"Nope," Cara said, handing the paper back to Lana. They were at Cara's house, watching TV as they worked on homework. "The words would need work to fit in a song, but if you want to we can do that this weekend."

Lana sighed. "That's okay. Don't worry about it. Maybe the next one." She idly picked up her phone and checked Twitter. Several posts from one of the kids from school made her heart stop. "Cara?" she said in a shaky voice.

"What is it?" Cara asked, immediately concerned. A quick look and she pat Lana's arm. "Oh, no."

Lana's vision blurred and she excused herself to the bathroom. As close as she was to Cara, she didn't want to cry in front of her.

In the bathroom, she studied the picture Jaden had posted of him and his new girlfriend. They were undeniably a cute couple, and they looked so happy. Lana only wanted to see him happy, so she made herself stop crying and began trying to convince herself this was for the best. She began silently reciting all the reasons he wasn't good for her, but couldn't get past number three before feeling like there wasn't anyone else for her.

She looked through the comments and then liked the picture. It was a step in what she felt was the right direction. If nothing else, they were friends first and she wanted to stay that way.

---

All night Lana stared at the ceiling and tried to brace for the next day. Were they going to sit at her table? Was he going to sit with her? She didn't want to go through that again. If he was going to sit with them, she was going to find an excuse to be somewhere else.

She tried to sleep, but it wouldn't come. Instead of sleepiness, she felt betrayed. And hurt. And many other conflicting emotions. Somehow, though, she didn't cry. When she finished off the night with a dry pillow and normal eyes, she was surprised.

At lunch, she tried to subtly look through the windows in the doors to the cafeteria, only to fail when someone walking by shoved her and she stumbled through the one that was propped open. Jaden turned from where he sat at a nearby table to see, but ignored her when she began to wave at him.

She was just glad he wasn't at their table. That was going to make this a little easier.

---

STARS by Lana

My sky is full of stars
All of them lit up by you
Our hands brush and the sky brightens
You hung the moon for me many times over
All my happiness seems to come from you.

Stars are so beautiful and each one a reminder of you
But now you don't see me and I know you never will
The truth hasn't hit me yet
But each time I think it a star falls
They fall faster than they rise because of you.

My sky is a meteor shower now
To see the streaks of light is beautiful
Even as the tears fall and it blurs into nothing
I wipe them away and they just fall faster as the realization comes
That you don't love me and you never will.

Stars lay scattered around me
Broken nothings that I try to hang but they won't stay
Even the moon rolls around my feet
Without you here in my mind to hang it back up
I sit in the middle of the debris and wonder how this could be.

Without the light of the stars it's dark
I can't see what's right in front of me
All I can do is sit here and hope something will light this place back up
Fill my sky with even more stars
And hang a moon that will never fall.

---

A/N: The song in the last chapter I wrote in 2012 and I wrote Stars in 2015. I hope you enjoyed!