A/N: I took a break for the Holidays, but I didn't think it would be this long. Sorry! Anyway, I won't tell you who is on the phone, but if you think hard enough, you should figure it out. And I'm also sorry this is short, but if it's any consolation, you'll get a new chapter tomorrow.

And no, that wasn't a joke. I would have put the two together, but I didn't like how there were two separate time frames present, so you'll just have to deal. ;]

Oh you'll also see a place you should know very, very well in the next chapter…

THANKS: to you. I'm assuming I've already replied to every review, but if I somehow missed yours, let me know? Thanks…

Disclaimer: A/N at the bottom. Don't own Starbucks, Advil, Ford Mustangs, or Canada's Wonderland.

R&R or R&L please.

THANKS MUCHO!

"Prom Night" Part 2

"But I wanted – " Tears began to pool at Jude's bottom lashes, threatening to pour over.

"No. You were always good. Always." He pulled Jude's face towards him, wiping the tears that had run down her cheeks. He kissed her softly and then pulled her face away so that their noses touched. "You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, Jude."

Don't Stand So Close To Me

Chapter 29

"Bright Futures"

May fell into June and as quickly as it had begun, it felt like it was over. At least Jude could feel it.

Maybe it was the look he continued to give her. Or the familiar brush of his fingers against the small of her back. She didn't really know. But the more they continued to happen – the more they felt like shadows of the real thing.

And the thing that frightened her more was that she wasn't bothered by it at all.

She folded her leg underneath her butt and pulled her notebook closer to her, the words she had written mere blurs on a paper. They sat in his dining room – one of the places she had never got a chance to see when she had made her visit to his house that past December. If a passerby looked through the window at them, they might actually think that she was studying and he was grading papers, but if they really looked closely, they would see it was all a façade.

Her last official day of school was tomorrow and with it came her last Advanced Composition class and Grad Night. The following week would consist of graduation practice and then she'd be done with high school forever.

She was anxious for it all to be over. To see what came next. Where she would go. Who she would see. How it – they would end.

Silence filled the room, but she knew that they both had things to say. She just didn't know how to get the words out.

Tom silently pushed another paper away as if he was done grading it. But he wasn't. Not even close. Words ran together and he couldn't stop his brain from going a mile a minute. Not with her so close to him. And not wth all the things that they – he had left unsaid, undone.

He glanced up as she took her pen between her index and middle finger and began to twirl it. He frowned slightly, trying to remember why the act was so familiar. Then it hit him. The very first day they had met. The scene played like a montage in front of him, all of the anxious feelings he had had that day rushing back to him. His frown grew deeper as he sighed, realizing that the decision he thought he had to make had already been made for him, months prior.

He wasn't about to turn her into another Angie, allowing her to resent him for all her unaccomplished dreams. He loved her. And he had to do what was right. For her.

Because if they had a chance at all, they would find a way.

She stopped twirling her pen and placed it on the table in front of her. She glanced up at him, unaware that he had been staring at her for a few minutes. A rosy blush started to form on her face as she saw his gaze.

She smiled widely as his eyes brightened and his frown faded. "Pepperoni?"

"Number's on the fridge."

She nodded silently and stood up, walking toward the kitchen.

As the sight of her back faded, he let out a low sigh. He reached into his jean pocket and pulled out his phone, knowing that now was the most opportune time. He anxiously shook his leg as he pressed 3 on his speed dial, waiting for the line to be picked up, watching the kitchen doorway for Jude.

A few seconds passed and the line clicked. "Hey."

He took a deep breath, knowing he had to say what was on the tip of his tongue before he chickened out. "I'm ready."

- M -

Screams filled the air and the sound of metal against metal made his teeth clench. Canada's Wonderland – the chosen place for Carson Hill's finest to hold their Grad Night – was bustling with kids, but all he wanted was to see one.

Her.

He reached into his leather jacket and his fingers ran over the inside pocket, feeling the hardness of the envelope housed there. He'd been doing the same thing over and over again since she'd left his class that afternoon.

Maybe it was to remind him of what he was doing – where he was going – why.

He walked through International Street and around Thunder Run. He walked past Vortex, his eyes darting back and forth, searching for her and still nothing. He didn't know how he was going to find her when there were kids every where he turned.

Walking past a churro cart, he bumped into a few Carson Hill kids with their girlfriends. They recognized him and gave him a head's up hi.

He waved and walked a few feet before he looked over his shoulder at them. His brain buzzed and he closed his eyes. That was normal. That was the normal he wanted for Jude.

He sighed and then opened his eyes, the colors of the night coming in brightly.

He continued to walk a little farther, making his way to Swing of the Century. Just as he was about to turn around and go the other way, he heard her voice. Or rather her laugh.

He walked around a large planter and there sitting next to the Merry-Go-Round was Jude and Kat.

Kat noticed him first and her lips formed a straight line, but she pointed to him anyway. Jude turned her head and her eyes widened.

Tom watched as Kat whispered something in Jude's ear and walked away, a faint smirk painted on her face. Jude sat for a few seconds before walking behind the Merry-Go-Round to a secluded place of bushes and a cement wall.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Jude whispered, her eyes darting over Tom's shoulder as he walked towards her.

His eyes widened – taken aback that she had been the one think of their surroundings first and not him. Though he was technically – as of three p.m. that afternoon no longer her teacher – he was still…well, he didn't really know what he was anymore and that thought made him realize how right he had been in making the decision he had made the day before.

"I – " he started.

She smiled faintly and with her right hand, touched his arm.

Her movement shook him and he blurted, "I'm leaving tonight."

She blinked once, the shadow of a smile fading from her face. She removed her hand from his forearm and sighed. Her jaw clenched, but she didn't respond. At least she didn't say anything verbally. Her body language had said it all.

Tom took a deep breath, knowing he had to soldier on. "Sorry, I've never really been good at this," he started. His eyes darted to the cement wall as Jude nodded her head and then he rubbed his face with one of his hands.

"So where are you going?"

Tom shook his head.

Jude rolled her eyes. "When are you coming back?" she asked. Tom glanced at the floor. "Are you even coming back?"

Tom shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't thought that far yet."

"So you're just leaving. You're not even going to be here for graduation?"

Tom shook his head, not looking at Jude. "I know this isn't how you pictured things, but its better this way. Believe me." He reached out and touched her hand, brushing her knuckles with his calloused thumb.

Jude pulled her hand away from Tom and placed it in her jean pocket. She scoffed. "Maybe I'm incredibly naïve, but I expected more."

"From?"

"This," Jude started. "I expected our goodbye to be fireworks and a fat lady singing, not some lame excuse next to a planter at a cheesy amusement park. It's so…so high school."

Tom laughed sardonically. "Then I did one thing right."

Jude arched one eyebrow, giving Tom a pointed look.

"I gave you normal. In some weird way, I gave you normal." Tom smirked.

Jude shook her head. "I never wanted normal. I just asked for you."

Tom sighed. "Please – "

"Don't – " Jude started. She bit her bottom lip. "You're trying to be noble. I get it. I just wish you weren't." A lone tear traveled the length of Jude's cheek. Tom reached out and brushed the tear away. Jude pulled on the collar of Tom's jacket until they were flush against each other. His hand rested against her cheek.

"I love you," he whispered. She closed her eyes and clenched her jaw to keep herself from crying. "I have to go."

She nodded, leaning her head against his chest. She took one last deep breath, taking in all that was Tom. She looked up and pressed her lips against his for the last time. It was soft and sweet. Then she pulled away and placed her hands in her jeans pockets.

Tom was backed up, a faint smile on his face. She watched him as he faded into the crowd and then was gone.

- M -

She took one last look at her bedroom before closing the door. A month had changed it. It was no longer the same. The posters were gone. The closet was empty. The floor was bare.

She wanted to feel something – anything about leaving. But after watching Tom walk away, her strength had waivered and she was no longer sure she was doing the right thing. She could see it. She could feel it. It had made that entire month a very hard thing to endure.

A warm hand fell on her shoulder and Jude turned her head. Her father, Stuart, looked backed at her. Jude took a deep breath and willed herself not to cry.

"You're going to be a star."

Jude bit her bottom lip and wrapped her arms around her father. "Goodbyes suck."

"This isn't goodbye, Jude." Stuart pulled away and wrapped his arm around his daughter as they walked downstairs, one step at a time.

When they reached the bottom, Jude let go of her father and picked up her guitar case. Then she walked out the front door, her father trailing behind her. Jude's mother, Victoria, turned her head slightly as she made her way outside. She was crying.

Jude willed herself not to roll her eyes. She knew she wasn't her mother's favorite by any means, but the waterworks were just a tad much in her opinion.

Jude smiled and wrapped one arm around her mother's shoulders in a makeshift hug. "Bye."

"Good Luck, Jude!" her mother called as she walked away.

Sitting in the driveway was Jude's Mustang, filled with boxes. It took five hours, three Advil, and two Venti Vanilla Lattes from Starbucks to pack it correctly. That's what she got for asking for help.

Jude opened a backseat door and shoved her guitar case in before jumping into the front seat.

She took a deep breath and stuck her key in the ignition. Then she put the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway. She waved to her parents who stood where her Mustang had sat and then put the car in drive.

With one last look at her childhood house, Jude pressed the gas and sped off.

Boston was calling her name.

A/N: Preview

Don't Stand So Close To Me

Chapter 30

"One Summer Night"

Teasers will be posted very very shortly. Check my profile for them. :]