Austin was beyond worried. After they had split up, he went to all the places he knew she liked (the library, the park, the music room at school, her favourite cafe) but she was no where to be found. He was starting to run out of ideas until he thought of where most people would go to be alone, de-stress and think, and the only place he could come up with was the beach. He knew Ally wasn't a fan of the beach, but he had no where else to look and it was worth a shot.

He didn't bother going to the main beach where all the crowds were, knowing that would be the last place she would be when she wanted to be alone.

Austin checked his phone to make sure the others hadn't tried to contact him, before starting to walk along the beach, to the more secluded area.

Not far into the walk, he had reached the part of the beach he was looking for. He hoped he would find her there. He just wanted to be there for her in anyway she would let him; he just wasn't sure how to do that. He had never been the best at comforting people, not knowing whether to say something, or let actions speak louder than words and give them a shoulder to cry on.

He knew, even though she hardly got to see her in person, that Ally and her Mum were close. Watching them together almost reminded him of two sisters, rather than a Mother and her Daughter. He was deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Penny Dawson. He had only met her that one time, but he instantly took a liking to her. Maybe it was because she reminded him of an older version of Ally. Their personalities were so similar, not to mention they looked so alike as well.

He couldn't imagine how Ally was feeling, this must be killing her. Losing a parent at all would be heartbreaking, but losing a parent so young would be worse. Ally still had so much growing up to do from her teenage years to her years as a young woman, and that is the time when you most need your mother.

Austin hadn't been walking too long when he had spotted something on the sand. Curious, he walked closer to it, not sure what it was.

To his utter shock, he realised as he got closer that it was his best friend, Ally.

'Ally!'

Running the rest of the way, his heart pounded rapidly in his chest.

Kneeling down next to her in the sand, he could see she was unconscious, though he could see no obvious reason as to why.

'Ally? Ally, can you hear me?'

His shaking hand felt for a pulse on her neck, and was relieved to find one.

Pulling out his phone, he called for an ambulance. While he was impatiently waiting for them, he called Ally's Dad, Trish and Dez to let them know the search party could be called off and let them know what happened. Austin was going to ride with Ally to the hospital, and the others would meet him there.

He wasn't sure what happened, but he was now even more worried about Ally.

Austin sat in the hospital waiting room, along with Ally's Dad, Trish and Dez. It seemed like they had been waiting forever, when finally a Doctor came out.

'Friends and Family of Allyson Dawson?'

'Yes, I'm her Father.' Lester said, stepping forward. 'What happened? Is she ok?'

'Mr. Dawson, your daughter is fine and is now awake. She seems to have suffered a panic attack and fainted due to lack of oxygen. She's responding well and once you've signed all the release forms, you're free to take her home.'

'Thanks Doctor.'

'Any idea what could have caused the panic attack? Has she been known to have them before?'

'Uh, yes. She just got the news that her, uh, Mother passed away today. But no, she's never had a panic attack before.'

'Well, try to keep her calm and well rested, and if it does happen again keep calm and gently talk her through it. Also, get her to use a paper bag to help her control her breathing. You can pick up the release papers at the front desk. Once those are filled out, you're welcome to go to Allyson's room and take her home. She's in room 304. And Mr. Dawson? I'm sorry for your loss.' The Doctor said, looking at him sympathetically, before walking away.

'You three can go wait in her room if you want. I'll just sign all the paperwork, and then take her home.' Lester said to his daughters friends.

Austin nodded, then led the way to her room, eager to see Ally awake. Despite their failed and very brief romance, Austin still loved her. They had never exchanged 'I love you's' to each other, but once they broke it off, his feelings didn't dwindle, they only grew. Though he had only just recently admitted it to himself, he wasn't ready to admit it to anyone else at the moment, much less Ally. Obviously now was not the right time, but someday soon, Austin would like to tell Ally how he truly felt.

Opening the door, Austin wasn't sure what to expect, but it wasn't this. Ally was sitting upright in her hospital bed, just staring out the window.

'Ally?' Austin asked only to receive no response.

'Ally it's us, your friends.' Trish said, slowly approaching her bed.

'We've come to take you home.' Dez said to her.

Still nothing.

Not sure what else to do, the three friends sat with Ally, hoping their presence would help to comfort her.

Ally sat in the hospital bed, staring out the window, yet not really seeing anything. Her mind was elsewhere; even she didn't know where it was. She was in sort of a daze, she couldn't hear or see anything around her. All her thoughts were on one thing, and only thing only, her Mother. It felt like a horrible nightmare that she would wake up from, or a sick joke someone was trying to play on her. Deep down, though, she knew this was all very real. Her Mother was gone, and she wasn't coming back.

Ally knew she had her Dad, and her three best friends to help her through this, but she just didn't know how to let them in. She had always felt loved by the people around her, but never had she felt so alone before.

A/N: So sorry it has taken me so long to update. Did you like this chapter? Sorry if it's a little short, I just wanted to get something up for you guys! Let me know what you think – review, follow or favourite! Until next time, thanks for reading - you all rock! Merry Christmas!