It was Thanksgiving Day and everyone was rushing around like crazy trying to get everything together. Grandmama was the grand master of the event, directing everyone this way and that. Each person had a job to perform that day, whether they liked it or not.

"No, no, no!" the old woman snapped, wagging her finger at a very deflated looking Jeff, "Those do not go there! You set them over there!"

Nodding begrudgingly, Jeff carried the basket of apples to the opposite counter, grumbling under his breath as he went.

"Where do these go?" Violet asked, walking into the room with a huge stack of napkins.

"You can put those right on the table for now. We'll worry about setting it later," Grandmama said.

"Alrighty!" the hyper girl chirped, nodding and turning to head out into the dining room.

Just then Sally and Ben came running in. Bouncing up and done excitedly, Sally asked, "What can we do, Grandmama?"

Smiling at the excited child, she pointed to a basket of corn sitting on the floor, saying, "Why don't you two go outside and shuck some corn?"

Eyes brightening, she nodded quickly. "Okay! We can do that!" Then grabbing the basket of corn, she ran out, Ben following behind.

Standing straight again, Grandmama smiled, saying aloud, "I'm so glad they're both feeling better."

Natalie hummed from where she stood by the sink, washing vegetables. "They've both been pretty energetic all morning. I'm thinking Ben might actually be ready to go back to school on Monday."

Grandmama nodded. "Mm, I think so too."

"OUT OF THE WAY!"

L.J. came running into the room, oven mitts on his hands and 'Kiss The Chef' apron flapping around his waist. Pulling open the oven, he reached in, taking out a green bean casserole he had nearly forgotten. Sighing in relief, he set the glass pan on the counter, waving and oven mitt over it to clear away some of the steam.

"Close call?" Grandmama asked with a clear hint of amusement.

Nodding distractedly, he mumbled a small, "Uh huh," before moving to another side of the kitchen, pulling down bowls and ingredients and beginning to mix together the stuffing.

Watching, both interested and weirded out, Natalie mumbled, "Who would've ever known he would be such a good cook."

"I know," Grandmama replied, placing her hands on her hips. "You're not the only one surprised. For someone who didn't even know of the holiday, he's doing shockingly well keeping ups with all of the cooking."

"I think it's weird," Jeff announced, reentering the room with his usual air of smugness. "I mean, come on, what a fuckin' housewife."

Turning his head to glare at the younger boy, L.J. said, "You want to come over here and say that to my face, Woods?"

Jeff opened his mouth to reply, probably with something no one wanted to hear, but just then Lucy came into the kitchen, shoving right past him and nearly knocking him into the counter.

"Hey!" he yelped, catching himself on the edge. "What where you're going, bitch!"

"Jeffery!" Grandmama snapped, shooting him a look that could kill. "You do not use that sort of language in this house!"

Grumbling under his breath, Jeff decided for once not to argue back, instead grabbing a fistful of forks and leaving back into the dining room.

Scoffing, Lucy shook her head. "What a wimp."

"Maybe he was just being respectful," Natalie suggested kindly, shrugging her shoulders. The look she got in reply, though, said that she was being stupid.

"No, he's not respectful. When is he ever respectful? He's just a wimp," Lucy replied.

"OW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR, WOMAN?!"

The four occupants of the kitchen all glanced at each other. Sounded like Jeff had said something to piss Violet off.

"Idiot," L.J. mumbled, going back to mixing the stuffing.

Lucas sighed. He was completely beyond bored. His parents were out of town and he was home alone. And on Thanksgiving of all days. Wasn't this supposed to be a family holiday or something? Apparently they didn't care about that, though, and once again he was alone. Usually he'd just go to the Royal Heights Inn for Thanksgiving, but after the little fight he'd had with Sammy a few days ago they hadn't spoken, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to face that sort of wrathful awkwardness right now.

Rolling onto his side, he closed his eyes. Maybe he could just sleep through the whole rest of the day. Pretend like it never happened to begin with. Before he could go through with such a plan, though, his phone began to buzz.

Opening his eyes, he grabbed the latest model smartphone off of his side table, looking down at the screen. It was an unknown number. Picking up anyways, though, he put the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

He shot up in bed the second he heard who's voice replied. How had she gotten his number? "Jane? Hi. Uh… Happy Thanksgiving."

He smiled when she said Happy Thanksgiving back. The first and probably only person who would say that to him today.

"So… uh… why are you calling me? If you don't mind me asking, that is?"

He listened as she began to explain to him. Her family wasn't home either and she was bored. She wanted to hang out.

Heart pounding hard in his chest, he nodded quickly. Then realizing thats he couldn't see him, he nervously cleared his throat, stammering, "Y-yeah. Yeah, definitely. Sure."

He could almost hear the smile in her voice. She wanted to know if she could come there. To his house.

"Yeah, sure." He was nodding again. His heart had never raced so quick before.

After giving her his address they hung up, and he was left to wait in anticipation for her arrival.

He didn't have to wait long. Hardly twenty minutes later the doorbell rang, and fighting himself not to run right down, he quickly walked to the front door, pulling it open. There she stood, in all her beauty, long brown hair in a sleek ponytail and bright blue eyes wide with excitement, dressed in leggings, fur-lined boots, and a purple sweater.

"Wow, your house is huge. You never told me you're rich?" She was looking around, taking in the giant white house.

"Uh, yeah…" he said, rubbing the back of his neck. He was so nervous. He could feel his palms sweating. "I don't really like to brag about it." He made a mental note that if Sammy had heard that she'd scoff. According to her he loved bragging about it.

"Well, can I come in?" she asked, looking up at him with a cheerful smile. He felt like he could melt.

"Uh, y-yeah. Sure, yeah, definitely. Uh… Come on in." He held the door open, letting her enter.

She wandered around for awhile, Lucas following behind and telling her what each and every room was. Eventually, they came to his.

"This is your room? It's nice," she said, walking straight in and exploring around. He nervously followed behind, clearing his throat.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so."

"You guess? It's awesome! I'm jealous."

He snorted a little. "I guess."

For the rest of the day they hung out, playing video games, watching movies, and chatting. Admittedly, he was having a lot of fun. He always did with her. Jane was a pretty cool girl to hang out with. The whole time his heart was still racing, though, and his palms were sweaty. He couldn't seem to calm himself down.

"Hey, so, I have a question," she said suddenly, drawing him back to reality. "What are your friends like? I haven't gotten a chance to meet them, but I see you alway hanging out with them."

Blinking, he straightened up a bit, trying to think of what to say. "Well, I don't know, they're pretty cool I guess. Sammy, Mia, and I have been friends forever. And uh, I met everyone else this year. They're all pretty chill."

"What are their names?" She looked at him earnestly, as though she were really honestly interested.

"Well, again, there's Sammy and Mia. Sammy's, uh- she's my ex. The one with straight brown hair. Mia's her best friend. She's short, hyper, and has wild blonde hair." Jane nodded to show she was listening. "Then there's Jeff, the guy with long brown hair, Toby, the one who's always ticking his head, Caiden, the really emo one, Natalie, the quiet girl, Lucy-" He choked a bit here. He wasn't sure why, but saying her name made him feel sick. Clearing his throat, he continued, "Lucy, the loud girl with blonde hair, and E.J., the tall quiet guy."

She nodded, smiling a bit. "Cool. I think I know all the people you're talking about. It's a bit hard to remember." She laughed sheepishly. He loved her laugh.

Turning towards the tv, she pointed at it, saying, "Hey, let's watch another movie!"

Nodding, he laughed a bit, grinning wide. "Yeah, sure."

Jeff had been missing for awhile. Sighing, E.J. wandered around the inn looking for him. Grandmama had assigned him to said task after noticing his absence from the dining room. Honestly, he didn't think he could care less about where his best friend was. He could take care of himself. He was following orders, though, and so off to find Jeff it was.

Reaching the top of the steps, he saw Natalie at the opposite end of the hall. Smiling when she saw him, she waved.

"Hi!" He walked over to join her outside of Lucy and Violet's room. She had her hand on the knob. "Lucy sent me up to grab the flower vase from her room. She says it'd look good as a centerpiece for the dining room table."

He nodded, agreeing. That would look nice. Natalie turned the doorknob, pushing open the door to the room and taking a step forward to enter.

She shrieked.

Quickly separating, Jeff fell backwards onto the floor while Violet toppled onto the bed, sprawling awkwardly across it. There were still clear traces of her lip gloss on his face. They both looked wide-eyed and visibly shaken.

Quickly shutting the door, Natalie turned to look at E.J., her hands slapped over her mouth and eyes wide. He wasn't nearly as surprised, being the only one who previously knew, but he could understand her shock. It was a somewhat unlikely match.

"Should I… I mean…" She didn't seem to know what to say.

Placing a calming hand on her shoulder, he smiled reassuringly. "It's okay, calm down. It's no big deal."

She nodded, slowly removing her hands from her face. Her cheeks were a bright red. "O-okay… Yeah, you're right. No big deal."

Suddenly the door flew open and Jeff came sliding out, shouting, "IF YOU TELL ANYONE I WILL MURDER YOU BOTH."

"T-tell anyone wh-what?"

They all froze, slowly turning to see Toby standing at the top of the stairs. He looked confused.

"Nothing!" Jeff immediately shouted. Violet appeared behind him then, poking her head out from the room. She looked something between embarrassed and upset.

Toby walked over, slowly looking between Jeff and Violet. Jeff, and then Violet. Jeff. Violet. Jeff.

"Why a-are you wearing Viol-le-let's makeup?"

Jeff's cheeks turned a rosy shade of red. "What are you talking about?! I'm not!"

Toby moved forward, getting uncomfortably close to Jeff's face and smelling him. "It smells like watermelon…"

"NOTHING HAPPENED!" Jeff snapped.

Turning to Natalie, Toby said, "Clocky?"

She gave him a nervous look. Not sure what to say. Jeff was giving her a rather deadly glare, but she hated lying to Toby… "Um…"

"Don't you dare, Clockwork!" Jeff yelled.

"Um…"

"Clocky?" Toby whimpered.

"Um…"

E.J. sighed. Poor Nat. "Jeff and Violet were making out."

Jeff gave him an incredulous look. He felt betrayed.

Toby looked startled. Staring wide-eyed at Violet and Jeff, he remained silent a moment. And then he tackled Jeff.

"Ah, Toby!" Violet shrieked, jumping out of the way.

"Toby, get off of him!" Natalie yelled, taking a tentative step forward, and then quickly jumping back as they rolled in her direction.

"How dare you k-kiss my sister!" Toby growled, shakily punching Jeff in the face.

"You're not even fucking related!" Jeff snapped back, kicking him hard in the kneecap.

"What's going on up there?!" They could hear Hoodie yelling from downstairs, followed quickly by the sound of footsteps pounding up the stairs. The fight had escalated quickly, and blood was being shed.

"I don't want y-you near he-her-er!" Toby bit Jeff's arm, making him yell out in pain.

Clenching his teeth, he replied bitterly, "We've been dating for months, so I think you're a little late to that party." Toby growled loudly, hitting him hard in the nose.

"Stop it, stop it!" Hoodie shouted, running down the hall towards them with L.J. close behind. Together they pulled the two boys apart, holding them away from one another as they continued trying to throw swings.

"He kissed Violet!" Toby loudly accused, ticking his neck.

"Oh, fucking- She's my girlfriend, of course I kissed her!"

That made both Hoodie and L.J. pause for a moment, but they recover quickly, dragging the two boys in opposite directions. "I think you two just need to cool down a bit," Hoodie said, pulling Toby off to one side.

While all this hd been happening Violet had attempted sneaking away. She was quickly caught out by L.J., though, who shouted, "Hey! Stay right there, missy!" Flinching, she visibly drooped, nodding compliantly and standing still.

"This is a mess," Natalie murmured quietly, glancing up at E.J.

He nodded. "Yeah… It was bound to happen sooner or later, though."

"Yeah, I guess." She felt a little guilty about finding them out and technically causing the whole mess, but E.J. placed a hand on her shoulder, and she calmed down, smiling reluctantly up at him. He smiled back and she felt a little better.

Lucy appeared then at the top of the stairs. "What the fuck is everyone doing? I asked for that flower vase a half an hour ago."

Natalie and E.J. exchanged a look, trying not to laugh.

She looked irritated. "What?"

The food was all ready and the table was set. Calling everyone in, Grandmama sat at the head of the table, directing everyone else to take their seat as well. There was some chaos as everyone tried to find a chair, but eventually they all sat, and then it was time to start.

"So, I know some of you are new to the holiday, but what Sammy and I have always done is to share what we are grateful for before beginning to eat. So, this year, I would like the whole family to share." A few heads looked up at this, a couple of smiles were cracked at the word "family". "I'll go first." She closed her eyes, breathing deeply. Then, smiling, she said, "I am grateful to have been blessed with such wonderful guests. There is never a dull moment with everyone living together here. This is the busiest, the brightest, and the liveliest this inn has ever been. Amen."

Everyone, with the exception of Jeff, smiled. He was too busy pretending like he didn't care. L.J. and Sally looked like they were about to tear up.

"Your turn," Grandmama said, looking towards Sammy.

Nodding, Sammy seemed to think about it for a second, before saying, "I am grateful for new friends, even if they do drive me crazy. Admittedly, though, it is nice having more people to spend my time with. Amen."

"Ooh!" Toby piped up. "M-my turn, my turn!"

Grandmama chuckled, nodding towards the excited teen.

Practically bouncing in his seat, eh said, "I am gr-grateful for Caiden and N-Natalie! They're the b-b-bestest friends I've ev-e-er had! A-amen!"

Natalie had to tilt her head down to hide the huge smile growing on her face. Jeff rolled his eyes.

"Well," Masky spoke up, "I'm grateful for the incredibly luck we have had in finding a temporary home willing to hold our wild, ragtag family. Amen."

"I'm grateful for the fact that everyone here is safe and healthy," Hoodie said. Then glancing towards E.J., whose leg was still in a cast, he added, "Almost. Amen."

E.J. shot Lucy a withering glare when she began to snort, trying not to laugh.

"I am grateful for all the fun memories we've all made since coming here!" Sally piped up, hugging her teddy against her chest. She had decided to bring him down to dinner with her.

"I am grateful," Natalie began, rolling her eyes to ceiling as she thought, "for the people around me. Without them, I wouldn't be who or where I am."

"I'm grateful for the opportunity to expand my horizons and learn more about the world and the people in it, Amen," L.J. said, smiling. Grandmama smiled too, reaching over and patting his hand.

Scoffing, Jeff grumbled, "And by that you mean acting like a housewife and spending all day reading People Magazine." This earned a prompt elbow in the side from Violet.

Clearing his throat, Ben said, "Well, I'm grateful for being alive. Amen." That one earned a few sad and reassuring smiles.

"You next," Natalie said, poking E.J. in the side.

Sighing, he paused, thinking, before saying, "I'm grateful for my best friends. And I'm grateful for the absolute loyalty and care they show me. They make my life complete. Amen." Jeff couldn't help but notice that as he was saying this was very pointedly staring at Lucy the whole time. Rolling his eyes, he scoffed, grumbling under his breath and tilting back in his chair. Man-whore.

"Uh… I guess it's me then," Lucy sighed, chewing at her lip. Then sitting up straighter, she said, "I'm just grateful for the life I have. It's not the best, but it could be worse. So, yeah. Amen."

"So insightful," L.J. grumbled.

"Well, I'm grateful for my wonderful friends and family. Amen!" Violet chirped, grinning.

'I'm grateful for the food about to be dropped on the floor when all this stupid talking is done,' Smile said, grinning widely from his place under the table.

"Jeff, your turn," Violet said, elbowing him gently in the side.

He groaned, rolling his eyes. He was still tipping back in his chair. "No way. This is fucking stupid."

Eyes flashing, she elbowed him harder, making him splutter. "Jeff, just do it. Don't be an ass."

Sighing, he rolled his eyes again, rubbing his now sore side. "Fine, whatever. Uh… I'm grateful for friends and shit, or whatever. Now can we eat?"

She glared at him. "You forgot the amen part."

"Fine, Amen. Can we eat?"

Deciding it was good enough, everyone began to dig in, serving the food and filling their plates to the rims. Soon the table was filled with pleasant chatter and laughing and everyone conversed while enjoying their food. Compliments were thrown towards the chefs, L.J. and Grandmama, who took each boast modestly. The night became fun and light-hearted.

Once dinner was done and dessert had been served things began to quiet down. Everyone retired to the common room, some with plates of dessert and others with full bellies. They sat around, quietly talking and spending time together. Jeff, still in a bad mood, had stormed up to his room earlier, and Masky had also retired, intent on doing some more research. This had left Hoodie to roll his eyes and grumble about his lack of caring for others.

Sally was fast asleep, head on Natalie's lap. After eating two huge plates of food and devouring her bodyweight in dessert she immediately passed out. Ben wasn't far behind, curled up on the floor with Smile.

Standing up from his seat, Toby said, "I-I'm gonna go get some air."

A few people nodded, and he left out the front door, stepping onto the porch. After the warm food and common room, the late November air was cool and chilly. Wrapping his sweater tighter around himself, he looked out at the empty road, watching his breath form a small cloud in front of him. It was so peaceful.

'Toby.'

He jumped in surprise, looking around. Where and that voice come from?

'Toby!'

A chill ran along his spine. As far as he could tell, it wasn't from the cold. Turning, he went to go back inside, but then the voice sounded again, louder.

'TOBY!'

Letting out an audible yelp, he looked around, trying to spot the source of the voice. It sounded like it was coming from nowhere and everywhere all at once. Something about it weirded him out.

'Toby, help!'

The more he heard the voice the more a part of him said that he knew it from somewhere. Something about it was so familiar but he wasn't sure why. It was a girl's voice, but not Natalie, or Lucy, or Violet, or Sammy, or Sally. It was too young to be Grandmama's, that was for sure. So who was speaking to him?

'Toby, help me! Help me, Toby! Please!'

He looked desperately around. Where were they? What was happening? How could he help?

'I don't want to die!'

His eyes widened. He knew that voice now. But a large part of him wished now that he didn't.

Taking off down the porch, he began to run, racing across the dark, empty road and off into the town. He could hear it. Where the voice was coming from. He knew. He had to get there. He had to save her. He couldn't let her die.

'Help me, Toby! Help!'

Inside the inn Sally suddenly sat up, gasping for breath. Startled, Natalie looked down at the hyperventilating girl, rushing to comfort her. A few others stood up and ran over, going to calm her down, but she fought them all away, desperately pushing them off of her and struggling to catch her breath.

Gasping, she shouted, "Toby!"

It was eight o'clock at night and Jane was still over. They had just finished up watching a scary movie, and she had been clinging onto his arms he whole time, burying her face in his chest. The lights were still off, and the only lighting came from the dimly lit flatscreen. They were sitting on the couch in his room.

"That was scary," Jane whimpered. "Why'd we have to watch it?"

He laughed a little, giving her a look. "You're the one who wanted to watch it."

Pouting, she whined, "Shut up!"

He was in the middle of laughing again when suddenly she was on top of him, lips colliding with his. Surprised, he choked for a moment, before coming to and kissing her back. It was a desperate sort of kissing. The kind that happened when two people really wanted each other, but couldn't take actions on said wants for an extended period of time. It was a kind of kissing that he had never experienced before.

Placing his hands on her hips, he pushed his tongue into her mouth, pleasantly surprised when she didn't immediately reject the move. Instead she kissed him deeper, pressing her body closer against his.

What happened next he could have never imagined.

He felt a slight fumbling around his hips, and then suddenly her hand was in his pants. Disconnecting from her lips, he gasped in surprised, eyes wide as he looked up at her. She gave a smirk, something that his mind registered as being very unlike her, and then she continued kissing him, hand moving under his pants and making his mind go numb.

Before he knew what had happened he was touching her too, and minutes later they had moved onto the bed, stripped off their clothes, and connected, gasping and moaning in a way neither had ever before. After that, it all went black.

Toby turned a corner, running blindly towards the large, abandoned building before him. Thats as where the voice was coming from. He was sure of it.

Racing in, he paused, listening. Upstairs. Its as coming from upstairs.

Pounding up the creaky wooden steps, he entered the top hallway of the building, desperately seeking out the room she was being held in. He was so close. He could just feel it. She was here somewhere.

Kicking open each door, he coped over every room, looking for her. She had to be here. She just had.

Pushing open the door to one room, he found it dimly lit by a candle. There were a few items, including a sleeping bag, scattered across the floor. A homeless person must be living there.

Moving quickly through the room, he looked around, trying to figure out whether she might be there. Maybe the sleeping bag was hers? Or maybe this person had kidnapped her? It seemed to coincidental to him that someone else might be here at the same time as her.

Turning quickly, he went to head for the door, figuring he'd search the rest of the building for the person, but as he turned he accidentally knocked over the candle with his boot. Looking down, his eyes widened, seeing the old wooden flooring immediately begin to catch. There was no protective polishing, and the bare wood lit quickly. Frozen a moment in fear, he watched the fire begin to spread throughout the room. Then, realizing the danger he was in, he fled the room, back out into the hall.

The walls were already catching and smoke began to fill the air. Coughing, he covered his mouth with his sleeve, squinting to look around. His eyes were beginning to water.

'Toby! Help!'

He froze. There is was again. She was still here.

Looking around desperately, he shouted, "Where a-are you?!"

'Toby! Please, I don't want to die! Toby!'

He ran down the hall, looking one each room again as he went. "Where are y-you?! I c-c-can't find you!"

'Toby, help!'

He coughed. The smoke was beginning to fill his lungs. He couldn't leaver without her though, and so he kept running, checking everywhere he could.

'Toby!'

A/N - Hehehe?

. . . don't kill me please.

ANYWAYS, thanks for reading! Make sure to leave a review! ;)