A/N: I'm back! Right, just a short little chapter to ease me back into things. The next one should be coming fairly soon. Just a quick note on timelines, we're now gonna start moving away from the religious way I've been following the series. You'll have one small hint of it in here, but it will become more and more clear as we're moving along through the next chapters.

Oh, and I should warn you that I have a notepad that I "stole" (Es keeps saying I didn't, I keep saying I did) from a hotel I was in, and it's a mess. Some of it is good, though other things are complete and utter bull. Just goes to show that not all great ideas comes from being drunk :P

And one last thing, I've missed this place! I've missed this story! And I sure as hell have missed all of you guys (writers and reviewers) You all are wonderful people, this one is for all the other brilliant writers on here, you should know who you are as I review your stories at length.

Enjoy!

Chapter 9: Aftermath

Spasms still shook Naomi's body as she came back to reality. Her breath still came in bursts. Hands still clenching the blanket beneath her, trying to grab hold of something real. Eyes squeezed shut, the images of Emily still burning they're way into her brain.

She could still feel her above her, holding her down, keeping her from floating away to join the millions of stars in the sky above her. She slowly opened her eyes, and felt her hands release the death grip she had on the blanket. With one last shaky breath, she forced her mind back to where she was, and sat up.

That had been intense. The feelings of want had been so strong, that they had drowned out the fear and let her be taken over by something far more powerful. She could still feel the disbelief of the situation in her head. She had been too stunned to stop it, been taken by surprise at the strength of her own need. It had almost felt like when she stopped fighting the flickers.

She understood better the idiocy it had been fighting them in the first place. No, not idiocy, the same crippling fear she felt in herself every time she was around Emily in the flickers. Somehow they had to be connected. Somehow, in the flickers, she had still managed to hold herself back. To let the last remains of her fear hold her in their grip and not allowing her to let herself go completely.

She stared into the flames of her little campfire, trying to figure out more why the flickers were important. She watched absentmindedly as the flames turned to embers, glowing faintly in the still dark forest. She sighed softly and laid back down. She closed her eyes and intended to find a few minutes of sleep, so she could look at it with fresh eyes in the morning.

*Flicker* Emily snuggled herself closer to Naomi, a content little sigh escaping her even as she slept. Naomi hadn't closed an eyelid, she just laid there listening to the forest. She turned her eyes away from the stars above her, and looked at the sleeping redhead beside her. She could just make her out from the glowing light of the dying fire. Hesitantly she reached out and pushed a strand of red hair off her face, Emily's nose twitched and she gripped Naomi a bit tighter.

Naomi felt the her insides constrict with fear. This little wonderful person besides her, had no idea how utterly she had destroyed what had taken years to build. She knew she should go now, leave this place. Leave Emily. Her heart clenched at the idea.

It would be easier to leave her now, to just go and not look back, but instead of extracting herself from the grip Emily had on her, she found herself gripping her back. A few more minutes couldn't hurt. She drifted into a pleasant sleep, promising herself that she was going to run, she just needed a few minutes to get her head together. *Flicker*

She was awoken by the sounds of birds chirping merrily in the trees around her. She yawned and stretched, feeling oddly refreshed from her short slumber. A quick glance at her watch told her that she still had time to get back home and grab a quick shower before she went to school.

Gathering up all her things, making sure her campfire was properly put out, she walked slowly up to where she had left her bike. Her mood was still on a high after the flickers she'd had the last night. Smiling, she gazed out over the lake again. Echoes of laughter still ringing in her ears. She turned and started walking her bike along the little gravel road. Again a flash of red caught her attention, and she half turned, meeting her new flicker head on.

*Flicker* Carefully extracting herself from a still sleeping Emily, Naomi was cursing softly to herself. She had slept longer then she had intended. She quietly got dressed and grabbed her bag. It was time to run. She shot the sleeping form a last longing look, and went to get her bike. The fear in her was almost as overwhelming as the need and want had been the night before. She had let her guard down, it should have never happened.

She quickly got up to where she had left her bike, letting her eyes drift over the silent waters of the little lake. A profound sadness pierced her. She fought back tears as she tried to move Emily's bike without making any noise. As she grabbed her own bike, it was apparent that she had failed.

"Twice?" Emily's voice shattered the calm silence. "You're gonna do this to me, twice?"

Naomi just continued moving away from her, her legs finally finding the strength to run., even if it was only at a walk She didn't even look back, hoping that if she ignored her, Emily would just go away. Of course it didn't work.

"Naomi, no! You fucking stop right now!" The anger in Emily's voice made her hackles rise. Who the hell did she think she was, couldn't she see she needed to get away now?

"What?" She shot back at her with almost as much exasperation as Emily had in her voice, stopping.

"Don't you dare leave me in your bed again." Emily was looking at her with pleading in her eyes, but Naomi couldn't stop now. Fear was pulsing through her.

"I've got to go." She told Emily with a defeated voice. She had hoped Emily would understand, hoped that she would just let her run. She should have known that it was never going to be that easy. She turned and started walking again.

"I know you Naomi." She heard Emily follow her as she spoke, and picked up her pace a little. "I know you're lonely. I think you need someone to want you." Each word was piercing Naomi down to her core. Making her insides squirm, but she didn't stop.

"Well, I do want you." Emily's voice was cracking, Naomi's heart breaking with it. "So be brave! And want me back!" Naomi never slowed, never looked back. Her tears finally started spilling out. *Flicker*

Surprised, she found fresh tears in her eyes when the flicker lifted. The last words Emily spoke seemed to bounce off the trees around her. Wiping her eyes, she got on her bike and started peddling back towards the city, cursing at her own stupidity. If Emily ever told her she wanted her, in real life, she would make damn sure that she knew she was wanted back.

Still boiling with rage, she flew through the doors at home and stomped up the stairs. Luckily for anyone else, the bathroom wasn't taken. She stripped down and jumped in the shower, letting the water flow over her. It felt like it was washing away some of her anger and let her fears have more room to move.

She sank down to floor, still letting the water just run over her. What if this was it, the last flicker? Her tears started spilling of their own. She had given up so much of herself to let them in. They had changed her, made her stronger. Made her see it wouldn't make any sense to run from love. If she would ever find love that was.

She got dressed in a trance, trying to find peace in the simple act of buttoning up her shirt. Maybe she should go talk to her mother, she was slightly crazy, but usually had good advice. This was going to be hard to explain though, but she could try. With a newfound resolve, she made her way to her mothers bedroom door and knocked.

"Mum?" She pushed her head through the door, peaking in. "Mum, I need to talk to you." She followed her head the rest of the way in when she saw her mother sitting upright in bed. Suddenly a movement caught her eye, and her mouth flew open as a flustered Kieran stuck his head out from under the covers.

"Really mum? Really? This is my fucking house too, you know! Even when it's being overrun by a bunch of weirdoes and freaks I never said a word, but now you're fucking my teacher? MY TEACHER?" All her rage at herself, at her house being overtaken by complete strangers, at the flickers maybe being over, at not being able to see Emily in real life came spilling out of her. She turned and ran, she was vaguely aware of Kieran running after her. She ignored him.

She pulled up to college a few minutes later, still feeling like she could erupt at a moments notice. Deciding that it wasn't going to help much if she went through the roof in front of everyone she knew, she headed for her favourite smoking spot dragging out her cigarettes as she went along.

She cursed loudly when she figured out that her lighter wasn't in her pocket. A tiny flame suddenly appeared in front of her, she followed the arm up to a face and found Effy looking back at her. One of these days she would have to ask her how on earth she always seemed to find her when she needed something. She muttered a quick thanks, and took a grateful drag of her smoke. She felt some of the tension leave her.

"You're looking cheerful." Effy smirked as she lighted her own cigarette. Naomi just glared up at her, not answering the obvious taunt. Effy just sat down and closed her eyes, waiting for an explanation. She had to wait for almost as long as it took Naomi to finish her smoke before it came.

"I walked in on my mum and Kieran." Naomi finally said, not looking at Effy. Deciding that she could at least share some of what was bothering her. When all the answer she got was silence, she continued. "It's not that I don't want her to be happy, but…" She trailed off.

"You just wish it would be with someone else." Effy finished for her, once again proving herself to be all-knowing. Naomi grinned despite herself at the thought. She looked up and met the trademark "I can see right through you" Stonem stare.

"You really can read minds, can't you." She said, still staring in to the others eyes. Effy just grinned at her, flicking her smoke over the side of the railing. With a sigh, Naomi got up and started for the building.

"After all that shit with my dad, him coming back after mum told me he was dead, she has just sort of drifted. I tried helping her, but I gave up." Naomi sighed again, she had never really told anyone this. Effy remained silent as she continued.

"I never blamed her for lying to me, he was a scumbag. She was just trying to protect me. I was ecstatic when I found out he wasn't dead, picturing a happy "normal" family life." She sniffed at that last part.

"You don't have to tell me this. You know that, right?" Effy's soft voice held a note of sympathy, it only made Naomi shake her head.

"I know Ef, just let me finish." She drew a breath. "He was only there to get money out of my mum, he never really looked at me twice. She gave him all we had, and then some. I never understood why, but I figured that was what love did to you, make you weak and vulnerable. I was 11, I didn't know better." Naomi kept walking, Effy remained silent behind her.

"It was the last time I saw her truly happy. We moved here right after he left. I think the memories became too much for her, like even the city itself was tainted. I think I get how she feels. So maybe Kieran will be good for her. He's not such a bad guy really, a bit daft maybe, but I can see it going places."

They rounded the corner in the hallway, and came face to face with Katie. Naomi's eyes widened at the sight of her freshly coloured hair, it was darker and more purplish then the red she had sported. A part of her wondered if Emily still had red hair, and her face fell. She left them standing there as she excused herself and ran into an empty classroom. Desperate to get her head together. She ignored the questions that followed her from Katie, thankful that Effy seemed to divert the attention back to Katie's hair.

"If you can't tell your friends, and you can't tell your mother, why are you telling me?" Dr. Snipes broke through for the first time in ages. It made Naomi blink in confusion for a few seconds. She had been so far into her own story, that she had forgotten all about the man sitting across from her.

"I don't know." She said to him honestly. "Maybe it's because I feel you won't judge me, because you have no idea who or what I'm really talking about." She offered him a weak smile. "Besides." she said, shrugging. "I thought you wanted to know why I was on that roof, it's coming. I just need you to understand how I felt in the days, weeks and months leading up to it."

"Right, well then Ms. Campbell." He started, but Naomi cut him off.

"Call me Naomi. I think listening to me telling you about my flickers, specially these few last ones." She blushed faintly as she remembered that she had actually told him about the lake. "I think that entitles you to use my first name." He smiled slightly to her, letting her know, once again, that he was not there to judge.

"I think you might be right in that. Tell you what, I'll call you Naomi, if you would please call me Wes." He said with a twinkle in his eyes.

It took Naomi a few seconds to connect the two names. "Wes wouldn't stand for Wesley, would it?" She said, grinning at the irony that her new found confidant shared something more with her, then her story. He was smiling openly to her now.

"Yes, it would Naomi. But enough of that. Do you want to continue? I'm guessing we're still not quite at the rooftop yet?" He leaned back in his chair, his pen once again poised over his notebook. She wondered briefly if he had enough room for all his notes, and what they contained.

"No, we're not quite there yet. We're getting a lot closer though." She reached for her cigarette pack, opened it and checked the content. Only two more cigarettes left, she'd have to speed things up a bit. "I think we can make a slight jump, although those two days were very eventful. I ended up catching our headmistress trying to cheat Cook out of his win, I put her in her place and he was suddenly our newly elected student president." she chuckled at the memory of his face, and of everyone elses.

"Of course, he started a riot, and I helped. I was still a bit down and out, thinking that I might not have another flicker, but I should have known that it wasn't over. Should have felt it." She lit one of the last remaining cigarettes, and watched the smoke unfurl, filling the little room. Looking for the logical place to start again. Finding her place, she began retelling the last parts of her story.

And there you have it, the return of Dr. Wesley Snipes :D (I did name him after the actor btw, although he looks nothing like him in my head. I was just looking for a name for him, and one of the Blade movies happened to be on tv...) And just because Naomi is retelling the last parts of her story til now, does not mean we're anywhere near done...

You guys should know the drill by now, leave me a comment on the way out. :D