Kay, so, I just realized that there are two Jake's in this story. This could get confusing later on... But I have faith in you all to figure out the difference!

Chapter Twelve

It had been about six months since the trip to Pinnacle, and exactly nine weeks ago, Jake had broken up with her-if you could call it that. He'd been acting so strange lately, like he wasn't interested in her anymore, so she called him on it. Said that if he'd lost interest then he had to let her know, because the longer he waited, the more it would hurt. And he apologized; said that he wanted out, 'but could we still be friends?' One of those things you hate to hear, because it means that he expects you to sit by and smile as he starts dating other girls. Yet you always respond with the simple 'of course' and a fake smile, only hoping that you make it to your safe place fast enough that no one see's you cry.

And of course, that was where she was now; in her safe place-her haunted practice room. And there was no one foolish enough to follow her in here. Sometimes though, she thought she could hear him opening the door and coming in. This was her place, but it was also their place, so sometimes, it hurt to be in here.

"For Christ's sake! It's been over a two months, why can't I just get over it already!" She spat angrily at the empty room. She was curled in a ball on the floor, up against the wall under the large window that was in all the practice rooms. She was crying. And she was tired of it.

She heard the door open, but this time she knew she wasn't hearing things, because she saw the light flood in from the hallway. Her heart skipped a beat, knowing there was only one person who would ever come in this room looking for her. But as the person in question walked towards her, she saw them from the light in the window, and knew that she was wrong. She watched Abby cross the room, not seeing her, and thought about saying something, when suddenly Abby lifted up a pistol, aimed it right at her, and shot. There was a bang, and Shelly flinched, the vision faded away, and the girl she just imagined to be Abby, was standing in front of her, looking at her worriedly. Not Abby at all, nor Jake. Instead it was Kylie.

She walked over and folded up next to Shelly, as she wondered just how far past crazy she had gone, now she was having downright hallucinations. She was imagining things. Her dreams had started seeping into reality, and that scared her.

"I know you're not okay." Kylie stated softly. "And that's fine, it happens. You fall in love, and you get your heart broken. But you need to stop hiding your feelings from your friends, hiding yourself from us. We're here and we want to help you, if you'd just let us in. We know you're a proud person. And to show someone how torn up you are right now, is something that goes against your nature. But you can show me. You know I won't judge you, and even the girl everyone goes to with their problems needs someone they can do the same with. Especially someone like that actually." Kylie finished her speech, and then looked at Shelly to see if she had been receptive at all.

Shelly met her eyes, the emotions bubbling over, and lost control. At first she simply cried, balled up in Kylie's arms, seeking the comfort she was known to give so many others. Then she spoke.

"I think I'm losing it Kylie. I'm starting to hear things, see things. I don't understand it."

"Grief effects people in different ways honey, maybe this is just your way; to get lost in a fantasy, or a memory. We all confuse our dreams with reality sometimes."

"It just hurts so much. I never thought it would feel this way. Never thought he would leave me… Not like this. A year Kylie: That's how much time I gave to him; a year. And-I think the worst part is that he never meant to hurt me. I don't think he even realizes it now. And he's a good person, he just wasn't ready, and I pushed him. But I miss him so much, and I never wanted it to end."

Shelly cried, and Kylie comforted her, they sat like this for a good hour. But it was nearing ten, and the girls both had to open the next morning, so they gathered their things, and Shelly told Kylie she could stay with her in the dorm that night.

"Abby won't mind?"

"Abby spends ever weekend off campus. I don't know where she goes; I asked her once, but she said the moon, so I just figured that was her way of saying it's not my business. Say… How did you know where I was?"

"Oh… Well, Jake told me." Shelly looked at her shocked. "He happened to be there when I asked Greg if he'd seen you. He said you always spent most of your free time in here, that you liked it because it was the one place no one else would ever go, because they either didn't know about it, or where scared of it."

"He was right. And I'm surprised he remembers me telling him that… You know, it wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have to see him every day on campus. He always acts the same towards me. It's like nothing has changed, but it's also like everything has changed. I don't understand him!"

"He's the king of mixed signals, and she's the queen of second guesses." Kylie mused.

"Sorry?"

"It's a quote an old friend used to say in these situations, I don't remember who said it originally, but I think it describes this perfectly. He's always giving you mixed signals, leaving you feeling confused-probably because he's confused himself. And you're always second guessing his meanings and yourself, probably because he's not even sure what he means, and he's not sure what you mean to him. Give it time, and you'll both grow through this, maybe it will be that you two grow apart, or maybe you'll grow closer together. I don't know, but only time will tell."

"Time… Do you ever feel like your time is almost up?"

"What, you mean like dying?"

"Maybe… I don't know… I just get this feeling sometimes, like… something is coming, some sort of change. It's in the wind; I can feel it. I just don't know what it is, and I don't think it's a good thing, but I also don't think it's a bad thing: Like it's the best thing that could happen, yet in the worst possible way."

"I think you think too much you silly girl." Kylie said, laughing nervously and nudging Shelly with her arm. "Seriously though, I'm sure everything's going to be fine, you'll see; time heals everything."