When they neared the alleyway, he found that it was crowded with dumpsters and much too narrow for a vehicle. For that, he was immensely grateful. "Did she see us?!" 
	Elayra wouldn't have had any idea who 'she' was, but Ghent was so caught up in panicking that he hadn't thought to explain. "She'll be the first to rat us out!" Police sirens sounded. "My mom is going to kill me!"