Robert laid on his bed with the crook of his arm over his throbbing head while his stomach churned. "I'm never drinking again," he groaned.

"That's what they always say," Darrell muttered darkly, making Robert feel even more like crap. He wished he hadn't said it now. He knew Darrell was referring to his dad's heavy drinking.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"It's alright," Darrell replied quietly, with a sigh. "I've said it once or twice myself. Y'know you probably ought to eat a little. It'll help."

"D'you think?" Robert asked plaintively. He felt so awful, it seemed unlikely a little food was going to make any difference.

"Right! C'mon Robbie! Time to get up, yeah?" Darrell said firmly, and Robert felt him grab onto his arm so he could pull him out of bed. He groaned with the effort to make his hungover mind and body stand up. His stomach roiled but he felt like he probably wouldn't have to vomit, at least not anytime soon.

He staggered down the stairs, but tried to look like he wasn't hungover when he entered the kitchen. His mum and dad looked up from the kitchen table where they'd just eaten and were finishing their tea.

Robert's dad eyed him carefully as Darrell said, "John. Alice. Good morning," and walked over to give his mum a kiss on the cheek as she murmured 'good morning' to him.

"You look a little worse for wear, Robbie!" his dad said sharply.

"I guess, I had a – late night," Robert said, walking to the tea kettle, avoiding his dad's eyes, trying to ignore the throbbing in his head and the churning in his stomach.

"Well, I'll start breakfast for you lads," he said, sounding angry. Robert knew he hadn't fooled him.

"Cheers, John," Darrell said brightly, attempting to take the heat off Robert. The two of them sat down at the table once they had their mugs of tea, Darrell taking Betsy's chair again.

As he sat slumped over his mug, breathing in the steam, letting the soothing smell help his stomach and head feel better, Robert could barely believe he'd gotten so pissed that hooking up with Bridget had seemed like a good idea. They'd had a spectacularly bad breakup just months before he'd been kidnapped, due in no small part to her constant, over the top theatrics. Just like the stunt she'd pulled at the club over two months ago. How could he have forgotten he was still mad at her for causing what happened between him and Georgie?

---Then---

"What?" Robert asked, scarcely able to believe he'd heard right. Georgie kept her eyes on her hands, refusing to look at him as the tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I – I'm going to go to Chicago – to Grandma May. Maybe she can let me live with her again – or help me find a place to live." Robert was suddenly finding it difficult to breathe as he felt the walls of the room closing in on him.

"Don't you want to be with me?" he asked faintly. She finally looked up at him, her eyes filled with pain.

"I just think it would be better for you without me," she said tremulously.

"What are you talking about? How the hell could this possibly be better for me?" he asked with shock.

Her shoulders hunched and she looked at him with resignation before saying quietly, "You already know why, Robert." He couldn't believe this was happening.

"I don't know why! D'you think after everything I went through to get you away from that fucking bastard, I'm going to just sit here and let you leave?" he said loudly. Her shoulders hunched even more and she looked at her hands again, her mouth set in a grim line as tears ran down her cheeks, refusing to answer him.

"You're not throwing everything I fought for away, Georgie! I won't let you!" he said even more loudly. "I love you and you're staying here – with me – where you belong!"

"You don't get to tell me what to do, Robert!" she shouted angrily, looking up at him. "I don't have to do what you say!"

He was shocked into silence for a moment. Then he saw the look on her face and the panic started rising up in him as he realized she was actually serious about this, she was actually going to leave him.

"D'you have any idea what you're doing?" he shouted, suddenly angry. She flinched and started to turn away from him but he grabbed onto her arm, keeping her with him. She kept her head turned away, refusing to look at him.

"D'you have any idea what I went through to get you out of there?" he shouted. "What I thought that fucking bastard was going to make me do to buy your freedom? After what he made me do? You have no idea what happened back there, d'you hear me? You have no fucking clue! And you're not going anywhere after what he put us through!"

She suddenly glared at him and tried to wrench her arm out of his grip, shouting, "What he made you do? I was there too, you know!" Her words absolutely shattered him and he let go of her, reeling.

"Then fucking leave me!" he shouted, completely losing control as the tears came. "I did it because I couldn't leave you in that hellish place! I did it because I loved you too much to leave you with that fucking bastard! But if that's how you feel, then just fucking leave me and break my heart!" He turned away from her as he started sobbing, unable to stop.

"Robert, no! No!" she cried, and then she was sitting next to him, pressing herself against his back.

"Don't you see? You'll be so much better off without me," she cried, her voice filled with pain.

"Stop saying that! Just stop it, Georgie!" he sobbed.

"You have this great life! It's so – big!" she cried. "With your family and – so many mates and I'm just – dragging you down! Don't you understand that? You deserve so much better than me! You should be with that girl, not me!"

He turned and grabbed onto her, holding her tight. "No, Georgie! No!" he sobbed. "It's not true! I don't want her! I don't want anyone else! I want you!"

"But Robert –," she cried.

"Please don't leave me, Georgie!" he sobbed, clutching her to him tighter, determined never to let her go. "I love you! I need you! Please don't hurt me like this! I'm begging you! Please!" he pleaded desperately. He felt her body go limp in his arms as he clung to her, crying into her shoulder.

After a minute, she held him back just as tight and shushed him. "I won't leave you, Robert. I won't. I love you too much. I can't hurt you," she murmured. She began running her fingers through his hair to soothe him and shushed him.

"I love you so much, Georgie," he said with his voice breaking, struggling to stop crying.

"I know, Robert. I love you too," she murmured, holding him tighter.

It was several minutes before Robert was able to release his hold on her. He held her face in his hands, searching her eyes. She looked sad but then she slipped her fingers in his hair to pull him to her for a kiss.

When she released him, she looked at him intently, saying fervently, "I'll never stop loving you, Robert. You know that, don't you?"

"I know. I love you too," he said, feeling relieved. He could see it in her eyes, she was with him.

They got settled under the bedcovers, holding each other tight. Robert listened to her slow steady breathing, his face near her hair, breathing in her special smell while she ran her fingers through his hair.

"Y'know I can't live without ya, Georgie," he said quietly into her hair after a few minutes, relaxing more in her arms.

"I know," she murmured.

"Y'know I don't ever want to be with anyone else, don't ya?"

"I know, Robert. I know," she murmured.

After a while, she said quietly, "Robert, I'm really thirsty." She started to climb over him. "Do you want some water too?" Now that she said it, he realized he was thirsty too after all that dancing.

"It's alright. I'll get it," he said, and gave her a kiss before he got up.

When he went downstairs, he was surprised to see Betsy sitting with Darrell on the couch. Darrell was holding her but as soon as he saw Robert, he let go and moved away from her a little. Then Robert realized Betsy was crying and he suddenly felt sick. He'd been so thrown by Georgie telling him she was leaving, he hadn't remembered that everything they'd shouted at each other would be heard by Betsy through the wall. She'd heard things he'd never wanted anyone to know.

As soon as she saw him, she jumped up and went to him. "I didn't know it was that horrible, Robbie!" she cried into his chest, hugging him tight. "What you've been through! I didn't know it was like that! I didn't know!"

Robert held her, patting her back and saw Darrell looking grim. From the look in his eyes, Robert knew Betsy had told him everything, including what she'd learned tonight. Robert suddenly felt awful, like he wanted to crawl under a rock, and looked away from Darrell.

"It's alright, Betsy. It's over and in the past. We're home now and that's what matters, yeah?" he said firmly. "Georgie and I are fine now. I don't want you to worry about it, alright?"

"Are you sure?" she said with concern, pulling away and searching his eyes but he had a hard time meeting them. "Georgie said she was leaving you."

"Well, it's all been sorted now. She's not leaving. We're fine now. Really," he said firmly, looking quickly at each of them so they'd know it was the truth.

"Well, if you – say so," she said, still sounding unsure.

"I, uh, came down for some water so I'll see you two tomorrow, yeah?" he said quickly, desperately wanting to escape the looks in their eyes, and what he knew they were thinking about him.

"Oh, alright," she said, still looking at him with concern.

He quickly walked into the kitchen to get the water and when he came back in the sitting room, Betsy was back on the couch sitting next to Darrell, wiping her eyes. They said their final 'goodnights' to each other as he passed them on the way upstairs.

Once he and Georgie drank their water, they settled under the blankets together. She snuggled up to him like she always did and he concentrated on her slow steady breathing, trying not to think about what his sister and his best mate knew about him now.

The next morning, he woke up earlier than usual. Georgie was still asleep and he carefully got out of bed, leaving as quietly as possible so he wouldn't disturb her. When he went downstairs, he was surprised to see Betsy sleeping on the couch and Darrell sleeping on the floor next to her wrapped in a blanket. He was dismayed to realize she'd been so upset by what she'd heard the night before she couldn't bear to be alone.

He went over and shook Darrell's shoulder gently, waking him up. "You probably don't want be down here like this when dad gets up," he said quietly. Darrell immediately looked worried and embarrassed.

"It's not what it looks like. Y'know I wouldn't do anything," he said quietly with concern.

"Yeah, I know," Robert said quickly, not wanting to get into a discussion about why Betsy felt the need to stay downstairs with him. Then Betsy woke up.

"I should leave," Darrell said quickly as he stood up, still looking embarrassed.

"I'm sorry I made you sleep on the floor, Darrell," she said quietly, looking embarrassed as well and sitting up.

"It's alright," he replied, avoiding their eyes. Betsy and Robert stood by awkwardly as Darrell put on his shoes and jacket.

Then he clasped hands with Robert, saying, "See ya later, Robbie."

"See ya, Darrell."

Betsy went to him and gave him a quick hug and kiss on the cheek, saying, "I'll see ya, Darrell."

"Betsy," he said, avoiding her eyes, and then left. Betsy sighed deeply when the door closed.

"I'm going to bed, Robbie," she said in a sad, tired voice, going up to him.

"Alright," he said, unable to meet her eyes when he hugged her.

After she went upstairs, he went in the kitchen to make himself some tea. When he sat at the table with his mug, he felt awful. He couldn't believe how badly the night had turned out, and it was all Bridget's fault. If she hadn't kissed him, Georgie wouldn't have decided to leave him and then Betsy and Darrell wouldn't know he'd had to do something terrible before he could bring Georgie home with him.

He could've happily gone through the rest of his life never thinking about what he'd done in that room. It wasn't that he regretted it. He'd agreed to it and done it willingly because he knew he had to if he wanted to save Georgie. He would've done anything to save her, even far worse than what he was asked to do. But knowing Betsy and Darrell knew something happened, even though they didn't know the details, made him feel ashamed – and dirty.

His dad walked into the kitchen. "Oh – Robbie," he said with obvious surprise. Robert saw dark circles under his eyes and suddenly felt worse. Did he hear what they said too?

"Morning, dad," he said, looking at his mug and slouching in his chair a little. His dad made a mug of tea and joined him at the table. Robert kept his eyes down.

"I heard you and Georgie fighting last night, Robbie. Are you two alright?" he asked with concern.

"Yeah. We sorted it out and everything's fine now," he said quickly to his mug.

"Oh, well – that's good," he replied hesitantly. Robert didn't say anything, hoping the conversation was over. They drank their tea in silence for a few minutes.

"Robbie, there's something I have to say," his dad said suddenly, making Robert feel wary.

"I've noticed – Georgie isn't doing – isn't having an easy time – adjusting," he said, seemingly searching for the right words. Robert kept his eyes on his mug.

"I'm concerned about how hard a time she's having and, well, I think maybe it would be a good idea for the two of you to consider going to therapy." Robert looked up at him with surprise.

"Me? Why d'you think I need to go? I'm fine," he asked.

"I can tell you've been affected by what's happened to you, Robbie. You're different than you used to be." Robert was stunned. "It's not like you're a lot different," he said quickly, seeing the look on Robert's face. "It's just little things I notice. Georgie obviously has bigger needs, and – well, if you both go it might help her more, y'know?"

Robert looked back at his mug. "Yeah, maybe," he said quietly. He remembered the last time he'd suggested Georgie seek therapy, and how badly she'd reacted. But he couldn't deny she was continuing to have problems. Maybe he should talk to her about it again.

"Good lad," his dad said with obvious relief and stood up as he patted his back. "I ought to get started on breakfast before everyone else gets up."

While his dad was pulling things out of the fridge, Robert left to go upstairs. When he walked in the bedroom, Georgie was just waking up. He smiled seeing her beautiful sleepy face and went over to sit next to her on the bed. She moved close to him and hugged his leg as he started rubbing her back.

"You alright, Georgie? Did you sleep well?" he asked her, and she looked up at him.

"Yes, I slept well," she said quietly. Judging by the dark circles under her eyes he wasn't so sure she had. As he continued to rub her back, she closed her eyes.

Now would be the time to talk to her about therapy, but as he looked at her, he hesitated. What she'd said the night before came back to him, 'You should be with that girl, not me,' and it suddenly occurred to him that she'd meant was she didn't feel she was good enough for him, that she thought she was too damaged for him. Did he really want to bring up something that would reinforce that idea?

Hadn't she vowed to protect him no matter what it cost her? Last night he'd seen just how far she was willing to go to protect him from her, even if it meant leaving him. He wouldn't mention it, he decided suddenly. He'd already planned on helping her get over her fears once he was finished with the university applications. If he wasn't able to help her, then he could bring it up. It would be better to wait. The fight they'd had and her determination to leave him would be a distant memory by then. There was no need to rush things. He had plenty of time.

---Now---

His dad set down breakfast plates in front of him and Darrell piled high with scrambled eggs, sausages, toast and fried potatoes, his take on 'American breakfast'. Robert was grateful his stomach seemed more hungry than unsettled and the food looked good.

While he and Darrell were eating, his mum asked, "Will you be off after this, Darrell?

"Uh, no. Robbie and I are going to see a film, Alice," he replied. Robert tried not to act surprised.

"Oh, that'll be lovely," she said smiling, and Robert heard the relief in her voice. He hunched over his plate a little more as he ate.

When he and Darrell were in Darrell's car on the way to the cinema, Robert asked, "What d'you want to see?"

"Dunno. I thought we'd decide when we get there."

"Cheers, Darrell," Robert said quietly, looking out the window, hoping Darrell knew how grateful he was.

"It's alright, Robbie," he replied, letting him know he understood.

They ended up seeing the latest action movie. It was loud and long, with plenty of explosions, car chases and fight scenes. Robert concentrated on it fully, allowing it to crowd out the latest e-mail from her, the picture, and the horrible night at the club with Bridget.

Afterwards, when they were walking back to the car, Robert said, "I think I'll walk home, yeah?" Darrell immediately looked concerned.

"Are you sure, Robbie? It's a long way back to your house."

"Nah, it's not that far," he reassured him.

"It's gonna take you hours, Robbie!" he said, sounding even more concerned.

"I've been walking a lot lately. The walking helps, yeah? And besides, you've been hanging about long enough. I know you're anxious to be off." Darrell looked equal parts relieved and worried for him.

"It's alright, really," he replied firmly.

"Well – alright," Darrell said hesitantly, finally giving in. "Cheers, Robbie," he said gratefully and Robert knew what he meant. He slapped Robert's hand and pulled him into a one armed hug.

"See ya, mate," Robert said, smiling a little.

"See ya, Robbie," Darrell said, smiling back at him, looking happy.

After Darrell drove off, Robert set off on the long walk back to his house, keeping his eyes on the ground, his hands shoved in his pockets, his mind turned off.

****

So Robert has convinced Georgie not to leave him, and now you know she attempted to leave him more than once. It's probably becoming more clear where Georgie's mind is at now, and therefore not so hard to theorize what might have happened that made her leave. Go ahead and give me your theories if you care to, I enjoy reading them. And if you feel like venting about Georgie, that's fine too. I will admit, it hurt at first to hear people say they were mad at her because I love her so much, but I realize I asked for it when I made her a flawed person. As I said before, none of my characters are perfect people and each of them will make mistakes.  :)

Just a little inside information, the trip to the club and the aftermath is the last thing I wrote in my original story about Robert and Georgie way back before it was Stolen Hearts and I was just writing it for myself. This is the point where I ran out of ideas of where to take the story next. I did briefly consider having this be the end of Stolen Hearts, or whatever book ended up being the last one, and I would've carried on writing it straight through without flashbacks. But in end I couldn't do it, I had to try to come up with something better for everyone who loved Stolen Hearts.

<3 I want to extend a special thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate Stolen Hearts for Best Adult Perspective and voted for it in the Watty's. The fact that you loved my story enough to support it means so much to me. My hopes were not so high that I thought I might win, but knowing more people found Stolen Hearts and enjoyed reading it because it was one of the finalists has been the best reward I could've been given. That's what each and every one of you gave me, so thank you for that. <3