It was coming up to two weeks since Emma had first been out with Scott and since then he’d took her out another three times, nothing major, but they were getting closer. She didn’t know what to think, she tried to keep distancing herself from him in case he still loved Kerry but it was hard. She was falling for him and falling fast, she kept trying to slow herself down, soon there was wasn’t going to be anywhere left to fall and she was scared she was going to fall head first onto the concrete pavement of reality.

Meanwhile things were going great for Kay, Kim, Jen, Maz and Helen. Maz and Sean, and Helen and J were still very much together and were doing great! Jen and Shane were also doing great, they were attached at the hip, literally. Mark and Kay were also very close and were getting even closer everyday! After getting over their initial shyness Kim and Christian had started going out and things were looking good between them!

However things were not looking good between Claire and Kian and Sophie and Nicky. This had come as a big shock to all the others but they just figured they’d work out all their differences sooner or later.

~*~*~*~
“Hey Emmz! Your phone is ringing!” Saz called to Emma who had just gone into the kitchen.
“Taa mate!” said Emmz running back into the room and grabbing her phone, “Hiya!” she said answering it.
“Hey babes! Got something to ask you!”
“Right Scott, sounds interesting, go ahead!”
“It’s not THAT interesting,” Scott laughed, “Just it’s the otown album launch party tonight and we get to go because of us being on the same record label so do u want to come with me?”
“Aw course I will! Sounds cool anywayz, I really like otown so it’d be cool to meet them…” she was interrupted by Sarah.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN MEET OTOWN?!”
“Saz! Calm down!” Emma laughed and explained to her then she went back to Scott on the phone, “Scott I’d love to come but can Saz come too please?”
“Well, yeah, I suppose she can…”
“Right! Wicked! Are you coming to pick us up then?
“Yeah course I am… 6 o’clock do you okay?”
“Yeah that’s fine!”
“Well sorry but I’ve got to dash now, I love you.”
“See you later Scott,” she said putting down the phone.
“What’s up Emmz?” Saz said, “You look a bit weird!”
“Scott… he just said… he loved me… oh well he probably doesn’t love me love me…”
“Aw Emmz!” Saz said giving her a hug, “come on lets going and figure out what we’re going to wear tonight!” she said grabbing her arm.

Chapter 12

“Emmz! Is that you?” Emma heard a voice from behind her. Her, Scott and Sarah had just arrived at the party. She span around.
“Oh My God! Michy mate! I haven’t seen you for at least a year! How you been?!”
“Great thanks! I’ve been over working in America, where I met otown and well that’s why I’m here! How about u?”
“Aw that’s really cool mate! I’m wicked thanks, Scott’s brought me here tonight,” she answered smiling coyly at Scott when she felt Sarah nudging her, “Mich, this is my best friend Saz and Saz this is my nutta mate Mich!”
“Nice to meet you Saz.”
“Same here! So you actually know otown then?”
“Yeah they’re really nice guys!”
“Do you think maybe you could introduce me?”
“Yeah sure I…” Mich was interrupted by a man who had walked up and slipped his arms around her waist.
“Hey baby,” he whispered in her ear.
“Emmz and Saz meet my boyfriend, Dan.” Mich said shyly as Sarah’s mouth dropped open.
“Sweetie I got to go find the rest of the guys, you coming?”
“Yeah I’ll be right with you. Emmz? Saz? You want to come and meet the guys?”
“I’ll catch you up, I want to go find Scott. You two go ahead!” Emma said walking off to find Scott.
“Ok then mate, c’mon Saz! Time to meet the lads!” Michy said following Dan over to the other lads.
“You found her then?” laughed Jacob.
“Yeah course I did, she bumped into an old friend and got talking!” Dan answered back.
“Yeah I haven’t seen Emmzy in ages! She’s just gone to find someone… this is her friend Saz,” Michy said introducing Sarah.
“Hiya,” she said going shy all of a sudden.
“Hey Saz, nice to meet you,” said Ashley offering his hand.
“You too,” she said taking it and blushing.
“Can I get you a drink?” he asked
“Yeah sure, if you don’t mind.”
“Of course I don’t mind!” he said taking her hand and leading her over to the bar.
“Woah Ash is working fast tonight!” laughed Dan.

Chapter 13

The place was packed and also very noisy! Emma passed Abs who was doing a very good job of djing, he lifted his head and gave her a wave and a cheeky grin. She continued to make her way around but couldn’t see Scott anywhere, she could hear shouting though and because she was nosey decided to go and see what was happening. She made her way over to the lounge room where the noise was coming from, she saw a familiar face standing outside.
“SKITZ!” she shouted running over to the girl.
“Hey Emmz!”
“What the hell is going on in there?”
“Um well Kian and Claire and…”
“They’re splitting up?”
“Sounds like it!”
“Sure does! Why though?”
“She found someone else…”
“Ohhhhh… I’ve thought there was something not right between them for a while now. Anywayz mate how are you? Still with Bruce?”
“I’m great thanks!” Skitz replied, “Bruce and me are over though.”
“Aw mate! New man yet?”
“Well… yeah.”
“C’mon then who is he?”
“He’s called Tico!”
“Tico… Tico… I’ve heard that name somewhere before… oh my god mate! Tico the drummer from Bon Jovi?!”
“Yeah that’s him, he just so wonderful,” she said smiling, “So how about you? There’s rumours flying around about you and Scott!”
“Well they’re just rumours,” Emma said looking at the floor.
“Aw mate I’m sorry, think anything’s going to happen?”
“I don’t know, I don’t know what’s happening between him and Kerry so…”
“I’m sure things will work out,” Skitz reassured her before looking over at the clock on the wall, “Tico should be hear soon, want to come outside with me to wait? Then you can meet him.”
“Sure I will,” Emma replied as they walked over to the door and went outside. They had only been there a few minutes when a man walked past looking rather suspicious. He walked past them, then turned around and walked back and up to them.
“Skitz…”
“Bruce…”
“I’ll just be over…” said Emma starting to walk away.
“You’ll just be here,” said Skitz grabbing her arm, “So Bruce, did you want something?”
“Er yeah I did actually,” he answered.
“Well we haven’t got all night you know!”
“Yeah baby I know…”
“I stopped being your baby the day you walked out,” Skitz snapped back.
“Don’t be like this with me!”
“I don’t know what you expect, now what is it that you want?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yeah, I want you back. I realised I made the biggest mistake I’ve ever made in leaving you. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Well that’s all very nice but what do you expect me to say?” she snapped at him again, “I’ve got someone else now and I’m very happy with him and…”
“Hey babe, is this man bothering you?” a New Jersey accent came from behind them.
“Tico!” squealed Skitz giving him a big hug, “Bruce was just going, weren’t you Bruce?”
“No I’m not, I’m not going until I get what I came for,” he shot back.
“And exactly what is that?” Tico joined in
“Skitz of course!” Bruce sneered back
“Hey I don’t think so! She’s with me now!”
“Yeah I am!” Skitz shouted over from where she’d gone to stand with Emma.
“Yeah well we’ll soon see about that won’t we?” said Bruce walking straight up to Tico and looking him in the eye.
“Here we go,” Emma whispered to Skitz.
“I wish Bruce would just go,” she answered.
“Oh my god where did Tico learn to hit like that,” screamed Emma as the two of them ran over to try and split Tico and Bruce up.
“Look just stop it! Both of you!” shouted Skitz on the verge of crying, “Bruce just go please there’s nothing left between me and you. Please just go!”
“Fine! I’m out of here! Have a nice life… with him,” he said looking at Tico and then he left.
“Thank God for that!” said Emma very relieved.
“You can say that again!” Skitz replied, “Now lets get inside! It’s freezing out here! You okay baby?” she said turning round and hugging Tico.
“Course I am, I’ve got you here with me,” was his reply.

Chapter 14

Emma still couldn’t find Scott, she had no idea where he could be. She continued her search but deep down she knew something wasn’t right he really wasn’t anywhere in sight.
“Hey Emmz! Come and sit with us!” she heard somebody calling her. She looked over, it was Maz who was sitting with Sean along with Helen and J so she went to join them.
“Hey Guys!”
“Hiya Emmz,” they all said in unison and then burst out laughing because it sounded so funny.
“So how are you Emmz?” Helen asked.
“Yeah I’m fine thanks, just looking for Scott, how are you four?”
“Yeah we’re all great thanks,” J answered for all of them, “No idea where Scott is though sorry. You know he talks about you a lot.”
“Honestly?” Emma replied perking up a little.
“Yeah we didn’t think he’d ever get over Kerry did we mate?” J said looking up at Sean.
“Nah mate! But now I think he has,” Sean said then lent back and put his arm around Maz.
“I don’t know though… oh Hey Abs!” Emma exclaimed looking up at Abs who had just joined them, “Your doing a wicked job with the music tonight!”
“Yeah it’s okay I suppose!” he said modestly.
“Emmz,” interrupted Maz, “What were you on about before… when you said I don’t know?”
“About Scott, I don’t know whether he’s properly over Kerry and that we’d be better off being just friends.”
“Aw man no! How could Scott just be friends with someone like you,” Abs said giving her a playful punch on the arm, “Anyways my people I must leave you and get back to the music!” he said getting up and leaving.
“Yeah Emmz,” Helen said, “I’m sure Scott really likes you the way he goes on about you.”
“Thanks you guys you’ve made me feel a lot better. I’m going to go see if I can find him, or catch up with Saz and Michy. See you later!” she said before leaving the table.

She found Sarah, but decided not to disturb her as she was looking very cosy with Mr Ashley Parker Angel. She saw Michy too but her and Dan looked so cute together she didn’t want to interrupt. She carried on walking, bad news, Sophie and Nicky looked like they were arguing, so really didn’t want to go say hi to them. Where the hell was Scott? She still carried on walking, lots of people she didn’t know seemed to be staring at her, she suddenly felt really insecure.

“EMMMMMMMMMZZZZZZZZZZYYYYY” she heard, it was Kay, a rather tipsy Kay. Emma laughed to herself and then walked over to the table where Kay and Mark, Jen and Shane, Kim and Christian and Skitz and Tico were sitting.
“Hey everyone!” she said feeling a lot more self-confident now she’d found some people she knew, “You all having a good time?”
“Oh yeah!” was the answer she got from them all, she sensed that they were all just a bit tipsy, well except Skitz and Tico who weren’t really talking that much and seemed very much wrapped up in each others company, like they were oblivious to all the people around them. Cute.
“Good, good!” Emma said while still scouring the room for Scott, then she spotted, he was in the corner of a room talking on his phone. She excused herself from the table and went over to him. As she got nearer she could hear what he was saying to the person on the other end of the phone.
“No you can’t come here now! What do u mean your nearly here? This is not the right time or place! KERRY NO! Course I still love but this can wait until tomorrow!” he shouted down the phone. Emma didn’t want to stand there and hear anymore, even if she was only hearing half the conversation she knew one thing for sure. Kerry was back on the scene. She turned around to walk away.
“Hey Emmz babe where you going?”
“Emmz babe?!” she snapped at him.
“Emmz what’s wrong?”
“I’ve been looking for you all night!”
“Yeah, I’m sorry, I had to make some phone calls…”
“Yeah well good for you! See you!” she said turning around to walk off again.
“Emmz tell me what I’ve done, please.”
“I knew you weren’t over Kerry… now bye,” she said turning around and this time walking off and ignoring him calling her name. She couldn’t turn around; she didn’t want him to see the tears in her eyes. She had hit the pavement of reality, head first, fullspeed, and it had cracked her skull right open. She was hurting.

Chapter 15

Michy found Emma sitting sobbing on the steps outside.
“Emmzy mate what’s the matter?”
“Scott… I… think… he’s… going… back… to… Kerry,” she managed to say in between sobs.
“Aw Emmz I’m so sorry. Everything is going to be okay though. Remember what you used to say to me when I was with Daniel? No man is worth my tears…”
“And the one who is wouldn’t make me cry,” Emma finished, “Thanks Mich,” she said giving her a big hug.
“Anytime mate anytime,” she replied as they heard a male voice behind them, she turned around, “Scott what do you want?”
“Mich, I really need to talk to Emmz, please?”
“Emmz you okay about this?” she asked Emma, Emma just nodded, “I’ll be just inside if you need me okay Emmz?” Michy got up and went back inside. Scott went and sat down next to Emma.
“Emmz,” he started, she lifted her head to look at him (all I can say is thank God for waterproof and smudge proof mascara), “I didn’t mean for it to be like this. You’re a wonderful person but you were right when you said Kerry and me had something special. I’m feeling so bad now, please say you’re not going to hate me forever.”
“I could never hate you,” she whispered.
“You’re so nice, maybe if we’d have met in a different place, a different time things would be different.”
“Maybe but maybe not. You and Kerry are meant to be, we weren’t, and I’ve got to except you’re not for me.”
“We friends then?” Scott paused before asking.
“Course we are.”
“I know why Kerry was acting weird with me now…”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah, she’s pregnant.”
“Aw Scott that’s really great news.”
“You mean that?”
“Yes, honestly.”

Meanwhile back inside the news had spread about what had happened between Emma and Scott.
“I hope she’s okay,” Helen said.
“Yeah me too, I mean we were telling her just an hour ago how much he liked her, I feel a bit guilty,” Maz added.
“Aw sweetie no, it’s not your fault, that’s how we all thought Scott felt,” Sean said putting his arm around her.

Just then Nicky and Sophie walked past, their voices were raised.
“Fine Nicky just forget it!”
“Soph stop it! We can work this out!”
“We’ve been trying to work it out for weeks now Nicky! Except it! We’re over!” Sophie called back as she ran out of the door and Emma walked in. People, Saz, Michy, Kay, Jen, Kim, Maz, Helen and Skitz, engulfed her.
“Emmz! Are you alright?” they all cried.
“Yeah, yeah I’m fine,” she replied, a little overwhelmed with all the attention, “Can we go and sit down please?” she asked as they walked over to an empty to table, passing Abs on the way who gave her an understanding and reassuring look. She was going to be okay.

Epilogue

“Abs, there really was no need for you to do this,” Emma looked over at Abs who had not only drove her all the way to Derby university but was now unloading all her bags and getting ready to take them all up to her room.
“Hey what are friends for? I really wouldn’t have wanted you to struggle with this lot on the train.”
“Okay,” she laughed, “but let me help you carry some of that your going to do yourself an injury,” she said taking a few of the bags from him and following him up the steps, they found her room and went in and dumped all of her stuff on the floor. Just then a head popped around the door.
“Hey I’m Sian, you must be Emma right?”
“Yeah that’s me!”
“Wicked, I’m in the room next door, I’ve been so nervous because I don’t know anyone and everyone else are in these big groups!”
“Well you can stop worrying because I don’t know anyone either!”
“Lucky they put us right next to each other then!”
“Yeah it sure is!” replied Emma smiling.
“Hey Emmz I’m going to get going, you’re okay now aren’t you?”
“Yeah sure I am. Thanks for bringing me,” she answered giving him a hug.
“Anytime,” he said giving her a kiss on the cheek and then one of his cheeky grins before he left.
“Wasn’t that Abs from 5ive?” asked Sian.
“Yeah that’s him!” laughed Emma.
“So you’re going out with him?”
“Nah… we’re just friends.”
“Fair enough,” Sian said linking her arm, “lets go and check this place out!”

~*~*~*~

Emma was as happy as she could be, everything that had happened with Scott was a memory and one she could cope with. Her and Abs were getting on great and were the best of friends.

The rest of the gang? Kay and Mark, Michy and Dan, Kim and Christian, Skitz and Tico, Jen and Shane, Maz and Sean and Helen and J were all still very much together and very happy. Scott and Kerry were getting married and of course had a baby on the way. Kian and Claire decided to go their separate ways but are both very happy as Claire is now going out with Jon Bon Jovi (thanks to Skitz and Tico) and Kian has just started seeing a girl called Nic, a friend of Maz. Sophie and Nicky never did work out their problems but they were still friends, Nicky was now with a girl called Sam and Sophie was getting a lot of media coverage for straightening out Brian of Big Brother 2 fame. Charl, Donna and Kelly were all off the university and were also in happy relationships. And as for Saz, she was on top of the world, she’d just been signed to BMG and she was going out with Ashley. Oh and Ritchie (since we wouldn’t want him to be feeling left out due to his lack of coverage in this story) seemed to have finally calmed down and was seeing a girl called Shiri.

~*~*~*~

“Wow this place is massive!” Emma said turning to Sian.
“Yeah it is! We’re going to have a right laugh here though!” Sian said laughing as they carried on walking. It was going to be one heck of year!