Respect

Ariel remains seated and keeps her eyes on Trey. She had known he would be upset - as anybody would - but perhaps she hadn't been prepared for the words he was saying. Nevertheless, she doesn't flinch, or argue.

It hurt - what he said. And as he points out the door, Ariel slowly stands. But instead of obeying, she takes a step closer to Trey. Looking up at him, she searches his cold, dark, hurting eyes. And it's sorrow she feels.

"I'm so sorry..." Her voice was calm and quiet. "...you have been hurt so many times, that you can't see past the bad anymore."

Risking his wrath, she reaches out and takes his outstretched hand in both of hers, lowering it gently. "I never pretended to like you, Trey. And if I had met you on the street, I would have cared just the same. I'm not that good of an actress." Her grip tightens slightly. "There are good things in all of this - but I can't force you to see them. You've been dealt a bad hand from the beginning... but one day you're going to have to let it go and quit blaming the world for your hurts so you can heal. Otherwise... you'll always feel this pain... and that's no way to live."

Lifting his hand, she gives it a soft kiss. "I'm sorry, but I can't forget you. It's just not that easy." Letting him go, she backs away. He had her number if he wanted to talk with her another time... but she wasn't sure if he'd ever want to hear her voice again.

She searches his eyes one last time. "I hope I see you again sometime... but I leave the ball in your court."

Nodding with respect, she turns to leave.


Justin was glad Beth had had such a good time with her new friend. She sounded great - happy and full of energy. It was a breath of fresh air, and Justin knew that she'd taken another giant step today - and he was proud of her. Somehow though... his pride wasn't showing through very well.

Beth's question puts him on guard, and sits up, folding his legs. "Wrong?" How had he acted? He tries to remember. Oh yeah. He'd been rather curt, hadn't he? But how was he supposed to tell her he didn't like Zach, when he had no reason to feel that way? It wasn't really fair, and he knew it.

"No... no, nothing's wrong. Got a lot on my mind, I guess." He chews on his lip. "Sorry."

He thinks for a moment, feeling the need for a change of subject. "I finally went to see Jared today... it went alright... I guess I feel better having gone."