Would she really be with him every step of the way? Jared looks over 
at Grace, his thumb running through her palm. And did he really want her
 with him every step of the way? With as many things as he had yet to 
face? These were the questions that raced through his mind. What was 
happening between them? Was it just a little playful flirting so they 
didn't get bored? Was it an actual idea of being more than friends, but 
that which would only last a little while? Or was a relationship 
something they both wanted?
Leaning his head back and 
staring at the far wall, his fingers continue to roam Grace's hand, 
tracing her palm, around her knuckles, thumb, then back to her palm 
again. "My mom asked me yesterday what I planned to do once I was back 
on my feet." The thought seemed rather random, and was spoken quietly. 
"I'm sure she wants to hear that I'll settle down in the area. But I 
don't know if I really fit here. I would probably have more going for me
 if I picked up where I left off before..."
His eyes 
eventually slip back over to Grace. He wanted to find out for sure what 
she really thought of them... together. If this was really something she
 wanted, or if she was just playing around. As he stared into her eyes 
though, he knew the answer. She had too much integrity to just play 
around with plans to forget the whole thing once he was walking again. 
And yet... despite his own desire to start a relationship... he knew 
that there was so much about him that could hurt her. Things he'd done. 
Things he still struggled with. Tendencies that he didn't know if he 
could control or not. And maybe he cared enough about her to not want to
 hurt her with any of those things. Maybe it really would be best when 
this was over, that he move away from here again.
He 
swallows hard and looks away once more without realizing his eyes and 
tone had given away that he was still struggling to pull himself out of 
his depression. "But I guess it's a while yet before I need to make that
 decision," he concludes lamely.
Rosalyn 
sighs deeply, her hands finding Chad's at her waist. "You haven't caused
 any trouble," she counters softly. "If anybody has, it's me. I've 
probably handled this whole thing the wrong way and just made it all 
worse than it needed to be. Maybe I've got more Henson stubbornness in 
me than I thought. It's gotten plenty of people in trouble through the 
years though."
Slipping from Chad, she resumes holding 
his hand to continue down the sidewalk. "I'm not convinced I'm worth all
 of this trouble for you," he muses. "I know you like me, but in all 
reality, you'd probably be better off just to forget this whole thing. 
It was fun while it lasted, but it's probably not worth a war."
Looking
 up just as Karla comes into view, Kip stands, though is taken by 
surprise by her hug. He'd figured she might be a bit worried, but not 
this much. Sighing, he slips his arms around her too and kisses the top 
of her head. When she pulls away though, he doesn't return her smile. He
 can't. Not when he felt this low. 
"Yeah... yeah, I'm 
okay. I just, um..." He shrugs lamely. "Couldn't get it together today. 
Woke up late, phone died, ran out of gas... just... one thing after 
another." But it was still his fault for being irresponsible, and he 
knew it. He knew if he'd been on top of things, this would have been 
avoided. 
Leaning down, he kisses her lips lightly. 
"I'm sorry I made you worry." Even more so, he was sorry for letting the
 entire band down. "Are the others ready to kill me?" 
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