A/N: I want to thank everyone who's reviewed so far. All of you rock out loud!

I also wanted to thank you guys for your support in the last chapter, that was my first time ever writing something that could be considered provocative or risky and I was rather nervous. Keep reading and reviewing and I will keep on writing.

P.S.: For those who are curious the funeral is on Friday which is about two or three chapters away.

Enjoy!

Mount Horizon

"I'm never going to make it through this weekend," J.J. whispered to herself as she let only a few tears fall away into the warm water coming from the shower head.

"What the fuck did I tell you about showering right after you used!" The small blonde and pink haired girl yelled as she shook her friend awake and turned off the ice cold water.

"Get the fuck off Pats," The thin blonde said weakly jerking her arm away as she tried and failed to push herself off the floor of the shower stall.

"Shelby you're gonna drowned if you keep doing this," Patty said as she tried again to get her friend out.

"Let me drowned," She said softly as she slumped back over, "It doesn't really matter Patty."

"Shelby Merrick you get your ass up right now and get ready," Patty shouted and jerked her friend to a somewhat sitting position, "We have to work tonight or else we don't eat."

"What's the point?" She said as she allowed her friend to pull her to her feet and help her to the bed, "We aren't gonna get out of this alive."

"Maybe not but at least we'll have survived which is more than most can say," Patty smiled as she brushed her friends hair and covered her track marks, getting her ready for the long night on the streets.

"Damn it Patty," J.J. whispered as she shut off the water and began getting ready for her day, "So much for surviving."

"You're going to miss breakfast," Juliette called as she knocked on the door with her small fist.

"I'm not really hungry," Shelby said as she opened the door surprising Juliette who wasn't expecting her to be ready.

"That doesn't work for me so it's definitely not going to work for you," Juliette teased as she walked passed J.J. into the bathroom and began putting on makeup.

"You're sick," J.J. said before realizing it, "I mean..."

"They let you talk to the media?" Juliette laughed as she began applying blush to her pale gaunt cheeks.

"Scary thought I know," J.J. smiled as she stood in the doorway and watched her old group mate, "I'm usually more subtle and smooth."

"I believe it," Juliette said before putting down her blush and picking up her lipstick, "I am sick."

Juliette looked over at J.J. as she twisted the glossy melon color out of the tube, "I'm trying really hard though… for the girls and for Auggie, and for myself."

"What happened Jules?" J.J. asked as she adjusted her gun holster nervously torn between the truths of her two worlds.

"A lot," Juliette mumbled as she began twisting and pinning her brittle mahogany hair.

"Daisy isn't going to tell me, things between Scott and I are a little awkward right now, and Peter and Sophie always want us to settle things between ourselves," J.J. took a slight step forward causing Juliette to look from the mirror towards her, "Please."

Juliette huffed for a minute as she finished her hair and then took a seat on the bathroom floor, "We've done pretty fairly with holding our lives together."

J.J. took a seat next to Juliette extending a supportive hand to her once enemy.

"I don't know how we're all holding it together with losing Jess but we are," Juliette pushed tears back and continued, "Kat married Hank, they run a wilderness program in Idaho… that's why they couldn't come."

"That's not a big shocker," J.J. joked and looked up from her hands to Juliette who let a small smile slip through.

"No not really," Juliette said before continuing, "Ezra, Daisy, and Scott all went to some college in Seattle. Scott dropped out their sophomore year to play for the Seattle Seahawks."

"I remember," J.J. smiled at the memory of watching him play on the big screen in the student union of her school.

"Ezra and Daisy got an apartment together, Ezra proposed their junior year. Everything was so great for them, they were both almost finished with school… if it hadn't been for David Ezra would still be here, joking and goofing off."

"David?" J.J. asked bitterly, she had never liked David; he had always been a slimy jerk in her book.

"He started selling drugs after he graduated, both of his parents kicked him out," Juliette rolled her eyes in both anger and annoyance, "Anyways, Ezra had went looking for his parents, his real parents, they ended up being assholes, he and David started hanging out more, Daisy got mad because she knew they were using. I got the call he was gone on a Sunday, apparently Daisy gave him back his ring the Thursday before and headed up here. Peter and Sophie talked her out of just calling everything off, they wanted to confront him and get him help. Peter drove her back Saturday afternoon and when they got there David was passed out in the living room and Ezra was in the bathroom. He OD on a barbiturate of some sort, I'm not really sure what."

"Oh my God," J.J. said unsure of what else she could say besides, "No wonder Daisy hates me."

"She hates David more if that helps," Juliette said with a sad smile, "He wanted to be buried at Hope Falls, the Friedkin's came and for once they didn't argue."

"That's good," J.J. pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, "But how did Daisy and Scott end up together?"

"After you left Scott was a mess," Juliette looked over at J.J. guiltily before looking away and continuing, "He got a lot of scholarship offers but he stayed in Seattle for you, hoping you'd come back. Daisy and Ezra looked after him and they all got really close, and after Ezra died Scott came back to take care of Daisy who was an absolute mess. After a couple years they started dating and then three years ago they got married."

"And they're happy?" J.J. asked unable to shake how much the two had hated each other in high school.

"I know everyone thought you and Scott and Daisy and Ezra were soul mates but I don't," Juliette grinned as she thought of her best friends large belly, "They are perfect for each other beyond whatever the two of you had… no offense."

"None taken, I'm just glad they're happy," J.J. lied wishing she had someone.

"Me too, Daisy has been a really good friend to me, suprisingly" Juliette said before her smile faltered as she look over at a confused J.J., "I guess it's my turn now."

"It would help me get a handle on things," J.J. said playfully as she leaned slightly into Juliette's bony shoulder.

"Auggie and I went to USC together, It's kind of funny how we all ended up together, anyway he was studying art and I was majoring in education, "Juliette sighed as she pulled her purse onto her lap and pulled out her wallet, showing J.J. the pictures of her family, "I love my daughters so much… I just hate that Auggie and I have to rely on my mom so much."

"What happened Jules? J.J. asked for what felt like the hundredth time that morning.

"I got pregnant with Anita halfway through the spring semester of our senior year," Juliette smiled and pointed to the taller of the two girls in the picture, both of whom had a slightly lighter version of Auggie's skin color and Juliette's beautiful smile. "We got our degrees and then moved to Oakland to be close to his parents. Auggie took a job at a local garage, we just couldn't afford for him to be a painter full time… we could barely afford anything."

"That's how your mom got her claws into you again?" J.J. asked bitterly, no matter how much she had disliked Juliette she had always hated that woman more.

"Yep, she gives us a generous monthly allowance and has put us in her will as long as I don't marry Auggie," Juliette saw the growing question mark on J.J.'s face and continued, "It doesn't make much sense to us either, but we need the money Shel, we have a 6 year old and a 3 year old, and I haven't been able to really hold a steady teaching gig because of my eating disorder."

"You had that under control when we graduated, I don't get it," J.J. said honestly as she lightly traced the faces of the little girls in the picture in her hands.

"After Aurora was born I just got so depressed, Auggie was afraid to leave me alone with the girls and with that and my mom and Jess I just relapsed bad. It's been like an uphill battle ever since," Juliette said hanging her head in shame.

"Jess?" J.J. looked over at Juliette with hope and fear in her eyes.

"She came to stay with us right after Aurora was born," Juliette said as she pointed to the little girl with the large pink bow in her hair, "But we caught her with heroin in the house and we had to kick her out; I can't have that shit in my house when I'm already such a bad role model for my girls."

"I really fucked up didn't I," J.J. said sadly as she thought of her sister shooting herself up in Auggie's bathroom.

"You did your part, but so did she," Juliette tried to comfort but couldn't find much to say except, "I think it was the baby that finally pushed her over the edge."

"Jess had a baby?" J.J. held back tears thinking at how wrong everything had gone.

"She got knocked up by a john last year. She used and drank until she realized she was pregnant. When she finally figured it out she came up here and stayed with Daisy and Scott, cleaned herself up, but it was too late… she gave birth to him at 7 months and the baby was stillborn, she named him Ezra Peter Merrick… he's at Hope Falls too," Juliette said as she wiped away a few stray tear and quickly opened her compact to check that her makeup was still in place.

"She would have been a great mom," J.J. said sadly before standing up and offering a hand to Juliette, "Let's go eat; I don't think I can handle anymore right now."

"How the fuck am I supposed to eat after that?" Juliette asked as she got up off the floor, "Can we just go smoke down by the docks instead?"

"I'll come sit with you, but I'm not much of a smoker these days," J.J. smiled thinking that the last cigarette she'd had was at Horizon with the Cliffhanger girls.

"The girl who screwed the delivery man for a carton doesn't smoke?" Juliette laughed as the two walked into the fresh mountain air.

"I know, crazy," J.J. laughed as the two of them headed towards the docks.

As the sun began to drift behind a cloud her mind took her back to Patty and Jess and the others she loved that had lost their lives trying to survive.