A/N: This chapter is so good! The Gil/Cath thing happened to me and this guy I know at my Winter Formal, so don't laugh at it. It's a very touching memory that I have.Furthermore, understandably, many of you are confused as per my Sara/Ecklie thing. I can only give you fair warning. It gets worse from here. But fear not, dear reviewers! They will be terminated by Valentine's day, and this chapter is on January 21st. I'm not going to answer any reviews this time around, I'd rather just post and get it over with. I couldn't do it this morning because I had to go to band practice really early, and then I was going to update in the afternoon, but my mom made me go to this stupid barbeque that totally sucked! I'll update tomorrow morning, that's for sure. Without further whatever, Broken Hearts!

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Catherine was strolling down the halls of the school, towards the gym. The rest of the gang was hot on her heels, Sara and Ecklie coming last, right behind Warrick and Mia. Gil and Jim were walking uncertainly behind Nick and Greg, who walked through the gym doors behind Catherine.

The music blared from the speakers in each corner, but none of the couples were dancing, really. Some were kissing excitedly, in the shadows along the walls. Warrick and Mia followed suit, bringing the number of people in the group down to eight. Archie looked despairingly after Mia, perfect in every way, wearing the dress that he had painstakingly looked for, taking more than an hour to find the perfect gift.

Ecklie had pulled Sara into a clumsy dance, and they were holding a choppy conversation over the music about nothing in particular. Sara was finding she sort of liked talking to him. "And he likes me," Sara reminded herself, as if she'd ever forget. Nick and Greg were wearing identical looks of disgust, and they turned back to the group, which had dwindled down to six.

Catherine sat down on a chair next to Archie. She looked over at him, following his gaze to where Warrick and Mia were still glued together at the lips. "You got it bad, man," she commented. Archie nodded, and then looked at her with horror.

"How'd you know?" he asked, mystified.

"I have my ways, Archie," Catherine said in an aloof tone of voice, "I always find out what I want to know."

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Nick, Greg, Gil and Jim were sitting across the gym from Catherine and Archie. A very pretty sophomore who Jim recognized as Natasha Haan walked over to them. Surprising everyone in the vicinity, she addressed Jim.

"Do you want to dance with me?" She smiled, showing white, even teeth. Jim mumbled something inaudible, and, with his cheeks flaming, stood up and offered his arm. Looking back as Natasha led him onto the dance floor, he gave Gil a look of astonishment and mouthed "The apocalypse is coming!"

Gil snickered. He got dates less often than Jim, but they both decided that if any girl willingly approached either of them, it was a sure sign that the world was coming to an end. "Especially if the girl's as pretty as that," Gil added, as an afterthought.

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Warrick and Mia were looking into each other's eyes, exchanging kisses every now and then. Mia was completely entranced, but Warrick had different things on his mind. "Why did she wear the dress Archie gave her?" he thought, frustrated. "Did she do it just to make me jealous?"

His inner turmoil, however, showed not at all on his face. He stopped his furious thoughts for a moment and turned to the matter at hand, namely, the beautiful girl who was waiting for him to speak.

"You know, Mia," he said, choosing his words carefully. He'd been planning this conversation for a couple of weeks and he had it down to a science. "You are so beautiful. You mean more to me than you know, and…" He looked her directly in her chocolate brown eyes. "I think I love you."

Mia leaned forward, kissing him gently, and then pulled away. "I love you too, Warrick. I love you so much."

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Catherine was standing near the back door of the gym, which was open, smoking a cigarette. She stubbed it out on the ground with one stiletto heel, walking further into the large room and leaning against the wall. She barely acknowledged the shadowy figure making its way toward her. She wiped a tear off her cheek as it drew closer, and when she saw it was Gil she stifled her tears immediately.

Gil, walking toward the figure at the back of the gym, was thinking about what Archie had told him. "Catherine wants you to dance with her, but she doesn't want to ask. I'm not supposed to say anything, though." These words echoed through Gil's mind, and all his rational thoughts were stripped of their logic and left to run free about his head.

When he reached Catherine, he put his hands on her waist and, when she didn't respond, pushed her arms up so they were draped around his neck. Close up, he could see that her eyes were slightly bloodshot, as though she'd been crying. Gil made a mental note to personally murder whatever scumbag made her cry.

Catherine was backed up against a wall, Gil leaning closer. Both of them were saying meaningless things, babbling to avoid an uncomfortable silence. Suddenly, Gil shushed her. "I hope I never forget this," he whispered to her as he leaned toward her, almost closing the space between them.

At that exact moment, two things happened. First, the lights went out, the music stopped, and a few girls screamed. Second, right before the kiss that would seal their fate was about to take place, a burly, mean-looking sophomore pulled Gil back and punched him squarely on the jaw. Gil fell to one side, leaning on the wall for support as Catherine watched in horror. The sophomore stepped forward once more, shouting something about himself "having dibs" on Catherine Willows. Catherine was appalled, and horrified about the abuse being done to the man she loved. She stepped forward, tripped on the hem of her dress, and fell to the ground, bruising a cheek and both her knees. Unable to stand up, she watched, terror-stricken as the boy hit Gil again.

"No," she screamed weakly. Her voice was scratchy from crying, and the tears were flowing freely down her face. Gil took notice, and pushed himself away from the wall with renewed vigor.

"You can't own a woman!" he shouted fiercely, balling a fist and punching the bigger boy in the eye. The fight continued raging, until the larger boy stepped away, tossing over his shoulder, "You're dead, Grissom. Next time, you're dead."

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Sara and Ecklie were swaying on the spot. Sara felt very comfortable in his arms, despite her first impression of him. He had, in fact, turned out to be a sweet, smart, sensitive guy who listened when she spoke and made her feel special.

Ecklie pulled away from the warm embrace, then bent down and kissed Sara softly on the cheek. "I have to go," he said quietly. "I'm grounded for setting fire to the kitchen with my chemistry set."

Sara laughed, leaned up, and kissed him on the mouth. Quickly, tentatively, he kissed her back, then broke contact and walked away. "See you on Monday," he said, a slight bounce to his voice.

Sara explained to all her friends that she was going home; not registering the sad shape Gil and Catherine were in after their ordeal.

Nick and Greg watched her go, each filled with sadness. They, along with Archie, had hearts that were breaking badly. None of them greeted Jim warmly when he returned from a few dances with Natasha.

Jim's face fell when he saw the many bruises Gil was sporting, and he sat down to listen to the story. He noticed that Gil and Catherine were being unusually cold to each other, but dismissed it as he heard the story. With Gil telling it, however, it was censored to exclude anything that did or did not happen between Catherine and him. This made it seem like the other sophomore had beaten Gil up for no reason, but Jim didn't question it.

"When he's ready to tell me, he will."