My God ; I haven't updated in such a long time...I'm so sorry!
But...wow; this is the very last chapter of Summer Never Ends.
Thank you to all who have read this fanfic, it's greatly appreciated.
I might be making another LODT story, but not a sequal:(
Thanks again to all who have read this fanfiction. :)
Please review, please:)

Chapter Twenty-Five :: The Last Days of Summer

Things had gotten worse, I had to say. Jay was getting depressed; he joined a gang and shaved off his long, dirty blond hair, now showing a zipper tattoo on his head. Stacey hooked up with a girl he met while on the road; we barely saw him anymore. Tony had gotten punched out at the major skateboard competition, keeping him out of competing for a while, getting various eye surgeries. And, Pacific Ocean Park Pier had burnt to the ground. Dogtown was going down the drain, it was a literal downfall. And I couldn't help but feel that it was all our faults. Skip was upset by it, but he didn't show it. I'd finally moved out of my foster parents' house. And I was free. Or, it seemed that way.

A few nights later, I was with Skip on the shoreline wall, just right near the beach. Skip looked totally different now, too; his blond hair was short, clean-cut shaved face, and you could actually see his eyes, now that he barely wore his black Ray-Bans anymore. His personality was still a jerk-like one, but majorly toned down. And he lost his slurred, drunken persona; he was completely sober. But he still smoked.

We walked back down to see people we thought we wouldn't see again for a while ; Jay Adams, Stacey Peralta, and Kathy Alva.

Kathy was hardcore gothic now, dark black hair and dark makeup. Jay was completely a gang member. Stacey was with his girlfriend, but she walked back to the car. Skip squeezed my hand, and I nodded. We walked up to them.

"Whoa, RJ, Skip," Jay said, "Haven't seen you guys in a while...and I didn't know you guys were dating." He looked at me and Skip's hands, which we linked.
"Things are different now, man," Skip shrugged, "And yeah, we are."
Stacey nodded in agreement, "Tony's in the hospital and shit..."

"I think everything is just...different now." Jay said quietly.
Kathy shrugged, "You guys heard about Sid, right?"

Me, Skip, Stacey's heads shot up in curiosity, "What?"
Kathy bit her lip, "He's sick, real sick. That ear thing? They found out it's a tumor. He has brain cancer."

I wanted to cry.
I wanted to cry because Sid was dying.
I wanted to cry because I missed the old times.
I wanted to cry because everything was falling apart.
I wanted to cry because Dogtown was done and gone.

"We're all going to hang out tomorrow...can you go?" Jay shrugged, looking at both of us.
"I don't know, man...I'm supposed to leave for Florida tomorrow..." Stacey said.
"And we've got a competition tommorow..." Skip said quietly.

Kathy looked disappointed, and her and her other friend headed back to Jay's car, where his gang waited for him.
Jay shrugged, "If that's what you wanna do...I'll see you guys around,"

We said 'good-bye' awkwardly and sadly, and we all left the dark street.

Thoughts raced through my mind.
Screw this fucking stupid competition.

I got dressed hastily, running through Skip's backroom, where I was currently living with him, with my bra and underwear.
"Are you ready yet?" Skip complained as I grabbed my shorts and slipped them on, then my shirt.
I nodded, "Yeah, let's go."

Jay was there with a very, very sickly Sid. He was now in a wheel chair with stitches on the right side of his head.
I smiled sadly as I saw him, and I kissed him, "Sid, man, it's great to see you."
I patted Jay on the shoulder in greeting, and Sid jokingly said, "Yeah, it must not be great to see me like this, though, RJ."
He puffed on a joint, and me and Jay smirked at him.
Skip smirked at him sadly, too, as he came in, slapping hands with him as a greeting, "Hey, man."

"So Stacey's too good to show up, huh?" Jay snorted, as Sid gave him the joint, "Him and T.A. off making their millions."

"I wouldn't say that." A voice came from behind us, and we spun aroumd to see Stacey coming up the walk, half-smiling.
"Wow, it's awfully nice of you to bequeath your star-althete-like presence amoung us lesser life forms," Sid shot Stacey a look.

"Sid, man," Stacey choked, then hugged him.
"So what happened to Florida, man?" Jay sniggered.
"I guess I missed my flight," Stacey shrugged, then hugged me and said hi to Skip.

"Won't Larry, um...kill you--for that?" Jay retorted.

"I don't care. I'm leaving. I already got a logo, anyways."

"You got a logo?" I asked, as Skip put his arm around me, I snuggled in.
"I mean, c'mon, RJ. If he has a logo, then he's gotta screw the team," Jay snapped sarcastically.

"Sid, maybe I'll just come back later, man." Stacey got up to leave in annoyance of Jay's comments.

"No, Stace, you guys have to check something out in the backyard. By the pool," Sid insisted, then added to Jay, Skip, and me, "You too, assholes."

As we finally got to the backyard, a smile came to my face. Five skateboards were on the pool's steps neatly.
"Dudes, look in the deep end. There's a Mexican in my pool, and he ain't pushing a lawn mower." Sid half-smiled.

Tony was there, smiling. Stacey, Jay and Skip didn't seem angry, but they seemed a little annoyed.
"Don't make me come up there and kick your ass, Sid." Tony laughed.

He came up, and tried to lighten the mood.
But no one seemed interested.

"What are you girls waiting for?" Sid barked, "My dad said we could trash it."

After a little bit of hesitation, we all jumped into the water-less pool and started carving it up. Jay and Stacey pushed Sid's wheelchair so he could be in the middle of all the action.

We all skateboarded around him, carving up the walls of the empty pool.
It truly brought back old memories.

But deep inside I knew nothing could ever be the same again.
Wish You Were Here started playing from the outside stereo system, and it made me sad as the piano played gently in a sad tune.

So, so you think you can tell
Heaven from Hell,
Blue skies from pain.
Can you tell a green field
From a cold steel rail?
A smile from a veil?
Do you think you can tell?

Did they get you to trade
Your heroes for ghosts?
Hot ashes for trees?
Hot air for a cool breeze?
And cold comfort for change?
Did you exchange
A walk on part in the war,
For a lead role in a cage?

Tony Alva went on to become the first skateboard champion.
He runs Alva Skates and sells his products all around the world.
He still sneaks into backyards to skate empty pools.

Stacey Peralta started his own skateboarding company.
Introduced Tony Hawk to the sport, and is now an award-winning director.

Jay Adams is recognized as the spark that ignited skateboarding.
Now he resides in Hawaii, where he skates and surfs up the waves.
He resently was out on bail after being held for being caught with drugs.

Sid died shortly after the Dogbowl skate sessions of brain cancer.

Skip Engblom & RJ Whitlock got engaged after the Dogbowl sessions, shortly after having a child, and Jay is the godfather.
Skip still owns Zephyr Skate & Surf Shop in Venice Beach, California.
RJ still is very close to Jay, Stacey and Tony, and sees them regularly.

So this is the day, the place, the time -- that summer ends; time is a valuble thing. So I guess summer had to end. Going our seperate ways was difficult, heartbreaking. But you can't change the past.

The End.