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Fan Fiction

 Title: True love
Author: Trang
Genre: Romance/Drama/Humour
Started: 29. July 2001
Finished: 06. November 2001

CHAPTER 14 - Snowed in

Paddy let go of Jess and looked at Marie.
Suddenly, the beeping on her life support machine began to speed up.
"Shit, Jess, what does that mean?" Paddy asked.
"I don't know" Jess said "I'll go get the nurse." She ran out the door and a few seconds later, returned with a nurse.
"This could be one of two things" the nurse said to them. "It's only a little faster than before. It could mean she is waking up. If it gets any faster, it will get to the point that her heart will completely stop."
"How do we know? How do we fix this?" Paddy asked frantically.
"Only time will tell" the nurse answered. She started to leave the room.
Paddy, with shaking hands, dialed Angelo's cell number.

"Wait!" Angelo shouted. "Jenn!"
Jenn stopped halfway across the street. "What, Angelo?"
"I'm sorry, Jenn" he said. "I really am. Seriously, we can talk about this and…"
"Then talk" she said, staying where she was.
He began to walk to her. "Jenn…"
"Stop" she commanded. "I don't want you walking any closer."
"Fine" he said, staying on the curb. "I'm sorry, I just didn't realize that you wanted a relationship. I thought we were just friends."
"Angelo, the thing I needed the most was a relationship" she said, her voice cracking. "I mean, I don't have parents, my only cousin left me, and I have hardly any friends because I don't go to school. I work seven nights a week, about twelve hours a day. I live in that piece of shit." she gestured towards her building. "My life is terrible Angelo. I just wanted to be with you."
"I'm sorry." Sympathy washed over Angelo.
"It's not your fault" she said, not meeting his eyes. "I just, really thought that we would get together."
Angelo's cell phone rang, and he checked the number.
"Jenn, it's Paddy's number... just hold on a second, okay?"
Jenn nodded, tears in her eyes. 
"Paddy?" Angelo answered the phone.
"Angelo, you have to get over here" Paddy said quickly. "Marie... her pulse is racing, and if it gets any faster, it's going to stop... the nurse said that if it stays steady, she could wake up."
"I'm confused" Angelo said. "What do you mean?"
"She could either die, or wake up" Paddy tried to explain. "Hurry."
"Of course" Angelo said "I'm on my way." He turned off his phone, and looked up at Jenn. "I have to go. I mean, Marie might be dying or waking up, and I need to get there."
"Is it always about Marie? Can't it ever be about me?" Jenn shook her head.
"You?!" Angelo said. "How selfish are you? I mean, damn it, Jenn."
"Damn it Jenn?" she repeated. "What if I was dying?"
"But you aren't" he said, softly. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay? We'll talk about this."
"No, we won't" Jenn replied, angrily.
"Look, I have to go" Angelo said, hastily. "I have to get there." He turned around and broke into a run, in the direction of the hospital.
"You're going to regret this, Angelo!!" Jenn shouted after him. 

Angelo rushed into the hospital and up to the floor that Marie was on. He ran right into Patricia. 
"Pat!" he said "How is she?"
"No change from when Paddy called you" Patricia said. "Are you going to go talk to her?"
Angelo nodded, and walked into her room. Jess, and Paddy were in there, as well as a doctor and a nurse. He bid hellos, and Paddy hugged him.
"How is she?" Angelo asked.
"The same" Jess said with misty eyes. 
"Um, is it alright if I have a few minutes with her alone?" Angelo asked.
"Sure" Paddy said.

Angelo sat on the edge of Marie's bed and filled her briefly in on the date. He looked at the machines, and brushed a stray piece of dark blonde hair from her face.
"Marie, please stay here. You can do it... Life would be so boring without you. I just... I don't know. These last few weeks have been torture. My siblings hardly talk to me. Jimmy and Joey are so caught up with Jess, and Patty is... I don't really know. Paddy just talks about you. How much he loves you. But what I feel for you, is so much more than love." He brought her hand up to his lips and he gently kissed it. "I love you, so much Marie."
The beeping on the machine remained constant. He squeezed her hand gently and looked at her angelic face. He felt brief pressure on his hand holding Marie's.
He froze. It can't be, he thought to himself. "I love you" he said again, this time testing, but the meaning still filling his words. He squeezed her hand softly again.
Again, the momentary pressure filled his palm.
"Oh, my God" he whispered. He grabbed the clicker and frantically began pressing the button, not letting go on Marie's hand.
The nurse ran into the room. "Is everything alright?"
Angelo turned to her. "I think I shit my pants."
The nurse threw him a confused look. "Pardon me?"
"She squeezed my hand, I felt it" Angelo said.
"Are you sure you aren't imagining things?" she asked.
"Watch" he commanded. He whispered" I love you." Then gently squeezed her hand.
Again, response.
"This is great!" the nurse exclaimed. "Let me go get the doctor.." She ran out of the room and returned minutes later. 
The doctor walked over and injected her with a clear liquid.
"What's that for?" Paddy asked.
"Helps save patients from amnesia" the doctor said.
"Side effects?"
"When she first wakes up, her vision will be blurry, she'll only be able to see figures. It also has an ingredient like caffeine, she'll be excited and hyper when she first comes to" the doctor explained.
"Marie honey? Can you hear me?" Jess said.
No response.
"It could be as long as three days" the doctor told them. "Or as short as five minutes. When you are in a coma, you just wake up, you don't slowly come to. She's going to just open her eyes, and be like, hey, I'm up. We just don't know when."
Angelo left the room with Jess to tell the others. 
Paddy was alone with Marie, the doctor and the nurse.
Paddy kneeled beside Marie's bed.
"Marie" he whispered. "I'm here for you, the second you wake up, like you were there for me. Please, wake up."

Angelo walked downstairs. He was with Patricia and Maite, they were going to get coffe.
"What's going on over there?" Patricia asked him, pointing to an ambulance and about four paramedics.
"I don't know" Angelo said. "We have to pass it to get to the cafeteria."
They walked past and Angelo looked at the group. Two paramedics were taking a half covered lifeless body out of the back of the ambulance.
"Looks like someone got really hurt" Maite commented.
"Or killed" Angelo said.
"Excuse me" a paramedic said, opening the door and pushing past Angelo, Patricia and Maite. Two other paramedics were carrying the stretcher.
Angelo glanced at the blood filled body. His face reacted, turning white. He turned around and vomited.

"Marie, I'm here for you the second you wake up" a male voice echoed in her head.
So many questions filled her mind. So many. She could feel it. Her body felt lighter, her head, not so heavy. She wanted to smile. She wanted to talk. She walked to dance and sing and run and hug and laugh. But she couldn't.

"Are you alright?" Maite asked with alarm.
Angelo's eyes were big, his face a pasty white. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse, surreal.
"Jenn."
Maite and Patricia stared at him.
Angelo ran over to a paramedic.
"What happened to her?"
The paramedic looked up, filling in a report about Jenn.
"She got hit by a transport truck."
"A transport truck?" Angelo cried. "Do you know how it happened?"
"Apparently, in the driver's words, he said that..." he stopped and read from his sheet. "She was standing in the middle of the road, staring off after someone who was running the opposite way. I was going too fast, and I honked the horn, but she turned around, and stood there, looking unusually calm. I slammed on the breaks and swerved to the left, but she took a step with my truck. I hit her. Hard" He looked up from the sheet. "That's what the driver said."
Angelo felt his eyes fill with tears.
"Thank you. Can I see that?"
"Did you know her?" the paramedic asked.
"We were friends." Angelo nodded.
The paramedic handed him the sheet.
"Don't tell the others I showed you this. I want it back in a few minutes."
Angelo nodded again and walked over to Maite and Patty.
"It's Jenn."
"Your Jenn?" Maite asked "What happened?"
Angelo handed Maite the sheet.
"It's awful" Angelo said. "And it's all my fault. All of it."
Maite stared at the paper.
"Angelo... Jenn Shelley. How come you never said it was Jenn Shelley?" He ran over to the paramedic and handed him the paper. "Where is she?"
The paramedic pointed to a room. "They'll clean her up for her funeral."
Maite ran in. "I need to see her."
"I'm sorry, this room is off limits" a nurse said, ushering Maite out.
"Please hear me out."
The nurse crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"Fine."
"I just read this thing, and it said her name, and it's the same name as my friend, and I want to know if she is my friend" Maite pleaded. "Please, I'll know in about thirty seconds. I just need to see her."
The nurse relented. The two paramedics stepped away from the lifeless body. Angelo watched from the doorway.
Maite stared at her, and tears began to caress down his cheeks.
"It's her."
"What's going on?" Angelo demanded. 
"Jenn..." Maite said. "She's my class mate and roommate in USA."
"Your Jenny?" Angelo exclaimed.
"A long time ago, Jenny's parents died. I stayed with her because she was from Germany and we could get along easily. I help her with paying the study… she has nothing and nobody, she tried to fight for a better life… but she gave up school in a few months. Now this…" Maite told them.
"How come you didn't say anything when I talked about her?" Angelo asked.
"How was I supposed to know that Jenn from the diner was Jenny Shelley, my friend?" Maite told him.
"She died because of me." Angelo said.

Several minutes later, Angelo, Maite and Patricia were back upstairs.
"It's not your fault" Maite repeated, after Angelo explained to him what happened.
"Yeah, it was" Angelo disagreed. They walked into Marie's room. Everyone was standing around, watching intently.
"She started to say something" Paddy explained. "But stopped. She just moaned or something."
Angelo nodded, and walked over to her.
"Marie? Marie, can you hear me? Or anyone?"
They all waited in silence.

She struggled to open her eyes.

"Look" Paddy whispered. "She's opening her eyes." Tears began to fall down his cheeks.

They were as open as they could, but everything was still completely blurry.
"Jess?" she whispered, softly.
"Marie, dear, I am right here" Jessica said, walking over to her.
"I can't see you" Marie said, panicking.
"It's the vaccine" she said. "It's making your vision blurry."
She gave them a small smile.
"What happened?" Marie asked.
"Did you lose your memory?" her friend asked, worriedly.
"No" she said. "I don't think so. I remember a beach."
"You were surfing, and you hit your head" Jess explained.
"Jess!" Marie exclaimed, her voice still weak. "Oh, God, who else is here?"
"We're all here" Marie heard Jimmy's distinct voice.
"All of you?" Marie said.
"All of us" Jimmy said.
"I can only see these black figures" she said.
"Sorry to break the party" a nurse said. "But we need to run some quick tests. Afterwards, would it be alright if one of you came in at a time?"
Everyone nodded.
"Marie, dear, we had lost faith" the nurse said. "You're a very strong girl."
"Thank you" Marie said. "When does my vision come back?"
"It should be back in a few hours" the nurse replied. "You have a great group of friends." She began to take Marie's blood pressure.
"I know" Marie said. "Were they here?"
"The whole time" the nurse said. "One boy, in particular. Actually, two of them. And of course your friend Jess. I learned her name. She's awfully nice."
"She is" Marie agreed. "Um, those two guys, do you know which ones?"
"Well, don't get me wrong, they are all concerned. Both blond boys. Consistently sat in here telling you how much they loved you."
Marie smiled. The nurse gave Marie a few pills to swallow.
"You can have your visitors now." She said and went out.
"Marie?" Jess asked, walking in the room.
"Oh, Jess, I am so glad you are here" Marie said.
"I'm so happy that you are back!" Jess said, hugging her friend.
"Okay" Marie said.
"So, what was it like? I mean, in the coma?" Jess asked. "I've always wondered."
"It was like, a big dream" Marie replied. "Like a fantasy, where you sleep all day."
"Could you hear us?" Jess asked. "We talked to you all the time."
"I think I heard some things" Marie said. "I'm not really sure."
"I really spilled out to you. I'm glad you didn't have to hear it." Jess smiled, and hugged Marie again.
"It would be nice to hear it someday" Marie replied. "How's Joey?"
"Over" Jess replied, laughing. "And yes, already."
"Hmm" Marie said. "Well, that sucks. What's going on with you and Jimmy then?"
"I have no idea, Marie" Jess said. "I'm really confused."
"Now I am too" Marie said. "Thanks a lot."
There was a brief knock on the door. "Um, Jess? Can I talk to her?"
"Sure" Jess said. "I'll see you later, Marie."
The figure walked closer, but the person was unidentifiable.
"Marie, before you say anything, I just want to tell you that I am really glad you are woken up. I know that you could either have him or me, but I just want to say, that if you heard anything I said while you were in your coma, you know how much you mean to me" he said.
Marie struggled, trying to decide who was talking to her. The voice was deep, but it didn't quite sound like Angelo. The voice wasn't higher, like Paddy's. She knew it had to be one, she just wasn't sure which. Paddy... she decided. He was probably just crying... made his voice lower.
"I was so upset, I didn't want you to die, I felt like it was all my fault" she felt him take her hand. "I can't live without you. I love you, and I want to be with you."
"I love you, too, Paddy" she whispered.
The hand dropped hers.
"You- you... okay..." the voice broke. "Marie. I'm not Paddy."

Marie tried to focus on his silhouette. "Angelo, I…"
"Don't even" Angelo replied, trying to stay calm. "Marie, I spent so many nights in here with you, so many. To get what? Nothing... You were hardly talking to Paddy when we were in Kiel, do you even remember that? Well, of course not. The only thing ever on your mind is him. I'm here for you, I hung out with you." He shook his head. "I can't take this... I can't take... you."
"Angelo, please…" Marie began.
"Stop trying to make it all better" Angelo said. "Because it never will be. Come on, Maire, tell me the truth. How do you feel about me?"
"I feel... like we are really good friends" Marie said.
"No" Angelo said. "We aren't. I thought we had something more than that."
"I can't control what I feel for Paddy" she said, tears starting to fill her blurry eyes.
Angelo walked out of the room.

Joey walked over to Jess. "Listen, Jess. I just wanted to tell you, that if you and Jimmy got back together, I don't really care."
"That's nice of you, Joey, but I don't think it is going to happen." Jess smiled.
"Okay, I was just saying that if you wanted to..." Joey shrugged.
"It's alright" Jess said. "And no offense, but it's not like I need your blessing or anything."
"I didn't say you did" Joey replied, offended. 
"Well, you made it sound like, okay, now that Joey says it's alright, it is" Jess raised an eyebrow.
"I don't know, I…" Joey started.
"You what, Joey?" Jess said, her face unsmiling. "You don't think before you talk? Yeah, that's it."
"Jess, that isn't what I meant, and you know it" Joey said, trying to explain.
"I don't even think I know you any more, Joe" she retorted, and walked away.

"Marie, I have some good news" the nurse said, walking into the room holding a needle.
"And that would be?" Marie said. She noticed the needle. "Okay, I can see again, and I can see that needle, and I want to know where it is going to go..."
"It's not for you, I'm just replacing something" the nurse replied. "My good news is, you are out of here in three days, but you have to take it easy."
"I will" Marie promised.
"No, really easy. Stay in bed, only get up to go to the bathroom. I want someone waiting on you. You have this medication to take three times a day" she handed Marie a small yellowish bottle "And nothing to exciting. Understood?"
"Definitely. I don't mind having a servant." Marie nodded.
"I wouldn't either." The nurse grinned.

Paddy walked into Marie's room. She was staring out the window, her back facing him.
"Marie?" he said softly.
"Hi" she said, her voice so soft it was hardly even a whisper.
"Is it alright if I come over there?" Paddy asked her.
"Sure" she said, her voice still soft.
He walked over, and noticed her cheeks moist and her eyes swollen.
"Are you alright?"
She shook her head but stayed silent.
"What happened?" he asked, taking her hand.
A single tear trailed down her cheek.
"Angelo was in here, but that needle made me see blurry. He told me how much he cared for me; he told me he loved me. I thought it was you, Paddy, I didn't know. I told him I loved him, but I thought it was you. I said, I love you Paddy, and he flipped out on me. Right after we became friends again."
"You said, I love you Paddy." Paddy looked at her closely.
She nodded. 
"You love me?" he asked, his face searching for the answer that he'd been wondering for so long.
"I love you, so much Paddy." She gave him a small smile.
He stared at her, and finally his face broke into a smile. Tears began to trail down his cheeks.
"Marie, I love you." He kissed her gently, and began to tell her everything he said when she was in her coma.

Angelo stood at the door, watching Paddy and Marie. Misery filled him as he began to walk away. 'Of course she would pick him' he thought. Why am I so stupid? He looked back through the door, and saw Paddy kiss her. His stomach turned, and he walked quickly down the hall, tears of hostility and anger filling his eyes.
"Angelo!" Joey called. He jogged up, and kept a quick pace with him. "Are you alright?"
"I need to get out of here." Angelo shook his head.
Joey laughed.
"Join the club. Jess just freaked on me. I can't wait until the tour starts."
"I can't either" Angelo agreed

Paddy helped Marie out of the car. "I'm so happy you are finally home."
"I am, too" Marie said. "Those three days were the three longest days of my life."
"Everyone's inside" Paddy said. "Jess set you up on the couch. There's everything you would need."
Marie smiled and kissed Paddy gently on the lips. "This is so great. Thank you."
"Thank you" Paddy replied, kissing her on the forehead. "Let's go before we freeze our asses off."
"It's beginning to snow" Marie pointed to a spot under a streetlight. "Look. Oh, it's the first snowfall. I love the first snowfall."
"And I love you" Paddy said, smiling. He helped her inside.

"Patty?" Marie murmured.
"Yeah?" She looked up.
This is going to sound stupid, but thanks for saving my life" she said.
"Anytime." He smiled.
Marie looked at him.
"I'm serious. I mean, without you, I would have died."
She stood up, and walked over. "Well, I am sure one of the other guys would have saved you, but I was happy to do the job. Marie, you're a great person. Never doubt yourself." 
"Thanks." She leaned over and hugged him.
Paddy stirred, and Marie pulled away from Patricia. Paddy opened his eyes slightly. "How's my girl?"
"I'm okay" she said. "A little tired."
"Paddy" Marie said. "Can you help me pull out the bed? I'm just going to sleep in here."
He nodded and helped Marie pull out the bed on the pull out couch.
"How is that?" He asked, covering her with a fleece blanket and her comforter.
"Great" she said. "But you know what would be greater?"
"What?" Paddy asked.
"If I could fall asleep, in the one I love's arm's" Marie smiled.
"Should I get Angelo, or are you going to settle with me?" Paddy teased.
"Ha, ha" Marie smirked. "You should be a comedian." She playfully punched him in the arm.
"If this singing thing doesn't work out, maybe I'll go for it" Paddy grinned and crawled into the bed beside her, stifling a yawn. "Good night, Marie. I'm glad you are safe and home."
"So am I" she said, snuggling closer to him, and taking a deep breath. "I love you."
"And I love you" he said, kissing her head gently. A few minutes later, he heard the rhythmic breathing of Marie sleeping beside him.

Jess crept downstairs, fully dressed. She slowly walked into the living room and smiled at Paddy and Marie, asleep on the couch. She watched them for a few minutes, then turned around.
"Oh, my God!" she shrieked, bumping into Angelo, who was standing in the doorway. She started to laugh.
"You scared me."
"I scare a lot of people" Angelo said. "And I don't want to wake those two." He sarcastically gestured towards Paddy and Marie.
"I know, pathetic, eh?" Jess smirked.
"Very" Angelo agreed. 
"I'm going to get some groceries. Do you want to come, since we are the only one's up?" Jess asked, glancing out the window.
"Sure" Angelo replied, following her gaze. "Wow... it's really snowing. I love it."
"I hate snow" Jess said. "I love the summer. Well, the first snowfall is okay, but after a week, I can't stand it."
"Watching the snow? How fun." Joey said, walking up behind them.
"Oh, yeah, a blast" Angelo said. "Do you want to come…"
"No where" Jess said, throwing Angelo a dirty look. She closed her eyes and tried to send him a telepathic message: I don't want Joey to come.
Joey ignored Jess.
"Where?"
"Groceries" Angelo answered uncertainly. 
"Sure" Joey said "Let me get my hat." He left the room.
"Angelo, you loser!" Jess exclaimed. "Why did you invite him?"
"I didn't think" Angelo replied. "Sorry. But come on, you can tolerate him for an hour, right?"
"I guess" Jess said, taking a pen and paper from the counter and Jimmy walked in the room. 
"Hey guys, I was thinking that we should get Marie something, like, welcome home" Jimmy told them. 
"It's a day late" Jess said. "And we are going to the grocery store."
"So what?" Jimmy replied.
"Alright" Jess agreed.
Patricia walked in the room, dragging his feet. "Morning" she mumbled.
"Why don't you go with Jimmy to get something for Marie?" Jess asked.
Patricia glanced at Jimmy. "I guess I could."
"Well, if you don't want to…" Jimmy began.
"I'll go" Patricia said. "Let me go shower and stuff."
Jess glanced at Angelo, who shrugged his shoulders.

Marie's eyelids fluttered open slightly. She yawned, and was soon fully awake. Smiling softly to herself, she felt Paddy's arm loosely around her.
"Paddy?" she whispered, testing to see if he was awake.
"You're awake" he murmured. "Finally."
"How long have you been up?" She shifted around and looked at him.
"About a half an hour" he said, kissing her cheek gently. 
"What have you been doing?" Marie asked him.
"Just watching you sleep" he replied. "How about I go make us some breakfast?"
"Sounds good." She nodded.
He got off of the bed and walked into the kitchen.

Paddy walked back into the living room, holding a tray with fruit, toast and scrambled eggs.
"Sorry, I don't know how to make much."
"It's great" Marie said, sitting up. "I'm not trying to sound bossy, but could you get the newspaper?"
"Sure" Paddy answered. He walked to the front door, and tried to open it. 
Nothing. He pushed a little harder. Nothing. He pushed all his body weight on it.
Still nothing. He checked to make sure it was unlocked. It was. "Marie!"
"What?" she called.
"The door is stuck" he answered, walking back into the living room.
"Stuck?" Marie repeated. She glanced out the window. "Holy shit, the snow."
Paddy's eyes widened.
"That's insane. I want to go check something." He ran up to the bathroom upstairs, and after a few minutes, got the window open. He stuck his head out, and looked down. The snow was piled higher than the door. He ran back downstairs, and told her what he saw.
"Are we snowed in?" she began to get worried.
"I don't know" he said.
"Try the back door, and all the windows. That window in the bathroom is too small if we had to get out" trembling, she reached for his hand. "And what about the others?"
Paddy squeezed her hand. "Let me check everything. Don't get worried yet. Just eat, okay?"
She nodded, but her mind was only focused on the snow.

"Why did you stop?" Angelo asked Jess, leaning into the front seat.
Jess mumbled a reply.
"What?" Angelo asked.
"I said, we ran out of gas" Jess sighed. "For the last, like, fifteen minutes we were running on fumes."
"We're stuck?!" Angelo exclaimed. 
Jess pointed down the small side street, to the nearest house. "I'll go ask them for gas." She tried to open her door. It didn't budge.
"Ha, ha" Angelo said. "Seriously, open it."
"I wish I could" Jess said. "Joey, try your door."
"No need to be bossy" Joey replied, trying to open his door. "Okay, this is frozen shut too."
Angelo tried both the back doors.
"Guys, this isn't funny. How can all four doors be frozen shut?"
"This is crazy" Joey said. "The windows."
She tried the windows. "Stuck."
"Are you sure the heat doesn't work? We could defrost the doors" Angelo suggested.
"We could, if the heat worked, and if we could turn on the car" Jess said. "But we can't." They sat in silence.
"We're going to die" Angelo finally said.

Marie sat on the couch, staring at the wall, Paddy holding her. "How come we haven't heard from them, Paddy?"
"I don't know" he replied, honestly. "Why don't I try Angelo's cell phone?"
Marie nodded and Paddy picked up the phone. A few seconds later, they heard a faint ringing coming from the kitchen.
"Damn it" he said. "Does Jess have a cell?"
Marie shook her head.
"She has a beeper, though."
"What is her pager number?" Paddy asked, picking up the phone again.
Marie recited it, and Paddy dialed.

Jess jumped as her pager went off in her bag. She picked it up, and read it.
"What does it say?" Angelo asked, breaking the silence.
"Where are you?" Jess read. "It's probably from Paddy or Marie. How long have we been gone?"
Angelo checked his watch.
"Three and a half hours. I should have brought my cell."

"Attention shoppers!" a screechy voice deluged over the speakers in the mall. "Due to the growing snow storm outside, we suggest you leave the mall and get back to your homes. Thank you."
Jimmy glanced at Patricia. "We haven't got her anything yet."
Patricia shrugged.
"Who cares? Let's stay."
Jimmy nodded as they walked into the next store.

The phone gave half a ring, then stopped.
"What does that mean?" Paddy asked Marie.
"It means that she got the page" Marie replied. "She'll press a button, to receive it, and then it rings here."
"Well, then at least we will know they are alright" Paddy said.
"I guess" Marie said, worriedly. "What about the rest?"
"They are in the mall" Paddy said, sensibly. "There are payphones."

"We should go" Jimmy said.
Patricia agreed. They turned out and stopped dead in their tracks. Everything had shut off. The light was only coming from outside.
"Blackout!" someone screamed, and some children began to cry.
"There isn't too many people in the mall" Maite whispered to Jimmy. "It's pretty deserted."
They heard a voice walking around, telling people to go to the fountain in the middle of the mall. There was a huge skylight above it, so everyone could see. Jimmy, Maite and Patricia walked along with the small crowd.
Half an hour later, it seemed like everyone was gathered there. A security guard stood on a small bench. "Sorry about this inconvenience. If you haven't looked outside, the snow is really bad. A small tree broke the power lines, because the snow was too heavy for it. That's why the power is out. I'm glad most people left, there is only about fifty of you here, and staff. Um, the worst news is, that the doors are powered... we can't get out. Every door here is. But we do have a lot of blankets, food, and phones, so please, we will announce if anything new is going to happen. The whole mall is free for your use. Thank you." He stepped down.
"I think we should call Jess, Paddy and the others at home" Patricia proposed.
Jimmy agreed, and they walked towards the phones.

"Every time I accept a page, they get notified" Jess explained to Angelo, her voice shaking. "They will know we are alright."
Joey continued drawing pictures in the windows through the frost.
"Jess, are you alright?" Angelo asked. "You look a little cold."
"I'm not" she lied. "I'm fine. Just hungry." She leaned over and opened up the glove compartment and breathed a sigh of relief. 
"Food?" Angelo asked.
"Yeah" she answered, holding up a Mars bar and a pack of chips. 
"These are left over from awhile ago, but I think they would be alright."
"Shouldn't we wait until we are really hungry?" Joey cut in. "Who knows how long we will be here?"
"Just a little won't hurt" Jess argued. She opened up the chips and eat some.
"See, we still have the Mars, half of the chips, and I have mints and gum in my bag."
"I have mints, too" Angelo put in.
Jess handed Joey some of the chips.
"Jess, your hands... they are ice cold."
"Don't worry about me" she said, shooting him a dirty look. "I don't need your pity."
"That's it!" Angelo exclaimed. "I am so sick of you guys picking on each other. Okay, so your relationship is over. You guys used to be mass good friends. Can't you just be friends?"
"Can't you be friends with Marie?" Jess shot back.
Angelo stared at her.
"I would be, if she wasn't with Paddy. Anyway, this isn't about me."
"Maybe it should be" Joey retorted.
"What is your problem lately!" Angelo exclaimed. He sat back in his seat and crossed his arms.
Joey faced the window.
Jess groaned and placed her head in her hands. The touch of her freezing cold hands shocked her, and she placed them under her legs.

The phone rang and Marie dove for it.
"Hello?" she said, anxiously.
"Marie, hey" she heard Jimmy's warm voice flow over the other end.
"Oh, my God, thank you so much for calling" she said. She mouthed to Paddy that it was Jimmy. "Where are you?"
"You won't believe this" Jimmy said. She knew he was smiling. "Guess where we are stuck?"
"The mall?" Marie guessed.
"Yeah" he said. "There isn't a lot of people here, so I don't know if we will get recognized. The power is off, and all the doors are powered."
"When will you be out of there?" Marie asked. 
"Probably tomorrow, if the snow let's up" Jimmy replied. "The electricians have to fix the wires that broke outside. The snow has to get lighter."
"Well, check back in later, alright?" Marie told him.
"Definitely" Jimmy said. "Um, is it alright if I talk to Jess?"
"She's not here, Jimmy" Marie said.
"Where is she?" Jimmy asked.
"Um, we don't know" she said, honestly. "They went to the grocery store, and we beeped her, so we know that they are alright."
"Is she with Joey?" Jimmy asked her, worry empowering him.
"Yeah!" Marie said. "I hope that they come back alive."
"Me, too" Jimmy agreed. "What is her beeper number?" Marie told him. "Thanks, Marie. But I have to go, there's a line forming for the phones. See you."
"Bye, Jimmy" she replied, hanging up the phone.

"Joey's ass looks huge" Maite commented, referring to a poster of them, hanging in the mall.
Jimmy nodded and laughed then flipped through more posters.
"Oh, that one is so old!"
"I know!" Maite said. "Look at your hair."
"Look at your hair!" Jimmy laughed again. "We were so stupid looking."
"Correction: You were so stupid looking" Patricia said.
"That is so uncool" a voice said, behind them.
Jimmy, Patricia and Maite spun around.
"What? Us?"
"Definitely" the girl nodded. "I mean, why are you pretending that you are the guys from the Kelly Family?"
Jimmy stifled a laugh.
"How old are you?"
"Old enough" the girl shot back.
"Yeah." Her friend stood there.
"Seriously" Patricia said.
"Look, you are mimicking her voice, too" her friend said. "Like, ew."
"Did you know that when the Kellys go out, they don't just walk around?" Jimmy asked them. "They put on things like, say, sunglasses and hats, so they won't be identified?"
"I so knew that." The girl snorted.
"I bet" Jimmy exchanged a smile with Patricia and Maite.
"So who's your favourite?" Maite asked.
"Paddy" they both replied automatically.
"Paddy has a girlfriend" Maite pointed out. Jimmy stared at her, astonished.
"How would you know?" the first girl asked him.
"Me and Paddy are relatives" Maite replied.
"We don't believe you" the second girl said, uncertainly.
"Hold on" Jimmy said, pulling Maite to the side. "You can't tell them about Marie" he hissed.
"What are they going to do?" Maite replied, taking off her sunglasses so Jimmy could see him rolling his eyes. "Tell the press? Who will believe two teens."
"The press believes anything" Jimmy said. "I think we should leave."
Maite nodded, and they turned back to the girls.
"Well, we are going now."
The first girl stared at him in awe.
"You are really... her."
"Wow" the second girl said. "I'm Stacey."
"I'm... Charlotte" the first girl said. "Sorry... Maite. I mean, you... wow." Maite looked in her hand, where she was holding her sunglasses, and groaned to herself.
"Wow" the second girl said again. "You're from The Kelly family." Her gaze shifted on Jimmy and Patricia, and she stared at them intently. "It's Jimmy and Patricia" she poked her friend.
"This is so cool" she said. She began to scream. "Everyone! The Kellys are here."
"Shhh" Jimmy whispered. "Please, don't..."
The girls began to chant. "Kelly Kelly Kelly"
A crowd slowly grew around them.

"Nobody is on the road," Angelo said, gently. He reached into the front seat and took her hand off of the horn. "There's nothing we can do."
She looked back at him, then at Joey. Taking a deep breath, she looked in Joey's eyes.
"I'm sorry, Joe."
"Sorry for what?" he asked.
"Everything" she answered. "Seriously, I just want to be friends again. This is crazy. And if we, die or something, I just wanted you to know that I am sorry that we destroyed a great friendship."
"I'm sorry, too." he said, surprised that she said anything to him.
"I just want to go back how it was, like at Jimmy's party." Jess said. "I mean, we had a great relationship, but honestly, Jimmy was the world to me, and you being there for me was great. I just want to be friends again."
"So do I." Joey nodded.
"Are you two disillusioned or something?" Angelo cut in. "An hour ago, you were bitching each other out."
"I don't want to be like that anymore" Jess said. She put her hand on Joey's. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry, too" he said. He glanced down at her hand. "Um, can you take your hand off, because it's really cold."
"Sorry." She grinned.
Angelo stared at both of them. "This is really weird."

"I hope they are okay" Marie said to Paddy.
"I'm sure they are." he assured her, sitting on the bed.
She looked up at him.
"But you don't know that, Paddy. You don't know."
"Look, why don't we call the police? I don't know if they'll do anything in this weather, but we can try, we know that they were heading to the grocery store" Paddy said.
"That's a good idea." Marie nodded.
Paddy picked up the phone, and dialed the police office. After talking to a dispatcher, and explaining the situation, he turned to Marie.
"They can't do anything until the morning" Paddy said. "They're snowed in, and the power is out."
Marie swore softly to herself, and picked up the phone. She dialed the first three numbers of Jess's beeper number, then it was silent.
"Paddy" she said, her voice hoarse. "The phone just went dead."

"Can I have more chips?" Angelo asked Jess. 
She nodded and reached into the bag.
"How long has it been?"
"Six hours" Angelo replied. "Are you cold?"
"Well" she said, handing him, then Joey some Skittles. "I can't quite feel my toes. Or my feet. And definitely not my hands."
"I think there is only one thing we can resort to" Joey said with a sly grin.
"And that would be?" Jess asked, popping three citrus skittles in her mouth.
"Body heat" he grinned.
Jess crawled over the seats and landed in the backseat with Angelo. Seconds later, Joey crawled over. "Now isn't this cozy."
Angelo removed his gloves. "Put them on" he instructed Jess.
Jess reluctantly put them on. "But then you will freeze."
"We'll switch" he said. "Don't worry about it. Anyway, it already feels warmer with us three back here. We'll be fine."
Jess nodded, and closed her eyes.

Marie picked up the phone, checking if it was still dead. Tears filled her eyes. "Paddy..."
"It's alright" he said. She leaned into his arms. "They are going to be fine. Don't worry. Tomorrow we will see how the weather is, and go see them. Let's do something to get our minds off of them."
"Like what?" Marie asked. "All I can think about is what is going to happen."
"How about we make some popcorn, and put in a movie" Paddy suggested.
Marie nodded.

Paddy came back minutes later and put down the popcorn.
"Where are your movies?"
Marie pointed to the small cabinet and he opened it up. He glanced through the movies and found a dark blue case holding a tape. Marie's eyes widened.
"Um... I just realized, the power is off, we can't watch a movie."
"You're right. But Marie..." He took the cassette out of the case. "What's this?"
Marie blushed.
"Step away from the tape."
"This label, wait I can't read it..." Paddy walked over and sat beside her. He pointed to the heading. "What does this say?"
She rolled her eyes. "The Kelly Family"
"And it looks like a, wait, six hour tape?" Paddy raised an eyebrow.
"Eight hour" she muttered.
"Eight hour!" He laughed. "You're one of those pathetic ones."
She swatted his arm. "Am not."
"I'm just joking" he kissed her lightly on the cheek.
"I know" she said. "But you weren't ever supposed to find it. It's really old and…"
"Stop making excuses" Paddy wrinkled his nose. "I know your games."
Marie shook her head and laughed.
"I'm hiding that thing."
"So what are we going to do then?" Paddy asked. "We have to get our mind off of things."
Marie shrugged. "No TV, no movies, no electricity."
"Do you have a radio with batteries?" Paddy asked her.
"Ooh, I have this" Marie said, reaching under the couch and pulling out a miniature keyboard. "It has batteries."
"Why do you have that?" Paddy asked.
"We just do, left over from childhood" Marie said. "We always use it... Jess likes to compose retarded songs, I don't know. We have this song about us being amazing... we're really weird."
Paddy fiddled with the buttons and found a samba beat.
"Want to dance?" He held out his hand.
"Dance? I can't dance, I'm supposed to relax" Marie protested.
Paddy placed a hand on his stomach and another one in the air.
"Shall we samba?" He moved his hips. "Just call me Ricky Martin."
"Okay, Ricky." Marie laughed.
Paddy picked her up and spun around once. He shook his hips.
"Samba to the left, and samba to the right."
"Great song" she said. "Now put me down."
He gently placed her back on the couch, still sashaying to the tempo. He bent down and changed the beat. A disco sound filled the room. "Burn baby burn, disco inferno... burn baby burn..." Paddy grinned and continued to sing.
Marie shook her head when he tried to pull her up.
"I shouldn't."
"One second won't hurt" Paddy said.
Reluctantly, she stood up, and Paddy broke out into disco moves, which Marie regrettably followed.

The next morning Jess woke up as a bright shone in her eyes. She realized she was snuggled between Angelo and Joey in the back seat of the car, and it was daylight. The headlights of a car were still in her eyes. She realized that they had stopped.
Leaning over Angelo, then Joey, she tried the back doors. She climbed to the front with her frozen hands and tried those doors. They were frozen. Struggling to get down the window, covered in ice, she finally moved it down a little.
"Help!" she yelled.
Angelo woke up from the backseat. "What's going on?"
"Someone is over there" Jess answered excitedly, pointing to the car. Someone was coming down the street, and their car was stopped there. They might be stuck, but maybe they can help us."
Angelo woke up Joey, and the three of them screamed for help again.
Finally the door of the car opened and a tall man in a heavy winter jacket trudged through the snow to their car. He peered in the crack of the window.
"You kids alright?"
"No" Jess replied. "Could you get us help?"
He nodded, pulling out a cell phone.
"I live down there, and I was stranded at work last night. It stopped snowing, but it's really deep out here. Do you think you need an ambulance? Are you all okay?"
"We're fine" Jess assured him. "But we are out of gas, and stuck in the car."
"Try to get the window down a little, and I can fit the phone through" the man replied. "Call your families, and I will go home and get some gas, then fill your car."
Angelo helped Jess struggle with the window. It went down enough for him to get the phone through.
"The power was off last night, and some phone lines were down" the man said. "But I think most are back up. I'll be right back." He walked in the direction of a small, brown bungalow.
With stiff fingers, Jess dialed her house.

"Paddy" Marie said, nudging him, her eyes still closed.
His eyes opened. "What?"
"The phone" she said. "I can't reach and you are on my arm. Hurry..."
Paddy picked up the phone.
"Hallo"
"Oh, I'm so glad we've reached you. Are you all okay?" Jess breathed a sigh of relief.
Paddy mouthed it was Jess to Marie.
"We're fine. Jimmy, Maite and Patricia got stranded at the mall."
"The mall?" Jess repeated. "They're probably getting mobbed."
"Probably" Paddy replied. "What happened to you guys?"
"We ran out of gas, and we got stuck in the car" Jess explained. "We're okay, we're on a cell phone, and this man down the street is getting us gas, cause we are stuck in the car."
"At least you are alright" Paddy said. "When will you be home?"
"Soon" Jess replied. They bid good-byes then hung up their phones.
"They're alright" Paddy said. He explained what happened to Marie.
"I'm sorry I was so worried" she said. "Sorry you had to put up with me."
"Never apologize" he replied, putting his index finger on her lips. "It just makes me love you more." He pulled her close and kissed her gently.

"I'm so glad you are here!" Marie said, running to the front door greeting the others.
"I'm sure you are" Angelo muttered.
Marie threw him a weird look, and hugged Jess.
"You should be laying down" Jess laughed. "Come on."
"Laying down?" Paddy snorted. "Not when she is sambaing."
"Paddy!" Marie laughed. "Shh..."
Joey, Paddy and Marie went into the living room. Jess stopped.
"Aren't you coming?"
Angelo shook his head.
"I think I'm going to... go upstairs."
"Are you okay?" she asked. 
"Sure, fine." Angelo said. "I'll talk to you later." He forced a smile and walked upstairs.
Jess reached the living room just as the front door opened again.
"Honey's we're home!" Maite called.
Jess ran back to the door, and welcomed them both with a hug.
"Are you three okay?"
"We're fine" Jimmy said with a smile. They all walked back to the living room.
"What happened to you guys?" Joey asked them, as they sat down.
Jimmy grinned. "We got stuck in the mall, then we had to sign autographs in the dark, just by flashlights..."

Chapter 15 - Surprises