Me: Hey! I'm back with the next chapter of I Do or I Don't. I hope you like
it and I don't own anything, as you already know. See you after!
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Zoe clutched Dan's arm with much force as the noise near by slowly faded away.
"What was that?" She whispered.
"How am I supposed to know?" He whispered back.
"You're the big nature guy!" Zoe yelled but then lowered her voice back to normal. She looked around the woods and then down at her hand gripping his bicep. When she let go, they could both see little indents and red marks from her fingers. "Sorry about that." She said and inched herself away from him.
Dan shrugged it off. "Should we continue hiking?" He asked. Zoe hesitated. "Come on, I won't let anything get you."
She sighed and they started heading further up the mountain. She kept glancing around for anything out of the ordinary. "I thought you knew where you were going Dan?"
"I do." He responded quietly.
"Then why are we lost again?"
"We're not lost Zoe. We just simply can't find the road right now." He stated slowly.
"Yeah, sure."
One hour later.
"I need a break!" Zoe said in exhaustion. Dan gave her a look as she sat down on a patch of dirt near by. "I told you I wasn't a outdoor person Dan." After awhile she looked up and around at her surroundings. "God, I would kill for a cheeseburger and fries right about now." She stated randomly. Dan gave her another look. "And you do this for fun? I always knew you were insane Lennox."
Dan reached into his backpack and pulled out a small bag. "Here have some trail mix." He offered and tossed the bag to her.
Zoe opened it and started eating. "I never thought I'd see the day when you preferred dried fruit and trial mix over fast food or restaurants." She said as she was picking all the M&M's out of the trail mix for a chocolate fix. Dan smiled at her and then moved himself on the dirt next to her. They were silent for awhile as both looked around at the treetops and listened to the wildlife.
After awhile, Zoe started fidgeting with her legs and wouldn't stop moving them quickly. Dan looked at her strangely. "Are you ok?" He asked.
"Uhh....what happens when you have to go to the bathroom?" Zoe asked slightly embarrassed.
"You're kidding right?"
"Hey! It's a part of nature!" She said defensively.
"Ok......well, there should be some bushes right over there." He pointed in one direction.
Zoe looked in the direction he was pointing. She scrunched up her face some. "I don't want to go by myself." She said quietly as if somebody else, besides Dan, would hear her.
"Zoe! Come on!"
"You know what, never mind. Just forget I mentioned it." She said trying to change the subject some so it wasn't so embarrassing.
"Well, what do you want me to do? Go with you? Hold your hand?" He asked with a chuckle.
Zoe didn't respond and after a few seconds he gave her a doubtful look. "Don't worry, I wouldn't ask you or want you to do that." She said reassuringly and then looked away from him.
Cliff sat in his room, thinking about Melissa, while somewhat staring at his school textbook. Everybody had warned him about reputations and the one he would get if he started dating her. Of course, he had ignored all the rumors about her not being a virgin but now that he knew that she wasn't, it reminded him of all the warnings. His attention turned to his window as something hard tapped against it repeatedly. Wondering what it was, he got off his bed and walked to the window to see. Melissa was standing below it in the side yard. He slowly opened it and took in the heat. She smiled up at him and then motioned him to come down for a day filled full of fun. Cliff shook is head. "I can't come out. My Aunt doesn't want us going anywhere today." He called. Melissa made a puppy face at him and he shrugged back. Then she made a motion for her to come up there. He shook his head again. "No girls today. Aunt Zoe's rules for today. None in the house till she gets home." Melissa sighed from below and was frowning up at him.
"We need to talk Cliff." She called up to him. He looked at her confused. "It's the age difference isn't it?! You're unsure and stuff because I'm two years older than you right?"
"I'm unsure?"
"Uh, duh. If it's not the age thing, then is it...." She looked around and then back up at him and lowered her voice. "Is it the 'you know' thing?" She asked referring to not being a virgin.
Cliff thought a second and then looked towards his bedroom door. Then he held up his index finger for her to hold on a minute. He slowly crept down the stairs and saw Taylor and Hannah sitting on the couch watching TV. He knew he wouldn't be able to sneak out the front door so he went back up to his room. After a few seconds, he went back to the window and put one leg out.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
Cliff looked at the rain gutter that was lined from the top to the bottom of the house. It was right next to his window. He slowly joined his remaining leg with the other and arched himself onto the rain gutter.
"Cliff!" She said.
"Do you want me down there to talk to you or not?" He asked and starting climbing down the gutter. He could hear Melissa laughing below him and couldn't help but chuckle himself. His Aunt would kill him if she found him doing that, if he weren't already dead first. This made him question how much he would really do for a girl.
Melissa kept laughing at him but tried not to do it so loudly. They both didn't want to get caught by either Taylor or the neighbors. Cliff couldn't help but burst into full laughter but when it made his foot slip off the rain gutter, his fun faded. Melissa stopped giggling as well when she realized what was going on. Cliff tried to regain his balance but just couldn't get his foot to catch the gutter. Soon enough, his other foot let go and then his hands released from their grasp and before he knew it a sharp pain was shooting through his body as it hit the hard ground. In the distance, he could hear the faint cries of his name by Melissa.
Zoe and Dan started getting up and continued to hike up the mountain.
"So, when we do find the crash scene, what do you think it is we're going to find Dan?" She asked following him through various trees.
"Any evidence that will tell us the construction company is not at fault is fine with me." He answered.
"If the police didn't find anything, what makes you think we will?"
"I told you, I have a feeling."
"Well, I guess since you've always gone with me on my feelings and hunches then I guess I'll go on yours." She said, giving in to him.
Dan stopped and turned to look at her. "Thank you." He said slowly and smiled at her.
Zoe noticed her stomach turn to butterfly's when he smiled. "You're welcome." She said back slowly. A smile formed on her face as she motioned for him to keep walking.
Dan held back branches for her and helped her around trees throughout the mountain for the next thirty minutes. Zoe took deep breaths now and then trying to hold him her urge to go to the bathroom. Eventually she gave in.
"Ok, I can't hold it anymore." She said.
Dan turned to look at her. "Hold what?"
"Think about it genius." Zoe stated quickly and started bouncing up and down and moving around him.
"Oh.....I still say just use the bush."
Zoe faced transformed into a scrunched up, 'aww man' look. "Fine." She said as Dan sat down on a tree stump. He smiled as she headed off towards a bush far away. Zoe stopped and turned back towards him. "You wouldn't happen to have any-"
Dan pulled out a roll of toilet paper and threw it to her. Zoe caught it.
"Toilet paper." She said slowly, catching the roll. "Thanks."
He smiled again as she headed off this time. After awhile, he couldn't see her anymore and started looking around at his surroundings. Dan searched for the blue markings on tree trunks and leaves that he had marked the day before. His plan was going very well so far. All he wanted was to get her alone for a few hours to talk about them. About where they were headed after the other night. Ever since Zoe had started working with him, he had had the biggest crush on her, as if he were in high school again. He was used to just meeting women and just having flings since his past and now that Zoe had come along, he had changed. His feelings towards being a bachelor had changed. He now wanted to settle down and he thought Zoe was the perfect person to do it with. She was beautiful, funny, talented, smart, and kind. He thought of her being one of the most perfect people he had met in his life. He just hope she felt the same way.
Dan's thoughts were interrupted by a faint yell.
"Dan!"
It was Zoe from far way.
"Dan!"
He stood up and started running in her direction. He jumped over fallen branches and through trees. When he finally saw her, she was finishing buttoning her jeans and staring at the bush in front of her.
"What is it?" He asked when he approached her.
"There's something there." She said and pointed to the bush.
"Zoe....it's probably just an animal." He said with a sigh. Dan bent down to see what was in the bush. When he got closer, a squirrel jumped out in front of him and made him jumped back. The jump threw off his balance and he fell to the ground, grabbing Zoe and taking her down with him.
Dan stared at Zoe as she started giggling at him. Her giggles grew into blown out laughter soon and he chuckled with her. "Priceless." He said. He was laying on the ground, with her close by his side. He liked the feeling.
"You should have seen your face." Zoe said with a giggle.
"Mine! You're the one screaming my name because of a damn squirrel!"
"I didn't know it was going to be a wild animal. I thought it was going to be that thing from before." She explained.
Dan rolled his eyes and started sitting up. Zoe sat up to and then they eventually got to their feet and started heading back to where Dan's stuff.
When they got there though, stuff was thrown everywhere. The food and water was gone and all the small things from his back pack were all over the ground.
"What the hell?!" He said and started looking around for someone.
"Who do you think?" Zoe asked and started looking around also.
"Probably an animal." He said. "The foods gone so....obviously who or what ever did this was hungry." He stated and started picking up the stuff.
Zoe shrugged and looked around once or twice before helping him. When she came across a bunch of papers she looked at them carefully. A couple of them were from Megan's file but there was one more thick folded piece. It was a map. Zoe looked towards him strangely. Dan's back was turned to her. She unfolded the map and read that it was for Lank's Mountain. He had a map of the mountain they were on but they were lost. Zoe was confused.
"Dan?"
He turned towards her and saw the map in her hand. "Oh."
"What the hell?" She said. "What is going on?" She demanded to know.
"Zoe. I..." He started but a ringer went off and interrupted him. There was a phone on the ground between them. A cell phone.
Zoe's mouth opened slightly as she picked up the phone. At first she didn't answer it and gave him a confused and evil looked. Then she opened the flip fold phone. "Hello? Dan Lennox's cell phone. He is soon to be disable, how may I help you?!" She said and was still staring at him.
Taylor was on the other side of the phone. "Aunt Zoe?!" She yelled.
"Taylor?!" Zoe's attention turned to her niece. "What's wrong?"
"I tried calling your cell but it said it wasn't on so I found Mr. Lennox's number. We're at the hospital."
"Hospital?" She repeated and now Dan stared at her in concern. "With who?"
"It's Cliff. I was just watching TV and then all of a sudden-" Taylor was explaining but the line went dead.
"Taylor?! Taylor?!!!" Zoe yelled into the phone but realized that it went out of service. Her heart raced and her breath increased.
"What's going on?"
"Get me out of here right now Lennox!" Zoe yelled. "Somethings wrong with Cliff. I've got to get to the hospital and I know you know you're way out of this mountain because...." She held up the map in her hand. "Oh..look! Here's a map...how ironic!" She said and started walking after throwing his cell phone back on the ground.
He quickly gathered the rest of his things and ran after her. "Zoe! I can explain." He said as he caught up to her.
"Save it Dan. Just get me out of here." She demanded and handed him the map. "Quickly." She added and started jogging down the mountain. Dan followed her and eventually got in front of her, leading her to the direction of their cars.
Zoe arrived at the hospital and ran to the front desk. Dan was following closely behind her. She immediately started talking to the receptionist but then spotted Sophia in the waiting area.
Sophia spotted her to. "Zoe." She called.
Zoe ran to her and grabbed her arms as she tried to catch her breath. "Sophia...what's going on?!" She asked impatiently.
"Taylor called me soon after she did you and said that she got disconnected and couldn't tell you so I told her I'd come down as soon as I could. I wasn't expecting to see you here for another thirty minutes or so." Sophia started.
"I speeded. Oops." Dan said quietly in the back ground.
Zoe looked at him evilly again and then turned back to Sophia. "What happened to Cliff?" She asked trying to calm herself down as they started walking down one of the hallways.
"I know that he fell......."She started and Zoe nodded. "Out the window...." She continued and Zoe mouth opened slightly as she gasped. "From his room."
Zoe stopped dead in her tracks as the picture of Cliffs bedroom window came to her. It was the top, top floor of the house. He had to be hurt bad or even worse. "Oh my god." She said and they continued walking, her following Sophia. "How bad is it?" She asked.
"I'm not sure. I was just told to wait in the lobby for you." She answered.
As they approached the area where Cliff was, Taylor was holding Hannah in her arms and then spotted Zoe.
"Aunt Zoe!!" She called and ran to her aunt.
Zoe wrapped her arms around her crying nieces and her heart jumped. It wasn't until a few seconds later that she noticed Marcos standing there. It was an awkward situation but she understood that he was probably only there for Cliff. Dan and Sophia stood aside as Zoe turned her attention back to Taylor.
"What happened?!" She asked.
"Hannah and I....we were just watching TV and then we both heard a scream from the side of the house. I didn't know what was going on so I ran out the front door and around to see Melissa bending over Cliff. He was laying there, perfectly still and he wasn't breathing Aunt Zoe. He wasn't breathing!" Taylor said and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. "So, I screamed for Jeanie and then told Hannah to call 911. I couldn't get you on your cell phone so I called Mr. Morales and told him what was going on...and then I found Mr. Lennox's number in the emergency folder thingy and called him...you answered, we got disconnected so I called Miss Mason." She said out of breath.
"So what's going on with Cliff? Is he ok? What?" She asked and looked around at the others.
"We don't know. They had to do immediate surgery." Marcos said, moving closer to Zoe.
"Surgery?" Zoe said and gave him a helpless look. "On what?"
"We don't know that either." He answered and gave her a sympathy look. Zoe fell into one of the waiting chairs in shock. Then she looked at Dan.
"This is your fault." She said towards him.
Dan looked at her shocked himself. "My fault?"
"You tricked me! You made me go hiking. If I hadn't this wouldn't have happened!" Zoe yelled and everybody's mouths opened slightly. Tears started rolling down her face as she glared at him.
Dan didn't say anything. After awhile, Zoe looked around again.
"Where's Jeanie?"
"I'm right here Zoe." Jeanie said coming out of the near by restroom.
Zoe stood and fell into the old woman's arms crying. "Not again. This can't be happening again." She said in between sobs.
"It isn't." Jeanie said, still holding the adult woman in her arms. "We don't know that yet." She said firmly.
Zoe eventually let go and sat back down next to Taylor and Hannah. Everybody stared at her with sympathy and shock from her outburst. "I guess what we have to do now is just wait." She said while staring at a tile on the floor, tears still streaming from her eyes.
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Me: Haha...you have to wait till the next chapter to see what's going to happen with Cliff!! Haha....hmm...should I kill him? Should I let him live? Which one? I guess you'll find out later! Hehe....review please!! Thanks!!
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Zoe clutched Dan's arm with much force as the noise near by slowly faded away.
"What was that?" She whispered.
"How am I supposed to know?" He whispered back.
"You're the big nature guy!" Zoe yelled but then lowered her voice back to normal. She looked around the woods and then down at her hand gripping his bicep. When she let go, they could both see little indents and red marks from her fingers. "Sorry about that." She said and inched herself away from him.
Dan shrugged it off. "Should we continue hiking?" He asked. Zoe hesitated. "Come on, I won't let anything get you."
She sighed and they started heading further up the mountain. She kept glancing around for anything out of the ordinary. "I thought you knew where you were going Dan?"
"I do." He responded quietly.
"Then why are we lost again?"
"We're not lost Zoe. We just simply can't find the road right now." He stated slowly.
"Yeah, sure."
One hour later.
"I need a break!" Zoe said in exhaustion. Dan gave her a look as she sat down on a patch of dirt near by. "I told you I wasn't a outdoor person Dan." After awhile she looked up and around at her surroundings. "God, I would kill for a cheeseburger and fries right about now." She stated randomly. Dan gave her another look. "And you do this for fun? I always knew you were insane Lennox."
Dan reached into his backpack and pulled out a small bag. "Here have some trail mix." He offered and tossed the bag to her.
Zoe opened it and started eating. "I never thought I'd see the day when you preferred dried fruit and trial mix over fast food or restaurants." She said as she was picking all the M&M's out of the trail mix for a chocolate fix. Dan smiled at her and then moved himself on the dirt next to her. They were silent for awhile as both looked around at the treetops and listened to the wildlife.
After awhile, Zoe started fidgeting with her legs and wouldn't stop moving them quickly. Dan looked at her strangely. "Are you ok?" He asked.
"Uhh....what happens when you have to go to the bathroom?" Zoe asked slightly embarrassed.
"You're kidding right?"
"Hey! It's a part of nature!" She said defensively.
"Ok......well, there should be some bushes right over there." He pointed in one direction.
Zoe looked in the direction he was pointing. She scrunched up her face some. "I don't want to go by myself." She said quietly as if somebody else, besides Dan, would hear her.
"Zoe! Come on!"
"You know what, never mind. Just forget I mentioned it." She said trying to change the subject some so it wasn't so embarrassing.
"Well, what do you want me to do? Go with you? Hold your hand?" He asked with a chuckle.
Zoe didn't respond and after a few seconds he gave her a doubtful look. "Don't worry, I wouldn't ask you or want you to do that." She said reassuringly and then looked away from him.
Cliff sat in his room, thinking about Melissa, while somewhat staring at his school textbook. Everybody had warned him about reputations and the one he would get if he started dating her. Of course, he had ignored all the rumors about her not being a virgin but now that he knew that she wasn't, it reminded him of all the warnings. His attention turned to his window as something hard tapped against it repeatedly. Wondering what it was, he got off his bed and walked to the window to see. Melissa was standing below it in the side yard. He slowly opened it and took in the heat. She smiled up at him and then motioned him to come down for a day filled full of fun. Cliff shook is head. "I can't come out. My Aunt doesn't want us going anywhere today." He called. Melissa made a puppy face at him and he shrugged back. Then she made a motion for her to come up there. He shook his head again. "No girls today. Aunt Zoe's rules for today. None in the house till she gets home." Melissa sighed from below and was frowning up at him.
"We need to talk Cliff." She called up to him. He looked at her confused. "It's the age difference isn't it?! You're unsure and stuff because I'm two years older than you right?"
"I'm unsure?"
"Uh, duh. If it's not the age thing, then is it...." She looked around and then back up at him and lowered her voice. "Is it the 'you know' thing?" She asked referring to not being a virgin.
Cliff thought a second and then looked towards his bedroom door. Then he held up his index finger for her to hold on a minute. He slowly crept down the stairs and saw Taylor and Hannah sitting on the couch watching TV. He knew he wouldn't be able to sneak out the front door so he went back up to his room. After a few seconds, he went back to the window and put one leg out.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
Cliff looked at the rain gutter that was lined from the top to the bottom of the house. It was right next to his window. He slowly joined his remaining leg with the other and arched himself onto the rain gutter.
"Cliff!" She said.
"Do you want me down there to talk to you or not?" He asked and starting climbing down the gutter. He could hear Melissa laughing below him and couldn't help but chuckle himself. His Aunt would kill him if she found him doing that, if he weren't already dead first. This made him question how much he would really do for a girl.
Melissa kept laughing at him but tried not to do it so loudly. They both didn't want to get caught by either Taylor or the neighbors. Cliff couldn't help but burst into full laughter but when it made his foot slip off the rain gutter, his fun faded. Melissa stopped giggling as well when she realized what was going on. Cliff tried to regain his balance but just couldn't get his foot to catch the gutter. Soon enough, his other foot let go and then his hands released from their grasp and before he knew it a sharp pain was shooting through his body as it hit the hard ground. In the distance, he could hear the faint cries of his name by Melissa.
Zoe and Dan started getting up and continued to hike up the mountain.
"So, when we do find the crash scene, what do you think it is we're going to find Dan?" She asked following him through various trees.
"Any evidence that will tell us the construction company is not at fault is fine with me." He answered.
"If the police didn't find anything, what makes you think we will?"
"I told you, I have a feeling."
"Well, I guess since you've always gone with me on my feelings and hunches then I guess I'll go on yours." She said, giving in to him.
Dan stopped and turned to look at her. "Thank you." He said slowly and smiled at her.
Zoe noticed her stomach turn to butterfly's when he smiled. "You're welcome." She said back slowly. A smile formed on her face as she motioned for him to keep walking.
Dan held back branches for her and helped her around trees throughout the mountain for the next thirty minutes. Zoe took deep breaths now and then trying to hold him her urge to go to the bathroom. Eventually she gave in.
"Ok, I can't hold it anymore." She said.
Dan turned to look at her. "Hold what?"
"Think about it genius." Zoe stated quickly and started bouncing up and down and moving around him.
"Oh.....I still say just use the bush."
Zoe faced transformed into a scrunched up, 'aww man' look. "Fine." She said as Dan sat down on a tree stump. He smiled as she headed off towards a bush far away. Zoe stopped and turned back towards him. "You wouldn't happen to have any-"
Dan pulled out a roll of toilet paper and threw it to her. Zoe caught it.
"Toilet paper." She said slowly, catching the roll. "Thanks."
He smiled again as she headed off this time. After awhile, he couldn't see her anymore and started looking around at his surroundings. Dan searched for the blue markings on tree trunks and leaves that he had marked the day before. His plan was going very well so far. All he wanted was to get her alone for a few hours to talk about them. About where they were headed after the other night. Ever since Zoe had started working with him, he had had the biggest crush on her, as if he were in high school again. He was used to just meeting women and just having flings since his past and now that Zoe had come along, he had changed. His feelings towards being a bachelor had changed. He now wanted to settle down and he thought Zoe was the perfect person to do it with. She was beautiful, funny, talented, smart, and kind. He thought of her being one of the most perfect people he had met in his life. He just hope she felt the same way.
Dan's thoughts were interrupted by a faint yell.
"Dan!"
It was Zoe from far way.
"Dan!"
He stood up and started running in her direction. He jumped over fallen branches and through trees. When he finally saw her, she was finishing buttoning her jeans and staring at the bush in front of her.
"What is it?" He asked when he approached her.
"There's something there." She said and pointed to the bush.
"Zoe....it's probably just an animal." He said with a sigh. Dan bent down to see what was in the bush. When he got closer, a squirrel jumped out in front of him and made him jumped back. The jump threw off his balance and he fell to the ground, grabbing Zoe and taking her down with him.
Dan stared at Zoe as she started giggling at him. Her giggles grew into blown out laughter soon and he chuckled with her. "Priceless." He said. He was laying on the ground, with her close by his side. He liked the feeling.
"You should have seen your face." Zoe said with a giggle.
"Mine! You're the one screaming my name because of a damn squirrel!"
"I didn't know it was going to be a wild animal. I thought it was going to be that thing from before." She explained.
Dan rolled his eyes and started sitting up. Zoe sat up to and then they eventually got to their feet and started heading back to where Dan's stuff.
When they got there though, stuff was thrown everywhere. The food and water was gone and all the small things from his back pack were all over the ground.
"What the hell?!" He said and started looking around for someone.
"Who do you think?" Zoe asked and started looking around also.
"Probably an animal." He said. "The foods gone so....obviously who or what ever did this was hungry." He stated and started picking up the stuff.
Zoe shrugged and looked around once or twice before helping him. When she came across a bunch of papers she looked at them carefully. A couple of them were from Megan's file but there was one more thick folded piece. It was a map. Zoe looked towards him strangely. Dan's back was turned to her. She unfolded the map and read that it was for Lank's Mountain. He had a map of the mountain they were on but they were lost. Zoe was confused.
"Dan?"
He turned towards her and saw the map in her hand. "Oh."
"What the hell?" She said. "What is going on?" She demanded to know.
"Zoe. I..." He started but a ringer went off and interrupted him. There was a phone on the ground between them. A cell phone.
Zoe's mouth opened slightly as she picked up the phone. At first she didn't answer it and gave him a confused and evil looked. Then she opened the flip fold phone. "Hello? Dan Lennox's cell phone. He is soon to be disable, how may I help you?!" She said and was still staring at him.
Taylor was on the other side of the phone. "Aunt Zoe?!" She yelled.
"Taylor?!" Zoe's attention turned to her niece. "What's wrong?"
"I tried calling your cell but it said it wasn't on so I found Mr. Lennox's number. We're at the hospital."
"Hospital?" She repeated and now Dan stared at her in concern. "With who?"
"It's Cliff. I was just watching TV and then all of a sudden-" Taylor was explaining but the line went dead.
"Taylor?! Taylor?!!!" Zoe yelled into the phone but realized that it went out of service. Her heart raced and her breath increased.
"What's going on?"
"Get me out of here right now Lennox!" Zoe yelled. "Somethings wrong with Cliff. I've got to get to the hospital and I know you know you're way out of this mountain because...." She held up the map in her hand. "Oh..look! Here's a map...how ironic!" She said and started walking after throwing his cell phone back on the ground.
He quickly gathered the rest of his things and ran after her. "Zoe! I can explain." He said as he caught up to her.
"Save it Dan. Just get me out of here." She demanded and handed him the map. "Quickly." She added and started jogging down the mountain. Dan followed her and eventually got in front of her, leading her to the direction of their cars.
Zoe arrived at the hospital and ran to the front desk. Dan was following closely behind her. She immediately started talking to the receptionist but then spotted Sophia in the waiting area.
Sophia spotted her to. "Zoe." She called.
Zoe ran to her and grabbed her arms as she tried to catch her breath. "Sophia...what's going on?!" She asked impatiently.
"Taylor called me soon after she did you and said that she got disconnected and couldn't tell you so I told her I'd come down as soon as I could. I wasn't expecting to see you here for another thirty minutes or so." Sophia started.
"I speeded. Oops." Dan said quietly in the back ground.
Zoe looked at him evilly again and then turned back to Sophia. "What happened to Cliff?" She asked trying to calm herself down as they started walking down one of the hallways.
"I know that he fell......."She started and Zoe nodded. "Out the window...." She continued and Zoe mouth opened slightly as she gasped. "From his room."
Zoe stopped dead in her tracks as the picture of Cliffs bedroom window came to her. It was the top, top floor of the house. He had to be hurt bad or even worse. "Oh my god." She said and they continued walking, her following Sophia. "How bad is it?" She asked.
"I'm not sure. I was just told to wait in the lobby for you." She answered.
As they approached the area where Cliff was, Taylor was holding Hannah in her arms and then spotted Zoe.
"Aunt Zoe!!" She called and ran to her aunt.
Zoe wrapped her arms around her crying nieces and her heart jumped. It wasn't until a few seconds later that she noticed Marcos standing there. It was an awkward situation but she understood that he was probably only there for Cliff. Dan and Sophia stood aside as Zoe turned her attention back to Taylor.
"What happened?!" She asked.
"Hannah and I....we were just watching TV and then we both heard a scream from the side of the house. I didn't know what was going on so I ran out the front door and around to see Melissa bending over Cliff. He was laying there, perfectly still and he wasn't breathing Aunt Zoe. He wasn't breathing!" Taylor said and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. "So, I screamed for Jeanie and then told Hannah to call 911. I couldn't get you on your cell phone so I called Mr. Morales and told him what was going on...and then I found Mr. Lennox's number in the emergency folder thingy and called him...you answered, we got disconnected so I called Miss Mason." She said out of breath.
"So what's going on with Cliff? Is he ok? What?" She asked and looked around at the others.
"We don't know. They had to do immediate surgery." Marcos said, moving closer to Zoe.
"Surgery?" Zoe said and gave him a helpless look. "On what?"
"We don't know that either." He answered and gave her a sympathy look. Zoe fell into one of the waiting chairs in shock. Then she looked at Dan.
"This is your fault." She said towards him.
Dan looked at her shocked himself. "My fault?"
"You tricked me! You made me go hiking. If I hadn't this wouldn't have happened!" Zoe yelled and everybody's mouths opened slightly. Tears started rolling down her face as she glared at him.
Dan didn't say anything. After awhile, Zoe looked around again.
"Where's Jeanie?"
"I'm right here Zoe." Jeanie said coming out of the near by restroom.
Zoe stood and fell into the old woman's arms crying. "Not again. This can't be happening again." She said in between sobs.
"It isn't." Jeanie said, still holding the adult woman in her arms. "We don't know that yet." She said firmly.
Zoe eventually let go and sat back down next to Taylor and Hannah. Everybody stared at her with sympathy and shock from her outburst. "I guess what we have to do now is just wait." She said while staring at a tile on the floor, tears still streaming from her eyes.
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Me: Haha...you have to wait till the next chapter to see what's going to happen with Cliff!! Haha....hmm...should I kill him? Should I let him live? Which one? I guess you'll find out later! Hehe....review please!! Thanks!!