Bradin woke up in the morning around ten, got up, showered, and headed to the beach once again. He knew that Kaitlin was busy and didn't want to be bothered. He wanted to wait a while before he talked to her again. She needed some time to herself. He sat there thinking of why Kaitlin was always on his mind.

She's the one, his conscience told him, She's the one that you need to love. Bradin shook it off and tried to get it out of his mind.

Don't listen to that part of your head, his bad side said, She's the one that you need to use sex for. Every other guy tried but failed. She's waiting for you.

"Stop it!" he yelled to his mind. "She's the one that I need to love," he said out loud knowing that's why he always thought about her when he knew and didn't know her name or was her friend or not. So many things about her ran through his mind at that point.

Kaitlin took Ethan and Alex to the beach with her mother and father.

"Social Services called earlier when you were in the shower," Kaitlin's mother told her, "They're going to give us a few more days to change what Evan told us to. If we don't change, they'll take Ethan away."

"So, I can't see Bradin," Kaitlin said with a sigh.

"I'm sorry," her mother said, "But, if you want Ethan, you can't see him."

"Just when I was starting to have a happy life, it got ruined," she said.

"You like Bradin," she heard her father say.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "Should I call him and break it to him?"

"That would be a good idea," her mother said.

Kaitlin sighed and walked off taking her cell phone out. She dialed Bradin's number and no one answered. She sighed, hung up, and walked down the beach. As she walked, she thought about the previous night and what happened. Tear began to fill her eyes as the thought of losing Ethan entered her mind. She couldn't imagine what she would do if he left her life. He made her happy.

"Kaitlin!" she heard. She looked in front of her to find Bradin. Her heart sped up as he ran up to her. She didn't want to hurt him. "What's wrong?" he asked as he approached her.

"We… need to… talk," she said.

Bradin didn't like the sound of her voice. It scared him a lot. "Okay," he said. They sat down in the sand. "What's up?"

She sighed not wanting to tell him what she was about to say. "Something happened last night and I'm not allowed to hang out with you anymore."

"Why?" he asked. "I thought you enjoyed hanging out with me."

"I did, Bradin. Believe me. But, I have to do this. If I don't, something will happen to the only person who makes me smile. I'm sorry I'm doing this to you, Bradin. I really am."

He looked out at the water not knowing what to say. "If I come visit you at work for a CD that relates to my feelings, will you help me?"

"I will," she told him.

"Can we hang out one more time?" he asked hoping for a yes.

"When?" she asked.

"Tonight," he said, "I don't care what we do. I just want to be near you."

She looked away and thought about what she wanted. "Where do you want to go out to eat tonight?" she asked.

He smiled. "I don't want to go out to eat though. I want to sit here and talk with you for hours."

"We can do that. I just have to go tell my parents where I'm going," she said.

"Meet me back here after you tell them," he said. She nodded and ran off to her parents.

Bradin sat there in the sand staring out at the ocean trying not to cry. Kaitlin leaving tore him up inside. He hated that besides his parents being taken out of his life, Kaitlin was being taken away, too. Kaitlin walked back up to him and sat beside him. She placed her hand on his back noticing that he was crying.

"Not only did my parents leave me, you're leaving me," he said. He turned towards her. "The only three people that have made me happy in my entire life are now out of it. I can't stand what life is doing to me. Whenever I went to the music store, seeing you there made me happy. You always found something that made me happy. Now that we've hung out, I don't want you to leave my life. Being around you makes me happy. Hell, the thought of you makes me happy. Whenever I thought about you, I wondered why I was thinking about you. My mind fought with my heart. Just as you left to tell your parents that you were going to hang with me for the final time, something entered my heart."

"Bradin," she said softly as he broke into tears.

"I love it when you say my name. I love it when you make me smile just by saying hi. I love it when we hang out together and just talk. I love it when I'm near you. I don't know what I'm going to do without you."

"You only knew me for a few days," she said, "I shouldn't mean that much to you."

"Every night in my dreams, I always saw your face. You were always in my dreams. You were the hero of each and every dream that you were in. You saved me, Kait. I don't know how to thank you."

"Saved you from what?" she asked.

"You saved me from falling off of the board and drowning," he said.

He leaned over and kissed her. She felt tears fall from her eyes as she felt his lips press against hers. He pulled away, got up, and walked away.