Dedicated to Jaliscogirl, my newest fan who gave me the sweetest compliment imaginable. Love that you loved this story! (:)

Chapter Five - Jason's POV

7 Hours Before "The Confession"

Laura and I were sitting on the couch, watching some chick flick she'd picked out. Actually, she was watching it while I was watching her. She was dressed up today, in a cute green dress with a short-sleeved gray jacket tied right beneath her chest. But though Laura had obviously put effort into her outfit, her body was slumped in sadness. She'd angled her head so that a dark curtain of hair hung between me and her, as if to cut us off from each other.

But I'd be damned if I let that deter me.

Cursing, I paused the movie and turned to face her. Laura was looking at me, surprise and turmoil in her bright green eyes. "What's wrong?" she asked, the little pucker between her brows forming as it did when she was unsettled.

"You tell me," I countered brusquely, irritated with how we'd both been avoiding this conversation. But now, I was determined to find out what was making one of my best friends miserable. "You look like you're going through hell, Lau, and I wanna know why."

"It's nothing, Jason," she said automatically, giving me a smile. That stopped me short; it actually looked real for a moment, until I noticed that her eyes were still sad.

"You can't lie to your best friend," I scoffed. "I know there's something going on with you and Jordan."

Laura laughed, but the sound was higher pitched than normal. "You worry too much, Jay. We're as good as ever."

"You sound like a parrot." Sliding over, I took her slim hands in mine and squeezed them lightly. "I hate seeing you sad, Lau."

"And I hate being sad!" she exploded, standing up to pace in front of the coffee table despite her ankle. "I hate feeling sad and worried and angry all the fucking time! I hate not being myself, I hate lying to my friends, but most of all - "

She stopped suddenly, the words seeming to clog up her throat. Tugging on her hand, I sat her back down on the couch. "Tell me what it is."

Shaking her head violently, Laura pleaded with me, a hint of desperation in her tone. "I can't say it."

I frowned. "You mean you can't trust me."

"What I mean is that I can't say the words outloud, because that makes them real."

"'The truth, while unsaid, remains the truth,'" I quoted.

It made her smile a bit. "Some truths should never be told."

Heaving a sigh, I leaned back and put my arm around her shoulders. "Whatever you say, Lau. Let's finish this girly crap so we can watch some REAL movies."

"All movies are real," she scolded, nestling into my side a bit as the flick started once again. I tried to concentrate on the movie, but Laura's hair was tickling my nose. Inhaling deeply, I got a whiff of the cinnamon shampoo Julie and I had gotten her last Christmas. It made me feel warm to think that she was wearing something of mine.

What kind of thoughts am I having? I gritted my teeth, determined to focus on the damn movie. Even though I wanted to put some distance between us and these feelings, I knew moving away would hurt Laura's feelings. Not that she was attracted to me; she'd made that abudantly clear. And though I may have had a crush on her, that had been years ago.

My mind began wandering off, remembering the day I'd first met Laura. Jules and I had already become good friends, and Lau had soon been included into our group. While Julie has always been a pretty girl, Laura had something more - something special. Being a typical five-year old boy with a crush, I'd ignored her for a good while. Unfortunately, she'd taken it as a sign of rivalry for the spot of being Julie's best friend. Over the years, it has sparked constant fights between us; still, I'd always had a little crush on Laura.

As we got older and more experienced, we'd flirted a bit. Sometimes, we'd even kiss, though the next day we never talked about it. However, Lau never pushed it farther, so I became a player, looking for any girl to help me get over her while she dated losers. And I thought I'd found it in Helen...

"Since you can't make up your mind, I'm making it up for you. We're over, Jason. I'm done."

"Jay-jay? Movie's over," Laura said, knocking me out of my revelrie. I shook my head, stepping out of the past and back to the present.

"Thank you, Jesus!" I proclaimed loudly, bending onto my knees and clasping my hands together as if I was praying.

"Shut up!" she laughed and swatted my shoulder. Growling playfully, I grabbed her hand and pulled her forwards so that she fell off the couch. "Ouch!"

Snickering, I said with a lofty British accent, "Well, darling, you were asking for it."

Lau glared at me before pouncing and knocking me to the ground. Before I could stop her, she started tickling my neck. "Surrender to my power!" she demanded as I began gasping for air between laughs.

"Never!" Squirming, I managed to reverse our posistion so that I was on top. Grabbing her wrists, I pinned her hands down above her head. Laura blew her hair out of her face, and I also caught a whiff of the slightly spicy smell. Her eyes met mine, two shades of green locking together.

I felt her pulse begin rising as we continued to stare at each other, lungs heaving from our mini-wrestling match. Each exhale made her chest touch mine, and I automatically leaned closer until our bodies were pressed up against each other. One of my legs was in between hers; as I moved, it brushed her thighs. Lau bit her lip, cheeks turning a slight pink as she nervously looked away, unintentionally exposing her long neck to me.

Possessed by some force that I was unable to control, I pressed my lips against the smooth column of flesh, tongue tracing patterns on the peachy skin. I heard her moan in my ear, arching her body against mine. Releasing her wrists, I ran one hand through her hair as the other fingered the edge of her shirt. Laura's arms stayed where they lay as mine wrapped around her waist.

My hand slowly started to inch her shirt up, lingering on her warm skin. I stopped kissing her neck and began moving downwards, nuzzling the curve of her collarbone. Lau was breathing heavily, gasping every now and then as my lips and hand explored further. I was unclasping her bra when she finally spoke. "J-Jason...you have - you have to..."

"Mmm?" I murmured, distracted by her breasts. What can I say? I'm a man.

"Ahh, no - no." She gripped my shoulders, running her hands down my chest. Groaning, I fisted my own in her hair, turning to press our lips together. I'd barely gotten a taste of that ambrosial sapor before she pulled away, eyes glittering with unshed tears. "No."

"No, what?" I said, mind foggy and confused. I tried to kiss her again, but she turned away from me. Settling for second best, I nipped at her neck, making her already pounding pulse beat faster.

"No, we - we can't do this." Laura's voice was stronger as she pushed me back. "I told you that we couldn't do this anymore."

That sentence, so much like what she'd said last time, made me snap out of whatever spell I was under. I immediately got off her, scooting back so fast my elbow crashed into the coffee table. "Owwww!"

I doubled as pain radiated through my arm, saying every curse word I could think of. Though I was swearing loudly, I still heard a peal of laughter, and turned to see Laura also bent over, clutching her stomach as she guffawed.

Glaring at her as my eyes watered, I barked out, "This isn't funny!"

"Y-your, your face!" she howled, trying to contain her giggles and failing. I rolled my eyes, shaking my arm until the tingles faded. By the time they were gone, Lau had calmed down enough to have a reasonable conversation.

The silence grew awkward in light of what just happened. Coughing, I got the courage to speak up. "Umm, about what happened..."

She stiffened, combing her tangled hair with one hand. "You shouldn't have done that, Jason. I have a boyfriend."

My temper flared. "One who treats you like shit. How can you love someone like that, Laura?"

Her eyes flashed. "Who do you think I should love, Jason? Someone like you."

I recoiled, remembering a different pair of green irises glaring at me. How could I love someone like you?

"You shouldn't," I said hoarsely, standing. "You shouldn't love someone like me."

"Wait, Jason, I didn't mean it - "

I tried to smile, but I'm sure it came out more as a grimace. "Don't worry, Lau. You're right. Anyways, it's getting late, so I think you should get going."

"Jay-jay..." she pleaded, but I turned my back to her. It was silent for a few heartbeats before I heard her begin gathering her stuff to leave. Walking to the door, Laura paused for a moment before whispering, "Sorry."

A soft click signaled her departure, but I stayed were I stood, shoulders shaking slightly as tears rolled down my cheeks. Unbidden memories flooded me, and I envisioned another girl walking out.

"It can't work if you don't want it to," she said, voice soft and sad.

"What are you talking about?!" I yelled, my voice cracking. "You're the one leaving! You don't want this to work out!"

"You're wrong, J." She opened the door, not looking at me as she said, "Sorry."

"Wait!" I continued to plead with her. "Wait, Helen, wait! Helen! Don't leave me! Don't leave, Helen...please..."

"Don't leave..." I whispered, grabbing my face as shudders shook my frame. "Don't leave me like she did. Don't leave, please. Please..."

But just like before, there was no one to hear me.

And just like before, I was all alone.

~~~~~~~~

Alright, so I was planning to make this the last chapter, but it was so long I decided on one last chapter. And then the epilogue, and then I'm done, and then the winners are announced! Fingers and toes are crossed!

Sorry for another sad chapter, but things will perk up for both Laura and Jason in THE FINAL PART! *cue dramatic music* Duh, duh, duuuuuuh. Stay tuned for the last bit of Loving a Loner! Appreciate the support as always.

Thanks for reading! :D

- Nikkisha16