Look! This story still exists! :D I apologize for taking forever and a day on updating this. If you have read my newest story, you would l had a very rough semester of school. But, I had been working on this in between homework and drama. I do hope you're all still interested in this story. I wanted this done a long time ago but obviously that didn't happen.

Also, I have decided to add another chapter to this story. This chapter was originally going to have more but it was going to be way too long. So I decided to use those ideas into a different chapter. So, updated information, there are now going to be 3 more chapters to this story instead of 2. The next one shouldn't take too long to do, so I hope hope hope I get this updated again fairly quickly.

Hope you enjoy! Even if this is a sad story!

Chapter 21- Love Remains

~Two Months Later~ July 20

The past couple of months had been hard on everyone. Randall and Heather had pretty much been living at the hospital, not wanting to leave their daughter at all. Lilly had no signs of waking, so their worry grew more intense with each passing day. Their hopes, though, were still high. That would never change unless the inevitable were to actually happen.

Heather had wanted to bring in some of Lilly's personal items into her hospital room to make it feel more like home. She had a feeling that somehow Lilly would be able to sense this which would hopefully result to a better outcome. So, Heather took the photographs from Lilly's nightstand to set along the windowsill and took Miley's pillow just so it would be near Lilly. Heather knew her daughter couldn't sleep without it and was glad she brought it in. It had been two months since Lilly slipped into a coma. The very next day Heather brought in all of Lilly's favorite, most prized possessions.

Now Heather sat right next to Lilly, holding onto her hand, waiting for Randall to return from the restroom. The television was on but it brought no peace to the woman's mind. All she wanted was to hear the sound of Lilly's voice…

Randall walked back into the room and his heart sank, once again, at the lost expression on his wife's face while she looked down at their daughter. "Sweetheart, why don't you go walk around to stretch your legs? I'll stay with Lilly."

"I can't get myself to leave her," she replied in a broken near whisper. "It gets harder every single day that she doesn't wake up…"

"I know," he said, leaning down slightly to wrap his arms around her shoulders. "Oliver should be here soon. He got off work a little while ago. How about when he gets here, you and I go for a little walk? He always likes to spend time alone with her."

"Yeah… I suppose I could handle that," she reasoned, leaning into Randall's embrace.

"Good." Randall smiled and kissed the top of her head before fixing his eyes on Lilly.

"Good afternoon," Dr. Rosen spoke as he entered the room, interrupting both of their thoughts. "How are you two holding up today?"

"As best as we can," replied Randall with a shrug.

"Hopefully we'll be able to get you some decent news today after we run some tests later on," he said while checking over the machines with Lilly's nurse, Alice. "Despite the conditions, things seem to be looking okay so far."

"Is that good news?" asked Heather, keeping her grip on her husband's arms.

"Well… It's not bad news, but it's not great news either. We're doing all we can, though, so don't lose hope." Dr. Rosen then turned back to the nurse, quietly saying something to her. She nodded before briskly leaving the room. "Okay, so we'll bring Lilly in for testing in roughly two hours or so," he said to the Truscott's.

Heather sadly glanced at her daughter. "Okay… She can still have visitors until then, right?"

"Absolutely. I'll just let you know ahead of time when we'll take her in." Giving them a genuine smile, Dr. Rosen left the two of them alone with their daughter once again.

Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket startled Randall but he was quick to get it out. "Ah, it's a text from Oliver."

"What'd he say?" Heather questioned.

"Apparently he got off work a little early. He said he's in the parking garage. Should be here shortly."

"Sounds good… I'm actually getting hungry," Heather spoke while placing a hand on her stomach.

"Excellent!" Randall smiled. "You need to eat."

"I know," she said with a small smile.

Randall lightly squeezed his wife's shoulder. He understood perfectly why it was hard for her to eat. The stress of this whole situation got to him as well, but he'd always force himself eat; otherwise he knew he never would.

Minutes later, Oliver stood outside Lilly's hospital room trying to control his emotions. Visiting Lilly was always difficult for him. Putting his feelings aside, he then quietly knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Heather answered.

"Hey guys," he greeted softly as he entered the room. "How's she doing today?"

"Well, we're not sure yet," answered Randall. "They're going to be doing tests on her today, so I guess we'll see."

Oliver swallowed hard. "Okay…"

Heather stood up, holding Randall's hand. "We're going to run over to the cafeteria for a bite to eat. Will you be okay here alone or do you want to come with?"

"Oh, no, I'll be fine here. I don't mind," he reassured.

"All right. Just call us if you need anything."

Oliver nodded and watched as the two adults quietly left the room, as if they were trying not to disturb Lilly. The look of exhaustion on their faces broke his heart but Oliver knew that he, too, had that same look. At least that's what Joannie kept telling him.

Letting out a short sigh, Oliver plopped down onto the chair Heather had been sitting in and looked down at the notebook he held in his hand. It was Lilly's notebook from Mr. Corelli's class… He had given it to Oliver right before graduation. Corelli said that Oliver could give it to Lilly's parents or wait to give it to Lilly herself when she recovered. Oliver knew he'd never forget the emotions that overpowered him at that simple statement. Blinking back tears, he then turned his attention to his best friend.

"Hey, Lil," he greeted quietly. "I, um…I brought you something… It's your project from Corelli's class. I…I would've brought it to you sooner, but…well, I don't know… I can assure you that I haven't read it. You'll be happy to know, though, that you got an A on the project. Corelli said your journal entries were very moving… From what teachers have said, you totally would've graduated. You worked so hard…"

Silence filled the room, just as Oliver expected it would. While he kept his tears at bay, he looked back down at the journal. "I hope there will be a time where you can show me what you wrote in here. I feel it would be disrespectful of me to read it without your permission. So, you see…you have to wake up, Lil… You have to…"

The tears that pricked at Oliver's eyes threatened to spill over as he looked at his motionless best friend. Taking a deep breath, he averted his eyes to the one, of many, photos that Lilly's parents had brought in from her bedroom. The one his attention was on right now was the photo he took on the last day he ever got to hang out with Miley before she died. They had been at Rico's, Lilly sitting on Miley's lap, kissing… He had snuck his way into taking the picture. What he loved most about it was that their love was so wonderfully displayed. Oliver didn't think any two people could love each other the way Miley and Lilly did.

"Miley…" Oliver whispered painfully. "I need some sort of sign… We all need a sign… This is driving us insane. Please, I know you're watching over her. Give us some sort of clue… Please…" His voice trailed off as tears spilled over and his grasp on the notebook tightened to the point where his knuckles started turning white. Soon, Oliver curled himself up on the chair, burying his head into his folded arms, and let the notebook fall from his grasp onto the floor. His heart painfully constricted with fear. Everything in his life would fall apart if he lost Lilly. She meant so much to him… With these thoughts in mind, Oliver's cries grew louder, wishing there was something he could do to make this nightmare disappear…

…

Hours went by and it was almost time for the doctors to run tests on Lilly. Randall leaned his right side against the wall, looking out the window from his daughter's hospital room. The streets were busy with people going on about their ordinary lives while he was in this building fearing for his daughter's health.

A sudden knock brought Randall out of his depressive thoughts and he turned to look over at the door. "Come in…"

Robbie Ray creaked the door open and slowly walked in. "Hey, Randall. How are ya holdin' up?"

"Okay I guess… It was nice of you to stop by." He offered a small, yet genuine, smile.

"Hey, I consider Lilly family still," he responded, returning a smile. "Plus I had something I wanted to drop by for her."

"Okay." Randall nodded. "I'll go find Heather and Oliver and give you some time with her."

"Thank you. I shouldn't be too long."

"Take your time." Sharing another smile, Randall made his way out of the room, giving Robbie a moment alone with Lilly.

Clutching the plastic bag in his hand, Robbie stepped closer to the bed that held the girl who became like another daughter to him years ago. His mind couldn't help but go back to when Miley was in the hospital… When he watched her pass away…

"I brought somethin' for ya, Lilly," he began softly. "Somethin' to help you through this somehow…" Robbie set the bag on the foot of the bed, reaching his hand in, and pulled out Miley's cherished childhood teddy bear, Beary. "It's…taken me a while to get myself to bring him here. Beary's been in my room since Miley past, but…I feel you could really use him right now."

As he placed Beary in Lilly's arms, hot tears gathered in his eyes. "I hope you know she's with you, Lilly. And I hope, somehow, you find peace…" Wiping his eyes, Robbie took out the second item he had brought from the bag; one of Miley's journals. "This was in Miley's nightstand… It was her last journal, I believe… Even though I'm not proud to admit this, but I needed to get a sense of her again, so…I read it… Miley wrote amazing things about you, Lilly. I know you won't be able to read it…yet…but I have this feelin' that you'll be able to feel the love written out on these pages." Giving his daughter's journal a light squeeze, Robbie leaned over to place it on the bed tray that stood next to the bed. "I hope you find the best path for you, Lilly…"

After sending a silent prayer, Robbie gave another look at Lilly and then left the room; leaving Beary tucked in Lilly's arms.

…

"Heather…? Sweetheart?" Randall's attempts to get his wife's attention went unnoticed. "Heather?" he asked again, stepping closer to where she was seated next on the hospital bed.

"Hmm?" she responded, slightly startled out of her thoughts.

"Why don't we go out for a while since Lilly's in for tests. It would do you some good to get out of here for a little while."

Heather's sad eyes continued staring down at the stuffed bear in her hands. "I don't want to leave. I want to be here the very second they're done with these tests… I need to know how she's doing…"

"Honey, we'll be back in time, I promise," he spoke assuringly. "Besides," he began, pointing at Beary, "Miley's keeping an eye on her."

Tears spilled down Heather's cheeks. "I miss Miley so much…and she made Lilly so happy…"

Randall kissed the crown of her head, understanding completely how she felt. "I miss her, too… Miley was a great girl."

"She sure was…" Turning her head, Heather glanced up at the clock hung up on the opposite side of the room. "Randy, it might not be too much longer. Who knows, maybe they'll finish earlier than they think… I-I can't leave…"

"Okay, okay, you don't have to," he soothed, wrapping his arms around her tightly as she started shaking. "I'll just call Oliver to tell him to go out to eat without us…" Feeling his wife nod against him, Randall pulled out his cell phone to call Oliver.

Downstairs in the main lobby, Oliver hung up his phone as Joannie exited the restroom. She gave him a curious look while a sigh escaped him. "Heather refuses to leave," he explained. "It'll just be the two of us going out to dinner."

"Darn." Joannie smirked, giving Oliver's hand a squeeze. "I'm not too surprised that she wants to stay, though."

"Neither am I…" he answered sadly. "Guess I was hoping that she would get out of here for a little while. The restaurant is just down the street."

"Yeah, she's stressing herself out too much. Even Mr. Truscott tries to get her out of there."

Oliver pressed the button for the crosswalk and then turned back to his girlfriend. "I think I would go mental if I stayed there that often."

Joannie leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. "You could be if I didn't constantly force you to do other things."

"Very true. Thank you, babe." After kiss her gently on the lips, the two lovebirds crossed the street and headed on to their desired destination.

…

Oliver pushed his plate away to make room for writing out the tip and total on the bill. He and Joannie had a wonderful time together and shared a shrimp and pasta dish at Red Lobster and were comfortably full. For Oliver, it was amazing to be here with Joannie. She had been keeping him strong for the last couple of months. In fact, he was sure that he was falling even more in love with her; which he didn't think was possible. But it was, it really, truly, was.

"This was amazing," he said, setting the bill on the edge of the table for the waiter to pick up.

"It sure was." Joannie extended her arms and wiggled her fingers to signal Oliver to hold them, which he happily did. "You doing okay today?"

"Yeah, I guess," he sighed out. "Just pretty nervous…"

"Me too," she hesitantly admitted.

Oliver nodded, thinking back to his blonde-haired best friend. They both sat there in silence, holding hands, as their minds wandered. Suddenly, Oliver's phone started vibrating in his pocket and he was quick to take it out. "It's Randy…" he announced. As Joannie gave him a concerned look, he answered. "Hello?"

"Oliver, it's me," Randall shakily spoke. "They're done with Lilly's tests… We're waiting for you two to get back before we let them give us the news…"

Oliver swallowed hard. "O-Okay… We'll be there as quickly as we can… Yeah… Bye…" He then hung up and, before Joannie had a chance to say anything, Oliver stood up. "We gotta go… They're waiting on us to hear about Lilly."

Joannie's eyes widened and with no other words, the two darted out of the restaurant. They were finally going to know Lilly's up-to-date condition.

…

Randall paced nervously as he and Heather waited for Oliver and Joannie to get back. Movement from the corner of his eye caught Randall's attention and he was glad to see Oliver rush in with Joannie right behind him. "Thank God," he sighed. "I'll go get Dr. Rosen."

As Randall rushed off, Oliver went over to Heather with a worried, panicked look in his eyes. "What's going on? Do you think its good news?"

"I-I don't know…" she replied, nervously biting at her fingernails. "We were waiting for you…"

"Everybody here?" asked Dr. Rosen as he and Randall entered the waiting room, interrupting further conversation.

"Yes… Yes, we're all here," Heather answered apprehensively.

"Okay," he sighed, crossing his hands together. "I wish I could bring you good news, but…according to Lilly's tests, her brain activity has not improved. There's still signs of significant damage and, at this rate, when or if Lilly wakes up, she'll have a ninety-seven percent chance of suffering from long-term memory loss. There's nothing we can do at this point…"

"A-Are you saying she'll have amnesia?" Randall asked in disbelief; voice hoarse with fear.

"I'm afraid so… But, we'll only know for sure if she wakes up from this coma."

Heather, who was now in tears, took in a shaky breath. "Is th-there any way of knowing wh-when that'll be…?"

"Unfortunately, no…" Seeing the looks on everyone's faces broke Dr. Rosen's heart. He hated this part of his job. "I'll leave you all to discuss this together. I'll come back to give you more information on coping with memory loss."

"Can we…um…see her?" Oliver asked, trying to sound brave.

"Lilly should be back in her room shortly. I'll be sure to let you all know."

Randall nodded, holding is wife close to him as she cried. Everything in his life was in a stand still at the moment and he didn't know what to do…what to say…or what to feel… His baby girl had very slim chances of ever remembering anything in her life. If she even woke up…

"Wh-What are we going to do…?" Heather asked through sobs.

"I don't know, huh," he whispered, burying his face into her hair. "I…I just don't know…"

Meanwhile, Oliver stood still in shock, trying to let all the information sink in. His throat quickly began to tighten and tears welled up before spilling over.

"Oh, Oliver…" Joannie moved so she could embrace him. Hearing him cry harder into her hair was all it took for her to lose control of her own emotions. Squeezing her eyes tightly shut, she and Oliver held each other closely as pain coursed through them both.

Just as he said he would, Dr. Rosen returned, holding several pamphlets, and paused in the doorway. "Whenever you're all ready, they're just finishing up getting Lilly settled in."

The only response Randall could give was a nod and, using all his strength, supported Heather and signaled for Oliver and Joannie to follow. He was more than anxious to see his little girl after hearing the devastating news that turned their whole world upside down.

Dr. Rosen paused outside the room, turning to Lilly's family and friends. "I'll go in to make sure they got everything set up properly. Shouldn't be long at all, just give me a few seconds."

"Thank you…" Heather tearfully whispered.

After Lilly's doctor slipped into the room, Randall took the opportunity to glance at Oliver. Seeing the broken, far off look in his eyes tugged at Randall's heart and, without saying a word, wrapped the boy in a hug. Within seconds Oliver was shaking, resulting in a tighter grip. Oliver was always like a son to him, so Randall's fatherly instincts kicked in to comfort the young man as best as he could. Plus he knew how important Lilly was to him. The poor boy already lost one best friend and now, in a way, he lost another…

The sound of a door closing caught his attention again and Randall looked over to see Dr. Rosen standing in front of them; handing Heather a pamphlet. "Lilly's all settled in," he explained. "These pamphlets give information on coping with a loved one suffering from memory loss and comas and these are for the patient on coping with memory loss."

"Thank you, Doctor," Randall said scratchily.

He nodded. "I'll leave you all alone with Lilly now. If you need anything, just buzz for me," he informed as he opened the door for them.

Without a sound, everyone stepped into the room. A quiet sob sounded from Heather upon seeing her baby girl lying on the bed; hooked up all of those machines again. Still hooked up to…life support… Taking Randall's hand, she led the way to the side of the bed and tearfully ran her free hand through Lilly's tousled blonde hair. "Oh sweetheart… My Lilly…"

Randall, without hesitation, wrapped his arms around Heather; resting his cheek on the side of her head. "We'll get through this, Heather… I promise we'll get through this together…"

Heather's hand found Lilly's and her emotions rose to the point where it was unbearable. She turned in Randall's arms, gripping their daughter's hand, and buried her face into his chest. Heather knew there was no way she could have gone through any of this without him and she knew with all her heart that he wasn't going anywhere.

Cranking her head to the side, Heather saw Beary sitting on a chair next to her. She stretched her hand out to grasp him and with a broken heart set him back down into Lilly's arm, right where he belonged. Miley's love was held in that bear and that's what they all needed right now. Crying harder now, she returned to her previous position in her husband's embrace.

Holding Joannie's hand, Oliver backed up against the wall, watching as two very important people in his life break down. Joannie's head was soon on his shoulder, arms wrapped securely around his right one, and that was enough for him to know he didn't have to act strong anymore. At least not right now. The fact that Lilly wouldn't know who they were when or if she woke up destroyed Oliver's heart. It seemed so surreal…

But the one thing Oliver could not accept was that Lilly wouldn't remember Miley. Feeling his knees give out, he slid to the floor, tears pooling out of his eyes as Lilly's words echoed in his mind…

"I don't ever want to forget Miley, and…I don't want to be happy without her…"

If Lilly did wake up, she couldn't know Miley…the love of her life. Oliver shook his head; face buried in his hands. Joannie was once again comforting him, but this time it did no good. Who would Lilly Truscott be without Miley in her heart? A stranger.

A fact that everybody in the room was thinking…

…

"I don't know, baby what I'd do
On this Earth, without you
We all live, and we all die
But the end is not good-bye
The sun comes up, and seasons change
And through it all, Love remains…"

('Love Remains' ~ Collin Raye)

Yeah... :( Poor Lilly

Like I said, even though this is sad stuff, I hope you're all still enjoying this story. I have big things coming up in these final chapters and hope you stick around to read them. Thanks for reading! I would really love to hear your thoughts since it's been a while! R&R