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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"The night was beautiful, or it would be if Bay didn't feel like her heart was shattered. She couldn't help but replay her last encounter with Ty over and over again. She thought she knew him, she thought she could trust him with her heart. Tears slowly fell from her eyes as she closed the shutters on the poor surfers and sharks for the last time. Maui Kansas, with her happy memories of her and Ty, were over. Thanks to the water park next Summer there would be no Maui, no Mary Beth and Mac, and no reunion with Ty. Bay let the tears freely fall for all that she lost and all the possibilities that could never be./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Hey, are you okay?" Mary Beth asked coming to stand beside Bay./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Define okay? If okay is having your boyfriend cheat on you right before he deploys, then yea, I'm okay," Bay replied, using her snark to try and mask her pain./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Mary Beth looked everywhere but at Bay. She wanted so badly to tell Bay the truth, that Ty hadn't cheated, but she's promised him. No matter how many ways he tried to explain why he lied Mary Beth still didn't understand, especially seeing how much pain Bay was in. She was debating breaking her promise when Bay touched her shoulder and broke her out of her internal /br /"Are you okay?" Bay asked, knowing it couldn't be easy for Mary Beth either with Ty leaving. He was a connection to her brother, someone who could share memories with her, who would talk about Justin and try to forget him like her mom./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I know something, but I promised I wouldn't tell anyone. I don't know if I should break my promise, but what I know could make someone possibly hurt a lot less."br /br /"I'm not sure I'm the right person to give you advice, but if what you know could lessen someone's pain, you should tell them. Unless your causing the person you promised pain by telling the secret," Bay quickly added./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""What if I don't break my promise and instead tell you to go talk to Ty before he leaves?" May Beth asked /br /"M.B. what do you know? What does Ty not want me to know?" Bay asked, her heart beating so fast she was starting to feel /br /"Bay, please? You know Ty, the real Ty. You know he loves you, please just go talk to him," Mary Beth begged./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I can't. Not after what he did. How could you…" Bay stopped mid sentence and sat down on a bench. "He didn't do it," she whispered. "He didn't do," she said again, loud enough for Mary Beth to hear /br /"I can't confirm what you just said, but I think now you can go see him?" Mary Beth half asked /br /"Can you drop me off? Toby has my car."br /br /"Yea, no problem. Do you want me to wait for you?" Mary Beth asked, a little unsure how it would go between the /br /"You have plans with Travis, I'll be okay."/p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Bay waited at the gate, her nerves growing by the second. What if Mary Beth was wrong, what if Ty really did cheat and coming was a huge mistake. What if he didn't cheatspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanbut lied because he didn't know how to break up with her and seen an easy way out. br /br /"Bay?"br /br /"Aida."br /br /"When I got the call you were here I was a bit surprised. Is everything okay?" Aida asked hesitantly. br /br /"Yes, no, I don't know? Did Ty tell you what happened?"/p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""No, but he's been like a bear with a thorn in his paw so I figured something happened between you two. It's not uncommon for people to break up right before a deployment, it's hard waiting around and not knowing. No judgment, honestly," Aida said looking down at her boots as she finished./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Wow, okay. Just to be clear, I didn't break up with Ty because I didn't think I could handle him being deployed. Finding woman's underwear and a condom wrapper in his room however played a big part in it. He admitted to having sex with you. I'm sure you can see why I was upset."br /br /"I.…we didn't….wait you were upset?" Aida asked unable to wrap her mind around what Bay had told her./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Yea, I was upset. I was devastated when I thought he could do something like that to me, but with a little help I realized he wouldn't. I still had to talk to you though, for peace of mind I guess."br /br /"Glad I could help? If he lied, it was likely because he's having his own issues with going back," Aida said as she walked /br /~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~br /br /Bay took a few deep calming breaths before she knocked on Ty's door. br /br /"Go away!"br /br /Bay made her hand into a fist and knocked again and again. No way was she just going to give /br /The door swung open to a disheveled looking Ty. "I said…."/p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Bay was pretty sure he was in the process of telling he to go away when he realized it was her. "Hi, can I come in?" Bay asked suddenly feeling very unsure./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""What are you doing here?" Ty asked as he stepped aside, letting her in./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I have to ask you something, and I need you to be honest."br /br /"Bay.…"br /br /"Why did you lie?"br /br /Ty closed the door then leaned against it, banging his head. Bay tried to take his hand to lead him to the bed but he stuck his hands in his pockets and wouldn't budge./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Ty, I know you didn't sleep with Aida. I just, I need to know why you lied."br /br /"Mary Beth told you," Ty replied, his voice low and pained./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""No, Mary Beth didn't tell me. I figured it out an Aida confirmed it. Now I need to know if you lied because you didn't think we would could make it work or because you didn't really love me and didn't know how to break up with me," Bay said, tears silently falling./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Ty stepped forward and slowly raised his hands to wipe away Bay's tears. "You couldn't be farther from the truth," he said raggedly as he pulled her to his chest and wrapped his arms around her./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Once Bay had her tears under control she pulled out of Ty's arms reluctantly. She had more questions now than when she first came in. "What is the truth then?" Bay asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I don't want to be the reason you miss out on being young, or the reason you have to mature faster than you should," Ty answered, pacing around the small room./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Bay reached out and grabbed his arm to stop him. "What are you talking about? Being with you hasn't caused me to miss out on anything, and it won't in the future either. Will worrying about you suck and be stressful? Yes, I won't lie and say I think it'll be easy, but you're worth it. We're worth it. I don't want to even voice it, but I know there's a chance you won't… that you won't make it back. I know that, but there's a very real chance you will. Whether we're together or not I will still worry about you, and I will still love you," Bay said. She reached up and put her hand on his cheek as she leaned in and lightly kissed his lips./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""What if you're right, what if I do come home. What if I'm not the same? What if I'm injured and lose my arm or leg or worse? What if I come home with PTSD? Are those things you're really willing to deal with?" Ty asked, his voice laced with a desperate hope he was trying not to feel./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""Tyler Mendosa, I love you. I love all of you, in any way you come. Whatever happens, we will deal with it together. I'll wait for you for as long as it takes you to come home," Bay told him, pulling his head down for a kiss. Ty pulled her closer and kissed her back until they were both breathless./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I love you too, I'm sorry, for lying for doubting you for…" Bay cut him off with another kiss./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""No more sorries. I wouldn't say no to a few more I love yous though," Bay said with a smile./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;""I can do that. I. Love. You. I. Love. You," Ty said, kissing her between each word./p
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p style="margin: 0in; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14.0pt;"Neither knew what the future held for them, but they had tonight, and for now tonight was enough./p
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