[December 2nd]

        “I can't believe I’m back,” Chin sighed, placing her bags in her room. It was almost unreal. For so many months she had lived in Paris...but some fluke occurrence had gotten her fired. She never really did figure out what had happened, but didn’t have the energy to fight it. Anyway, it was good to take a break...
        “CHIN!” she heard Cathy yell from downstairs. “You bettah get yo ASS down her, gurlie, or you’ll miss your own Welcome Home Dinner!”
        Chin smiled and left her room to head towards the stairs. Sprite and Coke whizzed by her as if to show her the way, in case she had forgotten. She could hear Roky, Darwin and Kezia whining as Sarah and Cathy got the canines’ food ready. The garage door opened--Julie was actually back at a decent hour. There were plans for a dinner and a few movies at...a “slumber party” in the family room. Chin’s smile hadn’t left her face yet.
        It was good to be home.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[December 10th]
        "...Wow," Brian breathed into the phone. How had his cousin been able to handle all of this?
        "Yeah, well, that's basically it. Do you want me to talk to Nick, or are you going to tell him?" Kevin asked, fiddling with the phone chord in his hands. He was sitting on his bed in his Parisian apartment, and with Chin having been gone over a week, he had finally decided to tell Brian about what had been going on. Brian and Nick were both at the house, but would be leaving to spend Christmas with their families. Kevin was scheduled to drop by the house after Christmas, and Nick was to return, along with Howie.
        "Don't worry, I'll tell him before we leave...I just wish we had known earlier, you know? Now I feel like shit for treating Chin so badly--"
        "I don't think she took any major offense, Brian. She knew that only Howie and I knew about this freak. I don't know if she even wants you two knowing, but since she won't be coming back to Paris with me, I need to make sure you guys will be there for her, you know? I didn't want poor Howie to be left alone in this...just watch out for her, k?"
        "Don't worry about it, coz."

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[December 28th]

        Sarah's eyes scanned the dance floor. "You ever get the feeling that someone's watching you?" she asked Kevin, loudly, so he could hear her. She'd had an eerie feeling since they had left the house.
        He reached over and helped himself to her soda.
        "Yeah, but then again, it comes with celebrity status," he joked. She rolled her eyes at him and grabbed her drink out of his hands while he was in mid sip. He made a face but there was no verbal complaint.
        A few moments of silence passed as they both fell into the sport of people-watching.
        “Sarah?” Kevin yelled over the booming music.
        “Yeah?”
        “You want to go home, don’t you?” He smiled at her over the table, watching her sip her soda.
        “What do you think?”
        Chin had whined about being stuck at home and had convinced Nick and Cathy to go to the club--Kevin had persuaded a reluctant Sarah to go along with him and be a designated driver. Julie hadn't gotten home by the time the club-goers had left, and Howie, who was feeling a bit sick, had opted to stay home so she wouldn't return to an empty house.
        “You can leave; I’ll bring everyone else home," Kevin offered.
        “I might not have to do that.” Sarah pointed to Nick and Cathy. They were leaning against the wall, half asleep, half drunk.
        “Howie and Julie don’t know what they’re missing,” Kevin laughed. He spotted Chin walking clumsily towards the bar. “You grab Chin. I’ll get the dozers and meet you outside by the cars. I think it’s time to head out.”

[10 minutes later]
        "Kevin, Chin won't leave her car," Sarah informed him as she tried unsuccessfully to pry Chin off the silver Rav4's hood for the umpteenth time.
        "I'mdriving...Nooo...Ican...I'mfiiiine...Donworry..." Chin mumbled, her full weight leaning on her vehicle, grabbing a rear-view mirror and a windshield-wiper for something to hold onto.
        "I'll drive her car, you take mine," Sarah said as she chucked her keys at Kevin. He had been supporting Cathy and Nick, one with each arm. He rested both against Sarah and Jenny's Civic so he could pick the keys up off the ground, having been unable to catch them with bodies in his arms.  He crouched to get them, and then looked up, seeing Sarah struggle with a stubborn Chin who was now trying to clamber into the driver's seat. He looked over his shoulder to see Cathy and Nick leaning each other, so he got up to go help Sarah.
        "You wanna take the scenic route? It’s a bit longer, but its peaceful...and might help put them to sleep...and we'll be out of the way of anyone just in case Chin tries to take the wheel and drive," he half kidded once he and Sarah closed the door. She smiled and looked at their drunk friend who was leaning against the window, almost asleep.
        "Sure, whatever. You want help with those two?" she pointed to the two figures who were leaning against themselves as well as her car.
        "Nah," Kevin grinned. "I can handle them. I think you still have to fight Chin for her keys. Just get 'em, re-adjust the mirrors, etc, and by that time I should be ready. I won't leave till I see your lights, k?"
        "K." Sarah walked around the hood of the car to get to the driver's side and Kevin headed back to Cathy and Nick. With less of a fight to deal with than the one Chin had put up, Kevin got both of them in the Civic. Then he got in, re-adjusted everything, and waited to see the Rav4's lights turn on before he proceeded to leave the parking lot.
        ...He failed to notice another car, a Suburban, leave the parking lot; one that turned in the opposite direction for a specific reason.

[20 minutes later]
        "You guys smell horrible. Nick, get off me," Kevin said, swerving a bit when Nick's head fell onto Kevin's right shoulder. At the moment they were on an open stretch of road, surrounded by beach on either side; his odd driving wouldn't put anyone in danger. "What did I get myself into?" He shoved a teetering Nick back into the backseat area.
        Nick gave up trying to lean forward on the driver's seat since he somehow kept slipping and someone--was it Kevin? --kept pushing him back. He lay on his back, his feet bent up as much as possible so he could fit, his head resting on Cathy's lap. She made some sort of noise and shifted positions, but didn't push him off.
        Kevin looked up at the rearview mirror to look at the car Sarah was driving behind them. He could see a limp arm hanging out of the passenger-side window, Chin leaning back into her reclined chair, looking very peaceful.
        He felt light on his eyes and looked ahead; a vehicle seemed to be gaining speed and coming closer, swerving a bit.

        "WHAT THE HELL!?" Kevin yelled and honked his horn as the driver nearly missed hitting the Civic. He grunted and sped up a bit, wanting to get away from the psycho.

        "What was that honk?" Chin almost incoherently mumbled. Sarah saw the near miss the Suburban had with her Civic.
        "Just a crazy driver scaring poor Kevin. It's okay. Go back to sleep," Sarah tried to convince herself more than Chin.
        Why did she feel that something was terribly wrong?
        "Okay. Night-night," Chin smiled, and tried to doze off.
        "Shit!"
        Chin eyes flew open when she heard Sarah exclaim.

        Kevin looked up at the rear-view mirror saw the Suburban swerve to hit the girls but then head away as if it changed its mind.

        "...Nothing! It's okay--" Sarah put a comforting hand on Chin's left shoulder.
        About a spilt second later, the Suburban hit them.

        Kevin slowed down bit and turned his body for a second to check on Cathy and Nick...his eyes shifted to look through the back window.
        To his horror, Kevin saw neither the Rav4 or the Suburban.
        He slammed on the breaks. Nick rolled off the backseat and hit the floor.
        "WhawasTHAfo?" Nick whined as he struggled to get unstuck from the small space he had fallen into.
        "Wait here," Kevin's voice instructed before the older man turned off the car and got out.
        "Niiiick, gedoffmahfeeeet." Cathy wiggled around till her legs were free. She pushed open the door closest to her and got out, wavering a bit, but able to walk.
        "Whereareyougoing?" Nick asked, his head seeming to be a bit clearer.
        When he didn't get an answer, he got out to follow both of them. He looked out on the open stretch of road. The noise of the waves was soothing, and the salty air was cool. The stars were bright...why had they stopped? He looked down the road: ahead of him and noticed Kevin was running. So was Kat. Why?
        He ran and tried to catch up with them. A few seconds later, the two stopped dead in their tracks before Kevin disappeared down the sand-dune on the side of the road. By the time Nick reached Cathy, he half wished he hadn't.
        "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god..." Cathy was shaking and trying not to cry. Nick put an arm around her and had to catch her as her legs buckled.
        About 50 feet into the beach lay an upturned crushed version of Chin's Rav4.
        Kevin had almost reached the vehicle when he found Chin not too far behind the path car must have taken.
        She wasn't moving.
        And he didn't know where Sarah was.
        "CALL 911!!!!!!" Kevin screamed to the two bystanders on the road. With one arm around a trembling Cathy who had slowly regained her balance, Nick fished in his jacket pocket for his cell phone. He tried to keep himself from breaking down.

[15 minutes later]
        Cathy sat in a daze as lights swirled around her. She was shaking, but that was the least of her problems.
        “Nick?” she weakly called out, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples, her hangover kicking in.
        “Right here..." she heard his voice from somewhere.
        “Where you been?” she asked, turning to her right to look at him.
        “Next to you,” he sighed. His eyes scanned the scene set in front of them.
        The ambulance and police cars had arrived about five minutes ago. Kevin was 15 feet away, explaining what he knew of the accident to the police. Nick noticed Kevin kept looking past the officers--the paramedics had resorted to using the Jaws of Life to get Sarah out of the crushed silver metal.  Nick’s eyes quickly shifted to two men who were hiking up the sand dune with a stretcher. “Stay here, Cathy,” he quietly ordered and approached the stretcher. “Is she going to be okay?” he asked the paramedics as he looked after Chin’s still figure.
        “We don’t know yet. We have to get her to the hospital, now...Friend or family?” one of the paramedics asked, as both gently placed the stretcher into the ambulance.
        “Friend,” Nick replied.
        “You can come along if you wish...” The paramedic stepped into the ambulance. Nick turned to Cathy. She motioned him along.
        “Howie and Julie just arrived,” she told him. “Stay with Chin.”
        Nick nodded and turned to the ambulance. “Thank you,” he gave a weak smile and climbed in. Chin was laid out on the stretcher, quiet and still.
        It wasn’t her.
        Why wouldn’t she move? She was always running around being loud and crazy...Move, Chin. Please. Do something.
        "CATHY! Get in the car!" Kevin yelled when Cathy remained standing there with a blank look, shaking a bit. It was a frantic order, not an annoyed one.
        "Kat, come on, I'll drive..." Howie said as he and Julie pulled Cathy into the car.
        “Don't worry about Sarah’s car--I’ll drive it,” Julie informed Howie. "We'll meet them at the hospital."
        Kevin climbed into the ambulance that held Sarah.
        "Sarah? Sarah, listen to me," Kevin pleaded, taking one of Sarah's limp hands as he heard the doors to the ambulance slam shut. "Don't leave me, you got that?" He was trying not to cry.         "...I won't let you." The medic across from his was working furiously with tubes and machines. Everything shifted as the ambulance drove rapidly down the streets. "I don't know what I'd without you. Please..." he whispered. His heart was pounding. She looked so lifeless. "Please, Sarah, please..."


[11:30 PM]
        "It's okay, Kat, it's okay," Howie spoke softly, trying to soothe Cathy. She was sitting on his lap, still shaking; she hadn't stopped since she had seen the wreck.
        Police had begun to surround the entrances of the hospital as a preemptive strike to keep any hounding press or fans at bay. So far, the only “breaking news” on local stations had been of the accident--none of the journalists knew that the Boys were involved in the incident...yet.
        Nick sat beside the two, back slouched, head in his hands. Julie had run off to get everyone something to drink, not trusting herself to stay in the room, knowing she wouldn’t be able to remain composed. Howie rubbed Cathy’s back and looked up at Kevin, who was pacing back and forth in the ER waiting room. "Did we forget anyone?"
        Kevin kept pacing. Nick looked up.
        "Kev?"
        "Hm?"
        "Did we call everybody?" Howie restated his question.
        "Their parents?" Kevin began to list, trying to get his mind focused on something besides the two girls that were somewhere behind the walls of the busy ER.
        "Both sets are stuck, but are coming down as soon as possible."
        "Brian and AJ? "
        "Yeah, told 'em," Nick answered. "They're on their way."
        "Lance and Hannah?"
        "Yeah,” Howie replied. "Gonna get here a-s-a-p."
        "Jenny?"
        Nick was silent. So was Howie. Kevin stopped and looked at them. Before he could say anything, a doctor walked in with a clipboard.
        "Excuse me, are you the people with Sarah and Chin?"
        "Yes." Kevin whirled around, anxious for any news. "How are they?"
        "My name is Dr. Heren." The woman outstretched a hand to shake Kevin's. "Chin only has a mild concussion. Besides minor bruises and cuts, she's pretty much free to go, but we're going to keep her overnight just to be safe. I'll send some strong pain killers home with you incase she needs them, " Dr. Heren smiled. Cathy looked at the doctor with relief in her eyes.
        "What about Sarah?" Howie was afraid to ask, but he knew Kevin wouldn't.
        "That's what I need to talk to you about." Dr Heren looked at the four of them seriously, her smile faded. "You might want to sit down," the doctor said as she motioned to Kevin, who promptly obeyed.
        Julie walked in with a Fruitopia in each hand, evidently successful in finding the hospital cafeteria. She stopped in her tracks when she saw the doctor. Howie motioned for her to sit down in the free seat by Nick. She silently obeyed.
        "By the time she got to us here, Sarah was in shock..." Dr. Heren began, "In other words, she had very low blood pressure: her spleen was ruptured by one of her ribs due to her impact with the steering wheel, which caused internal bleeding.
        "She had a concussion like Chin, but it was worse, and during the time it took us to get to her, the loss of blood resulted in a lack of oxygen to her brain; this is what we hypoxic encephalopathy. Also, because of the low blood pressure, renal failure occurred--her kidneys began to malfunction, causing toxins to stay in her body..." the doctor paused as a nurse walked through the waiting room. "We basically tried to restore her vitals to baseline...
        "We performed surgery to remove her spleen and to stop the internal bleeding, gave her a blood transfusion, as well as a dialysis to clean out her blood of toxins. She has a cast because she fractured her left arm as well, not to mention a substantial amount of bruising and cuts; physically, considering the circumstances, she was actually pretty lucky..." Dr. Heren looked at the five as they took in the information. She dreaded what she had to say next. "She's now stabilized, but because of the combination of her concussion, renal failure, and mostly the hypoxic enephalopathy..." Dr. Heren hesitated, not sure if he should continue, or wait for the five to fully process everything.
        Kevin's face was one of stone. Cathy had her head buried in Howie’s neck. He was still rubbing her back, his face significantly paled, as he looked at the doctor. Julie was fiddling with the bottles in her hands and looking at them. Nick placed his head in his hands and looked at his feet, trying not to let his emotions out, trying to hide it from the others.
        Dr. Heren took a deep breath, then continued, "...she's in a coma." She had delivered this message many times before, but it never got any easier. "We've done everything that can be done. We moved her into the ICU, the Intensive Care Unit. All we can do now is wait."

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[12:45 AM]
        "Tell me what happened before I murder some--" AJ stopped himself. There in front of him he saw Cathy quietly resting on Nick. Nick looked exhausted. "Hey man, you plan sleep any?"
Nick glanced up, registering AJ's existence in the room. He gave him a small smile.
        "Yes, eventually..." Nick shifted a bit causing Cathy to do the same. "How'd you get here so fast?"
        "When you want to be anywhere fast enough, and you got the cash, the airlines will make it happen..." AJ smiled as he sat down beside the two. There was silence for a while, but he had to know. "So, what exactly happened?" AJ asked softly. "I got a frantic phone call and all you said was to get here a-s-a-p before you hung up..."
        Nick sighed and closed his eyes for a second, as if trying to gather his thoughts. "We went out clubbing. Chin drove, and so did Sarah...Both Kevin and Sarah didn't drink anything. Chin wouldn't leave her car so Sarah drove it. Cathy and I went with Kevin in Sarah's car." He paused and took a deep breath, not wanting to recount the rest, but knowing he had to. "...This big-ass Suburban almost ran into us, but swerved. Supposedly it did the same to Sarah and Chin, but decided for some deranged reason to try again...it was successful. It, it...it hit them." All of a sudden Nick found it hard to speak.
        "You don't have to--"
        "No, I do have to. And you need to know."
        AJ put a hand on Nick's shoulder. He noticed that Kevin was nowhere in sight...Neither was Chin.
        Nick took a deep breath, "Chin's basically fine, 'cept for some cuts and bruises and a mild concussion. They want to keep her overnight just to be sure. Kevin's in there with her," Nick pointed in the direction of Chin's room. "...Sarah on the other hand," he paused, "...is in a coma." He watched AJ's visage pale a bit. "No one can see her yet, and there's been no other news since..."
        AJ took a moment to absorb what he had been just told.
        "Where’s D?”
        "On the phone trying to work out something with the airlines for their parents,” Nick sighed. AJ studied Nick's face.
        "I think you should go home and rest. You look terrible. I'll stay here and call everyone," AJ offered.
        "Already did. Brian is due in a few hours. Hannah is catching the next plane. Lance is coming as soon as possible; his tour is almost over. Jenny said she's really tied up but would try and get here as quickly as she could. Julie is in the cafeteria getting us cof--"
        "Actually I'm right here..." Julie mumbled collapsing into a chair by Nick. "Here," she sighed, handing him a cup of coffee. He mouthed her "thank you" and gulped it down.

[3:30 AM ]
        The two people present filled up any chairs in close proximity to Chin's room. The hallway where they sat was practically silent because visiting hours were over, but the guys had worked their charms, however, and had gotten consent for everybody to stay.
        Howie had taken Cathy home so she could get her needed rest while he held the house down. Brian would be arriving at the airport within an hour; Julie was planning to pick him up. Hannah was somewhere in the country on a plane; Lance was counting down the remaining concerts left in his tour. Jenny remained in New York, trying to get out of commitments and fly down as soon as possible.
        “Life couldn’t be any better...” AJ grumbled as he walked out of Chin’s room. He stopped when he realized Julie and Nick were outside talking and backtracked a few steps into Chin’s room then turned to her. Kevin had gone to the ICU as soon as the nurses had allowed Sarah to have visitors. “I’ll be here for a little bit longer...” AJ said to Chin's sleeping form and sat down next to her. “Thank god you’re okay..” he mumbled for the millionth time that hour. He took one of her hands with both of his and rested his head on them.

        “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me to get Brian?” Julie asked Nick, getting up from her chair.
        “Positive. I’ll stay here with Kevin and try to keep him sane...” Nick gave Julie a weak smile.
        “Try,” Julie jokingly stressed. “Okay. Do you guys need me to get you anything?”
        Nick shook his head. “No, not right now. I don’t think any of us have requests,” Nick replied. "Though I think we all know what we want the most..." he mumbled. A silence fell between the two.
        “Okay,” Julie spoke quietly after a few moments, “I’ll get back soon with Brian.” Nick watched her back until it disappeared around the corner.

[6:00 AM]
        "Is Kevin sleeping?" Brian asked over the phone as he took the cordless to sit in the family room with the animals.
        "Yeah, finally. Passed out when he returned from visiting Sarah. The nurses had to kick him out." AJ switched his cell to his left shoulder and got up to peek outside the room to look at the older man, slouched in a waiting room chair. "How about Kat and Julie?"
        Brian sat on the couch as Sprite and Coke jumped up near him.
        "Yeah, they're out cold. Nick and Howie sort of phased out soon after...but Nick's up again, bumbling about in the kitchen. He didn't sleep that much...What about Chin?"
        "Once she woke up it took her awhile, but she's asleep now," AJ sighed, returning to his seat beside Chin's bed.
        "I can't believe she came out of this almost untouched," Brian commented.
        "She's kicking herself for that, trust me..."
        "I'm sorry, Age. I didn't mean it like that--"
        "I know. Don't worry. That's the funny thing about being in an accident while you're drunk. You hear all these stories of drunk drivers surviving, you know? Cuz they're lax and whatever," AJ sighed. "It's just... Once she was awake she wouldn't stop crying for the longest time... and you know what it feels like to see the woman you lov--" AJ stopped.
        "Oh man," Brian groaned.
        "What?"
        "How did we get so distant that I didn't even realize you're still crazy about her?"
        "Like you are about Jenny?" AJ replied softly, after a few minutes, as his eyes gazed at a sleeping Chin.
        "Don't even ask," Brian slumped down in the couch.

[11PM]
        Chin had been released around 8AM in the morning and it had taken some effort to get her back home. She had returned to the hospital hours later, ready to “camp out” until Sarah was “better.” Around noon, AJ had finally given in and had been convinced to go home to have a shower and change. He returned around 2PM, seemingly ready for anything.
        It went understood that everyone would stay in town around the hospital as long as they could--no one was sure when Sarah would wake up, and they all wanted to be there, but the reality was that life couldn't just wait. The guys had a max of a month before they would have to leave. The girls had to return to their routines sometime...but for now, that wasn't thought about and remained neglected; the issue would be addressed if and when it had to be.
        To stay somewhat rested, most of the group was presently sleeping at home, planning to come in early the next morning. Well, all were asleep except Nick, who was sitting with the animals and watching TV, as if refusing to sleep. Four had remained at the hospital; Chin was curled up in her chair, either trying to concentrate on her book or add to her journal entry. Brian had been the one who had showed up in the morning to take Chin home and had returned with her. Now he was sleeping in his chair--and seemed to have planned to do so, having brought a pillow. AJ hadn't slept since he had been woken up and told to get on a plane over 24 hours ago. Now he was fighting sleep, looking guilty whenever he snapped out of his naps. Kevin kept pacing...and pacing...and pacing.
        "Can...you...stop?" AJ groaned, his eyes closed. Lack of sleep was getting to him, but so was Kevin's pacing. "For the love of god--please, sit down, man."
        "I'm sorry," Kevin muttered almost inaudibly, before slumping into a seat. AJ opened one eye and studied his friend.
        "She's going to be okay."
        "How do you know that?"
        "The doctors said--"
        "The doctors said that Brian wouldn't live past 5-years-old. What the doctors say is jack shit," Kevin practically barked, not looking at AJ. AJ glanced around, wondering if Brian or Chin had noticed Kevin's outburst...Chin had fallen asleep a few chairs down, her book and journal in her lap, and Brian was still snoring. AJ smiled at the scene, and then pushed his glasses onto his head.
        "But what the doctors said is all we've got," he quietly replied, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. He slouched his back and stared blankly at the pale wall in front of him.             "And they say all we can do is wait. So we gotta wait."
        "If only what, Kev? Don't try to play what-if with something in the past. You were the other designated driver, Kev---you had to take the other car. And even if you had gone with her, you would be in the same condition Chin is...You'd be fine."
        Kevin squeezed his eyes shut and placed his head in his hands. He had been the one who had suggested they take that damned scenic route...
        "You know, you'd think it'd be cool if she gets to meet my father...but that just wouldn't be right," he stated bitterly. AJ got up and moved to sit in the chair beside Kevin, placing a hand on his back.
        "Don't talk like that. If Chin was awake, she'd slap you." AJ noticed a small smile on Kevin's lips.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[2 days later]
        He gripped the steering wheel after turning off the radio that she had turned on, keeping his eyes on the road.
        "It's not my fault, Brian," she stated quietly, breaking the silence, not looking at him. He acted as if he hadn't heard her, just as he had when she had attempted conversation about 10 minutes earlier. He finally turned the car out from the terminal, pretending to be engrossed in dealing with the heavy traffic. "What else can I say that will make you understand?"
        "Make me understand what?" he replied, coldly, after a few moments of silence. "Make me understand how in the hell it takes you almost a week to get down here...when one of your best friends might be on her deathbed?" he asked bitterly, trying to keep his voice from rising.
        “Don’t exaggerate. Four days is not a week,” Jenny sighed and placed her right elbow by the passenger window, resting her forehead against her right hand.
        "Sorry, it just seemed that long,” Brian grumbled.
        “Why don't you get on Lance's case when he gets here, huh? He's coming in, what, 8 days?"
        "Who's known Sarah since Jr. High, Jenny? Who was her roommate? Lance or you?" Brian spat. "...He can't cancel a tour--"
        "But I can cancel finals?"
        "You're supposed to be on winter break!"
        "You think it's my fault? Tell my professors that."
        "Maybe I will," Brian grumbled.
        Silence settled.
        "How's Roky?" Jenny asked, trying in vain for some peaceful communication.
        "How should I know? Except for the 1st few hours after my arrival, I've been at the hospital practically 24/7 since I got here," he snapped, his eyes still unmoving from the road.
        "I told you, I tried..." She closed her eyes, not wanting to see his reaction--or lack thereof--anymore. She was running out of words. Brian turned the switch windshield wipers to go faster as the rain began to pour down more angrily.
        Jenny opened her eyes, but turned her head to look out the window, watching the blurry lights go by. The air was heavy and uncomfortable.
        "What you want me to do, Brian?" she finally spoke again, this time turning to look at him. He didn't dare look at her. "Apologize to you? For what?"
        For not being there for her...for me... Brian remained silent, unable to answer.