Ello ello ello I'm baaaack. Good grief can't believe how long it's been since I updated, I had severe writers block (meh) and seeing as this chapter is quite important I really wanted to get this right. So her it is my lovely's, chapter twenty four. Hope you all enjoy it.

Thank you also to everyone who reviewed the last chapter…. Mystery00Meat, Keanna Black and xKCliciousx. But a special thanks to xKCliciousx for being an awesomely loyal reviewer by not giving up on my story even if it has taken me ages to update :S

Also thanks to all of those who are just reading my fic, but reviews are nice too hint hint?

Sooooo anyways here is the new chapter, hope you all enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it :D

Much love! Charl xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chapter Twenty Four-

Danny's POV:

It was like I couldn't control myself. Like someone, or something had taken over my body, working me like some sick puppet. I knew that what I was doing was wrong but I'd drunk a lot, and so has she.

Looking back I can't believe how id kissed her, touched her, did…. other things with her. Thinking of it now makes me feel sick.

But I couldn't stop myself. She'd smelt so good and her skin was so soft. And she seemed to really want me. And so I took her, without thinking of any of the consequences. All I cared about at that time was that she wanted me and I wanted, well I just wanted to feel someone. Niama wasn't there, and Kate was.

But then the door crashed open and my whole world fell to pieces around me….

Dougie's POV:

I sat at the bottom of the stairs with my head in my hands. My whole body just felt numb.

How could he have done this? Danny's one of my best mates, I know him; at least I thought I did. The Danny I knew wouldn't have done this.

And what about Niama? This is gonna kill her; she loves him more than anything. And now he's done this. And for what? Some blonde slut?

It was now three in the morning; all of the party guests had left leaving me, Tom, Gio, Grace, Harry, Izzy and Danny. Katie or Kate, whatever her name was left not long after me and Grace walked in on her and Danny. Dan was still upstairs. The coward!

I felt a surge of anger towards him. How could he have done this? He has a girlfriend who loves and trusts him. But now he's betrayed her. Betrayed her like Frankie betrayed me. I'm happy with Grace now, I love her, but the echo of hurt that I felt when Frankie left me still cuts deep. And now it feels like her and Danny are one and the same.

I suddenly heard noises from the top of the stairs. I looked up to see Danny walking down them, his face pale and his eyes red and puffy. This worried me instantly. Had he been crying? Danny never cries!

He got to the bottom of the stairs and looked down at me.

"Where's Grace?" he asked me, his voice croaking a little.

"Living room" I said.

Danny turned to the closed door and started towards it. His hand on the doorknob he turned back to me where I was still sitting.

There was fear in his eyes, he knew what was coming.

Closing his eyes, as if in pain, he took a deep breath and opened the door. I heard all conversation cease as he entered the room. I got up and sidled in after him. I should probably be there to restrain Grace just in case she started chucking things at him.

No one seemed to even notice me walk into the room, all eyes were on Danny. I took a seat next to Grace and slid my hand into hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Everyone continued staring at Danny and he looked uncertainly back. The whole scene would have been comical if it wasn't se serious. The silence was getting oppressive. I wondered who would speak first out of Danny and Grace or whether Grace would move straight on to the physical attack.

Tom suddenly jumped up gabbling "I'm gonna make some tea. Who wants tea?" before ducking

quickly out of the room. I knew he was only leaving to escape the tension. Tom hates confrontation.

"Errrm, let's go see if he needs any help guys" Gio said to Harry and Izzy and they all left after Tom. I could see Gio blinking tears out if her eyes as she left and I knew she was thinking the same as me. What was this all going to do to Niama?

Danny finally sat down, throwing himself into an armchair; he ran a hand nervously through his hair. I could see that he was shaking but he looked Grace straight in the eye when he spoke.

"I don't know why I did this" he said quietly "I have no excuse except that I am a stupid fucking idiot"

"I love Niama more than anything, more than I ever thought I could love anything. She means everything to me and I feel sick thinking about what I have done because I know how much it will hurt her. I hate myself more than you could ever hate me , more than you could imagine and I wish I could take it back but I can't and its killing me" his voice cracked on the last few words and I saw him quickly wipe a tear off his cheek.

There was silence; I think Danny was waiting for Grace to say something. Eventually Grace spoke, her voice not full of anger as I thought it would be but merely with sadness.

"I don't hate you Danny, I don't think I could ever hate you, you've been a good friend to me and, ignoring what happened tonight, you've been as good a boyfriend to Niama as you could have been." She paused, as if trying to find the right words before continuing. "Before you met her Dan she was a mess, I don't think you realised when you first met her just how bad she was. In the first two years after Josh she hardly ate, she hardly slept; it was like part of her had died. And I couldn't do anything about it; all I could do was watch as my best friend slowly crumbled away. We tried everything. The doctors suggested pills, therapy, counselling, but none of them worked. She took anything the doctor gave her, she would talk to people if they spoke to her but it was like the fight had gone out of her."

"I don't know if she ever told you this Dan but the baby she was going to have? It was a boy. And she hates herself for what Josh did, for not being strong enough to protect the baby. She hates herself because she lived while her son didn't. She tried to kill herself you know" and I heard Danny's sharp intake of breath when Grace said that. Her eyes were brimming with tears. "I'm not telling you this to make you feel bad Dan; I'm telling you this to thank you. If it wasn't for you I don't know what state she would be in now."

"She's my best friend" Grace sobbed "she's like a sister to me. I don't want her to be hurt all over again because of this. She has to know but I don't think I can be the one to tell her Danny. I don't think I can take looking into her eyes and seeing her die all over again. So I'm giving you one week Danny, one week to tell her what happened or I will. As much as I don't want to be the one, it's better off from me than Kate" And with that Grace got to her feet and stumbled out of the room leaving me and Danny to stare at each other in shock both of us knowing that at some point in the next week the mother of all bombshells was going to go off.