A/N: I'm almost done with finals! I've got two more tomorrow and then FREEDOM! I got back from one a few hours ago with every intention of putting the finishing touches on an essay due tomorrow, and this just came to me. Along with a whole bunch of other plot threads I'm hoping to work in. This one is over 2,000 words and I even started on another chapter! Which is kind of absurd. But hopefully I'll have that up for you guys before I head across the pond. Let me know what you think. Reviews are love!

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Eric tried so hard to help me. But after that night I wouldn't let him in. I couldn't believe I'd done that, told someone who was basically a stranger everything about my relationship with Bill. He would get so, so mad at me if he ever found out. I don't even want to think about what he would do. After a couple of days he let the issue go. He told me years later that he did it because "You can't save someone who doesn't want to be saved."

I think Eric realized that the best possible thing he could do for me was just make sure that I knew that he was there for me should that situation change. In his attempts to get me to open up again he told me all about himself. He told me about his parents dying in Sweden and about growing up with his Aunt. That he had attended a boarding school in New York City with his younger sister, Pam who was a freshman at Columbia. She was currently living it up in Stockholm, sleeping all day in preparation for partying the night away, something Eric said he occasionally enjoyed but really wasn't his scene. Like me he aspired to be in the FBI although he wanted to be a field agent, not a behavioral analyst like me. His goal was to be head of the field office in New York City because he loved it there and wanted to help make it a safer place, something he felt he could do better as an FBI agent rather than becoming a police officer.

Conversations like that, about the future left me thinking. We talked about our dreams and goals, and even though I was still trying to achieve that goal I couldn't for the life of me figure out what had happened to the girl who dreamed up the life I was working so hard to get. That girl was strong, independent, and never wanted for something to do on the weekend. Now I'm weak, totally dependant on Bill and I spend my Saturday waiting by the phone wondering if he's going to call.

What the hell happened?

Somehow, Eric knew that I was mulling everything over in my head, and he knew that he couldn't push it. He always seemed to know exactly what I needed at any given moment, not always what I wanted, but what I needed. Like how on the last day of break he knew that I needed to get out of the house. He asked me to go on one last jaunt (his word, not mine) through Bon Temps since the three of us were leaving early tomorrow morning.

There were no serious conversations that day, we walked around, he bought me a cup of coffee and we went into the lone department store in downtown Bon Temps where I helped him pick out a gift for his sister. We had fun laughing at some of the crazy fashion trends that people seemed to be following, like a pair of what looked suspiciously like leggings made of leather. In the end he picked out a beautiful blue 50s style cardigan with silver beading around the neck. He kept calling it a grandma sweater, but apparently Pam had a weakness for pastels and clothing that looked like it should have belonged to June Cleaver. It was a great day, for the most part, with one dark cloud waiting for us when we got home.

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As Eric and I entered the house, shaking the snow off of our clothes and laughing. There was a shout of s "Hey, you two!" from the kitchen. Jason was in there and I could smell his amazing harvest pie cooking away, a scent that seemed to confuse Eric who shrugged and followed me into the kitchen, stopping short at the sight of Jason standing by the oven wearing an apron.

"Jason," Eric started warily "what are you doing near the oven?"

"Making pie." Jason said trying to hide his embarrassment as he tried to be sneaky about taking off the apron, as if Eric could unsee it. I couldn't stop myself from jumping up and down like a little kid, clapping and shouting "Yay!"

"Um, don't take this the wrong way, but is that safe? I mean, you can't even boil water." Eric clearly didn't know about Jason's deep dark secret, a realization that sent me into another round of giggles.

"Eric you didn't know? Jason here bakes. He can't cook to save his life, but baking is practically an art form!"

"Seriously, dude?"

Jason looked sheepish, "What? I like it. Don't tell me it's not manly!"

"Oh, no." Eric told him, "I'm just wondering why I've never benefited from this particular skill before."

"Possibly because my teammates would mock me until graduation?"

"Aw, Jason don't say that. I'm sure there are football player bakers out there." I told him.

"Yea," Eric said, chuckling and looking at me "I'm sure Brett Favre makes a mean chocolate chip cookie."

"Fine then, you just can't have any."Jason told him pouting. I couldn't help laughing at the look on Eric's face, it was a strange cross between devastation and amusement. "Oh, Sookie, while you two were gone somebody stopped by to see you."

"Oh, yea? Who?" That was odd, I'd already seen all of my friends from high school, and most of them had already gone back to college. Plus, anyone who knew me knew that one of my biggest pet peeves was when people who don't call before they stop by. I mean really, it's just rude, give me time to shove the mess into closets. No one from Vandy lives around here. Except…

"Some guy named Bill."

Oh, no.

"Oh, what did he want." I asked fighting to stay calm and control the fear in my voice.

"He said he and his family were visiting his uncle across the way. They were on their way back home and just thought he'd swing by and say 'hi'. But I told him you were out with Eric."

Shit.

"Oh, ok. Um, I'm going to go finish packing for school." I booked it up to my room before either of them could say anything.

Shit, shit, shit, shit. This is not good. Bill knows that I was hanging out with another guy. He hates that. Oh, God. He's going to… I honestly don't know what he's going to do.

There was a gentle knock at my door "Sookie?" Eric called softly, nudging the door open. "Everything ok?"

"Yea." I said wiping away tears I didn't know I'd been shedding. "I just have a lot to finish packing before my flight tomorrow." I said turning to face him and praying that my red eyes wouldn't give away that I'd been crying.

"Oh, yea. I've got some of that left too."

"I know. You two are still dropping me off at the airport on the way out of town, right?"

"Yea, sure, sure." He says awkwardly, looking at the floor. I've never seen him so nervous. "So, I had a really great time with you this past month and I just… well, here's my email and number, just in case you ever, you know, want to talk or whatever." He handed me a slip of paper.

"Oh, great thanks. I'll jot mine down for you before you leave."

"Ok, I'm going to go pack then." There's an awkward feeling in the air, something that hasn't been there before, and he walks out of the room.

The first thing I did was rush over to my laptop, I needed a new email if I want to talk to Eric again. An account that Bill didn't have the password for. I set up an account on gmail and wrote it down on a slip of paper along with my cell phone number. I jogged over to Eric's doorway to give it to him before I lost my nerve, it was the first time I'd done something I knew that Bill wouldn't approve of since we had started dating.

"Here you go Eric."

"Thanks, Sookie." He looked so relieved that I'd given him my information, that I hadn't rejected his attempt to reach out to me.

"Ok, I seriously need to go finish packing now." I told him and he laughed.

"Yea, get out of here, let me know if you need anything."

"Will do."

I finished all of my packing before dinner which was fantastic, Gran had pulled out all of the stops and made all of our favorite foods, even Eric's. We ended it with Jason's pie and, true to his word Jason wouldn't let Eric have any. He spent all of dessert pouting as Jason and I discussed exactly how good the pie was and Gran laughed. After dinner the boys ran around frantically searching for anything they might have forgotten before we all headed up to bed, I had an early flight to catch and they had a long drive ahead of them.

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The next morning I had to drag myself out of bed and down to the kitchen, still in my PJ's with my fluffy pink bunny slippers on my feet.

"Good morning sleepy head!" Jason said as I walked into the kitchen, he held out a steaming mug of coffee to me.

"I trained you very well." I mutter. A sentiment that is met with laughter.

"Oh, right. You haven't actually seen morning Sookie, have you? She's a bit of a caffeine junkie." I hear Jason explaining to someone, I look up and notice Eric sitting across the island from me.

"So, you like coffee then?" He asks me.

"Only with my oxygen." I tell him like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"And you're sarcastic in the mornings. Delightful." He says with a smile to let me know he's just messing around.

"I'm always delightful." I say reaching across the island to steal his mug since I had already finished my cup. I take a swig and then spit it out. "What IS that?" I sputter, trying to get the horrible taste out of my mouth.

"Tea." He tells me with a smirk.

"Why would you drink tea when there is coffee to be had?"

"Because coffee is bad for you."

"No, coffee is your friend. Especially MY coffee."

"Coffee Sookie-style blackens your teeth and rots your insides." Jason chimes in.

It's almost like I'm myself again, the girl I was before Bill sank his claws into me. I used to banter, I used to be funny.

"Ok, sis, you better go get dressed if you want to make that flight back to Nashville." Jason says pointing at the clock, I follow his finger and scream, I have 10 minutes to get dressed. I scramble upstairs with the sound of Eric and Jason's laughter following me. I yank on the jeans and sweater I picked out the night before, tuck my jeans into the top of the boots I'm wearing, drag a brush through my hair and slap on some cover up and mascara. Then I run back down the stairs where I hear Jason trying to explain "Morning Sookie" to Eric. "I think it's got something to do with the alarm, the pitch or something just sets off a crabby switch."

"Ha, ha. Very funny." I say sarcastically.

"There you are! Sookie Stackhouse light of my life! My own personal ray of sunshine!" Eric greets me dramatically, I can't help laughing no matter how cranky I am.

"Ok, goof balls lets head out."

The boys drove me to the airport and Eric walked me in carrying my bags to the baggage check, once we got to the entrance he gave me a long hug before pulling away and gripping my shoulders. He looked straight into my eyes and told me that giving me his contact information wasn't a gesture, that he wanted me to use it. Even if I didn't want to talk about anything serious he still wanted to hear from me. I only nodded, unable to formulate a response. He pulled me in for another hug, and kissed the top of my head before letting me go with a "Take care of yourself, Sookie." And he headed back out to Jason's waiting car. Something in me hurt seeing him walk away, but I pushed that feeling aside and went to board the plane that would take me back to Nashville, where I was sure an angry Bill would meet me and punish me for spending time with a man who wasn't him.