Ebony

Prologue

She pushed the heavy oak door and it creaked loudly as it opened, interrupting the deathly silence. Miss Mackintosh the secretary barely acknowledged her as she signalled for Ebony to go through to see the Principal. She was so busy trying to calm herself that she didn’t see Jake come hurtling through the Heads door, practically knocking her flying as he ran out.

"Sorry, I, uh didn’t see you there, catch you later?" he said smiling as he hurried past her. She watched, confused, as one of her few friends ran down the corridor away from her, leaving her alone to face the him.

Ebony recomposed herself, putting her hair back neatly into place, straightening her clothes out, and held her head defiantly as she entered, "You wanted to see me, Sir?" He looked up at her quickly over his spectacles

"Miss Jackson. Take a seat . . .There has been an allegation made against you." He barely paused for breath as he continued. "A boy in your class has been sent to the school nurse with a badly bruised shin." He then paused as if for dramatic tension and so to add emphasis onto what he was about to say. His eyes remained sceptical behind his thickset glasses and his mildly wrinkled face held a firm expression.

"So? What did you do?" His seemed kind enough and yet he obviously expected to be answered. ‘He’s asking me a question he already knows the answer to;' she thought, 'what’s the point?’

She sighed, and spoke with no enthusiasm or tone "I was sent here because I kicked Craig." The principle’s eyebrows raised, causing an ageing ripple effect across his forehead. "You’d better have a good reason for this young lady, come on, spit it out"

She sighed again as though the world rested upon her shoulders, "He tried it on with me and so I said no, he wouldn’t take the answer so I gave it to him good. There’s nothing wrong with sticking up for yourself is there, sir?" She tried to smile angelically, as though that would help in some small way.

He simply looked at her with a puzzled expression and sighed, the sunlight poured through the window and Ebony could see his thinning grey-white hair which was spread evenly across the top of his head. But he didn’t smile. Instead he just stared at her glumly for a few moments before saying.

"You do realise that you are already one of the students under close observation and you are coming very close to your last chance before being suspended don’t you? You aso are aware are you not that I do not make idle threats. I’ll be keeping my eye on you." With a nod that signalled the end of the conversation, he looked away and continued with his work. Ebony took this to mean that she was no longer required to be there. As she arose to leave he re-summoned her,

"Oh, and Ebony."

"Yes sir?"

"I’ll see you tomorrow after school for the start of your detention, with Craig. You can work out your differences properly then. Close the door behind you please."

With that she left. And headed down the now empty corridor, alone.

CHAPTER 1

"Hello. Anybody home?" Ebony called to the empty house. She walked over to the large bay window at the front of the house and peered out to see if anyone was returning. At that moment her 12-year-old brother Jamie ran into the house undetected by Ebony and banged the door behind him.

"Hello Jamie." She said, her voice heavily laden with distaste. She knew who it was without having to look.

He ignored her and went straight to the computer to play his favourite games, which Ebony detested. He’d been quieter and less inclined to argue back since Hannah had gone. He’s the one who’s changed the most, she thought as she went to the bathroom, where the drugs were kept and took out her bottle of her pills. She took her dose for the day and retired to her room to wait for them to work their magic.

Ebony’s room was unlike any other in the house, instead of the pastel coloured walls and airy-fairy wall hangings that once were there, her room was now blackened and had de-faced toys hanging from the ceiling. It used to be a happy room, bright colours and posters of her favourite bands. But when Hannah had contracted Leukaemia at the tender age of thirteen and non-of the family had been a suitable match to help her, she'd died and for the months since then Ebony and her family had died inside too.

Her and her sister Hannah had had rooms next to each other, and they hadn’t yet been able to bear to move Hannah’s belongings out. Even if her parents had wanted to, Ebony would have not let them. The room was still kept as though Hannah was going to come back. Of course she wasn’t, everyone knew that, but some how, they couldn’t let go of her, not yet, it was still too soon, it seemed disrespectful, wrong somehow. Her mother and father had had counselling, but her brother and her had refused. It hadn’t helped their parents, so it was unlikely to help them.

She could feel the drugs taking her, numbing her mind, the peeling paint on her windowsill went in and out of focus, her eyes became heavy, and sleep came to her.

"Ebony? Ebony? Come on down now please, I have something to ask you." Her mother's voice slashed through her thoughts like a rusty blade. She was shaken back to reality and out of her world of morbid memories and sleep. The toy she had been cradling was a tatty old rusty coloured teddy that she had recieved when she was about two years old, when Hannah had been born. Hannah had one exactly the same, and somehow, it still seemed to smell of her.

"Ebony. I had a call today. Guess who from?" It was a statement rather than a question.

"Bethany, perhaps?" She said with convicted sarcasm.

"Don’t try and be funny young lady. It was the Principle, he said that you’d been called to his office for the third time this week, this week! What has been going on? He wasn’t going to phone me but since you were becoming violent, then he had to inform me. Now he also told me why you did it, but honey, that’s no reason to kick him that hard. Now you are grounded till the school trip all right?" She didn't wait for a reply. "Now go help your brother get the table ready please and I don’t want to hear about any of this again . . . Understood."

Without even waiting to hear what Ebony had to say, she stalked out of the room and left Ebony sitting alone and annoyed on the couch staring angrily at the pattern on the carpet which suddenly fascinated her. She gritted her teeth, clenched and unclenched her fists to keep her from running after her mum, and screaming at her. "I don’t have to answer to you!" She remained where she was. She didn’t want to be involved in another of those rows, the ones where Ebony was never allowed to win.

CHAPTER 2

"Hi Ebony. Hey what happened in his office yesterday? Are you in trouble or did you manage to get away with it?" Bethany, Ebony's best friend greeted her with her normal enthusiasm.

"I have five days of detention where me and Mr, ‘I can get any girl I want’ have to work out our differences 'peacefully'. I can’t wait!" She joked with her dark haired friend.

Bethany and Ebony had been friends for as long as they could both remember. They were so different and yet never argued. Ebony was very beautiful with the perfect figure and appeared to most to have the perfect life, she was tall, dark-haired with model looks. She had come to possess a fiery temper that had recently started to display itself. Bethany on the other hand was petite and had longish auburn hair, which fell softly to her hips. She was an animal lover who liked every one to be happy and was so quiet and peaceful that she was often over looked by boys. She did not have the same killer looks as Ebony but she was pretty and well filled out. She was the only one, other than her cousin Jake, who had ever had a glimpse at Ebony's true self; Ebony could be herself with Bethany, and could be relaxed and funny with her, as she used to be, instead of the guarded individual she had become, who had to defend her every word.

They walked towards the entrance and were met by Jake, Bethany’s cousin. "Hi you guys. Are you going to the football match after school?" His closely cropped hair shone in the early morning sun. He continued, " Me, Ben and Caleb are gonna be playing." He was very close to his cousin and the four who had once existed had often played together as children.

Ebony really missed Hannah, as did Bethany and Jake. They had all been special friends up until about a year ago. It had all changed. Her sister had contracted Leukaemia and died, now her world was bleak and hopeless. She no longer saw the point in trying, everything was useless and the things that used to excite her and make her happy, now only served the purpose of making her miserable and caused her to again look to the past for answers she sought and knew she wouldn’t find. Her friends had been there for her, said ‘I know exactly how you’re feeling’ when it was perfectly obvious that they didn’t. The only person other than Hannah who had seen her cry about it all was Bethany. Everyone else thought she was doing fine.

The rest of Ebony’s lessons went as well as could be expected and at lunch she met up with Bethany at the cafeteria.

"Hey Beth, how were your lessons?" She asked in a light hearted tone.

"Not so good, you know how boring they are, I actually fell asleep in three of them! Oh by the way, are you going on the school trip to California before the dance?"

"I hope so, because people are saying that it’s going to be really good this year and guess what most of the time is going to be spent on the beach. We could just sit and chat, and then we also have about a zillion dances and formal meals to go to! You are coming right?"

"I'm really sorry, I can't come Ebony." After watching her best friends face fall she quickly added, "Dad told me that I have to go up to his apartment in New York. I know, I know, I was really looking forward to going but I really can't. He wants me to spend some ‘quality’ time with him. I mean, we could have spent some ‘quality’ time together some other time, but the more I said I wanted to go to the trip, the more insistent he was. " They sat down at their regular table started their lunch. Ebony was disappointed that Bethany couldn't come, she’d been so looking forward to having a great time with her.

A few minutes later they noticed the familiar silhouette of Craig walking up to them. Great. Here we go again!" She thought. Just what I need, him again, doesn’t he ever get the message.

"Hello Craig." She said unenthusiastically.

"Ebony. I need to talk to you." He glanced over towards Bethany. "In private." He added as he motioned with his head to the door. Ebony followed him obediently to an empty classroom on the other side of the hall.

"What’s going on Craig?" She glared at him with a look of pure venom, her eyebrow raised and arms crossed, hoping he’d get the message to hurry things up.

He returned the look with equal disdain, then his face softened and he glanced at the floor. "Look, I just want to know why you tried to disable me yesterday. I was only trying to be friendly, I…"

She didn’t let him finish. "Friendly! Ha! That’s a joke! You were practically tickling my windpipe with your tongue! That’s not my idea of being friendly." She looked at him defiantly as her voice raised. Craig flinched as if he'd been hit. As she was about to leave the room, Craig grabbed her arm.

"Where are you going? I haven’t finished talking to you yet."

"Yeah? Well I’ve finished listening." With that she pushed past him, left the room and returned to Bethany. She could hear him calling her, but carried on walking. Not wanting to talk to him, at all.

~

On the way home that evening, after she'd said goodbye to Bethany and Jake, she felt as though some one's eyes were watching her. Dusk was settling and it gave everything a shadowy feeling. Ebony quickened her pace and looked slowly behind her shoulder and clutched her books frantically to her chest. It was the second time that day that she'd had the feeling of being followed and it was beginning to spook her. She spun round suddenly and called to the growing dark,

"Hello?" she was desperately trying to keep the rising panic out of her voice. Her house was coming into view now and she still had not shaken the feeling of being followed.

I can't lead who ever it is to my house, where can I go? She crazily questioned herself, trying to find a solution. She decided to go round the block again and hopefully lose the person on the way round. As she rounded the corner, she turned round and saw Jake's friend Ben coming towards her.

"Hi Ebony, you look freaked, are you all right?" Ebony had barely acknowledged him before answering.

"Hi . . .um, I'm fine, uh what about you?" She tried to keep her voice as pleasant and carefree as possible and to make general conversation. Her eyes shifted around looking for someone in the shadows, but her voice was directed to Ben, who had always been Jake’s friend and just outside their friendship group.

"Yeah, I'm fine, are you sure you're all right?" He looked strangely concerned, he hardly even knows me and he must think I’m mad!

"Yeah, it's kinda silly really, I thought someone was following me! Stupid huh! Well then, your, um, Jake’s friend aren’t u?" She tried to keep the conversation light, normal.

"Yes, yes I am, me and Jake go way back. About being followed, well if you think about it, it's hardly surprising really, I mean a lot of boys like you right? So it would not be entirely strange for someone to follow you, would it?" He said it so matter-of-factly that it relaxed her enough to walk straight home after quickly saying goodbye to Ben.

CHAPTER 3

Over the next few days there was a lot of hype about the trip to the sea. It was going to a two week holiday in California at the beach, they were going to stay in a three star hotel by the beach and spend most of the days on the beaches. Ebony had really been looking forward to it but now Bethany couldn’t go any more because she had to visit her Father in New York.

To Ebony, it would be two weeks of complete emptiness. While all the other girls would be desperately trying to impress the boys, Ebony would probably be reading a good book. At least Jake would be there, perhaps at least she’d have someone to talk to.

~

The coach, packed full of fidgeting, shouting teenagers pulled out of West-Miller High school at five thirty in the morning.

"We need to leave at this time so that we will arrive early enough to settle into the rooms before lunch." Miss Williams had said. Of course, no one had been paying attention, they’d been too busy finding the best seats on the coach and catching up on the latest gossip. Ebony found a nice secluded seat by the window so that she could just look out and not have to talk to anyone, or that’s what she hoped, she was thwarted from having her privacy.

Ebony looked longingly out of the window, she didn’t want to leave and go to a strange place without the security of having Bethany there to reassure her. Because Bethany wasn’t coming, she was left with no one to sit next to on the coach as Jake was sitting with Ben, so Miss Williams had assigned Robert Davies to sit next to her as he didn’t really have any friends of his own.

Ebony groaned inwardly as Robert squeezed in next to her. If he was a dork like most of the boys in her school, then he would have been very pleased to be sitting next to one of the most desirable girls in the year because and probably wouldn't have been able stop grinning stupidly at Ebony. Luckily, he was a decent person, and sat quietly next to her, so as not to disturb her. It didn't last long however and soon he was chatting away as though she was listening.

The five-hour trip was hot and humid, Ebony was feeling clammy and sweaty and she was exhausted from hearing Robert talking and talking and talking. She stopped listening to him and her mind wandered to concentrating on the outside world. She had tried to listen, but failed. . Ebony was wishing that Bethany hadn't had to go up to her fathers in New York instead of coming on the trip.

Ebony distracted herself with the beautiful scenery that surrounded the freeway. The land around was unspoilt except for the concrete path on which they travelled. There was an abundance of beautiful hills and meadows and when they got round to opening the sunroofs the fresh air flooded in, refreshing them all. She could see trees and meadows filled with flowers of a kind she did not recognise, and the occasional passing stream. She wished her life could be as carefree as the wildlife. She wanted everything back the way it was.

"...What do you think?" Roberts's words startled her.

"I’m sorry, what did you say?" She tried her best to appear to be listening; she didn’t want to be rude to everyone.

"I said do you think that Emily will go out with me, tell me what you really think?" His face was apprehensive and full of hope; his mildly greasy black hair was gleaming, and his acne glistened. Emily was the class brain, she was actually quite funny and seemed friendly enough although she was painfully shy and hung around with a small group of juniors. Ebony didn’t really know if Emily would go out with him, she seemed nice enough and they got on so she decided to give him hope.

"I think that if you can get the courage up to go and ask her yourself then I reckon that she might say yes." The look of gratitude on his face made her sincerely hope that Emily would say yes, because Robert would be totally crushed if anyone turned him down, he didn’t exactly have nerves of steel.

Ben was sitting 3 rows behind Ebony, his face shadowed by his dark features. He was sitting next to his friend Jake. Both Jake and him were on the football team and Jake was quite popular in his own right. He was strong and shared his cousin Bethany’s love of non-aggression and tranquillity. He and Ben were friends because they were compatible and enjoyed each other’s company. Not to mention the fact that they had shared many of lives experiences both good and bad.

Even though Jake was popular and had had many girlfriends, he never neglected Ben or put him down in front of his friends. Jake was quite tall with auburn curtains for hair and he had an electric smile that could drive most girls crazy. Ben was always considered to be quieter, he liked to be out of the spotlight. He did things quietly and behind the scenes, so to speak, though when he was drunk, he was totally different, and he would become abusive and aggressive. It was his weakness.

He liked Ebony, a lot. She was everything he looked for in a girl, smart, gorgeous and strong, not physically, but in personality. She never gave into the pressure of her peers. One of his aims was to get to know her better, she was so mysterious, never really speaking to anyone except Jake and Bethany. Although, they had briefly spoken the other night, he’d been walking home and had seen her in the distance looking a bit spooked, it had been his perfect opportunity to talk to her. Straightening his hair, he’d spoken to her, and she’d spoken back! He couldn't wait to see what the trip had in store.

Chapter 4

They pulled up outside Grey-Shores Hotel at 11 o’clock that morning. The roofs towered over even the Double Decker bus. As they came to a halt, Miss Williams silenced everyone so that she could speak.

"Could I have everyone’s attention please." She gave an exasperated sigh as she tried to hold the students focus. "Look, we’re here several hours early, so if you listen now and behave, you’ll all be allowed to go to the beach till we call for you to come and get your rooms ready. Okay, so off you go and we’ll call you. Be careful out there, water can dangerous. " There were whoops of laughter and shouts of excitement as the students rushed off to go and get ready for the beach, Ebony let everyone else go past her and longed for Bethany to be here, then perhaps she would be able to enjoy herself.

Ebony peered over her shades to see many of the girls wearing the skimpiest swimsuits and bikini’s so that they could impress the boys. How sad, she thought.

As Ebony lay there idly on the golden sand, she vaguely noticed some of the boys looking at her. She chose to ignore them and put down her book, took of the baggy tee shirt to reveal a modest black swimming costume and applied some sun tan cream.

Ebony could feel the soggy sand underneath her toes and her jet-black hair swayed slightly in the light breeze. She took her first apprehensive step into the water she decided that it wasn’t quiteas bad as she’d remembered. She knew she couldn’t swim, but there weren’t many waves, so she thought she could handle it. She wouldn’t go in very far, just far enough to prove to herself that she could let go of the past.

She’d never liked water very much, she was scared of it. Her and Hannah had played in it all the time, until a boy who used to live up their street had drowned whilst playing with them, and she’d nearly drowned with him, only, she’d survived because he’d helped her, he’d drowned. She’d never forgotten him, he’d been one of her earliest memories. Since then, neither her nor Hannah had ever ventured into the water.

The water was cold, but she walked on, smiling to herself, willing herself not to chicken out and run back to the security of the beach. She almost did several times, she wanted to scream and run back to shore and huddle in the sand. But she gritted her teeth and waded against the wetness.

The waves increased in size, and her former courage left her as quickly as it had come. The quickest way she could see to get back to dry land was by getting to one of the smaller cliffs surrounding that part of the beach. She began to wade towards it furiously, hoping that the tide would not carry her away. She didn’t have time to go back to shore. "why did I insist on being courageous, today of all days!’

As she reached the rocks, the waves were now almost as high as she was and utterly terrifying. She stretched out her hand to latch onto the rock and as she was hauling herself up to safety, a wave nearly twice her height threw her violently under the current., smashing her against the stony ground Her grip of the rock face was thwarted and she was taken away with the water.

It engulfed her, like a cold deadly blanket. It had her in it’s powerful grip and didn’t want to let her go. Ebony realised that no one was around and began to accept that this was probably it. She was going to die, going to see Hannah again and she would finally get to thank William for saving her life the first time, ironic really, he saver her only to die the same way ten years later.

Ben was enjoying swimming with Jake in the deeper water. They were splashing around, surfing and ducking each other under. Ben moved away from Jake slightly to join some of his other friends.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jake spotted Ebony near one of the smaller cliffs. The waves in the water were progressively getting bigger and bigger over that part of the bay and then suddenly his view of the sun and the cliff, were briefly lost by a huge wave. It passed came over to where they were and over him without any trouble but when it finally dissolved away, he couldn’t see her anywhere. I’m just being paranoid, he thought, she’ll be here somewhere. Just find her, stop being so silly, he scolded himself. But the more carefully he looked, the less he saw her and he started to panic.

Then he spotted Ebony’s long black hair bobbing on the surface and her arms were splashing around wildly, he knew that she would never call for help but she would continue to try to swim until she drowned. He also remembered the story about William, and how Ebony had nearly drowned once but was saved by William. "why did she even go in the water, she has never tried before, why now?’

Chapter 5

He forced his way forward through the thickness of the water to get to the spot where he’d seen her. The water hung around his body heavily, holding him back as he tried to get close enough to help her. As he got closer, he could see that she was still conscious and that she was struggling to get her head above water, she gurgled as she tried to breathe. He jumped forward and swung his hand effortlessly under her head and scooped her body easily up and out of the water. Ebony struggled and tried to release herself from his strong grip. But he was stronger. He held onto her and swam with all his power back to shore.

Jake hauled Ebony towards the shore and for the first time realised that the crowd that had formed was watching him. As he reached the beach, he placed her gently on the floor and Ebony started to splutter and cough. He breathed a sigh of relief. Jake decided that this was a good time to collapse in a heap on the floor, he was exhausted and didn’t see her run until it was too late.

Ebony opened her eyes and spluttered. She then realised that there was a group of people standing over her. As soon as she was able she pushed the closest people away and staggered as fast as her trembling legs would carry her limp body towards the rocks. People called her name but she simply kept on running, she ran until she was totally alone and then she collapsed in a heap onto a floor of sand. She couldn't believe what was happening, and with a startled cry, the dam broke, her body was shaking and her mind was a blur.

When the sobbing subsided she shakily realised how close she'd come to drowning, she now knew how stupid she was to have even gone in the water because she knew she couldn't swim, even to save her own miserable life. She should never have tried to go into the water, knowing that someone had died in it, she had nearly followed, again.

If only he'd let her be, then perhaps she could be happy right now with her sister, her heart ached just thinking about how Hannah would have loved this trip. If only. Two words she despised and yet somehow drew comfort from.

"… This is where you’ve gone." A voice jolted her away from her thoughts. It was then that she recognised him.

"Jake!" She was relieved that it was Jake and not anyone else. She almost ran to hug him, then decided against it.

"We were all really worried about you…" She cut him off. "Please forget about it. Thank you for helping me, but I wish you hadn’t . . .I wish…I" She could feel the sob's starting up again, but swallowed them back, still in shock. She composed herself. "Thanks Jake, trust you to be there." She was going for humour and so tried a weak smile, but only managed tears.

"Hush." Jake was trying his best to console her but she feebly pushed him away. He was her only friend here and she pushed him away, ‘how stupid am I?’ She thought.

He'd always cared about her, he still did. When Bethany had introduced them Ebony was a quiet, fun loving character, but recently, since Hannah had died, she'd somehow . . .changed. Of course, Bethany and he had stuck by her and had continued to treat her like their sister. Jake hated to see her upset and he tenderly helped her back to her feet.

As they were walking back towards the beach, firstly they saw thankfully that the crowd had dispersed and everyone was getting back to normal. And secondly they noticed that Ben was making his way up towards them.

Chapter 6

Ebony groaned. She tried her best to break free and run away but Jake held her firm. They greeted each other with pleasantries and then the three of them walked back to the beach where Miss Williams was desperately trying to get everyone into order so that they could go to the hotel to sign in.

Ebony had been assigned to room 7A, along with 3 other girls. She was the last to get in and found the other 3 had already chosen beds. They all turned round as she entered the room. At first they just stared at her and then a short round girl with frizzy untamed hair and a smile as wide as her hips broke the silence,

"Hi." She caught her in a bear hug. "We're so glad that you could join our room, there were only three of us and Miss Williams asked us if we'd take you on so we said of course we would." She stopped for a short breath and said, "Look you can share a bunk with me. By the way my names Elizabeth, but every one calls me Lizzy."

Her smile continued to radiate her blonde-framed face. Ebony didn't get a chance to say anything in the way of an introduction, before Lizzy continued, "This is AJ," She said, motioning to the girl in the far corner, top bunk. AJ barely acknowledged her before turning back to her magazine. "She doesn't like meeting new people." Lizzy whispered before moving swiftly on, "And this, is Emily."

"Hi." Emily spoke softly as though there was a baby sleeping in some hidden corner of the room. She had a fresh face splashed gently with freckles. "What's your name?" Emily asked quietly. Even though they were in the same year, Emily wasn't known for her knowledge of seniors, she seemed to prefer juniors as friends.

"Hi. I'm Ebony Jackson."

Lizzy gasped, "You’re the Ebony Jackson, the one who all the senior boys love!" She could hardly contain herself, she was practically bouncing off the ceiling. "Wow!" She gasped again.

"Ebony Jackson." The voice was low and held a certain authority to it, "Yeah, I've heard a lot about you."

Ebony turned back to face AJ; her menacing features were focused on Ebony venomously. "What’s that supposed to mean?" She challenged.

"You're that slut who think she's got every lad kissing the ground she walks on. Look, just 'coz you got good looks doesn't mean your better than the rest of us and we ain't gonna let you come in here and walk all over us . . . You'd better watch it, you've got more enemies than friends."

Her fierce scowl sent shivers through Ebony, she had to compose herself quickly and stared at the girl who's short black hair and thick black eyeliner shading her green eyes and reminded Ebony of a gothic old gypsy she'd seen at a fair once.

"I'm not a slut." Ebony glared at AJ, her features frozen in the most superior gaze she could muster. "What reasoning have I ever given you since I walked through that door." She pointed to the half-open door for dramatic impact, "To think that I'm a slut! You don't even know who I am!" She was shouting now, hardly able to control herself, tears of frustration and injustice were coming, but she continued her plight.

"What right do you have to judge me. I've only just this minute walked through the door and you have it already stuck in your brain that I'm a slut! How dare you!" She had to breathe heavily to stop her from passing out or hyperventilating. Ebony couldn't understand why she'd got so mad, it wasn't like her, and maybe she was subconsciously doing something that Hannah would have done.

AJ just stared at her, "I'm . . . sorry. I didn't realise, I uh, well, yeah, I had no right." She hung her head. "I'm sorry." She whispered. She smiled an apologetic smile and Ebony could feel herself slowly calming down.

"It's okay." She smiled a sad slow smile. Hannah had always spoken her mind just like AJ, only without the makeup. That’s probably why she’d got so mad. "Would you all please excuse me for a moment?" She put her suitcases onto the bottom bunk in the corner and quickly left the room, she could feel a migraine of frustration coming on.

Ben was in a room with Jake, Craig and Craig's friend West. West and Craig were in the popular crowd at school and had been forced to go in the same room as Jake and Ben.

Ben looked around their room, it was a small room with light blue curtains at the small bay window facing the sun. There were four beds in bunk bed formation, and the walls were a pleasant pastel blue. Ben thought he would be happy in room 6C.

Ebony made her way quickly towards Jake's room-he was her only friend on camp-she was watching out desperately for the number of his room. What was it again? 7D, 4E, oh I don't know. Oh here it is, at last, 6C. Ebony was relieved as she made the final approach, she slumped her withered body heavily against the wall next to the door. She could see the dots in front of her eyes, that meant her migraine was now here and with it she had the sinking feeling that the holiday was going to get worse, much worse.

"Oh. Hello again, Ebony. Which room are you in?" Craig's cocky voice slashed through her brain and helped her migraine to grow.

"Why do you care Craig?" She kept her voice as even as possible and tried her best to get rid of him quickly.

At that moment Jake popped his head around the door and his greeting smile faded and died on his lips as he saw her face distorted in pain. "Hey, what's wrong Ebony?" As he peered closer he turned to Craig. "Get lost jerk, go see if West needs you. Go on, make yourself useful for once." With that Craig dissolved quickly back into 6C. Jake turned his concerned eyes back onto Ebony. "Ebony, are you okay?"

"Huh?"

"I said are you all right? Does your head hurt?" As she tried to nod, the knot in the back of head spread quickly to the front of her eyes, she squeezed them shut as if it would help, it didn’t.

"I just need to . . .to sit down." She slid further down the wall and held her head in her hands as if in some way it would help to block out the pain. Go away Jake, she silently pleaded, I can't let you see me like this. Aloud she said,

"Just leave me alone, it'll pass over in a few minutes. Go, I'll be . . . " she winced, " . . . fine."

"Look, I'm not prepared to leave you like this . . ." He never finished his sentence.

"Jake! Do you wanna go down to the game room before . . .oh. Are you all right?"

Ben's puzzled and concerned expression made Ebony feel even more helpless and exposed. Her eyes closed and as the pain subsided slightly, she decided to leave before anyone else saw her.

As she tried to stand and stumbled, she felt a strong cool hand steady her to her feet. She wished they'd leave her alone, she hated people to see her weak, the only person who had was Bethany and she wasn't there to help.

The new height sent fresh waves of dizzy pain hurtling through her body and her eyes re-shut to block out the faces peering at her steadily, searching her face.

"Get away from me. I don't need any help . . .Really. " She tried to sound convincing but Jake could hear her struggling for breath. She pushed away their helping hands and as soon as she was physically able she stumbled quickly away, pulling herself along the walls pulling clear of them. Slowly she turned round to see Ben and Jake still behind her, the pain had almost vanished now so she felt more able to cope with them. When one of them touched her side to steady her she spun around, the pain finally almost gone.

"Look, I'm fine." She jumped up as if to prove her point. Maybe she jumped to fast because the next thing she was aware of was bright blue stars clouding her vision and suddenly being hauled steadily into someone's lap.

"What . . . happened?" She gazed questioningly into Jake's eyes. He smiled uncertainly.

"You passed out." He said simply.

"Yeah, you gave us quite a shock." Ben's face appeared from behind Jake. "Do you want us to get the school nurse? Has it happened before?" His puzzled face questioned hers. I really have to get out of here. She thought.

She steadied herself before getting up and out of Jake's lap. He was about to protest when at that moment a small group of girls came round the corner and started talking to Ben and Jake and she used that time to escape out of there way. As she reached the outside doors and the fresh air which swept her face wiped away the last traces of pain. I really should stop taking those pills, she thought sarcastically. Ebony had started to take a special brand of pills. They were to help her to get over her sisters' death. This afternoon, she had taken slightly more than required, just in case. Now though, she didn't know if it had been such a good idea.

She vaguely remembered reading on the packet that if you took too many, you could get headaches, or if you were on them too long you’d get them to.

"Where's Ebony gone?" Ben spun his head round and surveyed the empty corridor. The girls had left and they were just beginning to realise that Ebony was no longer with them.

"She could be anywhere by now . . ."

" I'm sure she'll be fine." Ben said. "We'll see her at dinner. It didn’t look like she wanted us there anyway, lets let her be." Slowly they walked back to 6C.

Ebony sat outside for a few minutes to let her head cool down. The grass was soft and well kept. She wanted to stay here forever; it was almost perfect. But, she knew she had to go back ot the room and face AJ, As she approached the room she could hear Lizzy pep talking the others for dinner.

"Six minutes till dinner, c'mon you guys we have to be ready . . .oh, hi Ebony, where've you been, you've only got a few minutes left till dinner. What do you want to wear?" Lizzy's happy chatter sent pangs of remorse through her. Hannah had always been happy-go-lucky and a free spirit, but now she'd never have the chance to be so again. Ebony choked back tears and only managed a strained smile in response to Lizzy's words. "I don't know. I'm sure I'll find something."

"Yeah but we're eating in the restaurant downstairs, you know, posh frocks only, type thing?" AJ didn't seem the type to care about protocol, and it surprised Ebony to see her busying herself getting into a simple loose fitting dress with black spaghetti straps. "You look real nice AJ." Ebony looked at AJ in a new light, instead of thick black eyeliner and black lipstick, she wore her short spiky hair in a loose pony tail. Her makeup was simple and showed off her finely chiselled cheekbones. And naturally perfect complexion.

Lizzy looked just as great in a pair of slimming black loose fitting trousers and a simple light pink halter neck top. Her hair had obviously been attacked with frizz-ease and hung tamely around her shoulders. Emily had just appeared out of the bath room, her long copper-brown hair fell softly at her waist and she had an amazing gentleness about her, she smiled pleasantly at Ebony who thought, Robert will be really happy with her.

" . . .going to wear?" Ebony stumbled over her words, "Oh, I don't know, I'll probably . . . I have no idea, what do you suggest?"

"I know, I know!" Lizzy was jumping around again. "You can wear my sisters long black dress, it’s probably just the right size and it’ll look really nice! That is if you want to." Lizzy looked almost bashful at her own enthusiastic outburst.

Chapter 7

The restaurant had been specially rented for the occasion. The tables were set out with candles and lacy table clothes and the whole room had been dimmed romantically.

Ebony and her newly found friends sat at one of the bigger tables where there were several seats left. Ebony had suggested this table because it would be private and she was less likely to be disturbed by anyone.

"Shall we go and sit with Ebony and her friends?" The pleading in Ben's voice was too much for Jake to resist, he tugged nervously at his tuxedo collar and motioned to his other friends. "Hey! Craig, West. Do you guys want to come and sit with Ben and me at Ebony's table? There’s plenty of room."

Ebony groaned inwardly as a group of boys approached their table, Lizzy grinned and giggled and Emily and AJ looked at each other amused. Great! She thought, just what I need! She looked bleakly across the table and politely greeted the new comers. For the whole of the evening Ebony tried her best to ignore the concerned looks coming her way from both Ben and Jake, and concentrated on outwardly enjoying herself. The food was good, and she noted that Ben had drunk a lot of alcohol. He looked really drunk.

The conversation was light, if not shallow, and so Ebony found herself staring pointlessly at the table. As the evening finished and everyone was preparing to leave, Jake gently grabbed her arm and whispered, "Why have you ignored me all night?"

She forced herself to look up at him, "I . . . I haven't." She replied weakly and turned her head away. When she turned back she saw that Jake's eyes were on hers and they searched her face with worried eyes.

"Where did you go before? We were worried." His eyes continued to stare through hers as though peering into her soul, Ebony shivered. "Are you cold do you want my coat?" She shook her head no thank you; he tried again. "Can I walk you back to your room?"

"I suppose so." She replied teasingly, her voice momentarily light. She followed him towards the door and turned to her table companions to say, "I'll, um see you guys later on, okay?" She didn't wait for a reply and ignored her friends' suggestive looks, took Jake's arm and left the room.

Ben watched as Ebony took Jake's arm and speedily left. He couldn't believe it, Jake knew how he felt about her, how could he lure her away from him! How dare he! He followed them as they left the restaurant and stayed out of their view as they went up the stairs. The alcohol in him was making him act on what he saw rather than thinking rationally. The beast was awakened.

As they walked silently up the stairs, Jake closely observed Ebony. She wasn't the same carefree girl he had known and dearly loved at Junior High. He realised that a much more troubled person lay beneath that beautiful exterior.

"So." He finally said. "How did you enjoy the meal tonight?" His question was light, but Ebony sensed that he was asking a much deeper question. She glanced up at him at looked into the eyes of a life long playmate and she smiled.

They reached the right floor and turned to face each other. They needed no words as they continued to stare at one another, subdued by the silence. They failed to notice Ben lurking in the dark, watching them intently; his face masked by his newly found bitterness and drunkenness.

Jake and Ebony stood there for a moment and both contemplated their next words. It was Jake who spoke first. "Have you spoken to Bethany yet? I know it's only the end of the first day, but-"

"No, not yet. Although I did promise her I'd speak to her every day, but I haven't got her Dads number. Have you?"

"Yes. Do you want to go to the phones and we'll call her together?"

"Okay, sure." They headed arm in arm down the corridor and straight past Ben, who had pure fury in his eyes.

"Hey there you are! Where have you been?" Lizzy practically shouted. She always said every thing with an explanation mark on the end.

"I went to phone a friend back in New York."

"Oh." The disappointment on her face was clear. Ebony knew what she was thinking, that she and Jake had got it together.

"Who'd you phone?" AJ asked innocently.

"Oh. Bethany. You know, one of the seniors."

"Is she the quiet one you're always with?"

"Yeah. She wanted to come on the trip, but her parents had other plans." They left the conversation and Ebony went to finish unpacking her things.

Next to her bed she had a small wooden table. On it she placed her beloved picture of herself and Hannah, a lamp decorated with clouds and angels. How appropriate, she thought. She the picked up another picture, this time it was her special picture of Bethany, Jake, Hannah and herself at a fair just over a year ago, and placed it tenderly next to the other picture. Lastly she picked up another framed picture. This time it had her whole family on, or at least how they used to be.

"She's pretty. Who is she?" Ebony turned around to face Lizzy looking curiously at the pictures featuring Hannah.

Ebony clutched them to her and stumbled over an answer. "I, um, uh. She was my sister, Hannah." Tears swelled up at even the mention of her name. "Um, would you excuse me please?" Lizzy mumbled an apology at asking an intrusive question, and smiled apologetically. Ebony whispered that it was ok and quickly stumbled out of the room and headed for the outside.

As soon as she had stumbled on the grass by a large tree, the tears came rapidly. She cried silently for a while, her whole body shaking. "Oh, Hannah." She cried. "Why did you have to leave me all alone. I miss you so much." She whimpered. She stood up shakily and steadied herself before walking to the beach edge. It was late at night and the stars were clearly visible. Her cheeks were still wet from her tears. She loved it outside, it was how she imagined heaven to be.

As she approached the beach, she noticed someone walking all alone across it. She realised it was Ben and called to him to wait. He ignored her and carried on walking. This angered her and so she ran after him, as she got closer, she called to him and asked why he didn’t wait. He turned around and she jumped as he did, because she’d never seen him so angry. His face was screwed up with hatred and his features distorted.

"You were with him!" He spat on the ground beside him, she could smell the alcohol on his breath.

"What? With who?" she was puzzled

"You were with HIM! Jake, your ‘friend’, Jake, who else?"

"I don’t see why that should bother you Ben, why does it?"

"I see I have to spell it out, I like you, you like him, he likes you, that’s the circle we’re in, get it?" He spoke as though instructing a young child, he spat involuntarily and she wiped the beer off her face.

"Oh" is all she could manage at such short notice. She was shocked really, because she’d never seen anyone look so hateful and spiteful all in one go, and she didn’t like it.

He just glared at her as though refusing to speak to her. She gathered herself. She wasn’t having any of it.

"Look. You don’t know me, so how could you ‘like’ me? Jake and I are friends, I thought you were his friend as well, why are you objecting to him talking to me, it’s not like we’re a couple or anything! How dare you! Who do you think you are! What’s your problem? You were so nice to me before, why so nasty now? Oh, I remember, it’s because your drunk!"

She was finding it hard to control her temper, how dare he do this! He was just looking at her with more bitterness and venom than any one could imagine a single person containing. She was confused, every other time she’d seen him, he was quiet and meek, and she didn’t like the new personality.

His eyes met hers and a measured, slow voice came out and replied, "Fine. I accept that I don’t know you, so why don’t I get to know you a little better tomorrow?" A slow smile played on his lips. "We can talk then, and you Jake and me can sit together and talk this out, O.K?"

"O.K, since I can’t be bothered to fight anymore, I agree, I’ll talk to you tomorrow, happy now? Can we please go back?"

He nodded and they started walking back to the hotel, he was staggering, she knew he was completely out of it and hoped he would be properly sober by the morning.

The night was no longer young, and retiring to her bed was the only thought on Ebony’s mind. As they approached the hotel, she gasped involuntarily, it looked so haunting at night. There were no happy shadows, no cheery voices, it seemed more like a prison, or a . . .morgue. She shuddered at the thought as memories of Hannah flooded into vivid motion. She was confused. She didn’t know what she wanted to what to do, she was dreading talking to Ben tomorrow, she knew he’d only drag up hers and Jake’s past.

Chapter 8

"Wake up! Wake up Ebony . . .Come on!" Lizzy shook Ebony into consciousness and jumped around in early morning glee.

Groggily, Ebony replied, ""Hey. What time is it?" She looked over at the clock.

"Why have u got me up so early?" She turned to see everyone in the room beaming at her, including AJ, with her cool seriousness, smiled warmly at her.

"Some thing came for you this morning." Emily spoke softly even though everyone was already awake.

AJ leaped forward and handed her a box. Ebony delicately undid the red ribbon and then gently removed the wrapping paper from the box. The box was smallish and white. She opened it with the room hooked on her every move. Inside was a small photo frame with it’s back staring out at Ebony. She turned it over and gasped. There, looking right out at her was Hannah. Just looking at her. Attached to the photo frame was a letter. She unfolded it and read.

Hey Ebony! How’s life treating you? Hope everything is well. Well, I’ll be seeing you later. Much love, your sister always Hannah XXX

Chapter 9

At first she thought it was a joke, but then she looked at the handwriting and realised it was her sisters’ hand. She was stunned, there were two whole seconds when she couldn’t do anything. But then her seconds ceased and Ebony leaped from her bed, dropping the photo and letter onto the floor and ran into the bathroom, she barely had time to shut the door before she began throwing up. She could hear in the far off distance the girls calling to her and asking her what was wrong.

She reached up to the cupboard and took out her anti-depression pills, she’d been on them since a few weeks after her sister died. She’d taken out another prescription for this holiday, but today, she wanted to make extra sure she would be happy. So Ebony took three more than recommended, she felt no immediate after affects so she thought she’d be fine, and actually, she felt happy, maybe it was just the drugs, but she didn’t care, she was temporarily happy.

AJ walked over to where the letter had landed, curious to see what had made Ebony so riled. She picked up the picture and letter from Hannah, read it and gasped, this was the dead girl from the photo on Ebony’s desk. How? Why? These were some of the questions now arising in her mind. Then she re-looked in the box, another letter, this time it appeared it was from Ebony’s parents. She hurriedly read it and laughed out loud. AJ grabbed the letter, and ran to the bathroom to tell Ebony the news.

Ebony could now hear AJ’s voice louder than the others. "Ebony, Ebony, I have some news for you. Let me in, please" Ebony turned away from the toilet, AJ has never said please before, it must be important. She lifted up her head to the mirror and quickly splashed her face with water before opening the door. AJ’s smiling face greeted her, "It’s from your parents" she stated as she handed her a small piece of paper. Ebony unfolded the paper, cleared her throat and read it aloud.

Ebony’s voice broke as she finished reading, she looked up and realised that the rest of them had been silent for over a minute. Not a dry eye in the room, there was a moist sheen over even AJ’s eyes. Ebony blinked back tears and smiled at her newly found friends. She recomposed herself and collected her box. Inside the box were a couple of other little things that had been covered by the packaging. She unfolded it and revealed a necklace. Ebony gasped, this was the necklace that Hannah always wore. As she held it there in her hands, it glistened. The sun reflected off it. It was a simple silver chain with a silver dolphin in a crescent.

Dolphins had always been Hannah’s favourite animal. She’d loved them. It looked as though the dolphin was jumping over a marble like blue ball. It was beautiful. It had always been Hannah’s ambition to swim with dolphins, even though she was just as scared of water as Ebony was. She asked Lizzy to put it on her and admired it. Hannah and Ebony had always had the joke that if she ever died, then Hannah would give it to her, it’d come true, here she was holding the most precious thing her sister had owned. She looked at it in the mirror, and heard Emily behind her breathe, "Wow" down her neck., sending a shiver down her spine. Ebony smiled in spite of herself.

That night was a dance for the student holidaymakers. They could wear casual/smart clothes and let their hair down. Ebony had avoided Ben all day, but knew with certainty that she would ‘bump’ into him tonight.

Lizzy was in casual black trousers and a crazy striped top. Emily preferred a simpler outfit, smart jeans and a hooded top with a strappy one underneath. It set off her eyes and her freckles. AJ was back to the funky look after last night’s classic number. She wore ripped jeans and the thick make up was obviously back with vengeance. Ebony had decided to wear her smartest hipsters with her newly acquired necklace, her top was a modest black tank top and she wore her long black hair up in a loose yet stylish ponytail.

The hall was set up the same as last night’s dinner only without the tables. It had brightly coloured streamers and a stage at the front where the music was going to be played from.

Ebony, AJ, Lizzy and Emily were some of the first to arrive at the hall. There were already a few over enthusiasts dancing away in the middle. The group in question went over to the chairs set up around the outside and settled down. The way they talked to each other whilst sitting in the chairs was simple and mindless. Almost like banter. Ebony enjoyed being able to become subject to talk that wasn’t deep or even meaningful. Just to have fun, and laugh. It was great to simply enjoy herself, to be a teenager again, wonderful.

People began to filter in about 15 minutes later. They came in mindless drips and drabs, laughing and chatting noisily one to another. Some mingled in corners, other more adventurous sorts decided to start off dancing. Ebony’s mind began to wander from the conversation she had previously been having with the others. She was watching the people coming in, trying to guess what sort of life each had lived. Then she saw Craig, Ben, West and Jake enter. They were laughing and smiling. Then Ben noticed Ebony. His smile faded, and she could see that he quickly excused himself from the group he was with, and walked over. She tried and failed to read the expression on his face.

Ben came and sat down on the chair next to Ebony and asked, "Can we talk? I think we need to and we did plan to today, but it didn’t happen, did it?" Ebony signalled yes, and they stood up. She hurriedly excused herself from her friends and followed Ben. She could feel Jake’s questioning eyes on her as he noticed whom she was leaving with. He obviously hasn’t explained last night to Jake then, she thought.

The air outside was chilly. The stars were out and the moon was about as full as possible.

Inside, the party was getting in full swing. People were dancing, having a great time. Jake sat on one of the side chairs. He was wondering what Ben and Ebony were talking about. He knew Ben liked Ebony, but didn’t know how obsessed he was, or could be.

Chapter 10

"Look. The first thing I have to say is, I’m sorry. I drank too much yesterday. I don’t remember much, except flying off at you, you’re the last person I wanted to shout at. Honestly." He smiled and suddenly he was the same person she’d barely noticed in the halls. How ironic she thought.

He was Jake’s friend, not the drunken idiot from last night. She also remembered that he was the one who had shown up when she thought she was being followed. He had been a part of her life without her even realising it.

Ebony jerked herself back to reality, and noticed that Ben was looking at her strangely. "What?" She asked, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

"Well," He said, "I’d like to make yesterday up to you, sort of, if you’ll promise me a dance when they come on, then I’ll grovel some more, ok?" He pleaded silently with his eyes, so she excepted. But secretly, she dreaded the dance, really dreaded it and didn’t even know why.

"Ben, did you mean what you said last night?"

"Which bit?"

"The bit, urm, about who you liked?" He looked away "Yes"

The party was at its highest point when they returned. They parted and joined their individual groups, and started dancing. Ebony concentrated on enjoying herself, she really threw herself into the fun, and actually started to believe she was having fun. The drugs seemed to make the music extra loud and extra fun. The songs played had good rhythm.

Eventually the songs slowed down, the light was dimmed to a romantic red and immediately couples started to pair off. Ebony watched with dread as the floor was cleared except those who were couples. Ben came over and took her over to the centre of the dance floor. He pulled her closer and soon their bodies started to sway simultaneously, he was only about four inches taller than her so she could still look him in the eye as she spoke to him.

They spent the first minute of the dance just swaying in time, it was Ben who spoke first. "Look. I really am sorry, do you forgive me?" He smiled. She looked at him, really looked at him for the first time. He was tallish, with touchable hair, though obviously she didn’t touch it. He had deep eyes, laughing eyes. She decided this dance might not be so bad. A weird question entered her mind and impulsively she asked it.

"Ben" she asked, "Is Ben short for Benjamin?"

He laughed in spite of himself and replied that yes, that’s what it was short for. The song they had been dancing to slowly faded away, and they broke away from each other and parted their separate ways. She wasn’t as relieved as she thought she would be.

Ebony was within three feet of returning to Lizzy on the chairs when she felt a familiar hand on her waist, and a husky voice spoke in her ear. "You wouldn’t deny your old friend a dance now would you?" Ebony giggled and turned to him and Jake smiled warmly at her. She took her friends hand and was lead back to the floor. As she reached the centre, she could see Ben out of the corner of her eye sitting like a reject in the corner, she looked away again quickly.

Jake and Ebony resumed position and danced in time. Whenever Jake spoke, she giggled nervously, the drugs she’s taken were beginning to really kick in and she didn’t feel in control anymore. She could finally feel them having their full effect.

Her vision began to sway and she saw several more Jake’s than she thought she should. The music appeared to be played now through a hollow tunnel, and the lights started flashing. Things began to move and the whole room seemed to sway. She fell and as her body let go of Jake she fell to the floor, her body landed heavily with a thud and a strangled cry, and all that was left was blackness.

Chapter 11

Some one slapped her gently and her eyes heavily stirred. The first face that came into view was Jake’s’. Good sweet Jake. The next thing she noticed was that a crowd of would be dancers had formed and they murmured between them selves as she awakened. Voices, Ben’s for one, started to implore to the crowd, "Give her some air please . . .there’s nothing to see . . ." And the old cliché was brought in "show’s over folks." She tried to get up, but fresh waves of pain nearly made her collapse again.

Jake was on one side and AJ on the other, they steadied her to a room away from the noise. They were followed quickly by Ben, Lizzy and an almost hysterical Emily. Robert was holding up Emily however. The room Ebony was led to was small, with a tiny window at the far side. The window was open and it let enough cool air in to help to revive Ebony.

"Are you O.K?" She heard this probably from everyone in the group at least once in the minutes that followed.

"Look, I’m fine. You guys should be enjoying the party. There’s still half of it left, go on." She tried to smile, but obviously the happiness effect of the pills had worn off. She felt drained and yet again, depressed. She stood up, this time much more efficiently and said. "Look, Thanks all of you for being so nice, but I have to go to my room anyway, to get something, so I’ll meet you all back in the hall, O.K?"

Some of them, reluctantly left and returned to the fun, all of them hoping she was alright. Only Jake and Ben remained. She tried again to get rid of them, she needed to take some more drugs, to finish the night, she hoped they would counteract the effect these ones were having. Instead they asked her to sit down.

"We’ve got something to ask you." Began Jake. They were looking at her funnily. Kind of, concerned, patronising almost. Something was up and she wanted to find out what.

"Come on guys, what’s up?" She purposely kept her tone light, but she instinctively sensed something very bad was about to be said.

"Well, to keep it blunt, have you been prescribed any . . .drugs, you know, since Hannah, you know, have you?"

She was shocked, what business was it of theirs, she told them both this very loudly and left as fast as she could. The boys remained in the room, shocked by her sudden outrage. The night was wrecked. She ran, her hair came untidily from its former glory, and she just ran. She was about to enter outside and decided to go to her room.

Her hands reached shakily for her pills and she took two more than the last time, she felt she had to take more to have any affect on her happiness levels. This time, however, she felt the pain straight away, she called out, but no one heard. The pain was gripping, she clutched her stomach and her head at the same time as she fell again for the second time that night, into bitter darkness.

"Why did you have to ask her that? She was just getting to like me, how could you?!" Ben was furious.

"Look, it was your question just as much as mine, and anyway, you asked me to be the one to ask it, if you wanted it phrased differently, you should have done it yourself . . .. where did she go anyway, she’s in no fit state to go wandering off on her own."

"I think she went to her room, do you remember which one that is?"

"Yes, come on, let’s go" The two friends, reunited again, went off together to find Ebony. They found the room easily enough, but both their hearts sank as they approached the door, and found it still ajar, Ebony wouldn’t be that careless, would she?

They rushed in and found the room a little messy, but that was nothing unusual. Their gaze wandered steadily over the room and eventually rested upon feet sticking awkwardly out of the bathroom. They ran over, and with found Ebony. In her hand they saw a half-empty bottle. Jake prized it out of her hand and handed it to Ben with a grim look on his face. It was a bottle of anti-depression pills. While Ben was staring at the bottle, Jake tried to move Ebony into the recovery position and then he ran to the rooms’ phone and dialled the emergency. While he instructed the phone operator on the other end, he glanced over at Ebony. She was whiter than he’d ever seen her, her eyes had rolled into the back of her head, and then she involuntarily vomited all over the floor immediately next to her.

He turned back his full attention to the operator, to stop himself heaving. He’d known Ebony for so long, he never thought she would have been the person to be prescribed these types of drugs. The operator promised someone would be there in a matter of minutes, and to send someone to go direct the paramedics where to go.

The sirens could be heard from the room. Jake sat next to Ebony and quietly stroked her hair and told her it’d be all right, while Ben went to flag down the ambulance. Ebony began to stir, and looked up at Jake. She flinched as she realised she was nearly lying in her own vomit. She struggled, helped by Jake, to sit up.

"I was . . .. Just . . .what happened?" She searched Jake’s face in vain for the answers. At that moment, two paramedics rushed in followed by Ben. "Where is she?" they said. Ben indicated to the bathroom and moments later they came in and rushed straight over to her. An oxygen mask was placed onto her face to aid her now rapid breathing. Ebony could feel herself slipping out of consciousness again and called out to Jake before she did.

Jake watched as an oxygen mask was held to her face. He could see her fading again and watched as she did, there was nothing he could do. The paramedics began a quick fire round of questions about Ebony. Ben joined them at this point. The questions were ones like, "Has this ever happened before? What sort of drugs does she normally take? Is she clinically depressed? Has anything traumatic happened in her life recently that could have caused her to overdose?" Jake and Ben did their best to answer these questions, they were unsure of the answers to some of them.

They lifted Ebony onto a special bed to get her into the ambulance, Jake and Ben both held a hand each, and to offer in the only way they knew how, their support. As they made their way to the ambulance, a small gathering appeared, including some members of staff. Some of them were murmuring about Ebony and Lizzy, AJ and Emily were all at the front of the crowds trying desperately to see if she was alright.

The outside air was chilly, as it had been before. Ebony was still out for the count, Ben and Jake both opted to go along for the ride, joining them was Miss Williams, who looked very worried, and for the whole journey to the hospital, kept on asking herself, rather than anyone else, how this could have happened.

The party had been interrupted, no one knew exactly what was going on. Some people were dancing, but many were sharing their various stories about what had happened. Everyone, it seemed, had his or her own version of the story to tell.

The three people who were accompanying Ebony in the ambulance were worried. Worried it was their fault, worried she wouldn’t make it, worried how the drugs would affect her. Their faces were solemn and drawn, each was enclosed in their own minds and no one spoke to the others, not wanting to voice the possibilities.

Chapter 12

Ebony opened her eyes drowsily to bright lights and faraway voices. The lights over head were nearly blinding her. She didn’t know she was in a hospital corridor, or that she was OK, she thought she was dead. She expected Hannah to come over and welcome her to heaven. But no.

She turned the corner, and found that instead of Hannah, she only saw doctors and nurses. She turned her head sideways and gradually Jake and Ben came into focus. As soon as they saw she’d come round, they greeted her warmly and told her everything will be OK. Would it? She didn’t know if it would ever be OK again.

The doctors checked her for everything conceivable and had to pump her stomach to rid her of the last traces of the drug. She drifted in and out of sleep for what seemed like hours, but in actual fact, she’d been doing this for only half an hour.

At last it was morning and she was fully awake. Things came into focus and Jake materialised into view. He smiled and said good morning to her. It was then that last night’s events came back to vivid life. She remembered passing out, several times, and overdosed and then the rest was really a blur. Oh yeah, the dances. She now remembered dancing with Ben and then Jake, then the noises. She collapsed, her memory was scattered and fragmented, there were parts that she could and couldn’t remember. She returned her attention to Jake. "What’s happened?" She knew part of the answer, but not everything. She wasn’t sure she did want to know.

"I was dancing with you and your eyes went funny and you collapsed." He looked away from her as he continued, instead, he focused on the outside world.

"We took you to a room and confronted you about drugs, you said it was non of our business and ran out. We followed and found you in your room and called the ambulance." He stopped for breath and looked back at her and into her eyes as he asked her, "Why’d you do it Ebony? Were you that unhappy? I, as your friend, care about you, and I was really worried, so was everyone else. Please tell me. What’s wrong?" The pain in his eyes was too much for her to bear; she looked away, out through the window to the park below the hospital. There were children playing and dogs being walked, she longed to have a life as carefree as that again. She realised though that even those people had problems and hopes and dreams, the same as her. She was not looking forward to the rest of the holiday. There was just over a week left of the holiday and Ebony was dreading it. Wait a minute. Wasn’t Jake still here? She looked back over at him and tried to smile. He asked her again what had been going on, he said he wanted to help.

She looked at the face of her lifelong friend and said, "I wish I could tell you, I really do. But I can’t. I don’t know why but I just can’t" A single tear escaped her eye as she looked again away from Jake.

"Why? Please, I want to help you, you’re my friend and I care about you." He paused "Hang on, does Bethany know? Did Bethany know before any of this even happened?" His last questions startled her. Why would Bethany know? Bethany, she realised she hadn’t spoken to her for a while. She would have to go now, and tell her what happened before someone else did. She sat up dizzily, swung her legs round and tried to jump off the bed. She fell to the ground with a thud; Jake picked her up and tried to put her back on the bed.

"No. No, I have to phone Bethany, I promised, please help me phone her again." She pleaded with her eyes, and he backed down. He steadied her as they walked slowly to the phone booth at the entrance.

"Stop right there. Who are you and what are you doing with one of our patients, she’s in no fit state to be going anywhere."

They slowly turned around and were faced with the nurse from the other side. She was round and had a face screwed up in obvious displeasure. She quickly ushered them back to the ward and then took Jake outside for a ‘chat’.

"Look young man. I don’t know who you are, but you can’t go helping girls like that walk around the hospital. Don’t you know what’s wrong with her?" She looked at him sternly.

"Yes, she took an overdose. Why?" He wanted to get the full answer.

"Are you family?"

"I’m as close as she’s got."

"Well, they’re sending up a councillor to assess her mental state. Something pushed her over the edge and we want to find out what it was. We think she may have psychological problems. Or she may have been through a tough time and wanted a way out, we don’t know. But you can help her most by telling us if you know anything, anything at all. OK? Do you have anything you can tell me?"

"Look, all I know is that her sister died a year ago, but I didn’t know she’d been prescribed drugs."

"Her sister died, well that certainly helps thank you young man. By the way, there are only 20 minutes left of visiting time. Goodbye." With that she turned and wobbled down the corridor. Jake walked back into the room. Had he done the right thing? Should he have said that? He didn’t know. But he wanted to help her.

"How are you feeling?"

"I want to go back to the hotel. I hate it but it beats this. I’m leaving." He noticed that she was already dressed, she must have while he was talking.

"No, wait. You can’t just walk out"

"What were you talking to her about anyway Jake?" The suspicion in her voice was clear.

"Oh, um, you actually. Nothing bad though"

"You never were a good liar were you Jake?" She seemed momentarily amused by this.

"Well, actually, some one’s now here to speak to you Ebony, so maybe you should wait around before you run off." She was about to tell him not to change the subject, when he turned around and they were introduced to Dr. Miles. She was fairly small and her brown hair was tied back. Her smile was professional and completely fake.

"Hello young lady, and you must be Ebony. Hello Ebony, how are you?"

"Who are you, and why are you being so nice to me?" Ebony glared at this new person, she didn’t know or care who she was. "I’m out of here. See ya, are you coming Jake?" She grabbed what stuff she had and walked out of the ward. The new woman and Jake were right behind her.

"Look, Ebony, please come back, if you don’t, I’ll have to call security. They’ll be forced to restrain you, do you want that, Ebony?"

Chapter 13

Ebony stopped what was the point of running, all she had to do was listen to this woman and then she’d leave her alone and her and then her and Jake could leave, without security.

"Ok, I’ll come, but then I leave."

"I’ll wait in the visitors room, OK Ebony? I’ll come and get you later." Ebony watched as Jake left and turned the corner. She turned to face this DR. and the she led her to a side room. They sat down in what can only be described as a simplistic analysis room, where obviously she spoke to and analysed all her patients. Sitting down in there was followed by a short, uncomfortable silence. It was Dr. Miles who spoke first.

"So then, tell me something about yourself"

"Like what?"

"Tell me what happened about a year ago in your life, anything significant?" The patronising look on her face made Ebony’s blood boil.

"Nothing that concerns anyone else, next question?" Ebony had immediately put up her walls; she didn’t want anyone prying in her life, especially not about Hannah. Instead, she decided to concentrate on the hospital floor.

"Ebony. I’m here to help you, we want to find out what’s going on so we can help. If you don’t help me, how can I help you? OK, my next question is . . . tell me about your friend; Jake I believe his name is. What do you think of him? How long have you known him, etc" The question seemed harmless enough, so she answered. "He’s my friend." The Dr. nodded. "I’ve known him for a long time, his cousin and I are best friends, that’s all I can say about him, next?"

The doctor could see she was going to get no where like this, so she tried a different approach. "OK, I can see this is going to get us nowhere. I’m going to be completely straight with you, what was your sister like, how did her death affect you?" Ebony couldn’t believe it, Jake had told her about Hannah! How dare he, hew as supposed to be her friend. I’m out of here, she thought and stood up to leave.

"I’m sorry doctor, but that’s my business, I’m sorry I couldn’t have been more help. Thank you for talking to me, good day." With that she turned to go.

"Please wait. Look, I’m sorry for prying, but I have been asked to speak to you." This got Ebony’s attention and she turned back round to hear more.

"Go on."

"They think you took the extra pills because of a serious case of depression. I’m here to determine what it is that made you take them, so we can help if we need to. Like I said before, I can’t help you unless you help me, now do you understand why I have to pry, to stop you being locked up." Ebony sat down. "It’s like this doctor. I took my prescribed dose, but yesterday I was under stress, so I took more so that I could cope. Fair enough?"

"Why were you under extra stress Ebony?"

"Because, well, that’s of no importance to you. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course"

"Do my parents know I’m here?"

"No, not unless you want them to, we don’t actually know anything about you other than your name because I believe you’re on holiday with school, also there is a thing known as doctor-patient confidentiality."

"OK, I think I understand. Now you know why I did it, can I go back to my holiday now?"

"If you’ll just wait a moment, I have to go speak to someone to get you discharged and I’ll go and fetch Jake, ok? Just wait a sec, and I’ll be back." Ebony watched as she left, and let out a big sigh of relief. She’s finally gonna let me go, she thought.

Jake was pacing the floor of the visitors’ room. He felt like a caged animal. Where was Ben when he needed him, oh yes, he’d gone back last night. They’d had an argument as to who was gonna stay keep Ebony company during the night. Jake had won on the account that he had known her longer and they knew each other better, but Jake now realised he hardly knew her at all. He felt stupid, useless, and helpless, he couldn’t help her. He wanted to. Ben seemed to like her, but at first it was only because she was gorgeous, now though, he could see that Ben was learning a lot more about the complex world of Ebony. It felt like he’d been there for hours, when were they gonna let her out? Are they going to let her out? He thought.

"Hello, Jake. Come with me and we’ll go see how she is doing." She led him through the maze of corridors. "I’ve tried my best Jake. She just won’t open up. She told me she only took them because she was under stress, but I think there is a much deeper problem. She almost walked out when I mentioned Hannah. Look, will you promise me something?" He nodded, "Will you promise me you’ll look out for her, help her and try to watch over her, be there for her is all I ask, do you think you can do that, for her?" Jake agreed as they came to the office door.

Chapter 14

Ebony had been thinking, thinking about what she could say to people when she got back. Then she thought of Hannah. Tears came as she thought of what Hannah would think of if she knew what Ebony had become. What would she say if she saw how Ebony had been behaving to everybody. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn’t see Jake and the doctor come in.

Jake broke her thought track when he spoke softly. "Ebony, are you all right?" She jumped and spun round whilst wiping her tears away at the same time.

"Uh, hello. Can I go now please?" She looked at Jake and he walked over to her and wrapped his arms tightly around her. They embraced for a moment and then they left. Both of them motioned goodbye the Dr. Miles and she wished Ebony good luck with the future. After they had left, she contemplated calling the hotel and saying she needed to see her, but decided against it. She knew that Ebony was one of those people that no matter how much people tried to help them, they would never accept it, they wanted to do everything on their own, even if they desperately needed it.

The air outside was good; it was freedom. They took the bus to just outside where the hotel was situated and walked the rest of the way. There were no words between them at that moment; there was no need. Then Ebony remembered what Jake had said to the Dr. and froze in her tracks.

"What is it?" Jake asked, concerned. She turned to face him, her eyes rested accusingly on him. "Why did you tell the doctor about Hannah?"

He looked distinctively uncomfortable as he answered. "I thought that if I told her, she’d be able to . . . to help you better. That’s all."

"I don’t believe this! Do you think I’m mental as well? You’re supposed to be my friend!" She turned and walked as fast as she could while still looking cross and headed for the hotel, which had just come into range. She could hear Jake behind her calling for her to stop, but she was too angry.

Jake started to run, but as soon as he caught sight of her again, she’d gone. OK, he thought, I’ll find her later when she’s calmed down.

"Hey guys, I’m back!" The group turned around and whoops of joys escaped them. Seconds later Ebony was in the centre of the biggest bear hug she’d ever had. "We were so worried." Lizzy said as she beamed at Ebony. There was an awkward silence. No one knew exactly what to say. Every one found a different article of furniture fascinating. There was a knock on the door, which broke the tension that had descended onto the room. Ebony ran to get it, she opened the door and gasped. It was Ben, and he was smiling. "Come with me" He motioned for her to follow and she did. He took her hand to lead the way, and she didn’t pull away. Him pulling her around eventually led them to a small pot near the hotel pond.

"Look." He finally said. "I’ll put it bluntly. I . . .like you, I have done for some time, and I want you to be my, urm, girlfriend. There," He looked relieved. "I said it. What do you think? I know it’s so soon after you came out of hospital, but I don’t want to pass up this opportunity. You can choose to get back to me if you want, I’ll give you time if you want, but I just want to be with you." For the whole of the speech he’d been looking at the pond, watching the fish swim around and around, forgetting everything every three seconds. Then he looked up. So that his eyes met hers

Ebony contemplated last night, dancing with Ben, what it was like to be so close to him. It had felt . . .nice, but that was it, so she asked for some time to think about it.

As they made their was back, Ebony noticed that people were looking at her strangely, some pointed and some whispered. She didn’t like the way they were staring, like she was some kind of freak, an accident. Then she remembered why, she’d passed out rather publicly last night. They must think she was a druggy, some kind of nut case or something.

He gave her a peck on the cheek as they parted separate ways. She didn’t back away, or hit him as she would some other people. They smiled as they parted and she now had to make a decision. The school was spending the afternoon on the beach. Ebony had arrived back at the hotel just after lunch, so everyone was now preparing to go to the beach. Ben had said he would come and find her on the sea edge. They got ready as a group, and made their way down to the beach.

The sand was warm and it clung to the spaces between Ebony’s toes. The sun beat down on everyone, Ebony had brought with her a large sun hat to protect herself from the suns rays. It was then that she saw Ben and Jake make their way towards her. Ben looked happy, but Jake was obviously displeased. She hugged them both. She could feel Jake looking at her strangely, but for once, she didn’t care what anyone else thought. Her earlier argument with Jake was forgotten.

They walked to the water edge; Jake and Ben beckoned her to join them in the water. "No thanks. You know what happened last time I tried to swim. I’ll watch. Have fun."

"Come on, please. I won’t let go of you, look, there are no waves. Come on." Ben’s pleading made her give in momentarily. She shrugged off the tee shirt she was wearing and plunged one foot at a time into the cool clear water. Her initial reservations were swept away as Ben and Jake took a hand each and guided her until it was almost up to her waist. She’d always hated water, she thought it was a killer, but here and now it almost seemed harmless, nearly fun. There were no waves, just the calm sea. She stepped back however, they started to splash the water at each other. Jake grabbed her around the waist and swung her around and passed her on to Ben.

They began laughing, happily, and Ebony laughed. She laughed without pills, for once she was having fun without having to be drugged up, she hadn’t done this since before Hannah was certified dead. It was getting colder; goose pimples began to work their way up her legs and arms. She shivered, the fun had stopped, and once again the water scared her. Ben noticed and offered to come to shore with her. "No, it’s all right. You guys stay here; I’ll be on the beach. See you guys later. Thanks for . . ." She smiled "Everything".

She waded back to the shore, the bubble of water fun had been broken. She put back on her tee shirt and cringed as the sand rubbed her skin, irritating her. Lizzy, AJ and Emily were in the water, enjoying them selves. Ebony contented her self by sitting in the shade and reading the book she’d hoped to have finished by now.

"Why did you ask her out Ben? You know what state she’s in. Why?" Jake was obviously upset by this.

"Why does it bother you so much Jake, you always say you are only friends. Why should it bother you unless you’re jealous? Are you?" Ben stared at Jake.

"I’m not jealous. I’m just looking out for my friend. This last year’s been the toughest of her life. She doesn’t need this, from you or anyone else. That’s all, work it out. You haven’t seen what it’s done to her."

"Look, I know she’s been through a tough time, but if she says yes then you can either be happy for us of get lost!"

Jake was taken back by Ben’s aggression, he knew that Ben had liked Ebony for a while, but he never thought he’d actually get the courage to ask her out. "Fine. Have it your way." Jake spun around and waded as fast as he could without falling over back to the beach.

Ebony saw a figure wading towards her. It was Jake and he didn’t look happy. "Hey Jake, what’s up, you look kinda mad, anything happen in the water?"

"No, just Ben."

"What about Ben?"

"I don’t know. I, I have to think, excuse me." He smiled a sad slow smile and walked away towards the hotel. She called for him, but he kept on walking. Then she saw Ben coming, he too looked mad and she knew they’d had a fight. He came over, his head bent, and sat down next to her. "What’s up?" she tried to keep her voice light, but she knew at one point she would have to choose between Ben and Jake, she didn’t know who she would choose.

"Me and Jake just had a disagreement, that’s all. He’ll get over it." He smiled and for a moment, her mind was put to rest. "We’ve got to go back soon, do you want to go for a walk?"

She agreed and they both got up. He went to take her hand and she shook her head slightly. They walked in silence for a few moments, and then Ebony spoke. "So . . .what were you and Jake arguing about that’s got you both so riled?"

It took Ben a few seconds to think of a way to answer. "We were talking about you actually."

"Oh, what were you saying?"

"Um, he was saying about, um"

"What?"

Again there was a pause. "He said that he didn’t think that it was right of me to ask you out so soon after you came out of hospital, he said I was being selfish. Um, I can’t remember everything else, but basically, he was trying to speak for you as a friend. He was just trying to look out for you." Ebony stopped, she couldn’t go any further. That’s twice in a day that he’d over stepped the mark in the name of being a friend. "Come on Ebony, forget it. We can’t let him spoil our fun can we?"

"I guess not, I’ll find him later. It just bugs me how he thinks he has to be the macho man all the time, I can look after myself."

The afternoon had been great; they’d had fun. The sun was beginning to set. The horizon had become a mass of colour. People were starting to leave and make their way back to the hotel. Dinner would be in half an hour. They walked on, needing no words, but just enjoyed one another’s company. The scenery was beautiful. The sand glistened.

This time, it was Ben who broke the silence. "What did you think of me before we came?" It caught Ebony off guard and she stopped walking.

"That’s a tough one. I didn’t really know you. I only knew of you because you hung around with Jake. You were one of those characters who don’t really make much of an appearance until something happens, than they are right there. OK, your turn, what did you think of me, did you know who I was even?"

He looked at her and stopped walking, they turned to face each other as he spoke. "I thought you were the most beautiful girl I’d ever met, but then, on this holiday, I got to see past your looks, I found out at least in part, who you are. The more I have got to know you, the more I want to. . ." He looked away bashfully now, and they started walking again.

He’d liked me that long? She wondered, the more he wants to know me? Yeah right, if he got to know me any more, he would know what I’m really like; he can’t know that. OK, stay calm, what would Hannah do? OK, that’s not going to help, she’s not here.

"Urrmmm, Ben? Do you mind if I tell you my answer at dinner, I’ll meet you there?" She wanted to get away as quickly as possible. "I’ll meet you for dinner, OK?" they embraced each other goodbye and Ebony left, glad to be able to get out of an embarrassing situation.

She walked quickly, and had to wait in the queue for the phone. When everyone else had dispersed back to normality to get ready for dinner, she grabbed the most private and secluded booth and dialled Bethany’s number. It seemed, as if it took forever for anyone to answer, when they did, it was her Dad, so Ebony asked for Bethany.

They talked for a while, and filled each other in on what’d been happening in their recent lives. Ebony failed, however to mention her time in hospital, or any of the other bad stuff that had happened. They talked for a while longer and Ebony promised to ring again the next day. Ebony put the handset in its rightful place and returned to her room.

The dinner that tonight was not formal and was just like the canteen meals they had at school. Ebony went down with Lizzy and co, but she soon excused herself and went to find Ben and Jake. She found them sitting in one of the corner tables; they appeared to be talking about something interesting, so she waited in the shadows until they’d finished.

"Ok, I apologise Ben, I shouldn’t interfere. But you don’t know Ebony like I do, or used to, or whatever. She’s changed. A year ago she was a totally different person. I just hope you like her as much when she returns to how she used to be, that’s all."

"When’s that going to be then Jake?" Ebony emerged out of the shadows and glared at Jake, her features were twisted with rage. He’s the one who’s changed, she thought bitterly.

Ben looked uncomfortable; Jake squirmed. "Well Jake?" She wanted an answer and she wanted one now. "I was just looking out for you Ebony, I don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all, honestly." He smiled at her apologetically. Ebony decided it wasn’t worth a fight, shrugged her shoulders and sat down next to Ben. The conversation between them was strained and unnaturally forced, Ebony’s glare continued to focus on Jake. Ebony and Jake had never really fought before Hannah had died. Ebony had never been much of a fighter before then, now though, she felt like she was living for the both of them, fighting for the both of them, hurting for the both of them. She had been feeling the strain and so had become short tempered and snappy, often saying things she’d later regretted but had too much newly found pride to say so.

The conversation between the group started off strained, but soon became dull and boring. Ebony stopped listening after a while and looked around. She could see Lizzy, she was enjoying herself, laughing, things Ebony used to take for granted. AJ was actually smiling, and Emily was whispering to Robert, they looked happy. She envied them in some small way, they were happy without having to please anyone else, they were just happy to be themselves.

Ebony’s mind kept on returning to Jake, why had he suddenly changed? What was he trying to prove? Eventually her subconscious drifted back to the present conversation, it was then that she realised that both of them were looking at her.

"What? Have I got something in my teeth or something . . . What!"

"We were just wondering where you have been for the last ten minutes?"

"Right here, unless I can walk, with out actually walking" She tried to go for the sarcastic approach, but they saw through it. "I was just thinking, that’s all, nothing that special."

"You were thinking? Jake, I’m in shock, I need to be resuscitated, help me!" He said it with a fake pained expression, his features twisted comically.

"Very funny, you two. My sides are now officially split." They looked at each other and laughed, genuinely laughed, for the first time in ages. The laughter subsided as AJ joined them at the table.

"What’s so funny?" She asked as she slid her plate onto the table.

"Nothing AJ, really" Came Ebony’s reply. AJ contemplated the group for a moment and sighed. She’d never liked Ebony before the trip. She’d thought she was stuck up and too big for her boots by far. Through the trip though, she’d come to appreciate her finer points and realised gratefully that Ebony was human after all and had faults like everyone else. That night passed with laughter and fun. Real fun, not the kind that you get from a dose of anti-depressants. Ebony hadn’t had any since she’d got back from the hospital and wanted to see if she could last at least the rest of the holiday without any.

Jake and Ben accompanied AJ and Ebony back to their room. AJ invited Jake into the room to observe something she’d found on the beach that day, leaving Ben and Ebony outside to talk.

"Ebony" Ben took her hand slowly, this time with no struggle from Ebony. "Have you decided?" He looked into her eyes until she was uncomfortable. The deep red curtains situated just behind his head had suddenly become Ebony’s focus point. "Ebony?" He said again, slightly louder this time.

"Urmm, huh? Yes, oh, urmm. Of course, sorry. Look, I have come to be really good mates with you over these last few days, but I’m sorry, I don’t think of you that way, I’m sorry. It was nice of you to ask, but I can’t, I’m sorry" Ben dropped her hand and looked away.

"I’m sorry," she whispered again, standing awkwardly for a moment before she turned and went inside, leaving Ben outside, again, rejected. Without even waiting for Jake to come out, he turned on his heel and walked swiftly away, tears stung his eyes as he hung his head.

"Hey Ben, what’s up?" West was the only one left in Ben’s room when he returned. Craig was obviously out trying to get another girl.

"Nothing, forget it. I think I just need an early night"

"It’s that girl again isn’t it? Ebony or something?" West’s observation surprised Ben. West seemed to sit there and not take anything in, but in fact he had stripped away the layers of the situation and came to the core of Ben’s problems, Ebony, dear, beautiful Ebony.

"Yeah, West, something like that." He went to the adjoining bathroom and prepared for bed.

Jake left soon after Ebony came in, he didn’t even ask her what had happened, by the look on her face, he knew that she’d done the right thing. All he had to do now was to speak to Ben when he got back and see how it happened.

Ebony spoke very little to the other girls when she got back, she spoke as much as she felt was appropriate and went to bed as soon as she felt was polite.

The next few days passed them by with little incident. Ebony stayed in her room, or went down to the quiet areas of the beach with AJ or Lizzy as Emily was now going out with Robert. She hadn’t seen much of Ben, he’d avoided her, and Jake had been the in-between and had seen both of them. Ebony had started taking the tablets again, the whole situation had upset her, but she didn’t overdose.

She looked down the beach and saw a familiar figure. She dropped the book she had previously been engrossed in, and ran headlong towards the figure. Waving her arms rapidly over her head, she shouted at the top of her voice, "Bethany! Bethany!" Her friend turned around and upon seeing Ebony ran, arms out stretched to meet her.

"How come you’re here? I thought you were staying with your dad. ." She said as she squeezed her.

"Well, surprise! My Dad finally relented and let me come up. I know it’s only for the last few days, but I figured it was better than nothing.

"Of course it is . . .I’m so glad you came!" They linked arms and in silence went to the place where Ebony had been sitting. At first, their conversation was that of two friends who had not spoken recently, it was slightly strained, but the more they spoke, the more they wanted to. They carried on talking till it was time for everyone to go in and the sun was setting behind the sand dunes.

"Which room are you staying in Beth?" "urmm, Mrs White said I could stay with her in the teachers room" She made a face of distaste as she said this and Ebony laughed to see her friends face so disfigured.

The dinner table that night was decorated differently. It was sombre and the whole place had a different feel to it. Then Ebony recognised it, it was like the room where she and her family had been told that none of them were a suitable match for Hannah and that no one could be found in time to save her. Her mother had wailed loudly, her brother and father cried silently whilst trying to console their mother, and Ebony, Ebony had stared blankly at the windows. Her thoughts weren’t, poor, poor me, how will I cope, it was how is Hannah going to cope, what will she do, what will she say?

Hannah had had her pride as much as Ebony, more so even. When the family had been allowed to visit her, she made no apology of the condition she was in. No remorse or even emotion showed on her face. She had not even avoided the subject, but talked as though it was nothing to be sad about, but something that simply had to happen. They’d spoken briefly, and then the nurse had come in a said that Hannah needed to rest. Ebony was the last to leave and she turned around as she walked away. She saw Hannah crying. Not just sobbing, but really crying, Ebony knew that Hannah had had as many dreams and ambitions as she had, she’d too wanted love, a career and so forth. But as Ebony looked at her, her heart retched. Hannah was so frail, the illness was in it’s final stages and Hannah struggled for every breathe. Even now, surrounded by friends, Ebony was still haunted by those last images.

The breath was warm and sudden, it spoke, "Ebony . . .Ebony!" What’s wrong, why are you crying?" It was Bethany. Ebony hadn’t even noticed she was crying, nor had she noticed that everyone had stopped eating on that table and were looking at her, silently. Their faces searching hers, the attentions made her uncomfortable to say the least. "I, urm, I think there must be some onion in my meal, excuse me." She stood and turned quickly. She went to the farthest door to the outside and turned. They had forgotten her, their conversation had returned once again and their faces were happy, no longer looking at hers for answers. The sadness crept up and she choked on it. She was glad they had forgotten her tears so quickly, but as she steadied herself on the lavender curtains swaying in the wind, part of her wished they hadn’t. There was so much she wanted them to know, but dare not say. She climbed the stairs slowly and went to her room.

The nest day, the whole group were going on the field trip of the holiday. They were going to visit the city. Ebony sat next to Bethany and they talked and joked till they arrived.

The city was beautiful, the high rise buildings and shop were so inviting. The teachers said that they were to remain in groups of no less than three at any one time. Then they were free for five whole hours to do as they wished.

Ebony went in a group with Bethany, Ben, Jake, AJ, Robert, Lizzy and Emily. They first went into a little café to get their lunch. Ebony was very hungry that morning and ordered a large plate of fries and a cheeseburger with extra sauce. The meal went quickly and everyone enjoyed it. It was an old fashioned café with net curtains at the windows and wooden everything.

Next they went to a park to play on the swings. "C’mon it’ll be fun, c’mon!" Ebony pleaded. The group then became split. AJ flatly refused, and so did some of the others, so all who were left in the park, were Jake, Ben, Bethany and Ebony. The others went to find a museum for Robert who’d been desperate to see them since they arrived, and they’d agreed to meet up an hour later at the café they’d started at. Although Ben and Ebony hadn’t spoken much the past couple of days, this was their chance to make up for that lost time. Ebony had been wearing the dolphin necklace since she’d received it a few days ago, except when she was at the beach, for obvious reasons, but now, as she felt her neck, it was gone.

"My necklace!"

"What about it?" Ben asked, obviously not understanding the importance

"It’s gone!" She was nearly hysterical

"Calm down, we’ll help you find it, where did you last have it" Beth as always, remained calm and looked at the situation objectively

"I urm, I don’t know! I had it last night definitely and put in on by bed side to go to sleep, you know, next to the picture. Then this morning, I put it on. That’s it, I don’t know anything else" They group started searching, looking all around. Ben muttered under his breathe, "it’s only a necklace, we can but another one," He muttered it to Bethany, but Ebony was too close when he said it because the next thing he was on the floor sprawled out because he’d received a blow to the jaw from Ebony.

"It’s not just a necklace, it was the last thing my sister left me, don’t be so horrible! How could you say that?" She started shivering, and Bethany was beside her in seconds.

As he got up, he said "I’m sorry Ebony, I didn’t know, I had no idea," He was truly shocked that such a strong blow could come so forcefully from a girl. As Bethany was embracing her, she said "Ebony, he really didn’t know how much the necklace meant to you did he? Only people who knew Hannah could have possibly known.

"I’m sorry I hit you Ben, really I am, sometimes I do things before thinking, I should have known that you didn’t know. Sorry"

"Was that an apology, from you? I’ve never heard you apologise!" She was furious at his snide remarks, but said nothing, only nodded.

"Well, apology accepted" They shook hands. "Friends?"

"Friends"

Jake walked over. "What’s going on over here?" He looked from one person to the next and back again. "I was over there and look what I found" He pulled the necklace out of his pocket. Ebony gasped and ran headlong at him and hugged him harder than she ever had before.

"Thank you" She whispered.

"Anytime" They smiled at each other and embraced again before she finally put him down.

"What shall we do now guys?"

"Well, we came to the park, so how do the swings and slide sound?"

They raced over, like children momentarily and Bethany claimed the slide, sticking out her tongue at the others in a mock childish manner as she did so. They raced around, squealed with delight and had the best time they had had in a long time.

That night, after Miss White had gone to sleep, at about 11:30pm, Bethany crept without making a sound, to Ebony’s room. She joined the girls, who were still up, talking and laughing quietly, they’d asked Ebony if she wanted to join in, she’d politely declined and turned over in her bed and watched the wall change shape as her eyes lost focus. The dots danced on her eyes, making her dizzy, the she sat up and spun round quickly. Where was she? Where were Lizzy, AJ and Emily? It was dark, very, very dark. A light appeared from the top of the room. It was dull at first, but became bright and powerful. It nearly blinded her, she shielded her eyes with her hands, hoping to block out the brightness. After what she perceived to be several minutes, she tripped over something cold and slippery, and fell hard onto the floor.

Suddenly, the blackness and brightness left and she found herself in a hospital room. It was brightly lit and as cheerful as any hospital room can be. The bed was empty, temporally vacant. Hannah walked in. She walked straight past Ebony and sat on the bed, re-creasing the pristine sheets. She looked straight at Ebony and spoke, her voice rough and drawn.

"Hey Ebony. How have you been?"

Ebony started back, not knowing how to answer. Words escaped her until she finally managed to speak "Since when?" She finally said.

"Since I died, Ebony, I’ve been watching you. You don’t seem to have managed at all."

"Well, what do you expect, you died and left me!"

"Left you? How could I leave you? I’m your sister, I maybe dead, but I’m still your sister!"

"Hannah, what the heck is this? You’re my dead sister, talking to me in my dreams, this is crazy, I’m sorry, great to see you and all, but I can’t stand here and have a pleasant chat with my deceased, I have to wake up."

"But I came to you for a reason, you can’t wake up until I’ve delivered my message. I wanted to let you know, that I’m fine."

"That’s it?"

"Yes, you’ve grieved for too long. Stop pining and start living, I miss you too, I miss the fun we had, but I like it where I am now, I’m happy, safe, and I want you to be too" She smiled. Her face was happy, she seemed happy.

"So, now I can wake up?"

"Yes, I’ve said what you needed to hear, if this is freaking you out, I’ll leave. God bless you Ebony, I love you, always have , always will, and don’t forget that whenever you’re lonely, I’m there with you." Ebony was crying as Hannah’s facial features became twisted and distorted, no longer recognisable. Then, she vanished, the bed became empty again, Ebony found herself back in the room from the beginning of her dream and slowly drifted out of her slumber.

Bethany was the first thing that came back into focus. The clock read 11:37pm, only seven minutes since last time she’d looked.

"Hey sleepy head, I thought I’d sneak out of Miss Whites and come see you, I didn’t know you’d be so zonked. The others let me in, and you were fast asleep, look, I brought some Pringles, want some?"

Ebony groggily slid herself up and thanked Bethany. She got of the bed and joined the others on the floor. They talked and laughed till gone midnight and one by one they went to bed, Bethany was too tired to sneak back to her room, so she top ’n’ toed with Ebony.

That night, Ebony had a restless, but thankfully dreamless night. Morning came quickly and they all met in the breakfast hall. Miss White rushed over and took Bethany away, when she returned, all the laughter had drained from her face.

"She told me that she’d woken up at about 12:30pm and had noticed I was gone, she got security up and searched every room for me"

"But, what about our room?"

"They checked there too, but didn’t see us on the same bed."

"Are you in trouble?"

"No, she’s just relieved I wasn’t hurt."

Breakfast was silent that morning. No one dared speak too much, and Ebony suddenly became fascinated with the breeze carrying the leaves outside. Her thoughts returned to last night’s brief dream, what had it meant? She pondered silently to herself. Even now, she felt Hannah comforting her.

She’d changed so much during this holiday. Before hand, people had thought her mysterious, proud, and dignified, now, she doubted it anyone on this holiday hadn’t seen her cry, or embarrassed herself in front of. She cringed at the thought. She’d exposed herself more than she’d wanted to, she hoped to just go on the holiday, read a good book and go home. ‘I need help, proper, professional help’ she thought. And with that, she sighed, as though she’d finally resolved with herself a plan that could finally lift all the hurt and pain of the last few months off her shoulders.

With only two more full days left, the party travelled down to the beach again. The sun had come up and her and Bethany made their way to a shady spot where they could set up a blanket and relax. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, sure, why wouldn’t I be?" Ebony quickly replied.

"Well, since I arrived, you’ve been acting differently. I mean, I’ve seen you cry before . . ." Ebony cringed. "But never in public. It actually scared me Ebony. I spoke to Jake and Ben last night and they told me what you hadn’t. Why didn’t you tell me about all the things that have happened. I didn’t believe them at first, but when I saw you the other night and you left, I wanted to come after you, but Jake told me that you needed space. I decided not to mention when I slept in your room last night, but now, I’d like to understand what been happening."

"Ebony finally met Bethany’s gaze. "I didn’t want to worry you, it’s been such a confusing holiday. I don’t know what to think anymore. It’s brought back all the memories, and, Beth, I’ve decided to go to counselling after the holiday. You wann knows what’s been happening?"

"Yes"

" well, on the first day . . ."

Ebony told Bethany about the whole holiday, everything this time. They sat and chatting and as the sun moved around, so did they. Ebony broke down several times, but didn’t stop the story. People walked by, Jake, Ben and co walked by too, but Jake ushered them on, not wanting to disturb two of them catching up.

As Ebony spoke, she could feel the soft sand beneath her toes, comforting her, surrounding her. They broke away for lunch and joined Emily and AJ for some food and the reconvened on the beach. As Ebony finished her story, she realised the sun was going to be setting soon, the beautiful colours splashed themselves across the sky. They gathered their things and linked arms as they headed for their last night of the holiday.

"Where’ve you been you guys?" Ben swung Lizzy around and they laughed. Ebony and Bethany looked at each other and smiled.

"We’ve been talking, how’s the final party going?"

"Fine, really good"

They joined in the dancing. It wasn’t formal as some of the others had been, and as the Prom would be. But it was fun, in the corner they had a bouncy castle and a ball pool in the opposite corner. Everyone was having fun, the group Ebony had been hanging around with were having the best time of the holiday probably.

The night passed in a blur. A blur of fun and dancing, laughing and joking, the first in a long time. In a way, the talk she’d had with Bethany had in a way released her from at least some of the pressure. She didn’t take any of her tablets that night and slept peacefully. The demon that had been haunting her, was asleep, for now at least.

THE END

Epilogue

"OK mum, we’re nearly ready."

Ebony giggled as she helped fit Bethany into her dress. It was a gorgeous deep blue. Ebony’s own dress was fantastic as well. It was crimson, a strapless crimson silk dress. They hurriedly applied the last of their make up as Ebony’s mum called up.

"They’ll be arriving soon"

"Yes mum"

Their dresses ruffled and swished as they hurried down the narrow stairs, hoping not to trip up. A few minutes after sitting down, they heard the familiar beep beep of Jake’s car horn.

"Their here!" Bethany practically shouted as she peered through the curtains. "How do we look?" She asked and they both gave a spin for her mother.

"Fabulous, let me get a picture" With the picture over and done with, they ran to open the door.

"Hey!"

"You both look great!" Jake said as the door was opened to him.

"Thanks, so you do guys!" they giggled.

"Have a great time!"

"Don’t wait up!" they shouted as they got into the shining red car. In the back seat, AJ, Lizzy and the group that had been formed on holiday were squashed in and made room for the two new comers. The only ones who weren’t there, were Emily and Robert, they were going together separately from everyone else.

"It’s beautiful!" Lizzy exclaimed as they entered the hall that had been rented out and decorated. There were pale red silk drapes hanging from the ceiling, and a net holding probably a thousand balloons, which was attached also to the ceiling. It truly was beautiful. There were several tables lined down one side of the room with a range of finger food and three large windows just past the tables that opened out onto decorative balconies. On the other side of the room, there was a single row of seats.

"Yes, she is" Jake was looking at Ebony instead of focusing on what Lizzy was saying. Lizzy giggled, "I was talking about the room, not Ebony"

Jake blushed "oh" was all he could say Luckily, no one else had heard him, They were all too busy checking out the rest of the room. AJ was wearing a dress similar to the one she had on the trip, except this time, there were no straps and a corset was under the dress, which accentuated her curves, her hair was shiny and red streaks had been added, which complemented her cheekbones. Lizzy had also made an effort, her hair was tamed with clips and she’d asked Ben to be her date. He said yes, but made it clear that for now at least there could be nothing between them. Though, she was open to any new developments. Ebony had asked Jake in the sake of ‘friendship’ to come with her as her date.

The prom progressed well, although at times it proved hard to dance in such extravagant dresses. As Ebony danced, she had to keep on brushing her long hair from her shoulders, it began to annoy her, but she was having such a good time, she didn’t want anything to happen to spoil it, even hair.

alconies. On the other side of the room, there was a single row of seats.

"Yes, she is" Jake was looking at Ebony instead of focusing on what Lizzy was saying. Lizzy giggled, "I was talking about the room, not Ebony"

Jake blushed "oh" was all he could say Luckily, no one else had heard him, They were all too busy checking out the rest of the room. AJ was wearing a dress similar to the one she had on the trip, except this time, there were no straps and a corset was under the dress, which accentuated her curves, her hair was shiny and red streaks had been added, which complemented her cheekbones. Lizzy had also made an effort, her hair was tamed with clips and she’d asked Ben to be her date. He said yes, but made it clear that for now at least there could be nothing between them. Though, she was open to any new developments. Ebony had asked Jake in the sake of ‘friendship’ to come with her as her date.