A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, guys! I really thought everyone was going to stop reading after I killed off Julie so thanks for sticking around lol! There's so much crazy stuff coming up and I'm so excited to write about it and for you guys to read it, of course. Keep those reviews coming, they motivate me so much :)

Jared lay in bed the next morning, staring up at the ceiling. He hadn't slept all night but somehow, he wasn't tired. He looked over to his side and saw Sophia sleeping soundly. She was still wearing the black dress she had worn to the funeral and a piece of her hair was sticking up. Jared smiled a little, reaching over to pat it down and that was when she opened her eyes.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to wake you." He said and she shook her head, smiling.

"It's okay." She told him. "How'd you sleep?"

"I didn't." He said and she looked at him.

"Jared, I know this is very hard for you but… you need to sleep." She said, concerned and he nodded.

"I know but every time I close my eyes, a memory of her comes into my head and I just, I can't see her now, I'm not ready." He said and she nodded, understandingly.

She carefully wrapped her arms around him and let his head rest on her shoulder.

"I wish I could make things better for you." She whispered and he nodded.

He sat up and then faced her, looking into her eyes. "There's one thing," He said, placing his hand on her cheek and bringing her face closer to kiss her. He pulled away and she blushed. "Those amazing chocolate pancakes of yours that I love would make me feel a little better." He said, managing a smile.

She laughed. "If that's what will help…" She trailed and he nodded. She laughed again and quickly got up.

"You're the best!" He told her and she looked back and gave him a quick smile, before running down the stairs to make the pancakes.

Gaby woke up in an unfamiliar bed and quickly jumped when she realized where she was. Tyler's room. She closed her eyes, praying she hadn't done what she thought she had.

She got out of the bed and walked into the kitchen, where Tyler was reading the newspaper.

"Morning, sunshine," He said, with a smile and she looked at him. "How are you?"

"Did we sleep together?" She quickly asked and he almost chocked on his tea.

"Of course not, Gaby!" He said and she sighed, relieved. "Do you not remember what happened last night?"

She looked at him and shook her head. "Not really… everything these past few days have been a blur." She said and he nodded.

"Okay," He said, slowly. "Well, you came here, we had a few glasses of wine and we talked about everything," He said and she looked at him, curiously. "About your mom, middle school, when we were together… You didn't mention that boyfriend of yours, though."

"That makes sense, I guess," She said and he looked at her. "Things have been a little rocky lately."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" He asked and she shook her head.

"No, hopefully things will work out on their own." She said and he nodded. "I should probably go, though," She said and he stood up. "Thank you, for everything and I hope I see you around." She said and he smiled.

"Of course." He nodded and she left.

Lucy sat in her bedroom, staring at the blank paper. She had to write an essay for English class but she had no idea what to write about. She groaned loudly and rested her head on the desk.

She heard a knock at her door and quickly lifted her head up.

"Is there a young lady with the name of 'Lucy Riley' that lives in this room?"

She smiled, it was Zach.

"There is." She nodded, laughing as he walked in, one hand behind his back.

"Well, then do I have a surprise for you!" He said, revealing his hidden hand. He held a small, chocolate cupcake with a lit candle sticking out of the top. "Happy 16th Birthday, Lucy!"

"Zach…" She trailed, laughing. "Thank you!"

He laughed and gave her the cupcake. "Why aren't you out celebrating?" He asked and she looked away.

"Well, because, I mean… everyone was so sad about Julie so I didn't want to make it seem like my birthday was more important," She shrugged and Zach looked at her. "I didn't know her but my dad did and he was friends with her and her husband when my Uncle Scooter was dating this girl Livvie, so it's probably really hard on him and I just don't want to make a big deal about my birthday…"

"What? Lucy, that's crazy! It's your sweet sixteen! You should be having the best time of your life, no matter what's going on in the real world." He told her and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"And since when did you become a party animal?" She asked and he laughed.

"Well, sleeping with Jade Germaine and then getting dumped by her changes a person," He said and she rolled her eyes. "No, but really… You should be having fun, Lucy."

"I can't, I've got a huge essay that's due tomorrow, anyway." She shook her head.

He sighed and walked over to her, taking her hand. "Lucy, I'm going to give you the best birthday ever, okay?" He said and she raised an eyebrow. "A birthday that you will never forget."

Gaby returned home and sighed when she saw Ryan sitting at the doorstep.

"Gaby!" he said, standing up and walking over to her. "Where have you been? I've been worried sick."

She looked at him. "I was just with an old friend." She told him and he nodded, pulling her into a hug but she pushed him away.

"What's wrong, baby?" He asked her and she looked up at him.

"I think we should take a break." She swallowed and his eyes widened.

"No," He shook his head, not comprehending what she was saying. "I'm not leaving you, not now when you need me most, Gaby!"

She tried her hardest not to cry. "Ryan, I just… I need some time alone, okay? I need to deal with this by myself, it's how I've always dealt with things like this."

"'Things like this'?" He asked. "Gaby, you've never had to deal with losing a parent, you don't know how to do it and you can't do it alone! Please let me be there for you!"

She shook her head. "I don't want you to be there for me, I want to be alone, can you respect that, please?"

He was quiet for a while but then he finally looked up at her and nodded. "If that's what you really want but Gaby, if you need me, I'll drop everything to come to you."

"I know." She nodded and they hugged. She quickly pulled away and ran into the house. She went to her bed and started crying onto a pillow.