Hola~ Here is Chapter 4! Hopefully you didn't wait too long...

Oh! I'm so very happy, because there is no school tomorrow! Which is very rare, because we've been iced in...and I live in Texas...so ice is rare(I know that's kind of stereo-typical...but it's true!). XD Yes, so it's a nice change, AND no bio test tomorrow!

Okay, back to the story! Enjoy~

Disclaimer: Nothing in this following chapter is mine, nor will ever be mine.

What is he doing here?!

The hum of talking slowly died down and the music stopped as everyone became aware of the newcomer.

Cliff looked from me to Jack, confused.

"Jack…" I choke out again.

"Hey, sis," he greeted me confidently. I felt anger grow inside of me.

"How dare you! You come here, act like everything is just dandy, and you expect me to forget everything you did to me, and just pretend that nothing had ever happened, do you?! No! I will not forget that, Jack! I won't! You practically ruined my life! How am I supposed to forget that? Get brainwashed?!" I hate him. I hate him. I hate him.

"Now now, Claire," Jack spoke quietly. "That's not what I expected at all. But I'll be happy to try to get you brainwashed, if you want."

The Inn was completely silent now, watching the screaming match between me and Jack.

"NO! I don't even know why I'm even wasting my time with you right now, because it's not worth it. I could be having the time of my life at this dance! But nooo, you just had to show up and ruin my life again! My life is already ruined a second time because of my disea-" I stopped short. I had almost yelled out to the whole room that I had a disease. I wonder if anyone noticed…

"What was that? Disea? That doesn't sound like a word, sis. Care to finish that word?" Jack asked sweetly. I shook my head, my mouth tightly closed.

"It's none of your business, Jack. So I would appreciate it if you left. Now."

Jack sighed and walked over to where I was standing. He leaned down and whispered in my ear, "I need to talk to you outside."

"Why would you need me to talk to you outside?" I questioned him loudly. Jack smacked his forehead and pulled me outside by my arm. Once outside, I yanked away from his grasp angrily.

"What?!"

"It's about Mom and Dad. Dad died in surgery. Mom was overcome with grief, and died a week later. …Mom gave me this during her final moments. She wanted you to have it." Jack handed me a folded piece of paper. I took it, and unfolded it. Scanning it, I saw that it was Mom's handwriting.

Dear Claire,

If you're reading this, then you can assume that I'm dead right now. Don't worry; I've gone to a better place, and so has your father. Now I know you're thinking, everyone says that, but it's true.

Now that I'm gone, I want you to take care of your brother and sister, okay? I'm trusting you. I know that you don't want to talk to Jack, and I understand that, but I want you to let go of the past. It's not good to hold grudges.

Remember those dresses I sent you? You're probably never going to wear them, but they have great sentimental value. They were your grandmother's, so don't let them go to waste.

Remember that I love you, and be careful.

Love, Mom

I looked up at Jack, my anger washing away, and tears stinging my eyes.

"Is Jill here too?" I wanted to see my sister so bad, it hurt. And Jack could see that.

"Yes, she's at the beach. You know how much she loves beaches." Jack answered softly.

"Can I go see her?" Jack nodded in reply. I don't even know why I had asked him if I could go, he can't tell me what to do. Either way, I took off towards the beach, the tears now running down my face.

"Jill!" I wailed as soon as I felt the sand at my feet. Jill, who was sitting on the dock, looked around. She had been crying, too. I sprinted over to her. She stood up and soon we were hugging and crying like there was no tomorrow. Jill eventually pulled away and looked at me.

"Wow, Claire, you look so different. Why are you wearing a dress? You've never worn a dress your whole life," she noticed. "And, just so you know, your make-up is messed up now."

I laughed quietly, wiping away my tears, probably messing up my make-up even more. I knew she said that to make me feel better…she has a knack for that. I sniffed.

"I don't care. I've missed you so much Jill, why haven't you visited sooner?"

"Oh, you know. Work, Jack, Mom and D-Dad…they all keep me pretty busy." I noticed she stuttered when she said "Mom and Dad".

"Yeah…so, how long are you planning on staying?" I hope she stays for a while; I want to catch up on anything interesting I might have missed while away from home.

"About a month, maybe." My younger sister answered. I suddenly felt more tears coming, but I blinked them away.

"Oh, a m-month… That's cool. How about I introduce you to my friends? I'm sure they'd love to meet you," I offered.

"Right now? It's like, 9 o' clock! Wouldn't they all be asleep?"

"Oh, no, they're all at the Inn. We were having a party, which explains my dress."

"Oh."

We started walking off the dock and onto the beach. I slipped off my shoes and felt the sand between my toes. But putting my shoes back on, I instantly regretted it, because now there was a ton of sand in my shoes.

We arrived back at the Inn, and saw Jack leaning against the wall. I ignored him, but when he saw another tear slide down my cheek, he caught my arm.

"Hey, don't cry sis," he tried to comfort me.

"Don't talk to me."

Jill and I went inside. The music was still off, but everyone was sitting down at a table or the bar, chatting animatedly. When the door slammed shut, silence filled the room as it had before, and nine pairs of eyes looked up at me.

I looked at Jill nervously, then back at everyone else.

"Hey, this is Jill…" I said, indicating Jill. "She's my sister."

Silence.

"…Are you guys dead or something?" I was getting creeped out.

More silence.

"Right, well. I say we call it a night and…go home?" I twirled around and made for the door, but…

"C-Claire…" someone murmured. Facing back towards the crowd, I saw that the someone was Elli. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Tell you what?"

"Why didn't you tell us about your…disease?"

Horrified, I looked around at Cliff. Did he tell?! His eyes were wide, and he was shaking his head furiously. Mary also had known about it, but I know she wouldn't tell. So, if it wasn't Cliff or Mary, then it had to have been…Doctor.

I easily spotted Doctor in the crowd. I shot him a glare.

"Yeah…like I said, let's call it a night," I whirled around again and sprinted out the door. I didn't stop until I was back at home.

I slumped down onto the floor. The tears started to fall.

My world was slowly falling apart. Everything was going wrong. Why? Why?! I hate my life. I have nothing to live for now. I should just die, right here, right now. All I'm doing is procrastinating the day of my death. This would be easier, right?

No, said a little voice in my head. It doesn't have to be this way. You have something to live for. Your friends, family. Don't give up.

What friends? What family? No one is really here for me. None of them really care about me. Besides, even if they did, how could I fix things? I'm going to die anyway.

What are you saying, Claire? You do have friends. The voice was now indignant. You have Mary, Cliff, and Ann. And you still have Jack and Jill. Of course they all care about you. You just need to give them a chance.

A chance…A chance… Could I have a second chance at life? Can I do something to fix everything?

Yes.

The ending...doesn't make sense... D: Oh well...

Any critisisms? Any comments? Review please! And can I please have more than 1 reviewer? Thank you! Buh-bye!