Hello everyone. :D I'm back with another chapter. All the people who have been voting and commenting being the wonderful readers and kind, darling friends that you are. I love you all.

Dedicating this chapter to Loved reading your comments. :)

"I love you Emma..." His soft voice trailed off into her ears and ran through the veins settling finally in her heart.

Emma's eyes filled with tears.

Once - long ago, she had dreamed to hear these three words from his mouth. She had even dreamt him saying he loved her in vivid romantic details and at the end of those dreams she would always say those words back to him, they would kiss after that - then he would hold her hand, sweep her off her feet. They would disappear in to the horizons hand in hand... and towards their happily ever after.

But those dreams had stopped recurring since the moment she left.

And now, here he was, saying those three words with so much sincerity, desire and passion while holding her like that in his embrace - like she was his life? It seemed so much like one of those dreams of hers.

A gasp tore through her lips as reality slowly sank into her. Brandan had changed surely, but she wasn't also the same Emma, the same naive girl from six years ago who had given into her desires, her emotions that she felt for him so easily.

"You shouldn't say things you don't mean, Brandan." His arms only tightened around her when she tried to wiggle out.

She watched as the dazed passion in Brandan's eyes slowly dissipated. Formed was the beginnings of one strong fear. "Can't you see or don't you want to see how much I love..."

"DON'T." Emma hissed. Her heart thudded painfully when she felt him loosen his grip around her waist.

"It's only the truth." He murmured almost inaudibly.

Emma was a mess inside and the fear in Brandan's eyes crushed her even more. While her heart craved to hug him tight and sooth all his fears and anxieties away, she knew - she knew that she wasn't ready to drop all her walls and again leave herself as vulnerable as she had once before - in the very same man's arms. Besides she hadn't still broken up with Jonathon, she was anything but a woman with double standards.

So she pushed herself lightly away from Brandan... whose fear had turned into slight panic. Emma could see that blazing in his eyes, there was so much hurt in them as she distanced herself from him. Ignoring her inner self screaming in protest she forced herself to back away.

"Don't do this to us, Emma." He croaked with agony.

"There's no 'us', Brandan." It was so difficult for her to breath. "It's better if you go now."

Brandan was now just standing there with his head bent down, he looked so defeated but Emma had already turned around, she didn't want to see that broken look on his face anymore.

A silence so throbbing followed.

She heard his footsteps leaving her room, she heard him rush down the stairs and the slam of the front door closing. Emma let herself exhaustedly slid down the slippery tiled wall of her bathroom. The towel unwrapped itself from her quivering body, it laid forgotten on her thighs as she sobbed - feeling so helpless and so impossibly cruel at the same time.

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The next morning Emma sat up on her bed pushing away the lump of sheets from over her after slapping shut the alarm clock. Her bones cracked in protest when she had tried to get up from the bed - result of being passing yet another night feeling like the most miserable person existing.

Sleep had come, but it was full of so many nightmares that she felt like it would have been better not having her eyes closed at all.

Those age old dreams of Brandan and her's 'impossible happily ever' after had returned but with twists where she had always ended up falling down from nowhere - to nowhere and into frightening darkness.

Emma got ready in a record time like a perfect robot. She was thankful when she reached the dining table and saw the already prepared breakfast on the table which Elli had laid out.

Shoving a piece of bacon in her mouth Elli kept rambling. "... you are such a popular boy in school Sammy, you even have a girlfriend and still doing such a fuss over the most important meal of the day? Come on now, you know what your mommy will do if you don't eat all that."

Sammy only made a disgusted face as he picked on his food. "But I'm not hungry! And I don't have a girlfriend." He whined.

Sarah copied her brother quickly. "Then I not hungry too!"

Elli tried pulling a stern face. "Oh Sammy! Denial will not help you boy, I've seen how Isabella dangles from your one arm while Sarah from the other."

Immediately Sammy's face went red in embarrassment, the kid was getting teased way too much these days that's for sure.

Rest of the conversation trailed away from Emma's wondering mind as once again even without she herself realizing the last days incident replayed in her mind. Those three words were still echoing afresh in her ears as if he had said them just a moment ago. Then the way his face contorted with so much hurt when she had oh so cruelly pushed him away not just with her two hands but also with her words, she recalled it all.

A hand gently placing on her shoulder made her snap back to reality.

"Now what has Brandan done this time and in which way you want me to castrate him?" Elli inquired quitely.

Surprised Emma stared at the unwavering girl in front of her. "Did I say anything about that man doing anything, Elli?" She went back to nibble on her half eaten toast removing Elli's hand from her shoulder.

Elli raised a brow. "No, you didn't. But clearly that face of yours did. You're looking like you're eating nails instead of a toast, Emma! Come on, do I need to every time pester out information from you?"

Emma looked at the kids as they kept dropping small bites of their breakfast under the table thinking no one was noticing. Those sneaky little things! Emma was sure she would see Meow under the table enjoying it's treats in silence being the loyal friend it was.

A knock on the front door thankfully acted as the needed escape for Emma.

Elli gave Emma a look telling silently that she was no where near done with her interrogation and Emma wondered if she could go and get herself lost in the wilderness in Arizona for a while. The idea seemed really tempting to her. But then she looked at the kids who had managed to now empty their plates and passed all their foods under the table, they looked proud and victorious. No wonder Meow was getting fatter day by day like a sumo wrestler.

No, she couldn't leave them. The mother in her would poison her, throttle her and then burn her alive.

Ignoring Elli, she rushed to open the door. Somehow she knew it wasn't Brandan. Instinct.

She opened the door to see someone standing at her door - holding a door! Oliver's head peeked out from one side as the door covered his whole body.

Then she remembered her broken bathroom door which was literally broken into halves and was still unmoved from it's earlier position on her bathroom floor. And with that came all the memories rushing back again.

"Well, you can glide in your fantasies filled with Brandan all you want later but can you please let me in right now, because I'm quite aware of how ridiculous I look standing at your door with a door... and some weirdo teenagers across the street are laughing at me." Oliver said in one breath.

Emma stepped aside silently, letting Oliver in finally.

"I wasn't fantasizing about Brandan." Emma said calmly.

Oliver didn't turn around. "Oh yeah! Sure. But I must say, you guys should have a grip on your shower fetish or door fetish... or whatever it is. People are forcing me to become a part time carpenter these days and that's not cool at all."

Emma trailed after Oliver as he approached the stairs bumping into each and every random furnitures in his way.

So Brandan didn't even want to see her face now. But who was she kidding, she had seen the hurt in his eyes clearly. But he could've at least come to fix the door, after all it was him who had kicked it down in the first place. Emma couldn't help but feel disappointed despite knowing that she had no right to.

A loud thud echoed the whole house followed by Oliver grumbling in irritation. The door was lying on the floor with Oliver on his stomach flat upon it. The guy had managed to fall down, Emma was waiting for that to happen because she somehow knew it would happen. Instinct again.

Elli and kids were at the door to the dining room watching the ruckus with silent fascination.

Emma watched Oliver roll around on his back and sit down right next to the door with a deep scowl sporting on his face. That's when she noticed the purple bruise covering his left jaw.

Emma leaned down to get a better look. "From where did you get that, Oliver?"

Seeing Emma pointing at his jaw Oliver instinctively touched the swollen area repenting it greatly the moment he did so. "Your lover-boy had placed the mark of a traitor on my face, Emma." Oliver winced as he slowly stood up.

Emma too stood up straight following him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Brandan? I wonder what have you done to earn that colorful title."

Oliver turned around and scratched his head while solely directing his attention towards the door. "I won't risk getting another mark as such on the right side of my handsome face too by delivering you the details. So, no, thank you, I've a date tonight." He said under his breath before climbing the stairs and rushed towards her bedroom leaving Emma stare at his retreating back with narrowed eyes.

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"I'm in the middle of a very important conference call, Oliver."

Brandan said through gritted teeth. According to Oliver he had some important news for Brandan - and Brandan didn't want to hear anything about how troublesome it was getting to fix Emma's bathroom door or how sorry he was for spilling his guts out to Evan. Brandan knew it was about damn time that insane brother of his Emma would make a memorable entry. All thanks to the big mouth of Oliver.

All the things that have been happening in the past few days were taking a toll on Brandan now. Highlighted among them was the way Emma pushed him away from herself after he had so foolishly confessed about his feelings to her, told her that he loved her. Obviously it was too soon, he should have waited... but for how long?

Putting a leash to his emotions whenever he was near Emma was impossible. And in that moment - having her in his arms - so close, feeling her breath over his lips, listening to her galloping heartbeats under his own thudding crazy - crazy heart...

He had laid his heart in a platter before her to have her stab it and then kick away so cruelly. She had said she had forgiven him, was that a lie then?

"You still there buddy?" Oliver's voice made Brandan concentrate on the present. In the background Mr. Hideaki on his laptop screen was trying his best to suppress an oncoming yawn and Brandn felt even more irritated. It was really important for him to have this talk with Hidaeki. And... maybe he could go to Japan and stay there for a while till his head cleared. Emma's look was still haunting him greatly.

Without bothering to reply he was going to end the call when Oliver insistently began speaking again. "It's about Jonathon."

Brandan gritted his teeth at the name, his hatred for the man boiling his insides. "What about him, if it's not important, Oliver, I swear..."

"Yeah yeah, you're going to beat me again, kill me and what not. I'm your personal punching bag after all."

Brandan rolled his eyes hearing Oliver's dramatic sigh. "Now speak already." Brandan commanded.

Chuckling Oliver replied. "You might want to end that conference call of yours, Brandy boy, we have got a dire situation in hand."

And Brandan knew it was time to kiss Mr. Hideaki goodnight, for the underlying seriousness and tension in Oliver's voice seemed palpable like never before.

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Hmmm... I think Emma's reaction to Brandan's out of the blue confession was predictable to many of you if you try placing yourself in her situation. Come on, confessing when there was a dead mouse in the same room - that too in a bathroom - it was far from romantic... haa haa. :D But secretly I would personally prefer such weird love confessions lol, because it was different and candles and flowers are getting kinda boring huh. :P How many of you agree with me?

And in the end, Oliver's like the Messiah to the story again. And I'm really happy to see his admirers are increasing in numbers day by day!!

Buckle your seatbelts tightly fellows, for Lara will be dropping a happy bomb next. But what will be the consequence of that only time will tell. :D

Don't forget to vote, comment and follow me. :) No need to be shy to give me your feedback, I answer almost all of them. And for each vote - I'll sing you a lullaby in my sweet voice. (Now, how would you know what my voice's like. Hee hee... so imagine it's sweet.)

Lots of love. (hugs you untill you faint)

- Lara.

p.s: Brandan has just kissed Mr. Hideaki goodnight a moment ago. How do you think Emma's going to take this news? Would it hurt her feelings? :(