So far, not so bad. First day of work was going well with Emma, who was driven here by Jay, and then even showed around, by Jay. As Jay went over saftey issues and such, Emma cornered her eyes at the office with the blinds shut.Was Sean avoiding her or something?

"Bathroom?" Emma suddenly asked, cutting Jay off.

He blinked and looked around, "uhh, down the hall, to your left."

She nodded, and walked to it, clenching her purse to her shoulder tighter. She locked the door behind her, and turned to look at herself in the mirror. She had been so stupid, and even dressed up. Black high waist skirt, and white blouse. Her hair curled. Who was she trying to impress?

"Stupid." she muttered to herself, putting her purse down on the sink and got her health card out, then her small bottle of coke that was running low.

She was going to have to find a dealer soon here in Toronto. "Damn." she whispered. She was probably only going to get 4 more lines out of this.

And she took one, now, on her health card on the sink. Call it a need for courage, and a pick me up.

Sean hadn't come out all day, until the end, when she was finishing up. Some workers were even punching out, leaving and some even saying goodbye to her. They liked her, hot as hell, but also didn't take shit, and was smart. She shut Franky up as soon as he tried to hit on her in front of all the guys when Jay was showing her around. Now, Franky even respected her.. was a little afraid of her too.

"Later Em." he even used her nickname, and left after her slight smile back at him.

Sean had stopped, watching the two interact and his stomach turned. He didn't like that. He narrowed his eyes watching Franky leave out of site and then he cleared his throat before he greeted her, leaning on the front of the desk she sat at, "Hey."

She barely looked up and glanced back down to staple some last papers together. "Hey."

Sean furrowed his eyebrows together, what was her problem? He then bit the end of his tongue. She probably knew he was hiding in his office like a little baby from her or something. He was just, so confused right now. Ellie didn't make things better either.

"Jay said you did pretty good today." he was glad, he wanted her to stay. His boys took a liking to her too, and not just in a piggish way..thankfully.

He would know. Emma thought bitterly. Why had Sean turned from hot to so damn cold?

She looked up though and bared a fake smile at her new 'boss', "Yup."

"What's wrong? Why are you acting like .. this?" he looked around her, not knowing how to explain it. Was she mad at him?

"Acting how? Nothing's wrong." she set the attention on him for once, "Are you okay?" she raised an eyebrow.

Sean swallowed and just nodded. "Fine." He was just fucking dandy. He walked off, but not before he snapped a few more words to her, "If you're going to work here and wear skirts, make sure they're at least knee high length."

Jay even looked up from the car hood he worked under, eyes wide and slowly turning his head as he feared Emma's reaction to that. Not even Jay Hogart would say something like that, above all to someone like Emma Nelson.

Shit.

Sean had closed the door before he could see Emma's face get red, and she had got up, stomping her heels to his office. Sean looked up from his desk, shocked when he heard someone even open his door, but also whipped it open so hard it slammed against his wall.

Emma stood there, a firey glare he knew too well, "I quit." she informed. It wasn't even the end of the day yet!

Sean's eyes widened, watching her storm off and some employees of his did too, before peaking into Sean's office, wondering what the hell he did to the poor girl who was an angel to them. She had really cleaned the garage up and organized everything let alone helped other late shipments come in earlier to make work easier. She also did inventory on everything. It seemed she liked math.

"EMMA!"

She ignored his shout, grabbing her purse from her desk before she turned and almost ran into him. His breath was unsteady, eyes wild.

"Don't go."

Emma snapped back, "I couldn't put up with your tempers in highschool, Sean and I still can't-"

"I'm sorry." he gave her begging eyes she couldn't walk away from. She glared at him harder for that. He went on, "I have a lot of shit going on right now. But Emma, the stuff you did today, it really helped, got things off my shoulders. Please don't go. Please put up with my ungrateful ass for one more day. . " he smiled sadly.

Emma eyed him up and down, not too sure. God! What was up with him?

He sneered under his breath, "It's probably this fucking shipment order that has me stressed out." he lifted a clipboard off her desk that he also had on his desk, but it wasn't getting done.

Emma softened, watching him focus hard on it, trying to get something he didn't understand. "Let me see."

He looked up, confused, "Hmm?"

"Let me see." she said again, more sternly, and gave him a look that read if he didn't do it now, she was walking out.

He quickly gave it over, and crossed his arms over his chest, backing up to give her room even. He watched as she read the contract, and her eyes followed intently on every word. She bit her lip as she seemed to focus too on it, but this time, she understood it and played it out easy for him.

She shrugged, handing it back. "Tell them you'll cancel your agreement with them, that you found someone else who can ship your supplies faster than they can. When they try to bribe you to stay with them, deny them again and hang up. Guaranteed they'll call you back begging and bring your order by tomorrow, plus give you the bribe they tried with first hand.."

From behind a blown away Sean, stared a few other employees of Sean's.

"Can we keep her boss?" joked little Randy, still only a senior in highschool.

Emma finally burst out a smile, and Sean too chuckled, looking down and nodding.

(((((((((((******))))))))))))

"Eat it."

"Manny don't. Not Today." Emma scoffed, feeling Manny's breath down her neck the next day. She had made pasta for Manny and Jay, for their hospitality, and she was going to eat too. Only, suddenly, she wasn't hungry okay? Jay had left after eating it all, and Manny wouldn't go until Emma ate.

"That's it, I'm calling a Doctor." Manny said, going to her cell phone on the counter.

"They can't force me to eat, Manny." Emma said quite bitterly, and now her body problem was on the table. She had admitted it.

Manny stared, baffled by her reply.

Emma got up and sadly walked to the bathroom, "I'm going to shower and go to bed. I'm looking for places tomorrow".

((**))

The next day, Emma followed old friend and realtor Liberty Van Zandt around an apartment building.

"Lib, it's so nice." Emma feared, biting her lip. "I don't know if I can take it." Correction, she didn't know if she could afford it.

Liberty turned, and my had she grown up. Hair down, in big smooth curls. Her big smile lit up and green eyes flashed as she mentioned, "I got a good deal for you. You're like family after all."

"How much?" Emma feared, but looked around the big white kitchen with love in her eyes.

"800 a month. Tenants in this building are actually paying 1900."

Wow, that was good! Emma sucked in a deep breath, "I don't know."

"I think a girl like you, out of all that you've been through..." Liberty cringed and insisted, "You deserve it."

"My own place." Emma whispered, liking the ring to it. Peter had always bought everything for her. Since when did she change into a girl like that? She was loving this feeling, doing something for herself. Independent!

She squealed and hugged Liberty who laughed, "Are you taking it?!"

"I'm taking it!"

Liberty nodded and lifted a finger, "Just one more thing, a minor set back but nothing you can't fix with a man or .. someone you know." she said awkwardly, forgetting for a split second Emma was single. She then stopped at the sink in the kitchen to show Emma the problem with it, before she opened it though, she gasped and closed the under cupboard.

Emma gave her a wierd look until Liberty whispered, "Is what I'm hearing true? The rumors?"

Emma shrugged cluelessly and crossed her arms, "What?" she asked. She waited impatiently to be shown this 'sink problem'.

"You and Sean Cameron are picking up where you two picked off years ago?" Liberty had to smirk a little, eyeing Emma up and down. She was always so soft on that bad boy. But Liberty liked Sean, he was a real 'tough cookie' . . and she knew he'd always have a weak spot for Emma too.

Emma's heart stopped, and her face went a shade of red. "Liberty! We're friends. He's helping me out and got me a job at his shop."

"Wow, he really made something of himself, didn't he?" She winked, "Bad boy turned into responsible and successful mechanic? Let alone still fine as ever, if not more."

Emma wanted to lung at her, but took a deep breath and gave up. She was right. He was so irresistible to begin with and that just made it harder. He was perfect. And he owned her heart even when she was just 12 years old. She had no idea she would fall in love with him all over again...harder this time. She had no idea she'd even SEE him again!

"Anyways," Liberty walked to her briefcase and grabbed some papers out, "Lets sign a lease, and go out for drinks to celebrate!"

(((***)))

Sean knew he was setting himself up by driving with Jay to Rex, a bar in town that he knew Emma was going to. Jay said the girls were celebrating the fact she was home, and got an apartment today.

Sean was happy for her, and wanted to be there tonight too.

"Jesus." he heard and turned his head from driving to look at Jay looking at him, and he then snickered.

Sean gave him a look, "What?" he snapped. Why was Jay looking at him like that? Asshole.

"It's all over your face man." Jay sat up, "You can't even hide it anymore! That girls got you wrapped around her finger again only it's more severe this time. You look like you're ready to propose to this girl and it's Ellie whose been having a hard time just trying to make you commit...and she's your girlfriend!" he laughed hard.

Emma was always the flown away dove in Sean's life. Something he let go, and waited for to return. But it was always so complicated between the two, even when all grown up. They were from such separate worlds, but opposites always attract.

Sean couldn't let her go this time.

Sean clenched his jaw, trying to focus on the road but let Jay's words sink in. He knew. He knew he was falling for Emma hard again. He was trying to stop, but she was his one. The one. He felt horrible because Jay was right, Emma could get anything out of Sean that Ellie just begged a little for. He had to end it with her or, forget about Emma. He was sure he wasn't able to really, truly, do that.

Meanwhile, at the bar, Emma was sitting with Liberty, and Manny and Jane had just got there. This was Alex's bar, and she brought shots over. The bar was crowded, music thumping, and guys everywhere. The girls looked great too, but Manny still looked upset over this morning

When she sat, Emma slid a shot towards her, and gave her a pleading look. "Can you just be happy for me? Just tonight?" she begged Manny, wanting her to share this with her.

Manny locked eyes with her, and softened. "Of course." she nodded and they smiled at another sadly before Manny, with her married hand, picked up her shot glass and took it. Her ring from Jay was steady on her finger, showing the diamond off.

Emma took hers too, and she wasn't a big drinker but tonight she would be. She had her 3rd last line from her last bottle of blow too before she came here. .

"To Emma!" Liberty cheered.

"Can we get more shots?" laughed Jane to Alex who laughed and nodded, leaving to go get some. When she returned, the girls were already hammered.

"Alex, stay!" her best friends fiance insisted, grabbing Alex down to sit next to her.

Alex rolled her eyes at Manny but smiled and nodded, taking an extra shot she had left for them. "Fine!"

The five of them took more shots.

"My man!" Jane cheered, seeing Spinner come into the bar and squishing through some people to come over and he pulled a chair up next to her, grinning.

"You guys are hammered already?" he looked around, needing to get an order of beer for himself and his boys who were comin.

"My man!" Manny also chimed in, when Sean and Jay made it to the table and Jay snickered to how wild and drunk she was right now. They hadn't partied hard in a while.

Time to celebrate I guess!

The guys sat as Sean and Emma glanced at another. Something deep inside her also cheered for 'her man' being there too. But he wasn't exactly hers, was he? She wondered how that thing with him and 'Elsa' was going.

After a few more rounds, Liberty had called it quits so she could go home to JT. If she knew the guys were going to invade girls night, she would of brought him too. Then when Alex left, it left Emma and Sean sitting next to another now, Jay, Manny, Spinner and Jane still at the table too.

"I can't do another." Sean declared, swallowing his last shot as Emma too had to push hers away.

Emma teased him, turning her body more towards him, "Well, I do have to admit you can take alcohol better than you did when we were kids."

He playfully glared and grinned, "Don't remind me."

"He also has a more better temper than before." Manny insisted, on top of Jay's lap now as he played cards at the table with Spinner and Jane.

"His big head has also grown into his body." said Jay with a side smirk, glancing up at his buddy from his cards.

Sean furrowed his eyebrows, a little drunkenly, "I never had a big head."

Manny snorted and laughed, putting her face into Jay's neck to giggle. Jay laughed and was the DD tonight so rested his cards down and wrapped his arm around Manny. "Alright, we're leaving. You need a ride, Emma?"

"I'm good." Emma said, smiling as her friend yelped when Jay just tossed his drunk fiance over his shoulder and left.

Manny yelped again out the door when he hit his hand on her ass. "JAY!"

Sean snickered, shaking his head and turning back to Emma. "Do you-"

"We're headed out too." announced Jane, getting up with Spinner and waved with a smile. "Best of luck with your new place Emma."

Emma smiled happily, waving back and then turned back to Sean. She got nervous butterfly's in her stomach. Her, him, all alone now. He looked good tonight too. God, how was she going to resist temptation now? She was already struggling with one addiction, she didn't need another..

But Sean was so, lame as it sounded, beautiful. Perfect. In fact, she was shocked the college girls by the bar that were drooling over him all night didn't even come over to say hi. He wasn't that scary. Nope, this bad boy had a heart that he didn't show a lot of people, but he had one, and Emma knew it.

Emma's smiled faded when she locked eyes with him again, and he just had to give her one simple look to make her knees weak. "You tired?" he asked so gently.

"No." she shook her head, smiling softly again at him.

He looked down, softly starting to smile too and glanced back up. He didn't want to leave either. "What do you want to do?"

She looked up, as she did as she actually was wondering. It was the most adorable thing. "Want to come see my new apartment? It's just down the street. I don't have any more drinks, but I have ice cream."

Scratch that, the last tenants had the ice cream in there... but whatever.

"Sure." he grinned.

((((***))))

"No furniture yet. That's tomorrows plan." Emma told Sean, closing her door behind him and led him through her new, dark, and bare apartment.

It was nice, just needed exactly that. Furniture.

"But I got my mattress already at least." Emma told him, and the bed with only a black bed cover on it laid on the living room floor, in front of her window. It over looked downtown Toronto.

She dropped her purse off her arm and sighed. Thank god! That thing was heavy. She sat on the edge of the bed, and Sean slowly walked over, dragging his fingers through his hair as he watched his feet get closer and closer.

The lights weren't on, the only light they had was out the window that was from the street lights outside. He saw her clearly though, and swallowed at how gorgeous she looked, looking up at him with some hope and pride in her eyes. She was so happy, with this, her own place.

He felt like Peter hurt her a lot, and he would turn in his grave if he ever let Peter, or another guy, hurt her again.

Emma's heart fluttered, seeing the way he was looking at her. She opened her mouth, until something caught his eye.

"Sean I need-"

"What is that?"

Emma saw his face turn with disbelief, and then anger.

"Emma, what the fuck is that!"

Emma looked down by her feet where he was looking. It was where she dropped her purse. Oh...shit. She carelessly threw it to the ground, causing it to knock over and some of her coke from in her bottle fell out even from the bottle, scattered across the floor.

Oh my god.

Emma looked up, and gasped when he had grabbed her arm, forcing her up from the bed to stand in front of him, to look at him.

"Sean," she gasped a bit painfully. He didn't grab her THAT hard, but without eating or her vitamins and protein, she was quite weak. She tried to grab her arm back but he held tight.

He bent down, grabbing it and holding it to her face, "What the hell is this, Emma!?" he knew enough to know from his highschool days. Lots of kids from the ravine where he use to hang out did it. But Emma- no Emma can't be into this stuff- this wasn't her!

"It's just.." Emma looked off, in shame and with a loss of excuses. She couldn't keep up with them anymore. "Just leave it, okay?"

"Leave it?" he snickered, his voice rising.

Emma flinched and insisted, "I'm holding onto it, for a friend-"

"Don't you fucking dare lie to me." he looked so hurt that she had even tried, but it just showed how badly mixed up in this she was. "You're going to stop."

Her eyes stayed down on the floor until he shook her.

"Tell me you'll stop! Christ! . .Did..did Peter make you do this?" he wasn't dumb, "Come on, Emma. Tell me. Did your ex fiance introduce you to this or not!"

"Yes okay?!" Emma yelled, finally yanking her arm back with a cringe, "But he didn't force me to keep doing it. I make my own choices."

Sean looked unreadable as she backed up away from him, and the way he looked back at her with such disappointment; it killed her inside.

Emma snickered, "Oh, is this how it is now? You judge me now?" she turned to go sit back on her bed now, feeling quite cornered. "My have things changed." she said sarcastically.

Sean could barely look at her, shaking his head and looking down. "The real you would never do this to herself."

Emma snapped. Just hearing him say it was like a ticking bomb. "I'm not her, Sean! I'm not the 12 year old you use to know. Fucking christ, I'm 23 years old!"

"I don't expect you to be the same girl, I just expected you to not be an idiot! You're so much smarter than this!"

Emma shook her head, looking away from him and biting back her tears. She bit her lower trembling lip and couldn't look him in the eye again. She felt, so horrible. She raised her hand to rub her throbbing arm.

Sean glanced at her arm when she did that, cringing when he saw a sight bruise from where his thumb was. "Did I hurt you?" he mere whispered.

"Now we're friends again? Now you care?"

"Dammit Emma, I've always cared!"

Emma looked away, looking childish. But her heart dropped and the voice in her head was also calling her an idiot.

Emma bursted into tears then, and Sean's world crumbled around him. The last thing he wanted was for her to cry..but why was she doing this?!

"Em." he bent down to her level, cupping her face but she tried to pull back, closing her eyes and slightly sobbing. He grabbed her chin though, and spoke firmly, "You are still that girl, but you're just holding on by a thread. You don't believe in this shit." he raised the coke bottle, and chucked it to the side of the room

Emma watched it land by her vent.

He whispered, "You just got wrapped up in it." his fingers let go of her chin, to slowly caress the hair that fell into her beautiful face and tucked it behind her ear.

Emma couldn't breathe, and her shimmering eyes stared back into his, looking for a sign that he was feeling the way she did about him, about her. And he did. He couldn't kiss her right now though; even with how badly he wanted to.

He closed his eyes, looking down and clenched his jaw before looking back up at her and rested his hands on the sides of her, on the bed. "Is that the last bottle you have?"

Emma snuffled, nodding and whipped the tear that fell down her cheek but he quickly whiped it with his thumb. She shut her eyes, and he swallowed before nodding and stood up.

"Good. It was your last."

Emma opened her eyes bewildered, "Sean, it hurts too much when I try to stop-"

"Yah Emma, it's called withdrawal."

"No," she shook her head and got up, standing in front of him, "It's like a...a life support, a pick me up, sometimes it's the only thing that keeps me going. You don't get it. If I don't have any-"

"Jesus," he pulled her into his strong arms, and she tensed but melted as he nearly craddled her fragile body. Her hands shook, and her fingers felt cold.. Why didn't he notice this sooner?! He knew something was up. But this? Nobody would ever guess this. Not with Emma. "You're practically shaking already, fuck Emma." hurt crossed over his eyes.

She was addicted.

And he was desperate to save her, the love of his life.