Note from Destiny: Originally, this was going to be the last chapter..then I changed my mind. I'm allowed to do that, I believe, and if you truely enjoy this story then I doubt you'll mind.

Cindy stood where she was for a few minutes after Jimmy had left to return to his proper time. She smiled, her lips still tingling, her mind replaying Jimmy kissing her over and over again. He had risked a lot to come back to save her, but it didn't seem to have affected anything. She thought.

Without much thought to it, or any worries, she walked out of the bathroom and into her room, and got changed. Cindy's smile seemed permanently glued on, as she got into bed, as she stared outside into the starry sky, her eyes refecting the stars' light. It was hours before her eyes slowly closed, extinguishing the light.

The next morning, she hurriedly dressed and bounded down the stairs and greeted her mother with a smile. Mrs. Vortex looked confused as they had their regular morning talk, which ended with Mrs. Vortex agreeing to lend Cindy the family car to go visit Jimmy with. "Thanks, mom!" Cindy called as she walked out, jumping over the steps on her front porch. She unlocked the door to the pink corvette and got in. Just as she was about to turn the key, her hand instead went to her head. It hurt...God, her head felt like it was going to explode. It had felt like this only once before..the day of Jimmy's accident.

With a nervous laugh she chided herself and tried to ignore the sinking feeling in the bottom of her stomach. She started the car, backed out, and drove to the hospital so quickly that it was lucky there had been no cops on the road to bust her for speeding. There was a visitor's parking lot somewhere, but she had never been sure exactly...after all, the few times she had visited, she was accompanying the Neutron's, and the relatives of patients had a seperate parking lot.

Cindy located the visitor's parking behind the hospital and was relieved to find that not many cars were there. She was able to get a close parking spot. From there, she walked into the hospital. Both Hugh and Judy Neutron were there, asleep. Judy's head was rested on Hugh's shoulder, his hand around hers. Cindy took a seat by them, waiting. Jimmy should be up soon.

The clock ticked overhead. The sound seemed to echo through the room, reverberating off the walls for several seconds. Cindy glanced at it, as the minute hand slowly reached the next minute. She took a deep breath. She was overanxious, that was all. Jimmy would wake up today. He had to wake up..

An hour later found Mr. and Mrs. Neutron awake, and Cindy rather irritable. He was supposed to have woken up at about eight-thirty last night, he had told her so. But he still wasn't waking...

Comprehension dawned on her. That major of a change had indeed set something astray with the time-space continuim. Perhaps now it was demanding Jimmy's life for not being able to claim Cindy's. It seemed mad, but Cindy could also imagine an image of the Grim Reaper so annoyed with Jimmy for saving Cindy that he had taken Jimmy instead. It was a warm May day, and yet Cindy felt bitterly cold, both internally and externally. She wished she had brought a sweater or jacket..anything to fight the cold.

And now she felt sick. She put one of her ice-cold hands on her face to feel for a temperature, but she couldn't tell, not with the rest of her skin that cold. Judy studied her for a moment. "Cindy, are you all right?" Cindy nodded frantically, knowing that if she told Mrs. Neutron the truth, she would only worry about Cindy as well, and the poor woman already had enough to worry about it. But Judy Neutron had plenty of experience with teenagers, and was good at telling when someone was lying. She walked to Cindy and pressed her hand to Cindy's forehead. "You have a fever..maybe you should go home?"

"No.." Cindy glanced at the hallway all the doctors were walking into and out of. She wanted to be here when Jimmy woke up..If he wakes up..the thought came, causing the tears to come again. Hugh and Judy exchanged glances. "Look, I'll take you home if that's what you need." Hugh offered. Cindy shook her head.

There was nothing at her house. Just her mother's patronizing glances and comments, and her father being entirely passive, allowing whatever Mrs. Vortex said to be law. And then there was the fact that she had been there when she tried to kill herself..

Part of her wanted to try again now. Maybe it would revive Jimmy...but then, the conversation they had had when he had come back for her flashed into her memory..

"Look, Cindy," Jimmy looked scared. She wasn't sure what he was afraid of, only that he was. "If I don't wake up for a while, I never want to wake up to find out that you're dead."

"But it's so hard to be without you.." Cindy admitted, staring into his deep blue eyes. God, she had missed the sight of them when they had been closed for so long. "I can't stand it. If I promise to be alive when you wake up, will you promise me you'll wake up..please?" She was practically begging, and she knew it was a mistake.

"Cindy," Jimmy's voice sounded grave, painful. "I will try everything I can to get back to you in as little time as possible. I love you too much, I can't always keep you waiting. And since it makes sure you'll stay alive, I'll really do my best. But would you do me another favor?"

"All right.."

"You know I love you, and I think you feel the same, but if something happens to me, if I don't wake up for a long time, move on. Get someone new."

Cindy had promised just to make him happy, even though she never had any intention of being with someone else. There was no one else, there had never been, there never would be.

She had promised. Promised not to kill herself. Even though her heart may as well have been bursting. Jimmy wasn't waking up. Quite possibly..he would never.