Last day of flipping freedom! After I post this I'm going to the movies and then going back home to like prepare and stuff for tomorrow (Tomorrow is my first day of school). Errg. DREADING school, just to let you know. Again, I LOVE school, just not a fan of the drama that comes along with it. Anyways, rambling again. Enjoy the last chapter before the MAYBE sequel. I don't know if I'll have time with school the Emma sequel, my new story, AND this sequel. Errg. I have a crazy life!

Love,

Lauren:)

Aren: Ahaha, every time I watch that part I have to eat chips! Only the ridges though, don't know why. And lol, sorry! :) Extreme Home Makeover makes me cry too… but not as much as Titanic :) Not trying to kill you! Stay strong! :) Lol!

Luke and I stepped off the bus and went directly to the mailbox, frowns still plastered on our faces from earlier today. I sighed and looked at Luke who was staring at the ground, and motioned for him to open it. He smiled, put his shoulder around me and opened the mailbox. Surprisingly, there was only one envelope in there, and I gasped as he pulled it out and my eyes caught the fancily printed letters.

Princeton.

"No," I said in disbelief as I grabbed the large envelop. "No, no, no!" I ripped it open and smiled as I read the words at the top of the page.

Congratulations! We are very pleased to tell you that you have been accepted to the prestigious Princeton University.

"Oh my god," Luke said as he read over my shoulder. "You did it!" He gave me a large hug and I smiled for the first time in hours.

Although it felt like days.

"I did, didn't I?" I asked in disbelief, when suddenly, my smile faded. I looked down at the envelope and noticed a small teardrop stain the front of it. I felt my cheek, now wet from a teardrops streak and sighed.

"Oh, Sutton." Luke said as he wrapped his arms around me again. I pulled on his sleeve and begged my inner Sutton not to do this. She listened, and I was able to compose myself.

"I'm fine, really. It's okay. It's just going to take some time." I explained as I pulled away and held his hand as we walked up the long path to the porch.

As Luke and I walked in the front door of our house, the air smelled of vanilla, and I knew the cook Marianne was making my favorite cinnamon and vanilla cookies.

Something was up.

"Ah, you're home!" Mom cried as she flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and gave me a large hug. Dad smiled as he stood up from his chair and handed me a letter as mom squeezed all of the remaining air I had in me, out of me.

"Congratulations, princess." He said as he kissed the top of my head. I looked at Luke after mom had let go of me, but all he did was shrug, then walk over to the couch. I flipped it over and realized that it had already been opened.

"I guess privacy means nothing anymore." I mumbled to myself angrily as I read the top letters.

Oh my.

Harvard…

"Is this-"

"Yes!" Mom cut me off. I frowned and pulled out the letter.

Congratulations! It started. We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Harvard University.

"Wow." I said quietly, quite upset that I actually got in. I looked back up at my smiling parents, and sighed.

"Hey, babe!" Danny yelled as he surprisingly walked through the kitchen door.

"Danny?" I wondered. "What are you doing here?" He smiled and walked closer.

"You're parents called me about the good news and I was just so happy that I had to come back to see you!" he explained just before he kissed me for a long beat, not caring that my parents were only feet away.

I cringed.

It was nothing like kissing Jack.

It wasn't even a kiss if compared to a kiss by Jack.

It was meaningless.

Luke noticed me shiver and stood up over to me. After Danny had stopped, Luke took hold of my hand and smiled at me. I frowned as a tear ran down my cheek.

"Babe, what's wrong?" Danny asked. I smiled flakily and shook Luke away.

"I'm just so happy. That's all." I lied. Why was it so hard to face my actual parents and my actual boyfriend? Why was it so easy to face Ruth and Cal.

"Also," Lean and Bob Dowley, Luke's parents said in unison as they came strutting through the door as well. "There's more." I furrowed my eyebrows and looked around the room at the smiling faces. Except of course for Luke.

"What's going on?" I asked. Danny smiled, got down on one knee and sighed.

"Sutton Baker, you are beautiful, smart, and wonderful, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?" he asked as he pulled out a ring and Lean and my mom giggled. I stared wide eyed at the large diamond. It was almost identical to the one Cal had given Rose.

God look at that thing! You would have gone straight to the bottom! Jack's words rang in my ears.

I frowned again. I looked around the room again, and to Luke who was now wide eyed next to me, and sighed. Tears started to pour down my face and Luke sighed as well, although my mom just giggled more and more.

"Look at how happy she is. God, she's crying!" Dad cried as he put his arm around Bob. I looked at the ring and then to Danny, and back to Luke, then stared straight ahead for a moment, Jack's face coming to mind.

This wasn't right. All I wanted to do was be with Jack and if that can't be, this can't either. I wasn't going to do this.

"N-no." I said quietly. Danny stood up, a confused look on his face, and laughed as our parents stood in shock.

"No?" he wondered. "Very funny."

"No!" I yelled, practically cutting him off as I threw the Harvard letter to the ground. "No to all of this. Not to you, no to Harvard, no to everything!" Luke smiled devilishly but my parents just got angry.

"What do you mean "no"?" My mother asked, a sharp tone cracking through her question. I sighed and continued to pace the room.

"I mean, no! Did anyone ask me where I wanted to go to college, huh?" I asked as I pulled out the Princeton letter and shoved it at my parents. They stood wide eyed as they read the acceptance letter and then looked back up at me.

"I didn't even know you applied." My father admitted quietly. I laughed, and scoffed, and continued to walk around the room angrily.

"And did anyone ask me what I wanted to do with my life. No, well I'll tell you!" I said angrily as I walked over to the kitchen. "I don't want to be a lawyer; I want to be an actress. I don't want to stay in this small town the rest of my life! I want to travel the world, try new things! I want to ride horses in Santa Monica and drink cheap beer before going on the rollercoaster that will cause the outrageous throwing up hoorah afterwards! I want to go to Paris and be an artist, only if my paintings sell for only ten cents! I want to love not knowing what's going to happen, who I'm going to meet or, or, or where I'm going to wind up!" My mother rolled her eyes and flopped down on the bed.

"And where did you get all of this?" she asked me sarcastically. I froze then looked at Luke. He smiled at me, which made me feel confident, but I knew I couldn't tell them the truth.

They'd think I was crazy.

"I don't know. I guess, I guess I always felt this way. But you guys wouldn't know, would you?" I asked angrily. My father frowned and looked down at the floor while the Dowley's stood in the corner of the room awkwardly.

"So, what? You don't love me anymore?" Danny asked as he took a step closer towards me. I frowned and looked down at the floor.

"I don't think I ever loved you," I confessed quietly. "But it took loving someone else to realize it." Danny went wide eyed and banged his arm on the wall.

"You love someone else? What, how, how could you do this to me?" he asked angrily, tears almost forming in his eyes. "I forbid it. No, no we're getting married and that's finale. We've got everything planned, everyone invited, no, no we're getting married!" I shook my head and looked down at the floor, tears slowly rolling down my cheek.

"I'm sorry Danny, but no." I said. Danny then filled with rage, and grabbed me by the arm.

"What did you say?" he asked as he gripped my arm tighter and tighter. I thought he was going to slap me, I really did, when my father walked over.

"Okay now that's quite enough!" he said as he pulled Danny away. Danny turned around angrily and started pacing the room.

"Sutton, what's this all about?" my father asked as he gently placed a hand on my cheek and lifted my head up.

"I just, I just want to live out my dreams. I don't want to settle. I, I don't know." I said between sobs. My dad wiped away my tears and embraced me in a large hug.

"Whatever you want." He said. I smiled and laughed a little bit too, when my mother stood up from the corner of the room.

"Richard, what are you thinking?" she asked angrily as she lunged towards us. I pulled away from Dad and sighed. "We've planned all of this for years and I am not going to let her throw away her dreams for some boy." I smiled devilishly and shook my head.

"No, mom, I'm throwing away your dreams." I said as I looked her straight in the eye. I threw down my book bag and ran up the stairs, Luke following me from behind.

"Ah you should have seen the look on her face!" Luke said as he shut my door. I laughed and flopped onto the bed.

"I wish I could see Jack's face. He'd be laughing so hard right now!" I said, a ball slightly forming in my stomach. Luke frowned and sat down on the bed next to me.

"You'll get through this. I know you will," he said as he held my hand. "Jack knew you would." I smiled slightly and squeezed his hand tighter.

I was going to get through this.

Jack knew I would, and I did, too.

Erch, bad chapter. Anyways, hope you enjoyed it! Sequel should be coming in the next month or two. Have to do the Emma one first and then I'll start! Please review! :) And thanks to all my readers/ reviewers that have helped me with this story and have given me INSPIRATION… you know who you are! :)