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Part Twenty-Seven

Laura's POV

I set up the sleeping bags in the den area, the foods all ready. It's just me and Heidi tonight. It's been a week since she came home from the hospital and we've been tiptoing around the incident that occurred, but now I think we need to finally talk about it. Heidi comes out of the guest room in her pajamas, the long sleeves covering up the bandages that hide her scars. "Hey," I say softly, patting the cushion next to me on the ground.

She sits down and doesn't say anything, just looks down at her feet. "Heidi, I-" I start. She cuts me off, by coming over and hugging me. She starts crying as I rub her back. "I'm sorry, Laura. I was so stupid. Please don't hate me. I'm sorry." "Shhhhh...." I say, "You're not stupid. You were desperate and I should have been there to help you." As I look at her face, I feel like crying too and I feel a tear start to trickle down my cheek. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, Heidi. Really, I should have been. This is my fault, too." We hug each other again and then I pull away from her, holding onto her shoulders and looking her in the eye. "Please don't try to committ suicide. You're too important to me and to Jonny and to your family and friends to do that." She looks at me and bites her lip, nodding, and wiping up the stray tears from her face.

We stay up that whole night talking about everything. About my engagement to Jonny, about her abusive relationship with Spencer, why she cut herself, and Patrick's car incident. By the time we crawl into our sleeping bags at two in the morning, there's a huge weight lifted off my shoulder and the air no longer feels heavy with the sadness and depression that's been hanging around.

Heidi's POV

I feel so much better telling Laura everything. Before I just let everything get bottled up and never told anyone what I felt inside. It felt like I was bothering people to tell them my problems. That they would think that they were stupid and that they wouldn't care. Laura showed me that wasn't true. I trace the bandages on my wrists, unable to see the scars underneath them, but knowing that they are there and that they won't go away. I'm ashamed for thinking that something like cutting could solve my problems. All it did was distract me from my emotional pain by replacing it with a harsher, physical pain. I don't want to go down that path again. And as I curl up in my sleeping bag, I promise myself that I won't ever again.

~The Next Evening~

Jonathan's POV

I wait in the lobby of Laura's condo, checking my phone for any new text messages from the team. We're going to dinner tonight to celebrate my selection as being part of the Canadian Olympic team. I grin as I think of Mr. Yzerman's phone call and I can't wait to go to Sochi. The elevator dings as the doors open and Laura comes out. She's wearing a dark red floor length dress that just sweeps that ground. Strappy heels peep out when she walks and the simple, drop-style diamond earrings that hang from her ears glimmer beneath her dark hair.

"You look gorgeous," I whisper as she walks up to me. "Not too bad yourself," she whispers back, eyeing my suit and tie ensemble. We walk out to my car where I open the door for her. "Is Heidi okay by herself tonight?" I ask, worried about having a repeat of last week's events. "Kami's staying over tonight," she says. "I told her to call if anything goes wrong." My worries fade away as she says that. I know that Kami will contact us if anything bad happens, and I think that Heidi feels much better and more open after having that heart-to-heart with Laura. As I drive, I think about my surprise for Laura. I can't wait to tell her.

Laura's POV

We get to the John Hancock building and Jonny holds open my door for me, before handing the keys to the valet. We take the elevator up until we get to the restaurant, The Signature Room at the 95th. The waiter seats us at our table right next to the window and we have the perfect view of the city all lit up and shimmering below us. Jonny orders some champagne for us and we toast to his future trip to Sochi. "I'm going to miss you," I tell him, giving him a sad smile. "Don't forget about me while you're in Sochi." "Don't worry," he says, shaking his head. "I'm not going to forget you at all." He hands me a box. "Open it," he says, so I slowly undo the ribbon and open the box. Inside, there's a necklace with a single diamond circle pendant like one of the Olympic Rings and a note. I open up the note and read it. "Will you come with me to Sochi?" I cover my mouth in shock. "Are you serious?" I ask Jonny. He nods, smiling at me. "Of course, I will!" I can't stop smiling as he comes over and undoes the necklace from its case. He slips it onto my neck and the diamonds catch the light from the candles making little shimmers shine on the window and look like stars in the sky. Sochi, here we come.

~Last update for the night! Hope you enjoyed it this far!~