There was a moment of silence. "So, have you had any love interests since the tour?" JC asked. Yes. "No," she said smiling. "What about you?" Yes. "Nope." There was another moment of silence. "Umm Ebony?" "Yeah?" "I kinda lied to you." "About what?" "The whole love interest thing." "Oh. Who is it?" she asked as her stomach turned. "Oh God, I don't feel good." she said putting her hand on her head. "What's wrong?" "I feel like I'm going to throw up. But the sex fiends are in the bathroom." "We can kick them out." he said standing up and taking her hand. "No, I'll be fine. It'll go away." "Are you sure?" "Yeah. So, who is the girl you're in love with?" He sat back down and looked at the floor. He didn't say anything. "JC?" "Yeah?" "Are you going to tell me?" "I don't know." "Why not?" "Because." "Because why?" "Because I don't know if I want to." "Oh. Well, if it makes you feel any better I was lying to you about it too." He frowned. "Oh." "So are you going to tell me?" He sighed and looked up at her. "I have to go." he said standing up. "What?" she asked jumping up. "I have to leave." "And go where?" "I don't know." he said walking to the stairs. "Joshua Scott Chasez don't you dare walk up those stairs!" He turned around and looked at her. "How did you know my name?"
Bridget and Cailin started walking back downstairs and JC turned around and walked up the stairs. "Where are you going?" Ebony yelled. "Anywhere." he said turning around the corner. Bridget and Cailin looked at Ebony. She sighed and walked to the door that lead outside. She walked out and walked to the front of the house. She saw JC sitting on the front porch. She sat down next to him. Nothing was said for a few minutes. "Isn't it beautiful out here?" he asked. She looked around at everything covered in snow. "Yeah." "Ebony, umm....." JC started. "Yeah?" "Umm, there's something I've been meaning to tell you." "What?" "Uh, well...." he stopped and started looking around again. "JC, you can tell me." "Well, I..." She stood up and stuck her hands out to him. He looked up at her with a confused look on his face. "Come on." she said. "Where are we going?" he asked taking her hands. "Somewhere." she said pulling him up. She turned around and started walking, still holding one of his hands. He smiled and let her take him. They walked down the road in silence. She shivered and JC pulled her close to him. She smiled and laid her head on his shoulder. "So where are we going?" he asked. "You'll see when we get there."
They turned around a corner and started walking in the snow covered grass. They started walking up a hill. "I come here all the time to relax and get away." she said. He looked around. They were walking through a path lined with trees. The trees had no leaves and were covered in snow. They sparkled in the moonlight. He looked ahead and saw an opening in the path. When they got there they were at the top of the hill. "We're here." she said. He looked down at the field below them. There were a few trees. He smiled. "I wish there was a place like this around my house." he said. She smiled. "I just wish there was a place to sit down. Damn snow." "So, why are we here?" "Well, I just wanted to kind of get away and be alone." she said leaning against a tree.
There was silence. "So, like I was trying to say earlier, there's something I've been meaning to....." he trailed off when he looked at Ebony. She was staring out at the trees and had a tear rolling down her cheek. He ran his hand over her cheek, wiping away the tear. She looked up at him and smiled. "What's wrong?" he asked. She didn't say anything and looked down. "Ebony?" She sighed. "When do you have to leave?" "I guess whenever Justin does. I can stay longer though. I could catch a plane home." She smiled. "Please." "Ok. I'll stay as long as you want me to." "Can you stay forever?" "Anything for you." She looked up at him and smiled again. "Umm, JC?" "Yeah?" She looked back down at the ground. "I love you." she whispered. He smiled. "I love you too." She smiled and started crying. He lifted her chin up so she was looking at him. He kissed her. She put her arms around his neck and he pulled her closer to him. The wind blew and she shivered again. He stopped kissing her and she put her head on his chest. He started playing with her hair. "I love you so much." he whispered. She smiled. "Don't mess up my hair." He laughed. "I won't."
They started walking back to the house a half an hour later. He put his arm around her shoulder and kissed her forehead. She smiled and lifted her head so he was kissing her lips. "So, what are we going to tell everyone?" Ebony asked. "The truth. Why wouldn't we?" "I know we're going to tell them the truth. But I was thinking about how we're going to tell them." "I just hope they're still there." "They wouldn't leave without us." "I hope not." They walked up the driveway packed with cars and to the door in the basement. The peeked inside. Everyone was down there. She opened the door and they walked in. "There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you two! Where have you been?!?" Destiny said. "That hill that I go to all the time." Ebony said sitting down on the couch. JC sat down next to her. "Why?" "Because I wanted to show JC." "What did you two do up there?" Ebony smiled and looked at the ground. JC smiled and looked at Ebony. "Hello? What did you two do?" Justin's face lit up and he nudged Destiny. She looked at him an he leaned close to her ear. "They do love each other." he whispered. She smiled. "Ebony, tell me." she said happily. "Tell you what?" "Tell me what you did up there." She thought about the words to say. JC smiled. "She told me she loves me. And I told her I love her." he said. Destiny started jumping up and down clapping. Justin smiled. Destiny squealed. "Oh my God!" she screamed. "Not so loud." Cailin said. "Oh, sorry." she whispered. "So, when are we going home?" Ebony asked.
Ebony walked inside her front door and threw her purse on the couch. JC walked in behind her and closed the door. "Well, that was the best party I've ever been to in my life." he said. She smiled. "I bet." He walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist and kissed her neck. "I love you." he said. She smiled. "I love you too." They sat down on the couch and Ebony turned on the tv. She leaned back against JC and he put his hands on her stomach. A half an hour later Ebony closed her eyes. "Aww, don't go to sleep on me!" JC said gently shaking her. "I'm not! I'm just resting my eyes." "Yeah, sure." he said turning the tv off. He picked Ebony up and kissed her. She smiled. "What are you doing?" "Carrying sleeping beauty up to her room." he said walking up the stairs. She laughed. "Ok." They got to her room and he laid her down in her bed. The door closed.
He quickly turned around. "It does that." Ebony said. "Oh, ok. I thought your house was haunted or something," he said putting his hand over his heart. "I think I almost had a heart attack." She smiled. He leaned down and kissed her. She put her arms around his neck and pulled him down onto the bed. He stopped and gave her a look of surprise. "Oh don't be so shocked." she said kissing him. He smiled while still kissing her. He put his hand on her back and unzipped her dress. She sat up and slipped the dress off her shoulders. JC picked her up a little and took it off the rest of the way. She took off his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt. He took his shirt off and pushed her back down. His phone rang and he sighed. He took it out of his pocket and Ebony took it. "He'll call you back." She hung up and threw it across the room. "That could have been my mom." he said smiling. "You'll call back." she said kissing him. He took his pants off. He kissed her neck and moved down to her chest. She jumped when she heard someone knock on her door. "Shit." she said standing up and walking to her closet. She got out a robe and put it on. "I'll be right back. Umm, you got any condoms?" "No." "Shit. I hope that's Destiny." she said walking out of the room. She walked downstairs and opened her door. "Hey Ebony! I left my purse over here. Oops!" Destiny said walking in with Justin. Ebony followed Destiny back to the bathroom. "Umm, I hate to ask you this, but, umm.... Do you have any, well, you know..." Destiny smiled. "Condoms?" "Uh, yeah." "Oh, I'm so proud of you." she said hugging her. "Ok stop. Do you?" "Yeah." she said opening her purse and pulling some out. "Here. Have fun." she said patting Ebony on the back. She rolled her eyes and walked back out to the living room with the condoms behind her back. "Where's JC?" Justin asked. "Sleeping." she lied. "Ok." he said. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow!" Destiny said as they walked to the front door. "Ok. Bye." "Bye." Justin opened the door and walked out. Destiny turned around and smiled before she walked out. The door closed and Ebony walked back upstairs to her room. She walked in and closed the door. JC was sitting on her bed, under the covers, smiling. She smiled and took off her robe. She got into the bed with JC. "Was it Destiny?" he asked. "Yeah." she said sitting the condoms on the table next to the bed. He kissed her and got on top of her. He took off her bra and underwear. He took off his boxers and looked into her eyes. "I love you." he whispered. "I love you more." He smiled and pinned her down. He kissed her and reached for the table.
She woke up the next morning in JC's arms. She smiled and closed her eyes. She fell asleep again. When she woke up JC was standing up getting dressed. He turned around and saw her awake. "Damnit! You're not supposed to be awake yet!" he joked. She smiled. "Well I am. Why am I not supposed to be?" "I was gonna make you breakfast." "Don't let me being awake stop you." she said stretching in the bed. He smiled and sat down next to her. He kissed her. "Merry Christmas." he said before standing up and walking downstairs. She slowly got up, got dressed, and walked downstairs. She walked into the kitchen and saw JC looking through her refrigerator. He closed it and looked up at Ebony. "You have nothing edible in this house." She smiled. "I know." He sighed. "You wanna go out and get something to eat?" "Sure."
"I have to go to my mom's for diner tonight. You're welcome to come if you want. Destiny, her family, and Justin are gonna be there." she said as she and JC sat in her kitchen eating doughnuts. "Well of course I wanna go! I get to meet your family." She frowned. "I'm dreading that." "Why?" "Because I've told them about you. Everything about you." "Even what I used to do?" "Uh, yeah." "Gee, thanks. You've ruined everything." he joked. She laughed. "Well, I warn you now, my family can be cruel to guys I bring home." He took a bite of a doughnut. "I think I can deal." "Hey, don't say I didn't warn you." He leaned over the table and kissed her. "I love you." She smiled. "I love you too." "So, what time are we leaving?" "Six. Be ready." "I will be." he said smiling.
Ebony and JC sat in her car in her mom's driveway. "Umm, aren't we going in?" JC asked. "I'm still thinking about what I'm going to tell them." "About what?" "Us. I know my mom would not approve of you, knowing about your past and all. But then again she does know that you rescued me from Jacab and them, so she would probably offer you her life." He laughed. "Then I don't see why you're worried." She sighed. "Come on." she said opening her door and getting out of her car. They walked to the door and she opened it. She poked her head inside and looked around. When she didn't see anyone she opened it all the way and walked in. "Mom? Dana? Hello?" Her mom came out of the kitchen. "Hey honey!" she said walking over to her and giving her a hug. "Hi mom." Her mom looked at JC. "And who is this?" "Mom, this is JC. JC, this is my mom." He smiled. "Hi." "Are you the boy who saved my daughter from those jerks raping her?" "Yes." She threw her arms around him. "Thank you so much!" He smiled. "You're welcome." Ebony put her hand on her head. "Mom, stop." She stopped and smiled. "Well, I'm still making diner. Come into the kitchen, you can help." she said walking away. "Are you going to tell her?" JC asked as they followed her. "I'm going to later." "Why later?" "So she can warm up to you."
They got into the kitchen and stood in the doorway. "Don't just stand there girl! Help me with diner!" her mom said. "You can sit down at the table." Ebony said to JC. "Ok." he said walking to the table and sitting down. She walked over to her mom and looked at everything she had on the counter. "What do you want me to do?" "Just help me when I tell you to." The over dinged. "Can you take the rolls out and butter them in a minute?" "Ok." she said walking to the oven. "So JC, when did you get in town?" her mom asked. "Two days ago." "How did you get here?" "I came with my friend, Justin." "Destiny's boyfriend?" "Yes. He came and picked me up from DC." "Are you from there?" "Yes. But I live in Orlando now." "Is it nice in Florida?" "Yes. I miss the snow though." "Oh. I hate snow." He smiled. "You'd miss it if it were gone." She shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe." Dana walked into the kitchen. "Thanks for helping me with diner Dana." her mom said. "Your welcome. Hi Ebony." "Hi." She looked over at JC. "Ebony, who is that?" Ebony turned around. "Dana, this is JC. JC, this is my sister Dana." She smiled and walked over to him. "Hello." she said. "Hi." he said standing up and shaking her hand.
She sat down in the chair next to his and he sat back down. "So, you're the man who's practically stolen my little sister's heart?" Ebony groaned. "I guess." he said smiling. "I bet Ebony didn't want you to know that, did she?" "I don't know." he said looking at Ebony, who wasn't facing them. He coughed. "I hear you JC." she said. She put her knife down and turned around. "I suppose you want me to tell them now?" she asked. He smiled. She sighed. "Mom, Dana, as of last night JC and I are a couple." "What happened last night?" Dana asked devilishly. Ebony gave her an evil look. "We declared our love for each other." she said flatly, turning back around. "And how did you do that?" Dana asked. "Dana shut up," her mom said. "I'm happy for them." Someone knocked on the door. Dana got up and answered it. Destiny and Justin walked into the kitchen followed by four other people. "Hi Destiny!" Ebony said. She hugged all of her family. Justin walked over to JC and sat down. "Hi." JC said. "Hey. So, what happened last night?" he whispered. He looked at Ebony smiling and talking to everyone. "Nothing." he told Justin. "Oh. That sucks." JC smiled. "I guess."
That night everyone sat in the dining room eating. JC sat next to Ebony. He leaned close to her. "Is it just me, or is Justin acting weird?" he whispered. "He does seem kind of out of it." She looked at him. He was smiling and staring at Destiny while she talked. "He's got it bad." she whispered. "But I thought he's loved her for a long time." "Yeah. I wonder what they did last night." He smiled and continued to eat. Everyone finished eating and they all talked. "And so I told her-" Destiny's mom was saying. Ebony picked up her fork and started playing with it. JC smiled. "Bored?" he whispered. "Just a little." Destiny's mom stopped talking and Destiny coughed. "Umm, there's something I have to tell everyone." she said. She looked at Justin and smiled. Oh God, is she pregnant? Ebony thought. "Last night.... Justin proposed to me, and I accepted!" Ebony dropped her fork onto her plate and stared at Destiny. "Oh! Congratulations!" her mom said jumping up and hugging her. Ebony leaned close to JC. "Did you know about this?" she asked. "No." he said. Everyone congratulated Destiny and Justin. "We have so much to do!" her mom said excitedly. "Yeah." she said smiling. "Do you know when you're getting married?" "No. We were gonna do all of the planning later. We just want to enjoy everything now." Her mom could hardly sit still in her seat because she was so excited. She looked at her dad and he had a fake smile on his face, along with her brothers. Oh God, I can't wait till they get home. Ebony thought.
The next morning her phone rang at 10:00. She slowly picked it up. "Hello?" "Ebony!" It was Destiny and she was crying. "Destiny? What's wrong?" she said sitting up in her bed, making JC's arms fall onto the bed. "My dad is so mad at me!" "Because of you getting married?" "Yes!" "What did he do?" "He yelled at me! He told me I was too young to be getting married, and that Justin is even younger and that it will never last!" "He's your dad, of course he's going to say that kind of stuff. You're his only daughter, he's only trying to protect you." "You agree with him?!?" "No! That's not what I meant." "And then Andy and Clark started threatening Justin! Thank God he wasn't there!" "They're just trying to protect you. They don't want you to get hurt." "Do you think I'd get hurt? Do you think he'll leave me?" "No. You should have gently broken the news to them. I mean, they just met him that night. They don't know him." "I guess so. But now what am I going to do? My family hates him now." "Your mom loves him." "Yeah. But what about everyone else?" "They'll warm up to him, they'll have to. I know you're getting married. Nothing they say is going to stop you." "I guess so. Oh, did I wake you up?" "Yeah." "Oh, sorry. Did I wake JC up?" "No. So you just assume he's here with me?" "Well yeah." She laughed. "Sorry for waking you up. I'll go. Thanks for making me feel better." "You're welcome. I'll see you later." "Ok. Bye." "Bye."
Ebony walked into the living room, where JC was watching tv. "I'm gonna take a shower ok?" "Ok. Hurry up. I can't be without you for too long." She smiled. "Do you want to go out to dinner tonight?" "Sure." She smiled and walked upstairs. "See you later." she said. He leaned back against the couch and his phone rang. "Hello?" "JC? Oh good, it's you this time. Who picked up your phone the other night?" Chris asked. "You called?" "Yeah. Who answered your phone?" "I don't know." "JC, don't lie to me. Who was it?" "I honestly don't know what you're talking about." Chris sighed. "Who did you have sex with last night?" "What?" "The girl who answered your phone last night sure did seem in a hurry to get off." "That could mean anything." "Ha! You do know a girl answered your phone! Who was it?!?" "Chris, I don't want to talk about this." "Oh come on. Just tell me, who was it?" "I don't want to." "Fine. So, I called Justin and he told me you went to Louisville with him. Why?" "Why do you think?" "Ebony?" "Yeah." "Was that who answered your phone?" "Chris....." "I just want to know!" He sighed. "Ok, it was her. But that doesn't mean we were doing anything." "Ok. So, are you having fun?" He smiled. "Yeah." "What have you been doing?" "Spending time with Ebony." "Where is she now?" "Taking a shower." "Sweaty from being up with you all night?" "Chris!" "Sorry! I had to do it. So, is she still not wanting to go out with you?" "Actually, we're going out." "Really? Since when?" "Christmas eve. She told me she loves me, and I told her I love her." "Aww, that's precious." "I don't even know why I told you." "I'm really happy for you. You've only been trying to get her for the past seven months. Congrats." "Thanks." "So, you're sure you two haven't had sex?" "Positive." "Well, keep workin at it." "I'm not doing this just because I want to have sex with her, I love her. She means more to me than that."