The color drained completely from Nick’s face as he felt the barrel of the gun press menacingly against his skin. “Say goodbye Jessica,” Justin said laughing evilly.

“Justin! No!” Jessica screamed sobbing. She lunged to her feet dizzily stumbling in their direction.

“Stay away Jess!” Nick yelled.

“Listen to him Jessica. You don’t want to get involved with this. This is between me and Nick here,” Justin said a cold hard glint in his eyes.

With a steely glare, Justin extended his arm distancing himself from Nick slightly. The jarring sound that the gun made as Justin cocked the hammer back sent a chill up Nick’s spine. Beads of sweat broke out upon his upper lip and forehead. Nick looked at Jessica, his eyes glassy “I love you,” he mouthed silently to Jessica before he squeezed his eyes shut tightly, bracing himself for the end.

“Nick! No!” Jessica wailed through her tears.

Justin’s finger was already hovering above the trigger however. “You ruined everything! She loved me. Me!” he screamed his finger dangerously close now.

Silence fell over the room as Justin’s eyes shot deadly daggers at Nick. Suddenly he balked his face taking on a strange pallor as if he were sick.

He heard the sound loud and clear. It was getting louder with each passing second. The wailing and screaming of the sirens were almost deafening as they approached. It was the distinct sound of police cars.

“You called them didn’t you?” he screeched at Nick, his face contorting with rage.

He didn’t wait for Nick’s answer however. He knew he had to move fast. They would surely arrest him. That couldn’t happen. In his opinion, he wasn’t guilty of anything. Since when was loving someone a criminal offense? All he’d ever done was love Jessica. But just as she, they wouldn’t understand that. They wouldn’t and couldn’t understand the extent of his love.

Escape routes flashed like rapid-fire throughout his head. The gun dropped to his side. He couldn’t shoot Nick now. Too messy. Too much evidence. It was best if he escaped without a trace.

“Don’t move!” he bellowed. “Either of you,” he screamed at a terror-stricken Jessica. He waved the gun threateningly, back and forth between the two of them. He stepped backwards towards the door, keeping a watchful eye on both of them. It was crucial that he leave now. He was running out of time. Through Jessica’s window, he could already see the flashing red and blue lights as they sped in his direction. “I love you Jessica. Until the day I die,” he growled throatily.

With one last thrust of the gun in Nick’s direction, he left. He ran throughout the house as fast as he could heading towards the back. Through the window, he saw the water. He ran faster, his legs propelling him in the direction of freedom.

The water was key to his survival. He was aware of a marina a few feet away from the house. All the local residents docked their boats there. There was bound to be a boat of some sort, which he could use.

He had to make it. For Jessica’s sake if not his own. He’d be back to see her. He loved her too much to just end things like this. He wanted her to understand the true depth of his feelings.

His feet were heavy and cumbersome as he ran across the sand grunting. Sweat formed at his brow and began to trickle down the sides of his face.

“Freeze!” A sudden voice commanded. A surprised Justin lost his footing and fell hard into the sand. Dazed, he heard the sound of the officer footsteps approaching. He awkwardly scrambled to his feet and stumbled unsteadily down the beach. His footing was off as he desperately tried to regain his composure.

Suddenly he noticed them. Four officers headed in his direction. Every where he looked someone was there ready to pounce on him. “Freeze!” they shouted again seemingly all at once.

Justin stood frozen in his tracks. Time slowed to a standstill as he watched helplessly as they approached him.

He had no where to run. He was cornered. Four against one. He was sure they wouldn’t hesitate to use any force necessary to render him in their custody. In their eyes he was a criminal.

It couldn’t end this way. Loving Jessica was not a crime. He wouldn’t allow them to wrongfully punish him for that. He had no choice now. As if in slow motion, he raised the gun to his head. “Drop your weapon!” the officer ordered.

Justin saw his bleak, grim emotionless face but heard nothing – except her voice.

“I love you Justin.”

“I missed you. I got lonely without you.”

“Justin! What are you doing? Justin!”

“You used to be so different. What happened to the Justin I used to know?”

“ Yes. I love him.”

“ Yes. I love him.”

“ Yes. I love him.”

Closing his eyes tightly, he inhaled deeply. The officers eyed him cautiously unaware that it would in fact be the last breath he ever took.

“Put the gun down! We can help..." the officer’s words were cut short abruptly as the gun went off. They stood in grim silence watching as Justin’s form crumpled to the ground.

Even if anyone tried to help him now it was too late. A person could only be helped if they wanted to be. Obviously Justin hadn’t wanted that at all.

Jessica collapsed against Nick’s chest as he held her tightly in her arms. All the pent up fear she’d been trying to conceal throughout this ordeal now poured out of her. She cried continuously, the sobs shaking her slender frame.

“Shhh Jess. He’s gone,” Nick soothed. His soothing words and gentle touch however just made her tears flow harder. She didn’t want to even begin to contemplate what would have happened to her if Nick hadn’t saved her.

She clutched onto Nick’s shirt until her knuckles turned white. She pressed her body against his taking comfort in the warmth of his embrace. Nick wrapped her in his strong arms rocking her back and forth slowly.

They stayed there unmoving for a few minutes. To Jessica, those few minutes were possibly the most precious moments of her life. Throughout the ordeal, she had wondered if she would ever be able to feel Nick’s arms around her ever again.

“Nick,” she whispered. She wanted to tell Nick everything she was feeling. All the fear, hatred and sadness she’d felt throughout the whole ordeal. At this moment, she also wanted Nick to know how thankful she was and how badly she needed and wanted him in her life.

Through her tears, she gazed up at him. Staring intently into his eyes, she was taken aback to see that his eyes mirrored everything she herself felt. Even the fear and sadness. The love however which they conveyed seemed stronger if possible than what Jessica had been feeling. Her lower lip began to tremble again as she stared at him. Unable to formulate the words she desperately wanted and needed to tell him, she buried her face in his chest.

Silence filled the room as Nick held her protectively close to him. As the tears continued to slip down Jessica’s face Nick couldn’t help but silently berate himself. I should have got to her sooner.

The silence was suddenly interrupted as the sound of the gun going off broke throughout the air. Jessica jumped at the sound a scared shriek unwillingly escaping her throat.

The explosion of the shot lingered in the air and as a fresh batch off tears trickled down Jessica’s face, Nick couldn’t help but reflect upon the finality of the sound.

Mya lay happily in her bed gazing distractedly at the ceiling. AJ had walked her home hours ago, but she had since been too jittery to sleep. Her mind was a whirlwind of confusion as the days happenings and going ons raced through her head.

She never would have imagined in her wildest dreams that her life would change for the better so quickly. Mya herself was very much aware of how quickly life could surprise you. One minute you were up and in the next minute you were down. She knew what it felt like to lose someone you’d cared about in a heartbeat. She was aware of all this and the havoc which life’s sudden changes could wreak on one’s life. Most of all though, she was aware of the pain and sadness of losing someone so quickly that you never had a chance to say goodbye.

With a heavy sigh, Mya pushed thoughts of her parents to the back of her mind. She was so tired of the desolate feeling that took over her body every time their memory crossed her mind.

All her life she’d been secretly searching for someone to make everything hurt less. The loneliness that accompanied the feeling of not being loved was horrible. She was searching for someone to hold her in his arms and tell her that he cared about her. She’d always fantasized about someone that she could give herself to completely. A person who knew her every thought and every feeling.

Turning onto her side, AJ’s face entered her mind. His image was crystal clear as she closed her eyes blissfully. His touch, his kisses, his embrace were everything and more than Mya had envisioned they would be.

For a while now, Mya had felt as though she was travelling down a dark endless tunnel all by herself. For the first time though she now felt as though she had seen a light at the end of that now not so endless tunnel. A light so powerful that she knew if she followed it, it would guide her away from the darkness.

Elizabeth sat cross-legged a thick novel spread before her. Looking down at the page the sentences and words seemed to run together endlessly making not even the remotest of sense to her.

She’d nonchalantly lied to Jessica and Lila providing them with the story that she was visiting a friend. The truth was, she’d been sitting alone at a motel for the past few hours gazing lifelessly about the room.

She’d tried reading but her eyes kept straying from the page along with her thoughts. She’d even attempted studying the intricate pattern on the wallpaper but her efforts had been futile. Her mind kept coming back to one thing. AJ.

After their break-up, she had vowed to herself time and again that she’d moved on. That her new life was one where AJ didn’t exist. Despite her countless vows and resolutions though, she couldn’t get him out of her mind. Life just wasn’t the same without him. She felt as though a part of her was missing. A part that she wasn’t so sure she’d be able to survive without.

Without AJ, she was a lost soul. There was no one to hold her, no one to comfort her, no one to love her and most of all no one to understand her. It was hard for Elizabeth to even fathom the integral part AJ had played in her life.

Before AJ, her life had been so different. Since high school, she’d felt as though she had been walking down a deserted street with no real direction or purpose. AJ had changed all that however. He’d taught her to believe in herself and to be strong.

Shaking her head sadly, Elizabeth realized what a fool she’d been. She’d wanted the self-assurance that she was capable of facing the world by herself so badly that she didn’t care what the cost was. She didn’t even think twice about giving up the only person who’d ever understood her or made her feel whole. The choice she’d made was one that she now regretted with every fibre of her being. Unfortunately there was nothing she could do about it. Some things in life could ever been changed.

Gazing back down at the page, which was now wrinkled from the salty tears she hadn’t realized she’d shed, she whispered “I miss you so much AJ.” [Next Chapter].[Table of Contents].