A/N: Okay… after this, one more chapter! The weather lately was my inspiration for this chapter xD It's always changing… always changing…

Chapter 9

The wind rolled the grass like a blanket onto a bed. The thin blades tickled their skin as Bella and Drew sat down near the overgrown tree. A soft shade fell onto Bella's face and she seemed aged, which made it even harder for Drew to start speaking. Distant echoes of children playing haunted their thoughts, giving the moment extra tension for some reason, possibly because it made Drew think about May and because Bella knew he was. It was like a dagger had been pushed into her heart, but it had all started when she saw Drew in the shop with May that first day. When Drew came home from the wedding, she saw a change in him and she didn't know what it was. He would always seem like he was far away. He didn't pay attention to her like he used to and when she saw him with May, it all made sense. The dagger seethed itself deep down inside, but she was strong and in denial. She would wait it out, and try to forget about the bottomless pain inside of her. It had worked, but it was the time of all those years that had pushed the dagger in as deep as it could go.

Drew wouldn't look at her face; instead he looked out towards the bridge in the distance. Memories came flooding back, how horrified he was to see the gleaming of that knife, how relieved he was to see that she was safe, and most of all, how wonderful he felt having her in his arms. More than ever, he knew that his heart could no longer live in the double life he was leading. With a heavy sigh, he lifted his head up and looked at his girlfriend.

"Bella…what did you hear when I was talking with Ash?"

She seemed to be quiet for a minute and then her lips parted and her mouth moved.

"I didn't… hear anything except that you were talking about her…"

Drew knew who she was talking about, there was no need to mention May's name.

"I have to tell you something Bella…"

Suddenly, she put a hand on his arm and smiled gently. It was the first true smile that he had seen graced her face, and for an instant, it felt like he was meeting her for the first time. Bella shook her head and spoke for him.

"You don't have to say anything Drew."

The dagger was cutting itself deeper as the two of them spoke. If he were to say the words she didn't want to hear, it might kill her. She had given up on Brendan the instant she thought of Drew yesterday, and she had still thought there was hope for their relationship. Now Bella knew that she had to end it.

"I don't?"

Drew was confused, but on Bella's face was an expression of forgiveness and acceptance. He had no clue why she was suddenly so mature, and it intrigued him to know why.

"No you don't Drew. I know that during this past week, circumstances have changed and we've begun to drift apart… maybe it's best we…"

She stopped talking all of a sudden, her heartbeat flickering in her chest. Bella's mouth hung open and she grabbed Drew's arm tightly. Panic dazed his eyes and he sat up alert.

"Bella, what's wrong?"

Her eyes closed and she steadied her breath. She tried to think of happy thoughts, like those ducks in the pond. Bella opened her eyes slowly and saw the deep concern in Drew's emerald orbs. Her smile widened as she realized it wasn't loving concern in his eyes; he was worried for her because it was a basic human emotion.

"Drew, I'm sorry, but I don't think we should see each other anymore."

He felt her grip on his arm loosen, and her hand fell into her lap. Drew was dumbstruck and was completely surprised by her statement. His mouth hung open, and his eyes bulged. Bella kept smiling, and she felt renewed. The dagger in her heart no longer bore its painful presence. She was finally free from the agony she had been living with.

"But why?"

"I don't need to say anything Drew, you know that. We are two very different people, and we just don't fit together well. Your puzzle piece and my puzzle piece don't belong to the same puzzle."

His mind raced to try and figure out who he was talking with. Was it really Bella that had broken up their relationship? Did he even say two words mentioning his feelings for May? It left Drew dumbfounded; her intelligence had skyrocketed and suddenly he felt her fingers on his chin. Her gentle push forced him to close his gaping mouth and then she helped him stand up.

"So this is it? We're over?"

"Yes," Bella said with a sigh of relief, "you're better off with someone else. Let's go and I'll get my stuff out of your apartment."

"But where will you go?"

She stopped suddenly and then laughed carelessly.

"Oh, I forgot to mention it to you then. The contest gave me a paycheck even though I quit, and it's good enough to get me my own apartment."

"Okay then… as long as you have somewhere to go."

The two of them exited the park quickly, the sun setting sooner than expected. Masses of puffy gray clouds came into view, as the wind picked them along its trail. The trees swayed violently and everyone started to go home. May didn't care though, and she made her way to her safe haven anyways. She reached the empty park only minutes after Drew and Bella had left. May looked around expectantly; for the past couple of days, Drew had been thinking along the same lines as she had, so they ended up in the same places.

No one was there and sadly, May found herself alone at the bridge. The water beneath her sped away in numerous ripples, and inside she fought herself to plunge into the stream and see if it would carry her away from all of the heartache she faced. It seemed like her life was going in the wrong direction. Brendan had made a fool of her, and it would be impossible for Drew to break up with Bella, so it seemed like she was all alone with no one to go to. Tears ran down her face once again, and this time they burned her cheeks. She wiped them away with the back of her hand and decided that there was no point to stay where she was. The rushing sound of the water called to her, and in her mind she envisioned a place where she could live in pure joy. As she started to climb the railing, a loud crack of thunder boomed above her head and it rippled towards her. May fell off of the railing and onto the bridge. She yelled out in pain as her tailbone made the impact with the solid ground under her. Her tears stopped and she blinked as tiny drops of water started to dot her face. Another loud boom of thunder resounded all around her and then the shower of rain pelted down onto her face. She sat there until the storm eased up. Her clothes were soaked and she closed her eyes, taking in the breath of fresh misty air.

May laughed then, as the setting sun appeared from a hole in the sea of clouds. As she stood up, miniscule rivers of water swept down from the ends of her hair, all the way down her body. The pain had washed away, and the warmth of the sun's rays gave her a renewed sensation of life. Leaving the park, she thanked it for taking care of her. When she came home, she saw that all of Brendan's stuff was gone and for the first time in a long while, it seemed like her apartment was more occupied and it seemed to glow, but that could have been because the sun playfully cast its orange and yellow colors through the windows.

..:-:..

It didn't take long to take all of Bella's belongings and move them into an apartment a few blocks away. The owner was desperate for some rent money and when Bella showed up at his doorstep, he gladly took her in at that moment. She gave one last hug to Drew and then she waved a happy good bye. As Drew walked home, the sound of cars rushing by on the wet streets filled him with a reflective sadness. After that afternoon had ended, all he wanted to do was feel May's warmth beside him. But he couldn't do that because she was most likely still with Brendan. As he unlocked his apartment, he could tell there was a difference in its smell. Near his bedroom, he saw that a window was open and then he smiled. The clean air after a storm was his favorite smell in the world, that of course next to the creamy nutmeg scent of May's hair.

He pulled back the covers. May slipped into her bed after taking a warm, relaxing bath. Drew murmured his love's name, and she shivered and wished that he would be next to her. In two different places, at the same time, two people wanted the comfort of knowing they were next to each other. But that wish wasn't fulfilled and each had slept restlessly, dreaming of the other's touch, the other's presence, and most of all, knowing that they could love each other openly.

..:-:..

Drew woke up late, and he muttered to himself. Slowly he got out of bed and did the usual routine. Once he was at the ice cream stand, he stood and put his hat on with a sigh. His boss came around later towards noon and seemed a bit confused.

"Good afternoon… looks like we've got a good crowd today."

He was right, after the storm blew over, there was a cloudless sky and the winds died down and were barely noticeable. Drew shrugged his shoulders and answered lifelessly.

"I guess."

The boss went around and stood next to him, putting a hand on Drew's shoulder.

"My boy, if there's something troubling you, you should go do something about it. Standing around waiting for a change isn't going to help anything."

Something kindled in Drew's eyes and he looked up at the old man with a smile.

"You're right. I should be optimistic… I guess I can try…"

"That's a good chap! Now, start selling those cones and I might let you go on your break early."

The boss gave him a wink and Drew managed to smile slightly. He was a kind man, but sometimes you couldn't tell what he was really up to.

..:-:..

The morning hadn't gone much better for May, although she was in better spirits. Hopril came out of her poke ball and walked besides May while going to the day care. A few new people had come in and she was at once buried under huge amounts of work. There were five new pokemon that she had to meet and begin to take care for. All of the meals had to be made especially for each type of pokemon and she had to walk around every so often to make sure everyone was getting along with each other. The time seemed to pass by and since she was so preoccupied with her job, thoughts of Brendan didn't even come into her mind at all. As she sat down near the waterfall in the "bluehouse", she laid back and closed her eyes, shutting out everything but the lulling sound of the water. Suddenly she felt the grass near her rustle and her eyes shot open. Her heart leapt up inside of her chest when she saw him sitting right next to her.

"Drew! What are you doing here?"

His eyes turned towards her and he smirked.

"Not happy to see me May? That's disappointing to hear…maybe I should go find someone who wants to see me…"

He began to prop himself on his elbows but May put a hand on his chest as a smile tugged at her lips. She hadn't seen him for an entire day and now that he was right next to her, she couldn't have been happier. His green eyes drew her in and she rested her head six inches above his so that her hair fell down onto his face loosely.

"Of course I'm happy to see you… I just didn't think you would be the person who I heard sit down next to me…"

May pushed off of him and stood up. Drew snickered as he got up from the grass himself. Only trees, plants and the serene waterfall surrounded them; no one was there to interrupt. Somehow, there was no awkward tension between them, considering all of the troubles they had to go through. Drew saw a cheerful smile on her face, and there seemed to be no underlying sadness. He took a step closer to her and she turned her head towards the water.

"Are you still… with Bella?"

She turned back towards him and he smiled broadly.

"No, I'm not."

Her mouth hung open. It was clear that it was shocking news.

"Seriously? Did she cry? Oh I bet her feelings were hurt…"

Drew put a hand on her shoulder and then put her face in both of his hands.

"Calm down May. She broke up with me."

Her eyes widened and then narrowed.

"How come? I thought she adored you!"

"She said that she could tell we were drifting apart and that I shouldn't be with her anymore."

May's morale was lifted generously and she smiled with a sigh.

"I broke up with Brendan."

Drew cocked his eyebrow and laughed.

"Oh yeah? How did you pull that off?"

Her happy grin diminished and disappeared all within itself. She turned away from him and Drew became quiet.

"May?"

After a long silence and a deep breath, she turned around to him and bowed her head.

"I didn't care about his feelings; he hurt mine more than I could have imagined."

Drew stepped up to her and put his arms around her shoulder. He whispered and bowed his head too.

"What did he do to you?"

"Nothing Drew. Can we just put it in the past?"

He nodded and sighed.

"If that's what you want."

After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, they looked into each others eyes and Drew pulled her into his arms. She gave up her will when his arms wrapped around her. May was lost within his warmth, and the cool rushing waterfall near them made things seem like it was a dream. He stroked her hair gently and rubbed her back soothingly. Time stood still as she gazed up to him and he looked down into her deep blue eyes. Drew's fingers grazed her cheek and then her lips, and as he leaned towards her, instinct took over. Their kiss sparked the flames in their hearts and nothing could be done about it. May's hands slid around his neck as he pulled her in even closer by her arcing back. It was only moments before a loud crash disturbed them.

..:-:..

Bella set her goals straightaway; she was going to go find Brendan. After seeing how horrible her last relationship went, and after feeling that burning in her face as Brendan kissed her hand, she knew she had to go follow her heart. A fresh start was always a good thing, right?

In the brief moments that they had been together, he had said that he always works out at the gym, which she thought to be extremely provocative because she liked a strong man to be near her. So that is where she was headed. Fully dressed in the cutest workout outfit she could find, the sun shining down on her, Bella walked into the gym. But just shortly afterwards, she saw a bunch of girls and walked up to them. It seemed however, that they were arguing bitterly instead of chatting giddily.

"Hi girls!"

The silence was instant and each head turned towards Bella. She waved shyly and then one of the girls snorted.

"She must be new here."

"Yeah, look at the way she is dressed."

Bella was confused and didn't understand what they meant.

"I'm sorry if I'm dressed this way, and yes, it's my first time here, but that doesn't give you the right to criticize me."

Brendan had come out of his workout room and saw the group of girls as usual. He knew it was hopeless now, his reputation was ruined and no girl would want to actually consider going out with him. But then he saw a new girl with her back turned towards him. She was wearing a light blue workout suit and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail.

"We aren't criticizing you, we just want to warn you."

Many of the girls nodded and then she looked at them questionably.

"Warn me about what?"

Brendan began to walk towards the woman and then he saw the group pointing at him. He put on his biggest smile but stopped dead in his tracks when she turned around. Instead of a greeting smile, she was fuming and pointed a finger at him. His smile turned into a circular gape.

"Don't even think about trying to use your suave words on me Brendan!"

She turned around and ran out of the gym. The girls had told her everything, how he had tried to compliment them while they were working out, how he had done that even though he was May's boyfriend, and then how she dumped him right after she found out herself. Brendan ran out right after her and she stopped.

"Wait!"

"What do you want Brendan?"

Her cruel gaze killed him on the inside. Even though she was fuming, she still looked utterly gorgeous.

"Please give me another chance! I swear to you I'm a changed man!"

"No way Brendan. Your looks aren't going to persuade me, and neither are your useless words."

He ran out to her but she put a hand to his forehead and pushed him away.

"I said what I have said. Leave me alone now."

Brendan stood there, the second day in a row, dumped by a girl. He watched her ponytail swish from side to side as she disappeared from his view.

..:-:..

May pulled away from Drew with a gaze that disappointed him. She wasn't completely excited; instead her eyes showed him that she still wasn't sure about what they were doing. The two of them ran towards the sound of the crash and they didn't have to go too far. Outside of the two houses, Mr. Maguchi stood near a pile of spread out food. He had his hands up to his head and he screamed.

"A months supply of food, ruined!"

Drew took out his poke ball immediately and Roselia came out of it twirling. He nodded to his pokemon and at once she spun around, sending a soft pink dust on the food. May and her boss watched with wide eyes as the food regained its natural color and was cleaned off by the magical pink dust. At once the three of them started to pile the food back into its bags and they were done very quickly. Mr. Maguchi smiled and shook Drew's hands vigorously.

"Thank you so much young man! I owe you a favor, just ask me and I'll do it!"

"It's okay, really it's not that big of a deal."

The boss walked away and then Drew turned around to see May playing with Roselia. Her warm smile filled him with incredible happiness and he walked over to the pair. Suddenly, as May realized he was coming closer, her smile vanished and she stood up. Drew recalled Roselia and then looked up at May's distraught face.

"What's wrong? Why aren't you happy? … Do you not want to be with me?"

She put a hand on his arm and he was instantly reminded of the talk he had with Bella just yesterday.

"No… I do… I want to be with you more than you can imagine but… I just need time to sort things out a bit. I've been on this huge emotional roller coaster, and I don't think I'm ready just yet to forget everything as if it never happened. Do you understand?"

Drew looked down and his hair covered his eyes.

"How long?"

"I'm not sure…please Drew, don't be upset with me…"

How could he not be upset? He had waited so long to finally be with her, freely, to just be happy for once. She was amazing and now she was telling him to back off. That kiss had deepened all of his feelings towards her, and now he wasn't sure if he could just handle being kicked to the curb.

"I'm not upset…" he looked up at her and smiled slowly, "if that's what you want, I'll wait."

She gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek and smiled.

"Thank you."

Suddenly, the phone rang inside of the main house. The two of them went inside and May picked it up.

"This is the Daycare Center, how may I help you?"

Drew stared at her, trying to take in all of the beautiful lines of her face. Her ecstatic personality, which she had while answering the phone, was gone though, and she handed Drew the phone, sympathy in her eyes.

"It's for you Drew… Bella needs to tell you something…"

He took the phone awkwardly as if he was holding a pair of ballet slippers. It was foreign and he had no idea why he was going to talk to his ex-girlfriend so soon.

"Bella?"

"Drew…I'm so sorry but… I went back to your place because I forgot something, and I picked up the phone because it rang, and then it was the hospital in Mahogany Town. It's your mom Drew… she's suffered a heart attack and is paralyzed… I'm so sorry…the doctors say they need you to come and work things out."

He gave the phone back to May and she nodded and said a few words that he couldn't hear. His body and mind were numb. His mother was paralyzed and she could have died. Suddenly, he felt a pair of hands grip his shoulders and shake him out of his blank state of mind.

"Drew?"

He didn't care whether she liked it or not; Drew pulled May into him fiercely and kissed her forehead. She pulled away puzzled.

"What was that for?"

He took a deep breath of air and made his way towards the door.

"Drew!"

Her eyes scanned his face as he turned around and somehow there was a smile on it.

"I have to go see my mom. I don't know how long it will take, but I'll be back for you. Please wait for me, and I promise to come back to you. Can you do that for me?"

She nodded and whispered, barely finding her voice, the tears starting to form in her eyes. When she had said that she needed a break, she didn't mean for him to disappear right away. She still intended on seeing him and spending time with him, but now that wasn't possible. He was going to go away and she had no idea when he would be back. But her heart knew that deep down inside, she would do anything for him.

"Okay, I'll wait for you."

And with one last smile, his green hair disappeared from her view.

A/N: Sigh… why isn't this happy yet? (Monika gets pummeled by everyone) yes, I'm sorry! It's so sad, and my penname is SweetStories11… but one chapter is left… and of course I'm not going to kill anybody :) I hope you liked this chapter! I was originally going to make it Bella/Brendan, happy ever after, but thanks to a reviewer (Kat ;D) I decided to change my mind. It didn't seem right for those two to just be together like that… so I'll just let Brendan chase after her aimlessly ;D as for Drew… when shall he return? Dun dun dunnnn! Lol Thanks so much for reading! I'll probably update within two or three days :)

-Monika-