Crash ~Justin Bieber~

Chapter 24 ~ Squeeze My Hand

(Rachel's POV)

After the horrific race I faked sleep while Randy and Justin played video games.

I wasn't tired; I just couldn't bare it anymore. I had fought all day with these strange new emotions and they had taken their toll. I thought about how Justin had brushed the snow from my hair, how he had jumped and saved me, and how handsome he had looked in his black leather jacket, drinking hot drinks in the dim lights of the mountaintop restaurant.

In sleep I was safe, Justin couldn't tell that I was acting different if I wasn't moving or speaking.

But soon Randy and Justin grew tired and I felt the covers lift. Justin settled down beside me, still bantering back and forth with Randy, reminiscing about the tragic race.

"Where are you?" he mumbled, his hands finding my waist and moving me back to where I had slept briefly this morning.

Randy saw and he thought nothing of it.

"I've got pups... who needs you guys" he said.

"Don't turn into Taylor man, that whole animal love thing..."

"Oi!"

Justin apologized quickly, his laugh tickling against my ear.

They were both finally able to see the amusement in their horrible week with Taylor and Bonnie.

"Please take your idiot hat off and go to sleep"

"Dude - when she said that idiot hat thing and Bonnie bit me..."

"When she bit you I thought she was smoking more then highlighters..."

"What was with that? We all ignored this messed up psycho..."

"What were we going to say? Every time I asked her a question she talked about..."

"Grasshopper slaughter" Justin choked "Ha - ha"

"Imagine how much worse that week would have been if we weren't friends..."

"I'd have to fight Taylor and you at the same time"

The conversation changed and I felt Justin move to look over me, checking to see that I was still sleeping. Both Justin and Randy were careful to avoid talking about the past around me. I wasn't sure why. I knew the past as well as they did, there was no hiding what had happened.

"I'm sorry you missed so many of these trips. They weren't the same without you here. Rache is fun but the three of us are a better team..."

"It's all good bro" Justin assured, "It's all in the past"

"No, I made too many mistakes..."

"We both made mistakes"

"No - I made mistakes and you reacted to them"

Randy was right. Justin fought back because he had to. He was human and he had to defend himself at some point.

"So what? I forgive you, its done"

"Why would you forgive all of that though?"

"Because you asked me to?"

The answer was so simple for Justin. He didn't even think it through. Randy was Randy. He was his lifelong friend. If he asked for forgiveness, Justin gave it to him. The trick had always been asking.

"I forgave you two years ago"

"But I was still a tool two years ago?"

"True that," Justin shook, "But I forgave you because you were going through stuff that I couldn't understand. I wanted to be angry at you but really I just wanted you to tell me how I could help...."