After breakfast, everyone sat around the Valenti living room.
"So, what fun adventures are set up for today?" Kyle asked. "Another face off with your ex-boyfriend?" He asked, looking at Sierra. Sierra smirked, knowing he meant it in jest.
"Thought about it, but I figured we could all use a break today." Sierra shot back giving him a sweet smile. Kyle chuckled. Maria cast a look at Sierra. She was still wearing her torn jeans and the shirt Kyle gave her.
"I have an idea." Maria said. Everyone looked at her. "We take Sierra shopping."
"Huh?" Max said.
"Maria, I really don't think now is the time-" Isabel began.
"It's probable that she's going to be here for a while, do you really want her walking down the street looking like she just did several rounds with a lawnmower?" Maria asked. She looked at Sierra. "No offense, babe." She said. Sierra shrugged.
"None taken." Sierra said. Maria glanced at the guys and saw them looking like they'd rather face Travis then go shopping.
"Liz, Isabel and I will take her shopping." Maria said, deciding to spare the men from torture.
"We will?" Isabel asked, intrigued.
"We will?" Liz asked, looking like she'd rather not.
"Yeah, it'll be fun. A girls' day out." Maria said with a smile.
"And what are we," Michael said, indicating himself, Max, Kyle and Jim, "supposed to do while you ladies are at the mall shopping and gossiping?"
"Guy stuff?" Maria asked, getting to her feet. "I'm sure there's some football game or something on TV for you guys to occupy yourselves with." Maria turned to the other three girls. "Let's go." She said. Isabel got up, looking forward to a few hours of mindless shopping followed by Sierra who looked like she was just going wherever she was told to go and then Liz got up hesitantly. The four of them left, led by Maria, leaving the men. Jim looked at them.
"So……….." He said. "What do you guys want to do?" He asked.
"I think ESPN's got sports highlights from last night's hockey game." Michael offered.
"Sounds good." Max said. The four of them settled onto the couch and turned on the TV.
Maria and Sierra found themselves alone in one of the stores in the mall. Liz had been displaying her dislike for the whole shopping thing rather blatantly-dragging her feet a bit here and there-So Isabel took her by the arm and told Maria and Sierra she wanted to get something for Jesse for when he came home from his business trip and wanted Liz to help her. They agreed to meet up at the food court in two hours.
"So, what sort of clothes do you usually wear?" Maria asked as she looked through a jack of shirts. Sierra shrugged.
"Comfortable clothes, you know jeans, shirts, sneakers, very minimalist." Sierra said. Maria turned her head and looked at her.
"Goodness, you are Michael's child." She joked. Sierra laughed.
"Speaking of him," Sierra said. "I see you two got back together." Sierra smirked. Maria looked at her. "I saw you two leave last night." Maria blushed.
"Oh, we just went out for…coffee…….to talk…" Maria stammered. Sierra gave her a knowing look.
"Yeah, right, coffee." Sierra said, rolling her eyes. Maria looked at her.
"I'm sorry………It's just a little weird talking to you about this. I mean you're going to be his daughter." Maria said in a hushed voice. Maria went back to looking at shirts. Thinking about the fact that Sierra was Michael's daughter brought on a painful pang to Maria's heart because that meant that she and Michael weren't going to be together forever and there was going to be someone else Michael was going to marry. Sierra looked down for a second, sensing what was going on in Maria's mind. She sighed and looked at some shirts. After a while Maria led Sierra to the dressing rooms with a handful of shirts, jeans and skirts-which Sierra didn't even want to look at, but Maria had insisted-Sierra stood in the dressing room trying on clothes while Maria waited outside for Sierra to come out and show her how the clothes fit. After showing Maria all the clothes, they paid for the clothes and went to meet Liz and Isabel at the food court. The four of them ate and then headed to the parking lot to Maria's car. They placed the three shopping bags filled with Sierra's new clothes in the trunk and got in the car, driving back to the Valenti house.
Later that day, the others were inside enjoying dinner while Sierra sat on Jim's porch staring at the setting sun. Her eyes drifted shut as memories flooded her head.
Bullets and lasers filled the air as another battle in the on going war ensued. Sierra held up her gun, shooting the enemy along side Annie.
"There's too many of them!" Annie yelled over the ruckus.
"There's no such thing as 'too many'." Sierra said softly. "Just keep firing!" She yelled out.
"NGHHHAghhhhhhh!" Came a loud bellow. Sierra turned to see a horrid sight-Her father, disarmed, clutching his bleeding shoulder as he stumbled into a cave followed by one of THEM.
"Dad.." Sierra said. She got up; ready to exit the ditch she and Annie had been in. Annie shot her a look.
"Sie, what…….Where are you going?"
"I've got to help him!" Sierra screamed. She climbed out and stared running to a cave. Annie stared at her retreating friend who was running blindly, not even caring that she was barely missing oncoming shots. Annie shoved another round of ammunition in her gun and ran after her. Sierra dodged as a shot nearly missed her leg. She looked up to see one of them, holding his gun, ready to fire, only to get shot and fall back. Sierra turned to see Annie.
"We need to get back." She said. Sierra shook her head.
"My dad's in trouble, I've got to help!" Sierra ran to the cave. Annie groaned and followed. The two of them ran into the cave. They ran deep into it and saw Michael slumped in a sitting position at the cave wall, holding his shoulder. "Dad!" Sierra ran to him. She kneeled by her side. Michael looked at her.
"Sierra…….What are you doing here?"
"I saw you come in here." She said. She placed a hand on his. "You're hurt."
"You abandoned your post." Michael said. "You're supposed to stay there."
"Yeah well, when my dad's shoulder's bleeding and he's being chased by the enemy, I forget the rules." Sierra said. "Come on, we've got to get out of here." She said. She stood up and pulled her father up. "Annie, give me a hand-" She looked up just in time to see the enemy shoot a round off in Annie's chest.. Sierra's breath caught in her throat. The man looked up and smirked. He aimed his weapon at her and Michael. Sierra released Michael and hoisted up her weapon. She let out a feral scream as she began firing, hitting the man in the head. It exploded into brain matter and blood as he fell down, but Sierra didn't stop, she stood over him and kept firing.
"Sie……" Came a choked voice. "I think he's dead." Sierra turned around to see Annie on her back, twitching slightly, blood pouring out of her chest and mouth. Sierra dropped her weapon and ran to her side.
"Annie, oh god." Sierra gasped as tears filled her eyes. She pulled Annie in her arms. "Come on, we've got to get you to the med center…..We……We got to-" Annie clutched Sierra's hand, cutting her off.
"I…….I can't move, Sie…….Are you there? I can't see you…."
"I'm right here, Ann, come on, you can't do this, okay? Stay with me. Stay with me!" In the distance she could hear her father ordering for the med mobile unit to come help over his walkie talkie, but his words were static. Annie coughed as more blood seeped out the corner of her mouth.
"T-t-tell my parents that I love them…" Annie whispered.
"You're going to tell them yourself, you're not dying on me. Do you hear me? You're not!"
"Sie………You've been the greatest friend I………I've ever had…"
"Stop it! Stop it! You're not going to die! You're not!" Sierra felt Annie's grip on her hand loosen. She looked up at her face and watched it limply fall to the side, her eyes wide open. "No….." Sierra whimpered. "No.." Sierra held Annie closer to her chest. She could feel Annie's blood seeping into her shirt, but she didn't care. She held her close, burying her face in Annie's hair. "No." She sobbed.
"Sierra?" A voice and a hand on her shoulder jolted Sierra out of her memory. She looked over and saw Michael sitting beside her. "Are you okay?" He asked. Sierra then realized that she had started crying. She let out a soft sob and threw her arms around Michael's neck, burying her face in his shoulder as she sobbed. Michael put his arms around her, holding her, figuring she must've flashbacked to something painful.