Okay...well. I hope you like this chapter because we have a surprise at the end of it concerning...someone important.

Hope you like-

Oh! and I have yet to find a Calum or Teagan for those who like looking at the pictures in my profile. I've been looking for a Calum, but if you find someone you think reminds you of them tell me by PM or email. Calum has brown hair and brown eyes and Teagan's got some Hispanic heritage in him...so...

Chapter 16

Mack looked at herself in her full length mirror and smiled. It was perfect. She was in a strapless baby blue dress with sparkles, her mother had helped her put on just the right amount of make-up, she wore a silver clip in her hair and silver shoes. Tonight would be perfect.

She felt like a princess as she slowly walked down the stairs where her father and Calum were in a heated conversation about the Lakers and the Knicks. Calum stopped mid sentence when he saw her and smirked. Jack turned and smiled at his daughter.

"I love you Princess," he said as he enveloped her in a hug.

"Love you too Daddy."

He held her at arms length and took a good look at her. "You're growing up too fast for me."

Mack smiled and patted her father on the back. "I'll always be your little girl."

After the infamous prom pictures had been taken Mack and Calum walked outside. They looked up into the night sky and smiled. "I love the stars," Mack told him. "They just make you feel..."

"Happy? Excited?"

"Yeah," she said looking into his eyes. "What about you?"

"They remind me that everyone's different. Even though they look the same their not, you know?"

She nodded and grabbed his hand. "Let's walk."

"Are you kidding me?"

"No," she answered. "It's a nice night."

"But you're in heels..."

"You underestimate my feet," she said. "Let's go. I want to make this memorable and if my feet are sore for a month...who cares?"

Calum gave her a look before following her down the street. Mack was definitely different from any girl he'd ever met before. She was willing to be herself in front of anyone. Maybe that's what he liked most about her.

"Were you planing this the entire time," Calum asked.

"If I said yes you wouldn't be mad, right?"

He laughed a little before grabbing her hand and jerked it into a swinging motion. "Why?" She stopped and looked at him, "Why what?"

"Why did you want to walk?"

She looked to the road before turning back to Calum. "I guess it was something Bailey said." He gave her a questioning look so she continued. "She said she'd rather be alone with Adam than be at this big dance that everyone talks about and have things go horribly wrong. This way we have a little more time together before we get there. And...we get to be fashionably late."

"I like the way you think," Calum said grabbing both of her hands and leading her to a swing in the park they were passing through. He sat down and pulled her into his lap before gently kissing her on the lips. He pressed his forehead to hers and smiled down at her.

"I'd rather sit in the stars with you all night," she whispered.

"Me too, but I think Adam, Bailey and them will get worried if we don't show up."

"Bailey would have my head. I'm the one that convinced her to come tonight. If I didn't show, she'd be mad."

"You can say that again," Calum replied.

Mack stood and waited to him to get up from the seat of the swing. He did so ever so slowly before picking her up wedding style and walking out of the park. "Calum! Put me down," she screamed.

"I don't want your feet to hurt to much before our long night of dancing," he reasoned.

"How sweet," she said in disgust. "You know I hate being carried."

"Yeah," he said. "That's why I'm doing it."

She was about to say something when Calum covered her mouth with his lips. "You're mean," she told him when the kiss was broken off. "And a bully."

"But you love me."

"You're right I do," she giggled. Calum brought his face close to hers, but she put her finger to his lips. "We need to get going or else we're going to be so late." Calum just shrugged and kissed her anyway before quickening his pace.

hsmhsmhsmhsmhsm

Troy shut his eyes and stretched out on the bed. Colby and Frankie had put their beds together to make one big bed for Troy since he wasn't feeling very well. There was a knock at the door and Troy moaned softly. The door creaked open and Troy didn't even open his eyes.

"Dude you look great," came a sarcastic voice that could only belong to one person.

"Thanks Chad," Troy said as he opened his eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"What the hell do you think I'm doing here? I'm visiting. We had a three day break thing so I decided to take advantage of it and fly across the country, see my dude." Chad sat down on the edge of the bed. "How are you doing?"

"Honestly? I haven't felt this bad in a long time."

"You'll be fine," Chad said confidently.

"How do you know?"

"Hello?" Chad waved a hand in front of Troy's face. "Am I not the one who grew up with you? Am I not your best friend? So you're sicker than normal. Is it your heart or something?"

"Nah. Gabriella thought the same thing so she brought me to the hospital to check and see if I needed a new battery for my defibrillator. Next year I will but right now it's just my immune system acting up again."

"Or not acting at all," Chad said.

"You could say that."

"Your roommates have that look in their eyes that says 'Troy's dying.' You haven't told them have you?"

"Told them what?"

Chad groaned. "You know what Troy, sometimes you need to tell some people so they don't worry, or so they know how to help you."

Troy turned his head to look out the window. "It just never came up."

"Gabriella said you've been sick for...since February. Surely there has been times when you could have told them the truth. Troy look at me!" Chad studied Troy's blue eyes. "Don't tell me you're thinking of giving up."

"I've thought about it." Chad grabbed one of Troy's wrists. "I said I thought about it."

"Well I don't trust you anymore. Last you decided not to tell anyone you almost overdosed-"

"That was something completely different!"

"Had Cam and I not walked in, whether it was intentionally or not, you have taken too many and would have killed yourself."

"I'm not suicidal, if that's what your trying to say."

Chad sighed. "It wasn't. But think of this; people die everyday and you've been given a lot of second chances."

hsmhsmhsmhsmhsm

"Chad!"

He turned to see Gabriella running toward him. She stopped right in front of him. "I just wanted to say thank you."

"For what?"

"I know you probably wanted to spend your three day break with Taylor, but you came here instead."

"Well he's my best friend, I had to try and get him back to himself-"

"But that's just it," she said interrupting him. "I think you helped him. I don't know what you said in there, but his attitude changed. He's up and walking and doing things he hasn't done since February."

"It's only been what two since I talked to him. There's no way what I said had anything to do with his health," he said.

"But it did. I think it might have been psychological."

Chad looked confused. "Huh?"

"I think he was really sick in February, but after that he was just...he had it in his mind that he was going to be sick forever, so he was. Until you..." She turned. "I'll let you go, your flight...three hours in advance right."

He walked to the car he had rented. "Oh and Chad?" Turning he saw Gabriella standing with her arms crossed. "I know how you hate flying."

"It was worth it."

"Troy knew too."

Well? Off to type Chapter 17!

Tell me what you think.

Review!

(Oh and for HauntedWhisper714 – Bailey's dress was purple even though I didn't talk about it.)