Ann sat on a boulder inside the cave.

"It wasn't my fault…" She sobbed into her hands. "It's not like that stupid poser could've helped us anyways." She looked up and through the cave entrance she couldn't see anything. It was dark. It was night. "I just wish I was never born, then my father wouldn't have had to take care of me…everyone would be okay." She dug her face into her arms and cried. "Mom…" She whimpered.

Back at the clinic, Cliff was waking up.

"Cliff?" Popuri whispered. She was kneeling next to the stretcher in the clinic. Cliff muttered something, and then opened his groggy eyes.

"P-p-p…Pop?" He moaned. "Ugh!" He yelped in pain.

"Cliff?" Elli asked as she set Ghai down on the desk and ran over to his bedside. "Stay still Cliff." Cliff nodded his head, and then winced again in spite of the pain.

"Cliff! Your okay." Popuri smiled and ran her fingers through his long bangs. Cliff smiled and closed his eyes.

"I'm okay… I woke up! How long has it been? Is the little boy okay? Ghai was his name… I almost saved him. Gee, I was pretty brave. I hope Ann's okay…" Cliff's mind raced.

"You'll be okay in a couple hours okay Cliff?" Elli reassured the teenage boy. "Just rest for now. You don't have to sleep, just rest."

"Ah…rest." Cliff smiled weakly once more before totally numbing out.

In the cave

"Ann?" A soft voice came from beside Ann.

"Jack? Is that you? Look, I don't want to talk right now. Okay? Just leave me here to cry. I know your trying to help but…" Ann held back the mean comments that were running through her mind.

"No, it's not Jack." The voice confirmed.

"Popuri? Kai maybe? Who are you?" Ann raised her head and looked to her right. "The Harvest Goddess?" Sure enough, the harvest Goddess was sitting next to Ann in the dank old cave.

"Yes Ann." She replied. "I'm here. And I want to help you."

"I thought you didn't want to help? How can YOU help?" Ann asked obnoxiously.

"By saying two words." The Goddess held up two elegant fingers. "Greet Cliff." And the goddess disappeared.

"Greet Cliff? Cliff's alive!" Ann sprung out of her seat and out of the cave; she sprinted out of the forest. Not noticing Jack, sitting in the hot spring, waiting for her.

Ann burst through the front door of the clinic, bare-foot and in her pyjamas.

"Ann?" Elli's voice sounded surprised. Popuri only scowled.

"Ann." She muttered, disgusted at the sound of her own voice saying Ann's dreaded name.

"Sorry." Ann apologized quickly and shut the door. "Is Cliff here?"

"Why should you care?" Popuri stuck her hands on her hips and blocked Ann's way out of the foyer.

"Popuri." Elli scolded. "Yes Ann, Cliff is here, resting. Please don't disturb him until he wakes on his own." Ann nodded, glared at Popuri, and then sat on a sofa, her eyes never leaving Popuri. Popuri smirked and turned around.

"Hello pretty lady." A green-haired boy, looking about five or six walked up to Ann and waved.

"Hi." Ann smiled sweetly and waved lightly back. "Who are you?" The boy paused, as if he had to think.

"Ghai!" He concluded, making sure that was the right word for his name. "And that's my mom." He turned and pointed to Elli, then ran into her arms.

"Hello Ghai. My name is Ann." Ann waved then saw Popuri scowl at her. Ann slowly lowered her hand to watch Popuri mouth the words;

"What a stupid name." She muttered, under her breath, not thinking that Ann could hear or see her.

"I heard that, brat." Ann stood up and glared at Popuri.

"What did you hear?" Popuri turned again and glared right back at Ann. "You must be hallucinating. I mean what, if you stay cooped up on that farm the rest of your life, your bound to start seeing things."

"I know you said something you slut." Ann shot back. "The farm is helping me, not causing problems. You'd be good to stay there a few nights alone with a really nice guy!"

"As if I need to stay in that run-down lot of shacks to become a better person." Popuri retorted then paused. "Did you just call me a slut?"

"Yah I called you a slut! Jack works hard trying to keep that farm alive!" Popuri and Ann's red faces were only feet away. Screaming words at each other was not helping Cliff's condition.

"I AM NOT A SLUT!" Popuri slapped Ann. When Ann turned her face back, there was a red hand print on her left cheek.

"Prove it whore." Ann challenged, and then ducked when Popuri threw her other hand at Ann's face.

"Girls!" Elli shrieked trying to get them to stop, but they didn't listen.

"I'm not a slut! I'm no whore! I'm a virgin." Popuri went to slap Ann again but Ann zipped beside her and quickly whispered into her ear.

"I don't believe you." Ann sped back in front of Popuri and placed her hands on her hips, mocking Popuri's usual stance.

"Stop it you goth! You're such a hermit!" Popuri screamed again. "Why don't you have any friends? Don't you ever wonder why no one loves you?" Popuri's face turned grim. "No one loves you. Not Cliff. Not your daddy and most certainly, not your mama." Popuri hit Ann on the side of the head. Ann fell onto her hands and knees with those words in her head.

"No one…not Cliff, not daddy and not mama." The words whipped through her brain, over and over again.

"No!" She shrieked. Ann stood and punched Popuri in the stomach. "No." Ann held her shoulders and fell back down to her knees as Popuri groped her stomach in pain and fell onto the floor.

"What's happening, Elli?" Cliff limped into the foyer and saw the two girls on the floor. "Elli?"

"They started fighting." Elli muttered. "Ann won but, Popuri got in a few good words."

"I see." Cliff replied, limping farther into the foyer. "Girls?"

"Cliff." Popuri groaned and scurried to Cliff legs. She clung onto him and grabbed his hand. She pointed to Ann's quivering shape. "She hurt me." Her voice wavered.

"I can see that. Looks like you hurt her more than she hurt you though." Cliff let go of Popuri's hand and pried her off of his leg. "Ann?" he knelt down next to the quivering Ann and gently lifted her chin with his soft hand. Ann's eyes were red and her cheeks were streaked with salty tears. She looked into Cliff's eyes and he did the same. "Oh Ann." Cliff pulled her into a tight hug and Ann sobbed loudly while Popuri stood and watched it all.

"No one loves me Cliff." Ann wept into Cliff's arms.

"I love you Ann." A voice came from the front of the clinic. Ann, Cliff, Popuri and Elli's faces all turned to see who it was. "But obviously, you're too busy with your own pain to care." It was Jack.

"Jack?" Ann backed away from Cliff. "You…you …l-love me?"

"Yea Ann. You heard me." Jack was yelling. "I love you! But your too wrapped up in your own pain and your own life, your too busy for others…too busy to care about who DOES care. I always cared Ann. Oh yah. Of course I do! Of course I care! I caught you from the window! I didn't even know you! I've adopted you as my roommate for almost a whole year! I've provided for you and what have you done? Every now and then a hug or a thank you. Never a, 'How are you Jack' or maybe an 'I appreciate it Jack'." Jack glared at Ann as she stood on shaky legs.

"J…Jack I..." Ann started.

"No Ann. You listen. I'm tired of being quiet. I'm tired of being pushed around because I'm shy. I'm tired of being ignored by the ones I love. If you took the time to think, you would've noticed that I've been waiting for you. You would've noticed that I love you… And it's not going to change anytime soon." Jack's eyes welled with tears. A few were already slipping down. He didn't care. "Why is it that you don't care about those that do?"

Jack left the clinic and the island. He didn't tell anyone where he went. Not even Ann. He left all his things at the farm.

! What do you think? Good bad? I need to hear your responses!