A/N: Because I decided that I love all of you, and there were quite a few reviews, I got another chapter written. Enjoy!

"What does it feel like?" I asked Jenny, scanning the grocery list Kit and Sam had given us.

"What? Being in love?" she asked, thinking about our conversation on the walk.

I nodded, reaching for a couple jugs of water, "I want to make sure I'm writing it right."

She tilted her head, "I don't know. It's like a warm fuzzy feeling. The person you're in love with can always bring a smile to your face no matter what your mood is. And even if all you're doing is watching TV, you're just happy to be with them."

I nodded, reaching for a bag of chips, "It makes sense."

"Those weren't on the list, were they?"

I shrugged, "Derek gave me money to buy him a few things. These were on the list."

"You'll also do anything for them, no matter how crazy the demand is," she murmured.

I snapped my head towards her, "What?"

She shrugged, "I'm not saying anything bad. Friends do the same things, but usually friends don't do the really stupid things."

I laughed, "No, I'm not going to go buy Derek underwear or anything."

She giggled, "Oh, God! I would never buy Kale underwear. Ever! And we're mates."

I shook my head, "Glad to know we're on the same page."

We made our way through the store, not really talking but not going through in total silence. There were a few simple questions getting thrown between the two of us, but other than that it was peaceful. There were the normal noises of a grocery store but there was no screaming or dead things crawling towards us. It was refreshing for once.

She looked at the list, "Okay, we're done with this stuff. Is there anything else you need to get Derek?"

I pursed my lips, thinking back to list he'd given me before we left, "No, I got it all."

"Okay. Let's go pay for this stuff."

~DP~

Derek took two jugs of water, pushing them into the back of the van, "You got my stuff?"

I nodded, waving towards a bag sitting in the child part of the cart, "It's in there. Were you worried I'd forget?"

He looked at me out of the corner of his eye, "Chloe."

"Oh, shut up," I laughed, "I remembered it all."

"Good. Now I have to hide it."

I giggled, "What if I find it and eat it?"

A rare smile tilted his lips, "Then I'll have to kill you and hide your body."

Simon came around the corner of the van, "What's this about hiding a body?"

I grinned, "We're trying to figure out where we're going to hide your body when we kill you."

His easy smile fell, "Uh…"

"Kidding, Simon," I laughed, rolling my eyes as I loaded the last bag into the van.

"I knew that."

"Okay."

He started to say something else but commotion around the front of the van cut him off. I looked at Derek, hoping he'd tell us what was going on without having to go around front but he was too busy throwing food into a bag. I stumbled back as he threw me my duffle bag, filled with a few extra sets of clothes, my laptop, and a few things I took into hotel rooms with me. He threw Simon a duffle, too, along with Tori's duffle, and took his own duffle and a duffle full of food for himself.

"Derek, what-"

He cut me off, "Simon, Tori went into the store to use the bathroom. Go find her, give her bag to her, then get non-perishable food that's easy to carry, got it?"

"Yeah, Derek, what's going on up there?"

"You don't want to know. Chloe and I are going to try and get a few more things out of here and hope that we can get the van. We'll meet you at that abandoned house back about half a mile, okay?"

Simon nodded, "See you guys soon."

As soon as he was out of earshot, I turned to Derek, "What the hell is going on?"

He placed his hand over my mouth, "Shut. Up. We can't risk being heard. There are a few EG members up there but it doesn't seem like it's anything serious. Dad just mumbled under his breath and told all of us kids to get to that abandoned house about half a mile back. He said he'd meet us there. Kale and Jenny have already headed that way, Brad's waiting behind Sam's van, but you and I have to get some things that are in our van."

I nodded, pushing his hand off my mouth, "What do we need to get?"

"Anything that could give us away."

"I'm on it," I murmured, slipping over the back seat of the van.

~DP~

"Derek."

"Yeah?"

I shook my head, "Nothing. I just needed to make sure I wasn't alone."

"I'm right beside you, Chloe."

"I can't see. It's dark and I don't have werewolf eyesight."

"I'm right here."

"Okay."

~DP~

"Derek."

"I'm right here, Chloe," he answered, knowing the drill after several hours of walking.

"Are we going the right way?"

"Yeah, I can smell the others."

"Why haven't we gotten there yet?"

"You and I had to take a roundabout way. The EG might have been tracking us, but we made plenty of circles. They aren't going to be tracking us anymore."

~DP~

"Derek."

"Chloe."

"Are we almost there?"

"It's not much farther."

"Okay."

"Chloe?"

"Yeah, Derek?"

"Let me know if you need to stop."

"I'm fine."

"Okay."

~DP~

"Derek! Chloe!"

I rubbed my eyes, looking for someone, "Who is that?"

Derek shifted me in his arms, "Its Kale."

"Oh."

"Is she alright?"

"Yeah, she's just exhausted. She about passed out on her feet."

"You can put me down now."

"Let me take you upstairs, Chloe. I'm afraid you'll hurt yourself."

I chuckled, "You have a very good point."

~DP~

"Derek," I whispered.

"I'm right here," he murmured from beside me.

I reached my hand out, brushing my fingers against his, "Good. I was afraid I was alone."

"Why are you so afraid of being alone?"

I stared up at the ceiling in the dark room, "After my mom died, it seemed like I was always alone. I would wake up and cry out and no one would be there. It happened anytime something bad happened. I'm afraid that I'm going to wake up at some point and I'm going to be alone."

"Don't worry, Chloe. I won't leave you alone."

"Thank you," I whispered, my fingers brushing against his again.

As I started to drift off, his hand moved to enclose mine. I squeezed his hand slightly before drifting off into a sound sleep. I wasn't aware of myself rolling over and using his arm as a pillow. Nor was I aware of his arm moving around my waist, but that's the way we were laying when I woke up hours later.

~DP~

I walked out onto the deck, handing Derek coffee in a mug with the handle broken off, "I think we need to discuss our options, Derek."

He stared at the empty road, "He'll be here."

I sat down beside him, wrapping my arms around my legs, "It's been close to a week, Derek. There haven't been any signs of him."

"I know."

"Kale thinks we should try and head back into town. You know, to see if there are any signs of either of them."

"We're running out of supplies, aren't we?"

I chuckled, "You heard us, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"Tomorrow morning, after we all get a good night's sleep, Tori, Simon, you, and I will go. Okay?"

I nodded, "And Derek?"

He got to his feet, sticking his hand out to me, "Yeah?"

I pulled myself up, "About the last couple nights…"

"There's nothing to talk about, Chloe."

"But-"

"Not right now, at least," he finished, "Right now, we need to worry about what's going on with Dad and Sam."

I nodded, pulling open the screen door, "Okay."

I knew he was done talking but a part of me still wanted to push and ask him about what these last few nights had meant. Every night, we slept in our own room, only because it was the only room that hadn't been claimed. We shared a king sized bed, and slept on opposite sides of it, but every morning we found ourselves curled up in the middle. Derek refused to talk about it, and I hadn't tried to pry, but it still continued to eat at me.

~DP~

I watched my feet as we walked in silence, counting every step I took silently. It was like something from a horror film. Four teenagers walking down an abandoned road. All that was missing was the rapist van. I noise at my side made me look up, only to find Derek, Simon, and Tori giving me amused looks.

"I said that out loud, didn't I?"

Tori chuckled, "You realize we've been traveling in what could be described as a rapist van, right?"

I felt my cheeks heat up and I looked back at my feet, "Oh, shut up. You know this is my way of making sense of things."

Simon shook his head, "Go on. Continue to make sense of things. Tell us what happens when the rapist van does come."

I flipped him off, "It's a wonder you can get a girlfriend."

"Hey!"

I grinned, "It's true."

"I don't like you."

"I'm wounded."

~DP~

I walked up to the girl who'd checked Jenny and I out at the register yesterday, "Hi, I was here with my sister yesterday. What happened to the van's that picked us up?"

The girl glanced up from her nails, "They were parked at the motel down the road this morning."

I smiled, "Thanks."

"So?" Derek asked when I walked back outside.

"Parked at the motel this morning," I sighed, "What now?"

"Is there another motel around here?" Simon asked.

"Possibly down this way, but Kit likes to stay on the outskirts of town."

"It's worth a try," Tori suggested.

~DP~

"Can I help you?" the kid behind the desk asked, barely glancing up from the book he was reading.

"Hi, we checked in with our dad last night, but we can't remember what room we were in and we forgot our phones in the room," Simon frowned, "Can you tell us?"

"What's your dad's name?"

"Kit Brown."

The kid scanned the computer, "You're in room 19. It's on the other side of the parking lot."

"Thanks," Simon grinned, coming over to us, "Its room 19, guys. How did we forget that?"

Tori shrugged, "I wasn't paying attention."

We walked across the parking lot, heading towards the room. We were about to knock on the door when I heard a familiar voice inside. A voice that didn't belong to Kit or Sam. I felt my heart sink, having spent the last couple weeks convincing myself that it had all been a lie. Before I could say anything, though, the door opened and a blonde woman walked out.

"Aunt Lauren," I whispered.

Her eyes met mine, "No, Chloe, you're not supposed to be here. None of you are supposed to be here."

I shook my head, "You tricked us."

"No, Chloe. You guys need to get out of here."

"You knew we'd come back," I cried.

"Lauren, who's at the door?" a voice called.

Tori's face fell, "Mom."

"You need to get out of here," Aunt Lauren whispered.

It was too late, though, Mrs. Enright peered over her shoulder, "Victoria. You brought your friends."

Tori paled, "We were just leaving."

"No, why don't you stay?"

Tori shook her head, "No, we really need to go."

Mrs. Enright lunged for us as we all took off running. She shouted orders at Aunt Lauren, telling her to come after us, but Aunt Lauren was frozen. I cast one glance over my shoulder, before I focused my attention on the others in front of me. We hadn't made it far before my foot caught in a hole and my ankle made a cracking noise. I let out a cry of pain, causing Derek to come back and scoop me up.

"It's probably just a sprain," he reassured me, running after Tori and Simon.

I clenched my jaw in pain, "I heard a crack."

"Are you sure it wasn't a pop?"

"I know the difference between a pop and a crack," I scowled.

Simon waved at us, pointing at an alley, "Come on!"

Derek hurried into the alley, setting me down against the wall, "Let me check it out."

I winced as he pulled off my shoe, "Could you please be a little gentle?"

"I'm being as gentle as I can, Chloe," he muttered, rotating my foot.

I bit back a string of curse worse, "Ow."

"I think it's just a sprain," he muttered, casting a wary glance at it.

I nodded, leaning my head back against the wall, "What now?"

"Simon's going to stay with you. Tori and I are going to go scout the town and try to get ahold of Kale, Brad, and Jenny. We'll be back soon."

"Derek, it's cold. I don't have a coat."

He tossed me his backpack, "There's a blanket in there. We'll be back soon."

~DP~

I huddled against the wall in the alley, "How much longer, do you think?"

Simon put him arm around me, "They should be back soon."

I shivered, "I really hope so."

"I can tell."

Derek bounded around the corner, "We need to go, now!"

Simon scrambled to his feet, "What happened?"

"The EG is what happened! They have more people out there looking for us! Let's go!"

"Derek!" I cried, "Are you just going to leave me here?"

His face became conflicted, "Chloe, you can hardly walk…"

"Then help me!"

He tossed another blanket towards me, "We'll come back for you."

Tears sprang to my eyes, "What?"

"We'll be back in two hours tops, okay? We just need to get the EG off our tail."

"What if they find me?"

"They won't, and Chloe?"

"What?" I whispered.

"Never mind," he muttered, running off after Simon.

I waited for hours, huddling in the blankets when the wind happened to blow down the alley. The sun started to peek through the clouds, letting me know that it had been close to five hours since they'd disappeared. I wiped the tears from my cheeks, not allowing myself to cry anymore. It was hopeless, they'd been caught.

When the sun was fully up, I struggled to get to my feet, ignoring the nearly unbearable pain in my ankle. I pushed the blankets Derek had given me into his backpack, and tossed it over my shoulder. I limped out of the alley and into the busy street. A woman across the road froze in her tracks and looked at me. After staring at me for a few moments she hurried over, worry etched on her face.

"Miss, is everything alright?"

I nodded, "I'm just looking."

"Are you sure? You're limping."

"I twisted my ankle, nothing serious."

She put her arm around me, "Here, come with me. Why don't we get you somewhere warm and dry?"

"No, it's fine. I'm fine."

"No arguing, honey, you're shivering."

~DP~

I shrugged, looking at the doctor, "I was with some friends. I fell. They left me to go get help and didn't come back."

"The break suggests you were running."

I sighed, "We were screwing around. I think we were chasing after another friend."

"You said you guys were just passing through."

I nodded, "We're on our way back home to Buffalo. We were in South Carolina visiting some friends."

The doctor helped me up, "Let me adjust these crutches then you'll be on your way."

"Thank you."

~DP~

"Thank you for all your help," I murmured at the woman who was packing up the things she'd bought for me in the last few weeks.

She gave me a small smile, "I'd love to keep you here, but they said you couldn't stay."

"I really appreciate all your help," I told her, looking down at my hands.

"I wrote my number down and put in your bag," she told me, "If you ever need help, just call me."

"Where did you say I was going?"

"Lyle House. It's a group home on the other side of town. They have good reviews."

"Who did you say owned it?"

"I didn't," she frowned, "Now that you mention it, no one told me who did own it."

My shoulders slumped, "Okay."

She pulled me into a hug, "Remember, dear, all you have to do is call."

I returned the hug, jumping when a car horn was heard, "I guess I'd better go."

She picked up my bag, "I'll walk you out. I know you're still a little unsteady on that new brace."

I looked down at the big black brace that covered my leg up to my knee, "It's just so bulky."

"Would you rather still be in the cast with crutches?"

I grinned, "Nope. I love this brace."

She chuckled, "Come on, dear."

~DP~

"Welcome to Lyle House, Miss Sanders."

I gave my fakest smile to the woman in front of me, leaning on my suitcase in hopes of keeping my balance, "Thank you, Mrs. Talbot. I was hoping I could go lay down for a while, though."

"I'm afraid not, dear. I have to introduce you to the others."

I followed her down the hallway, using the wall as support, "Can we make it quick? My ankle is really bothering me."

"Liar, you just want to talk to me," Liz teased, walking along beside me.

"I'm sorry, Miss Sanders, but dinner is right after introductions."

"Okay," I sighed.

Liz frowned, "This place looks really familiar."

Miss Talbot led me into a room, "Guys, this is Miss Chloe Sanders. Please make her feel welcome."

The room was silent for a moment until a fist hit the table, "Damn it!"

Miss Talbot jumped beside me, "Derek, you know the rules. I'll put you on double laundry duty."

His face darkened, "Sorry, ma'am."

I bit back a giggle, "Nice to know you do have manners."

"Chloe, this young man is Derek, that's his brother Simon, and his sister Victoria."

"It's Tori," she scowled.

"Sorry, I mean Tori. There's Rae, and that's Brady."

"It's nice to meet you, Brady," I smiled, "And it's nice to see the rest of you again."

Miss Talbot grew troubled, "You know everyone?"

"We were friends at Buffalo High," I answered.

"I guess we really don't need to do introductions then, do we? Why don't you guys get caught up while I finish dinner?"

Tori gave her a sickly sweet smile, "Of course, Miss Talbot."

"Will you be okay, Chloe? You mentioned that your ankle was bothering you."

I smiled, "I'll just sit down and prop it up."

"Okay, dear."

When she left the room, I made my way over to the unoccupied couch, barely making it two feet before falling, "Shit."

"Chloe!" Tori exclaimed.

I pushed my hair out of my face, fighting off tears of humiliation, "I'm fine. I'm just not used to this god damn brace."

Derek got up, walking over and crouching down beside me, "Here, let me help you."

I glared at him, smacking his hand away, "I don't need help."

"Chloe, don't be like this."

"It's just a sprain. You'll be fine. It's not serious," I mimicked, "I'm lucky they didn't have to operate."

Derek pinched his nose, "I'm sorry, okay? I had other things on my mind."

I struggled to my feet, limping over to the couch, "Speaking of other things, how did you end up here?"

Simon shook his head behind Derek's back, making a slicing motion across his neck. My brow furrowed, and I looked to Derek and Tori, noticing that most of their faces had darkened. Derek stomped over and sat back down where he had been sitting before I fell, and Tori focused on the TV. I met Simon's eyes, a silent message being sent between the two of us. He'd tell me later.

"Have you guys called Kale, Jenny, or Brad?" I finally asked after a long silence.

Tori nodded, shifting her focus back to me, "They're working on finding Dad and Sam, but since they're not our legal guardians, they can't do anything."

"What about my Dad?"

"Isn't he in Singapore?" Simon asked.

I groaned, "Yeah, meaning I can't get ahold of him."

Derek frowned, "How did you end up here?"

"I somehow got out of that alley and a woman came to help. She took me in and took care of me until social services wouldn't let her keep me anymore. She paid my doctor bills, bought me clothes, and fed me. I didn't want to leave, but social services refused to let me stay until we could find Kit. Did you know my dad put him down as my legal guardian while he's away?"

"I didn't know that," Simon frowned, "Why would he do that?"

I shrugged, "I couldn't tell you. But we know that we'll always end up together."

"Yeah, we will."

"This woman, Chloe, what was her name?" Derek asked quietly.

"I don't know her last name, but her first name was Merry. Like Merry Christmas. The name fit her personality."

The blood drained from Simon's face, "Derek…?"

Derek shook his head, "No, she's gone. It's not her."

"But-"

"It's not Mom, Simon! Mom left, and she isn't coming back."

"It's not a common name, Derek."

"But it is a name. Mom's long gone, Simon."

"What if it was her? Chloe looks exactly like Jen. Mom and Jen got to be friends when Dad introduced them. If it was Mom, she'd have recognized Chloe."

"It wasn't her, Simon."

"But-"

Derek shook his head, stopping anymore protests, "Here comes Miss Talbot."

She walked in the door just as he finished, "Dinner's ready, kids."

I pushed to my feet, reaching for the wall but finding Derek already there, "I can use the wall."

"And it's safer if I help you," he retorted, giving me a look that stopped me from any more arguments.

A/N: Just to clear something up, earlier in the story I mentioned that Simon's mom died, but I'm changing it so that she just left. Also, Derek refers to her as "Mom," but he's still adopted. It's just like him referring to Kit as "Dad." Also, I wanted to mention that if you go look at Betrayal's and Mistakes, you'll see that it's in the process of being rewritten. I totally messed up the storyline I originally started writing and I don't like what I have written. I'll try to have the first rewritten chapter up in a month.

I might be able to get another chapter written in the next couple weeks, but with the holidays, things are kind of crazy. I'm going back to the doctor about my wrist soon and there's a very good chance that I'm going to have surgery. Plus, when school starts again, things are going to be even crazier than they have been. With finals coming up right after break, staying after school an extra hour most nights, and homework taking me between two and four hours every night, writing is at the bottom of my priority list. I love your reviews and waking up to a new one in my inbox most mornings makes me smile. So, please review. :) Maybe we can try and get to 50 reviews before my next update?