"I doubt that." She said the words and knew there was still a big part of her that wanted him to still love her but there was a part of there that wanted him to be okay. She was torn between the two.

"Well for what it's worth I hope everything works out for you Ash."

The genuineness of his words made her smile and she felt some sort of closure with him.

"I hope the same for you Logan."

Never would she have believed they would be making peace and it lightened the guilt she had carried for being responsible for hurting him.

While they danced out of the corner of her eyes she saw Maddox on the dance floor with Sasha. It physically hurt like someone squeezed her heart in their fist. He had his arms around her and she felt her lip tremble.

Logan didn't miss what was going down and he pulled her closer, embracing her. "Don't let him pull at your heart strings Ash. That guy is still totally in love with you."

Her eyes watered and she looked up to him. "Thanks." She let out a shaky breath. "I've got to go."

He nodded. She walked away leaving him on the dance floor but instead of heading to her table she kept going until she walked out of the exit. The evening air was cool and she breathed it feeling like her heart was ready to burst from the pain. There was only so much she could take and she was nearly at her limit.

It was a mistake to have come. She put her hand to her temple to try and figure out how she could leave without having to go back inside. Her heart couldn't take anymore.

There were footsteps and then she turned. Maddox stood watching her with his hands shoved into the pockets of his trousers.

His presence took her by surprise and all words failed her.

"I was determined to make you regret breaking up with me so I brought Sasha to make you jealous. And you know what?"

She shrugged.

"I'm the one who has spent the whole evening watching your every move, hating every guy that got to dance with you tonight...because I didn't."

Her chest felt hollowed out and she swallowed. None of this changed anything.

"You're not going to say anything?" he asked softly.

"It doesn't change anything."

He nodded slowly, his gaze watchful. "I found out what my mom did."

She frowned, unsure of exactly he was talking about so she thought it was best to keep quiet and hear what he had to reveal.

"I know she blackmailed you into breaking up with me."

She was stunned. "How?"

"I overhead her talking to Sasha's mom about it. Their conversation was quite revealing and afterward I gave my mother a piece of my mind. She won't be interfering again."

It was in her personality to gloat so it wasn't a surprise.

"So why didn't you say anything?" she ventured.

He sighed. "Because I wanted you to hurt like I was. I was angry that you gave up so easily without a fight."

She bit her lip, unsure of what to say.

"From the beginning I have had to be so careful with you. I couldn't rush things or put too much pressure on you. I gave you the space you needed because I wanted you so much, it scared me."

He paused. She had no idea he had felt so strongly.

"But it's only now I considered that maybe you just weren't ready for any of it and I should have seen that."

She frowned. That wasn't true at all. When she tried to explain he shook his head.

"The one time I needed you to stand up for us you folded like a deck of cards." The disappointment was clear in his features and it hurt. "It was clear that you didn't feel enough to fight for it."

He let out a heavy emotional breath.

"Maybe there is a part of you that totally believes the whole college excuse but I don't buy it for a second. If it was so important or you were so worried about it you would have said something. The truth was you didn't. And I think I finally understand why."

She just had no words for any of what he was saying. He had taken her by surprise and her mind was still trying to catch up.

"You used it as an excuse to get out of a relationship you never really wanted."

"That's not true." She moved closer. "You're mom blackmailed me into breaking up with you. The whole college thing had been bugging for a while but I didn't want to admit to myself that despite loving you more than I have ever loved anyone we didn't have a chance."

"We never had a chance because you weren't ready."

How could he believe that, after all they had shared?

"That's not true."

She watched his emotions play across his features. She wanted to reach for his hand, connect physically with him in some way to show him, to convince him, that she did love him and that his assumptions were completely wrong but she didn't.

"If it's not true why didn't you make plans for our future. Why didn't you ask about college? Why didn't you do any of that?"

"Because I had it all mapped out in my head and I was scared to face the reality that no matter how much you meant I would have to let you go." The pain in her chest was not only emotional, it was physical.

He shook his head. "I don't believe it. I think it was always going to be your excuse to end our relationship. You are too scared to be with anyone. The night I heard your parents fighting I thought I understood the extent of the damage they had done to you but I realise now the damage runs deeper than I ever could have imagined."

"Don't try psycho analyse me. Yeah I might not believe in happily ever after but who can blame me? My parents showed me every night for the last few years how the love that brought them together could also tear them apart. I've seen what love does and I didn't want any part of it."

She was breathing hard. "But then I met you."

He was watching her intently.

"You're right. I was scared to let you in but you showed me that I didn't have to be afraid of it. I could love someone and it didn't have to cause pain. You showed me what it felt like to love and be loved." She swallowed the build up of emotion. "You showed how beautiful it can be."

She let out a heavy emotional breath. "But the more I loved you the more I was scared to let you go. Do you know how much it hurt to break up with you?"

He shrugged.

"It felt like I was broken, that there was a part of me that was damaged beyond repair but I was prepared go on like that to make sure you had the best future. I didn't want to keep you back. One thing I've learned that if you love someone, truly love them, you do what's best for them even if it breaks you. So even when your mom blackmailed me I knew I could try and talk my parents around so she wouldn't be able to cause trouble but I thought I was making the best choice for you. I didn't want to drag you down. I've been through a lot but nothing is worse than being without you." Her emotional felt tangled up in her chest and she felt raw.

He put his hand up to stop her.

"Listen to what you just said Rae. You said you were broken without me? What makes you think I can be whole without you?"

She pressed her lips together as his words sank in. She began to tear up. He watched as a tear slid down her cheek.

Then he swore under his breath and gathered her in his arms. She buried her face in his shirt and held onto him like he was her life line. She trembled and he held her tighter, kissing her forehead.