Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, but I do own the story. If it resembles anyone else's in any way it is unintentional.

Author's Note: Haha, here we go! Last chapter:D Prepare for angst and fluffyness and all the good stuff you've come to expect from Looking For the Smile. On with the story :)

Looking For the Smile
Chapter 7: The World Still Turns

Days passed. Or maybe it was just a couple minutes. It didn't matter, the passage of time meant nothing to Wilt now. He felt like he'd just awoken from a bad dream, only to find out that it hadn't been a dream at all. What more could he do now? Nothing. He handed the phone to Madame Foster and wordlessly got up and left the room.

He walked down the hallways, eyes not seeing, mind not thinking, legs walking but it wasn't him controlling them. He floated along, feeling not a part of this world where he had no idea what was true or not anymore. Frankie had lied to him. She'd lied to everybody. And that wasn't even the worst part of it. She'd been silent about it. She hadn't said a word this whole time. Did she think no one else would care? That no one else would understand? Who was she kidding with that train of thought? She was in a house surrounded by those who knew exactly what it was like to lose someone.

Why had she made herself suffer alone for so long? Why didn't she ever say anything to anybody? Wilt couldn't help feeling just a little bit betrayed, but it was a miniscule feeling. Why had she done this to herself?

He found himself in his own bedroom. Ed, Coco, Mac, and Bloo were already there, talking about something. Wilt had forgotten what it was they'd come upstairs to do in the first place. Upon his arrival, their eyes turned to him. "Hey Wilt," Mac greeted. "What did Madame Foster want?" Apparently Eduardo had explained Wilt's previous absence.

He mumbled something. He couldn't hear what it was. By the look in their eyes, it looked as though they might have heard him, but must have heard him wrong, for they asked him to repeat it, slight disbelief in their faces. He murmured again. It came out a sullen whisper, something small, weak, fragile, but cut through the room and split it apart, as if this house could take any more shock. It may as well have fallen to the ground by now.

"...Frankie's...mom...died..."

"What?" came Bloo's voice, sounding as though he wanted to believe it was a joke. Mac repeated the word, though his tone was one of complete incredulity. Wilt could somewhat understand Mac's greater distress at the news: his mom was all he had left. What would Mac do if his mother died?

Eduardo's already large eyes widened, and he practically shouted, "Que!" Wilt felt his head slowly nodding. "Su mama? La madre de Frankie? Ella esta muerta? Muerta? Como? Como!"

Wilt didn't understand, or if he did, he didn't really want to. Luckily, Mac asked the same question: "How? How did she die, Wilt? What happened?"

Another fragile whisper to sever the room in two. "Car accident."

All was silent. Even Bloo had nothing to say. Mac, Bloo, Ed, and Coco sat there in the middle of the room, looking and feeling lost, old wounds reopened, a fresh hope of maybe seeing Frankie soon suddenly murdered in them, replaced by the all-too-familiar shock they'd felt what seemed so long ago. Wilt stood in the doorway, never seeming frail before, but his small frame seemed smaller than ever now, as if he were a twig that would just break from too much weight, too much pressure. Thoughts were passing through their heads too quickly to be thought through.

"They wouldn't want me back."

"What are you talking about? Of course they would."

"How could they? I left so rudely and I kept so many secrets from them."

"They will understand how it was hard for you."

"I lied to them. I lied to them all. I said goodbye to a very good friend of mine and I lied directly to his face."

"That was a long time ago, Frankie. They'll probably be so happy to see you again none of that will matter to them."

"...I just don't know. What if Grandma---"

"She misses you too. I talked with her on the phone just the other day. She'd be happy to let you back, Frankie. She said you know there's always a place for you there. The imaginary friends apparently couldn't imagine a Home without you."

"So far I haven't heard of the house going out of business. They're doing just fine without me."

"How do you know that?"

"...It doesn't matter."

"Frankie, sweetheart, why don't you want to go back there? I can tell you miss them."

"...I lied to Wilt, Dad. What if he doesn't forgive me for that?"

"Isn't Wilt the one who always says sorry, even when he doesn't need to?"

She smiled, momentarily somewhere else. "Yeah, that's him."

"From what you've told me, it sounds like he wouldn't even bring that up if he saw you again. Come on, sweetie, you can't just stay here for the rest of your life."

"I've done enough for them. They can get on without me."

"I know you don't want to just leave the house, just like that. That's not my girl."

"...Dad...I'm just a little afraid to go back there, okay? ...They're probably even afraid of me now."

"Afraid of you? What for?"

"You didn't see it, you weren't there. The last fight I had with Mr. Herriman...I-I can't even think about it now without feeling extremely guilty."

"...Well, Frankie, if you think staying here with me is the right thing to do, far be it from me to try to change your mind now. You're a big girl; you can make your own decisions."

Her father left the living room. Frankie was left standing by the window, watching the beginnings of a storm brew on the horizon.

A lot of what her father had said made sense. She really didn't want to leave the house, but she'd done a lot to hurt them so far, what with leaving so suddenly, and so loudly, and worrying everybody, and then lying to Wilt. He hadn't even said anything to her after she finally told him the truth. What did he think of her now? What would he do when or even if she went back? Would he hug her and tell her everything was okay, that he was happy to see her? Would he stare at her blankly, like a stranger, and speak empty words of welcome and become like a different person towards her? She didn't know. She really just absolutely didn't know.

What would Madame Foster do? ...Was it right for Frankie to abandon her grandmother as well? Surely she needed some comforting as well, surely she must miss Frankie too...and Mr. Herriman...what would he say? Did he even know why she'd left? Would it change anything?

Frankie sighed, coincidentally coinciding with the first light rumble of thunder. The rain was starting outside.

The window was streaked with raindrops. They were falling harder with each passing second, pattering like footsteps down the glass. Wilt stood by the window, leaning on the sill, watching the raindrops slither down their respective paths.

Be still
Though chaos reigns around you now
Only so much rain can fall at once

He was trying to think of something, anything, besides Frankie. He was tired of feeling sad. He just wanted to be anything but upset for the moment. He just had to put himself in the state of mind that she was not coming back, that it was better if she stayed at home to grieve, and being here would only overwork her and she would never, ever feel any better. It was better for Frankie to be away. He tried to think of that instead.

Breathe in
And let the air envelop you
And slow but sure serenity will come

He was in the foyer, looking out at the front yard of the house. Normally Bloo and Mac would take their chances and play out in the mud again, but today Mac had gone home early and Bloo was reduced to merely trudging around the house, not at all himself. It was strange to see Bloo so subdued. But then again, what hadn't been strange about the last several weeks?

Through the blurry glass he could see some distant form come up the street to the house. Probably a family coming to adopt. Or to abandon. He thought momentarily of notifying Mr. Herriman to give him the heads-up. But he really didn't feel like it. He slowly closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He felt himself slipping away. He couldn't let himself suffer anymore because of this. The best thing for him right now was to just get back into a routine, something to get his mind on a regular cycle and not flying every which as it had been prone to doing lately. He stood straight. Whoever was in the car was getting out now. He may as well just answer the door himself.

Close your eyes
Try to breathe
Feel the ground beneath your feet
It's still there
The world still turns
Around

The rain was falling harder and harder. A rumble of thunder shook the house. Wilt hoped the person wouldn't get too wet out there. He made a point to move more hastily to the door so their visitor wouldn't have to wait so long. The doorbell rang just as Wilt reached the door. He grasped the handle and pulled the door open. There was Frankie, holding nothing but a small soaked umbrella beside her.

...Am I dreaming?

Strange how the mind doesn't fully register the improbable at first. A minute of silence must have passed between them. Then, finally, it hit. She was there. She was back. She was home, she was there with him.

"Frankie?"

She smiled. It was a smile of relief. Wilt found he couldn't tell if the wetness on her face was rain or tears. But at this moment it didn't matter. She was relieved over something, and she was happy. Seeing that, and knowing that, was the best Wilt could have possibly asked for ever since that day on the stairs.

She laughed, and pressed herself suddenly into a crushing hug. Wilt had to bend down to embrace her fully, but it wasn't a problem: it felt more familiar, after all. Hardly five seconds had passed before Wilt could no longer contain himself. He pulled her inside and swept her up into a full hug, lifting her almost seven feet off the ground. She laughed, grateful, and it was the best sound Wilt's ears had heard in days and days and days. He set her down, and Frankie didn't let go. She buried herself in him, suddenly saying, "I'm sorry, Wilt, I'm so sorry..."

Stand up
Though circumstance has knocked you down
There is nothing gained by staying within its reach
Take strength
In every failure you endure
Our mistakes have many lessons they can teach

"I'm sorry, Wilt, I didn't mean to lie to you, I really didn't..." Frankie blurted out, the words spilling from her mouth as if she'd been dying to say them for years. "I just saw how upset you were, I knew the truth would hurt you even more...I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry..."

Wilt didn't speak, just allowed her to let it out. He didn't let her go for a second.

Destroy
These walls you've built around yourself
You can't take another step until they're gone
Move out
No use in dwelling in the past
Bid farewell to all your fears and carry on

"I'm sorry I left that night yelling the way I did, it wasn't cool, it wasn't cool at all..."

"Frankie...Frankie, it's okay. It's okay."

"Still, I'm really sorry, Wilt..."

"Frankie," Wilt said, a little amused. "Stop it. You're starting to sound like me."

She stopped apologizing after that, and though Wilt couldn't see her face, he knew she was smiling.

I think of you

Like I often do

When I hear the rain on

My windowpane

Gently tapping at the glass

Like your gently touching fingers

Just looking for the smile

I give to you

You can feel what no one feels

You can hear what no one hears

Just looking for the smile

I give to you

And your darkness speaks and has eyes to see

You know me by my voice

But you know so much more then

"Don't fight the walls, they're here for all,"

Was what you said to me once

I looked into your eyes

And I knew you were right

You can feel what no one feels

You can hear what no one hears

Just looking for the smile

I give to you

And your darkness speaks and has eyes to see

I knew that you can win

This lifelong game we're in

"Hey! Darkness is a state of mind;

I can go where you would stumble,"

Was what you said to me

And I knew you were right

Wolfsheim, "Blind"

Yay! And that's the end :D Sorry I was such a lazy slug in updating this thing, but I hope the end was satisfactory enough. I did leave it rather open-ended on purpose, though. Please tell me what you thought of this little story of mine, I would love to hear your final verdicts :) Looking back at the rough first drafts I wrote a while ago, there's a lot of things that were changed and left out and other things added in. For instance, the first draft had a lot more Wilt and Eduardo comfort scenes, and even a flashback or two. I also wrote out at least four other fight scenes between Frankie and Mr. Herriman, none of which were ever used, and a few of which were actually a little violent. In the early brainstorms I had for reasons why Frankie would leave, I came up with the idea that both her parents died, and in a really early draft, I even gave Frankie a baby brother which she would have had to take care of. Unfortunately, that would have brought the story to a whole different level and focus that I really didn't want it to go. But despite all that, I think it turned out fairly well :) Personally, I think if I packed this story with any more angst it would burst. Anyway...lol thank you all for reading and reviewing :D

nukerjsr: The first to use Frankie's mom, and the first to kill her! lol No, I just kid :) Anyway, glad you liked it, and though I left a lot of the end of this story to the reader's imagination, we can assume that yes, Mr. Herriman did become a bit more sympathetic after hearing the news ;)

Qk: Hey, it's totally okay to feel bad for a fictional cartoon character. Goodness knows I've spent enough nights in front of the TV practically screaming over the horrible fates our little animated friends suffer, lol. Nothing wrong with it at all ;) And I shall give both Frankie and Wilt a hug for you :D

MysticSistaKitsune: Hehe...yes, Wilt says that is okay. (Though he really is blushing extremely red...you just can't tell ;)

Person who got kicked off: Wilt's arm? Hmm...have to think about that one. Though some other people here have come up with some pretty good theories.

GreenDayBillieJoeLover: Glad you like the story :)

Little Japan Girl: Woof.

Semine Midnight: Aw, thank you :) I'm glad you enjoy the story and hope the end didn't disappoint!

(the song used in this story was "Ground" by Assemblage 23)