Like a Train Wreck - 15. Chapter 15: Twisted Tales

Miracle closed the door to his room after throwing on a pair of sweat pants and a sky blue Mickey Mouse t-shirt and after making sure Jaemin was asleep. He just wasn't ready to go to sleep yet, he still felt like there was still so much left to do. He gently closed the door and walked down the hall to the guest bed room and balled his hand up and gave a couple of light taps, hoping that Erica wasn't asleep.

It seemed like Mother, like Son that she too hadn't wanted to sleep as she had heard the knock on the door as she sat on the bed next to the open window, a blue fur coat being worn over the tight black leather tube top and the skirt to match, the matching boots having been left on the floor to leave her feet bare except for the white socks that covered them.

"I'm up." Erica called out, hoping it wasn't Martha because she felt she was the type of woman that scolded smoking in the house.

"It's just me." Miracle opened the door and stepped inside, shutting it behind him. "You're lucky it wasn't Mom, she would be pissed."

"I had that feeling about her, not to be insulting but shes ... easy to read." Erica wanted to say stereotypical but that was her way of being nice about it. She gave a flick of the cigarette to send ashes out the window.

"Well she does her weekly grocery shopping on fridays and she does it when the roosters sing, if there were any around here." Miracle walked closer to the bed. "I won't tell, so long as I can have one."

Erica nodded towards the pack laying on the bed. "Go ahead."

Miracle sat down, took the pack and pulled one out and lit it up, taking a puff. "So ... the shoe box?"

"You want to talk now?" Erica looked at him. "You're going to think it was really stupid and it probably was but at the time I just couldn't bare it. We both paid a price, Miracle. A price for something that I did, something bad but if I hadn't of done it then you wouldn't exist."

"What did you do?"

"Your Father was with someone else, you have a sister out there somewhere, a half sister. I roped him into an affair. In fact I believe you were conceived right around the time his girlfriend caught us in bed together. She took their daughter and left. I remember being so twistedly happy, I thought I had won but he was furious at me, he left to go after her."

"So what happened? How did you guys get back together? Were you kind of a rebound?" Miracle asked, full of questions.

"I had gotten into a really abusive relationship after that, lasted nearly a year." She puffed her cigarette. "My best friend saved me, a friend who always had a crush on me. We went back to my house where a couple of friends were still living and we made love. Well after that happened, the abusive boyfriend, he killed my best friend and he freaked out and ran off."

Erica continued with the story. "I'll never forget Max's last words. You have to move forward, I have to stay in the past, you have to leave me behind." Erica's face scrunched up and she shook her head. "I always thought of it as a lesson I was supposed to learn but I never could do it, I never could let go of him, of the time, of anything. I've obsessed about it for all of these years."

Miracle's breath started to grow heavy, the story sending his emotions rolling on high and yet he kept himself from saying anything at the moment.

"I left but I was so upset while I was driving and I wrecked, flipped the car, I was lucky I didn't get seriously hurt but of all the people to find me, it was your Father that found me and from there we fell in love, got married, you were born and it was paradise. Maybe I was a rebound but I didn't care. I had the family I always wanted, I had him and I had you. I had my house on the beach, away from everything, all the privacy in the world with two good roommates to hang out with. We had parties, every day was like a celebration of just being happy and the nearest town was a small town, it was all just peace and happiness."

"I wish it had stayed that way. I remember little bits and pieces of it." Miracle looked down and then flicked some ashes out of the window.

"It wouldn't of, even if he had stayed. Change happens, no matter what you do to try and stop it. The last fourth of July I had spent with him I told him that I was scared everything was about to change. It was this really scary feeling inside of me and I just knew it was there. He told me that it never would, that we controlled our lives and that if we wanted to stay the same, we could." Tears ran down her face. "And then not long after, everything changed and eventually I found myself alone and it was just you and me."

Miracle stared at her, his eyes widened, tears staining his own face at this point, wondering if he should regret digging into this part of his past, wondering if he had been ready to hear it, all he knew is that the tragedy of the story surpassed anything he had ever heard.

"The day your Father left, I had taken you to a doctors appointment and when I brought you home, that was when he was gone. He left a video tape, I guess that was his way of telling me why but I never watched it. That's the stupid part of the story, that's the stupid part that I mentioned. I was just scared that he went back to his girlfriend but I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. I waited weeks ... and nothing. And so I was selfish, I decided if I couldn't have a whole family that I didn't want one at all." She threw her cigarette out of the window and looked at Miracle. "So for that, I won't blame you if you choose to hate me, Martha, Craig and I just thought you should know everything."

Miracle slowly shook his head. "I don't know how to feel about you. I don't want to hate you but I feel like I am supposed to, I feel like that is what normal people would do when really you are just messed up like me."

Erica stared at him thoughtfully. "Miracle, forgiveness is not twisted and it's not unnormal, in fact it is an extremely strong thing. It takes a lot of strength to forgive than to hate. You are normal, even if it confuses you sometimes, life can be confusing, it's what makes it a puzzle to solve." She sighed. "I watched the tape last night, I figured that when you approached me that I needed to be prepared to tell you what was on it."

Miracle shook his head. "I don't think I'm strong, if I were then I wouldn't need someone." His hand lifted to wipe a tear away. "If I were strong ... I wouldn't be where I am now."

Erica tilted her head to the side. "And where are you now?"

Miracle took a deep breath. "A victim of molestation that twisted my mind, turned me into a whore despite the excuses I try to make, despite the fact that my mind was twisted because I found out the truth and I continued to do what I do anyway. Then I became a victim of rape because I blackmailed someone because I was so desperate to have it all my way." He looked down. "And then I got used by my best friend but then I guess in a way I sort of used him too, I wanted him to take the pain away in the only way I knew how and then I tried to end it all."

"Those are all the bad things and you know ... that is kind of like me. When I'm in a tough spot I tend to look at all the negatives. Why? Because when things are bad, the negatives are so much easier to see, that's how you identify a time as bad or good, it's all based on what is easier to see." Erica took the shoe box and placed it on the bed between them. "Tell me the positives."

"I'm with Jaemin, that is the only positive. And I guess they can't arrest me for murder since I so luckily have an alibi, I guess that's always a good thing." Miracle tossed his cigarette out of the window. "What was on the tape?"

"And you didn't die." Erica added and then rubbed the top of the box. "He had left to join the military, he knew I would have never let him go and so he thought sneaking off was the only option. He owned a bar and the business was bad, he had to take out loans and a mortgage on the house to try and keep our life afloat. The ship was sinking, so to speak and I wasn't really realizing it. I was just lost in the happiness of everything. It's like that portrait of the perfect family but you really never know what happens behind closed doors. We weren't bad, we were happy but we were on the verge of disaster. He wanted to keep that from happening."

"But he didn't die? You would have known that, they always come and tell you."

"He was only supposed to be doing a three month trip to earn some quick cash, given he was going to commit longer because it would take more than three months to get us above our situation but he wanted to come back and actually face me. He thought that if he showed me what it would be like or that I really couldn't stop him that he could make it work." She said and then continued.

"The three months was an example he was making, a statement to me. I never heard from him again and I waited those three months and I waited weeks after that, not a word." She paused and pushed the box towards Miracle. "These are just a few things I brought with me, the tape, a few home movies I transferred to CDs and some photos. And you're right, if he died they would have told me. I gave it a chance, I really did Miracle but I couldn't wait forever."

Miracle pulled the shoe box into his lap. "You know how you have those moments where you wish you could go back in time? You want to go back because you're older and you could have some say in a matter that at that certain time you were to small to understand or make a difference in."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. My Father left when I was only a baby, I don't even have any memories, you feel like you have no power so then when you grow up, you want to go back because now you have power." Erica nodded.

"I should get some sleep, there is a party tonight, it's really important for a friend." He laid the shoe box down. "Stay another night? I want to look through this together." He looked up at her.

Erica nodded, a small smile appearing. "Yeah, I'll stay as long as you want me to. And I would really like that, I could tell you the stories, that way the items make a lot more sense to you."

Miracle smiled and moved off the bed and walked towards the door and moved out, closing the door behind him and then he headed to his own room to cuddle and sleep with Jaemin so that he could rest up for the party.

Jaemin pulled up to the house way out in the country side, it was a huge mansion, the classic house on the hill and there were already over a dozen cars parked anywhere and everywhere there was to park. The house appeared to be all lit up like a golden piece of jewelry as Jaemin pulled up into the drive way, barely being able to fit the lexus in but one thing was for sure now, the drive way was off limits now.

"Driving, haven't done that in a long time." Jaemin grinned. "This okay? I hope it doesn't bring back memories."

Miracle looked up at the house. "Well not yet but we'll have to see." He looked at Jaemin and shrugged. "It shouldn't. It's a house party, not a club." He pushed the passenger door open and climbed out.

"Oh hey, guys! Up here!" Melanie called out from the wrap around porch, standing near the door with a red cup in her hand, lifting it up for a sip. The music pumping so loud it could faintly be heard from the outside.

"So where is Sarah?" Jaemin asked, moving up the steps, hand in hand with Miracle.

"Wait. You know each other?" Miracle looked over at Melanie.

"We kind of bumped into each other at the hospital." Melanie laughed and shook her head. "But it's cool, I would of met him tonight anyway, right? And besides, with him here..." Melanie paused and then made a monsterous voice. "He can protect you from the wrath of Sarah." She laughed.

"Does she have anger management?" Miracle asked.

"I don't know what she has." Melanie grinned. "I do know that I don't know how she will react and that is part of the fun of it." She then walked over and looped her arm in Miracle's. "Lets go inside."

Miracle walked inside with Melanie, followed by Jaemin, people were crowding the house, music blaring from the surround sound speakers all through out as Melanie lead them down to the basement that was set up like a night club, the flashy lights, a bar with a wide variety of drinks to choose from, Kevin was the party king and that was what earned him the place he had in the social latter.

"Miracle, why don't you go and get a couple of beers for you guys? I know it looks professional and stuff but Kevin doesn't charge." She laughs and nudges Miracle on and then looks at Jaemin. "You need to find Sterling and make him get Sarah. I think he would be more approachable to her than you would be, no offense." Melanie gives Jaemin a look over.

Miracle had walked on and into the crowd before they had made their exchanges. Jaemin looks at Melanie. "How am I going to make Sterling do anything for me? He hates me, in fact the very fact that I now know you've invited him here disturbs me. That is dangerous."

"Don't worry about it, I and now you have Sterling right under our thumb. If he doesn't bend to our will then he will have a lot to answer for in that Brian went to jail but with a simple confession, I can easily exchange them out." Melanie grinned. "And Brian, no matter how pissed he is at what I did to him, he would do anything to get out, even back up my story."

Jaemin's eyebrows lifted as Miracle returned with the beers and he took the one offered to him. "Whatever you say." He said to Melanie and then looked to Miracle, wrapping an arm around his waist to give him a kiss. "I'm going to go look for Kevin and Sarah, need to get ready for the viewing."

Miracle smiled, kissing him back and then nodded. "Okay, what room are we going into exactly?"

"Kevin's Dad's study." Melanie said and then she laced her arm around Miracle's again. "We'll wait there." She smiled and started leading Miracle off.

Sterling watched the trio from the distance and a sigh escaped, it really got under his skin to see Jaemin with Miracle, especially like that. He looked around, not exactly sure what he was supposed to do, it didn't seem like Melanie was in any hurry to find him or even provide him any instructions. Maybe she was trying to find him? The crowd was big, she was supposed to bring Miracle to him so that he could tell him the truth. He started to try and follow them but then, with the passing of a few people, found Jaemin stepping out, coming face to face with him.

"Hi, friend." Jaemin grinned. "I guess I didn't hurt you bad enough, no bump on the head."

"I'm a quick healer." Sterling looked away to find Melanie and Miracle had disappeared from sight.

"Don't worry with them. We have a mission of our own. We have to find Sarah. Or rather you have to. Mel thinks that you are more ... personable." Jaemin frowned. "I think that's a bit unfortunate but I'm playing nice."

"I'm not doing a thing for her until she delivers her end of the deal." Sterling looked at him again.

Jaemin started laughing. "Yeah? And what might that be?"

"To tell the truth, that she saw me in the hospital, that you beat me up."

"But she didn't see me beat you up, she saw you beat up." Jaemin stepped closer, as if he were going to kiss Sterling. "Maybe you just ... tripped."

"That isn't what she is going to say."

"Really? So in other words, you are going to have her tell a truth and a lie for you? Because you do know it would be half a lie." Jaemin stepped back. "And I should pass on a message to you, she said if you didn't get Sarah to the study that ... well it was something about a confession and exchanging out you and Brian from jail. Not sure exactly what it was about."

"Shes blackmailing me?" Sterling asked, feeling angry.

"What did you expect? Maybe if you just play nice you will get what you want. Give it a try." Jaemin took a sip of his beer and turned to head towards the study.

Melanie looked around the study, heels making a light tap along the clean hard wood floor, glancing up to the chandelier above. "Kevin knows how to live. His house is so shiny." She moved over and sat on the desk, leaning side ways on a hand to look at the computer, giving the mouse a shake with her other hand.

"It is really nice." Miracle took a sip of his beer. "And not cookie cutter."

"Cookie cutter plagues your existence, doesn't it?" Melanie grins and looks up at him. "That same house on a street that has a row of seemingly endless houses that all look the same with those perfectly square lawns that are all kept well cut, not to fancy but definitely not the ghetto." Melanie slid off the desk and into the chair. "I would rather live in the ghetto than that middle class nightmare."

"Yeah and then you stick my Mom in it and bam! You got a stereotypical picture to hang on the wall." Miracle laughed. "Actually, Jaemin suggested that I sleep with my adoptive Dad and homewreck the marriage to get her out." Miracle walked towards the edge of the desk. "What do you think about that?"

"Really?" Melanie put on a look of surprise, as if she hadn't heard of the idea. "Well for one, he's only adoptive so ... it's not like it's incest or anything and I mean..." Melanie leaned back in the chair, appearing thoughtful. "Sometimes to get what you want, you have to play dirty." She looked up at him. "If it were me, I would be totally turned on by it because of who he is but not in the way that you think. He's your adoptive Dad, it's not the Father figure part that would turn me on, it's the fact that he's a person of power and you would be taking that power away from him."

"It's funny, Jaemin said pretty much the same thing to me, kind of but he wasn't as specific about it."

"And that probably made the idea seem weird?" Melanie crossed her ankles on the desk. "He should have been, I mean if you're going to throw an idea like that at someone, you should make them well aware you're not coming at an incestuous or one of those daddy slash son point of views and by what you just said, it sounds like he was coming from the same place I am, just in a poor non specific way." She sighed and looked out the window. "I wonder when the calvary is going to show."

Out on the porch Sarah stood there with Kevin, hearing the music playing but she felt really out of place being there, she really didn't think she should be there, partying. What kind of girlfriend would she be? Even if Brad were dead, her loyalty was still with him, at least for a little while longer, she felt like she should still be properly mourning him.

"I don't know if I should be doing this, Kevin. It feels so ... wrong." Sarah looked up at him. "All I've done since what happened is cry. How can I go in there? How can I smile? How can I..."

"Sarah, you have nothing to feel guilty about. We did the memorial, we did the funeral and burial and the mourning and the grieving, we shed our tears. We did the sadness, we did all we were supposed to do, not even supposed to do but what we needed to do. It's natural but at some point, you have to let go. I have known Brad all of my life and while I know he understands all that we had to do and all that we had to go through after his loss, he would want this. We pained for his loss, now we should celebrate his life." Kevin said, shaking his head.

"Celebrate his life? Kevin he has no life!" Sarah looked at him with an intense gaze.

"But he did have a life. And this is what he did with it, one of many things! He played football, he partied, he laughed, he had fun. He lived life to it's fullest. He would want us to continue to do all of those things, he would probably be furious if we spent the rest of our time being sad before we're forced off to college and into adulthood. Do you want to lay that on him?"

Sarah sighed and shook her head. "No, I don't want to lay that on him. I just, I can't help how I feel Kevin."

Back in the office, Melanie had left the desk and moved towards the window, looking out through the blinds to see Kevin and Sarah out on the porch near the front door. "There they are." She grinned and then moved away from the window and turned around, pulling her phone out of her purple glittery purse, it matched the halter top styled dress that she wore. She sent a text to Sterling to tell him where Sarah was.

Sterling got the text message when he heard his phone alert him to check it and then pocketed his phone and moved towards the front door and pulled it open, seeing Kevin and Sarah. "Oh, hey guys." He tried to smile but he was really not happy. "Yeah, Kevin hates me." The smile faded. "Listen, you're Sarah, right? I know you may or may not know I exist but uh...I was enlisted or hired or however you want to think of it to deliver you to a message. Yeah that's kind of backwards but it's the only way it works."

Jaemin almost choked on the laughter he was trying to contain as he followed Sterling upstairs just in time to hear the pitch Sterling threw at Sarah and then continued on his journey to head towards the study.

Sarah looked at Sterling like he was crazy. "Uh...I know who you are and you sound crazy right now. First of all, I don't think I should be here."

Kevin wasn't sure what to say, all he knew, all that Melanie told him was that Sarah was supposed to be taken to the study and he wasn't sure how he could really help to make that happen. He really didn't think Sterling was going to be able to do that.

"Okay, I'm sorry. You know...I'm socially retarded. That's why I'm the crappy outcast that all you guys smash, stomp and grind right into the ground. Could you just come?"

Sarah continued to stare at him. "Now you're insulting yourself." She stepped forward and placed a hand on the door frame. "I don't get involved in the guy drama, so whatever happens to you, I really don't know but you aren't helping yourself."

"Melanie!" Sterling finally yelped out.

She narrowed her eyes and then looked at Kevin. "Did you have anything to do with this?"

Kevin lifted his hands up, shaking them. "No, I simply wanted you to come, like I said, celebrate Brad's life. Melanie, shes to shady, the people she hangs with are to shady, I don't get into that mess."

"So what does she want? What kind of sick and twisted game is she playing now?" Sarah looked at Sterling. "And why would she ask you for help? I mean I know she is sneaky but even this...well she has to be really desperate to have dealings with someone so alien to her."

"I don't know, all I know is that she told me that it was about Brad and some kind of secret." Sterling frowned. "Look, I wasn't the guys biggest fan, far from it but you never did anything to me. You weren't nice to me but you left me alone so I guess that makes you decent at best since I don't know you. I'm really sorry that you lost someone you loved but ... if you don't go you are going to always wonder. She said that she had something to show you."

Sarah crossed her arms. "Thank you for the condolences but if you don't mind I really lack interest in anything she is making up. The last time she wanted to show me something she photoshopped Brad's head onto Brian's body so it looked like he cheated on me with her."

"Sarah, are you aware that Miracle accused him of rape? And ... the thing Melanie has is a disk, it's labeled black mail. It must be something about Brad, she must of looked at it because that is what she said and now Brad is dead, murdered. Isn't it at least worth looking at?" Sterling frowned, making it sound like he was throwing Miracle under the bus as a pitch made him feel horrible but he knew Miracle had an air tight alibi and he was hoping beyond hope that this could all end tonight.

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "Miracle is a liar, Brad would never do something like that. In fact what I was told is that Kevin was kicking some of your books around and Miracle happened to be there, he came onto Brad and when he got rejected he made up that rape story. Maybe he got his brother to beat him up or something or maybe it was that creep that tried to accuse Kevin of helping Brad rape Miracle." Sarah shook her head and stepped inside. "But since this could have some possible importance, I'll humor that bitch."

Melanie leaned against the desk, tapping a foot against the floor, crossing her arms. "Damn this is taking forever. Is Sarah being that fucking stubborn? Or is Sterling just bad at it?"

"Wait, Sterling is luring Sarah in? I didn't know you associated with him." Miracle looked up at Melanie.

Jaemin opened the door and walked in. "She doesn't, I made him do it, he at least owes you that for being a careless jerk."

Miracle's eyebrows lifted. "Jae, this is for Melanie."

"It's okay." Melanie walked towards the window. "If Sterling has decided he wants to be a careless jerk, he might aswell be made to keep at it, for you, it's the perfect revenge, make people hate him more." She walked towards the window, seeing Kevin and Sarah were not on the porch anymore.

"Okay, Melanie, what kind of game are you playing now?" Sarah said as she charged through the door, stopping in the middle of the room and placing a hand on her hip.

Melanie grinned and slowly turned around. "Sarah, so to the point. What ever happened to nice greetings and good pleasantries?"

"They ceased to exist when ever you popped out of your Moms..."

"Okay, graphics people." Miracle spoke up. "Don't want to hear about ying yangs, okay?" He smiled.

"Says the liar to the woman who had the desired." Sarah turned towards him. "You had to do it didn't you? Couldn't have him so you made him a rapist? You probably had him killed too."

Sterling and Kevin walked in, both of them being pretty quiet at the moment, watching everything unfold.

"I didn't lie, actually what he did to me was an act of revenge for what I did to him. Melanie has the proof." Miracle responded in defense.

"Oh does she?" Sarah laughed and turned towards the diva herself. "So what is this little show in tell?"

"Oh the moment is so sweet." Melanie grabbed her purse and pulled out the disk. "Look what I have here." She waved it at Sarah. "Wonder what it says black mail for?" Melanie shrugged and walked towards the computer.

Sarah looked at the disk, a sudden seriousness swelling within her and taking over her appearance as she walked around to the computer, the little group forming a little circle around Melanie who sat in the chair.

"Kevin, the lights? I want a theatre experience." Melanie put the disk into the computer.

"Oh, okay." Kevin nodded and grabbed the remote off the desk, dimming the lights down low and then pressed another key and the computer monitor went black, instead transferring the signal to the large television hanging on the wall across the room. "More of a theatre experience."

Melanie blinked when the screen suddenly went black but then looked up to see everything was now on the television. "Ooo, I like it." She smiled and then moved the mouse around. "Are you ready Sarah? No previews for this presentation."

"Just get on with it." Sarah said, teeth grinding in a frustrated manner.

"Okey Dokey!" She clicked on the file and the media player came on, going full screen to reveal Miracle and Brad having sex. "It's even worse than Brad cheating on you with me, no offense Miracle."

Miracle watched the video and he thought that it wouldn't bother him and then he looked at the people around him, especially Sarah and then suddenly he felt as if he was being exploited and he already knew that feeling all to well. This was what David did, made videos of him for the pleasure of others, even if he didn't understand it at the time, now he knew and now he understood what it felt like and it didn't feel good.

"Oh my god!" Sarah gasped, her hands coming up to cover her mouth and her nose as she stumbled back into the book case behind the desk. "I...I...." Her hands lowered to her chest, feeling as if she couldn't breath. "He...he...."

Melanie spun around in the computer chair, one leg crossed the other and she grinned at Sarah. "He fucked the living hell out of my best friend forever and he loved it."

"But why...I was there, he had me..." Tears ran down Sarah's face as she looked at Melanie. "Shut up you stupid bitch! You ruin peoples lives and you don't care who you hurt! I bet Miracle didn't even want this to be revealed! If he even knew! Where did you find it?!"

"Funny you should ask, Barbie blonde." Melanie's gaze shifted towards Sterling. "I found it at his house. Why not? You moved in on Miracle the second he got here but then you saw him come onto Brad so you had to get rid of Brad. Maybe you accidently turned the webcam on? Leave a disk in the computer? Then snatch it from Miracle's room later?" Melanie then pressed a button to shut off the video. "But then ... Brad wouldn't take to it, maybe? Brad was always prideful, I couldn't see him backing down to you."

Sterling's eyes widened. "What?! Melanie! What are you doing?! You sold me out!"

"So you admit it? You have something to be sold out for? Mhmm, so Brad doesn't back down to you and then the drama of rape ... who knows how that could of happened but that's besides the point. Next thing that happens, Brad ends up dead, you think you won but then...Jaemin comes along and you realize you need it again. Then what happens? Want to tell them or shall I?"

"Then what happens? You lie, that's what happens!" Sterling shouted at her.

Miracle looked between both of them, he knew that he had been the one to make the black mail but after the rape he never knew what happened to the disk and now he was starting to really question what Sterling would be doing with it and if he had it, why he wouldn't have given it back or even have at least told him. Then again, Melanie had said she had gotten it from Brian's. "Wait...Melanie."

"What?" Melanie looked over at Miracle.

"You said you found it at Brian's." Miracle pointed out the fact.

Sterling looked between Miracle and Melanie. "Wow, looks like you slipped up there Mel."

"You wish." Her eyes narrowed on Sterling, realizing she had made a plot hole in her plan. "I know what I told you Miracle. I needed to make anyone that knew believe that is where I found it, I needed to make Sterling trust that I would protect his secret in order to get him to help me frame Brian and further protect him. Sterling found it at Brian's and I found it at Sterlings."

"Oh my god!" Sterling almost wanted to laugh and he waved an arm. "Miracle, shes grasping at straws! Shes the one with all the lies and secrets!"

Miracle looked over at Sterling. "Really? And why would she keep secrets from me? And why would she lie to me? What would she gain from that? In fact, the idea of you using that disk against me, against Brad, against Jaemin, it makes a lot of fucking sense as much as I hate to say it." Miracle looked over at Melanie. "And what is this about framing Brian?"

Sarah glared at all of them. "Melanie is sick, she gets pleasure from the drama it's self, she doesn't need a reason!"

Melanie looked at Miracle and then over at Sterling. "When he realized I had found the disk, he was going to attack me, I had the police already dialed on my phone and I threatened to hit the dial button, I told him they would find the bottle you ODed with and that you would get in trouble because you got them illegally from Brian. That's when he backed off." Melanie stood up. "So we made an exchange, I could borrow the disk and we would plant the bottle on Brian to make it look like he stole my medication."

Miracle took a few steps back. "So...what are you saying Melanie?"

"I'm saying that this man..." Melanie dramatically pointed at Sterling. "He made me help him frame Brian to get that pill bottle out of his possession, I had no choice if I wanted to ruin Sarah's life and then he was going to take the disk back and blackmail Jaemin out of your life." She turned to Miracle and shook her head. "I couldn't let that happen to my best friend and really, what do I have to gain from it but to protect you?"

Sarah shook her head at Melanie and turned around to look at Kevin. "Please tell me you weren't in on this? Tell me that this entire party wasn't staged for Melanie and her evil plan."

Kevin looked at Sarah and shook his head. "Sarah, I've known you for a long time, I thought you deserved to know the truth, my intentions were of honesty. Melanie mushing your face into it with that disk? That was all her."

Melanie turned around and grinned at Sarah. "Damn right it was all me, bitch. And I love it. You are ruined, you will go on for the rest of your life knowing that your high school sweet heart had an affair, not just any affair but an affair with the new guy." Melanie laughed. "That has got to be insulting."

Sarah's hands balled up into fists and she stepped up to Melanie. "You know what? Your life will be ruined because while you are busy dealing your cards and playing your pawns, everyone else will be out making something of themselves. And you know what they say, a lucky streak in Vegas only lasts so long. I look forward to seeing what becomes of you at our ten year reunion." Sarah wiped the tears from her eyes, held her head high and with dignity walked past Melanie and left the room.

"You were going to blackmail me out?" Jaemin's eyes narrowed in on Sterling and he walked closer towards him.

"Shes lying! But you know what? I am really not concerned with what you believe." Sterling stared at Jaemin and then looked over at Miracle. "It's not the truth!"

Jaemin shook his head, balled up a fist and punched Sterling right across the face, sending him stumbling into the book shelf, causing several books to fall. It was then that he jumped on the desk and then lunged off of it to spin around and kick him in the side of the head, blood was sent flying as Sterling fell to the floor and Jaemin landed firm on his feet.

Melanie laughed when Sarah walked out. "Yeah, we'll see, ten years, I'll mark the day!" She called out and then turned around just in time to see Jaemin attacking Sterling. "Ooo, this is good." She looked over at Kevin.

"Yo! This is my Dad's office! He's going to be pissed!" Kevin moved to intervene.

Melanie grabbed Kevin's shoulder. "Don't." She said quietly. "Call the cops, when they ask, Sterling shot the first blow." She whispered.

Kevin turned to look at her. "And Miracle?"

Miracle watched as everything went down, Sarah being hurt not only by Brad's murder but now his affair with Brad coming out ever so late by a vindictive Melanie who was now playing sling shots and boomerangs with the truth and the lies which now initiated the two men in his life into a vicious fight. His eyes lowered and he felt this need to find somewhere to be free, somewhere to feel safe and at peace. Everything felt as if it slowed down around him and all the sound seemed to fade away as he forced himself just to tune it all out and then he turned and ran out of the room.

Melanie watched Miracle run out and then looked at Kevin. "Not a problem, call the police." She said and turned around to watch the fight while Kevin called the cops, a grin appearing.

Sterling slowly got up and then grabbed a lamp from the table and snatched it away, yanking the cord from the wall as he threw it at Jaemin. The lamp went sailing in the air and Jaemin ducked slightly to the side and down, missing the lamp causing it to shatter into the wall and then he kicked his foot up, spinning the computer chair around just as Sterling started to run forward. Jaemin grinned and gave the computer chair a firm kick and it slammed into a charging Sterling, knocking the wind out of him as he fell over it.

Jaemin sighed and stomped a foot onto Sterling's back. "Didn't someone ever tell you not to fight someone who can ... actually fight?"

"Damn, Sterling don't make me cheer for you! I want to see a real fight!" Melanie screamed at him.

Sterling laid there and then pushed himself up and forward in a quick motion causing Jaemin's leg to lift up enough to knock him back and Sterling would slam him into the side of the desk, then he would pull back. Jaemin yelled in pain as he hit the desk and then he turned and pushed himself up and grabbed the computer mouse and yanked it free from the computer. He started swinging it around, first slapping Sterling across the face with it and then managing to swing it around his throat, long enough to yank him forward, punch him in the face and then shove a knee into his stomach, knocking him back until the mouse cord snapped, that was when Jaemin tossed it to the side.

Sterling coughed and gagged until he was free of the cord, he pulled it off of his throat and then threw the mouse at Jaemin, luckily managing to hit him at least in the ear. He then lunged forward and ontop of Jaemin, both sliding across the desk, sending the computer and everything, along with the two of them into a mess on the floor as they rolled about, throwing punches at each other.

"Beat his ass!" Melanie screamed, cheering Jaemin on.

Kevin turned around after hanging up with the police. "My Dad's stuff!"

Miracle walked along the edge of the road, this was a strange sight for him, there seemed to be no city for miles and yet he wished there were, he needed somewhere to go. His first thought was the empire state building, go above it all. Tears stained his cheeks and he softly cried, his arms folding around himself and then he looked up, spotting a church, the lights were on inside and there was a swing on the porch of it and a few candles lit and sitting on the wooden railing that surrounded the porch, only the church van and two cars were parked under a large detached car port at the side of the church and the parking lot was empty.

Miracle stopped walking and looked up, there was a cross on the front of the church, at the top and on the center of a chimney like structure that lead to the church bell, the cross had lights behind it that shined out of the sides in a a bright white glow. He had never been in a church before, part of him wondered if a person could just go into one any time they wanted. He then looked down and saw someone was on the swing of the porch. His eyes squinted and he moved across the road and started to walk across the parking lot.