Hi (peeks out from the rock I have been hiding under) I know it has been a while (almost two years) and I honestly have no excuse. Maybe I could blame it on my writers block that I went through for a few months, then life came into the picture, and then I had no motivation, but really I just…forgot about this story. When I started it, I was so excited. But then I hit a road block.

I'm crossing my fingers that this season will be AWESOME and so far it has not let me down (except for Eli cheating on Clare)! I hope that the writers can come up with something for this year's graduation that will blow last seasons out of the water…but how do you top everyone bursting out singing? Maybe a proposal? (That would be a good story to write-have no fear, it is my main priority)!

Chapter Nine:

"Hello, Clare." Asher smirked at me as he turned around. He looked just the same as I last saw him, except now he had dark bags under his eyes. It looks like he hadn't gotten a good night's sleep. Good. "How are you?" He asked almost innocently.

I couldn't say anything to him. I just stared at him in shock…more terrified than anything really. He wasn't supposed to be here. I could not be running into him already. This was not happening; I kept repeating that mantra to myself over and over hoping that if I wished hard enough it would come true. But like most of my wishes, it didn't.

Asher continued like we were having an everyday conversation, "I've been good…well as good as I could be what with being in jail." He shrugged in a 'what can you do?' kind of way and then looked me right in the eye, "I've missed you."

Eli growled at him and stepped in front of me, trying to block me from his line of sight. "You need to leave."

Asher looked at him fake shock, "Why? I've done nothing wrong. I'm just getting food." He held up a bag of takeout innocently. I knew he was nothing more than a liar, a monster sent here from the devil himself just to hurt and torment unsuspecting girls who wanted to be a reporter similar to myself.

"Leave. NOW! Or I'll make you!" Eli said in a dangerous tone of voice. I heard this tone before. Eli usually had a tendency to do something drastic and illegal when he used this tone. I placed my hand on his forearm and turned him slightly to look at me, but Eli refused to let Asher out of his sight. I don't blame him.

"Officer Turner is right outside, Eli. He should be in here in just a moment." I try to calm him down, but after Eli found out what Asher had done to me, I knew he didn't want to let this guy go.

Slowly, Eli nodded, "Yeah, maybe they'll throw you back in the cage where you belong, pedophile."

Asher looked at me and smirked. "I'm not here to cause problems. If you will just step to the side I will be on my way."

Eli didn't move from his spot as I backed up against the wall to give Asher a wide birth. "Eli, please not here," I begged. It had already been a long day.

Eli looked almost like he was going to ignore my plea in favor of staring at Asher, but slowly he moved to stand in front of me to make sure that no part of Asher could 'casually' touch me by 'accident'. As he was about to pass through the door way, he paused and turned to look at me. I could feel Eli stiffen and I sucked in a breath of terror. "I'll be seeing you around, Clare."

Eli made to move after Asher but the older man had already left and I was sure he wouldn't be coming back. At least not tonight.

Eli mumbled something and strode out the door.

But I could concentrate on him at the moment, right now I was trying to get my breathing back under control and stop my heat from trying to burst out of my chest.

Before I realized it, I had my eyes closed and I had sunk to the floor so I could bring my knees to my chest and rest my head on top of them while I wrapped my arms around my legs. I gulped in breath after breath but nothing was working; I was petrified. I couldn't move.

He shouldn't have been here!

"Clare."

He wasn't supposed to get near me so easily.

"Clare."

That was what the protection was for!

"Clare." A hand touched my shoulder.

He was going to get to me.

"Clare!"

I'm not safe!

"CLARE!"

My head snapped up and I looked into the face of a concerned Bianca. She looked scared. I had probably put that frightened look into her eyes. A part of me knew I should feel guilty about worrying her, but at the moment all I could think about was Asher and how he was just there, within touching distance. He could have gotten to me. It would have been so easy. If Eli had not been with me…I did not want to know what to even consider what could have happened.

"Are you okay," Bianca asked softly.

I shook my head no. I was not okay. "I'm dying of cancer. I have the man who sexually harassed me following me. My sister is in Kenya and is never coming back. My best friends and boyfriend do not know that I might only have a few months to live. My whole life is falling apart and I don't know what to do." I whispered to her.

She looked at me with pity. I knew she probably thought it was sympathy. She was new to this friend thing. Looking at her-scared, concerned and wanting to help-I knew in that moment that Bianca was truly my friend. I had only known her a few weeks and it already felt like I had known her for years. The pity in her eyes wasn't pity…not really, she was showing sympathy.

I suddenly felt guilty about feeling annoyed with her mother-hen act earlier.

"First: you don't know if you are dying. Second: that guy was just trying to scare you. Third: call your sister and explain what is going on. I'm sure if you asked her she would come back home. Fourth: you can start by getting off the floor, come in to the dining room where you are going to eat, take your medicine and have fun. Then you're going to go home. Practice what you're going to say to Eli, Adam and Alli about your tumor then you are going to tell them tomorrow."

I gaped at Bianca in awe. I didn't know what to say and I was sure that if I tried to tell her no she would hit me. "I'll try." I promised. That was the best she was going to get out of me at the moment.

Bianca shook her head. "You tell them tomorrow or I will. And I promise that I'll tell them in the meanest straight forward way imaginable. This is your only warning. Now get your ass up off the floor and put on your big girl panties because you are going to be strong and brave and I have not been putting up with your shit to have you throw in the towel and wallow in self-pity."

I stood up and grinned at her as I whipped my eyes, "Wow, Bianca, I never knew you cared so much to give me a pep talk."

She rolled her eyes, "If you tell anyone, I will deny it and ruin you."

I help up my hands in mock surrender. "I would never even dream of it. Your reputation of an uncaring bad-ass is still intact."

She gasped and stared at me in shock, "Did Saint Clare just swear?"

"It happens sometimes."

I didn't know how it happened, but talking to Bianca has made me feel so much better. Taking another deep breath I looked around and noticed that Eli was still missing, "Where is Eli?"

"He went to go talk to Officer Turner about what happened just now with that creeper dude." Nodding, I followed her as she entered he dining room and lead me to a booth in the middle of the room. As I sat across from her she pushed the bread sticks at me and said, "Take your pill before Goth Boyfriend comes in here and asks what it is that you are taking."

I nodded, again, and grabbed a breadstick as I reached into my pocket to pull out my medicine bottle. As I chewed on the first bite, I began to think of how I was going to tell my best friends and boyfriend about my cancer.

"Bianca," I asked softly. She looked at me. "Will you be there when I tell them?"

She blinked at me, and then rolled her eyes at me in a 'dah' like fashion. "I thought that was a given."

Eli slid into the booth next to me and sighed, "Officer Turner is going to stop by Asher's house and make sure that he actually went home and stays there for the rest of the night." I looked at him with scared eyes and he wrapped his arm around my shoulders, "I convinced Officer Turner that it is a good idea to put a tail on Asher and not just you. He needs to be watched so that something like this doesn't happen again."

"My hero," I whispered and leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

"Ugh, guys, I'm about to eat." Bianca complained in a nasty tone.

I turned and grinned at her, "I'm sure you'll get over it."

Our waiter came up to our table to take our orders and I found myself relaxing and enjoying the time I was having with Eli and Bianca bickering back and forth in a friendly battle of whit.

"Do you guys want to hang out tomorrow after school? We could ask Adam and Alli to join us." I looked over and Bianca and thought that she might feel uncomfortable being around my friends with no backup. "We could ask Drew if he wants to come to."

Bianca raised an eyebrow at me. "Really?"

I nodded, "I think you might feel a little uncomfortable just hanging out with me and my friends. Plus, Alli still doesn't like you very much. I just wanted to put someone there that will make you feel a little more comfortable." She grinned and pulled out her phone.

"We'll be there."

I looked at Eli and shrugged, "Yeah, it's cool with me. But aren't you and Alli going to start serving your detentions?"

I looked at him for a second. "Principal Simpson wouldn't give out at weeklong detention starting on a Friday. He wants to torture us so that we will be dreading Monday even more."

"I can second that first hand," Bianca said as she looked up from her phone. "So, are you taking Clare home or am I. I do live closer to her than you."

Eli shook his head, "No, I'm sure that my dad won't have a problem taking her home."

"But you guys would have to drive out of your way to drop her off. Look it's no big deal for me to take her home. And I'm sure you have a curfew you have to abide by if your glancing at the time every five minutes is any hint."

Eli glared at Bianca for a moment. "It's okay Eli. It has gotten really late and I'm sure that any other night Bullfrog wouldn't have a problem taking me home, but you have to get up early tomorrow to focus on the play rehearsals. I'll text you when I get home."

"Promise?"

I smiled at him. How could I not love him? "I promise."

"Okay, I'll text you later." He leaned forward and kissed me goodbye. With a nod to Bianca, he left.

Shortly after Eli left, Bianca and I were in her car driving towards my house. "Have you thought about what you are going to say to them?"

I shook my head, "No."

Bianca made an unflattering noise and then said, "Well practice on me."

I glanced at her and I knew she was being serious. She wanted me to practice telling everyone I have cancer. I didn't know if I should be happy or upset about this. On one hand, she could pretend to be everyone and give the reactions she thinks they might give-if that were the case, when she portrays Alli we might need to pull over because Bianca might make 'Alli' swoon at the very thought-then she could go the Bianca rout and criticize everything I say and do until its perfect in her eyes-if that were the case then it would be a long night.

"Everyone, there is something I have to tell you."

"Good start. Maybe if you didn't sound like a little girl who is about to tell her parents that she was the one who broke the vase then I would say it was perfect."

Ugh, I could feel the headache starting already. This was going to be a long night.