Chapter Seventeen: Look What You've Done

For the next week, Manny's mood went from sad about Chris, to excited about Jimmy's party, and back to sad again. Nothing could completely cheer her up about Chris and the baby. She had seen Jonathan for a brief moment at their graduation, and he was beautiful; a perfect mixture of both of his parents. She wanted nothing more than to bring Chris back into her life and raise his son as her own. She couldn't take a baby away from his mother though, and she knew in her heart that Sera needed Chris more than she did. Manny knew what it was like to have a new baby (two, actually) and be all alone. Sera moved away from her home so her baby would have a father, and Manny couldn't take that away from her. She knew what she was going to do.

Jimmy spent the entire week thinking of a plan. He loved Manny more than he had every loved anyone else. He saw how great of a mother she was, and wanted more than anything to have children with her. He knew he was too young to be feeling this way, but he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Manuela Brooks, he thought to himself. It goes well together, he smiled. He thought about her all the time and finally knew how he was going to tell her. He had a plan. He knew what he was going to do.

Chris spent the week crying and lying in bed, much as he had the entire month that he was in New York. He couldn't live without Manny, and didn't know what he would do if he never got to see her again. He knew he had made a huge mistake, and couldn't think of any way to make up for it. In Manny's eyes he was scum, and he knew it. He had thought of moving Sera and his son back to New York, and forget all about her, but he knew in his heart that he could never do that. He still wanted to be with his daughter and other son. They were his life, his family. He knew that he needed to talk to her tonight, at the party. It was his last chance. He asked his mother to watch Jonathan (he told his parents about him when Manny kicked him out) while he went out for a little while. Chris knew what he was going to do.

"Hey Jimmy," Manny said as she walked up to his door. Jimmy snapped out of his daydream and smiled.

"Hi Manny," he replied. "Come on in." Manny, Emma, and Paige were a little late because they were talking with Heather and Jason. They agreed to watch Lily, Lucas, and Avery to give Spike a break. As soon as Manny walked into the party, she scanned the room for any sign of Chris. She didn't see him or Sera anywhere. She decided to give herself time to think before she talked to him.

"Jimmy, can I talk to you a little later? I have something on my mind," she said to him.

"Yeah, of course. I have something to tell you too," he said and smiled.

Manny had been at the party for an hour when she saw Chris and Sera walk into the condo. Sera's hair was down and it flowed to the middle of her back. Her beautiful brown eyes were shining, and Manny could tell that she was happy. After watching them for a minute, a tap on her shoulder startled her.

"Can we talk now?" Jimmy asked her when she turned around. He had just put a song on that he wanted her to hear.

"Yeah," Manny told him. "That's a good idea."

"Let's dance then," he said, and pulled her close to him. It was a slow song.

We were drawn from the weeds
We were brave like soldiers
Falling down under the pale moonlight
You were holding to me
Like a someone broken
And I couldn't tell you but I'm telling you now

"I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time," Jimmy said to her.

Just let me hold you while you're falling apart
Just let me hold you so we both fall down

He noticed the look on her face and decided not to tell her right that second.

Fall on me
Tell me everything you want me to be
Forever with you
Forever in me
Ever the same

"What is it Jimmy?" Manny asked him.

"I think I'll let you talk first. I'm not quite ready to say it yet."

We would stand in the wind
We were free like water
Flowing down
Under the warmth of the sun
Now it's cold and we're scared
And we've both been shaken
Look at us
Man, this doesn't need to be the end

A single tear rolled down Manny's cheek. She quickly brushed it away and began to talk.

"I just miss him so much Jimmy," she cried, and the tears came. I know he did something horrible to me, but I just can't live without him. He's the father of my children. I want to try and work it out, but I don't know what I should do," she finished. Jimmy's heart sank into the pit of his stomach.

"Go to him Manny. Tell him how you feel. This might be your last chance," Jimmy said, wiping her tears away. "I care about you too much to see you like this. I know that you love him, so go and get him back," he told her.

"Thank you so much Jimmy," Manny said and threw her arms around him in a loving embrace. "I'll never forget how much you have helped me." Jimmy listened to the rest of the song as she walked away. The song that was supposed to make her want to be with him.

Just let me hold you while you're falling apart
Just let me hold you so we both fall down

Fall on me tell me everything you want me to be
Forever with you
Forever in me
Ever the same
Call on me
I'll be there for you and you'll be there for me
Forever it's you
Forever in me
Ever the same

You may need me there
To carry all your weight
But you're no burden I assure
You tide me over
With a warmth I'll not forget
But I can only give you love

Chris was watching Manny and Jimmy the entire time. He watched how she danced so close to him to a song that he was probably using to make her fall in love with him. He watched how she cried and Jimmy wiped her tears, then Manny hugged him. Chris fought to keep his tears back, and reached inside his pocket. He pulled out a flask and took a sip. He'd been drinking it before he ever came to get the courage to talk to Manny. He had refilled it a few times a home, and now downed the rest of it in one gulp. When he saw Manny go into the bathroom to fix her makeup (and probably come back out to be with Jimmy), Chris decided to leave. He knew he couldn't have her now.

He left the condo, knowing full well that he shouldn't drive. He didn't think that anyone had been watching him, but Sera was. She ran outside after him to make sure he wasn't driving anywhere. When she saw that he was heading for his car, she yelled to him.

"Chris! You're not driving!"

"Leave me alone Sera," he growled. She ran to his side.

"You're drunk and I'm not letting you drive," she said, trying to get the keys away from him. He shoved her and knocked her to the ground. Realizing what he had just done, he helped her up. He was still angry though, and did not apologize.

"Get in the car," he told her instead.

"No! I'm not going anywhere with you!"

"Now!" he yelled and grabbed onto her arm. He tried to push her into the car, but she resisted.

"Please Chris, just let me drive," she said, now crying. "You could kill yourself, or someone else. Please," she begged him. Chris ignored her pleas and this time shoved her into the car and shut the door. Before she could get out, he jumped in and pulled away.

Manny heard all of the commotion through the bathroom window and ran outside. Just as she got there, Chris was driving away. She jumped in her car to follow him, praying that she wouldn't be too late. When she was almost right near his car, she was stuck at a red light while he sped off.

"Please stop Chris! Please!" Sera was screaming. She managed to get her seatbelt on, but Chris wouldn't stop. He was driving well over the speed limit, and yelling back at Sera.

"You don't understand how much everything has gone wrong!" he screamed. "You can't even begin to imagine all the pain I've been through Sera!" He was crying the entire time.

"Jon, Lily, and Lucas all need you!" Sera yelled to him. "Don't do this."

The light in front of them turned red, and Chris slammed on the breaks. The car stopped halfway into the intersection, and when he turned, a truck was barreling towards them, and couldn't stop. It struck the car on Chris' side, and kept going, pushing the little car sideways. The last thing Sera saw was the telephone pole speeding closer, and everything went black.

A few minutes after the light, Manny knows she has gotten close to Chris. She sees flashing lights and hears the sirens. As she drives up to the next traffic light, a bunch of cars are blocking her way. She jumped out and ran past all of the other cars. What she saw there made her sick, and she almost lost her balance. Chris' car was pinned between a truck and a telephone pole. There was a rescue team cutting away at the car, trying to get Sera and Chris out. Manny ran right into a police officer, who refused to let her by.

"But I have to see him!" she yelled. "He's my fiancé," she said, showing him her ring.

"I'm sorry, but no one is allowed by. You'll have to meet him at the hospital. I'm afraid it might be too late," the man told her. Manny collapsed into his chest, crying. When she finally gained her composure, she watched the rescue workers, who finally got Chris free first, and put him into the back of an ambulance and sped away. She stayed for twenty more minutes, until Sera was out too. She could hear someone yelling.

"This one has no pulse!" a woman yelled. "Get a defibrillator!" Manny watched as they put Sera on a stretcher and desperately tried to shock life into her frail body. She watched as they tried for a half hour, performing CPR, and shocking her, one after the other. She watched as they gave up, called the time of death, and pulled a sheet over her body.

"No!" Manny screamed. She collapsed onto the ground crying, while rain began to fall. Then she went into shock and blacked out. The police officer got a paramedic to look at her. The woman put her onto a stretcher and brought her to the hospital too.

A/N: The song is "Ever the Same" by Rob Thomas. I don't own it, he does.