I do not own Dirty Dancing.

Chapter Forty Seven

POV Baby

Because Of Me

I feel a hand on my thigh. I try to ignore it at first, my slumber being far more tempting right now than anything out there, but it was clear that the owner was trying to wake me up, and wasn't going to leave me be. I open my eyes, and roll onto my back. Johnny stood above me, gazing down at me. Looking down with his blue eyes. "I have been looking for you all over," He says. Carefully, I sit up to have a better view of him. I couldn't very well have a conversation lying down. "They found the Schumacher's," Johnny explained. "Fingerprinted their water glasses, and found out they were wanted in Arizona, and Florida, and they made a fortune here this Summer,"

I feel a smile work it's way onto my face. A smile that I couldn't stop even if I wanted to. Everything was okay. Johnny wasn't going to be fired. "So then- so then it's alright," I breathe. I couldn't possibly illustrate how relieved I was. "I knew it would work out! I knew they'd have to apologize!"

I stand, attempting to kiss him. It was all over. Johnny was safe. We didn't need to hide anymore. We could be together!

Johnny stopped me the moment before my lips could touch his. "I'm out, Baby,"

My smile fell. He was out. Out. Now, of all times, I remember the words Max said to Johnny. Dance with the Daughters. Teach them the Mambo, the Cha-Cha, anything they pay for. But that's it! That's where it ends. No funny business, no conversations, and keep your hands off!

When I speak, my voice is empty. Hollow. "They fired you anyway, because of me," Because of me. Because I loved Johnny too much to let him go to jail innocent for the sake of protecting me. Because Vivian Pressman wanted revenge.

"And if I leave quietly, I'll get my Summer bonus,"

"So I did it for nothing," I spit. Anger ran through me. I pace around the room, feeling it pulse through my veins. After everything I'd done, it didn't even matter! "I hurt my family, you lost your job anyway, I did it for nothing!"

Johnny shouted at me, "No! No, not for nothing, Baby!" His words don't reassure me. "Nobody has ever done anything like that for me before," He tells me. But that was all it was. It had changed nothing for the better. Now it was only proof of how far I was willing to go for him. Of how much I loved him.

Of words I would never get to say.

"You were right, Johnny. You can't win, no matter what you do," I say, voice bitter. It was all worthless!

Johnny scolded down at me. "You listen to me," He says. Johnny walked over. "I don't want to hear that from you," He insisted. "You can!"

This whole relationship, I have been the optimistic one. I have been the one believing the world could be better. I was the one who believed that there were good people out there, that even the little things mattered. But now, I was out of steam. I had no more fight left in me. "I used to think so," I feel tears in my eyes, but I don't care enough to while them away. It was over. Johnny was going to leave, and I might never see him again. After all we'd been through, I was still going to lose him. The wall broke, and I feel a hot wetness sliding down my face. "Johnny, what are we going to do?"

Johnny wrapped his arms around me, and presses a kiss to my forehead. I suppose that comforting each other in the time we had left was all that we could do. I breathe into his shirt, smelling his cologne, a smell that had always made me feel safe. Johnny was safety. His blue eyes were my anchor. His arms were reassuring, always protecting me. "I promise you, Baby," He says, voice so much steadier than mine ever could be right now. "We're not going to lose each other. I'm not going to let that happen. We'll find a way to be together,"

I wish I could believe him.