A/N: I would just like to personally thank everyone who has been leaving reviews and comments. It really helps me to continue my story knowing that people are enjoying them! Thank you all so much!

As always, I own nothing, and please enjoy and feel free to comment and review.

Late Nights

The mornings of Jade waking up naturally were few and far between. On most occasions, when she was able to fall asleep at a decent hour, she was ripped unceremoniously from her slumber by one of three nightmares. The first and most frequent nightmare was of her being shot. Now this dream, because it was so frequent and common to her at this point, usually allowed her to roll over and open her eyes, focusing just enough for her not to panic. She could handle this nightmare; well, it made her wounds ache from the thought, but the pain had never really gone away to begin with. She could deal with this nightmare. The second nightmare was of the day her mother dropped her off with Kiana. This nightmare played out in many different fashions, but none were really quite that frightening, just unnerving and although it was difficult, Jade could and would sleep through these dreams.

Unfortunately, neither of these dreams showed up tonight and Jade was ripped awake by the sudden and intense feeling that she was teetering on the precipice of her sanity. She had managed to keep herself from screaming this time; a few times before she had the misfortunate of screaming out and either Holly or Gail had ended up at her door. Oh, how embarrassing that had ended up being. She was nearly sixteen and having full blown nightmares like a six year old. But no, this time she had caught herself and instead of screaming, just bolted up straight in her bed with a mixture of sweat and tears streaming down her cheeks and pooling near the base of her neck. She ran her weak hand across the scar of where her surgery had begun and shook her head furiously. When was this shit going to stop!

She was trembling, which her common sense told her could be from the fear of her dream or erratic blood sugar that seemed to plague her some nights. She moved back until her back felt the headboard and shuttered, searching her nightstand for the lamp. When the light was on and her eyes fully focused, she picked up the quick-kit that was always there and the bottle of orange that Holly had insisted she keep there in case of these episodes. She pricked her finger expertly and placed the drop of blood on the awaiting strip. In a few moment, 53 popped up on the screen, and Jade moved a shaky hand to grab the bottle of orange on the nightstand. Taking a quick few swallows, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and took a few deep breaths. What in the hell was wrong with her? It was so embarrassing, waking up like a frightened child even when only she knew about it. She wiped her eyes furiously. She wasn't a damn child anymore. Hell, she was stronger when she was a child, because at least then she could keep it together enough not to let Nina know what was going on.

Jade looked over her shoulder to the other side of the full sized bed and tried to stop the tears that were pooling near her eyelids now. She and Nina had shared a bed until four months ago…and now Nina was in a coffin, all because Jade had been too preoccupied to protect her. She cocked her head back slightly and wished to God she had somehow been a better sister, or hell, just a better person in general. Her invention had gotten three people killed and Gail shot. She couldn't for the life of her understand why Gail or Holly for that matter, wanted her anywhere around; even her own sister had wanted her dead. And perhaps that's where she deserved to be…hell, Nina didn't get to live and all she had done was swallow one of her faulty devices. She had literally been shot and walked away from it. How in the hell was that fair? The mere thought of being shot made Jade tense up and her wounds throb mercilessly. The only thing that ever helped that was a nice cool shower…Jade didn't really understand why, but it always worked. So at nearly two o'clock in the morning, she made her way into her bathroom and turned on the cool water, praying that it would at least stop the pain in her shoulder, even if it didn't quell the misery floating around in her head.

Gail didn't know what exactly woke her; the sound of water running down the hall or the slight pounding of her head. Was it possible to get a blaring headache while she was sleeping? She felt Holly's body wrapped around hers and even though she had a headache, this was one hell of a way to wake up. Gail debated for a moment if she wanted to check on the sound of water running down the hall, or revel in the amazing feel of Holly's leg wrapped around her midsection. After a few quick and longing breaths, Gail decided that the former was probably more necessary; hell, it was nearly two in the morning and that almost positively meant a nightmare.

She disentangled her and Holly's body as gently as possible and waited until Holly turned on her other side before fully sitting up in bed. In the darkened room it was nearly impossible to find her shorts and tank top that were tangled within the sheets and comfortable on the bed. However, when she had found and slipped them on, she headed out of the bedroom door as quietly as possible.

The water had quit running at this point and just as Gail entered the hallway, Jade was exiting the bathroom. "Sorry, did I wake you?" the girl asked sadly. Gail could tell from her eyes that she had been crying, but Jade straightened her back and tried to manufacture a smile.

"Nah," Gail lied, she rubbed her flat stomach and smiled. "I was actually starving, join me for a late night snack." It wasn't that big of a lie; Gail was always starving and it seemed to be enough of an excuse for Jade to follow her downstairs and into the kitchen. Gail opened the cabinets and rifled through the contents. "You two have way too much healthy food," she said turning back to Jade, who was leaning uncomfortably against the marble countertop. "Barely any chips or popcorn or chocolate or anything," she continued to talk until she found some chips at the back of the cabinet. She pulled them out, "You want anything?"

"I just had orange juice," Jade mumbled looking down at the floor.

"That's not a snack," Gail frowned. She opened the fridge and pulled a bowl of grapes. "You like your grapes cold?" Gail shook her head.

"Holly said they last longer that way," Jade laughed a bit. She took a few and popped them into her mouth, while Gail opened her bag of chips. "What was getting on your nerves earlier tonight? Besides me…"

Gail crunched down on some chips. "You do not get on my nerves…nearly as much as other people…so you're good." A silence fell between them as Gail nearly polished off her bag of chips and Jade plucked at the grapes. "Were you in pain tonight? You kept rubbing your shoulder…"

"I'm always in pain…but yeah, the shoulder hurts more than anything. It's a gnawing pain and the whole arm is weak and it is never going to get better." Jade paused for a while before stating, "Holly said Kiana is going to plea… how long is she going to get?"

Gail closed her eyes. She didn't want to be honest with Jade because in this case, honesty really sucked. Still, she watched Jade for a moment. "Seven years," she finally whispered.

"For two attempted murders?" Jade questioned not fully comprehending what Gail was saying.

"They aren't going to charge her with attempted murder for you, Jade. They're saying self-defense. She is getting five years for me, and two years for gun charges."

Jade stopped leaning against the counter and turned to fully look at Gail. "She'll be out in less than four years," there was a tremble in Jade's already weakened voice.

Gail rung the back of her neck anxiously. This was her fault, the least she could do was admit that to the girl. "This is my fault Jade…"

"It's not your fault," Jade shook her head vehemently. "It's my fault…because I pulled a gun on her and wasn't brave enough to use it."

"You'd be detained right now if you would have shot her…"

"Yeah, but at least she'd be dead…" Jade said quickly. "And I wouldn't in pain or scared to death, having nightmares every night!"

"You're still having nightmares?" Gail questioned with more concerned than she had for most things. Jade looked away with embarrassment and headed into the living room. "Jade, did you have a nightmare tonight."

"It's not important."

"It's important to me," Gail said seriously. "What was your nightmare about?"

Jade settled on the couch and looked up at Gail, who was now generally pacing the living room floor. "It's not easy to talk to you when you're pacing," Jade noted. She stopped, and settled at the other edge of the couch. "I dreamt about Nina…" she said softly, quickly flicking away a tear that had escaped. "We were kids, just playing outside and I just wanted to be alone, so I ran away from her and she was chasing me, laughing and smiling, like always…but then I don't hear her laugh and I turn around and she's gone. I looked and looked for her …and eventually I saw the casket…" Jade couldn't finished, so she pulled her knees to her chest and balanced her chin on her knees. "I got accepted to MIT…" she changed the subject quickly.

Gail looked tried to bite back her own tears, but was failing miserably. "I heard… why didn't you tell me sooner?" but that was a futile question, because the likely answer was, because she had been behaving like a distant bitch to both Jade and Holly the entire day.

Jade smirked, "because I'm not going," the girl admitted. "I don't sleep Gail…I cry myself to sleep most nights, and when I do manage to go to sleep, I wake myself up in tears. If I didn't know that you and Holly were down the hall…"

"Why didn't you tell us that?"

"Holly is a doctor…she was so excited when we opened that letter. It's MIT and kids like me don't get into schools like that…she was so proud and you…I can only imagine how much you don't want to worry about the teenage brat anymore…but I'm too scared to even go to sleep at night…"

Gail pulled the girl into a tight hug. "Hey…" she whispered. "I would never want you gone and Holly and I are never going to be anything but proud of you," she promised. "We love you and you are welcome here." Gail just held the girl for a while.

"My sister tried to kill me and I was successful at killing my little sister…"

"You didn't kill Nina…you can't control what happens to other people…"

"Just like you can't control how much time Kiana gets," Jade countered leaning hear head back on the couch and closing her eyes. "What am I going to do Gail…I can't even sleep."

"Sweetheart, talk to the therapist. It's not the most fun thing…trust me, I know. But it's effective."

"You've been to a therapist?" Kiana questioned now looking at Gail.

"A lot of bad things happened very close together and a therapist helped sort them out," Gail nodded. She felt Jade put her head on her shoulder. "Sometime you have to let the process work, Jade."

"Three years for shooting us both doesn't seem fair, Gail," Jade said hell bent on changing the subject off of therapy.

"Jade, Kiana wants to talk to me before she signs her plea deal," Gail admitted reluctantly. She felt Jade's head bounce up from her shoulder. She could feel the girl's eyes as they bore into her. "I don't want to meet with her…but that's what she wants." When Jade didn't say anything, Gail leaned forward at clicked on the television. White noise was better than the eerie silence that had fell between them. She flipped through the channels and settled on an old 80s movie. "Return of the Swamp Thing," she smiled gently nudging Jade. The girl couldn't help but smile too.

"I've never heard of that…it's like twenty years before my time…:

"Twenty years…twenty years…really Jade?" Gail managed to tease. She had been around three when the movie came out, but she could still remember Steve watching it endlessly.

"Gail," Jade's voice had that serious glint to it, "Kiana wouldn't want to see you for no reason. If she has something to tell you …it's important and likely devious."

"So you would go?" Gail asked, her blue eyes searching the girl's brown ones.

Jade put her head back on Gail's shoulder. "It's a lot better to know what Kiana is up to than not."

Gail nodded her understanding. "Well, we aren't going to worry about that right now," she decided. "We're going to watch Swamp Thing…" Jade yawned, but tried to perk up, because she was still a little scared to go to sleep. "Hey…go to sleep…I'll be right here." Gail promised her and soon the girl had drifted off to sleep.

Gail had retired back to bed after Jade woke up that morning. It was well after two that afternoon when she finally descended the stairs the next day.

"Oh, so you are finally awake?" Holly said cocking her eyebrow as she watched Gail plop down beside her. She kissed her girlfriend and smiled. "So I get to wake up by myself and then you don't get up until two…you are becoming a terrible girlfriend."

"I was always a terrible girlfriend," Gail laughed. "You would have been so proud of us last night."

"And why is that? When I first got up you and Jade were on opposite sides of the couch snoring…should I be proud that you two can fit on the couch comfortably?" Holly said sarcastically.

"No," Gail said kissing Holly's neck. She sat back on the couch with a small smile crossing her lips. "We actually talked…like really talked." Holly smiled also. "Maybe I'm not as bad at this whole thing as I thought…" Gail got out before she heard Jade bouncing down the stairs.

"Holly does this match?" the girl had already gotten out before she saw Gail sitting on the edge of the couch.

"That looks great," Holly nodded at the blue and white skirt and light pink shirt that Jade had on.

"Nice," Jade smiled. "Do you think I could borrow a necklace or something? I don't have anything…"

"Sure, go upstairs and get something out of my jewelry box," Holly agreed. Jade turned to leave, but Gail stopped her.

"Hey...hey…where are you going?" she asked.

"The movies," Jade said a little too quickly.

"Wait…wait…wait…" Gail stopped her again. "Who else is going?"

Jade quickly glanced at Holly and then back to Gail. "A few people…" when Gail didn't break her gaze, Jade sighed. "Ricky, me…"

"Who the hell is Ricky?" Gail really didn't need to be told that this was some puberty ridden teenager that wanted to get Jade in a dark movie theater to…

"A friend," Jade replied simply.

"A friend…you care to be more thorough in your description?"

"He's just a guy I'm going to a movie with…" Jade huffed. "Can I finish getting dressed?"

After Jade disappeared up the stairs, Gail turned to Holly with a what the hell look on her face. "It's a movie," Holly said plainly.

"Who the hell is this Ricky?"

"Some guy Jade met at college last semester…"

"A college student! She's is not going out with a college guy! She's fifteen!"

"She'll be sixteen next weekend and he's only seventeen himself. He worked at the college, he's still in his last year of high school," Holly explained. "And she's going to a day movie and lunch so it's barely a date."

"A dark movie theater, Holly…with a seventeen year old boy…what happens there, Holly?" Gail said thinking back to her teenage years. She shuttered at the mere thought.

"Would you like to keep her in a bubble?" Holly asked picking her medical journal back up and thumbing through the pages again.

"Yes," Gail smiled at the idea. Jade made it back down the stairs.

"How do I look?" she asked meekly.

Gail tightened her jaw, but Holly smiled. "Great…" she smiled. "Do you want a ride to the theater?"

"Donyelle and Chris are going to pick me up and then we are picking Ricky up," Jade explained.

"Donyelle Myer?" Gail asked recognizing the name. She was the daughter of one of the guys that worked in the homicide unit. She was a pretty good and quiet kid, but Gail still didn't like the situation.

"Yes, Donyelle Myer and Christopher Nixon and Richard Richmond…" Jade rolled her eyes.

"Do you have cash?" Holly asked looking up from her journal. Jade shook her head and Holly got up to get her bag.

"Listen, if anything out of the way happens, you call me IMMEDIATELY," Gail instructed.

Jade figured it would be easier to just agree with Gail. "Okay," she said taking two bills from Holly. "I think they are outside," Jade said opening the door. "I'll be back in a couple of hours, okay."

It took everything within Gail not to take down the license plate number of the car Jade left in. Instead Gail plopped down in a chair and folded her arms in front of her chest. Holly came over and sat on her girlfriend's lap. "Stop pouting," Holly said lifting her chin and kissing Gail slowly but passionately. "I love how protective you are of us…" she whispered in Gail's ear.

"You do, huh?" Gail said shifting a bit and rubbing her hands up and down Holly's back. "She's not going to MIT yet, ya know?" she informed Holly.

Holly frowned. "Why not?"

"She's not ready, baby," Gail said softly. "She's still having nightmares and she's just not ready. She doesn't want to disappoint us though."

"Well, whatever is best for her, Gail." Holly said leaning her head against Gail's. Holly outlined Gail's lips with her fingertip. "You still aren't telling me something…" Holly could see the angst in Gail's eyes.

"I told Jade about Kiana and she said Kiana wouldn't want to see me for no reason," she said softly.

"So you are going to see Kiana Reyes, the person who shot you and Jade?"

Gail threaded her fingers with Holly's. She didn't have to answer that question, because Holly knew that tomorrow morning, Gail would be talking to Kiana Reyes face to face.