I had this plot bunny form in my mind as soon as the finale ended. I wondered, what on earth happened with Mara and Mick? And thus, this was born.

I will be doing other things like this, like what happened with Fabina, and Amfie, and Jerome and his dad... So I hope you enjoy the beginning to this new, sort-of a story. :D

-Mara's POV-

After hugging the gang, I saw Nina pull Fabian upstairs, both of them laughing. When they were out of sight, I saw Amber following close behind them, muttering, "I need to get more pictures of Fabina!" with Alfie at her heels.

I grinned, letting out a half-laugh. I felt arms wrap around me, and I turned to see Jerome smiling at me. I returned his embrace, but saw Mick over his shoulder. I stiffened at his expression . . . I saw betrayal, anger - but most of all, sadness.

I pulled back, staring into Jerome's icy blue eyes. I whispered, "I'll meet you in there, okay?"

Jerome seemed to understand that something was on my mind and that I needed to be alone, so he gave me a quick nod and walked back into the party, where music was blaring and people were dancing to a catchy beat.

I slowly approached Mick, who faced away from me, toward the door, toward a way out of my life forever. I put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him, and he peered over his shoulder at me.

"What do you want?" His voice was not full of venom like I had expected; it was more sad than anything.

My heart tugged at his tone, and I pushed away those thoughts. I wasn't completely shocked by his reaction. He must have realized that Jerome and I are going out; for crying out loud, Jerome put his arms around me which clearly meant I was in some sort of relationship with him.

"Mick, I-I want to explain-" I began.

"Mara, you don't need to explain anything. I saw what happened," Mick said glumly.

"You could tell we were going out by us hugging?" I asked.

"Yeah. That, and you snogging him. That sends a pretty loud message, you know," Mick remarked.

I gaped. "Y-You saw that?"

"How could I miss it? You were standing right in the middle of the party, you know. And those two people with you, Clarke's sister and some other guy, they were so happy to see you two like that; it seemed like everyone was happy about it."

"Mick, I-I'm sorry," I apologized.

"Just stop, okay? I really don't want to hear your apology."

"Please, just try-"

"Stop it. Let's just have a clean break for once, yeah?" Mick looked sadly at me. "Friends?" He held out a hand.

I pushed away his hand and hugged him tightly, murmuring in his ear, "Friends."

We stood there for a few moments, and I wanted to hold onto him forever. No, not as my boyfriend, but as a friend that I might just lose forever.

Finally, he pulled away, looking deep into my eyes. It seemed like he was wishing that I told him I had made a mistake and that Jerome and I were just friends. But I knew I could never say that. Jerome was not just a friend anymore.

"Bye Mick," I said softly.

"Bye Mara," he replied. Then, he turned to the door, opened it, and then walked out of Anubis House. He was out of my life, out into the world again. He could move on and find someone who would love him for who he was.

I stood there for another moment, absorbing the fact that Mick and I were broken up for good. Forever.

I moved to the doors that were now ajar after we had broken through them to tackle Nina and Fabian in a group hug. I strode through the doorway, seeing Jerome getting a drink from the snack table.*

He was talking to his dad, and he pointed over Jerome's shoulder, at me. Jerome moved to face me, putting his drink down on the table, a wide smile on his face.

I matched his smile, hurrying toward him and throwing my arms around him. He spun me around, literally sweeping me off of my feet, and I protested, "Jerome! Put me down; we might break something!"

Jerome finally put me down, his eyes shimmering with happiness. "Oh, Mara. Always the one who's got to ruin all of the fun, hmm?"

I scoffed, giving him a hit on the shoulder. "Hey," I argued. "I do not ruin all of the fun."

"But that's what I love about you," Jerome finished.

I wasn't sure if he meant love as in he "I love you"-loved me, but at the moment it didn't seem to matter. I gave him another kiss, wrapping my arms around his neck, and just feeling completely happy.

"Whoa, there," I heard Poppy say, her voice sounding uncomfortable. Right. Jerome and I had been kissing for a bit too long; that must have been why I was running out of breath. I broke away from him, biting my lip as my face reddened from embarrassment.

"Poopy, did you really have to ruin the moment?" Jerome asked.

"Only when it starts to be awkward, Gerbil,"* Poppy retorted.

I glanced between them, shaking my head. Some things would never change.

But I suppose that was for the best. As Jerome twirled me across the dance floor, I pondered what had just happened today.

Mr. Clarke had gotten out of prison today, a true cause for celebration, and I noted that Poppy couldn't stop grinning. Jerome had finally come back to Anubis House after finding his dad's gem, hopefully needing to search for it for the last time. I had also had to break up with Mick, and we probably wouldn't be seeing each other any time soon.

But, I guess, in the end, it did not matter how many breaths we took, how many bad things happened - all that mattered were how many moments that took our breath away.* All we could do was forget the past, live in the present, and look toward the future.

First *: Why is it called a snack table if there are also drinks on them...?

Second *: Not sure if Poppy means a legitimate gerbil, as in the furry creature, or "gerbil" with a J. So I just wrote "Gerbil."

Third *: It's a quote by Shing Xiong, though the words didn't fit in the context of the story, so I tweaked it a bit. Just wanted to give the actual speaker, of the quote that I changed, the credit he deserves.

I will be writing another on Fabina, so stay tuned/waiting for the next one!

~Ary

PS: I almost forgot. PLEASE REVIEW!