NOTE: I am not basing Ian's looks on how they actually are. Before I saw his card, I actually imagined my own version of him; curly black hair, brown sparkling eyes, and a really good tan with a couple of freckles; but his hair wasn't short. It was actually pretty long and had soft curls through it. I literally have a different image of him in my head.
End of Chapter 2
AMY
Amy stood there in the kitchen, thinking about what to tell her little brother. 'Dan, I was called on an out of business trip for work. I have to go for a week so you should be able to manage. I left some food in the refrigerator and my second credit card in case you need to buy more food. Remember to take Saladin out and get him some red snapper as a treat". She bit her lip. She hated lying to her little brother, yet she knew it would be annoying to try to break up the inevitable fight that would occur between Dan and Ian if she told him the truth…
Chapter 3
IAN
What is she doing? Ian glowered at his reflection. Not because of how he looked, obviously. Ian always looked perfect and he knew it. His shining black curls bounced slightly and his tanned face had the whitest smile he had ever seen. Everyone in his family shared the same gorgeous looks. He was scowling because of smudge of pizza sauce on his shirt. He had spilt it on his way to Amy's house.
Amy. Ian groaned. What was he going to do? He couldn't show her he cared for her…then she would just take advantage of him. But, that meant he would have to be mean. No one could describe the wrenching feeling he strangely felt every time he saw Amy's broken look. He remembered her look when he left them in the cave, but Natalie made them go on. Great.
Another reason to be worried; who knew what tricks Natalie was planning to play. Just because she was annoyed. Well, she hates Amy, he thought to himself. Amy and I have to just pretend to be in love or something. That'll annoy her so much. His stomach clenched when he thought of what he might have to do to convince Natalie. Natalie wasn't one to be fooled easily. The only way he could convince Natalie would be to…kiss Amy. No. he was not glad about that. He didn't want to kiss Amy. He didn't. He didn't. Anyway, it's not like he hadn't done that before. But he hurt her. And he was sorry. But she wouldn't let him kiss her…but he had power over her. Because of the DVD. So Amy would have to kiss her. He grinned triumphantly and started thinking about Amy's visit to his house. Ian and Natalie now lived on their own. Their mom had left to become an agent for another company. He wasn't bothered. She was never there for them anyway. Ian convinced Natalie to get a small, cosy little cottage for only the two of them. Then, a problem struck him. They only had two bedrooms. Sure, one was big; that was Natalie's. And she would never agree to let Amy sleep in there; and then, there was his room. Which had only one bed. Of course, it was a queen sized bed, but where would Amy sleep. They had just moved in to the apartment so none of their living room furniture had come in. No couches. Anyway, a couch wouldn't be comfortable to sleep on. So, that would mean, Ian would have to…share a bed with…He bit his lip again, sighing. How could he share a bed with her? Not that the idea repulsed him, but…Amy wouldn't agree to it. She would probably just stutter some lame excuse and sleep on the floor. No, she can't sleep on the floor, he told himself firmly.
Just when he started to get worried about why Amy wasn't coming downstairs, he saw someone coming down the stairs pushing a suitcase ahead of her and sighed, relieved. Wow, she wasn't like most other girls…usually girls would carry about three suitcases for five days. But Amy was different. Amy was special. She probably only would have one suitcase with her because she was going down the stairs. She was different. No, you mustn't think of her that way. He smiled when he thought of her stuttering. Then, he saw that the person coming downstairs wasn't Amy. It was just another person living at the apartments. His worry came back, and he looked up at Amy's floor. There, he saw someone's back pressed against the balcony window. He squinted his eyes. Was that Amy? Yes it was. Why was she sitting down? Was something wrong? Worry was still gnawing at his insides and he finally sighed, exasperated, took his car keys and her house keys (he took a spare from her kitchen), got out of the car to go upstairs and see what Grace's older granddaughter was doing.
AMY
Amy was upstairs, packing her clothes to spend five days at Ian's house. She panicked. 'What should I bring?', she screamed to herself. "Why does she even care?" she wondered. It's not like there would ever be anything more than a fake relationship. she decided on two pairs of sweats, a couple of sweaters to go with them. And she also brought along a couple pairs of jeans with fancy blouses. Who knew where they'd be going? Then, Amy got worried when she noticed a certain problem. She didn't have any pajamas; well, she did, but she lost them when she went to visit Hilary, who she had forgiven; but they would never truly be friends because she tried to steal the sakhet. She sighed and decided on the only comfortable she had: a pair of shorts and a tank top. She blushed, imagining her in those in front of Ian. Oh well, it's not like he would be there sleeping with her. Plus, he never cares how she looks…or feels.
The ache came back again. No, she must learn to control her pain…and the tears that threatened to fall again. Thank God Ian wasn't here to see her crying. She went back against her balcony window and sat there, her back facing the outside. She put her knees up against her chest and hugged them tight. The ache was growing stronger. Now, it was mixed with nostalgia. All at once, the force she had been holding back for the last five years broke through. She remembered Grace and her parents. For the last 5 years, she blocked them out of her mind, angry with them for leaving her. Everyone in her life left. Her parents. They were gone. It wasn't their fault; it was hers. Her sobs grew. Grace. Was gone. She never left them anything, but Amy could see it wasn't Grace's fault. She just needed someone to blame.
Ian. He left her and now was coming back just to use her…again. Uncle Alistair had gone, too. He betrayed both Dan and her. Sure, she still stayed with him after that, but she no longer fully trusted him. By this time, the ache Amy could feel in her chest was at his strongest force. This always happened every night. She would rock on her bed, trying to muffle her sobs; Dan never knew anything. She always managed to hide her pain. But now that Ian was back, how could she hide it from him. He would have to stay with him…and Natalie. Thank God Isabel wasn't here. Amy had never gotten over the shark incident. Now what did Amy have left? Dan. Dan was always there for her. But even he didn't understand. He would be heading off to college anyway. And leaving. Amy would have no one left. She was still sitting there, against the window, sobbing, with her face buried into her knees. She never heard the front door silently open.