But it was so true. People always thought that grieving was a group process, and that wasn't entirely true. Sitting and thinking to yourself was just as effective, if not more.

And that's just what Gordo did. Minded his own business, left others alone. Why did he feel like the only one in the room who was taking this seriously? Everyone else was trapped in bubbles of obliviousness. And the worst part was, they did it voluntarily. Facing reality, facing cold, hard facts. That was just another day in the life of David Gordon.

At times, thoughts failed him. He wasn't sure what to think, what to feel. Temporarily, he was just another useless airhead in the crowd. A person who, even if they did have thoughts, had silly, unreasonable thoughts. And that's what most of the people there were. They thought they were grieving, but grieving isn't just about showing up at a funeral, or in this case, a hospital. But grieving was such an unexplainable thing. It just wasn't the sort of thing you had to force yourself to do. It should come naturally. And that's how you knew that you truly loved that person. You don't even have to think about crying. You just do.

Yet Gordo couldn't help but wonder if what he was doing was actually helping. As smart as he'd like to think he was, maybe he was the nutcase, the guy who would eventually crack. It seemed that way, like every time another person would try to help, he'd push them away. Would he be one of those people who end up alone, unmarried, friendless, and be known to the neighborhood kids as Crazy Man Gordon? He had wanted so much in his life, but now, it seemed pointless, worthless. Just another phase that needed to be etched out of his mind.

Then again, maybe this was a sign. A sign that he should go out there and do what he wanted, before it was too late. Because we all assume that we're going to die when we're in our 70s, 80s, maybe even later. That's probably what Lizzie and Miranda thought. But the truth is, you could die next year. next month, next week, even...tomorrow.

Nothing seemed real anymore. Contradictions overpowered his head, nothing seemed to have only one answer anymore. Could he take it anymore? The deep thoughts constantly hovering over him like a dark cloud. He had taken happiness for granted, and now it was gone. Sometimes, he wished it was all a dream.

~~~~~~~

Gordon, wake up, a voice whispered to him. Gordo made unintelligible noises, attemtping to indicate that he didn't want to wake up. But eventually, his mind did. Where am I? he thought, his eyes still not open.

Then an elbow nudged him rather roughly, but he ignored it. Have I been...dreaming?

the voice yelled into his ear. You gotta get up! Consciousness kicked in, and he recognized the voice as, of course, Ethan.

He forced his eyelids to part and saw himself in the waiting room of the hospital. Same as before. It wasn't a dream, he thought, biting his lower lip to keep from crying.

Dude, what's wrong? Ethan said, worriedly. It's funny, Gordo thought. He almost sounds convincing.

I, uh... Gordo swallowed. I've got something, um...in my eye. It's been...bothering me for a while now.

But how could you respond to that?

Well, uh, I'll be over there, man, he said, sounding confused, and motioning slowly over to the rest of the group with his thumb. He turned around and walked somberly back there, and flopped down onto the seat next to Kate. Gordo watched, out of the corner of his eye, as Kate snuggled up against Ethan's shoulder, and they sat together, comforting each other without speaking a word.

The summer after they all graduated from junior high, Ethan's stepmom made a decision. She decided to take a vacation to Europe. But even she could've taken Ethan, she wouldn't have. She tried asking so many family friends if they would take him in for the summer, but they all had plans.

Ethan had had his eye on Lizzie McGuire for a while, but never got the chance to make a move, with Kate always latched onto his arm. Kate was a nuisance to him. It was almost like she was in his way. So just like many other girls, Lizzie slipped through his fingers.

But when oppurtunity rang, he answered. He suggested to his mom the McGuires. It took some convincing, considering he himself had only seen them a few times, but Mr. and Mrs. McGuire were so hospitable and considerate that his stepmom couldn't help but gain trust in them so quickly.

So the McGuires' basement became Ethan's temporary residence for those 2 months. The first couples were awkward, but ultimately, he came, he saw, he conquered: by the end of the summer, they were a full-blown couple.

But time took its toll, and by that February, they had broken up. And it was not a pretty break-up. Lizzie crying for days on end, Ethan sitting sadly by himself during lunch. Of course, Lizzie got over it, with the help of Miranda, but Ethan was another story. No one dared to talk to him. They all believed that he didn't want to be bothered.

One pretty spring day, Kate got sick of it. She marched up to Ethan, and yelled, Snap out of it! It's been like, 3 months! And he just looked up at her and held back laughter. Somehow, in the vast shallowness of high school, they had found true love in one other.

It was a sickeningly sweet story, pure sap straight from the oak tree. But practically everyone at school knew it. And Gordo knew it would make a beautiful story to tell their grandchildren one day.

Staring at Kate and Ethan, he wished he had that. It didn't even have to be true love. Even lust, or perhaps just someone to care for. He'd had someone in mind, but he was never sure about it. Never quite positive that there could be something there. Never quite confident to say anything. But now, it was impossible.

He lifted his eyes up towards the ceiling, as though looking towards heaven. And without hesitation, he whispered...

I love you, Lizzie McGuire.

------------------

[A/N: *Ahem*.

Go read Call me on the line by love-fool. Well, first you have to read A Summer to Remember. Then read that one. It's the best non-L/G story I've ever read, LoL. Not to diss L/G stories or anything (that'd be sort of hypocritical, don't you think?) but it's cool to see something new. And plus, the character Aubrey in both of stories is based around me, and I am really excited about that.

I have a couple of story ideas right now. No, that's not true. I have lots of story ideas right now. But there are two of them that I am definitely going to put into action. One, I've already started writing. It's even more angsty than this story, believe it or not. I was writing it in my head when I was laying in bed last night, and I already love it to pieces. More than this story. I guess I'll let you in on a little secret: all three of them are going to be alive in this new one. I guess that's why I like it more. When I write this story, , I do sort of miss the whole interaction between the three.

And the second story is going to be, probably very type. I haven't physically written anything down yet. but I've written a lot of the 1st chapter mentally, heh. Note to Self: RW-TLS.

Actually, I've been thinking lately about a story. I've watched Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring three times this week (once normally, once with director commentary, and another time with cast commentary). So yeah, I was thinking of making up my own fantasy story. But don't worry, it won't be a LOTR remake. It'll be original.

When will I post this, you ask? Well, I'm actually thinking about writing the whole story, and then posting it. That way, I can just write and not feel like I have to rush or anything. I don't know when, but I'll say probably when I complete The Great Hillridge Junior High Reunion. That won't be for a few months, now, buddy.

I wrote half of this chapter on Monday and the rest just now, FYI. What do you think? Please review, thanks.]