Fear Summer.©
By: Sophie C. Burrows.
Prologue.

 No! I'm not going to let you hurt my friends! They're my friends! I couldn't help it, I jumped at her. My enemy grabbed onto my arm, and tried to swing me around into the wall, but I'm stronger then her, yes, I can kill her! She'll pay for what she did to Brink, and Chris. Chris will never be the same, and Tay.
 Tay.
 The whole reason I'm here. Why does she have to be so jealous? He loves me! Not her.
 I grabbed for her throat, and squeezed. She struggled for air, but I had her air passage blocked off. I squeezed so hard, I could almost feel the bones cracking. Her eyes rolled up in her head, and she went limp. I dropped the body. Is she dead? Yes. She has to be.
 Traci was dead! No more terrifying phone calls! No more threats to my friends and family, my family. . .
 Daniel! Where is he? I ran out of the kitchen and down into the basement where I knew she had taken Zac and Tash, and probably Taylor. I opened the door, and turned on the light. Tay, Zac, and Tash were all tied up. Tash and Zac were unconscious. I could see the headless body of Brink slumped in the corner. I turned away. Tay looked up, and saw me.
 "Mmlare!" He mumbled from behind the duct tape she had crudely used to keep him quiet. I ran over to him, and ripped off the tape.
 "Ow! Hey! You've got to get out! Traci's crazy! She's the one calling you, and, and she killed Brink!" He sobbed. I tried to calm him down.
 "Shhh, it's all right. She's dead. I killed her. You're okay." I untied him, and he stood up.
 "Thank you. I-I  don't know what to say. Traci was sick, really sick. I can't believe she'd that. This, this is all my fault, Brink, Chris, you, everything! I can't believe I didn't see how obsessed she was!" He stammered. I hugged him.
 "It's all right. She's gone. Dead. I killed her myself." I soothed. He looked into my eyes.
 "I, I didn't know you were so strong. I, I . . ." He didn't finish his sentence, but leaned down and kissed me.
 "I-" He started, but never got the chance to finish. A porcelain vase came crashing down over his head. He groaned, and slumped to the floor.
 The horrible face of Traci glared at me, her eyes burning with hatred.
 "All I ever wanted was Tay! And now, he's coming with me!" She cackled. Chunks of her rotting skin started to fall off, and one eyeball fell out of it's socket. She continued laughing, her horrible, horrible, laugh. "He's mine!" With that, the house burst in flames. I could hear Tash and Zac screaming from behind me. I turned around, and their bodies erupted in flames. I screamed,
 "No! Tash! Zac!" I turned back to Traci. She was almost a skeleton now. She held a silver dagger, dripping with blood. And laughed.
 "Now, Taylor is coming with me!" She yelled, and plunged the dagger into his heart.
 "Noooooo! Tay!" I screamed. She laughed.
 "I told you, he's coming with me!"
 With those words,  He stood up, the dagger embedded deeply within his chest.
 "I'm sorry. You can come too . . ." He asked, and held out his hand, as it rotted, and fell off.
 "Nooo! Tay! I'm sorry!" I yelled, and watched as their bodies melted away in front of me.
I could hear the terrified screams of Tash and Zac in the distance, and I fell to the floor, and died of a broken heart. She won. She won. . .
 Well, that's not exactly how it happened . . .

Chapter 1
Dreams.

 I woke up screaming. I could still see Tay's rotting face as I stood by, helpless. My mother ran into the room.
 "Honey! Are you all right? Don't worry, love. It's just another nightmare." My mother cooed.
 "I know. But I can't get over, what, what happened." I said. She tried to smile.
 "It was last September. A long time ago. Everything is back to normal." She said.
 "Christine's not! She'll never be the same! The only one she'll really talk to is Daniel, and he's back at Air Cadets! And Brink's dead, mom. DEAD!" I screamed. She winced.
 "I know, love but-"
 "No." I interrupted her. "You don't know." She sat there, looking very worried.
 "I'll be in my room, if you need anything." She said softly. I nodded, and she left. I knew I was being to hard on her. It wasn't her fault. Her and dad have tried to help me, but nothing's really worked. All I can see is Traci's face, everywhere I go.
 I got up and walked around my room, looking at my pictures of my friends, and how happy we all were before, before. . .
 Christine. She seemed so happy then. Boys on the mind, thinking about school. Now all she does is sit in the backyard, and stare at the sky. It worries everyone. They've tried to cover up her scars, but you can never hide the pain.  Tash is really scared. Ike feels so bad about Chris. He tried to stop her, but she wouldn't listen. I think he blames himself. I went to my private phone, and called Tay on his separate line. After four rings, he picked up.
 "Hello?" He asked groggily.
 "Hey, Taylor." I said softly.
 "Huh? Clare? What's up? Are you all right?" He asked. He always knew when it was me.
 "I think so. I had that awful dream again. The one where Traci comes back and kills everyone." I explained.
 "Are you okay? Do you want to go to the treehouse?" He asked. I looked out of my window. We often met in the treehouse in his backyard to get away from everything. For him it was the stress of Hanson, and for me, it was to think, and cry. I had only cried once since it happened, and it was at the treehouse. I sighed. Only Zac and Ike knew about our meetings in the treehouse. We decided to keep everything very quiet, so the the press wouldn't find out about The Hanson's involvement in what happened last year.
 "Yeah. Okay. I mean, if you don't mind." I said. There was a pause, I could hear him talking to someone else in the background.
 "What? You'll go? Okay. Can Zac and Ike come to? They woke up when the phone rang." He asked. He sounded almost, sorry.
 "Yeah, of course." I said. I didn't mind talking to them.
 "Okay. See you in a few minutes." Tay said, and he hung up. I got dressed, and climbed out onto my bedroom balcony. I didn't know whether or not my parents knew about my trips to the treehouse. I didn't care whether or not they did. I walked over to the Hanson's backyard.They live just down the street. I climbed up the treehouse ladder. Tay was in there-alone.
 "Hey." He said quietly.
 "Hi." I replied. He got up and hugged me. I buried my face in his chest, and listened to his soft heartbeat. He always knew what to do. I cried, very softly.
 "Are you okay? Do you need anything?" He asked. I shrugged. He looked down, and kissed me. We had only kissed a few times. I don't think that anyone really knew that there was a 'us'. They just thought that we were friends. I didn't really want there to be a 'us'. I don't think that Tay did either, he was always travelling, so it wouldn't really work out.
 "Are Ike and Zac coming?" I asked. He nodded.
 "Soon. I told them to wait for a few minutes, incase you were, upset." He said. I could feel my face go red. He giggled. I don't know how he did it, but he giggled.
 "You're blushing, aren't you?" He asked.
 "How would you know? You can't see in the dark!" I told him. He nodded towards the moonlight.
 "Fullmoon. I can see you perfectly." He whispered. I could hear people walking down on the ground below.
 "Ugh. I don't want to talk to anyone right now." I grumbled. He stifled a laugh, and I leaned my face on his shoulder. Ike and Zac walked up.
 Zac looked a little nervous, but Ike didn't. He had walked in on us once before.
 "Hey. What's up?" Zac asked. Tay tried to shrug with the shoulder that wasn't occupied.
 "You all right?" Ike asked me. I looked up, I was sure that I look horrible.
 "Yeah, I guess." We all sat there for a moment, silently. A thump on the bottom of the treehouse floor caused us to come back to reality.
 "What was that? Some type of animal?" Zac asked. Ike bent down to pick it up.
 "It's a, ooh, gross. Human skull." He informed us. I whimpered.
 "Oh, no." Tay moaned.
 "There's a note attatched. Someone must've thrown it up here." Ike said. He went to a little table, and picked up a flashlight. We gathered around Ike to read it. He smelled nice. I remember that I had abit of a crush on him when I was about tweleve, and I always noticed how nice he smelled. He started to read.
 "Hey baby." He began, and froze. I felt a surge of panic run through my body, and I grabbed the nearest hand, which happened to be Zac's. He didn't seem to mind.
 "I'm back. For you" He finished. I whimpered, and fell to the floor.
 "It's probably some joke, lot's of people know what happened." Tay said, trying to comfort me. But he sounded scared. All that had happened last year had affected him too.
 "No! How would they know what she had said, huh? How would they have known?!" I shrieked. I don't care who I woke up.
 "Shhh, it's okay. We'll get you home. C'mon. Let's go. We can call the police tomorrow morning." Ike said. I got up.
 "I'll, uh, walk you home." Tay offered.
 "Okay." I replied hoarsly. We walked over to my house. I started to climb into the back window, but Tay held me back.
 "We'll find whoever's doing this." He said. His eyes narrowed. "And kill them."

Chapter 2
Bleak Desert.

 I got up, and started to get ready for the day. We had no appearences or photo shoots today, so I planned to spend it with my friends!
 Then I remembered the last night at the treehouse.
 Oh. That just ruined my WHOLE day.
 I pulled on some old jeans, my yellow Doc. Martins, a tye dye t-shirt, and went downstairs. Mom was at the breakfast table with Mackie, Zoe, Avery, and Ike. I looked at Ike. He looked at me with a solemn expression on his face. Why does he have to do that? I already know not to mention what happened! I'm thirteen, not three. I sat down to my bowl of Cocoa Puffs.
 "Where are Jessie and Tay?" I asked.
 "Jessie went over to Samantha's house, and Tay's in the backyard, in the treehouse, I think." She answered.
 "Thanks." I wolfed down my cereal, and left towards Tash's house. We were supposed to go blading today, since it was the summer. I bladed up to her house, and rang the doorbell. Her mother answered. She smiled.
 "Oh, hello Zac. Come in, come in. Natasha will be ready in a minute." She said. Her parents were devastated about what happened last year to Christine, but she was getting better. Chris now talked when you said something to her. I saw Chris sitting in the kitchen, eating a pop tart.
 "Hi, Chris!" I called up to her. She turned and stared at me with a blank expression on her face.
 "Hello, Zachary." She replied. She hadn't called me Zac in ages.
 "How ya' doin?" I asked. She started to eat her pop tart, and didn't answer. I had figured that she wasn't paying attention. I heard feet come pounding down the stairs, and Tash bounded into the kitchen.
 "Hey Zac! Clare'll be here in a minute." She said. I nodded, and smiled. I had always liked Natasha, but I have a odd feeling she just thinks of me as a friend, but that's okay with me. She looked in the fridge.
 "Want some cream soda?" She asked. I nodded.
 "Yeah, that'd be great, thanks." I said. She tossed me a can, and I caught it.
 "Christine? Do you want some too?" She asked. Christine gave her a blank expression.
 "I want some water." She said. Tash nodded, and got some fresh water out of the Brita filter. She handed it to Chris. Chris took it, and gulped it all down.
 "Wow, someone's a pig." Tash said and grinned. Christine didn't answer, but stood up and left the kitchen. Tash's face fell, and she dropped into one of the kitchen chairs.
 "I can't take it anymore, Zac, I really can't." She said softly. I looked at the floor. Out of all the families invloved in last year's horror, mine was  affected the least.
 "It'll be okay, Tash. At least she's talking now." I tried to make her feel better, but it didn't work. She buried her head in her hands.
 "Mom's been trying so hard to make Chris better, and so had Dad, but I can't do it, Zac. Not anymore. I want it to go away. I want my sister back." She whimpered. I reached across the table and patted her hand. I really didn't know what else to do. Maybe I should tell her about what happened last night.
 "Um, Natasha? I think I should tell you, that we got something last night." I said slowly. Her head jerked up.
 "What?! What was it?!" She shrieked. I put my finger to my lips to motion for her to be quiet.
 "It was when Clare, Tay, Ike and I were in the threehouse. Someone threw it up there, and it was a human skull. There was a message too, 'Hey, baby. I'm back for you' or something like that. Please, don't tell anyone or it'll get them all scared and worked up again. Please, and don't tell Christine." I begged. She nodded, but the fear in her eyes was plain. Last fall, Traci had ruined her sister's life, and now, I could tell, she was afraid for not only her friends, but for her own, as well.
 Zac and Tash couldn't see her, but she was hiding, in the shadows. Right outside the kitchen. Her face wanted to curl up on a look of horror, but it could not,so she stepped away from the room occupied by her sister and her friend. She wanted to speak, but she couldn't form the words for some reason.
 You can't do this! No! She wanted to say, but it only came out as a wimper, and she couldn't show the fear in her face and eyes, it was bleak. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. She could only go upstairs, and wait.

Chapter 3
Blading in blood.

 "Hey! Zac man, you're too slow." Clare taunted him. He gave her a cocky look, and did three perfect back cross cut circles. Clare just laughed, and did four around him. Zac probably could be a better blader then Clare if he practiced more, but he was so busy with the band and everything. Christine was the one that always practiced her blading and skating, she wanted to be a figure skater, and to meet Elvis Stojko, now, that'll probably never happen. I got the familiar knot at the bottom of my stomach whenever I thought of Chris, and hoe happy she was. I tried to count to ten, but when I was done, it was still there. I saw Zac and Clare waving at me from up the street. I waved back, and bladed up to them. They were both hot and sweaty. Zac looked down the hill on the other side.
 "I bet you, I can make it down that jill before you can Clare." He teased. Clare narrowed her eyes, and looked down the hill. It was pretty steep, but I knew they could both make it. She fastened her blading helmet, and cracked her knuckles.
 "Let's rock." She said. Zac smiled.
 "Allrighty. Prepare to eat my dust." Zac said. Clare rolled her eyes.  I looked down the hill once more. There was one intersection down the whole hill, but not many people use this road, or the other one, so there probably won't be any cars. I stodd between them
 "On your marks," I said, they got ready. "get set," they poised into their preferred starting position, "GO!" I yelled. They both raced down the hill. Head to head. Zac was on the left, and Clare was on the right. Clare got a slight lead, and Zac struggled to catch up. Suddenly, a gray Taurus came shooting from the left.
 Zac never had time to stop.
 The car hit him, and he went flying. Clare turned around, and screamed. She came to a complete stop. The car continued to go, and went the rest of the way down the street.
 "Oh my god." I murmured, and raced down the hill to where Zac lay motionless on the ground. Clare was already there.

Chapter 4
Owie.

 Owie. That really hurt. I tried to open my eyes, but for some reason, my body wouldn't respond. I was aware that Clare was talking to me, but she sounded very scared.
 "Hang on Zackie, you'll be okay, I promise." She said. I mentally laughed. Yeah, right. I can't feel my body, and I'm gonna be okay? What the hell are you full of? I heard someone else blade up to us.
 "Oh my God! Did you see that? Christ...He isn't dead, is he? Oh my God..." That I knew what Tash. She was on the verge of crying.
 "He's not dead, but he's unconscious. Go to his house, and tell his parents, if you pass by a payphone, call a ambulance." She said.
 "Okay, I'll be back soon." Tash said, and I heard her blade off.
 "Okay Zackie, c'mon now, don't go on me, here." Clare was saying. I heard a ripping, and I felt a slight tugging at my arm, and I realized that she had tied something to my arm, probably to either splint it or to stop the bleeding. I hurt all over. I still couldn't open my eyes or say anything. I wanted to tell her that my head hurt, and that both my arms and legs were killing me, but that I could still feel everything, so that meant that my back wasn't broken. Didn't it? I thought about what had happened. A car. A dark gray car. It, hit me. I think. I don't really remember.
 "Oh, Zac, when I find the person who did this to you, and I will, I'll kill them, I really will." She sobbed. I wanted to talk, but dammit! I can't!! What the hell's with this?? All I can do it sit here until something happens. She cried softly, and I could feel her holding my hand. Am I dying? Or worse, am I already dead? I felt like crying myself, but I could not will any tears to come out. Even if they did, I probably wouldn't know. Crap. My nose is itchy. Dammit, and I can't scratch it. Crap. I mentally sighed. I heard the sounds of sirens in the distance.
 "Dom't worry Zac, help is coming. They'll be here soon." She said. There was a mass of people and noise, and I felt very tired, and I blacked out.

Chapter 6
Hospital

 Please let him be okay, please let him be okay, I repeated the prayer over and over in my head, in some hope that it would will his recovery. Zac had been in a coma for the past four hours. Tash and Clare were constantly talking about the gray car. I didn't know what to think. Ike came and sat down beside me.
 "We still can't see him yet. But the doctor says that he car hear everything we tell him, so try not to sound too sad when you talk to him." He said. I nodded.
 "Ike, do you think this has anything to do with that skull?" I asked slowly. He didn't answer at first. I figured he must be thinking it over.
 "I don't know. Maybe. I mean, why would anyone around here just hit and run? It makes no sense." He said. I nodded.
 "Yeah. And Tash and Clare both swear a gray car hit him, and the doctor said the injuries on his body were those of being hit by a fast moving object, so I really don't know." I said. He sighed, and leaned back in the uncomfortable hospital chair. I saw our dad come walking hurridly u to us.
 "They're going to let us see him now." He said. Ike and I both jumped up. Tash and Clare were waiting outside the room. Tash's eyes were red rimmed.
 "Family only." She croaked. I nodded, and tried to smile encouragingly, but it didn't work. She just looked away. I went inside with Isaac. Our mom carrying Zoe, with Jessie, Avie,  and Mackie following close behind were just leaving. I tousled Mackie's hair as he passed by me. He looked up, his brown eyes filled with worry.
 "Zackie'll be okay, Mackie. Don't you worry." I said. He nodded, and hurried after Avie, and he grabbed her hand. He needed someone to hold on to. He was very close to Zac. I sat down in the chair beside Zac's bed, and Ike stood beside me. I turned around, dad was closing the door. I guess he senses that we wanted to be alone with Zac for a little while. I took a deep breath. I know he can hear me.
 "Zac? Hey buddy. It's Tay here."
 "And Ike." Isaac added.
 "Well, hell of a mess you've gotten yourself into. At least you were wearing a helmet, I know I'll never go blading without wearing one again. Next time though, watch where you're going." I tried to joke, but it came out all wrong.
 "I didn't mean it like that, I'm sorry." I muttered.
 "Well, we think this might have something to do with the skull that was thrown up into the treehouse, remember? But of course, when you get out of here, we'll find out who did this, and kick some punk ass." Ike said. I knew he was thinking it, and I was too. The question was not when you get out, it was if you get out. But Ike didn't dare say it outloud.
 "You'll have to catch up on your practice, you know. Can't have you falling behind. Maybe if you're lucky, we won't have to do any more shows for a while. We can take a extended break or something." I said. Ike nodded.
 "Yeah. We can go down and visit Virginia, Ecuador, Trinidad and Tobago, and maybe Venezuela too. That'd be cool, you know, to see everyone again." He said. I looked at my watch. Almost 6:00. We didn't have much longer.
 "Well, we hafta go now, Zac." Ike said, also noticing the time.
 "Yeah. We'll come back tomorrow, okay?" I said. There was, of course, no answer. I sttod up, and followed Ike out of the barren hospital room. Tash and Clare were waiting outside.
 "How is he? When can we see him?" Tash asked. Ike sighed.
 "Tomorrow we're coming again. I can drive you up if you want." He said. Tash and Clare nodded, we all headed to the front lobby together. We took Ike's car, and Mom and Dad and the kids took the other one. The drive back to our street was silent. Ike had turned on the radio,m but there were only sad and epressing songs on, so he quickly switched it off. We dropped Clare and Tash off at their houses, and continued down to our house. Ike parked in the circular driveway.
We just sat there for a minute.
 "Ike, if this has anything to do with that skull, I'll kill whoever did it. I really will." I said. Ike nodded, and he turned to me.
 "I'll kill him too." He swore.

Chapter 7
When you're on the verge of going crazy, and your heart's in pain

 "Hey, what's shaking?" Clare asked as her and Tash walked into our room. I tried to smile, but it wouldn't come.
 "Nothing." I said. Tash frowned.
 "Ike, the doctor said that Zac'll be out of his coma soon, you souldn't worry so much. He'll be fine." She said, but she didn't sound so sure of it herself.
 "It's hard, though. I mean, Christ, he's our brother, and he's like...lying in a hospital bed in a coma. You can't know what that feels like." Taylor said, his face had a blank expression. Tash's face went red.
 "Well, I know how it is, all right? Or did you forgat that my sister is practically a vegetable? Don't get all mad at me, at least your brother will recover! Christine will probably never be the same." She said bitterly. Taylor stood up.
 "How do you know Zac will recover? How do you know? You don't! Nothing's positive. The tiniest slip, and he's gone, Natasha. Gone, and lost forever in a comatose state." He growled. Tash was even angrier.
 "Don't go around bullshitting everyone, trying to get their sympathy. You probably have the sympathy of zillions of teenage girls out there, you think that Zac is more important just because he's in your little band, but let me tell you something Taylor, Zac will be FINE. And Christine, we'll she'll never ever be the same again." She yelled, and then closed her eyes. "Not like you ever cared. All you were worried about was if Traci was going to hurt your pretty face. Well, she didn't, and you are still loved by girls everywhere. Christine will probably never go on a date again and it's not like anyone would ever want to date her, she's can barely say three words!" There were tears in her eyes now. I didn't know what to do.
 "Natasha, please, don't do this. Taylor didn't say that, and he certainly didn't mean it." Clare tried to calm her down, but Natasha wasn't going to let her do it.
 "You know Taylor, this isn't the only time you've thought you were better than everyone else." A slow realization seemed to dawn on her. "You know, this is actually all of your fault. My sister, Zac, everything. If Traci had never liked you-"
 "STOP!" I screamed. Everyone turned to look at me. "You guys are bring ridiculous, Natasha, it's not Taylor's fault about Christine, or Zac. And he doesn't think that he's better or more important than you or your sister, that's crazy. We're all very sorry about Christine, but blaming Tay isn't going to make her get better. She has to go through councelling and hopefull, yshe will in time get back to her old self." I turned to look at Taylor. His face was all red." Taylor, Zac is going to get better, he'll be out of that coma in no time, and when he is, you'll see he'll be fine." I said. Tash looked at the floor. Taylor sighed.
 "You're right Ike. Tash, I'm sorry." He said. Tash didn't answer at first.
 "You'd better hope that I find the person who did this to Zac, cause all of this has cost me my sister, and it might cost the second most important person in my life as well." She said softly, and left. Taylor sat back down, and put his hands in his heads.
 "Shit." He muttered. Clare went over to his side.
 "Taylor she didn't mean it. She's just worried about Zac. She told me herself that the strain of it all has been very hard on her, and she said she didn't know how much more she can take. Traci's....dead." She closed her eyes. She still had trouble accepting the fact the she actually killed someone, "And she has no one else to blame. Except that person who ran her over, but it was a hit and run and we didn't get the license plate number, so she's taking it all out on you since Traci said she did it because she wanted you." She said. Taylor nodded.
 "But, some of the things she said were partly true." He said quietly. Clare gave him a surprised look. I was also puzzled. He sighed. "I sometimes think that because I'm a part of Hanson, and because I'm Taylor Hanson, I should get special treatment, but I know that's not true. But I never, not even for once, thought that my family was better and more deserving than Tash and Chris', never. And, I suppose it is my fault." He said. I shook my head.
 "Taylor, don't be stupid. Traci was a very sick girl, and she needed help. It's a shame no one had the chance to give it to her before she died, but, that's the way it is. The only one responsible for Christine's situation is Traci." I paused for a moment. "And me." They both looked up sharply.
 "What? Ike, that's crazy. How on earth is it your fault?" Clare asked. I looked away.
 "I was the one that let her go to the washroom by herself. I should've at least gone with her to make sure she made it there okay, but I was so danm worried about being late for that stupid show, that I just let her go." It felt good to finally get it out in the open. Taylor shook his head.
 "Ike, don't be stupid." He said. Clare nodded in agreement with him.
 "I mean, that's so far fetched." She said. I shrugged.
 "Whatever." I said. The room was silent for a moment, no one had anything else to say.

Chapter 8
Someone's Keeping Secrets

 I sighed. Being in a coma sucks. You can hear everything everyone says to you, but you can't respond. My whole body feels weird, and I seriously thought that I was dead, I mean, I was run over by a car. At least I got here, to the hospital in time. I heard someone come into the door.
 "Hello Zachary." The voice said. It was female, and familiar, very, very familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I heard her sit on the edge of the bed.
 "I'm sorry that this had to happen to you Zac, but it was the only way. I mean, I actually didn't mean to hit you, but you got in the way." The girl's (woman's?) voice continued. I almost had a heart attack right there.
 "I mean, this isn't your fault, well, maybe it is, but I was saving something else for you. I mean, it's a good thing no one saw me come in here, cause they'd go crazy, but oh well." She said. It killed me that I couldn't recognize who she was, I mean, I have heard that voice before, and she sounds so sad.
 "How could this all happen? I can't talk to anyone about how I feel, there is no one to talk to, I mean, like, no one wants to talk to me. I feel so alone. Coming here has helped me." She said, and I could hear her stand up.
 "But, back to business, if you don't live, I'm truely sorry. Hey, maybe I can even make it to your funeral, but, I don't think they'd let me in." She said, and left. I wanted to know so badly who she was! She had just confessed to the hit and run! I willed myself to come out of this deep sleep. My body wasn't ready, but I knew, that if I forced it, I could get better. I focused all my strength and energy on me being conscious, and suddenly I felt as if I was sucked into a black hole, and everything hurt. My whole body was in total pain, and I screeched out in agony.  I opened my eyes, and saw the pale white hospital ceiling. I continued to scream, and prayed that someone would come to help me. They did. Two nurses rushed in, and tried to calm me down. A doctor, a man, ran in too. He came to my side.
 "Zachary, you're going to be okay, don't worry, we'll get you some pain killers in a minute, just hang on, you don't need to scream." He said. I nodded, and stopped screaming. I realized that it didn't hurt as much anymore. I turned to look at him.
 "She confessed! She confessed to hitting me with that car, get her before she goes away!" I yelled. The doctor gave me a confused look.
 "Who's she? The only people that have come to see you, and that have been allowed to actually see you, were family and friends." He said.
 "She was just here! Didn't she give a name or something?" I asked. The doctor sighed.
 "We'll have it checked out, but right now, we need to contact your family." He said. I closed my eyes, and nodded.
 I'll find out who did this.

Chapter 9
Joyous Reunions

 "Oh my God, are you serious? He's awake?" Clare asked, her happiness and disbelief showing through her voice. I nodded, I was so happy!!
 "C'mon, we've got to get down there right now." I said. Clare nodded.
 "I'll go get Tash, oh, she's going to be so happy!" Clare cheered, and ran out the house.
 "Where're mom and dad, and the kids?" Ike asked. I shrugged.
 "They said something about going to see Aunt Gina, so I don't know. We can call dad on his cell phone from the hospital, c'mon!" I said, and raced out the door. I didn't know where Tash and Clare were, but I didn't have time ot think about them.
 "Tay, what about Clare and Tash, we should wait for them." Ike said. Something nagged at the back of my mind, but I pushed it away.
 "They can get a ride up from Clare or Tash's parents, let's go!" I said. Ike didn't argue, and we hopped into his car and sped off to the hospital.

 "Tash! Are you here?" I called into the house. The door was open, and we always just let ourselves in. There was no answer, no noise at all.
 "Weird." I muttered. I looked into the kitchen. There was a creak behind me, and I swirled around, but no one was there. I laughed at myself.
 "You are freaking yourself out, Clare. Calm down." I told myself. I went into the living room. I didn't hear anyone walk up behind me, until it was too late. There was the sound of a floorboard creaking, and I turned around, and felt something hard hit me on my head. I groaned, and felt a horrible throbbing pain, and went down, smacking the cold, hardwood floor. I got a glimpse of my attacker's face.
 "Oh, why....?" I gasped, and blacked out.

 "Where is Clare?" I asked again. Tash sighed.
 "Relaz, Tay. She probably got caught up in something. I mean you should be happy, Zac's out of his coma." She said. I nodded. I hadn't said much to Tash the past half hour, but I think we're cool again.
 "So, are you sure she didn't tell you to come over here?" I asked. She nodded.
 "Positive. I got here a few seconds before Zac woke up, I came to see him right after I left your house." She said. I nodded.
 "Allright then." I said. The doctor fianlyl came out.
 "You can go to see him now." He said. We all jumped up and ran into the little hospital room. Zac was sitting up, and he was eating a bowl of green jello. He smiled.
 "This place kicks ass, they have green jello." He said. I laughed, and Tash sat down on the edge of the bed beside him. A odd look crossed his face for a moment, but it was quickly replaced with a smile.
 "So, bow do you feel?" Tash asked. Zac shrugged, and took a big spoonfull of jello, and shoved it into his mouth.
 "I was hit by a car, and then I was in a coma, and the person who hit me confessed to me a hour ago. How do you think I feel?" He asked. Ike's brow furrowed.
 "Yeah, the doctor mentioned something about that, they're checking the visitor's list right now." He said. I nodded.
 "Yeah, I mean, mom and dad specifically said only our family, The Henning's, The Demitts, and Jarrod and the guys, so I don't know who could have gotten in." I said. Zac shrugged.
 "All I know is that it was a girl, and that her voice was familiar." He said, and went back to eating his green jello. A doctor came in.
 "I have the visitor's list you asked for." He said. We all nodded.
 "Please, read it out. My vision's still a little bit blurry." Zac said. The doctor nodded.
 "Okay, Diana Hanson, then Walker Hanson, Jessica Hanson, and Avery Hanson, then Diana Hanson and Mackenzie and Zoe Hanson, then Isaac Hanson, then Isaac and Taylor Hanson, and then Chrsitine Demetriades, and then, that's it." He said. All of us remained silent.
"Could Chrsitine Demetriades be the one that told you she had hit you?" The doctor asked. Tash shook her head.
 "No, that's impossible. Someone must've been pretending to be her, she's not capable of getting over here." She said, and turned to the doctor. "She was mentally and physically abused by a person who threatened my family, and the Hanson's last September. There's no way she could have done it. She's not mentally capable of driving to have even hit you in the first place, and then, coming up here, that's just not possible. Someone must have been pretending to be her." She said. I had to admit, the thought of Chris driving a car was odd, although she did have her driver's license, but she wouldn't do it. She'd have no reason.
 "Yeah, Christine couldm't have done it. Someone must have used her name to get in." I said. Ike was oddly quiet.
 "What sort of car does your father drive?" He asked Tash. She shrugged.
 "It's a gray-"
 "Gray? Didn't a gray car hit me? A Taurus?" Zac piped up. Tash's face went white.
 "Yes." She said slowly. Zac wanted to lift up his arm to scratch his head, but it was in a sling.
 "Owie." He muttered.
 "Well, then I don't think we can rule out Christine as a possibility." Ike said. I nodded. Tash still wasn't going to accept the fact that her sister might have done this.
 "Don't be stupid!! She couldn't have done it! I'm her sister, and I know that she isn't mentally capable of doing something like this."
 "Um, actually, I have talked to her, and she was like, able to say things. And she said some pretty scary stuff. She blames all of this on Clare, actually." Ike said slowly.
 "What?! That's impossible!! You're lying!!" Tash screamed, her eyes were rimmed with tears.
 "She could have been trying to hit Clare, but she might have hit me instead. She said she never meant to hit me." Zac said. Tash shook her head.
 "No. No, no, no, you are wrong!! She couldn't have done any of this!" She screamed, and left. Ike started to go after her, but I stopped him.
 "Let her go. We've gotta find out where Clare went." I said. He nodded. I looked at the doctor.
 "Please, continue to try to contact our parents, we have something we have to do." I said. The doctor nodded. Ike and I turned to Zac.
 "Hang in there, Zac man, We'll be back soon." Ike said. He nodded, and crammed another spoonful of green jello into his mouth. I stifled a smirk, and we left.

Chapter 10
Deadly Secret.

 I awoke, my vision was blurry, but I knew that I was in a dark room. I tried to lift my arms, but my wrists were tied together, and I was sitting in a chair. The rope was almost cutting off my circulation, and no matter how much I struggled, I still couldn't get out of the binds that kept me in my place. The room was pitch black, and I couldn't see anything. I had no idea where I was, but the place seemed oddly familiar. I let my eyes adjust to the darkness. I recognized a few features, and a chill went through my spine.
 I was in Traci's old house.
 "Shit." I muttered. I started to bang my bound feet on the floor.
 "Hello? Hey, lemme out of here! Please!" I yelled. There was silence. I  struggled even more to get myself undone, but it was useless. I pounded on the floor some more.
 "HEY!! LET ME OUT!" I screamed. There was a creak, and a door opened from the top of a stairwell. A figure, a very familiar figure was silhouetted in the light. The door closed, and the person came down the stair.
 "What the hell do you WANT?" I screamed. There was no answer. I knew the person was standing in front of me. But I couldn't see the details on their face.
 "You ruined me." The voice said.
 "What? Who are you?" I asked. A light flicked on, and I squinted, there was a girl, she, had black hair, and green eyes. She seemed vaguely familiar.
 "Do you remember me?" She asked. I shook my head.She hit me across the face with the flashlight. I tasted blood in my mouth.
 "Well, you should! You ruined my life!! Traci, she was the only family that I had!!" She cried. I still had no idea who she was.
 "You, you are-were, related to her?" I asked. She nodded.
 "She was my sister. Our parents didn't give a rat's ass about us, so she hid us, in the house. She was all I ever had, and she didn't ask for anything, she only gave. All she ever wanted was Taylor Hanson, and you took him away, and then you killed her!" She spat. I shook my head.
 "You don't understand, she threatened my friends and my family, and then she tried to kill me, she killed one of my friends, and her boyfriend!" I said. The girl rolled her eyes.
 "Brink? He was just a toy. She never really like him. She only used him to get close to Taylor." She said. I shook my head.
 "So, what do you want with me?" I asked. She shrugged.
 "I want to do to you, what you did to me and Traci." She said. I shuddered.
 "Were you, were you the one that hit Zac?" I asked. She smiled evilly, and shook her head.
 "Yes, But it wasn't all me. I had help." She said, and a person, a girl, a girl that I knew emerged from the shadows.
 "Christine!" I gasped. Christine gave me a blank stare. "You were the one that hit me in your house!" She didn't say anything.
 "Yes, Christine kent me her car, she told me everything I needed to know about you. She wanted to get better, and I told her I could help." She said.
 "Christine, why? She cna't help you! Only your friends, your real friends can help!" I said. Christine got a odd look on her face.
 "You." She said. "Left."
 "What? When did I leave? What did I leave?" I asked. A look of strain crossed her face.
 "In the forest. You save Taylor, and you left me. I lose a lot of blood. Too much. Blood." She said. I nodded, and closed my eyes.
 "So, you think that this is my fault?" I asked. She nodded.
 "Your fault. I want to be the same, back to normal, and Joan help me." She said. Traci's sister, Joan,  smiled.
 "Of course. But, now, it's time for me to get rid of you." She said. She walked over to one of the walls, and pulled out a cart, with several medical instruments layed out on it. I gasped.
 "What are you going to do with those?" I asked weakly.
 "What do you think?" She snarled. Christine just stood there. I turned to her.
 "Christine! Stop her! Please, I never meant for this to happen, you can get better, but Joan won't be able to help you. All she want's to do is hurt me! Please, Christine, I thought you were my friend..." I begged, but I knew it was no use. Joan had told her that it was my fault, and that she could help her, and now I was the bad guy. I shuddered, and Joan picked up a incision knife, it looked very sharp.
 "Hmmm, where should I start" She asked herself.
 "This isn't going to make Traci come back." I said. She shrugged, and laughed, cold, hard laughter.
 "Maybe not, but it'll make me feel a whole lot better!" She said, and approached me. I looked awy, and she grabbed my head.
 "Oh, no. You are going to watch me disembowel your insides piece, buy piece." She said. I squirmed to get away, but she dragged the scapel across my stomach. I felt the warm, sticky blood ooze out of my flesh. It wasn't a very deep cut, not deep enough to pierce anything, but it was still very painful. I winced, and bit my lip to stop from crying out. I glanced at Christine, she was looking at the floor. I heard a noise upstairs. Someone's here! Joan didn't notice anything, and she went back to the little tray, and took a little fork like thing. She stuck that into my side. This time,the pain was excrutiating, and I cried out. She laughed. I felt tears roll down my cheeks. It was almost unbearable.
 "Do you like that?" She asked. I shook my head. She laughed even more. "Well, then you're going to love...this!" She said, and shoved deeper, and started to swish the fork like instrument around. I felt faint, and I knew that I was going to die. I heard a noise, and I saw Christine lunge at her. Joan raised her hands in defence, but Christine jumped on top of her. The wresteled on the floor for a minute, until Joan grabbed a nearby piece of wood, and smacked Christine across the head with it. Christine hit the floor, out cold, and didn't move. Joan got up, and brushed herself off.
 "I should've known I couldn't trust her!" She snarled, and turned back to me. "No, hopefully there won't be any further interruptions-" No sooner had the words slipped out of ehr mouth, did Taylor burst through the door. She shrieked, and grabbed the scalpel, and race around behind me. I felt the cold metal across my throat.
 "Get back, or I'll kill her! She'll be dead, and you'll be very sad!" She threatened. Taylor stopped right where he was. He took a glance down at Christine, and then back up to me and Joan. He also looked at the red spots staining my shirt where Joan had cut me. His eyes flicked to mine for a moment. He must've seen the pain, because he dropped his hands to his sides.
 "She's gonna die anyway." He said. simply. I didn't know what he was trying to do, but I sure felt like I was going to die.
 "How do you know?" She hissed. He pointed at my abdomen.
 "You hit her liver, right now, poisons are seeping through her body. She'll be dead in about half a hour." He said. I felt the scapel across my jugular go a bit limper.
 "So? I should just slit her throat right now." Joan said. Taylor shrugged.
 "Go ahead, but then I'd kill you myself. But, if you let her go, so we can get a priest in here, to bid her last wishes, then I won't kill you." He said. I was momentarily confused, I wasn't religious, but then it hit me, he was bullshitting her. I was probably going to make it, but only if they got me to a hospital in time.
 "Yeah, right. Like I'm gonna believe that!" She said. I felt my breathing start to get shallow. I tried to talk.
 "Taylor, it really hurts, I-I-I-think I'm.....dying." I said. There was a flicker of worry in his eyes, but then he shrugged.
 "So? Of course you're dying. That's what I just said." He said in a matter of fact tone of voice. I had no idea if he was serious, but I hoped he wasn't. Joan stepped away from me.
 "Okay then, she's gonna die anyways, so try and kill me like you said." She said. Taylor shrugged. There was a bang upstairs, and Joan's attention was momentarily taken away, and that was the moment Taylor jumped her. He knocked her to the floor, and punched her once in the face. She raised the scapel, and slashed him across the face. He got up, and kicked her in the stomach. She groaned, and dropped the scapel. He picked it up, and held it at her throat. She was having trouble breathing, but she managed a weak laugh.
 "Go....ahead. You're face is...ruined. If you kill me....the cops'll convict you....she's gonna die anyways...so I am now...too." She said. Taylor didn't say anything, but stole a glance at me. I saw Joan's hand reach out, and grab something shiny, it was the fork thingy that she had dropped.
 "Taylor! Look out!" I tried to scream, but it barely came out. He gave me a confused look, and turned back to Joan. His eyes went wide, it was as if everything was in slow motion, and he dodged as her hand came crashing down, about to his his face. She missed, and he stabbed her in the throat, slitting her main vein. Her eyes went wide, and she grabbed for his shirt, but he moved away, and she fell back down to the ground. She was coughing, and there was blood spurting out from the fatal wound in her neck. She breathed her last breath, and stopped moving. There was a red spot forming on the floor, and her body was still draining out blood. Taylor stood up, and ran to untie me. His face was bleeding from a cut on his left cheek. I touched his wound.
 "Oh, god, you're face." I croaked. I was really starting to faint now. He picked me up out of the chair.
 "Shhh, you'll be all right, the police and doctors are coming." He said. I nodded, he helped me upstairs. I stopped.
 "What...about Christine?" I asked. He looked at her, sprawled unconscious on the floor. He gave me another confused look.
 "Did she try to save you?" He asked. I nodded.
 "She was....helping Joan....but then she tried....to stop her..."I flet my eyes flutter shut. I felt Taylor lightly slapping me on the face.
 "Don't go, c'mon Clare, we'll make you all better. The Doctor's can help Christine." He said. I could feel him drag me up the stairs, and he sat me down somewhere. He left for a minute, and then returned with a cloth, and he pressed in against the wound in my side.
 "You're lucky, you're not a bad bleeder." He said. I looked up to the cut on his face. It looked pretty bad.
 "You're going...to....need stit....stitches." I said. I felt weaker my the minute. He tried to smile, but it was all crooked.
 "Yeah? And they're going to have to flush all the shit from your liver out of your body." He said. I swallowed a laugh.
 "So....my liver...is really....cut?" I asked. He nodded.
 "It's dark blood, so that's probably what it is." He said. "But don't worry, we'll get it fixed." He said, and gave me a lopsided grin. But it was forced, and I could tell that he wasn't too optimistic.There were the sounds of sirens, and three police men came through the door. Ike followed. He marched right up to Taylor.
 "Dammit Tay! I told you to wait at the house! What the hell's wrong with you?" He barked. Taylor shook his head.
 "I had a feeling she and Chris would be here. I just knew, Ike, she about about ot kill her!" He said.
 "Who tried to kill her? Chris?" He asked, visibly confused. Taylor shook his head, he was very tired.
 "Joan. Traci's sister." He said, and turned to the paramedics. "There's another person in the basement. I don't know what happened to her, but she's unconscious." He said. My vision was going away, and I felt very very cold. I heard someone say something before I blacked out.
 "She's going! We're losing her!"

Chapter 11
Goodbye, my friend.

 "Why the hell can't we see her?" Taylor was yelling at the doctor. The side of his face had been sitched up, and there was a bandage over the wound. I was angry too, Clare is one of my best friends, and we should be able to see her. I sat down beside Christine. She was crying.
 "I'm sorry. I thought Joan could make everything better. I didn't know she wanted to hurt Clare. And she told me Zac was fine, but that he had fallen and hit the car lightly. I'm so sorry..." She whimpered. I was surprised, and relieved that she was back to normal again. I guess Joan had helped her, in a weird way. Taylor was still screaming at the doctor.
 "I'm sorry, family only." He said for the fiftieth time. Isaac put his head in his hands.
 "Dammit." He muttered. The rest of the Hanson family was sitting quietly on the other side of the waiting room with the rest of the Demitts family. Clare's parents were in the hospital room with Clare. Finally, they came out. Their faces were grim, and Mrs. Henning was crying. She looked at us.
 "You can see her, if you want." She said. Taylor, Ike, Chris and I all got up, and went into the tiny hospital room.

 They walked in, and I felt momentarily brightened, but it soon dulled after what my parents had said. I was dying, and they knew it. Although they hadn't said it directly, it was pretty obvious. My mom was crying, and me dad barely said anything, except that he loved me. I was pissed. I mean, stupid fucking Joan!! She's tore out my goddamn guts, and now I'm gonna die! I hate her. I hate her and her whole stupid family. Taylor came up and sat down beside me.
 "Hey. How ya doing?" He asked softly. I sniffled.
 "I'm dying." I said simply. Tash's eyes got wide, and Ike turned away. I finally noticed that Christine was here too.
 "Christine..." I said. Her eyes brimmed with tears.
 "My fault, I'm sorry. This is my fault." She said. I shook my head.
 "Of course it isn't, she told you she'd make it all okay, and that you'd get better. She told the truth partly, your speech is improved." I said. She shook her head.
 "But I want you instead of that." She said. I nodded. Tash was abot to cry.
 "You guys, don't get all mushy, I mean, I'll like come and haunt you if you want." I said, trying to make a joke of it. Tash burst out into tears.
 "I'm sorry." I murmured. Taylor shook his head. He was going to cry too, shit, I thought.
 "This is all my damn fault. I mean, it's like, Traci was nuts. fucking nuts, and she went out and got obsessed with me, and then, her sister wants to kill you-"
 "No, Joan wanted to kill me because I killed Traci. It has nothing to do with you." I said. He shook his head in disagreement.
 "Yeah, but I'm the reason you had to kill her." He said.
 "Well, she was a little pain in the ass. One of us would've done it eventually." I said. Ike looked at the floor.
 "I'm sorry. Bad timing." I said. He looked up.
 "It's cause you're scared." He said. I shook my head.
 "I'm not scared." I insisted. He shrugged, and turned away. I looked at Taylor. His baby blue eyes had gone glassy. I felt as if a snare was pulling at my heart.
 "I'm sorry." I whispered. He held my hand. Tash came over and gave me a hug.
 "You won't die. I'll make sure you don't." She said. I half laughed, half cried.
 "Allrighty. You can have my CD's if you want." I said. She nodded. Just then, Zac came in.
 "Oh, Zackie!" I said. He smiled.
 "Hey, Clare! What's shaking?" He asked. I forced a smile.
 "Nothing much. How's your head?" I asked. He shrugged.
 "Been better. How ya feeling?" He asked. I looked away. Ike whispered something in his ear.
 "No shit. Oh, God....Clare. I'm so sorry." He said, and came over and hugged me.
 "Don't worry Zac man, I'm going to be just fine, you'll see." I said, I felt tears welling up again.
 "May The Force Be With You." He said. I laughed. choked laughter.
 "Ditto to you little Jedi boy." He nodded. Christine came over.
 "I know this is all my fault, please, forgive me." She whispered. I hugged her.
 "It's not your fault, but if it'll make you feel better, I forgive you." She nodded, and tears fell down her face. Ike came over, and gave me another hug.
 "I'm sorry." He said.
 "I said I'm going to be fine!" I said, and shooed him away.
 "Now, let me get some peace!" I said. They all filed out, except Taylor.
 "I'm sorry." He said. I raised my eyebrow.
 "What for?" I asked.
 "Not being able to save you in time. If I had been sooner-"
 "No." I cut him off. "This is the way things are meant to be. You'll grow up, marry, have kids, a family, and you'll make your beautiful music forever." I said. Tears streamed down his rosy cheeked face, God, I thought, it looks like he's wearing blush!
 "I love you." He said. I nodded.
 "I know." It sounded all too familiar, it was from Star Wars. Ironically, our fave movie. When Leia bids Han farewell....But in the end, Han is rescued. And I know, (although I look more like Princess Leia) that I will never come back to him.
 "Promoise me one thing." I said. He nodded.
 "Of course."
 "Promise me, that you'll sing 'I Will Come To You' at my funeral." I said. He winced.
 "Don't talk like that." He said. I rolled my eyes.
 "Taylor, I am going to die, and probably very soon. But I want you to know-" I felt something leave me. It was in my stomach. There was a rapid beeping from a machine near my bed. His eyes filled with pain and worry.
 "Oh, God....No, Clare don't go." He said. I closed my eyes, and forced them open again.
 "I want you to know, that I....I" I couldn't get the word out, it hurt too much. Doctors race in, along with he parents. I have to say it, don't let me leave yet.
 "I...." It went black, and there was a light. Then nothing.

Chapter 12
Flatline.

 I sat in my room, staring out the window at the rain. Rain. Rain falling down....I silently sang the very first song ever written by a member of Hanson. Gone. Gone, gone, gone, gone. she's gone. Her funeral is schedualed for tomorrow. Has it really been two days? I can't remember. I haven't left this room for at least a day. I tried practicing, but the pain wouldn't leave. I don't think it'll ever leave. It was all over the newsmedia, Taylor Hanson's girlfriend died. She wasn't really my girlfriend, but I loved her more than anything. Another Hanson song. I have got to stop doing this! I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. Zac slowly came in.
 "Taylor? The funeral is in a hour." He said. Hour? but it's tomorrow.
 "Isn't it tomorrow?" I asked, my voice flat. It was as if I had lost the will to sing, almost like she was my inspiration, I knew it was crazy, and that I'd start singing agian soon, after the mourning period.
 But will that period ever go away?  A little vouce inside my head asked. I ignored it, and looked for the black suit in my closet.
 "No, Taylor, it's today. You've lost track of time." Zac said, and left.
  Must look ready, must look presentable. The truth about Traci and her family finally leaked to the press, and a whole story was done on it. They're even asking Clare's family for the rights to do a movie, but I doubt Mrs. and Mr. Henning will allow it.
 We've been asked to do countless interviews, but we declined them all, for now. eventually, the world must know what happened. It is a terrible story. I looked in the mirror. I had terrible dark circles under my eyes, and my once pure blur eyes were now dulled and blootshot. I look like a freaking druggie, I thought. I washed my face, and brushed my hair. At least I look half decent now. I went downstairs to join the rest of my family. There was black everywhere. All my brothers and sisters were wearing it, and so were my parents. We piled into two cars, one van and Ike's Camaro, and went to the cemetary. No one said anything on the drive there in the Camaro, and I doubt anything was being said in the van either. We got to the funeral home, and met up with The Hennings, including Clare's brother, Daniel, and The Demitts. Everyone was silent. Some of Clare's school friends and their families were there too, and Brink's family. Brink. Two of my closet friends murdered. I didn't know what to do. Four people killed in total. Each of them murdered. One by me. I shuddered, and looked at the ground. There were camera's outside the funeral home, hoping to catch a glimpse of the band Hanson. Their picture's won't be very pretty, we all look horrible. there were several snaps taken, and finally, our bodyguard went up to the paparazzi.
 "Have some damn respect." He growled. They backed off.

Chapter 13
Funeral

 The funeral went well, but I was surpirsed at how many people showed up. I went to the burial at the Cemetary, and watch along with everyone else. It was odd, seeing myself being lowered six feet under. Everyone stood silent, and I walked among them. I paused in front of Tay.
 "You look horrible." I said. But even though he couldn't hear me, yet, he looked up. I smiled out of curiosity.
 "Can you hear me?" I asked. He shook his head and lowered his eyes back down to the ground again. I sighed, and stood with my parents, my brother, and friends, and watched my funeral. Taylor cleared his throat.
 "Um, Clare told me, that she wanted Isaac, Zac and I to sing something at her funeral." He said slowly. I smiled, thank you. My mom and dad nodded. The three brothers stood side by side.
 "Oh, whoa, ooooh whoa, oh oh, oh whoa, oh ooooh, oh oh..." They sang together.
 "When you have no light to guide you,
 And no one to walk beside you,
 I will come to you, oh, I will come to you,
 When the night  is dark and stormy,
 You won't have to reach out for me,
 I will come to you, oh, I will come to you,
 Oh whoa, sometimes when all your dreams,
 May have seen better days,
 And you don't know how or why,
 But you've lost your way,
 Have no fear when your tears are falling,
 I will hear, your spirit calling,
 And I swear that I'll be there, come what may,
 When you have no light to guide you,
 And no one to walk beside you,
 I will come to you, oh, I will come to you,
 Oh whoa oh oh
 When the night is dark and stormy,
 You won't have to reach out for me,
 I will come to you, oh, I will come to you." Taylor finished, and they went into the second chorus.
 "Nah, nah nah nah nah nah,
 nah nah nah nah nah nah,
 Nah nah nah nah nah nah
 nah nah, naaah nah nah nah." Ike's solo
 "Cause even if we can't be together,
 We'll be friends, now and forever," Taylor's turn.
 "And I swear, that I'll be there, come what may," The three of them sang it more beautifully than I had ever heard. It was like htree angel's voices. They came to the end.
 "Oh, whoa, oh oooh whoa, oh oh.
 I will come to you, oh I will come to....
 You oh, oh whoa oh oh, I will come to you,
 Oh oh, I will come to....you" Taylor sang the end verse, and Isaac and Zac joined himon the last word. You. I wanted to cry, and I did. the burial ended, and everyone headed back to their cars. Taylor stood by the grave for a moment longer. I figured now was the time.
 "Taylor." I whispered. He looked up, and saw me. He smiled.
 "Hey Clare." He said. I walked up to him.
 "That was beautiful." I said. He nodded.
 "Thanks. I think it was the best we've ever down I Will Come To You." He said. I nodded.
 "Absolutely wonderful." I said. He smiled, and tears rimmed his eyes once more. I took in a deep breath.
 "Taylor, the reason I'm here is because I have, ah, unfinished business?" I said. He raised a eyebrow.
 "Uh huh." He said.
 "And, I never got to tell you want I wanted to, in the hospital room before I died." I said. His eyes filled with pain again at the memory.
 "Okay." He said.
 "I love you." I said. His tears fell down his cheeks. I smiled, and touched the side of his face.
 "I know." He said. I nodded.
 "Goodbye. Tell Tash, Zac, Ike and Christine that I love them too." I said. He nodded, and I left.

Chapter 14
When everything seems like the movies, you bleed just to know you're alive

 "Tay? Are you okay?" I asked my brother. He nodded.
 "Yeah, Zac. I'm fine." He said. I nodded, and got into the Camaro beside him.
 "What were you doing back there?" He asked. I half smiled.
 "Saying goodbye." He said.

The End.
© Sophie C. Burrows 1999
Dedeicated to Baby, you'll be with me in my dreams.
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