Thank you guys so much for the awesome response to the last few chapters! This chapter switches back to Naomi POV, and it seems that I didn't get quite as much in this chapter as I had originally planned to...so I suppose that means this is now shaping up to be 30 full chapters and one epilogue. I think I'm starting to squeeze things out on purpose so I can put off ending this - it's gonna be difficult saying goodbye to this story!

As usual, I have nothing to do with Skins, you know the drill.

Chapter 27: Best Friends

Naomi POV

I walked back to Cook's flat in record time. I had been so angry that I'd barely even realized I was at Cook's apartment when I used my key to let myself in. It was that kind of anger where you have a sort of tunnel vision, except you don't even have that because you can't give a flying fuck about what you're looking at – you can only hear the argument replaying in your head and you can't stop thinking about how god damn angry you are.

I rarely let myself get angry at all – it just wasn't worth it most of the time. But Emily pushed me to my breaking point, and apparently when I hit my breaking point I start smashing things. In all fairness, my life felt as though it had just been blown to smithereens itself, so smashing a desk lamp and overturning a desk seemed like a very small thing to do.

My life was a mess. I was getting close to hitting absolute bottom – I had no home, a broken heart, and because I broke up with my girlfriend I was likely to lose my best friend as well.

I think right now I really did hate Emily, just because it was easier to hate her than it was to remember how happy she once made me and how much I loved... still love her.

I sighed heavily and flopped myself onto Cook's bed, which smelled nothing like Emily's and my bed at home. Knowing that I would never sleep in a bed that smelled just like my bed at home wasn't exactly a comforting idea. I didn't even have a toothbrush or pyjamas. I also knew I couldn't stay at Cook's for a very long time – the poor guy had enough to deal with without having me moping around his tiny flat.

I reached in my pocket and pulled out my mobile. I dialled my boss' number – that's what I did when something went wrong in my life. I threw myself into my work.

"Hi, Jim, it's Naomi...yes, I know it's been a while since I've called... well, you see, I was just wondering if there were any extra stories that I could pick up... I've recently been able to free up a lot of my time... you know I'm not opposed to travelling! Right... well, I was hoping for somewhere a bit more exotic than London, but okay, you can count on me. Thanks, Jim!"

And just like that, it was sorted. I'd go back to my flat in two days to collect my things, just like I'd told Emily. Until then, I'd stay here at Cook's. And after I officially moved out, I'd move back in with my mum, something I never thought I'd do at 25.

I was at a low point in my life, but I wasn't crushed just yet. I was hurt, if I really let myself think about it. There was no doubt about that. But I couldn't be hurt and upset forever and I needed to get my life sorted out at the moment. So that was exactly what I was going to do.

"NAOMI-OH!" Cook yelled as he ran into his apartment and jumped on the bed, where I'd been napping five seconds ago. I grumbled at him and buried my face in his pillow.

"Fuck off, Cook," I mumbled as he pulled me closer to him and started tickling my sides. "Said fok off, Cook."

He stopped tickling me when he realized that he wasn't getting any sort of reaction out of me and just laid down next to me instead.

"'Sup, Naomioh? You alright?" Cook asked as he rubbed my back soothingly. I nodded because Cook didn't need to know I was crying.

I'd dreamt about her, and it left me red and raw.

"It's really over this time," I mumbled, turning over onto my side as Cook pulled me into his chest.

"S'alright, babe, it just hurts now," Cook whispered as he continued to rub my back. "B'sides, I brought you a present that I found on the doorstep."

I looked up and saw Effy in the doorway. Her arm was wrapped around her middle and her other hand was holding a lit cigarette. Her eyes were red and puffy as though she'd been crying.

"Sorry, Naoms," Effy whispered as she took another drag of her cigarette. Her eyes welled up again. "I've been a really shit friend."

I nodded at her but patted the space behind me on the bed. "It's alright, Eff. I need you, and now you're here."

She walked over to the bed and climbed in behind me, wrapping her arm around my waist. Cook and Effy's arms overlapped.

"I have so much to talk to you about," Effy whispered behind me as she kissed my shoulder gently.

I nodded at her. "So, talk to me then."

Cook took that as his cue to leave the flat in search of a takeaway. Effy sat up and rested her back against the wall, and I did the same.

"It's just... Emily's gone off the rails these past few weeks. Katie only briefly mentioned the possibility that Emily could freeze her eggs and that they could both use them, and suddenly Emily's off to fertility clinics and asking us who's going to carry the baby. Katie and I aren't ready for a baby yet, and I was going to tell Emily that right away, but Katie convinced me not to. She thought there was something up with Em, that there's something she was hiding from us. Katie went to the fertility doctors office and pretended to be Emily so she could get access to her files. About a month and a half after she was raped, her GP referred her to an abortion clinic."

Oh my God. I had never even bothered to ask Emily. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind. How could I have been so blind...so stupid? Emily had gone through hell with John, devoted years of her life to search for him and when she finally found him, she got her revenge, not just for the rape, but for the baby too. My stomach twisted and turned as I realized that this sudden infatuation with children had nothing to do with the Emily I knew. It was the Emily who had been raped and was trying to rid herself of the guilt of having an abortion that was suddenly obsessed with having a baby. I jumped over Effy, and ran to Cook's bathroom, where I was violently sick. Effy ran in after me and held my hair back. I felt teardrops landing on my head, and knew that Effy was crying too.

After I'd finished throwing up and brushed my teeth using a spare toothbrush Cook had laid out for me, I went back to the bedroom where Effy was waiting for me on the bed. I sat down next to her and she grabbed my hand and held it tightly.

"That week Katie spent in bed pretending to be sick was the week she found out. She wouldn't look at me or talk to me, and she sobbed all night long every single night. When she was finally able to tell me what happened, I was sick just like you were. I didn't see it coming either, Naoms, and neither did Katie."

I shook my head and rubbed at my temples frustratedly. "But I was her girlfriend. I saw what she was like after she came back from London. I should have known. I should have thought to ask," I whispered as Effy hugged me tightly. "Now what am I supposed to do?"

"You both need time, Naoms."

I sighed. I knew she was right.

"I promise, Katie and I will take care of her. I'll keep you updated every day about what she's doing and what's happening, and when she's finally ready we'll sit her down and work everything out. I promise, it'll all be okay in the end."

Tears welled up in my eyes as I buried my face into Effy's shoulder.

"I hope you're right, Eff."

Cook came home empty-handed, which was fine by me since my appetite had completely disappeared. Effy left as soon as Cook came home, and I began to feel as though they were purposely trying not to leave me alone. Cook climbed in bed behind me and kissed my cheek.

"You know I love you, right, Naomi?" He whispered as his arm wrapped around my waist. It was rare for him not to call me a nickname. It showed just how serious he was being, and I decided to reciprocate.

"I know. I love you, too, James."

He grabbed the remote and switched on the telly, putting on crappy late night talk shows. They served as an easy distraction from the pain of losing Emily and the realization that I had been a completely oblivious girlfriend.

Thank you so much for reading!

Hmm, now I kind of feel like giving you all some recommendations for fics you should be reading, so that is exactly what I shall do! I've read some really great stories lately, and I must say, What The Heart Sees by FitchSwitch had me up reading until the early hours of the morning - definitely one of those stories where you start reading, and suddenly it's four in the morning and you don't want to go to sleep at all because you have five more chapters of amazingness to get through! I've also been loving The Bengal Tiger by SomeAreLakes, which just updated today (which I may have sneakily read at work because it's really that good!). And now, for something that isn't a Skins fanfiction, but a Glee fanfiction instead - I started reading The Girl Next Door by TequilaQuest about two days ago and I am HOOKED!

Anyway, please don't forget to let me know what you thought about the chapter and if this helped you better understand the sudden change in Emily's character.