She couldn't think. She just kept right on walking until she reached the familiar house across the street. Tears blurred her eyes and her heart hurt as she stood in front of the door and knocked. She didn't know what she would do if no one was home, but she wasn't about to give up hope. Because Sue Sue Heck never gave up.

She knocked again, and again, waiting and waiting. The longer she stood there, waiting, the more her heart hurt. The pain became so bad that at one point she was afraid she might need medical attention. But thankfully it subsided somewhat.

The silence around her was deafening, save for the faint sound of barking dogs and the roar of cars in the distance and she didn't know what to do. She tried singing a song that Reverend Tim Tom often sang when things looked hopeless, Even though he was much better at singing spiritual songs than she, it certainly couldn't hurt. She doubted that God really cared if she couldn't carry a tune. When she'd sung the last note, she waited for a response. Again, nothing. Maybe it would have worked better if she'd had a guitar; not that she knew how to play the guitar. Oh why didn't she ever learn to play the guitar?

And then, like a sign from above, it happened.

The unmistakable sound of tires on pavement caused her to whirl around. But this was no car coming down the street. This car pulled into the driveway; a very familiar car. Her heart was pounding and she wasn't entirely certain that she wasn't dreaming. She whirled around, nearly fainting at the sight. It was like a dream; one that she'd been waiting desperately to come true.

Sean….

The engine shut off, the car door opened. He was walking toward her, his smile meant for no one else. But she didn't deserve a smile or anything at all. She was Sue Sue Heck from a broken home; a girl who had successfully managed to drive her mother away. And she was afraid that Frankie Heck might never come back. Thankfully in the darkness, the figure didn't notice her tears.

"Hey, Susie Q, I didn't expect to see you here!" Sean said. A brisk wind passed by and he rubbed his shoulders. "Man, it's freezing out here! Where's your coat?"

Sue looked down at her pink sweatshirt with the bright multicolored rainbow on the front. It had been a long ago gift from her mother; another gift that she didn't deserve.

"Oh, I must have forgotten it." Suddenly she felt very, very small, like a mouse (or even smaller). She cringed at her reply. What a dumb thing to say. What kind of idiot walks out of their house in the freezing cold without their coat?

But Sean was unfazed by her dorkiness. He quickly removed his light blue and white Hens letterman jacket and attempted to drape it around her shoulders. It was the most wonderful thing any one had ever done for her and it took all of the strength within her to gently push him away.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't, Sean."

"Can't what?"

"Wear your jacket."

"Why not?"

"Because, I don't deserve it! "

"Susie Q-."

"Stop calling me that, all right? I don't deserve cute names or warm jackets or even smiles! I shouldn't even be here, but I couldn't stay at home any longer! I-I didn't have any place to go."

"Here, just put this on and tell me what this is all about, all right?"

Reluctantly she let him slide the much-too-big jacket around her body and she pushed her arms through the too-long sleeves. "Thanks…"

"Sure, no problem. Now what's going on?"

She began to cry. "I'm a horrible person!"

"What?"

"I'm horrible, Sean!"

"That's ridiculous. How could you even think-Hey… wait a minute. Has Axl been giving you a hard time again?"

"No, I just-."

"Look, Axl's my friend and all, but I'm going to kill him, I swear!"

"Sean, it's not him. It's me!"

"Do you have any idea how many girls have said those exact words to me?" He laughed and she wanted to laugh with him, but she just couldn't do it. Girls who drove their mother away didn't deserve laughter. Instead she cried even harder. "I mean it, Sean, I 'm a terrible person!"

"No, Sue. You're not. That is absolutely untrue."

"What kind of person drives their mother away?"

"I don't understand."

"She's gone, Sean, gone! My mom is gone and it's my fault!"

"Wait, what do you mean she's gone?"

When Sue didn't reply right away, Sean's eyes grew wide with horror. "Wait a minute. Y-you don't mean that she's gone-gone like forever gone?"

I don't know Sean! She just left! I yelled at Brick and told him that it was his fault for whispering and whooping. And then I yelled at Axl for caring more about his stupid hat than about Mom! I even yelled at my dad for watching the game when he was supposed to be worrying about Mom!"

"Sue-." When he came closer to her, she didn't pull away. But she still didn't feel worthy of his kindness.

"But it's not their fault! It's mine! It's my fault that I live in a broken house with a younger brother and an older brother and a dad but no mom! Everything is broken! My family, my house and even my heart!"

When she began to sob, his expression softened and the next thing she knew, he was holding her in his arms rubbing her back while she cried into his chest. His Hens sweatshirt was so soft. How had she not noticed it before? What was wrong with her? She couldn't be thinking about how soft his sweatshirt was when her mother was gone! She really was terrible.

The thought made her cry harder. But Sean Donahue didn't let go. He kept right on holding her.