Heya loyal fans and everyday readers,
I am so sorry it's taken this long to update! what can I say? Exams, assignments and graduation completely overwhelmed me! I'm still in an exam period, so updates will be sketchy, but I will try my hardest to keep writing as much as possible! Thank you, for the wonderful and inspiring reviews. They are muchly appreciated. Keep em comin!
Here is another chapter for your reading pleasure. Hope you like it :)
xxHarleyxx

JARETH

Ricki sat beside me, tissues scrunched in her hand, as she stared at Sarah with wide eyes. I held back a smirk as I feigned sadness. She was just too gullible.
"That can't be true!" Ricki said. I stood up, striding to the couch. I took Sarah's limp hand in mine as I patted her soft skin, shaking my head.
"I'm afraid so."

"But she never mentioned anything about it! You'd think, if she was so obsessed, she would have..."

"My dear, I have dealt with people like her before. And though it would seem likely that she would want to tell the world she preferred to keep it to herself. It was her world. Something that exists in her mind. She wouldnt have wanted to share it with anyone."

Ricki. Poor little Ricki. She sniffed as she looked up at me, doe eyes glimmering with fresh tears.
"I feel horrible! I thought she was just trying to take you away from me! But...she's...she's"

Sarah gave a small moan her eyes flickering. I stood, watching her as she sat up. Confusion etched the features of her beautiful face. I wanted to grab her, pull those lips of hers to mine and never let her go. Soon...
She caught sight of me and her eyes flashed. I couldn't hold in a laugh as I returned to my chair, pulling Ricki toward me, making sure Sarah noticed my protective hold on her friend.

SARAH

"WHAT WAS THAT JARETH!"

The room danced around me. I tried to clear my head, I clenched my hair in my hands, my temples throbbing. I felt like I'd drunk a weeks worth of alcohol. Slowly, my memory cleared.

The cakes. The balcony. I'd fallen and...he had saved me.

I swung my legs around, steadying myself as I stood.

He'd carried me up here and kissed me.

I clenched my fists at my sides. Taking a step forward. I must have looked furious, Ricki was staring at me with terror in her eyes.

His kiss...like peaches.

Without thinking I wrapped my hand around his ruffled shirt, pulling him to his feet. Ricki let out a small eep.
"You drugged me. Again." I whispered through clenched teeth, my vision slightly blurred. I wanted to be sick. Jareth smiled at me, his eyes glittering.
"Yes. I did." he whispered back. I went to hit him, hard, but he caught my hand and held it at my side.
"Sit down, Sarah. I believe you have some explaining to do."

It was then that Ricki seemed to snap out of her daze. She glanced at the table and then me, raising an eyebrow. She only did that when she knew something she wasn't supposed to...
"Yes, Sarah. You do have some explaining to do!"
"What did he tell you?" I gasped.
"Everything."
Jareth freed my arm and my mouth fell open. I stared at him. Unable to move. He hadn't! He would'nt willingly tell Ricki who he was! Or what he'd done in the past! She'd be long gone by now, if he had. She'd have called the cops and made sure he was dragged out of here, kicking and screaming in a cloud of glitter.

"Then...you know?" my voice was hoarse as I searched Ricki's eyes. She looked sympathetic. Slowly, she reached for my hands, holding them tightly in hers.
"I had no idea you'd been through so much Sarah. It must be so hard for you! But we're going to get help, okay? I'm not angry at you! I understand now."

Relief washed over me and I pulled Ricki in, hugging her.

"See! I told you he couldn't be trusted!"I turned to Jareth, laughing. "And you thought you'd get away with...with... with whatever it was you were planning! Not this time, buddy! I beat you once. You should have known it would happen again! There's no way Ricki's going anywhere near you now! So you might as well just bugger off back to the underground. You have no power over me!"

My sides ached as I laughed in his face. He remained like stone, just staring at me. I stopped. That couldn't be right. He'd lost. Where was the reaction? Why wasn't he throwing one of his little goblin hissy fits? Why wasn't he flying off in defeat?
"Jareth...?" I asked, concern in my tone. He simply sighed, reaching for the red book on the table.
"You've had this book since you were a little girl haven't you, Sarah?" I took a step back cautious now. Something definitely wasn't right.
"Yes..."
"And you used to tell this story to your...sibling?" he made it sound as if he'd forgotten.
"DON'T talk about Toby. You have no right to!"
"I see..." Jareth let out another sigh. "Sarah. You are aware that this book is not real, are you not?"
I blinked dumbly at him.
"What?"
"It was acceptable for you to believe it, as a child, and to enjoy sharing the story with your young brother. But, my dear, you are far to old to still believe in fairytales!"
"WHAT?"

Ricki stepped forward, nodding.
"It's okay, Sarah. Jareth explained everything. When people suffer trauma in their childhood, like you when your mum left, they can continue suffering in adulthood. You were forced to grow up when your mum left and now you're regressing to try and get back the childhood you felt you didn't have!"

The color drained from my face as my heart began to race. This was all wrong! What had he told her?

"Ricki, that's not true! I had Karen. My childhood was fine!"

"No it wasn't Sarah, but that's okay. I understand. You loved this story when you were little and now that Jareth has come along...well, he reminds you of the Jareth in your story. and you think that your the girl the goblin king falls in love with! You just want to believe that the Labyrinth is real because, maybe, going back to childhood will bring your mother back to you."

"You're kidding! Ricki! The labyrinth is real, that is the Jareth from the story. He kidnapped my brother and almost killed me on countless occasions while I ran his stupid labyrinth!"

"It's not stupid..."Jareth whispered in my ear, too quietly for Ricki to hear. "I seem to remember you quite enjoyed certain...shared experienced the two of us had."

Flashes of the ballroom came back to me. The laughing faces and taunting stares. I felt like I had back then. Completely out of place. Lost. Scared.
"No! He's lying! He's tricking you Ricki!"

Ricki looked at him as if he were the most wonderful thing on the planet. She ran her hand over his shoulder, holding onto him tightly.
"Sarah. Jareth is a doctor. Did I tell you that? Well, he is. He said he's treated people like you before! And he's willing to help. All you have to do is let us help."
"We understand that you're lonely, Sarah. You believe so strongly that this story of yours is real! Seing Ricki and I happy together is upsetting you as you are the one who wants the goblin king's love."Jareth smirked. "We wouldn't want you attempting suicide again, would we? Next time I won't be there to save you."
Ricki sniffled.
"Please, Sarah! I don't know what I'd do if something happened! You have to let him help! We'll get through this!

The goblin king was dating my best friend. He'd convinced her that he was a doctor and she now thought I was crazy. The after effects of the peach spiked up again and I ran to the bathroom, unable to hold in the contents of my stomach.

My world was crashing around me.

And it was all because of him...