Hey guys. I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in so long. High School is keeping me busier than I thought.

Disclaimer: I no owny Austin and Ally, but I will continue dreaming.

Chapter 11: A Gift of a Friend

That night I tried to sleep and not think about the kiss between Austin and me. I tried not to throw myself a huge pity party. TRIED, being the key word. I wish it were as easy to forget about your troubles, as it was to get your troubles. But like they say, life isn't fair. And you don't have a choice to live only half a life when you get a record deal. Luckily, I wouldn't have that record deal very long and I can just run from my troubles.

I thought long and hard about my decision to stay in Miami. It was the right thing to do though. I knew that in my heart of hearts and the only way that I was going to be able to accept my father's death. I knew that it was running away, but without my rock I didn't want to not run away. The more I thought about it the more I realized all I was leaving behind in L.A. Now that Trish and Dez were together she wouldn't want to leave him so soon, so she would stay in L.A, Dez had his life in L.A, so there was no way that he would leave it, and of course Austin has his record deal in L.A. so I would be back in Miami with just Sonic Boom and myself. I could live with that as long as my dad's shop was still open. That shop was dad's life and nothing would happen to it if I had any say in it.

I finally fell asleep at 4:30 still completely dressed. My stomach woke me up at 7 growling. I didn't blame it. I was hungry. I hadn't eaten since Austin and I had stopped at Sonic the day before for lunch. I smiled as I thought about Mrs. Moon's cooking. Her cooking was the best. The cooking reminded me of Paula Dean. She used a pound of butter on everything. I changed real quick into an actual pair of pajamas so that no one in the Moon household would worry about me wearing the same thing that I wore yesterday. I bounded down the stairs with a huge smile on my face; ready for the yummy breakfast Mrs. Moon was cooking.

I sat down in my spot at the beside Austin just like old times. Austin gave me a smile as I sat down. I smiled back even though it looked like a grimace. He could tell and he slightly rubbed my back.

"Ally dear, what would you like for breakfast? Don took Kimmy-Ray to school," Mrs. Moon asked as she walked back to the kitchen.

"One of your world famous omelets would be amazing, Mrs. M," I said using the nickname I always called her when Austin and I were dating. She smiled as she heard. She went to kitchen and not even two minutes later she came out with a freshly made omelet. I raised my eyebrows questionably.

"Austin remembered that they were your favorite and asked me to make you one. I see that they are still your favorite," she said with a smile as she put the plate down on the table in front of me. "On a less happy note, we need to make the funeral arrangements today. Trish called by the way. They land in about an hour and a half. I figured that you and Austin would want to go pick them up. I know that you don't want to make the arrangements without her. She also said that she brought your boss so if you needed to take some extra time off, he would know that it was for a real problem and not just an excuse for not having to go to work," Mrs. Moon sat down beside me and put a hand on my shoulder for comfort. I nodded and continued to eat my omelet until I couldn't eat anymore. That was the great thing about Mrs. Moon's omelets; they seemed to never end.

The rest of the meal was spent in silence. The only noise that could be heard was Mrs. Moon cleaning up the kitchen. I picked up my plate and brought it to Mrs. Moon. She took it and smiled.

"You only have an hour now, Missy-May. You better hurry up or your gonna be late picking up your best friend and her boyfriend." I laughed and turned to walk up to Laney's room. Before I even made it to steps, I heard Mrs. Moon's soft voice "Is there a chance that you will ever give Austin a second chance. I know that he really loves you, Ally. Unfortunately, he is like his father and hated to admit he made a mistake."

I didn't want to give her false hope and lie to her, but I didn't want her to know my plan until I told Trish. I settled with a small "I don't know, Mrs. Moon. I really don't know."

I turned and walked to the stairs and went up to Laney's room to get ready to pick up my best friend and her boyfriend. I got a black tank top, a black pair of jeans and a pair of black converse out of my suitcase. I applied a little bit of foundation, black eyeliner, black mascara, and a light black eye shadow. I brushed out my brown hair and left it hanging down my back. I grabbed Austin's black leather jacket and my purse and I walked out of the room. Austin was sitting on the couch clearly waiting for me to finish getting ready. I stood at the top of the stairs for just a second to let him see my amazing outfit. He smiled and put his hand out for me to take, just like in those cheesy chick flicks I like.

"Why thank you Prince Charming. Is my horse drawn carriage waiting outside for us to go to the ball?" I kept up the cheesiness that he had started. He knew that when I started with the Princess stuff there was no ending it. He smiled and said, "Well Princess, I'm afraid that the horses were to tired to pull the carriage. I have a lovely car ready for you though. I hope that it is to your liking."

I smiled and walked out of the house holding Austin's hand. He opened the car door for me and I sat down in the passenger seat. I chuckled as I remembered all the times in high school that he was such a gentleman and would always open the car door for me. I was happy with the progress that we made in our friendship but I was disappointed that it would be over after I told him that I was staying in Miami. As Austin got in the driver's seat, I grimaced, as I thought if I should tell him my plan or not. I was worried that he would be angry. I decided that I would tell him first that way I could get all the bad stuff out of the way and I could go to my father's funeral with a empty mind.

"Austin, I was thinking about what I was going to do with Sonic Boom now that dad is gone. I thought long and hard about this, and I've weighted the pros and cons. I want our friendship to stay together no matter what I decide to do" He interrupted me before I could continue.

"Quit sugar-coating it Ally. Just tell me what you decided. I'm a big boy, I can handle it."

"I'm staying here and I'm going to run it. Its what dad would have wanted," I said as I turned away from him to look out the window. I was a little afraid of what he would say.

"Then it looks like I'm moving back to Miami too." I raised my eyebrows in confusion, but before I could say anything he continued, "Ally-Cat, I just got you back. I'm not letting you go that easily. Even if I have to work the rest of my life to get you to forgive me."

"Austin, I can't let you do that. You have your whole career ahead of you. You need to stay in L.A. and work on it. Besides I don't know if I'm ready to go back to the way things used to be." I said as I looked at him. I could tell by the look on his face that he wouldn't give up that easily.

"I know Ally, but you will be ready someday and I want to be there when it happens. We were meant to be to together. Its stupid to wait for us to get back together…"

"I know your right. I'm being stupid aren't I?" I said interrupting him. He was right it wasn't his fault with what happened. I just needed to get over it and forgive him. I wanted to be with him and the obviously wanted to be with me, so why for the love of Aphrodite was I being so stupid about this? I knew the answer as soon as I asked the question. I hated being hurt and I was deathly afraid of being hurt again. It was stupid for a 20 year-old girl be afraid of being hurt like a stupid teenager.

"Wait did you agree with me?" Austin said. I nodded. "So can I ask you a question?" I nodded again. "Will you go back out with me?"

"Yes Austin, I will. But if you brake my heart again, I will be forced to take drastic measures," I said as we pulled into the parking lot of the airport. I got out and pulled on Austin's jacket. I began walking away from him. I felt him come up behind me and put his arm around my waist. I could tell I would like being back together with Austin.

We walked into the airport and Austin signed a couple of autographs and I stood looking for Trish and Dez. I soon saw Dez's red hair and I took off running towards them. I ran right into Trish and she captured me into the biggest hug she had ever given me.

"Can't breathe, Trish. I need to breathe. Oxygen is needed." I said as Trish squeezed me in a huge hug. I was secretly glad she was hugging me so tight. It made me feel better that she was there and was going to help me go through the hell that the next few days would bring.

"Well Miss. Dawson. You look well, given the circumstances. How ya holding up, Kitty?" Trish asked me timidly. I could tell that she was afraid that I would burst out in tears at any mention of my father's death. I wasn't though. I knew he wouldn't want me to be like that especially right after me and Austin just got back together.

"I'm okay, believe it or not. I'm getting through it," I said giving her a smile. "Where did you run off to, Ally-Cat? One minute your right next to me and the next minute your gone. Oh hey Trish, Dez. Congrats on the whole couple thing. I'm happy for ya," Austin said as he noticed our best friends standing beside me. "We have some news too. Me and Ally got back together."

After saying that he put his arm around me and I smiled up at him. Trish began jumping up and down and squealing, while Dez just stood there. This didn't go unnoticed by Austin.

"Dez, anything you have to say about us getting back together?" Austin asked. Then Dez proceeded to say the six words no one wants to hear when, it's referring to a relationship, "I think this is a bad idea."

(I thought about leaving here, but since it has been so long since the last update you guys deserve a longer chapter.)

"What do you mean, Dez? I thought that you would be happy for us," I said looking at him with a look of confusion.

"Well you guys have been away from each other for three years. You guys never know what the other one is like now. And before you even say it, two days is not enough time to completely get to know somebody, because face it you two have changed a lot in these few years. The main thing is you two have hated each other for the past three years. Think about that. Whether it was a misunderstanding or not, it happened." Everyone was looking at him strangely. No one had never thought that Dez would ever say something that serious, or him even make a good point, at least not on purpose. We began walking to the car in silence. They were all thinking about what Dez said. He knew that nobody was going to listen to him about Austin and I getting back together, but they were glad that he voiced his opinion.

As we got in the car, Trish handed a CD up to me. I recognized it as soon as I saw the pink words written in my own handwriting. It was a mix CD that I made for Trish's 18th birthday. It had 20 original songs that I wrote and put on a CD for her. The first one that came on was a very old one that I wrote when I was a freshman in high school. It was called, A Gift of a Friend. Sometimes you think you'll be fine by yourself 'Cause a dream is a wish that you make all alone It's easy to feel like you don't need help But it's harder to walk on your own

You'll change inside when you realize

The world comes to life and everything's bright

From beginning to end when you have a friend by your side

That helps you to find the beauty you are

When you open your heart and believe in the gift of a friend

The gift of a friend

Someone who knows when you're lost and you're scared

And they're through the highs and the lows

Someone you can count on, someone who cares

Beside you wherever you'll go

You'll change inside when you realize

The world comes to life and everything's right

From beginning to end when you have a friend by your side

That helps you to find the beauty you are

When you open your heart and believe in the gift of a friend

And when your hope crashes down

Shattering to the ground you, you feel all alone

When you don't know which way to go

And there's no signs leading you home, you're not alone

The world comes to life and everything's bright

From beginning to end when you have a friend by your side

That helps you to find the beauty you are

When you open your heart and believe in

When you believe in, when you believe in the gift of a friend

"Austin, Ally I'm sorry. I should trust you guys with you decisions. If this is what you want to do then I am fine with it," Dez said a few minutes after the song was over. Then there was like a weight lifted off of the car. We went right back to joking and messing with each other like nothing had happened.

The ride seemed to be over in a matter of minutes because of the fun that the foursome was having. Their small disagreement was long forgotten by the time they pulled up to the Moon house. Everyone got out of the car like it was going to blow up. Trish and Dez were excited to see Mrs. Moon, I was hungry and I wanted to tell her the good news about me and Austin.

"Trish, Dez, it's so nice to see you. I have to say I missed you two," Mrs. Moon said as we sat down in the living room. "oh and by the way look who's home." And then through the door Laney Moon, the middle child walked through the kitchen door with who would have thought, Dallas.

"Hi Bubba, Dez, Trish, Slut. How are you today?" My jaw dropped as I heard her call me of all people a slut with a snide look on her face. I saw Dallas snickering out of the corner of my eye. I could tell that the Laney I once knew and loved was gone and in her place was a girl clearly changed by Dallas Smith.

And there you go. I hope that was good enough to make up for the long wait for the chapter. And on a more random note did any of my readers see Les Mis? I saw it and I thought it was wonderful. Anyway thanks for reading.