A/N.: Hey everyone! I hope you all had a great Christmas and will have an amazing year 2014! Sorry for the cliffhanger... but I promised to make up for it and this is by far my longest chapter. I hope you enjoy ;)

Chapter 12:

Mitchie had rushed off the set of her photo-shoot, still clad in worn sweatpants and a loose tank top, her hair in a messy bun on top of her head. Her manager had been shouting at her to stay on set, but she had kept saying something important had come up while running to her car and started the drive towards the L.A. Airport, she needed to get there as soon as possible.

Shane was aimlessly gazing out of the window, the scenery constantly changing beneath him. He was too tired to focus on anything, but no matter what – he simply couldn't fall asleep. Ever since his parents' call he'd felt numb and he didn't know how to get rid of that feeling. He would've called Mitchie, but he knew that once he spoke to her, his walls would crumble and he wouldn't be able to stop it – he couldn't afford that to happen while he was away from her, it would only make her more upset.

After finally finding a parking spot, Mitchie went into the building and tried to find the terminal where they were supposed to arrive in about half an hour. When she finally found it, she sat down and tried to clear her thoughts – everything would be fine, it had to be. Shane was coming home and she would be there for him. She rubbed her temples, when she heard the speakers announce the arrival of Shane's flight. She hadn't even noticed that thirty minutes had already passed, but the only thing that mattered to her was Shane, she moved to stand and looked around for them.

Caitlyn and the others had avoided talking to Shane, since he would either snap at them or ignore them completely, so he didn't know that Mitchie was waiting for him. They knew it probably wasn't a good idea to not tell him, but it was too late anyways, the plane had landed and they were now gathering their bags and getting in line to leave the plane.

A few unfamiliar faces passed her until she saw the one's she'd been looking for. She quickly run towards them and hugged her stunned boyfriend.

"Mitch?" he whispered.

"Yes, it's me... Come on, let's get you home," she said soothingly, her fingers combing through his messy hair as she studied his tired face. She mouthed an apology to her friends and guided her boyfriend through the airport and towards her car.

The drive home was filled with a thick silence that made Mitchie worry even more about Shane. When they entered the apartment, she told him to take off his shoes and coat. She comfortingly stroked his arm and led him into their bedroom and laid down with him.

"Shane? Please talk to me," she said quietly and put her head on his chest.

"I don't know what to say..." he admitted in a broken voice.

"It's okay, whenever you're ready... I missed you," she whispered the last part and softly pecked his cheek before snuggling closer to him.

Her heart broke when he let out a sob, his body beginning to shake.

"I- I missed you too, so much. I don't know what I'd do without you," he cried.

"Shh, I'm here, everything will be alright," she tried soothing him.

"No! Nothing will be okay! I didn't even know my grandma was sick and now they're telling me she's gotten worse – they should've told me! I would've been there for her," he sobbed, moving away from her.

"Shane, I can't help you, if you don't tell me what your parents told you, I only know that they called to tell you, Nate and Jase, that your grandma is sick," she said gently.

Shane took a deep breath, still crying "They said that she had been sick for a while, but they didn't think that it would get that bad, so they wanted to tell us after we returned, b-but they said that they had to tell us, 'cause she's not getting better. They want us to meet up at the nursing home she's staying in..."

Mitchie wiped his tears away and kissed his forehead.

"I'm so sorry, but you need to stay strong. I know she wouldn't want you to make yourself sick, get some sleep baby. I'll be here when you wake up," she said stroking his cheek.

"I love you, Mitchie," he whispered, hugging her close to him.

"I love you too, Popstar. Come on, let's get some sleep," she said and turned the lights off.

It was only lunchtime when they woke up again and Mitchie was glad, that Shane looked at least a little more rested.

"Hey," she smiled.

"Hey," he yawned.

"I'm going to fetch us some food, you stay in bed, okay?" she said and walked into the kitchen, quickly making some sandwiches.

"Thank you," he said and Mitchie could see that he wasn't only talking about the food.

"No problem, now eat your sandwich," she said with a smile.

After they had finished eating, they continued to stay in bed, cuddled up with each other. Mitchie's finger was drawing random patterns on Shane's chest, when he asked her if she would come with him to visit his grandmother.

"Of course I will, but are you sure you're ready to do this?" she asked worriedly.

"Yes, I have to see her and make sure their treating her right. She's always been my biggest fan, you know? I can't let her down," he said sadly.

"Then let's get ready," she smiled encouragingly. "Do you want me to ask the others to come, too? After all your parents wanted to meet up, right?"

"No, I want to do this without them. They won't understand... she was the only one who didn't hate me when I was this big jerk to everyone, they don't know what it's like..."

"You don't need to explain it to me if you don't want to," she touched his shoulder.

Once again the car ride was silent, but it wasn't only because of the sadness Shane felt, it was also because he felt guilty for putting Mitchie through all of this. They hadn't even kissed since he had returned. He had missed her, but he couldn't seem to function properly. He wanted to kiss her and show her how much he appreciated her, but his sadness and guilt were holding him back. It felt as if he was changing back into his old frustrated, angry, ignorant self – he couldn't let that happen.

The car halted to a stop in front of the nursing home Shane's grandma was living at. Mitchie turned to look at Shane.

"We're here, let's go," Mitchie said, gently squeezing his hand. She moved to get out of the car, but Shane stopped her.

"Wait! I should have done this way earlier," he said, confusing Mitchie momentarily, but when his lips finally touched hers, she understood. It was different than any other kiss they'd shared; it had this sense of despair and sadness, but at the same time it was full of devotion.

"I missed this," she sighed "But we should go," she said and quickly pecked his lips before getting out of the car.

Hand in hand, they walked up to the front desk. The middle aged man behind it was wearing a friendly smile as he greeted them "Welcome to the Los Angeles nursing home for the elderly, how may I help you?" he asked.

"Hello, we're here to see my grandmother...Caroline Gray?" Shane said.

"Oh, yes, have you been informed about her condition? I don't remember seeing you here before," the man asked.

"I've only been told, that she has a difficulty with remembering and that she has forgotten how to do several things, but that's it right? She's going to be fine, right?"

"This is true, I'm sorry; your grandmother has been diagnosed with a severe case of Dementia."

"What? But we never noticed, she wasn't sick!" Shane said desperately.

"It is common that Dementia is only discovered when the symptoms become really obvious, I'm sorry. Do you want one of our caregivers with you?" he asked politely.

"No, I want to see her on my own," Shane said. Mitchie squeezed his hand.

"How about we go in first and one of the caregivers can come in later... to help us understand her condition?" she asked gently.

Shane sighed "Fine, can we have fifteen minutes before you send one of them?"

"Of course. Your grandmother is in room 173, but please be aware that she might not be the same as you remember her," the man said nicely.

Together they headed to the elevator that would take them upstairs to his grandma's room. Shane knew, that he should keep in mind that his grandma might have changed, but he couldn't bring himself to give up on her. She had never given up on him, had always been his biggest supporter, he simply could not allow himself to think about the worst.

"Mitch? Do you think she'll be okay?" he asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

"Honestly? I don't know, but I think no matter what happens in there, we shouldn't give up on our faith in her," she replied.

The elevator doors slid open, revealing a long hallway with many doors. They walked along the doors until they found the one they were looking for – Room 173 Caroline Gray.

They knocked before entering the room; it was painted a light yellow color and the decorations seemed to match the theme of the room. In the far corner sat an elderly woman, who had black colored hair with a few gray strands in it and dark eyes.

"Grandma?" Shane asked hesitantly.

The woman looked up with a confused frown on her face "Who are you?" she asked.

"Grandma, it's me, Shane, your grandson, don't you remember?" he tried.

"I'm sorry, I don't know you. Are you sure you're in the right room?" she asked nicely.

"Yes, I'm in the right room. Grandma, why don't you remember me?" he asked with a sad face, he couldn't believe it – his grandma, his biggest fan, did not remember him.

"I'm sorry sweetie, I really don't know who you are and who is that young lady?"

Mitchie smiled and shook the older woman's hand "Hi, I'm Mitchie, I'm Shane's girlfriend."

"Nice to meet you Jessica, my, your wife is gorgeous Sebastian," Mrs Gray said with a genuine smile and everything would have seemed perfectly normal - had they been Jessica and Sebastian, married couple. Shane was desperate, with every word she spoke his heart broke a little more. How could she seem so normal and healthy, when she was this sick?

A knock came from the door and seconds later a young woman entered the room with a tea tray.

"Good afternoon, Mrs Gray, I've brought your tea and your medicine," she said while setting the tray down. "Who are your visitors today?"

"Thank you Brenda, this is Sebastian and his wife Jessica," Mrs Gray said.

"Hi Brenda... would you excuse us for a moment?" Shane asked shakily.

"Sure, I'll be with you in a minute, I just have to make sure Mrs Gray takes her medicine," she said politely.

When they were outside, Shane slid down the wall and buried his head in his hands. Mitchie sat down next to him and stroked his hair. Just as she was going to say something, the door to Mrs Gray's room opened and Brenda came over to them.

"So... it was pretty obvious that you're not Sebastian and Jessica, allow me to introduce myself – I'm Ashley and I've been your grandmother's caregiver ever since she's been here. If you have any questions just ask away," she said with a smile.

"We've been told, that she's been diagnosed with Dementia...does that mean that there's no chance for her to remember Shane?" Mitchie asked.

"I'm afraid not. I'm very sorry. However I think that you should keep visiting her every once in a while... You know even though most patients deny their loss of memory, they still notice that something has changed and it scares them, so it's important for them to have people in their lives who care about them and are able to love them even when they don't remember them for who they really are," Ashley told them.

"Thank you, we'll keep that in mind. Could you please tell Mrs Gray that something has come up and that we're sorry?" Mitchie asked politely.

Ashley smiled "Of course, have a good day."