Chapter 13: You and I

Author's note: If you disagree with the contents of this chapter, I don't care. Deal with it and do not complain about it. Here we go! This is my all-time favorite chapter, enjoy!!

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This chapter will be told in Holden’s Point of View, not Ariel’s.

Oh, let’s get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France.

“Ahhhh!” I got out of the cab and looked at the house in front of me. “It’s so big!!”

Mom laughed at my reaction, kneeling down and patting me on the head. “Well, go inside and pick out your beds!!”

“Okay!!” I beamed. “Come on Jake, let’s go!” I grabbed Jake by the hand and dragged him inside, him almost tripping because I was running so fast.

“Ah!” Alex rushed behind us, trying to keep up. “Hold up, guys!!”

We wove our way through the house, looking at all the different rooms and getting ourselves acquainted with the layout of the house. We made our way to the bedrooms, where Alex left to go look at the girl’s room.

“Waaaahhhhh!!” Jake marveled at the boy’s room, the bunk beds and computer placed so that the window was in perfect view, giving us a good look at the small playground in the backyard. “Ah, Holden!” Jake grabbed my hand before I had time to check out the room fully. “Let’s go!!” Jake pulled me out the front door and into the backyard, me having to run to keep up.

“Ahahaha, slow down!!” I laughed, and we arrived at the swings, and he let go of my hand and jumped on it. I climbed on to the swing next to his, laughing and noticing how he was so much different than the little boy I met in that hospital all that time ago. “Hey, you know, you’ve changed a lot, Jake.”

“Huh?” He looked over at me, a confused look spreading on his face.

“Well, when we were at the hospital, you were sad.” I looked at the sky, my swing high in the air. “And now you’re happy, which is good!”

His swing skid to a halt, and his head drooped to the ground and his eyes shone with a sense of sadness that was apparent in him as a kid. “I was really, really sad back then. My parents, they died in a car crash. I was in the car with them, and sometimes, when I was asleep, I could see the car crash happen. But I got better, because that’s what doctors are for, right?” He smiled at me, and his eyes showed me that he didn’t quite believe his own words. “C’mon, let’s go inside and check out the rest of the house!”

Let’s get rich and give everybody nice sweaters and teach them how to dance.

“Hey,” Jake’s kind voice echoed through the room, making me turnaround from doing my homework to look at him.

“Hey.” I smiled at him, and he sat down on the bed next to me. I put down my homework and laid down on the bed. “Ugh, Algebra.” I groaned. “How am I ever going to get out of High School alive.” This elicited a laugh out of Jake, who laid down next to me, smiling. “What’s up?”

“Nothing.” He shrugged. “What about you? How’s, uh, school, and girls, and, whatever it is normal guys talk about?”

I laughed and sat up again, Jake sitting up with me. “Ah, nah, not much going on in the girl area.” I smiled, and he shot a somewhat concerned look.

“I’m sorry.” He pouted, genuine compassion shining in his eyes.

“Don’t be.” I laughed, nudging him in the chest with my elbow, prompting a laugh from him. “I’m fine. You?”

“Nah.” He smiled. “Not really interested there.” He rested his head on my shoulder, his expression becoming saddened. “Hey, you remember when we were kids and we were in the backyard swinging, and you brought up when I was sad in the hospital, and I told you that the doctors made it better?”

“Yeah,” I responded, running my hand through his hair protectively. PTSD, I thought, A kid that young to have PTSD, to have to go through something like that, it must have been horrible. He must still be haunted by it, I know I would be.

“I lied.” He whispered. “The doctors didn’t make it better. You did.” I looked down at him, shocked, but yet unexplainably happy. “You saved me, Holden.” He leaned forward, bringing his lips to meet mine.

And, for a moment, everything was perfect. I forgot about failing school, the possibility of being out of the house and not having anywhere to go, all of my problems just seemed to vanish while kissing him.

Then he pulled away and I came crashing back down to earth.

“I’m sorry.” He looked scared and worried, and he got up and tried to walk out of the room.

Before he could get to the door, I rushed up and grabbed him by the wrist. “No.” I said, pulling him closer to me. “Don’t be sorry. Ever.” I brought his lips up to meet mine again, and again the euphoria made all of my problems disappear.

“Hey Holden can I borrow…” Alex walked through the door, her eyes widening upon the scene she stumbled into. “Oh… my god!”

Jake’s face went white, and he hid behind me, looking as if he hoped that if he hoped hard enough, he’d disappear. “Uh, hey, Alex, what’s up?” I smiled, my face obviously nervous and embarrassed enough that I didn’t look calm like I hoped I would.

“Oh my god oh my god.” She stuttered, looking even more shocked than she did a couple of seconds ago.

“Wow, Alex, you have such a way with words.” I said, sarcasm thick in my voice.

“Shut up!” She retorted. “Ooooh, how Mom and Bart are going to love this!” She turned around and tried to walk out of the room, but didn’t get too far before I grabbed her and dragged her into the room, Jake locking the door behind us.

“Hey, no, hey!” Alex protested as I sat her down on the bed and wrapped my arms around her to keep her from escaping.

“Alex, under no circumstances are you to tell Mom about this ever, understand?” I stated, hoping she’d agree not to tell them.

“Yeah, sure, whatever, let me go!” She squirmed, and I did as she said. “So how long has this been going on?” She immediately asked, her brown eyes brightening as she thought about Jake and I-her brother and best friend-dating.

“Get out, Alex.” I pointed towards the door, and she left.

Let’s get rich and build a house on a mountain making everybody look like ants.

“Are you sure you’re ready?” I looked at Jake, his anxious expression worrying me a tad. “We can wait, you know, tell them later, once we’re out of the house or something.” I tried my best to console him, hoping he’d find the courage to come out to my mom and his godfather.

“No, it’s okay, Holden. I’ll be fine” He smiled. “We have to do this, right?”

I planted a small kiss on his nose. “Right.” I smiled and nodded. “Let’s do this, yeah?”

We walked into the living room, Mom and Bart watching a movie together, on separate ends of the couch. “Uh, Mom, Bart?” We walked in from of them, cutting off their view of the movie. “We, uh, we have something to tell you.”

“What is it, sweetie?” Mom smiled at me, and I got even more nervous than before.

“Uh, Jake and I, we’re kinda…” I trailed off for a second, my courage fading away, but knowing that it was too late to back out now. Jake’s hand found mine, our fingers intertwining as shocked looks spread across Mom and Bart’s faces. “We’re dating.”

Bart laughed. “Ahahahaha, wait. You’re serious.” His face quickly switched back to one of surprise and seriousness.

Mom quickly got over the initial shock of our announcement. “Okay, have fun, be safe, now can you get out of the way? I’m trying to watch TV.”

“Uh, well, okay.” I awkwardly slid out of the room, Jake’s hand still in mine, and we made our way to our room.

“So, that went well.” Alex slid behind us, eliciting a slight scream from Jake.

“God, Alex, don’t do that!” I gasped, trying to catch my breath from the miniature heart attack. “Were you… did you listen in!?”

“Of course.” She nodded, acting as if it was an everyday thing.

“Alex, get out.” I pointed to the door, and she left without a complaint.

“So, what are we going to do?” Jake sat down on the bed, his eyes staring at the floor. “I mean, like after school and stuff? We’re so close to grad, and I have no plans after University.”

I sat down next to him, laying my hand on his. “Hey, don’t worry, we’ll get through it.” I kissed him on the cheek, drawing him out of his thoughts. “We always do, right?”

“Right.” He smiled, planting one last kiss on my lips.

From way up there,

You and I,

You and I.

Chapter 12: Keep Breathing (Babies 21 & 22)

Author's note: As usual some sexual themes and language. Also, ignore the crappiness of  some of the pictures, my game was lagging and yeaaahhh. Anyway, this is definitely going to be one of my favorite chapters, and I hope it'll be one of yours, too. Enjoy!

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“Wait… What!?” I gasped, tears of shock and anger threatening to burst through my already shattered barrier.

“Arrested…” The cop reiterated. “For the murder of Brandon Tenser.”

“B-But…” I stuttered out, trying to grasp what was going on around me. “But… why!?”

“Because these people are assholes, that’s why.” Quill walked into the room, looking disheveled, like he hadn’t slept in days. “Sorry, sir, but bail was paid. You can move on, now.”

Quill handed the cop some papers, and the cop left the room without another word, although he looked disappointed that he didn’t get to put someone in handcuffs.

“Quill, wha-what-I-what?” Quill had quickly pulled me into a hug, and I couldn’t quite grasp what had happened. It had happened so quickly, I was unsure if it really had happened. “Why? Why are they… Why me?”

“I’m not the one to explain it to you, Ariel.” Quill sighed, and a black-haired tattooed woman walked in, holding a pile of disorganized papers and four coffees.

“Kat Winters, nice to meet you. I’ll be the one getting your ass out of this mess.” She handed Brooklyn, Quill, and I a coffee, and ordered the kids out of the room. “So, you’re in a bit of a pickle. And when I say a bit, I mean this is a complete disaster. They found your gun at the crime scene.”

“My… gun?” I sputtered out. “I don’t own a..?” Wait, yes I do. I bought one after Gene was killed, put it in a safe and forgot all about it. Until now. “Shit.”

“Apparently, you also have no alibi.” She glared, making me wonder if she actually believed I was innocent. “There’s a couple hour hole in between when Brandon got to Chicago, and when Aperille came to your house. Plenty of time for you to commit the murder and quickly come back, at least that’s what they’re saying.”

“But… why?” I tried to get a word in, which was hard as Kat talked a million miles an hour. “Don’t I need like a… motive or something?”

Kat sighed, like the answer would have been obvious. “The motive is that he’s getting in the way of your sleeping with a bunch of men…”

I was shocked. Brandon has always been there for me during my Challenge, and now they’re saying the Challenge is the reason I killed him?

“And they’re using your attempted suicide as an…” Kat fished through her papers, pulling out a crumpled one with words scribbled upon it. And I’m entrusting my life with this woman? “ ‘excuse to get out of any repercussions caused by this atrocious tragedy’. Or something.”

I turned to Quill and Brooklyn, who had stayed silent during this whole meeting. “So Mom paid bail, yeah? I can go home?” I hoped, I was ready to change out of these horrible clothes and get back to the comfort of my own bed.

“Uh, not exactly…” Quill avoided my gaze, staring down at the ground.

“You’ll be staying in the hospital under supervision. The hospital’s been kind enough to set up a nursery and playroom, and help you continue your challenge, but it won’t be home.” Kat explained, making me feel even worse than before.

“But, hey, we brought’cha  some clothes!” Brooklyn beamed, like that made it all better. “Ya’ won’t hafta wear those rags anymore!” He joked, and I sent a scowl in his direction.

“Give them to me.” I glared at him, and he pulled a bag of clothes from the corner of the room.

“Here ya’ go.” He tossed them towards me, and I walked to the bathroom, Brooklyn, Quill, and Kat leaving the hospital and promising to be back later.

Once I was fully dressed, I came out of the room to check on the children. Alex and Holden were playing with some blocks with a blonde toddler, who I assumed was a patient in the hospital, in a kids play area.

“Mommy!!!” Alex noticed me almost immediately, discarding the blocks and rushing over to hug my legs. Holden continued playing with the blonde little boy, waving at me when I looked over at him, which I returned with a smile.

“Hey, sweetie. You ok?” I smiled, and she beamed.

“Yeah! Howwen and Jake and me are pwaying bwocks!” She pulled me over to where Holden and the blonde boy, I’m assuming Jake, were building structures with blocks.

“Oh, hey.” A hoarse voice echoed through the room, and I turned around to see a red-headed man with deep green eyes smirking in my direction. It looked like he hadn’t slept in a while, with dark rings around his eyes. His eyes made his way to the children, and he looked genuinely surprised to see them. “Jake! Hey buddy!” He gleamed, the tired look disappearing as soon as he laid eyes on him. “How you doing?”

“Fine, Uncle Bart…” Jake said quietly, barely more audible than a whisper.

“Ah, that’s good.” The man, Bart, smiled and patted the child’s head. He looked back at me, as if he was just now noticing that I was in the room. “Oh, hey.” He repeated.

“Yeah, you already said that.” I laughed, a confused look spreading across his face.

“Oh, did I?” He looked like he was thinking for a second, then shrugged. “Ah, don’t remember.” He stood up and rubbed the back of his neck and laughed. “I’m Bart, you?”

“Ariel Spencer.” I smiled and sat down on one of the chairs, and he sat down on the one beside me.

“Nice to meet you, Ariel.” He flashed a grin before reverting to his tired self that I saw just a minute ago. “What’cha in for?” He shot a quick laugh, before dismissing the thought of it being humorous.

“Attempted suicide…” I shrugged, trying to make it seem like no big deal. He looked like he wanted to talk about it, but decided against it. I sent him a silent thanks. “You?”

“Ah, Jake’s parents, uh, died in a car crash recently.” He looked down towards the floor, staring into the distance, as if reliving a memory. A memory he wanted to forget, a memory that haunted him in his sleep. Yeah, I know how you feel. “The doctors diagnosed him with PTSD, which I didn’t even know kids his age could get, so he’s staying here for a while, and I’m gonna be looking after him.”

“I’m sorry.” That seemed to be the only thing I could say. I’m sorry. Not If you need help, I’m here or Things will get better, because I know better. Things may not get better, and that’s just a horrible fact of life.

“Don’t be.” He smiled, and again I saw his fatigue fade away into a bright, bubbly man. “It’ll all turn out fine, I’m sure of it.” He nudged me. Wow, someone seems pretty optimistic. “I’m sure everything will be fine with you, too.”

“I hope so.” I smiled, nudging him back.

And pretty soon we were kissing, making our way to the nearest empty room in the hospital. We were up against the wall, kissing furiously and hungrily. I tugged at the bottom of his shirt, pulling it off and throwing it on the ground somewhere.

“You’re so subtle.” Bart laughed, throwing my shirt off into the distance with his.

“Shut up.” I chuckled, pushing him down onto the bed, pushing his pants off simultaneously.

“You sure?” He asked, rolling on top of me.

“What?” I blinked, a little startled that he would ask.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” He asked again, his lips pausing on my neck, waiting for a response.

“Of course.” I bring his head up, my lips meeting with his. His head made his way back to my neck. His hand on my hips, his lips on my shoulder, I temporarily forgot about the trial, Brandon, Aria, Quill, everything.

“Oh my god…” Aria slammed the door, her wide-eyes staring in shock at my swollen stomach. “You’re… pregnant!?”

“Yeah, it’s called a Baby Challenge, I figured you’d know about it, since you slept with my brother for one.” I rolled my eyes and sighed. “What’re you doing here?”

“I came to check in on you, but it seems you’re doing just fine on your own.” She crossed her arms and shot me a glare. “So, who’s the unlucky man that you used for your own selfish needs?”

“Oh, that is so not fair, Aria!” I groaned. “How many men have you slept with and then left at the side of the road? Too many to count, yeah?”

“So, tell me, Ariel.” She leaned forward and whispered. “What are you doing, playing chess? Are we all just pawns to you? Using us until you can throw us away at the first possible chance? Like you did with Brandon?”

It was like glass shattering, the realization of Aria thinking that I was guilty. “Get out.” I pointed towards the door. “Leave, and don’t come back.”

She hesitated a moment. “Your trial starts tomorrow, and you’re gonna need a goddamn miracle to get through it alive.” She left, slamming the door behind her.

Weeks went by and the trial heated up, they brought up every point possible; the gun, the lack of an alibi, and the fact that this was the fourth death I was involved in, although that was quickly dismissed by the judge for not being relevant in this specific crime.

The jury was sent to decide on a ruling after everything was explained, in way too much detail for me to understand. A couple days later, they came back, ready to deliver the verdict.

“We, the jury,” A woman stood up and said, holding a piece of paper. “Find Ariel Spencer—”

“Stop!” The doors flew open, and a man was fighting being restrained by the police. “Stop it, I did it, not her!”

I turned around to see a blue-haired man with glasses and freckles. A blue haired man that I knew. “Oh my god, Larn!?”

The judge looked at me, him, then back at me. “Ma’am, do you know this man?”

“Uh, yeah, that’s, uh, Larn…” I stared in shock as the policemen let go of Larn and he made his way to the judge’s podium.

“I did it, sir. I killed Brandon Tenser, not Ariel. She is innocent.” Larn stood in front of the judge, who seemed convinced.

“Alright, we’ll hold off on the verdict for now. Take these two—” He pointed at Larn and I “—to the back room and question them. Depending on how it goes, we’ll apply the verdict to Larn, or Ariel.”

They took us to an empty room and questioned us for a lengthy amount of time, questioning us on all the different details of the trial. Eventually, they decided that I was free to go.

“So, uh…” Aperille greeted me outside of the courthouse. “You’re okay? They decided you were innocent?”

“Yeah…” I continued to walk, not really wanting to talk to anyone. “I’m gonna get going, I’m tired and I need to get ready for leaving the hospital…”

“Alright, see ya.” She sighed, and I got a taxi and made my way to the hospital.

A couple days later, I gave birth to Bart’s children, twin girls Merida and Rapunzel.

“Ariel!” I heard yelling and running through the halls, and Bart ran into my room while I was packing, almost tripping. “They released Jake! They said he’s gotten better, that he no longer shows any symptoms of…. What are you doing?” He eyed the suitcase curiously, before a mix of worry popped into his face, too.

“Packing. I was released, also.” I said matter-of-factly, and Holden, Jake, and Alex all walked into the room, smiling and laughing, before realizing that something bad was happening.

“Well, that’s great.” He smiled. “Where ya going?”

“Monte Vista, Italy.” I zipped up the suitcase. “No better way to run from your problems than to a whole ‘nother country, right?”

“Well, hey.” Bart shrugged, like he was suggesting something. “Jake and I have nowhere to go, really, and he seems attached to Holden and Alex, so, uh, maybe we could stay with you for a while… If you’d have us.”

“Mom! Can they!?” Holden smiled, practically begging.

I thought about it. There’d be more than enough room in the house, and Jake, Holden, and Alex did seem to be pretty good friends. “Uh, I don’t see why not.” I smiled. “There’s plenty of room in the house, so…”

“Great!” Bart smiled. “Guess we’re moving to Italy, then.” The kids squealed in excitement, and Holden and Jake hugged each other.

But why was I so happy that this man that I have known less than a couple months is going to move in with me?

Chapter 11: Never Let Me Go

Author's note: Okay, so I really really like this chapter, so I hope you do too! My game was acting up, so I lost the Cupid teens, and Holden. I didn't feel like I had to re-make the Cupid teens, as they were close to YA's anyway and I had no plotline for them. I did, however, remake Holden, but didn't get any special pictures of him. Also, pardon the shortage of the already crappy pictures because my game was running super slow today. Thanks! And, without further ado, I present to you: Chapter 11.

Wow, it’s so dark. I thought to myself. Is this what being dead feels like? It’s nice. I could enjoy this.

“Sorry, sweetheart, but you aren’t dead.” A voice echoed through the darkness. I turned around, trying to find the face. It took me a minute, but I found it.

“Ashley?” I stared, stunned at the face I saw.

Ashley, my best friend who died our junior year, was standing right in front of me. I’ve imagined this scenario a million times in my head. I have come up with a million different responses, a million different ways to react, but all of that disappeared and I stared, stunned, unable to speak.

“Hello, sweetie.” She smiled at me. Suddenly, a rush of emotions hit me-guilt, shame, sadness, relief-and I burst into tears.

“Sweetheart, you know how I feel about crying…” I heard another voice say, a male voice. I turned around to see a face that I had never thought I would see again.

There he was, his brown eyes glistening as he smiled, his curly hair perfectly set on top of his head. “Hey, Ariel.” He smirked, making my heart flutter a little bit.

“Gene…” I stared at him, wide-eyed and obviously a mess with tears smeared all over my cheeks. I remember how I feel about him, I said to myself, but I feel the same with Brandon. Is it wrong, to love two guys at the same time? Especially when they’re both… My thoughts trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence to myself.

“It’s okay, Ariel.” Gene sadly smiled. “I’ve always known how you felt about Brandon. It’s been obvious since day one. I knew I could never compete with that; I was just glad you gave me a chance.”

“Gene…” I cautiously stepped forward. “I’m so, so sorry…” I slowly reached where he was standing, and slipped into a hug.

“Ariel,” Ashley sighed, and I knew it was time to talk about the real reason for this little meeting. “We love you, we may not be around to show it, but we do. You never really know who’s there for you until you’re gone…” Ashley started to tear up, but she quickly wiped her tears away and tried her best to smile.

“Ashley, I’m so sorry…” I choked back tears. “I was such a horrible friend… I wish I could just fix everything.”

“You can.” A fourth voice had suddenly appeared, a familiar voice that I will never forget. A voice so smooth, you could cut a knife through it. “You can fix everything right now, by living.”

Brandon walked towards Gene and I, and Gene stepped away, letting our reunion be a tad more private.

I ran towards him. I ran faster than I ever have before in my life, thinking that if I didn’t run, everything would disappear. “Brandon, I--”

Everything started to fade as I was woken up.

“Ariel?” I heard a voice call out, a voice slightly familiar, yet I couldn’t put a finger on who it belonged to. The voice had a slight country accent, like he’d lived in Texas for a couple of years, but didn’t fully adopt the accent.

“Brandon?” I croaked out, blinking away the fuzziness in my eyes. I saw a familiar face, that’s when it all clicked. He had a slight Texas accent, because he did live in Texas for a couple of years.

“No, sorry hun.” He smiled his usual, sad smile. “Although, sometimes I wish I was, it’d save lots o’ people a lot o’ heartbreak…” He stared into the distance, dejectedly, making my heart break a little more than it already had for him.

“Brooklyn…” I felt a surge of rage rush through me, despite my earlier compassion for him. “Why weren’t you at the funeral? Your brother died and you didn’t even show up… You should have been there!” And, again, I was awash in tears; but this time, tears of rage, anger, and hurt, instead of the usual sadness and despair.

“I know, I know…” He sighed. “But I couldn’t bring myself ta’ go… That’s all my life seems to have now, are funerals. Ya’ know?”

“I know, Brooklyn.” I tried my best to comfort him, but I needed answers. “But you can’t run away from your problems. I haven’t heard from you since Ashley died. You never check in, and I only saw you briefly at Gene’s funeral. What’s going on?”

“I loved her…” Brooklyn’s voice cracked, and grief started to form on his face. “I loved her so much, and I never got to tell her. I wish I could just speak to her one last time, but I can’t…” Tears started to pour down his face, as he rocked back and forth, trying to get himself to calm down.

But I got to… Why shouldn’t he? His love for Ashley was something stronger than our friendship. He should have been the one to talk to her, not me.

“Mwommy…” I heard a female toddler’s voice say from the corner of the room, just now realizing Alex and Holden were in the room. “Why is uncwe Bwoowyn cwying?” Alex had a hard time with the L sound, apparently.

“He just misses his friend, baby…” I picked the two up and sat them in my lap. Alex looked so much like Brandon, I had a hard time not crying when I looked at her.

“Oh…” Alex looked at Brooklyn, trying her hardest to empathize. “I sowwy unwe Bwoowyn, I suwre you’ww see hewr again.” Brooklyn lifted his head up and stared at Alex, his eyes wide, and a smile began to form on his face.

“Thank you, sweetheart.” He mumbled, and his facial expression showed that he really believed her.

“I like your new haiwr, mommy.” Holden spoke up, his usual shy face plastered with interest as he looked at my hair.

“My new…. What.” I gasped, ordering Brooklyn to get me a mirror. “Ohmygodohmygodohmygod.”

“Uhm, yeah…” Brooklyn mumbled and then began to laugh. “The doctors said that it was caused by a mixture of chemicals in the pills you took. I think it looks great on you!” He was now full-blown laughing his ass off, tears in his eyes.

“Oh my god, it’s… so dark.” I exclaimed, the surprise obviously written all over my face. “Why didn’t you tell me!?”

“Well, we were kind of preoccupied!” He was kneeled over laughing, it was good to see him smile again. He’d ran out of town when Ashley died, moved to Appaloosa Plains and never said another word. Until now, that is. It was nice to have him back in my life, he was one of my best friends before… everything.

“You can’t! She just woke up!”

“I don’t care, let me through.”

“I am her lawyer, you’ll have to go through me first.”

“Brooklyn…” I nervously whispered, setting Alex and Holden down on the ground. “What’s going on?”

“Ariel, I’m so sorry.” Brooklyn sped out, his voice going 100 miles per hour. “It’s all over the news, I didn’t want to tell you just yet cause I’d thought they’d wait, but--”

“What’s going on!?” I screeched.

“Sure can do, sweetie.” There was slight ruffling of papers, then complete silence.

“Go ahead…”

“Ariel, I’m so, so sorry, but--” Brooklyn was cut off by the door slamming open, making the toddlers scream in shock.

“Ariel Spencer,” The man in a cop uniform directly looked at me. “You’re under arrest for the murder of Brandon Tenser.”

Chapter 10: Black (Baby 20)

Make sure you read Aria Rapture's chapter after this one here! Two different point of views!

Sometimes, bad things happens to good people. Bad things that make you feel alone, empty, and hopeless. You are never alone, there is always someone. If you want to talk to someone, I am always willing to talk on my Tumblr, or call one of these hotlines. Someone always cares, you're never alone. It gets better.

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Birthdays!

Evie, Angel, Bridget, and Kirk Spencer. Young Adults.

Apollo and Artemis Spencer. Teens.

Alex Spencer. Toddler.

Father: Brandon

Holden Spencer. Toddler.

Father: Joe

You are my sunshine

My only sunshine

You make me happy

When skies are grey

You’ll never know dear

How much I love you

So please don’t take

My sunshine

Away…

“Ariel, hey…” Aperille snapped me out of my daze. “Ariel!”

“Huh… What?” I turned around and noticed she had a bunch of folders out on the table.

“North Funeral home or Brown Funeral Home?” She asked, pointing to the pictures of the different rooms.

“I don’t care, whichever is best.” I sighed and continued to stare out the window.

“Look, Ariel, I hate doing this as much as you do…” She continued talking to me. “But we have to get all of this planned.” I didn’t respond, so she shook her head and sighed. “Look, I’ll take this home and figure everything out, I’ll just need your final approval, okay?” I still didn’t respond. “I’ll be over later, Ariel. Take care of yourself…” A couple minutes later, I heard a door closing and a car driving away.

I don’t know how long I sat there, spaced out, not thinking about anything in particular, but I was jolted out of my bubble when I heard a knock at the door and someone making their way inside.

“Hey, Ariel, you here?” I heard a male voice call throughout the house. He looked eventually found his way to the living room, noticing me instantly. “Ah, Ariel!” I turned around, staring into the face of my twin brother.

Hah, twin. Although we were related, we looked nothing alike. His hazel eyes and brown hair matching his dark skin, with my red hair and white eyes making me stick out like a sore thumb. Quill and I were close in high school, but we lost touch after I moved away with Gene.

“Hey, are you okay?” His smile shone with worry, and everything came crashing down in that one moment. “Hey, Ars, don’t cry…” He sat down and hugged me. “Everything’ll be okay, everything’ll be fine…” He comforted me as I cried for the next couple of minutes, until we heard a car driving up the road.

“Ah, that must be our parents.” He got up and helped me up. We walked outside to see our mothers walking up the driveway.

“Ariel, honey…” My mom, Lilac, looked at me with a worried expression.

“Mommy!” I ran into her arms, tears threatening to burst through at any moment.

“Honey, honey, it’ll be okay, honey…” I could feel my mother sobbing, the warm tears making their way onto my hair.

A few days passed, and soon I found myself at the funeral home, attending the service.

As guests started to pile in, I felt more and more alone. Some of the guests I knew; some I didn’t.

“Hey, Ariel.” Aperille walked up, coming to a stop next to me. “Funny, huh? How so many people can cry when you’re gone, but hardly any will really miss you.”

“Yeah…” I hung my head, focusing on the floor below me, trying her best to hold back the tears that threatened to break through.

“Hey, look, the old gang’s back together!” Quill strutted up behind us, throwing his arms around the both of us. He had a smile plastered to his face, but it was obviously faked and tired. “It’s nice to see everyone again.”

“Not everyone…” I turned my head, not wanting to look at Quill’s smile; an attempt to make me feel better, no doubt.

“Hey,” Quill started to argue. “He had good reasons for leaving, you know that.”

“He should still be here…” Aperille turned her head, facing away from Quill and I.

The service went smoothly, with the occasional crying and fake emotional bullshit from people who could truly care less. Quill ventured off to get some sodas, and an hour later, he still wasn’t back yet.

 “Ugh!” I groaned at the phone after Quill hadn’t picked up the phone for the tenth time. “Where are you!?”

“Hey, I can’t get through to Aria, either.” Carter called from the other side of the room. “I haven’t seen her since she poured soda on me…” I sighed. Typical Aria, always having to make a scene.

Everyone had left, the only ones left were Danielle, Carter, Aperille, and I. We had given up on trying to contact Quill or Aria and waited for them to show up.

The door slammed shut, and Quill and Aria slipped through. I got up, infuriated at the fact that the both of them-two of the people I needed most right now-were missing.

“Where the hell were the two of you!?” I screamed at them, the grief and pain I had been feeling finally bursting through the barrier I had built up, as the tears poured down my face. "Did it occur to either one of you that I may have needed you? My boyfriend just died and my brother and best friend are nowhere to be found. What the hell were you guys even doing?" They looked at each other, the guilt radiating off of their whole bodies. The pieces fell together, slowly, then all at once. "You have got to be kidding me. No way. At Brandon's funeral, Aria?!"

Aria turned around and left the house, the door banging shut behind her. Carter followed, and you could hear the mumbled yelling through the thick wooden walls. I heard a car start and drive away. Danielle left the house to check on Aria, and neither came back.

“Ariel, I can expla--”

“Leave.” I interrupted Quill.

“Ariel…”

“Leave!” I pointed at the door. “Both of you!” I looked at Aperille, the only other one left in the house, as the kids were staying with their grandparents for a while. They both left, leaving me all alone.

Alone.

I was used to alone.

Even surrounded by people, I was alone.

Nothing but despair and loneliness.

That seemed to be all my life was capable of containing, was pain.

I walked into the bathroom, warm tears running down my face.

I slipped my hand into the medicine cabinet, pulling out multiple bottles of pills.

One by one, I opened them, pouring the contents onto the counter.

Choking down a sob, I swallowed them, letting the grief stream down my face. The world faded, and I slipped into the blackness of nothing.

Just wait, everything will be okay, even if you’re feeling like it’s going down in flames.

Chapter 9 Part 2: Dim (Baby 19)

Author’s note: This chapter is a tad sexual, so prepare for that! Also, it’s slightly short, and sad, sorry about that… Also, yeah, I know Ariel isn't pregnant in the beginning, but my game was having trouble with the Pregnancy Controller so we'll just have to deal with it ok. I am also holding a contest over at my facebook page! If you'd like to enter, head over there! You can find a link on the right.

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Birthdays!

Joy and Kenny Spencer, Young Adults

Evie, Bridget, Angel, and Kirk Spencer, Teens

Apollo and Artemis Spencer, Children

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“There, I think my bag’s all packed!” Brandon smiled at me, making me forget why I was ever mad at him in the first place. He was leaving tomorrow for Chicago, where he would be staying in a completely different hotel than Lily, and he would only be with her when he was documenting her experiments. That’s the deal we came up with. Also, another thing.

I was pregnant with his child, and the baby was due tomorrow. I mean, it was expected, but why did he have to miss his child’s birth? I guess that’s the sacrifice he had to make for his job, at least he’ll be back soon, a couple days at most.

But, things can change in a couple of days.

“Be safe, okay Brandon?” I hugged him, and we both went to bed and fell asleep…

…and when I woke up, he was already gone, like he said he was going to be.

“He’ll be back in a couple days, Ariel, it’ll be okay…” I told myself. Later in the day, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Alex, and Aperille, her boyfriend Rich, and their friend Joe-who seemed to have an interest in meeting me-came over.

“Hey, Ariel.” Aperille hugged me as she walked in. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, I just…” I sighed. “I wish he had talked to me about leaving before he decided, especially since he’s going with Lily and everything…” We had talked about it, and I had objected multiple times, but he was adamant about going, saying “it could change his career” and that it’d benefit us in the long run. I couldn’t really talk him out of it, so I tried to accept the fact that he was going, but it still upset me.

“You’re right; he should have talked to you about it.” Aperille nodded. “It was selfish of him to leave without you having a say in it, but he really thinks it’s for the best. He’ll be back in a couple days and everything will be alright.”

“I know.” My eyes started to water. “I just… I’ll be right back.” I got up and ran to the bathroom, where tears started pouring down my face.

“Is everything alright in here?” I heard a man's voice say to me, and turned around to see Joe fully naked standing in the doorway.

“Oh-Oh my god!” I jumped in shock, and realized what Joe needed to talk to me about; he wanted to be a challenge father. “Way to be subtle, Joe.” I giggled, and he walked toward me.

“I’ve never been subtle.” He laughed, and kissed me. It all happened so quickly, Joe pushed me up against the wall and slid off my shirt, my shoes, my pants…

And I found myself enjoying every second of it.

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Brandon was walking through the lonely alleyways of Chicago in the middle of the night. He was thinking about he wanted to get back to Ariel, and the family she was growing. He didn’t notice the person walk up behind him until they said his name.

“Brandon…” The man sung.

“Yeah?” He turned around, startled that someone knew his name. He saw the blue-haired man with a gun pointing straight at him.

“You don’t deserve her, you bastard.” Gunshots.

One.

Two.

Three.

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“You should probably put some clothes on before you go back downstairs.” I giggled, looking at Joe, who seemed to have forgotten he was naked.

“Oh, haha.” He smiled. “Thanks for reminding me, but they’re downstairs. Do you have any I could borrow?”

“Yeah, you can borrow some of Brandon’s, I’m sure he won’t mind.” I pointed him towards to dresser he kept his clothes in, and I ran downstairs to get the phone, which had started ringing.

“Hello, is this Ariel Spencer?” A voice on the other line said.

“Yes, this is, how may I help you?” I said, and listened to him, who began talking so swiftly it was hard to keep up.

“No.”

Chapter 9 Part 1: Bright

Author's Note: The sexual content in this chapter is a tad heavier than that of other chapters. Carry on at your own risk.

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Birthdays!

Joy and Kenny Spencer, Teens

Evie Spencer, Child

Bridget Spencer, Child

Angel Spencer, Child


Kirk Spencer, Child

Apollo Spencer, Toddler

Artemis Spencer, Toddler

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“Mom, can we go to the park?” Kirk beamed, his sisters following behind. Kenny and Joy were at the door, no doubt also hoping that we could go.

“Ah, I don’t know…” I sighed, it was slightly cold outside.

“Oh, come on Ariel!” Brandon laughed, and walked into the living room. He had moved in recently, and was a great help with the kids. “Let’s go, it’d be a lot of fun!”

“Fine.” I sighed. “Let’s go.” We all piled into the car, and I called a babysitter for Apollo and Artemis.

“Yayayayay!” Kirk bounced up and down, full of energy, like always. “We’re going to the park!”

“Uuugghh,” I groaned, dreading having to go somewhere. “Why do we have to go to the park today?”

“Because, it’s the Autumn Festival, Mommy!” Evie smiles. Oh, that’s right. It is the Autumn Festival today.

“Come on, Ariel!” Brandon flashed a smile towards me, before returning his eyes to the road. “Cheer up! It’s gonna be fun!”

“Fine, I’ll try and be cheery.” I forced a cheesy smile. “For yooouuuu.”

“Thank you.” Brandon nodded, pretending to be extremely serious. I burst out in a fit of laughter as we arrived at the park. The quads rushed to the skating rink, it was humorous and adorable to see Evie trying to run in that big, pink dress of hers.

Joy and Kenny played chess, they were always together, I'm surprised they weren't literally attached at the hip.



Brandon and I took a photo together on his new smartphone.



Then we went and danced together, it was much different than my dance with Larn. It was nice and romantic, and he was a much better dancer.



"Hey, Ariel?" Brandon smiled at me as we were dancing.

"Hmm?" I smiled, getting pulled out of my pleasant thoughts about Brandon and I.

"Why don't we go get our photo taken in the photo booth?" He asked. "It'd be fun!"

"Sure!" I smiled, and we walked to the photobooth.



I posed for the camera when the countdown started, but Brandon surprised me by kissing me. "Ariel, I love you, you know that?"

"Of course I do." I stared into his eyes and smiled.

"I love you so, so much." Brandon kissed me again, and the kiss grew stronger with each passing moment. His lips made his way down to my neck, and he climbed on top of me.

And, well, things kind of progressed from there...

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"So, he proposed, did he?" Brandon shocked me by closing the door and locking it.

"Uh, y-yeah!" I said, trying to catch my breath from Brandon scaring me. "It's great, isn't it?"

"Ariel, listen, I've been standing on the sidelines for too long, waiting for this relationship to crash and burn. But I can't wait anymore, Ariel. I love you, and I need you to know that!" He walked closer to me.

"Brandon, I'm with Gene!" I was furious. "There is nothing between--" He interrupted me by kissing me, and the sparks were more intense than Gene and I's.

"Ariel, can you really say there is nothing between us?" He said when he pulled away.

"N-No." I looked at him, shocked.

"Alright, then." He smiled. "It's settled, you're now mine."

"Brandon." I laughed. "I can't leave Gene. We're engaged!"

"You don't have to leave him." He leaned close to me. "You just... have to be mine." He kissed me again, and left.

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We stepped out of the photobooth, and I remembered to grab the pictures real quick and tore them up before anyone could see them.



"Hey!" I was shocked to see Larn walking up to us with a smile on his face. When he saw Brandon, though, his smile faltered a little, but after a moment, it came back. "Who's this?"

"Oh, hey, Larn." I tried not to sound scared of him. "This is, uh, Brandon. My boyfriend. He was at the Valentine's Day party, didn't you see him?"

"Oh." His face turned grim. "Must have missed him."

"Hey, Larn!" Brandon smiled. "Nice to meet you." Brandon tried to shake Larn's hand, but Larn rudely declined the handshake.

"The pleasure is all mine." He glared at Brandon, and I could see that Brandon was a little scared, also.

"Hey, so, Larn, we're about to head home, was there anything you needed?" I tried to ask politely, but I'm sure a bit of fear rolled off my words.

"No, just wanted to, uh, say hi." He chuckled. "Have a nice night." He walked away, looking depressed.

"Well, that was..." Brandon tried to find the words, but couldn't, so he gave up. "Let's just go home, alright?"

I called the kids to the car, and we headed home.

“Ariel, there’s something we need to talk about…” Brandon worriedly said as he closed the door and I sent the kids off to bed.

“Yeah, what is it?” I smiled, and noticed the scared look on his face. “I-It’s not bad, is it?”

“What? No, no!” Brandon rushed. “It’s actually very good! But, I just hope you see it that way…” He said, and when I didn’t respond, he continued. “You remember that job offer I told you about? The one in Chicago?”

“Yeah, the one you weren’t going to take because you wanted to be here with me?” I warily asked him.

“Yeah, that’s it.” Brandon smiled. “I’ve decided I am going to take it. They want me to document a scientist’s experiments, and the scientist actually recommended me. It’s someone I know really well…”

“Who is it?” I grew more worried with each second that passed.

“Well, you see--”

“Who is it!?” I yelled, and I heard a car door shut.

“That’s her now, actually.” Brandon opened the door, and a minute later, he returned with someone.

“Hi, Ariel!” The woman smiled.

“Lily…” I undoubtedly wore a shocked expression.

“Yes, Lily…” Brandon responded.

“As in, your ex-girlfriend Lily…”