Story5

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Chapter 17: Tearin' Up My Heart. It had been a week since Libby's operation and she still hadn't improved.
Clare was at work, she was doing two jobs with Libby being in hospital and it was exhausting her. She stood in the rest room washing her hands and glanced up at her reflection. The face that stared back at her looked pale and drawn, with deep black rings beneath the eyes, she had been over working lately; not eating, not doing her usual regular exercising. Stressed. Trying to forget that her friend was lay in hospital, and sleeping lousily for worrying about her. Her eyes stung. They were raw from tiredness. She'd stayed late at the club to work on the concert reviews she'd had sent her by the fans and she wanted to add them to the concert newsletter she'd started doing for the fans who weren't fortunate enough to get tickets.
Clare walked back into her office and was startled by JC who was sat on the couch, "Oh jeez, you scared me. It's 11:30, what you doing here so late?" she asked before noticing the expression on his face. He looked seriously troubled by something and wanting to help him in any way she could, like many times in the past when she'd been there to listen to him and give him advice, she sat down next to him, "Hey. Sup?"
JC took a deep breath and looked at her, tears glazing his blue eyes, "That night when we shared that kiss… it was really special to me. Something I've wanted for a long time… but… there's something I need to tell you."
"Okay." She said a little concerned but a little hopeful at the same time.
JC stared down at his hands as they rested in his lap.
"What is it, Josh?" she asked softly after a short silence.
"This is real hard for me. I don't know how I'm gonna say this." He thought out loud as he rubbed his face with both hands.
"Say what?" she asked rubbing his arm with her hand, "Tell me…"
JC looked at her, for the first time in two years he was having trouble talking to her. She wasn't going to like what he was about to say he didn't like it, it was going to kill him to do this considering how he felt about her but what choice did he have. He took her hand in his own. Clare's heart raced with anticipation but she knew by the look on his face alone that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear.
"Me and Alyson are going to give it another go." He said.
Clare closed her eyes, tears threatening to escape them. The words made her feel violently sick, "Okay JC, thanks for the newsflash, now I gotta get back to work." She said bitterly taking her hand from his and turning away from him as she got to her feet.
"No wait, I need to explain why." He said getting up and spinning her back around to face him.
"No you don't. You don't need to explain anything. You and Alyson are getting back together. Great. I hope you'll both be very happy together!" she said as the tears welled up in her eyes.
"Listen to me…"
"I can't listen to anymore, Josh! I can't sit here and listen to you talk about her, it hurts too damn much. It's getting harder to smile and just get past it all the time! I can't pretend I don't have these feelings for you. They're too damn strong to ignore. So leave it. Go home, I don't want you here anymore!"
JC sighed as Clare walked away from him. He could see the tears now running down her face. He knew how much this was hurting her, it was hurting him too but Alyson was carrying his child and he did still love her. He'd never love her like he loved Clare but he had to give their relationship a try, for his child's sake.
He looked helplessly at Clare as she stood looking through the window out to the front of the building. He walked over to the stereo and found the CD he knew she had with the song he wanted to play for her. He placed it in the CD player and pressed play before he left her listening to it. All I am, all I'll be, Everything in this world, all that I'll ever need, Is in your eyes, shining at me When you smile I can feel all my passion unfolding Your hand brushes mine and a thousand sensations seduce me 'cos I I do, cherish you for the rest of my life You don't have to think twice I will love you still from the depths of my soul It's beyond my control I've waited so long to say this to you If you're asking do I love you this much, I do In my world, before you, I lived outside my emotions, didn't know where I was going, 'Til that day I found you, how you opened my life to a new paradise In a world torn by change Still with all my heart 'til my dying day I do, cherish you for the rest of my life You don't have to think twice I will love you still from the depths of my soul It's beyond my control I've waited so long to say this to you If you're asking do I love you this much, Baby I do

Clare stood and watched JC leave, her heart breaking, first Libby goes in hospital and now this. Why had he decided to try again with Alyson? She wished she'd let him explain now. She felt like she was being punished for something; she'd never experienced this much pain in her whole life before.

~~~~~*~~~~~ Jamie sat at home typing away on her laptop, she still had loads of final arrangements to do for the tour and the pile of paperwork on her desk was getting higher. Chris had gone up to bed and she'd promised him it wouldn't be long before she'd be up to get some sleep, that was three hours ago.
She rubbed her eyes and squinted at the clock on the wall, 2:00. She sighed heavily and looked back at the screen on the computer. Spending this long in front of her laptop could not be good for her eyes.
"Are you still up?" she heard a sleepy voice ask.
She looked around at her cousin and smiled, "Yeah, only don't tell Chris, the last thing I need is earache from him."
"Too late." Kelly responded glancing at the doorway where Chris stood, before she disappeared with the glass of water she got herself.
"It's after two, why are you still up?" he asked as he walked over stretching on his way.
"Don't start on me Chris, I've got to get this done." Jamie said closing her eyes and then quickly opening them again.
"Sorry, but it's my duty as your boyfriend to give you all the grief I possibly can, especially when I can see the affect all this work is having on you!"
There was a silence.
Jamie looked at the screen and started tapping at the keys again. She sighed as she realised she'd made a mistake and began to tap at the 'Delete' key.
"Okay, that's it. Bed!" Chris said turning the computer away from her. "You can't work all day and all night in front of that thing!"
"But I've got to…"
"No! You're starting to make mistakes so you'll only end up having to re-do it anyway."
He shut down the computer and dragged Jamie into her bedroom. She collapsed onto the mattress and groaned in pain.
"Backache?" Chris asked her as he sat on the bed next to her.
Jamie nodded.
"Turn over I'll give you a massage." He continued.
Jamie lay on her stomach and 5 minutes into her massage was fast asleep. ~~~~~ A Couple of Days Later ~~~~~ It was Clare's turn to sit with Libby so she sat in the hospital room doing some work for the fan club. She looked up at the clock 8:30, time for a little break.
"I'm just going to get a coffee and a bit of fresh air." She said to her friend before she left the room.
As Clare sat in the gardens of the hospital she rested her head back on the tree she was propped up against and closed her eyes.
"Penny for them." She heard a voice say from above her.
She opened her eyes and smiled wearily, "Hey Rose, what you been up to?"
"Rehearsals for the tour." Sara replied as she sat down next to Clare on the grass.
There was a short silence.
"So come on tell me what's been going on with you. I've been so wrapped up in work and coming here that I haven't had time to catch up with you," Clare said rubbing her face, trying to shake the tiredness from her body. "I wanna forget my problems so tell me something good that's happened to you, make me smile, how is that gorgeous brother of yours?"
Sara smiled, "He's fine. He's flying in from France next week for a couple of days so we're gonna go clubbin' and do some stuff together. You should come with us!"
"Thanks but I don't think so. I've got too much work to get through, and anyway you and Jason will want to catch up, you won't want me hangin' around."
"Come on you deserve a break and you know that if you don't say yes Jason will get you to change your mind."
Clare smiled and remembered back to the time when she wouldn't go clubbing with them before. ~~~~~FLASHBACK~~~~~ It was 6 months ago… wintertime. Jason had asked her to go out with them to celebrate Christmas with him before he had to fly out to Italy on a modelling job.
When she'd refused saying she had to work, Jason had sat on her lap for an hour until her legs went numb from his weight.
"You gonna come clubbin' with me?" he asked again.
"No way Blondie I've got too much work to do." She said trying to push him off her lap.
"Not the answer I wanted!" he said as he stood up and scooped her up in his arms. He carried her into the bathroom, as she screamed at him to put her down, and placed her in the shower cubicle - fully clothed.
He paced his hand on the water dial, "You gonna come with us?"
"I can't!"
He turned the water on and changed the temperature to cold. She screamed and tried to jump out but Jason closed the door on the cubicle and leaned on it making her stay where she was until she agreed to go with them, half an hour later. He'd always been a practical joker and stubborn too, he never took no for an answer. ~~~~~~END OF FLASHBACK~~~~~~ ~~~~~*~~~~~ Lance and Jenny sat on the deck at the rear of his new Florida home cuddled up looking at the stars. She had some bad news for him. They had started dating just after Libby had gone into hospital but no one really knew because they hadn't had much contact of late. Clare was always at work or at the hospital. Sara was always working. Jamie had the re-schedule of the tour to do as well as spending some time with Chris. Lisa and Joey were always together and they never knew where JC and Justin got to although they could guess it'd be the hospital.
"So what's this bad news?" Lance asked Jenny as he wrapped his arms tighter around her.
"I've got to go back to Missouri." She told him.
"When?"
"In a week or two. My mom is ill and when this semester is over I want to go back to be with her."
"Is it serious?"
"Pretty much… the doctors think it's treatable so she'll be okay, I just want to be there with her."
"Well I'll be busy with the tour but you better call everyday."
"I will."
Lance bowed down and kissed her. He was going to miss the cuddles and the nights like this when they'd sit under the stars but understood, if it were his mother he'd do the same. Jenny closed her eyes and remembered a poem she'd written called 'The Purple Dove'. The dove is a sign of peace The dove is a sigh of love But only us two people Know of the purple dove. When night stars are shining and twinkling up above Always keep an eye out for the purple dove It flits so fast across the sky; it brings back old memories to me As you sit and watch it fly by, you'll know it was sent by me. From the night sky it came, telling you I miss you Its soft coo reminds me of your voice, so distant and far away If your eyes were open you missed it For it's only in our minds But when the sun goes down and there's only night sky If you see a purple dove remember that a loved one sent it from afar She says she misses you and wishes you were here. But only if you're true to me will the purple dove appear. So sing a song of peace, sing a song of love Sing a song of glory and the purple dove.

Chapter 18: Ring Of Hate. Back