Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except the drama and tension I'm going to cause. Enjoy.

Chapter Fourteen

"I was still waiting for everything to start, and now it's over."

-

Gently, I kissed Sara's forehead before slipping silently out of my room, padding gently towards the back door, where my surfboard stood. Even at this early hour, when the sun was only just peaking over the horizon, the incredible heat that came with the middle of summer was overwhelming. The back door remained unlocked, and I slowly pushed it open, not wanting to wake any one else who may have been dreaming peacefully in the house.

The early morning rays shocked me a little, as I rubbed my eyes gently, attempting to wake myself fully. Truth be told, I'd slept restlessly last night, haunted by visions of Mattie, her body next to my own, her smell, her touch. The bathroom encounter had only strengthened the visions; that really, had never stopped coming; a secret I'd kept to myself for months now.

Simply because it hadn't meant to mean anything.

But there are some things in life that, at one stage or another, become truly undeniable. And I couldn't help but really believe this was one of those things.

Because, no matter what, she always ended up back with me. In my mind, in my heart.

Jogging towards the beach, I saw a familiar figure on the shoreline, and smiled a little as I approached them.

"Fancy meeting you here." I said, grinning a little, until my eyes looked out over the water, where small waves beat against the shore, not a single swell in sight.

"The god's are displeased with us today." Ric replied, turning to look at me gravely. "What have you done to anger them so?" He continued, his budda voice full of sarcasm.

Sighing, I pushed the head of my board deep into the sand before slumping down in a heap.

"Okay, not the reaction I was going for." Ric said, mimicking my actions with his board and sitting down next to me.

"Mattie and I were trapped in the bathroom yesterday, and we almost kissed." I blurted out, as Ric looked at me, a little shocked.

"But, Sara?" He asked, as I shook my head, letting the confusion overcome me.

"Sara was never the issue. She isn't the issue. Besides, nothing happened." I said, leaving out the part where Mattie pulled away, not me.

"How did this happen?" He continued to dig.

"I don't know. We were stuck, and we yelled, and I said things I should never have said. And it was so damn hot, and she was crying, and then she was in my arms, and it all felt so right…" I trailed off, knowing Ric understood exactly where I was coming from. "Was it this confusing, for you?" I asked, as he shook his head, looking out over the horizon.

"For me, it was easier. I wasn't given the choice about whether we broke up. Parker and I, as much as I hate to admit it, were more a replacement for Cassie and I." He said honestly "I mean, I'd always loved Cass, but being away from her, I thought I could move on, you know?" He asked me, and I nodded silently beside him. "But then, I saw her again, and everything just came back. And I couldn't deny that, I just couldn't deny her."

"Yesterday, I thought I couldn't deny Mattie and I any more." I said to him. "But the day before, I was more in love with Sara than ever. She's perfect for me, she's quiet, shy, she gets along famously with Beth and Dad, at Uni we're in this groove when things just feel right."

"But?" Ric asked, obviously sensing that there was more to this story than I'd let on.

"But Summer Bay warps things around, it plays with your head. Here, it's like you can't escape the past, no matter how hard you're trying to out run it." I said, sighing, falling back onto the sand.

"I can't make up your mind for you." Ric said, standing up and walking over to his board. "This is something you need to figure out on your own."

"And how does one do that, oh wise one?" I asked, sitting up on my elbows and looking towards him.

"Figure out which one makes your world spin." He replied, shrugging "Figure out which one you live for." He threw me a smile as he wandered up the small path that went in the direction of the caravan park, and I threw myself back on the ground as soon as he was out of sight.

His words floated around in my head momentarily, but were quickly replaced by thoughts of her. She'd been there ever since we arrived back, her smile, her laugh, she was in my thoughts, in my dreams. Memories that I couldn't escape taunted me, until I couldn't escape her any more… even though I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

She'd been my life, and then, suddenly, she wasn't any more. And it had taken me a while to get that factor out of my head. Then Sara had come along, and she was perfect for me. Quiet, a little shy, but so smart and funny and honest once she opened up to you. And she had… she'd opened up and changed my world. At least, that's what I'd believed, right up until the moment I saw her running towards me in the distance. And my world had moved once again.

And, as much as I'd tried to fight and ignore these feeling that had come rushing back the moment Matilda had fallen into my arms, after yesterday, I just, couldn't fight them any more.

I didn't want to hurt Sara… the thing I wanted least in the world was to tell her the words she'd always feared hearing. But lying to her… keeping this going, when I didn't feel for her what I felt for someone else… that would hurt more in the end…

Pretending would hurt more.

Resigning myself to my fate, I pushed myself up from the sand, pulled my board out, and trudged slowly towards the house, delaying the inevitable for as long as possible.

-

"Sara…" I pleaded with her as she furiously shoved her clothing back into a suitcase.

"Don't you 'Sara' me Lucas Holden." She snapped back, still throwing her items in "I knew this was going to happen, I knew it. 'Don't get involved,'" She said to herself "He's got excess baggage. This will all end in heartbreak." She continued, as I sat down on the bed, my head falling into my hands. "I was so stupid to think that it wouldn't, especially after I met that little… cow…" She screamed, throwing her arms up in the air angrily.

"Don't bring Matilda into this…" I warned, all but a little too late.

"Don't bring Matilda into this!" She mimicked, turning to glare at me. "As if you didn't already bring her into this. You've always brought her into this." She screamed crazily at me, "It's always been Matilda this and Mattie that, yak, yak, yak, and I fought so hard to get her out of your head." She said, as she inched closer to me. "Coming here was the biggest mistake of my life." She whispered harshly in my face. "Because coming here brought you to her. And that was all she needed to worm her way back into your pathetic little heart."

"This isn't about Matilda." I replied through gritted teeth, as she just growled at me, before swinging around and returning to the task of throwing things haphazardly into her bag.

I sighed, rubbing my temples, hoping to god that either this headache would go away, or it would help me come up with something to say to Sara, to stop her from becoming so… angry.

"Hey Luke," A voice said, gliding in from outside the door, and I hoped to god she had enough sense to turn back. Unfortunately, Mattie knew nothing of the last half hour, and she entered the room as a completely innocent bystander to the train wreck I'd created. She also didn't remain that way for long.

"Oh here's the Princess now, come to collect her prince charming for an afternoon rumble." Sara spat nastily towards Mattie, who shot me a quick, confused glance before turning her attention back to her attacker.

"I wouldn't worry about giving your attention to him for long." She continued, sarcasm dripping from her every word, "He turns back into a frog at midnight. But oh, you already knew that, didn't you? I mean, the two of you know everything about one another, how could silly old me even begin to think she'd break that bond?" Sara said angrily, throwing one of her hairbrushes at Mattie.

"Okay." Mattie replied, clearly shaken. "I have no idea what your problem is but…"

"You have no idea." Sara muttered, shaking her head. "You and Lucas, that is my problem." She snapped, as Mattie glanced again at me quickly.

"There, see?" She said, as she walked over to Mattie. "That's what I'm talking about. Those looks the two of you share, and those smiles, and those damn annoying giggles. They are all my problem. You are my problem, little princess." She said, as she backed Mattie against a wall. "You think you're prefect, don't you? Untouchable? And the fact that you've got history," She continued, scoffing a little, "Well, who was I to even pretend to be able to compete with that. So he's all yours Matilda Hunter, but… here's a little piece of advice. He won't stick around, they never do. He'll grow bored and tired of you, and move on. And then you'll be the broken one. And you'll know what it feels like." She said menacingly, as she turned on her heels, grabbed her bag and stormed out of the room.

Still holding herself against the wall, Mattie closed her eyes and counted to ten before relaxing a little and opening her eyes.

"Luke?" She asked, a little dazed, and more than confused about what had just happened.

"Sara and I broke up." I replied meekly, attempting to prepare myself for whatever was about to come.

"Oh." Mattie replied, before actually registering what I'd said. "Oh." She continued, her tone a little different, that one syllable strung out just a little longer.

"I have to go." She said, smiling awkwardly at me before rushing out of the room.

Groaning in frustration, I fell back onto my bed, willing it to swallow me whole. Today had not been a good day, and now, everything was ten times worse.

-
-
-

AN: Well, Jess is currently on holiday at the moment (lucky), so I'm posting up the chapters. : ) Hope you all enjoy the chapter - as usual it's great. Another one should come soon! Apologies for the delays - I've been extremely busy and unable to proof for a few weeks. Jess has in fact been getting the chapters done, I just hadn't proofed them until now. Sorry! Thanks, Jade