CHAPTER 9 ALREADY? Yes we are at chapter 9 and things are beginning to look grim for Jade and Dave. Will it always stay this way? The answer is unknown because I can always switch things up again; but no this story is not going to be a "storm" forever because as most people know after a storm comes a rainbow. :) But for now, bear with the unfortunate aura that surrounds the plot. And once again thank you for reading Love Never Dies! You guys are fucking awesome! :D

The paramedics arrive forty-five minutes after Dirk placed the call, which did not please Dave at all. "Where the hell have you people been?! Don't you realize that if I hadn't checked on her, she would have been dead by now! Please hurry and take her to the goddamn hospital!"

Most people would have perceived Dave's actions as rude and selfish, but the paramedics understood the young boy. "We'll make sure she's taken care of." Dave cringes at they slide the IV needle into her slender arm and load her onto the stretcher. "Would you like to accompany her to the hospital?"

Dave looks towards Dirk and gives him a pleading look, "Please Bro...she needs me."

Dirk nods and grabs one of Jade's empty luggages. "I'll meet you at the hospital. In the meantime, I'll grab some of her things."

Dave follows the paramedics and watches Jade closely as she is placed onto the stretcher and wheeled onto the ambulance. He takes her cold hand and places it against his warm cheek, "Don't worry Harley, I'm here. I won't leave you." One of the paramedics offers him a seat right next to Jade but Dave doesn't even care about sitting. All he wants to see is Jade open her eyes slowly, give him that big goofy smile, and tell him everything's going to be alright. But as he stares at the pale, beautiful girl in front of him, he can't help but wonder if she'll ever wake up. Ten minutes later, they finally arrive at the hospital. Hospitals always freaked Dave out; it's not only because this was the place he was taken to when he beat up by bullies, but there was always that deathly aura that surrounded it. As Jade is wheeled into the emergency room, Dave can't help but notice the people occupying it. One woman had bandages wrapped around what appeared to be a recently burned face; a young girl, no more than the age of six, was covered in bruises of all shapes and colors, clinging to her mother who appeared to have the same condition; A blonde man with a bandage over the right side of his face, most likely from a fire; and lastly in the corner, an old woman is cradled against her husband's chest as she takes deep, heavy breaths with her oxygen mask; from the look on the husband's face, this woman would not be living very long. Dave gulps squeezes Jade's hand tightly as she is brought into a large room. The nurse quickly changes the hospital bed sheets and hooks her up to the heart rate monitor

"I'll go get a doctor; in the meantime, please take care of her and check her pulse every 2 minutes."

Dave nods and grabs a chair, setting it next to Jade. "J..Jade...if you can hear me right now, c..could you just squeeze my hand a little?" No response. "Please Harles...I don't wanna lose you..not tonight. Not ever." Holding her head securely and bringing her face close to his, he plants a passionate, lingering kiss on her lips and rests her head against his chest. "Harley c'mon! You're stronger than this, I know you are! Do you think Jake would wanna see you like this?" Still no response. Dave lays her head back onto the pillow and weeps into his hands. Dave Strider crying? Hell no. Cool kids don't cry. Crying is for pussies. At the moment, Dave Strider didn't care if he was called a pussy or stripped of his cool reputation, he weeped into his hands and screamed loudly; a sound so strong and powerful that it could be heard echoing out throughout the hospital's hallway. He gets up from his chair and goes over to the window, glaring at the dark sky, "Do you enjoy watching people suffer? Of all the people in the world, it had to be her?! First she loses her only brother and now she's losing her life, how fucked up can you get?!"

"D..Dave? W..Who are you yelling at?"

Dave quickly rushes to her side and takes her into his arms. "Jade! Oh my god, you're alive! Thank god!"

Jade smiles weakly and runs her fingers through his hair, "O..Of course I am Silly. I just passed out...Oww." Jade stares at the long needle firmly planted inside her arm and pouts, "This is really unnecessary. Dave...I had the most terrible dream. We were at the penthouse and you told me that Jake died. I was afraid I'd never wake up!"

"That wasn't a dream Harles...Jake really did die."

"O..Oh...yeah! How could I forget? Hehehe I'm so silly..." Jade's smile slowly fades into uncontrollable sobs. No one could understand the unbearable pain Jade was experiencing, not even Dave, her best friend. "Dave why couldn't it have been me?! Why did Jake have to die? He didn't do anything wrong!"

Dave grabs Jade's head and looks directly into Jade's eyes, "Don't you ever say that! Do you realize how many people would be suffering if you died Harley?! Did you think about what would happen to me?! What happened to Jake...there's always a reason behind things Harles. I may not be able to give you a damn explanation but I know for sure there's a reason!"

Jade moves her arms towards Dave's face as she carefully takes off his shades and looks into his deep red eyes. "Y..You have pretty eyes you know that Dave?"

Dave's tears suddenly pour out again as he stares into Jade's lifeless ones, "Harley...e...everything's gonna be fine okay? I'm sure Dirk will let you stay with us and you wouldn't have to worry about anything!"

"Dave..."

"I mean we'd have to get you enrolled at my school..."

"Dave."

"...and you wouldn't have to worry about boredom cuz we'll always be together. Tighter than fucking peas in a pod."

"DAVE!"

"Yeah Harles?"

"Could you open up your palm for me and close your eyes?"

"...Harley why would you kiss my palm?" Dave closes his eyes and holds out his now open palm; a few seconds later, he feels Jade put something small and hard in it before closing his fingers over it.

"Did you give me a Hershey's kiss...I don't understand."

Jade takes Dave's hands and looks deep into his eyes, "Dave I want to break up with you."

"I want to break up with you." The words that hurt and break people each day.

"Harley you're on drugs right now. You can't think straight. Put this back on."

Jade shakes her head and Dave notices tears building up in her beautiful green eyes again, "I'm serious, I really do want us to break up. I just can't be with you right now."

"Jade, I told you we can live together in the penthouse. You really don't have to go back to the island."

"Dave...I want to go back to the island, that's my home and besides I've still got Bec..so I won't be entirely lonely."

"Harley, don't do this...please."

Jade slowly sits up and cringes as she takes the needle out of her arm, "Dave do you really think you can wait another five years for me? In five years, you'll be in college and have a rap career and we probably won't be talking as much."

"Bullshit!"

"Dave Strider!"

"You honestly think that I'm going to move on and forget about you like you were just a candle in the wind! Hell fucking no Harley!"

Jade brushes her hair out of her face and pouts, "God Dave you're such a hardhead! Why can't you just accept the fact that we can never be together! I wish I never came here in the first place! If it weren't for you, I would have never came here and Jake would have never died in the first place!"

"..."

"D..Dave! I didn't mean that."

"Why didn't you just reject the offer of coming here then? I d..didn't even want you to come here. Y'know what Jade? I'll do you a fuckin' favor. I'll call Dirk to pack your bags and buy you a one way ticket back to Yoshi's Island!"

"Dave! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to blame you or anything! It's just that...I don't know anymore!"

Dave stares at her, his fists clenched at his sides, as he looks deep into her eyes for one last time, "If I knew you were just some bitch who toys with a guy's feelings, I wish I never met you." That said, he slams the door and walks down the hall, leaving a heartbroken Jade to herself; he takes out his iphone and quickly dials Dirk's number, "Hey Bro, change of plans. I want you to pack all of Jade's things and get her a one way ticket back to the island. Make sure it's a ticket for tonight." He hangs up and shoves the phone back in his pocket before walking outside into the cool night air. "Psssh who needs love anyway? I'm Dave Elizabeth Strider, a guy who can get any girl he wants. Fuck Harley! I can find someone way cooler and prettier and geeky and...Jade..." Dave falls to his knees and holds the ring close to his heart as he finally feels the pain of going through his first breakup.

Jade Harley, the only girl who could capture Dave Strider's heart, sits on her hospital bed, tears streaming down her face, as she realizes what she just did. "Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why would you say that you damn idiot?! Did you really just kill the love you shared with him?" Jade grips the sheets tightly and hops out of bed quickly, "Dave! DAVE STRIDER!" Her shouts echo throughout the hallways as she desperately searches for the exit door. Jade Harley had her stupid moments and five minutes ago had to be her stupidest moment yet; but one thing she knew for sure now was that she definitely loved Dave Strider with all her heart and despite the distance she knew they could last an eternity together. "Dave please come back. I don't want to be abandoned by you too..." Finally she manages to find the two sliding door; not hesitating for one second, Jade runs through the doors as fast her legs can carry her and out into the cold, dark night. "DAVE! Are you out here?!" Jade runs through the parking lot, searching for the blonde haired boy or his car. No hint or trace of him at all. "Nice going Jade, he probably went home." Wiping stray tears from her already tear stained cheeks, Jade Harley walks back to the hospital building with a dark, aching feeling in her chest. Even now, she still can't accept the fact that she had broken up with her best friend. "If I could just see him one more time...I'd take back everything I said...but why would he wanna get back together with a bitch like me? ...I don't deserve his love. All i'm ever good for is being useless and stupid; maybe it's better this way." As Jade walks past the Mcdonalds, she doesn't notice that Dave sits alone, in a small booth, sipping a small carton of apple juice. He plays with the ring between his fingers and looks back towards the hospital building.

"I should apologize to Harley. You said it yourself Strider, she was on drugs. She can't think straight dumbass! But...do you think she'd get back together with you? After all you did her a dumbass and admitted that you regret meeting her." Fuck! Dave grabs his carton and runs back to the hospital room. "Please still be there Harley, please! I don't ever wanna lose you. I love you Jade Harley. You're my life!" As Dave approaches the room, he opens the door aggressively and is surprised to see that a new patient now lies on the bed. "Uhhhh did you happen to see a young girl with long black hair in here earlier?"

The nurse looks up and smiles, "Oh, Jade Harley? I'm afraid she was signed out five minutes ago by Mr. Dirk Strider."

"SHIT!" Dave bolts from the room and heads for the parking lot, hoping that he can catch Dirk and Jade before they depart. As soon as he gets out of the hospital, he recognizes the familiar truck driving out of the parking lot. Jade. At the top of his lungs, Dave screams for Dirk to stop the car and even tries running to them; but his heart and lungs are already at their breaking point and Dave is forced to watch the love of his life, his best friend, his girl...leave him forever.

"Dave instructed me to get you a plane ticket for tonight so you can go back to the island. Are you sure you're gonna be okay Harley?" Jade nods and holds her bags close to her chest as she stares up at the moon and touches her now "naked" left ring finger. Goodbye Dave, it's been fun. I'm sorry I can't stand by your side and take care of you like I should; I hope you find someone who will love you more than I ever will, who will be there for you no matter what, someone who doesn't bitch at you, and more importantly, someone who will accept you for who you are like I did. I'll always love you Dave Strider and i'll never, not even in a million years, regret meeting you. Goodbye my love.

How was this chapter? I know it's short but since senior year is coming to an end, I must put time to study for final exams and write extremely looong essays. Things will be changing up in the story soon! Since it's gonna be a three day weekend (because of Memorial Day), I'll be sure to update more chapters (that are actually lengthy). Reviews, Suggestions, Comments, Anything is greatly appreciated! Thank you for inspiring me to write more chapters. I would have never come this far if it wasn't for my readers (and my boyfriend :D). I love you all so very much and please continued to stay tuned for more Love Never Dies.

Also I have gone back and made a couple changes to the story (all thanks to my boyfriend who endured the pain of writing and spacing things out for an hour! YEAAH)

Challenge: Can anyone spot a certain DC villain mentioned in this chapter?

W1TCH-0F-L0V3-DE4TH-AND-5PACE