Harry turned around to make sure Julie was getting through everything ok when he saw her stop. When she turned, he followed her gaze to see what she was looking at. No fucking way! It couldn't fucking be. He turned around to go towards her. "Julie!" He yelled but she couldn't hear him over all of the crowd. He tried to push his way back through the crowd as he watched security removing Johnny from the crowd. How the fuck did he keep finding her here? There was no question how. Their plans were known. It was known the band would be at the Billboard Music Awards, and Johnny had just assumed she would be here. He took the chance. Fuck! Harry needed to get to her. When Julie turned and looked at him, he was relieved, but then she turned around and followed Johnny. What the fuck! He turned back to Niall and Amanda who had now stopped as well. "Johnny, he's here." At that point, they all tried to go back towards Julie.

Julie looked at Harry, but she couldn't do this anymore. She knew Harry wouldn't want her to, but she was almost glad he wasn't with her right now. She turned and followed security away from the crowd to where they were escorting Johnny away. "Wait!" She said before they could put him in a car. He had broken the restraining order, so he would be taken to jail. But this was never going to end. She was scared; god she was scared, but she had to do it. "Why are you here?" She asked standing a few feet away from him. She was asked by security to move on, however she politely but forcefully refused.

"Why am I here? You know why I'm here." Johnny said stepping towards her, but he was stopped by a security member. "Bet you feel real safe with a bunch of goons protecting you."

"Why are you trying so hard? Why do you care where One Direction is going to be? To what? Tell me what a whore you think I am? Tell me how I'm still being used because I'm easy?" She asked him. She clenched her fists because she was scared. It was hard to breathe, but she needed to do this.

"Well, if the shoe fits." Johnny said to her. "Where is pretty boy anyway? Not man enough to stand up for you himself? That should tell you something."

"Julie!" Harry yelled as they made their way onto the side street where security had taken Johnny. "Get away from him." He said as he tried to go up to her.

"Harry, wait." Niall said. "Give her a minute."

"Give her a minute?!? Have you lost your mind?!" Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing from Niall.

"No, she's got security. Just, let's see what she can do. We're here if she needs us." Niall said. He nodded at JJ who was looking at them. He held onto Amanda's hand. "Princess, let her deal with it. She obviously wants to." He gave JJ another encouraging look.

"Let her deal with it? Do you remember last time we were here? That he was here?" Amanda asked. As far as she was concerned, Harry was right Niall had lost his mind.

"I do, but she's not that girl anymore. Let's just be here for her, if she needs us." Niall said. For some reason, he thought, Julie had followed Johnny for a reason. He was removed quickly. She had an out. She had a way to not face him, but she decided to do it. That meant something. At least, he hoped he was right.

Julie nodded at Niall and then turned back to Johnny. "You need to stop. You need to just move on."

"I don't need to do anything other than bring you back to where you belong." Johnny said.

"I belong here. I belong wherever I want to be." She kept her fists clenched and her feet planted. Oh god, what was she doing? "I used to be so scared of you. I would never dream of saying anything to you, but this is enough, Johnny."

"You're still scared. Look at you. Shaking in your shoes." He said to her.

"Yeah, of course. Of course, I am. I spent over two years putting up with everything that you said and everything that you did. I believed you when you said I was worth nothing. When you convinced me that you were the only one who would deal with me." She said.

"Well it's true. You wait." He said. "Your rich boy toy will figure out what we already know. That you're not worth anything. He will tire of you. And when he does, don't think you can come running back to me."

"Really? You still think that would happen?" Julie said to him. She took a step closer to him.

Harry couldn't take it anymore. What was she doing? Why was she going closer to him? He couldn't wait anymore. He walked up to her. Before he could step in front of her though, he felt her hands on his chest. "Julie, I can't take this."

"It's ok." She said as she looked in his eyes. "Just, by my side ok? Let me handle this, please?"

He looked into her eyes. He didn't like it, but he could tell she was determined. He took her hand and squeezed it and then stood beside her.

"Well, isn't that just precious." Johnny said.

"Look, Johnny, I used to be scared. I used to be nothing but scared. Then that fear came true last time we were here in Vegas. You found me, and it was the same as it used to be. I fell back into that self-doubt. I doubted myself. I doubted those around me. I doubted my life. I questioned everything, including my friends. But do you know what the difference was this time? My friends never doubted me. Instead of making me believe I was worthless, and making me believe I was weak, they kept telling me I was strong. They reminded me that I had already picked up and saved myself."

"Saved yourself? Really?" Johnny said. He didn't know what to say really. He never saw this coming. The last time he was here, she'd tried to stand up to him, but she'd backed down just like she always did.

"Yes, Johnny. I left, and I started over. And now, I'm not scared of you. Not anymore. Because I've realized that it's not me that's the problem. It's you. It's always been you. It's your weakness and your insecurities. You took advantage of me being young and confused. You manipulated everything around me so that I didn't feel I had a choice. And I just went with it because I was scared of the next time you would hit me. Nothing feels worse than wondering every second when the next time you would get hit." She took a breath. She didn't want to cry. She felt Harry's hand on her elbow and she looked up at him.

Johnny watched the interaction. "I still can't believe you think you're anything to him."

Julie smiled at Harry and then she looked back at Johnny. "You know what? I feel sorry for you."

"You feel sorry for me?" Johnny spat at her. "And why is that?"

"Because you will never feel what it's like to actually love someone. And to actually have someone love you." She looked back at Amanda and Niall and then back at Harry and to Johnny again. "You'll never know what it's like to have people who truly love you. Who truly want what's best for you and will accept you no matter what. Because you choose to try to keep someone by threatening them and scaring them. And that's why I feel sorry for you."

"Oh, and you know what this is?" Johnny asked her.

"Yes, I do. I'm truly sorry you won't experience it. I'm truly sorry that you won't feel that comfort and that acceptance. You never loved me. Ever. You were only on a power trip to keep me around. I hope one day you do find it. Because it can change your life. It was never me. It will never be me. But you should open yourself to it. It can make you feel like you're stronger than the world. It can make you feel like no matter what you do, everything will be ok." She looked up at Harry again, and he just kept staring at her.

"It's all a bunch of crap." Johnny said as he stepped towards her angrily.

"You can hit me Johnny, if you choose. But what I've realized is you can't hurt me anymore. There may be bruises and there may be physical pain, but that heals. You have no power over me anymore. I was strong enough to leave you, I was strong enough to heal after Vegas, and I'm strong enough to tell you right now that no matter what you do, no matter how many times you come around threatening me, I'm going to be ok." She stepped forward towards Johnny.

"Julie, no." Harry said grabbing her hand and stopping her. "Not like that."

"It's ok Harry." She said to him and then turned back to face Johnny. "I wish you nothing but happiness. I hope you find that one person who will show you what love is. Who will show you that no matter what you've been through that they will be there for you. Let yourself feel it, Johnny. Let yourself be happy. That happiness isn't with me. It never was. Let it go. Be happy. And let someone love you. Because once you do, you'll never want to be without it. Go home, Johnny. Forget about me."

Johnny didn't know what to say. This is not how he saw this. He was going to come here and break her. Make her realize she was still the same girl she was when they were together, he expected to win. She was different. She stood up to him. He just stared at her.

Julie looked at security. "Don't have him arrested. Just take him to the airport, please. Buy him a plane ticket home." She looked back at Johnny. "Just go home, stop looking for me, and try, just try to be happy."

She took Harry's hand and turned and walked away with him. She let out a breath when they were far enough away. She wrapped her arms around Harry's neck when he picked her up and hugged her to him. "What are you doing?" She asked him.

"Look what you just did!" He said holding her to him. "I admit, I didn't like it one bit, but you stood right up to him."

"I just, I don't know. Can we just get back to the hotel room, please?" She asked.

He put her down and took her hand. "Yes, but you're staying right next to me this time." He walked her through the crowd and into the hotel room. He had Amanda and Niall join them in his and Julie's room. He grabbed everyone a drink and then sat next to Julie on the couch.

Amanda was sitting on the other side of JJ and laid her head on JJ's shoulder. "How did that feel?"

"Scary. And amazing. And like a weight being lifted off me." Julie said.

"I knew you could do it." Niall said to her.

"Of course, you did, Niall." Julie said to him. "You've always thought I was strong. It's partly because of you that I felt I could stand up to him."

"It was all you." Niall said. "All you."

"No, it wasn't. I meant what I said. I hope he finds those who can make him see and feel what it's like to be loved. I hope he finds someone to accept him and his faults, someone who he doesn't think that he has to hide from. That he doesn't think he has to scare and manipulate to do so. I hope me being able to overcome it shows him that there's another way." Julie said looking around at all of them. "I found love, and it changed my life. And I don't just mean with Harry. I mean with all of you. Love in so many forms is something I never knew I needed."

"Well, I can say that it took a lot to let you walk right up to him like that. I couldn't believe he was standing there. And when I saw you go after him, I about lost my mind." Harry said to her.

"I know, but I'm glad you did." Julie said taking his hand. "I didn't know I needed to do it. But when they started taking him away, all I could think was he's just going to get away with it again. He's just going to think that he got to me, and he would just keep trying. With the support I've had from you all, I just wanted to show him that he couldn't get to me anymore. That I wasn't running scared all the time anymore."

Niall raised his glass. "Well, to friends, and love and to you, JJ. For just doing the bravest thing I ever witnessed."

Julie smiled as they all raised their glasses and they came together. It had all come full circle. Who knew coming to Vegas would give her the closure of her past she needed to be able to move on? Who knew an unexpected appearance by Johnny was what she needed in order to fully accept she was strong and able to handle what life threw at her? She watched her boyfriend, the one who showed her love and patience. The one who had taught her that through her faults and through her fears she could still have love. She watched her best friend, the one who stood by her no matter what. The one who took her coldness and her carefulness and accepted it. The one who did whatever she could to protect her even when she didn't ask for it. She watched the most unexpected best friend she could find in Niall. The one who believed in her strength even when she didn't. The one who saw in her what no one else could. She smiled and raised her glass to them when they did another cheers. The smiles, the happiness, the love. She put her hand on Harry's cheek when he kissed her and held her in his arms. They were going on about how proud they were of her, but all she could think of was how proud she was of all of them. What they've done together, what they'd gotten through together. She never would have pictured herself happy with friends and in a stable relationship. Especially with Harry Styles. But here she was, with all of it. Happy, healthy, and FREE.

I hope you all have enjoyed the journey of Through The Dark. I couldn't have asked for more. Every one of my readers is amazing. Would you like to see what happens with Harry and JJ and Amanda and Niall now that JJ is FREE?

Stay tuned for the first Chapter of  Free, the sequel to Through The Dark, posted soon....