A/N: Hey all! My day off yesterday was great! I'm looking forward to nextThursday, too...I love days off. Anywho, this chappie is like the shortest thing ever so I'll answer some reviews to make up for it. Also, I know I haven't put Archie in for like a billion chapters, but I'm hoping to get some more of him in the next ones. A little break from Sara. Although I still have to resolve that eating disorder thing a little more. Ah well, now, the answers!

Daisyangel: Thanks. My best friend was anorexic for a while, so that's where I drew my inspiration for Sara's thoughts. I'm so sorry that I haven't gotten your story up yet, but I just got my mid-terms and I have no spare time. This story is my top priority.

Linwe Melwasul: Yes, I was glad to have a break from the romance with last chapter, too, but this one is back to the mushygushy stuff. What can I say? It's my forte. Which means my specialty. And although there's no pink donkey, there's a little foreshadowing where that is involved.

CSIrookiechick: I'm plotting more of Heather's "interaction" with Grissom, but for now I'm leaving her alone for a little while. I got her background partly from a short story I read called "Charm" by Francescia Lia Block. It's in a book called Rose and the Beast and it's fantastic.

Silver Hair Fox: I can't wait for your letter and the pictures. I am going to go check the mail right now because it just came, even though I'm pretty sure it hasn't come yet. I'm plotting a way to have you involved with Sara's recovery, but I'm leaving that topic alone for the time being.

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Mia shut her eyes, leaning back into the soft pillows at the head of her bed. In her hand was the receiver of her cordless phone, her thumb poised on the talk button, waiting for the telltale ring that would confirm that six o' clock had arrived.

She jumped slightly when it rang, hastily jabbing the button and bringing the phone to her mouth. "Hello?" she asked, knowing full well who was calling.

"Hey, Babe." Warrick's voice manifested at the other end of the phone, his tone was naïve, innocent, vulnerable. "How's life?"

"It's fine," Mia said, the lie spilling from her mouth before she could contain it. She turned down her CD player, the words resonating in her mind. "It all looks fine to the naked eye, but it don't really happen that way at all," the voice blaring from her stereo said. "Too true," she thought, allowing her mind to tune back in on what Warrick was saying.

"So I was wondering if we could go see a movie this weekend?" he finished hesitantly, as though he was asking her out for the first time.

"Actually, Rick," Mia said, regret apparent in her voice. "I-"

"You're parents don't want you to? That's okay, I understand," Warrick said, cutting her off. The nervousness remained in his voice.

"No, that's not it," Mia said gently. "You and I both know what it is."

"No, I don't!" Warrick said, his voice snapping. "You want to clue me in?" His voice had grown harsh, worried, the voice of someone who's lost and is shouting into the wilderness, not knowing what to expect.

"This is really hard for me," Mia whispered. "Part of me doesn't want to do it."

"Then don't!" Mia could hear the tears threatening to spill behind Warrick's eyes. Her heart ripped in two.

"I love you, Warrick," she said in an attempt to right things. "I just don't feel the same way as you do. You've been like a brother to me, and I don't want to ruin that with a different kind of relationship."

Silence came from Warrick's end. It sounded as though he wasn't even breathing, on the edge of his seat, waiting for the words that could shatter his heart into a million tiny, delicate pieces, never to be put back together.

"I want to break up." The words were finally out of Mia's mouth, the situation was out of her hands. She waited for a response. When she got one, it wasn't what she expected to hear. A dial tone was buzzing in her ear, all that was left of what could have once been one love, one life, one happy memory.

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Natasha came to school again the next day. Before the bell had rung, the group, minus Warrick who had feigned illness, was sitting in the hallway outside of Mrs. Wells' classroom. Mia was just finishing her story.

"I totally see where you're coming from," Natasha piped up, her voice still hoarse from her chest cold. "I know what it's like to not want a relationship."

Jim sighed at this, but only Gil heard. He looked sadly at his best friend, wondering what was to become of the two of them.

Heather was the next to speak. "I know. Did he expect you to just stay with him until he got bored of you? Good job taking the initiative." She grinned and laughed.

Mia laughed too, but it was a sad laugh, a morose laugh full of the woes of a confused heart. She looked at her feet, the shoelaces stained with mud from a time when she'd been in the park with Warrick and it had started to rain. Her shoes had been covered in mud, but she'd managed to clean it all off. Everything except the small smudge on the otherwise clean lace. She felt her eyes prickling with tears and vigorously rubbed her face, willing the dams to hold until she was alone.

Seeing this, Archie, who was sitting next to her, wrapped his arms around her thin shoulders and allowed her to cry into his chest. Mia gratefully hugged him back, her body racking with sobs. Sara scooted closer to her and hugged her as well, sandwiching Mia between Archie and her. One by one, the rest of the group joined in, Jim and Gil tying for last. One giant blob, they blocked the hallway, Mia in the center. Her sobs soon turned to laughs as she tried to poke her head out of the enormous hug circle.

Then the bell rang, shaking everyone out of their thoughts. The blob dissipated, but it's feelings of comfort remained. Mia laughed as she walked to her class, still feeling everyone's arms around her, the love, the caring feelings. She smiled and took a seat, wondering if maybe she could repair her lost friendship with Warrick someday.

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