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I go outside the back way and sit on one of the picnic tables. Nobody else is out here and I'm glad to be alone. I rest my elbows on the table and hold my head up with my hands. There's a squirrel just in front of me, stopping to pick something up off the ground before running away and up a tree. I watch it until about half when up the tree when I notice someone standing a distance away, just behind the school fence. He looks just like Thomas. I close my eyes tightly and open them and nobody's there. I shake my head and pull at my hair. What is wrong with me?

I hear the school doors open but I keep my eyes on the tabletop. Someone has carved their initials just near my elbow. I feel someone take a seat next to me and I take a deep breath, "Why are you out here?"

I turn and look at him, his face full of worry for me. His cheekbones sticking out, his blonde hair falling into his eyes but he won't move it away. He's too intent on scanning my face, "Nothing Austin."

He takes my hand from under my chin and sets it down on the table and covers it with his own. His hand is noticeably bigger than mine, "You can tell me anything."

"I know. I was just feeling bad about myself and needed some air."

He sighs, "Why were you feeling bad about yourself?"

"I just don't feel the same as I used to be and I hate it."

"I know. I do too."

I shake my head, "But you have something from your life to go back to like football. You're almost back to normal. But here I am still stuck back in New Mexico."

"I'm not back to normal. None of us are ever going to be back to normal." Austin says. At least he doesn't have nightmares or imagines seeing a dead person…

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm just having a hard time."

"And I'm here for you." He says, rubbing my shoulder.

"I know." I say with a small smile.

After school Austin goes to the doctor and Trish walks me home. She had to go home after that and help her mother with housework. Her father got hurt on the job and hasn't been able to work so her mother got a part time job at the diner in town so that means Trish has to help out around the house more.

When I get inside there is a note from my dad on the table. He went out bowling with his friends. They have a league and they go every week but he always leaves a note to remind me like I'm going to forget or something.

My father told me that nobody knew what happened to us, or if they would ever see us again. The plane completely disappeared and they couldn't find it on the radar. But they wouldn't give up looking for us. They knew that none of our parents would give up until they found some sort of sign. He said he couldn't sleep, couldn't eat. He didn't even go back to work until I came home. He said Trish came over almost every day to check on him and was a nervous wreck. I don't blame them. But at least I came back. What about Stacy's parents who felt the same way as my dad. They got the call that the plane had been found and then had to be told that their little girl was dead.

I clean the dirty dishes in the sink and heat up a slice of leftover pizza and sit on the couch. I turn on the television and flick through the channels as I take bites. As I'm flicking through something catches my eye and I turn it back to the channel.

It's a program about wolves. They look exactly like the ones I came face to face with. I remember watching this program a couple months before the crash and that's why they looked familiar; the Mexican gray wolves. It gives me goose bumps to see them again. But at least I am safe in my own home now.

A knock on my front door makes me jump. I set down the rest of my pizza and shut the television off. I walk slowly over to my door and peak through the side window. It's Austin. I take a deep breath and open the door. He's smiling widely and I take one look at his uncovered leg. There's a visible scar on it; a scar that a wolf gave him, a visible scar on the outside from the horrible event that will be there forever.

"Hey." He says.

I smile and wrap my arms around his waist. He wraps his arms around my shoulders tightly, "I'm so happy for you." I tell him.

"I still have to wear a brace on my arm for a bit. But it's just for some extra protection during football."

I nod at him as we pull a part. He looks behind me through the door and raises an eyebrow, "So can I come in?"

I laugh and pull him in by the arm, shutting the door behind me. We walk into the living room and he takes my piece of pizza and starts eating it. I roll my eyes and sit down at the end of the couch. He takes a seat next to me and finishes eating before saying, "I take it your dad is bowling?" I nod.

"Well I didn't know you were going to be home alone or I would have come over sooner." He says. I raise an eyebrow at him and his eyes widen, "I didn't mean it like that… I meant like I could have kept you company sooner."

I laugh, "Its fine. I actually wanted to show you something." I say, grabbing his arm and dragging him upstairs to my room.

He gives me weird looks as we jog up the stairs. I stop in front of my door and face him with a smile. He holds back a smile and shrugs, obviously confused. I open my door and reveal my room, which I completely re arranged and also hung up white lights. I got a bunch of pictures printed of Trish and I and some recent ones of me and Austin and hung them on the wall too.

He smiles and turns around in a full circle looking everything over, "You changed it up." He says with a smile.

"Well, I wanted something different." I say; because I am different.

"I like it."

I sit down on my bed and play with a loose thread on my bedspread, "Thanks."

He sits down next to me and looks at me until I look at him. He grabs my hand and puts it between both of his. We look at each other for a few long minutes until he whispers, "You're so beautiful Ally." I blush and shake my head but he doesn't give me time to reply before saying, "No really. You are a beautiful thing that came from a bad thing. What happened brought us together. And I hate that it had to happen that way but I'm glad it did."

"So am I." I say.

He leans in and kisses me slow and softly, causing the butterflies in my stomach to wake up and bump into each other. Usually he would stop after a short peck but he doesn't this time. He deepens the kiss, resting his hand on my waist. I bring my hands up to his neck and then one to the back of his hair. All I can think about are his lips moving on mine and they way he smells like cologne and sweat, yet so good.

We pull away to catch our breath and I rest my hands on his chest. He smiles and kisses my forehead and then my cheek. I giggle like a little girl and embarrass myself. He then kisses me on the nose, "You're too cute when you're embarrassed."

I roll my eyes and shove him playfully, making him fall backwards, but he pulls me with him and I end up landing on top of him. We freeze and stare into each other's eyes for a second before he grabs the back of my head lightly and pulls my face to his. He kisses me hard again and my whole body turns warm. I pull away after a minute and we are both breathing heavier than ever. "I think we should slow down." I whisper against his cheek.

We both sit up and I pat down my hair. He clears throat and sighs, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean too…"

"Hey I know. Believe me it's nothing I didn't want to do." He smiles and wraps his arm around me and we stay like that until it's time for him to go home.