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"I know the truth now I know who you are and I don't love you anymore It never was and never will be you don't know how you've betrayed me and somehow you've got everybody fooled" Evanescence

Chapter Twelve-Everybody's Fool

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Page 1: Chapter Twelve-Everybody's Fool

"I know the truth now I know who you are and I don't love you anymore It never was and never will be you don't know how you've betrayed me and somehow you've got everybody fooled" –Evanescence

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Day 06: Somewhere in Statham Island

Echo’s place

“Where have you been? I was so worried about you!” She cried with relief when her boyfriend finally burst through the front door. She immediately rushed to him, but stopped in her tracks when she saw his face. “What happened to your face? Where have you been? Answer me dammit!”

“Quit hollering!” Echo replied dismissively. He did not want to get into this with her right now. His whole body ached and he thought he had a broken rib.

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“Who did this to you? Tell me? Who?” Bree screamed helplessly.

“Your lover!” He answered coldly glaring at her. A small cruel smile formed on his lips as emotions ranging from horror, dread and disbelief played on her face. He wanted to hurt her as much as she hurt him…

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Victoria’s apartment

"Victoria, it's me...I guess you're busy with Kendra's party...I just wanted...anyway, I'm looking forward to tomorrow and the trip to Twikki Island. I'll call you later!"

Victoria’s heart rate quickened to an incredibly insane pace. She was listening to Storm’s voice message and she could almost hear her whole body buzz with euphoria. She still couldn’t understand the power that man had over her. Who would have guessed just hearing his voice on the phone could make her feel this way?

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“Toria, there’s something I need to te---“Kendra stopped mid sentence when she saw Victoria on the phone and evidently on some high.

“Oh Kendra…Please let’s go now. I have to go to him….I miss him so much…..” Victoria whispered breathlessly, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement and something Kendra could only describe as love.

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“Whoa! Rewind…what’s going on?” Kendra asked.

“Storm…he…last night…he called and left a message on my phone. I’m so happy!” Victoria replied, turning to leave and rush upstairs to get her bags.

“Toria, there’s something you should know---” Kendra called out after her. But Victoria was too caught up in her daze to listen to anything else.

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Within moments Victoria rounded up the other three and they left her apartment for Storm’s place.

“Come on, hurry up you guys!” She called over her shoulder.

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Ever since their reunion at Maple Springs she could not get him off her mind. She promised herself she would fight for him. If he was in a relationship that was just too bad for the other woman because she was back now to claim her rightful place in his heart. She knew they had a lot to work through but today was going to be the beginning to the rest of their lives together. She was ready to give herself to him completely and be Mrs. Storm Chace.

“This is so rushed! I don’t understand why we have to go there so early. The flight’s only leaving this evening and the guys are not expecting us until midday!” Cassie moaned crossly following on Victoria’s heels.

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….His last statement turned her cold. But the hateful look in his eyes disturbed her even more. She had never seen him like this. “Who?” She asked incredulously.

“Your delectable Special Agent Storm Chace!” Echo fired back, his voice dripping with sarcasm, but still retaining its icy chill.

“He did this to you? Why? No…he wouldn’t. Storm wouldn’t do this. He’s such a gentleman…I---“ Bree cried over and over again. This whole conversation felt surreal.

“Know him? Yes, we’ve gathered that much!” Echo cut her off impatiently…

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As luck would have it, the bridal party had a flat tyre on the way to Storm’s place. Victoria didn’t have a spare tyre and none of them had any knowledge of changing tyres anyway. So they had to pull over the side of a busy road and wait for AAA.

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“Remind me again why you don’t have a spare? If you did, we’d just ask any guy to help us out here!” Cassie let out a frustrated sigh. It was boiling hot outside and the car’s aircon was not helping matters. Cassie was a perfectionist and someone once or twice called her a control freak. She loved order in her life and anything out of order made her fly off the handle…anything like a flat tyre.

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“Do people really do that---I’m mean carry around spare tyres?” Victoria asked dreamily. She was counting down the hours before she’d finally see Storm. While her friends sulked and moaned and blamed her, she mentally switched them off and listened to Storm’s voice message over and over again. She felt like a school girl experiencing her first crush. She felt so alive and giddy with love and excitement.

“God, please don’t let me come off this high.” She rested her head against the headrest and said a little prayer. She closed her eyes and relived her encounter with Storm at Maple Springs. She tingled all over at the memory of his touch and she sighed softly with anticipation.

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“I said I’m sorry. It was a mistake. Why can’t you forgive me?” Bree sobbed loudly, her face in her hands. For a moment Echo wanted to take her in his arms and tell her they were okay. He wanted so much to believe they would get through this, but every time he closed his eyes, he saw her with HIM and he hated HIM even more.

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“Bree…I’m sorry. I can’t get my head around the fact that you were with someone else. I just can’t…I’m sorry!” He told her sadly. All the fight in him was suddenly gone and it was replaced by resignation.

Now she understood what her friends meant when they always told her never confess! Stupidly, deluded in her thinking that her relationship with Echo was based honesty, she told him the whole sordid truth about her one night with Storm the morning after it happened. She should have listened to her friends and kept her mouth shut.

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Storm’s place...

“Bree …Hugo here--- I just wanted to tell you not bring the plans over this afternoon, it turns out it’s not as urgent as I thought. I’ll go over them when I return from Twikki Island in two days…anyway, call me when you get this okay!” Hugo left a curt message on Brea’s answering service after four tries. He wondered how things were at the office. He was Statham Island’s number one architect and he owned a very successful construction company which he hoped in a couple of years would make it on the Fortune 500 list. His personal assistant was a dream to work with until he loaned her to Kendra for her wedding planning when Victoria left town forgetting her duties as the maid of honor. If he had known what drama his suggestion to Kendra would cause months later, he would never have opened his mouth. Her presence here with the bridal party’s arrival may prove to be the unraveling Storm was trying so hard to avoid.

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Echo’s place

“Where you do you think you’re going? You’re off to see him aren’t you?” Echo growled following her outside. She was holding some official looking documents and he knew she was going to work, but his insane jealousy drove him over the edge.

“Some of us have to work you know! I can’t make you feel better because you won’t let me. And I can’t stay here and listen to you tear us apart---” Bree shouted over her shoulder. She was shaking with anger and disappointment.

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“Don’t come back here if you’re off to see him!” Echo threatened. He knew he was losing it, but he could not control himself. He loved her and he just wanted to go back to the way things were.

“Fine, I won’t!” She fumed right back at him, pulling out her drive way. Her car’s tyres made a screeching sound as if in protest of her rage, and she could smell burning rubber.

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Storm’s place

“They are here!” Dean called out over his shoulder, his face lighting up with happiness. A moment later the other three came to join him on the balcony just in time to see the car come to a stop in front of the house.

Drake and Hugo let out low whistles as two of the most beautiful women they had ever seen got out of the SUV and looked up at the house.

Storm’s heart quickened to an uncontrollable pace as Victoria got out of the car and smiled up at him. He knew she was smiling at everyone, but it felt like her smile was only for him. She had him in knots and he wondered if it showed.

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Hugo remembered Daniella from the day she accosted him outside Statham Island’s only bridal shop and insisted on reading his fortune. He smiled impishly at that memory but all the while taking Cassie in. “I’m Hugo,” he murmured, gazing deep into her eyes. Cassie was startled a little but she was equally mesmerized. No guy had ever had that effect on her.

“I’m---” She started to say but Hugo interrupted.

“The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen….” He continued still not taking his eyes off her. Daniella and Drake were also off to a great start. Without warning, Drake pulled her close in the warmest embrace that still somehow sent exhilarating shivers down her spine.

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“Hey, what happened to your face?” Were the first words Victoria uttered when she finally stood in front of him, a concerned look in her eyes. She reached up to him in the gentlest touch Storm had ever felt.

“Long story,” Storm replied evasively. He did not want to get into the explanation of his banged up face because then he would have to tell her everything and right now was not the place or the time. He could not believe she was here, in front of him, and he had so much to tell her. He loved her so much his heart ached at the thought of losing her.

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“Come here. I’ve missed you,” He said in a low, sexy tone and pulled her close to him in an almost possessive embrace , unaware of the shiver of excitement he sent down her spine.

The sparks between them were so potent that Kendra, witnessing their sweet reunion, swore she could literally see a magnetic field of something very powerful surrounding them.

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“Hey…what’s going on? Are you okay?” Victoria whispered for his ears only. She felt his body stiffen and she knew he wasn’t okay. Something was on his mind. “Maybe it’s being back here, where Emma died,” she thought but did not say anything.

“I’m just happy to have you back in my arms where you belong,” Storm murmured, ignoring her question. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. This was going to be very hard and he did not know how he could bear losing her when things were so right, so perfect between them. For the first in their relationship, in this space and time, they were at a good place and things were as they should be: perfect!

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Somewhere in Statham Island

She had no excuse. She knew she was wrong for cheating on Echo. He was a rock artist and he often spent weeks and sometimes months on tours which translated to loneliness for her. He got up to mischief once in a while with groupies but nothing she could never overlook. Overall he was a great, loving boyfriend and this is exactly what made it so hard for her to justify her actions.

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Her one night with Storm was a mistake; they were lonely, drunk and miserable and everyone knows that’s a recipe for sympathy sex. And that was all it was.

Bree had no illusions about Storm. She knew he loved Victoria very much. Echo on the other hand was the love of her life and she was afraid that one momentary lapse of judgment could cost her so much. It was not only her relationship with Echo that was at stake but her job too. A blaring car horn jeered her out of her daze. She was shocked to see she was now at Statham Island’s elite beach area…where the super rich lived.

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Storm stared blankly into the ocean and psyched himself for his confession. He was so close to the Lighthouse, he could actually swim there. The moment of truth was finally here. Today all the lies and secrets came to light and maybe, just maybe, if God was fighting on his side, Victoria would understand and forgive him. He shut his eyes and remembered the way she was moments earlier when she arrived. She looked so beautiful and so happy. And he hated being in a position where he would hurt her again. He was not afraid of telling the truth. But he was so afraid of shattering her heart. To make matters worse he sensed a change in her, like she was ready to accept his love.

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“Hey---a little birdie told me I’d find you here,” Victoria said softly coming up behind him. He looked so sad gazing into the ocean. She wondered what was on his mind.

“Hey you,” Storm smiled, looking at her through hooded eyes. She looked amazing with her hair tousled by the strong wind. He ached to reach up and smooth it out her eyes.

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“Thinking of Emma?” Victoria asked. She could feel his sadness emanating from him in dizzying waves and she wished she could do something to help him.

“No…” He answered truthfully. Then it hit him that he had not thought of Emma since the first night he came back here.

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“We need to talk. There’s something I need to tell you,” Storm said urgently. It was now or never.“Ok---“she started to say, but stopped midsentence. Suddenly she felt weak and nauseous again. She thought she was going to be sick. How embarrassing it would be if she threw up right there. She reached up to him to steady herself and tried a deep breathing technique she had learned at her yoga class.

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“Are you okay?” Storm asked, concern clouding his eyes.

“I---I just feel so---“ Victoria started to say but felt her legs give in.

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“Hey…I’ve got you. It’s okay,” Storm whispered scooping her in his arms effortlessly. She was a little heavier than he remembered and she looked curvier but he dared not mention it to her.

“I think I’m okay now…it just comes and goes in waves… It’s so strange,” Victoria mumbled weakly against his neck. Damn he smelt so good, clean and yet so masculine. His cologne, Dunhill’s The Man, brought back bittersweet memories of their three weeks of cohabitation after she’d left the hospital. That seemed so long ago…

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“Storm, you can put me down now. I’m okay…” She said again letting out a small laugh, her voice sounded much stronger now.

“I just want to hold you, for a little while,” Storm answered, tears clouding his eyes. If he could freeze this moment in time he would.

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They didn’t remember when he finally let her go or how their lips sought and found each other’s in a long, passionate and emotional kiss. There were so many emotions in that moment. Both of them cried silently. It was like coming home and finding all the familiar objects, but in different rooms, a comforting yet disorienting feeling. She could feel him pull her in and dispel her all at once like a rise and fall of the tide they stood so dangerously close to.

“Please…stay with me forever. Don’t leave me…” She moaned softly against his lips. Her words pierced his very core. They were the most beautiful yet heartbreaking words anyone had ever said to him.

“I love you…you know that right,” Storm said hoarsely, his voice thick with emotion. He pulled away from her for just a second to gaze into her equally blue eyes. She nodded and pulled his face closer again. She didn’t want to talk, she just wanted to feel.

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“Promise me you’ll always remember this moment no matter what happens. No matter how bad things look or you feel you can’t find your way back to me, promise me you’ll remember this.” Storm said pleadingly. He could feel himself sinking into a vortex of a dangerously uncontrollable situation and he knew that either way, whatever happened, Victoria would still end up hurt. He was running out of time, but he couldn’t bring himself to tell her the truth. He didn’t want to destroy her, but he knew his confession would do just that.

“I promise…but Storm, what’s going on?” Victoria asked, feeling a little uneasy now. She could feel him slip into a very dark mood.

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“I love you and I’ve always tried to put you first. I may have done things that hurt you in the past, but it was never my intention. When you left town, I let you go even though I didn’t want to. I knew you had to grow and find your way back to me and I knew you’d come back stronger for both of us…I need you to be strong for both of us even when you feel you can’t...because…” He whispered softly, his words trailing off.

“I love you too,” She whispered, tears streaming down her face. She was stunned. She knew he loved her, but he had never opened himself up to her like this. She saw a side of him he always kept safely hidden from everyone, especially her.

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“I’ve pushed you as far away from me as possible, hid from my feelings for you and I tried to pretend you mean nothing to me, but that was pointless because it’s always been you, Victoria, and no one else. You are me and I am you. I don’t know if you believe in fate, but I think you are my soul mate and I love you with everything in me.”

He knew he was not making sense but he just had to pour out his feeling before he confessed because he might never get a chance to tell how he felt.

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“Storm…what’s going on. Are we okay?” Victoria asked again, panic rising in her. She felt like she was losing him. It was almost as if he was leaving her. But how was it possible when he just told her he loved her?

“While you were away---something happened---” Storm began his confession only to have Kendra interrupt him.

“Hey you two. We need to get a move on. Enough canoodling,” Kendra called out to them as she got closer.

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“I’ll see you inside Mr. Chace. I love you!” Victoria whispered and stood on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his forehead before leaving him alone with Kendra.

“Hey, big brother!” Kendra said in a feigned cheerful mood as she hugged him, for Victoria’s benefit. Then for his ears only, she hissed through gritted teeth, “I hope you came clean with her!”

“I was about to when you barged in…what is wrong with you?” Storm asked, matching Kendra’s venom.

“Well Chace, you’d better pray the angels are on your side. The longer you keep the truth from her, the uglier it’ll get!” Kendra warned. She still could not decide if she liked him or not. Most of the time she did, but sometimes like now, she wished she did not have a future brother in law who was such a handful.

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Storm caught up with Victoria just as she was about to enter the house. He grabbed her, tipped her backwards and started kissing her neck playfully. Victoria let out of peals of girlish giggles.

“What are you doing? You’re going to drop me! Hey…” She screamed happily all the while hitting his back playfully.

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“Drop you? Never!” Storm replied, meaning every word he said. He decided right there he would fight for her until there was nothing left inside him. He would tell her the truth when they got to Twikki Island. He would deal with the consequences, but letting her go was not an option.

Kendra smiled at the two of them. They did have something different, but special, something tangible. They were like two parts of a whole, each completing the other and without the other there were only broken images.

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“Bree what are you doing here? Didn’t you get my message?” Hugo asked, his voice growing shrill with each passing minute.

“What message? I had a crazy morning and I remembered you needed these today! Are you okay Mr. C?” Bree asked her boss handing him the plans for the New Bank of Statham Island. He was acting weird…almost as if he did not want her there.

“I’m great. Now, if you’ll excuse me I have to get packing. Our flight’s leaving in two hours…” Hugo told her, his thoughts racing. He needed to get Bree out of the house. He took her hand and guided her towards the front door. Just then the door burst open and without warning Bree rushed over to the man who just walked into the room.

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“Storm, I’m so sorry…” She cried out and flung herself in his arms. He was caught off guard and for a second he did not know what to do except let his arms envelope her. Meanwhile Victoria stood glued to the same spot staring at them, trapped in a nightmare she could not wake up from because she was already awake.

The whole room came to a sudden lull - Brea locked in Storm’s arms and Victoria taking it all in. None of them had to say anything because Victoria read all the signs. It was there, a hint of familiarity or was it intimacy?

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Bree, oblivious to the strikingly gorgeous red head, who until a few moments before, had Storm’s undivided attention, continued her lament, “Echo told me what happened. I’m so embarrassed. I told him our night together meant nothing. But he just won’t believe me. He can’t forgive me for sleeping with you---” Brea never got to finish her sentence because, at that moment, everyone in the room, including Victoria, heard the metaphorical glass shatter and splinter into a million fragments. Storm died at that moment and he had a sudden urge to snap Bree’s neck…it would be so easy…so quick. Victoria felt sick to her stomach and she was not sure if it was from her mysterious illness or from what she had just heard.

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“What?” She asked incredulously, not doubting for a second what she heard, but still unable to process everything. “What did she just say? Storm, what’s going on? Who is she? And what is she talking about? Storm…” Victoria asked over and over again, her voice a shrill crescendo. Panic and bile rose at the pit of her tummy. Storm, at that moment, got his senses back and somehow pried himself from Bree’s arms and rushed to Victoria’s side.

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“Sweetheart…I can explain…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…” He cried helplessly as he saw tears well up in Victoria’s eyes.“Tell me it’s not true. What that woman said…it’s not true right?” Victoria asked through gritted teeth and she impatiently brushed away her tears. She looked up at Storm and died a thousand deaths when she was not met by denial.

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Kendra was also moved to action and took Bree aside.

“I think you should leave! Now’s not a good time. Please. I’ll call you,” Kendra told her.

“But Storm…Echo..He…” Bree mumbled helplessly. She too was in a daze. That was Victoria, and by the looks of things, she did not know about her night with Storm.

“I know… I know. But right now’s not a good time as you can see. Storm and Victoria need to talk,” Kendra whispered, leading her out of the front door.

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In one corner of the room, Victoria and Storm were locked in a vulnerable pose. Victoria was not sure if she was crying because Storm had been with someone or because he kept the truth from her. Storm was crying because he was living his worst nightmare – he broke Victoria’s heart AGAIN!

“Victoria, listen to me. Please? It was nothing. It meant nothing to me. It was a mistake and I’m so sorry!” Storm begged over and over again.

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“You slept with her and kept the truth from me, how could you?” Victoria asked over loud sobs. She was trying to understand how they got from perfect bliss to utter disillusionment within a space of minutes. “Sleeping with her may have been a mistake. But you deliberately kept the truth from me!”

“I can explain…please give me a chance to explain,” Storm cried helplessly.

“You have five minutes!” Victoria replied coldly, her tears momentarily gone. Then painfully, Storm pried the truth of his one night with Bree from his memory and relived it for Victoria’s sake.

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A little over a week ago…

“So you really showed up! Somehow I didn’t think you would. I figured since serial killers and pedophiles don’t sleep you’ll cancel on me,” was Brea’s greeting as she slid into the passenger seat beside Storm.

“Boyfriend won’t mind me taking you out for a drink?” Storm asked, steering them out of her driveway.

“Nah, he won’t mind. He’s not the jealous type. Anyway, he’s out of town… He’s touring Strangetown but should be back tomorrow morning,” She told him truthfully.

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PURE was busy as always and they spent most of their evening at the bar. Once or twice Brea suggested they get on the dance floor but Storm declined.

“What do you mean you don’t dance? Everybody dances! I think,” She smiled, her hazel eyes dancing excitedly.

“I’ve two left feet or so I’ve been told,” Storm joked, smiling back at her. She was a great woman. She was so easy to talk to. And she was a tremendous help with all his best man duties. Hugo was right, she was efficient.

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They talked and drank some more. He felt at ease with her and opened up about Victoria. Something he had never done before.

“When is she coming back?” Bree asked after a while of listening to him moan about his unforgettable love.

“I don’t know. She hasn’t said anything,” He replied, hiccupping drunkenly into his now empty glass.

“I’m sure you’ll work things out when she comes back,” She consoled him. She felt so lonely suddenly and wished Echo was home. She missed him so much and hoped he loved her as much as Storm loved Victoria.

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“I should take you home,” Bree suggested after what seemed like a very long time. She was also drunk, but not as drunk as he was. She knew he would never leave his car at PURE and catch a taxi. So they did their first irresponsible act for the night – drinking and driving.

“Okay, lead the way…” Storm murmured, leaning close to her. She looked a little like Victoria now that he thought of it. Same red hair, same lithe body, but Bree had freckles…which looked really cute.

So they left PURE and, only when they were on the road, she realised she did not know where he stayed and he did not have a GPS system in his car which would have made things a lot easier, because it would have his address saved. So they ended up at her place instead.

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Somehow when they got to her place everything changed and they both lost their heads. They knew it was wrong but they both felt lonely and just wanted to feel something other than the emptiness inside of them. The next morning she was mortified. She had never brought home a stranger to have drunken sexual rendezvous with. He was devastated because deep down inside he felt like he cheated on Victoria even though they were technically not together.

“We should probably talk…” Storm suggested, sitting on the edge of the bed, sunlight streaming through her curtained window.

“No…it was a mistake…one I don’t wish to talk about! I’d like you to leave now. Echo will be here soon,” She told him seriously, not looking at him. It wasn’t him, it was her. And it wasn’t her it was him. And so the excuses and apologies went on.

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The whole situation with Bree was too complicated, so he got in his car and drove off. He did not call her because she asked him not to. He never told anyone about their one night. But she told Kendra because she was beside herself with guilt….Pretty soon everyone in their close circle of friends knew. Kendra told Dean and Daniella. Daniella told Cassie. Eventually the grapevine grew bigger and found Hugo and Drake.

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“I wanted to tell you the truth, but it was never the right time. I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I don’t want to lose you….” Storm finished off his mechanical recital, his head bowed in shame.

Victoria stood staring at him. She could feel his remorse and shame. She wanted to take him in her arms and tell her they were okay, they would work through this…Then what he just said hit her…Her friends knew! Everyone in the room knew, except for her. She felt like someone kicked her in her gut, and like a rug had been pulled from under her.

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She sidestepped him quickly and rushed to the dining room where her friends were waiting in case she needed them.

“Did you all know about this?” She asked the one question they all hoped she would not. No one could look her in the eye and that was as good as any yes.

“Oh? I can’t believe this…” She said in a baffled quivering voice, unable to believe what she was seeing on her friends’ faces. Shame, sadness, guilt…but mostly shame.

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“So did you get a kick out of listening to me dream about a future with him? Were you all laughing at me behind my back?” She screamed at everyone in the room. Daniella got up from the table and busied herself with tidying up. Cassie stood in the corner of the room, her heart aching for Victoria. She had never seen her so crushed, so devastated. Storm stood back a little and watched her helplessly. She was like a caged animal - so beautiful and yet so broken and it killed him to know he was the reason for the state she was in. He wanted to go over to her and wrap his arms around her, and still her rage but every time he got closer she recoiled visibly.

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“Toria, it wasn’t like that. I told Dani and Cassie I’d tell you. I wanted to tell you but it was never the right time and I figured Storm should tell you. I didn’t want it to look like I was telling on him or causing trouble between you two.” Kendra said pleadingly.

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“You know what hurts me the most? It’s that you knew, Kendra, my best friend knew and she never said anything. I’ve been back in town for nine days and none of you…not you…Storm…Dean…all of you had the decency to let me know!” Victoria mumbled sadly. She could handle Storm’s betrayal but she could not handle her best friend’s.

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“I’m sorry Toria. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. I never wanted to hurt you…” Kendra tried again, hoping she was getting through to her.

“Too late now,” she said quietly. “You were my best friend…and I trusted you the most!”

“I still am. I’m still the same person you knew an hour ago. I haven’t changed,” Kendra said emphatically.

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“I trusted you all with my life and none of you trusted me with the simple truth!” She told her friends sadly and turning to Storm she whispered, “I don’t care that you slept with someone else. It doesn’t matter to me. I sort of expected it. I mean, technically we were not together. But I care that all of you, especially you, Storm, buried me in lies after lies, after lies. And you’re all supposed to be my friends!” Victoria let out one final scream before hurling herself out of the room.

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Storm, haunted by memories of his mom, ran after her. He could not let her get in her car and drive when she was in such a state. He could not let what happened to his mom a little over ten years ago happen to Victoria. She was upset and she should not be behind the wheel. “Victoria, wait…please. Don’t go,” He called after her, following closely on her heels. She tripped and almost fell but she quickly regained her step.

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“Please don’t go. I love you and you love me too. You told me that an hour ago. We can work through this. I need you. I’m not good on my own, that’s why I need you. You keep me grounded and when you are around everything makes sense,” He growled helpelessly. He was completely drained but he would not give up on them. He would spend the rest of his life showing her how much he loved her if only she would let him.

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“How can I stay, knowing what I know? I trusted you with my life. I was so sure…so ready to believe you have changed, but it turns out the three months apart have taught you nothing. I can’t be part of this wedding. I’m done,” She said with finality. She felt ice where blood should have been pumping in her veins.

“Remember what I asked you earlier? Please close your eyes and picture us then. Remember that moment…You promised you’d always remember…” He tried again, almost breaking down in tears.

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“I remember that moment very well…But I’m just not sure if it was real…I’m not sure if anything you said to me today is true. I’m sorry. I gotta get out of here. I can’t do this right now!” She cried, stepping away from him.

“Everything I said is true. Don’t you feel how much I love you? Couldn’t you feel my joy at being with you again? I know you’re angry right now, but I need you to trust me. We’ll get through this…you and me. We’ll be okay. Please trust me…please?” Storm sobbed loudly.

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“I’m out of trust Storm. I trusted you with my heart and you’ve gone ahead and smashed it again. My bag of trust is as empty as yours. You didn’t trust me with the truth and that’s all that mattered to me. It hurts me to know you’ve slept with someone else, but I could have forgiven you, if only you’d trusted me and told me the truth…” She finally broke down and let herself go. She did not care that they were in the middle of the street and her sobs shattered the peaceful suburban life.

“I tried to tell you today, but I was so afraid of hurting you---” He tried again to make her see things from his side of the fence but she would not.

“Now look what you’ve gone and done!” She spat at him coldly.

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“I’m sorry….” Storm howled mournfully.

“So am I…I don’t ever want to see you again. I am done with all of you. I don’t need people like you all in my life,” she told him hurtfully.

“You don’t mean that…you’re upset…and you can’t drive like this,” Storm moved closer to her to block her from reaching her car door but she was too quick for him.

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“Watch me!” She snapped at him and shifted her car into gear. She rolled down her window and screamed at him, “I’ll send someone for my bags!”

“Victoria I love you!” were the last words she heard from him as she hit her car’s accelerator forcefully and sped down the road. She didn’t know where she was going, but she knew anywhere but there was a start…