Disclaimer: The whole thing is disclaimed, okay.

AN: Just thought I'd warn people about the pairings here: Clairington/Dylington/Olivington Krosh, Calicia. And possible Dylemp. At the beginning, it's cannon – after the intro of course. Oh, and I forgot to mention, Massie starts out somewhat minor, but then becomes major. JASSIE.

Lyrics of the moment: Truth Is, Fantasia

Truth Is

Dylan—

They were holding hands. It struck me like lightning, standing there in the rain and looking at the comfortable looking couple. Only their hands were touching, it wasn't like they were cuddled up or anything. But it was just the sight of her hand fitting so perfectly, effortlessly in his that sickened me. It looked so right, but it seemed so wrong that the two actually did look as perfect as everyone had said they would. Her head would fit faultlessly on his shoulder. Their arms would interlock flawlessly. They really were meant for each other.

"Mommy," Miracle, who I called Mira for short, looked up at me with questioning eyes. "Who's dat?"

I looked at them once more. His eyes, which by no coincidence looked just like Mira's, sparkled in joy. For once, he looked serene instead of hyper and loud. The way he'd never been with me.

"That's nobody, Mira," I tried to smile at her, but could only grimace. "Don't worry about it."
And we kept walking.

Alicia—

The sight of Dylan, just standing outside the coffee shop, holding her daughter's hand startled me. She hadn't even bothered to walk by Vanilla Bean – the old hangout, as it wasn't as popular as Starbucks, and therefore safe to gossip – since the day she found out she was going to have a child, back during freshman year.

"The nerve of her," Olivia Ryan, snorted, raising her nose a little higher. "You would think she'd have the common sense to hide in shame. This isn't the Secret Life of the American Teenager, nobody actually wants to see her."

"The baby's really cute," I said out loud, before I could stop myself. Of course, saying something like that in front of Olivia would start her on one of her I hate Dylan rants, something I didn't exactly want to hear.

"I wonder which parent she got it from – her father of course! I don't care if that sounds mean, it's not my fault she was that naïve and stupid." Olivia turned to me. "And if this happened to any one of your old friends, I would've sworn it would've been little, innocent, Claire. Well, not so little Dylan finally has that limelight." She let out a snarky giggle. "Am I right?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever." I just kept staring out the window.

Kristen—

It never struck me as a coincidence that Modell's sporting goods was right across from Vanilla Bean. But, when Layne and I emerged from the store, going on and on about David Beckham, and I caught sight of them, I realized the universe was trying to mess with me again. I'd always been superstitious, but seeing Dylan and her child across the street, Claire and her new beau
walking towards me, and Alicia behind Dylan through the window of Vanilla Bean, made me sure that the Gregory Bad Luck Curse had struck again.

"Come on Kris," Layne pulled my arm a little, like she always did. "Who honestly cares if you see them? Are they coming to attack you with pitchforks? No. So let's go."

I didn't say a word as she pulled me further away, just felt memories slowly creep back into my head. And those were enough to make me walk away even faster.

Claire—

After walking for about three blocks, doing nothing but staring into his eyes, I turned around. There was Dylan and her daughter – I think her name was something like Destiny, something meaningful – looking at me like I'd driven one of the knives we'd stabbed into each other even further. I immediately let go of his hand, and stared at the ground.

"Hey, you can't believe anything Dylan tells you," Derrick said softly. "She's going to do everything possible to make you think that I'm a bad guy, I told you that already. You can see it in that glare."

"But you won't even visit your child," I mumbled, blushing ferociously. Thanks to my mom's side of the family, I have a freaky blushing problem, and turn red at the most random moments. But, he was whispering in my ear then.

"It's not my baby. I'd know."

I swallow my indecisiveness and force myself to look into his pools of hot, melted caramel. "Whose, then?" I asked in a voice so low, I could barely hear it. It struck me as odd that we were both whispering, even though nobody was anywhere near us.

"It's probably Kemp's – you know how close they are," he replied simply, holding my hand again. "Now come on, I've got reservations." There was a little bit of force to his voice, but I went with him anyway.

And not once did I look back.

End Note (EN): Okay, I need you to vote – should the story take place before or after Mira's birth? Before meaning the story is centered around how it all happened, and after meaning you see it in a different way.