“I think they’re going for a hail mary,” Demi gasps. Her eyes go wide as she watches the team take their formation.

“What does that mean?” I ask, failing miserably at hiding my confusion.

“It’s basically a really long pass that has little chance of actually working, but I don’t see any other option. The oppositions’ defense is strong.” She pauses, “Shit. I hope Coach knows what he’s doing.”

Brody snaps the ball up to Grayson one last time and I hear a collective gasp come from the entire crowd. Grayson runs backwards a few yards and just as the other teams’ defenders charge at him, the ball flies through the air and gets caught by one of our wide receivers. Grayson sprints down the field and when it looks like it’s all over for us, the ball leaves the hands of the wide receiver and lands safely in Graysons’ grasp once again. The stadium explodes with noise as Grayson hurls himself into the air and lands the winning touchdown. My chest deflates and I release the air I was holding in my lungs. I join the crowd and start cheering for our teams’ victory.

As the crowd moves towards the exits, Demi and I are shoved every which way before we get the chance to run onto the field. I wanted to congratulate Grayson, but I guess I’ll have to wait until I see him at his house. It takes just over an hour for the parking lot to empty out, and by the time we arrive in front of Grayson and Brody’s house, the lawn and front porch are already swarming with people while the heavy bass from the music travels from every open window in the house. Holy shit. There are way more people here than I expected.

“You ready to party like a rock star?” Demi asks excitedly from the passenger seat. She jumps out before I can respond and I follow suit.

“I guess so,” I mutter under my breath. We push through the throng of people on the porch, only to be met by another crowd of party goers in the living room. People are grinding and rubbing up against each other in time to the beat of the music. Guys are gathered around the kitchen, filling up red plastic cups with beer from the keg in front of them. I look around, eagerly searching for Grayson and when I don’t find him I make my upstairs and towards his room.

The door’s closed but instead of knocking, I decide to surprise him. He’s probably in the shower, and I would have no problem seeing him dripping wet, in nothing but a towel. Or nothing at all I think to myself haughtily. Opening the door, I immediately wish I had knocked, not that it would make the scene in front of me disappear any quicker.

Grayson is standing in his room, a towel wrapped around his lean waist, just as I had hoped for. Except the girl pressed against him with her tongue down his throat isn’t me. Her hair is brown, and hangs to her tiny waist that is connected to legs a mile long. Nope, definitely not me.

It’s Haley.

I feel the vomit clawing its way up my dry throat and when I try to speak, it comes out as a strangled whisper. It feels like minutes go by but in reality it’s only seconds. Grayson pushes Haley away and yells “What the fuck!” before he hears my strangled gasp for air. I want to scream and shout and slap him, but I do none of those things. Tears sting my eyes and all the excitement I had coursing through my veins turns to dust. Grayson takes a step towards me, saying my name but I don’t hear it above the sprinting thump of my heartbeat echoing loudly in my ears. The smug look on Haley’s face is what finally gets me to move. I race down the stairs, not caring about who’s in my way. Grayson yells from behind me but I don’t stop until I’m outside. I pass Demi and Brody as they laugh and then watch their expressions change when they see me charge past them with Grayson hot on my heels. I jump into my Jeep and turn the ignition just when Grayson appears breathless next to my open window.

“Baby, please don’t leave,” he pleads between heavy inhalations, “It’s not what it looks like.”

I don’t stop the tears that flow down my cheeks. I don’t look at Grayson because if I do, I will give in and surrender to the endless depths of those bright jade eyes. I will get lost in the flecks of honey that swirl and mix with the green of his irises. So instead, I push my foot down on my gas pedal and listen to my tires screech in protest on the asphalt. He runs next to my window, screaming for me to stop. But I don’t. And I don’t look back.

The drive back to my apartment is quick, and I honestly have no memory of even getting here. I walk into my apartment as if I’m on autopilot. This is the moment in the horror movie where the girl notices that something is horribly wrong, but of course I missed that memo. I turn to walk down the dark hallway, my back to my living room, and as soon as his words come, I realize that’s the second mistake I’ve made tonight.

“Well hello princess.”

All the air leaves my lungs and my skin crawls. I never thought I’d have to hear that voice ever again.

“Aren’t you going to greet me?” he asks from behind me. My mind races as I try to think of a way out. I won’t know what my options are until I know exactly where he is. And what he’s doing here.

“Jake,” I whisper, turning to face the man that had haunted my dreams for so long until Grayson walked into my life. Now, more than ever, I wish I hadn’t left that party. I would rather be dealing with what I walked in on at Graysons’ house. “How did you get in here?”

“I told the guy in the lobby that I’m your brother and he let me in. The rest was easy.” His eyes are as black is a moonless night and reflect the emptiness inside his dead soul. His dirty blonde hair is disheveled, pieces sticking up in every direction. I look at his face and notice that it’s thinner, his cheek bones more prominent than they used to be. His body is thinner too. So thin in fact, that he looks sick. His hands shake next to him and I recognize it immediately. He’s coming down from a high, and he’s at his most volatile now. Aren’t I lucky?

“W-w-w-what…are….you… d-d-doing here?” I stutter. He steps a little closer and I mirror his movement with a backwards step of my own

Just don’t get trapped against the wall I tell myself.

“I came to find you,” he replies. He’s already agitated and the fear that surges through me makes the hair on the nape of my neck stand up. He sniffs and rubs his nose repeatedly.

“Why?” I take another step back and jump when I feel the small table in the foyer hit my right thigh. I sidestep it slightly, making the hallway behind me accessible if I need to run. I mentally take stock of anything I can use as a weapon and note that my fathers’ guitar is on its’ stand in the corner by the window, and Graysons’ baseball bat is behind the bedroom door.

“Because you belong to me, and I’m going to take you home.” Jake takes a step closer and again I mimic it by taking a step back.

“Why now?” I ask. I’m stalling. The longer I keep him talking, the more time I have to come up with a plan. There’s no way I’m leaving with him, and I know he’ll be pissed when I tell him that.

He laughs. The sound is bitter and threatening. “You vanished, without a fucking trace. It took me a while, but eventually my private investigator found you.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” my voice comes out shaky and unconvincing. When Jakes’ lips curl into malicious grin, I prepare myself for the inevitable. He’s going to hurt me, but I’m not going down without a fight. Not this time.