tw: mentions of violence, mentions of sexual assault, sexual content

A/N: This chapter and the next few chapters will be darker than the previous ones. If you ever think I need to be more specific in the trigger warnings PLEASE let me know.

Also, if you ever come across something you just don't think you would be comfortable reading, you can DM me and I can summarize for you.

Also, DM me any questions or issues you have! I haven't been able to respond to all my comments and I'm so sorry because you all deserve better :( but I've been able to respond to all my DMs so far I think.

"He started by just yelling at me," Tyler whispered.

No one else was in the room. No one else was anywhere near them. But he still whispered. Partly because he was terrified of an unknown person overhearing, and also because his voice lacked enough confidence to speak any louder.

Tyler sat on the ground, back against the wall. Ophelia sat right next to him.

He pulled his knees up to his chest, and hugged himself.

"He was so mad about baseball," Tyler told her, his voice shaky.

Ophelia had a hard time hearing him, but didn't dare ask him to speak up.

"I fucking forgot about the field," he admitted. "I was upset that Cyrus ratted on me, and that's what I was thinking about. I didn't even...it wasn't important to me. But obviously it was..." He took a breath. "Obviously it was for him."

Ophelia inched closer, sitting so close to him now that their shoulders were touching. She was terrified of Tyler just the other day, now, she wanted nothing more than to comfort him.

"They found me when I was alone..."

Ophelia wanted to ask who 'they' was, but she figured she would wait until he was done. She knew one of the people was Montgomery. That was all that mattered.

"I tried to apologize..." he told her, looking at her, as though he thought she would be mad if he hadn't. "But he just...slammed my head against the mirror."

Ophelia couldn't withhold her gasp, and the shiver that went down her body. She glanced at his head, just imagining the pain.

"The mirror broke," he told her. "I heard it shatter before I felt it."

Ophelia grit her teeth together trying not to cringe.

She wanted to reach up and touch him, feel to make sure his head was healed.

"Oh my god..." she breathed, unable to quiet her reactions.

But Tyler wasn't done. He was far from done.

"And then, he-he hit my head against the sink. And-And I thought it c-cracked too. I-I thought I heard it. But it was just my head. My-My skin split open. That's why I have this..." He touched the top of his forehead.

Vaguely, she saw a scar.

Her breath hitched in her throat, and she found herself reaching up, and softly running her fingers over it.

"Tyler..." Now, she could only whisper as well.

He flinched away, and she fell back, guilty.

"Was someone able to help you?" she asked, hoping he'd say yes. "Someone was able to look at it?"

Tyler swallowed, hard. "No. I hid it."

She frowned. "W-Why? Something so visible, and believable-"

"Because that wasn't the worse thing he did," Tyler told her, abruptly. She immediately quieted down.

Tyler hugged his knees even closer to himself.

"I thought he was done. I was in so much pain, I barely felt him pull me into the stall-"

Ophelia felt herself freeze. Because the first thing she imagined terrified her.

Maybe it was because she was a woman that she scared herself. Because she knew if a man attacked a woman in a bathroom, and dragged her to a stall, and locked it, she would be violated.

"-he forced my head in the water."

Ophelia let out a breath. She knew what Tyler was saying was horrible, but in the back of her mind, she was grateful it wasn't what she first imagined.

"He kept it there," Tyler mumbled. He began shaking. "He would-would pull me up, and I would scream, and he'd just sh-shove my head back in."

Ophelia felt her face growing hot with anger. And she felt her eyes filling with tears of both anger and sadness.

How could a person be so cruel?

"And then, he pushed my h-head back in and..." She saw Tyler beginning to cry again. She reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. This time, he leaned into it.

"It-It felt like someone lit the water on fire," Tyler struggled to say. "And the water that was going into me was really gasoline, that was being lit as a swallowed it. And-And the pain in the rest of my body went away, and-and it felt like my head exploded and then..."

He paused for a moment. He took three dee breaths.

"And then nothing."

Ophelia felt herself beginning to tremble. "W-What do you mean 'nothing'?"

Tyler's shaking continued, but the hoarseness in his voice stopped. He looked at her and spoke clearly when he said, "I died, Ophelia. Montgomery killed me."

Ophelia felt the air leave her lungs. Her hand flew over her mouth, which had dropped open in shock. Tears welled in her eyes. She was so confused, so scared by what he was saying.

She prayed he would keep talking, because she had no way of getting her voice back to ask.

"I don't remember it," Tyler told her. "What happened to my mind or anything. There was just darkness. And pain. And-And then I was nowhere. Then the pain came back, all at once. Taylor was on top of me, and he was giving me CPR."

Ophelia held back another gasp. So Montgomery didn't even try to help him? Or maybe Tyler didn't realize?

No, it was obvious Montgomery did nothing. He held Tyler's head in the toilet until he drowned. And he did nothing to help him.

If Taylor hadn't been there, Tyler would be dead.

Ophelia brought her hand down, slowly.

"They told me not to tell anyone, or they would do it again, and I'd stay dead." Tyler wrapped himself up even smaller. "Ophelia, I-I wish I had stayed dead."

Ophelia found herself pushing herself off the ground slightly, and wrapping her arms around Tyler. She didn't know if he would push her off or not. At first, she thought he was going to, because he moved his arms. But then she felt him wrap them around her torso.

Tyler hugged her. And he started crying again. No, not crying. He was sobbing. He had relived the worse day of his life, and the pain from that day felt fresh in his mind.

Ophelia felt nauseous suddenly. She swallowed it, and hugged Tyler even tighter as he cried into her arms.

Montgomery killed him.

Montgomery killed him.

Montgomery killed him.

Montgomery killed Tyler by holding his head into a toilet until water filled his throat, air left his lungs, and he drowned.

Ophelia suddenly realized a horrific fact.

She had been with a man that had committed murder.

Yes, Tyler was resuscitated, but by Taylor.

And while Tyler hadn't been sure Montgomery did nothing, Ophelia was. She knew Montgomery. And she realized, terrifyingly, that she knew he wouldn't have saved him. He might not have even tried.

Ophelia suddenly recalled her tape. The one Hannah left for her.

The very last sentence of her tape, Hannah's very last words to her.

Break up with Montgomery, or else he will kill you.

Ophelia had always felt the words were too dramatic. She knew it was true Montgomery would have continued to hurt her, but kill? He didn't have that in him, right?

He did. He so obviously did.

Tyler had calmed slightly in her arms, and she felt him pulling away.

"I know I need to tell someone," he admitted to her. "But, it's h-hard. And-And I'm scared."

Ophelia bit her lip. "You don't have to," she told him. "Not until you're ready. I think-I think you should. I think he should pay for that. He-He caused you so much pain, and..." And Tyler almost caused so much more pain because of it. "...And he shouldn't be allowed to keep causing this much pain."

Tyler inhaled, deeply. He then whispered, shakily. "I think he killed Bryce."

Ophelia was shocked at the statement. "What?"

"Montgomery and Bryce were fighting. I can see him beating someone that badly. And-And Bryce technically drowned. It-It makes sense, he-" Tyler found himself beginning to sob again, "He had done it before."

"Oh, Tyler," Ophelia breathed. She grabbed his hand. He squeezed hers, painfully, but she didn't pull it away.

"It's my fault," Tyler said, tearfully. "Bryce dying is my fault. If I had just told them what Montgomery did to me before-"

"No," Ophelia said quickly. "It's not you're fault."

"But if I had just reported him, he would've gone to jail and wouldn't have been able to-"

"Montgomery didn't kill Bryce."

Ophelia spoke confidently, and surely.

Tyler narrowed his eyes, wondering how she could possibly know that.

"You've-You've seen what he's done. How can you be sure of that?"

Ophelia found herself pulling away from Tyler now, and falling back against the wall. Now, she was the one pulling away, shrinking down.

"That's when he hurt me," Ophelia muttered. "It was when Bryce was killed."

Ophelia blinked, feeling hot tears building in her eyes. A fat tear escaped her, and fell all the way down her cheek, pulling itself off her skin and hitting the ground.

Tyler hesitated. "You weren't with Zach?"

Ophelia felt her face growing red with humiliation thinking about that night, and how so many people caught her and Zach in a lie.

"I've never told anyone what happened," she admitted. "I tried to tell Marisa, but I couldn't. Not the whole thing."

Tyler saw Ophelia beginning to shake. She held her stomach, and he could tell by her expression that she suddenly felt sick.

"I did go to see Zach," Ophelia told him. "That wasn't a lie. I went to him house."

Tyler watched her carefully.

She grimaced, like she knew how pathetic it sounded.

"But...I didn't go over until...after..."

Ophelia felt complete and total control as she told Tyler exactly what happened. She was safe, and secure, knowing the two of them would not betray each other.

But what Ophelia had forgotten was that Tyler said Clay was on his way over.

And he had arrived, standing by the door, listening to everything.

O

O

Three days had passed since Mr. Porter began pulling kids out and interrogating them about Clay.

So three days had passed since Mr. Porter spoke with Zach, and Zach realized the toxic mistakes he had been making in his relationship with Ophelia.

So for the last three days, he had been trying his hardest to make up for it. He skipped football practice for a few days, telling his coach he had a doctors appointment for his leg.

He took Ophelia out to lunch all three days. And he tried to be romantic, the way he knew she liked.

Ophelia had been in a different world the day after confessing Homecoming night to Tyler. She felt more vulnerable knowing her secrets were out there.

Zach was making her feel better. He was being helpful, and sweet. He made her forget all her troubles. And he made her forget Homecoming Night even happened.

So Ophelia noticed the change. Right away.

"What's going on with you?" Ophelia asked him, curiously.

"What do you mean?"

Ophelia shrugged. "I don't know, you're just...acting a little different." She hesitated. "Are you mad at me?"

Zach frowned. "Mad at you? What-Why would you think that?"

Ophelia scratched the back of her head, slightly, nervous. "It's just...you were really mad at me the other day, and then you dropped it."

Zach knew what she meant. He had been furious about Scott's intimate photo making its way to her eyes.

Ophelia had been wondering when he was going to bring it back up. It was nerve wracking, because she assumed an argument would follow, and things had been going too perfect for an argument.

But what Zach should've realized sooner was she would never seek out the photo. She would never have asked for it. She blocked Scott, she told him that.

Zach realized Ophelia was doing everything in her power to stay true to him, all while he kept looking for technicalities of her unfaithfulness.

He wouldn't be doing that any longer. At least, he hoped he wouldn't.

He still found himself becoming jealous every now and then, watching boys stop to check her out. But it wasn't her fault. He just had to keep remembering that it wasn't her fault.

Zach had tried to reevaluate his actions from the last few weeks. And they sickened him. He realized how often him and Ophelia had been bickering, and over such little things.

More importantly, he realized he was the one who started most of their arguments. He regretted it. More than anything.

"I'm not mad about it anymore," he assured her.

She bit her lip. "You sure nothings going on with you?"

He laughed. "You want me to be mad?"

"No," she told him quickly. "It's just nice. I'm glad we're not fighting." It had been so long since they had a perfect day.

"You're just too cute to stay mad at," he told her, making her blush.

"So do you want to watch a movie or something?" she asked, taking a seat on his couch.

He sat next to her, and put his arm around her. "I'd love to. You want to watch one of those Harry Potter movies?"

She giggled. "No, that's okay. I know you don't like them."

He tried to say, "Its not that I don't like them, I just didn't like the first one you showed me. They're kids, Ophelia. It's not exciting to me."

Laughing, she said, "It's okay. I like the fourth one the best, anyways. How about a horror movie?"

He was surprised. She didn't usually like those.

"Are you gonna get scared?"

She cuddled into him, under his arm. She felt happy, and safe. And all she wanted to do was be with this happy version of him longer.

"Not if you're here."

Zach gripped her a little tighter, and sat up straighter, proudly.

They began watching a new Netflix horror movie. It started off really slow, and it was honestly pretty boring. Ophelia kept being tempted to go on her phone, but didn't want to be rude to Zach, who picked it.

The only time the movie finally did catch her attention was when there was an almost unneeded sex scene.

Ophelia's eyes widened as the characters on screen ripped their clothes off each other.

Weren't they just running for their lives, why do they have time for sex?

She cleared her throat, and pulled out of Zach's grip to grab her phone. She felt too embarrassed to watch that kind of scene with him there. Actually, she would feel embarrassed to watch it alone too.

Marisa was the one that liked those kinds of movies.

He smiled, seeing her discomfort towards the scene. It humored him.

"You know the actors aren't actually having sex, right?" he asked her.

Ophelia huffed, still looking at her phone. "I know! I just don't want to see other naked people, okay?"

Zach chuckled. "Okay."

Ophelia eyed him. "Do you?"

He laughed again. "No, actually. Since I'm dating you, all these actresses just have expectations they can't live up to."

Ophelia felt her cheeks heating up. She let out a nervous laugh.

Zach suddenly recalled something. "Oh, I have something for you."

She beamed, "Oh yeah?"

Zach reached into his pocket and pulled out a wrapped lollipop. He handed it to her.

Ophelia laughed. "Oh my god! I haven't had one of these since I left Hillcrest."

Zach told her, "Marisa told me you used to have them, like everyday."

"I did," Ophelia admitted, nodding. She unwrapped it, and put it in her mouth.

Zach tried to clear his mind of dirty thoughts as she slowly took it from her mouth, his eyes specifically watching her lips.

"I was really obsessed with sugar for a while," Ophelia admitted. "I'm gaining too weight though, so I stopped."

"No," Zach said quickly, "You don't have to stop or anything. I just mean, you look perfect."

Ophelia blushed again. "Thank you, Zach. That always sounds nice coming from the hot captain of the football team."

Zach joked, "Did you hear that from the captain at Hillcrest a lot too?"

She hit him, playfully, the movie slowly becoming forgotten as they conversed. "That really surprised me that you thought he was flirting. None of those guys flirted with me. I mean, they kind of did. But, not like Liberty boys do."

Zach almost rolled his eyes. "Are you kidding me? Ophelia, look at you! You look sexy now. On the field, in your cheer uniform, there's no way boys weren't talking about you. I heard them."

Ophelia frowned. "You heard them? They weren't being mean, were they?"

Zach smiled. "Of course not. They were talking about you and...how you always do that..." He gestured to her lollipop. "Which was way too sexy for you to be doing in front of football players, by the way."

Ophelia just laughed. "What? Eating candy? Come on, what were they saying? Did they say my skirt was too short, because I asked one of the staff if mine could be longer because my mom got upset. As if I'm the one that chose them."

Zach turned to face her better. He was surprised. "You had one of those every game, and no one ever told you that it was inappropriate."

Ophelia scoffed. "Inappropriate? Maybe if there was gum inside, since we don't allow that in the Hillcrest building."

Zach just look at her, carefully.

"You really don't get it?"

Ophelia shrugged. "What, you don't like them?"

"Ophelia they're...suggestive."

Ophelia stared at him for a moment, before slowly smiling.

"Zach, Zach, Zach," she said, in an enlightened voice. "You're thinking of popsicles. Those are dirty. Lollipops aren't."

Zach bit his lip to keep from laughing. "How are they different, Ophelia?"

"Well, you know, popsicles are...long. They're long, and you suck on them. That's dirty. Lollipops don't look like...you know."

"You're still sucking on them," Zach countered.

"Not the same way you suck a dick," Ophelia finally stammered. "I mean, you-you don't shove it all in your mouth. It doesn't even look like one."

"Ophelia, it goes in and out of your mouth-"

"So does a straw! Do you find a straw sexual?"

Zach just laughed again, seeing her becoming so defensive. "I'm just saying...the way you suck on that...I'm sure I'd like it."

Ophelia's face flushed, and she felt red hot at the connotations. She couldn't help glancing down to his lap, and realizing he had been enjoying the conversation more than she expected.

"Yeah?" she asked. She then winced, feeling stupid. "So some boys look at lollipops the wrong way?"

Zach laughed. "Yeah. All of us, actually."

"Dammit," she whispered. She realized she could never have one in public again. "I'm definitely never eating one in front of a boy again, then."

Zach suddenly reached over to put a hand on her thigh, smirking. "You could have them in front of me."

Ophelia smiled, sweetly. And Zach felt guilty for having such dirty thoughts while she look so sweet and innocent.

But that's one of the things that turned him on, anyway.

"I could...try something else. If it's just you..." She let the sentence drift away.

Zach scooted closer, "Yeah?"

Ophelia set the lollipop on the wrapper of his coffee table. She kissed him, gently.

She pulled away, grinning. "Yeah."

Zach felt her hand on his belt.

He wasn't planning on trying anything, since he wanted to wait until she made a move. That was one hell of a move to him.

Zach helped her as she struggled with his belt. She undid the clasp, and he unbuttoned and unzipped his pants himself, pulling them down slightly so his underwear was showing.

His hardness was obvious.

Ophelia hesitated, thinking about the week before. She had gone down on him then, and it was hard.

He was...really big.

She felt nervous as she helped him pull his underwear down too, and he became fully visible to her.

She felt him touch her face, and he was smiling.

"You have no fucking idea how much you turn me on," he told her.

She smiled, slightly nervous to perform. "Trust me, I see it."

Zach leaned forward and kissed her again. She stayed with her lips locked onto his for a few minutes. Her hand found his nakedness, and she stroked him a few times, trying to get him aroused even more.

She figured it would be easier if he was close to finishing when she started.

He groaned into the kiss with each movement she made. He bucked his hips, and she quickened her pace.

Zach reached around and grabbed her butt. He squeezed it, hard.

He pulled away from her, and it was obvious from his eyes he wanted her to be kissing him somewhere else.

Ophelia took a deep breath. She pulled herself off the couch and kneeled in front of him. He gripped her hair before she even began.

She nervously readied herself. Her head spun with how quickly things were moving. She hadn't even stopped to ask what time his mom would be home. Honestly, at the moment, she didn't care.

Ophelia lowered her face, parted her lips, widely, and placed her mouth over the tip of his member.

He groaned again, louder this time. Zach closed his eyes, and leaned his head back.

His grip on her hair tightened.

And suddenly, without warning, he bucked his hips while she lowered her lips.

Pushing her head slightly, Zach felt her go extremely far down.

And it felt so, so good to him.

But it was too much for Ophelia, and far too fast to adapt to.

When Zach pushed her down, she took on too much of his member at once. It felt like he touched the back of her throat.

Zach heard her gag, and the sound excited him.

But it was still too much.

Ophelia felt a pain in her throat, and she lifted her head up as quickly as possible, but it was too late.

She heard Zach's gasp, and his pulling away, before she even realized what had happened.

Ophelia threw up.

O

O

"I want to hide under a rock," Ophelia groaned. She covered her face with her hands as Marisa consoled her in the school bathroom. "I-I never want to see him again."

Marisa pulled Ophelia's hair away from her face, and tucked it behind her ears. Ophelia leaned against the bathroom wall, and Marisa stood in front of her.

"Zach's not mad at you," Marisa told her. "And if he is, he's a dick."

Ophelia shook her head, still hiding herself. "Even if he's not mad, he probably never wants to do that again."

Marisa would have laughed if Ophelia hadn't been so obviously upset. "Um, I don't think it'd ever go that far."

Ophelia huffed, pulling her hands off her face and shoving them into her pockets. "I threw up on him." Ophelia wanted to cry just thinking about it. "God, I hate myself!"

She went to cover her face again, but Marisa stopped her. "Ophelia, it's not a big deal. I mean, yeah, it seems a little gross at first, but you've gone down on him before."

Ophelia swallowed. "Once with him. Only once. What if thinks I do this all the time? It's his fault! He's so-" She stopped herself, because it would be embarrassing for her to say he was too big.

"Maybe it's a good think," Marisa told her. Ophelia frowned. "Look, I think it'd be good to start taking things slower with Zach."

Ophelia was taken aback. "What? Why?"

She hesitated. "I mean, is it even worth it to you? You already told me you don't finish when you have sex."

Ophelia cringed. "I still like it."

"Yeah but..." Marisa paused, and sighed. "Maybe it'd be good to make Zach give you some space."

Ophelia didn't know where this was coming from. "He has been. A lot actually, in the last few days."

Marisa bit her lip, thinking about what she heard Zach say days before in the library. He spoke so crudely of Ophelia. Marisa wondered if she should still tell her.

"He's been so amazing, and kind, and understanding," Ophelia continued. "With everything. I've been acting so crazy and he's been with me through the whole thing. I-I'm scared that this'll be the final straw. Maybe he won't want to deal with me anymore if I can't do that."

Marisa frowned, her face almost glaring. "You think this is the final straw? Why the fuck would it matter if you suck his dick or not?"

Ophelia sighed. "I don't know, I'm probably overthinking."

"All that means is he won't be able to brag about you doing it," Marisa spat, without realizing the words she just let out.

Ophelia tilted her head, catching onto it.

"Brag? No, Zach doesn't talk about that kind of stuff. It's just his teammates that try to make something out of it."

Marisa groaned. "Ophelia, why would they be talking about it if he didn't tell them something?"

Ophelia shook her head. "No, you don't understand, he wouldn't. He knows how much I hate those guys talking to me, or even looking at me. He wouldn't say something crude. If someone said he did they're lying."

Marisa sighed. "I meant to tell you this the other day. I heard him in the library, talking about you going down on him."

Ophelia seemed to deflate in front of Marisa's eyes.

"Was Montgomery there?" Ophelia suddenly asked. "He's probably the one that was talking."

"No," Marisa said, adamantly. "It was Zach. He said stuff like, you weren't a quitter? And, that you were loud when you were gagging-"

"Gagging? He doesn't talk like that," Ophelia insisted. "It was probably Montgomery setting him up and you just didn't hear."

Marisa spoke more carefully. "I know what I heard. He wasn't being a good boyfriend, Ophelia. He was just trying to impress his friends-"

"Zach is not the person to say anything to impress his friend," Ophelia said quickly. "He's a good guy."

Marisa narrowed her eyes at her. "I'm not going to lie to you, Ophelia. And if I thought I misheard something, I'd tell you. I didn't mishear anything. And the other day, when he freaked the fuck out about you seeing Scott's nude, when you were clearly not trying to, that was fucked up. And it didn't sit right with me. And he hasn't been sitting right with me. Not lately."

Ophelia still couldn't believe her. She wasn't dating some horny jock, she was dating Zach. Because Zach was the good guy, the one with actually morals. She could never see him telling other boys she 'gagged' on him.

Even though, that's exactly what she had done the day before. She cringed thinking about it again.

"That kind of shit isn't good. Especially at Liberty. If your boyfriend talks about you like that, the boys he says stuff to will want to try it with you." Marisa bit her lip. "Have you told Zach that Montgomery came onto you after Homecoming?"

Ophelia was taken about by the sudden change in subject. She had only told Tyler the story four days prior. The full, complete story, that Marisa didn't know.

"N-No. Not yet."

"He forced you to makeout with him," Marisa said, disgusted, "Even if Zach doesn't know that, he still knows he hurt you. How can he say that kind of sexual stuff in front of him? It dangerous for you."

Ophelia wasn't just not arguing with her, she was refusing to agree.

"Zach would never say something like that if he knew it would reflect badly on me. They set him up, I'm sure of it." Ophelia found herself struggling. "Zach's an amazing guy. I'm-I'm lucky to have him."

Marisa breathed loudly, backing away. "I thought I found a nice guy last year too."

Ophelia immediately realized she was talking about her ex-boyfriend, Anthony. She quieted.

"He was so sweet to me, and I thought that he was honestly the best thing to ever happen to me. If someone told me he was talking about me gagging on his dick, I wouldn't believe them either."

Ophelia gulped. "It's not that I don't believe you, I-I just know there's more to the story."

Marisa laughed, humorlessly. "Yeah, more to the story. That's what I thought when I found out he secretly filmed us having sex and sent it to his little baseball group chat."

Ophelia's eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open. She suddenly recalled Marisa's hate of the baseball team, and all the players. Ophelia assumed it was because they were jerks.

She didn't realize she had been through so much worse.

Marisa continued, "And when he took me to the clubhouse, and got me so drunk I didn't know where I was, and had me go down on him in front of everyone there."

Ophelia felt the breath hitch in her throat.

Her heart broke, immediately.

Marisa's voice became strained as she said, "I know what kind of girl I am. I'm an easy hookup, that's what I'm known for here. So I couldn't say I didn't know he was filming me, and I couldn't claim I was taken advantage of. Why the fuck do you think I'm always at Hillcrest parties? They barely know me but I'm better respected there."

Ophelia recalled on the times last summers where they hung out with Hillcrest kids, never Liberty ones.

"Some boys are assholes, and are going to believe Montgomery if he says you wanted him Homecoming night, but most people know what he's capable of, and they would know he's lying. If your nice boyfriend is so comfortable taking about the things you do to him, then all he's doing is convincing boys to believe Montgomery's lies without even realizing it."

Ophelia felt suddenly burdened. By Marisa's confession, by Zach's actions, by the insinuations behind them.

"I'm so sorry," Ophelia breathed. "I had no idea about the clubhouse or-"

"It's fine," Marisa said curtly. "I don't want to talk about that. I didn't bring it up so you would pity me."

Ophelia cringed. "I'm not pitying you, I just want to make sure you're okay from it. Are you?"

Marisa laughed, shrugging. "This is Liberty, shit happened to every girl, right?"

Ophelia hesitated.

"Your boyfriend wasn't there," Marisa told her. "If that's what you're wondering. Zach wasn't there when it happened. Montgomery wasn't either, I think it was after your guy's breakup right after the tapes came out."

Ophelia dared to ask, "Who was there?"

"A bunch of seniors," Marisa told her. "Not that it matters."

Ophelia insisted, "If-If you were drunk it does."

Marisa sighed, irritated. "I was only drunk the first time, alright? After he told me what happened I just...did it again. I performed, in front of his friends, a lot. I don't know, maybe to prove to myself I would have done it sober. That he didn't force me to."

"Oh, Marisa..." Ophelia tried to keep the sadness out of her voice, but she couldn't. She tried to take a step forward, and reach out to her, but she stepped away.

She didn't want to talk about Zach, or Montgomery, or herself.

She just wanted to talk to Marisa. To find out what she needed, and how to help her.

Ophelia recalled the pit in her stomach when Tyler told her what happened to it. The same dread arose in her now.

"I'm over it," Marisa insisted. She frowned. "But trust me when I say whenever a baseball player has nudes leak, it feels more like karma to me than bad luck."

O

O

"Hey, Scotty. What's up?"

Montgomery answered his phone, happily. He was about to head out for practice, but he heard his phone buzzing just before he left the locker room. He looked down to see three missed calls from Scott Reed.

Montgomery was happy to talk to his friend. He was only one he actually could talk to nowadays.

But his friend didn't seem to be happy to talk to him.

"What the fuck have you been saying about Ophelia?"

Montgomery stopped walking, halting just before he passed the locker room doors.

"Um...what?"

Montgomery was worried. He had been saying a lot of stuff about Ophelia lately. Which thing had gotten back to Scott, and how?

"Are you telling people she's been cheating on Zach?"

Charlie had told Scott about what Montgomery had told him, about how he was still intimate with Ophelia. At first, Scott tried to ignore it. He knew it was false. Ophelia knew it was false. Of course Zach would know it was false. So why should it bother him?

Scott and Ophelia weren't together, and they never would be together. So why is it bothering him so much that Montgomery is trying to ruin her reputation?

Montgomery shut his eyes and let out an aggravated exhale. Fucking Charlie.

"Man, if this is just about her, we can talk after practice." Montgomery didn't need this kind of drama right before practice, especially since Coach already began noticing how out of it he had been the last few days.

"Stop saying shit like that, Monty." Scott spoke like he was mad, and disappointed. "That's shits...rude, okay?"

Montgomery almost laughed at his words. "Rude? I haven't been lying, Scotty. You're just not here to see what she's been up to."

Montgomery tried to keep his cool. He wondered if he'd be able to trick his friend. He hoped he could.

Montgomery began walking out to the field, hurrying as he heard the coach blowing his whistle to start the beginning run.

Scott paused for a moment, before saying, "Monty, I was just there. I know exactly what she's been up to. I think-I think she's in shock because of Bryce's death. Don't be messing with her, especially now. You're just being a dick for no reason."

Montgomery almost scoffed.

"Why the fuck are you so concerned with her?" Montgomery asked. But he knew why, deep down. Because he knew Scott still had feelings for Ophelia, just like Montgomery still had feelings for Ophelia. But Scott wouldn't admit it.

He heard Scott hesitate.

So Montgomery said, "What, your girlfriend broke up with you so you're trying to find an easy fuck?"

Scott scoffed, angry. "First of all, I-I broke up with her. And-And what the fuck, Monty? You told me you were done with all that shit. All that..."

He didn't know how to explain it. Just the whole situation. Messing with Zach, and Ophelia, and everybody.

Montgomery neared the field. He felt himself becoming upset.

Because he didn't think the things he told Charlie would get back to Scott. And he didn't want Scott to be mad at him. Scott was the only one who wasn't constantly mad at him.

Montgomery tried to divert the conversation. "Hey, um, do you think you'll be able to make one of the football games before the season ends?"

Scott understood immediately that he was changing the subject. So Scott knew that he was guilty of what he was accusing him of. Montgomery had been spreading rumors about Ophelia. Nasty ones.

He made it clear that it was still on his mind. "You can't just change the subject and think I'll forget about it." But, he also heard the anticipation in his voice, so he assured Montgomery, "But, yeah, I'll be able to make it down in a few weeks again."

"The season took a pause for everyone," Montgomery explained to him. Games had been delayed after Bryce's death. "We'll be going further into December."

Montgomery reached the field.

Zach stood on his crutches, looking glum as he stared at the players.

It was true Zach envied the players that were out there. But it's not what ruined his mood. Zach felt particularly depressed thinking g about Ophelia, and how rude he had been to her the day before.

It's true she threw up while trying to go down on him. Of course, that wasn't her fault. She wouldn't haven chosen to do that.

But he got so embarrassed for some reason, and grossed out. He recalled telling her bye, and saying he was going to take a shower. And when he got out, she was gone.

They hadn't spoken about it since.

He heard Montgomery on the phone, walking up to the field. Zach hadn't even noticed he was absent.

Montgomery only spared a glance at Zach. He wondered how irritated he would get knowing he was talking to Scott.

"I know the season's extended," Scott told him. "I'll see you in a few weeks. Promise."

Montgomery heard him sigh. "Look, Monty, I've been looking up a lot of stuff about PTSD and shit like that. It's really common, you know."

Montgomery frowned. "What?"

Scott had been...looking stuff up?

"You have way to much free time," Montgomery told him.

Scott didn't. In fact, he was already training for the baseball season at his college. He was barely able to see his ex-girlfriend when they were together, except for at night when she came over.

He didn't have free time. He made free time.

Zach glanced back at Montgomery. "End the call, Montgomery. Coach wants you on the field."

Montgomery obviously ignored him.

Scott sounded hesitant. "I believed you when you said you haven't done anything to Ophelia. But, according to this Women's Aid website online it's really harmful if you keep disrupting her while she's moving on-"

"I don't want to talk about that shit," Montgomery told him, lowly. Zach glanced back. "And, like I said Scott, you haven't been here. You don't even know if what I said was a lie."

Zach didn't look up at the name, so Montgomery knew he couldn't hear.

Scott sounded angry when he suddenly snapped at him, "I know she's not fucking you, Monty. I don't need to be there to know that."

Montgomery felt himself chuckle, because he heard the jealousy in Scott's voice, no matter how hard he tried to hide it. "So that is what this is about? You don't care that I'm messing with her, you're just mad if I'm telling the truth."

"I wouldn't have to call to fucking ask about her at all if you kept her name out of your mouth," he told him, starkly.

Montgomery laughed. It angered Scott on the other end.

Suddenly, Montgomery asked him, "Is she why you broke up with your girlfriend?"

There was a pause, and silence. It lasted so long that, for a moment, Montgomery wondered if he hung up.

Montgomery took a few steps back. He still didn't think Zach could hear him, but to make sure he lowered his voice.

"Because that'd be really fucking sad," Montgomery told him, lowly. "If you did that much for her, since she doesn't give a fuck about you."

"Cut it out," he heard Scott say. His voice softer, less expressive.

"What did you guys talk about at the funeral?" he asked. "While you were alone, huh? Did she ask you about how you got me arrested? How you turned my statement in?"

Scott grew cautious. Because he hadn't told Montgomery he took the fall for that, and he wondered how he knew.

"No, I was just asking how she was it wasn't...I wasn't trying anything." He wasn't trying to bring stuff up from the past that would affect her future with Zach.

"Because she was pretty pissed at you about that, right?" Again, Scott was silent. And Montgomery felt a surge of pleasure as he told him, "She knows it wasn't you. You know that, right? Zach admitted it was him. Before your grad party." That wasn't quiet the truth. But it was truthful enough. "Did she apologize for blaming you?"

Scott, on the other end of the phone, was beyond shocked. And hurt.

Honestly, Scott believed if he hadn't taken the fall for Zach, Ophelia would have wanted to try having a relationship with him. It's what kept him going after his graduation. He figured they did have feelings for each other, but he sacrificed them because she knew she'd have a better life with Zach.

Montgomery's words forced Scott to realize that he had made no actual sacrifice. Ophelia would have picked Zach anyway.

Of course she would have.

Scott swallowed hard.

Montgomery could sense his hurt, and he felt guilty. But at the same time, he didn't. Because he wanted Scott to forget about Ophelia. He wanted him to never be in the picture again.

Because Montgomery saw the cracks in Ophelia's relationship with Zach, and he knew that eventually, with enough pressure, she would leave him.

But Montgomery couldn't see that happening with her and Scott. He couldn't see her leaving him, if she ever actually had him.

"No, she didn't apologize because she doesn't care about you, Scott," Montgomery continued. "And I'm telling you this as your friend."

No, he wasn't. He was telling him as a jealous man.

Another moment of silence.

Then, softly, "I didn't...call because I think she's interested. I just called to tell you to leave her alone."

Because even if Ophelia didn't care about Scott, he still cared about how people treated her. He always would.

"I've gotta go, Scotty. I've got practice."

"Just say you'll leave her alone." Scott didn't think it was that difficult of a request.

Montgomery chuckled again. He knew how to get him to hang up. "I'll hand you to another source, alright?"

Montgomery walked up to Zach. "He wants an update."

Zach frowned, taking the phone. "An update?" He put it to his ear, assuming it was about the team. "Hello?"

"He's wondering if you and Ophelia broke up yet," Montgomery joked, "And if he can send her some more pictures."

"What?"

Zach looked at the caller ID, and saw it was none other than Scott Reed. He grit his teeth together.

"Scott?"

The call ended immediately.

O

O

"I'm sorry if it seems I've been avoiding you, I haven't," Ani told Clay as she caught him in the hallway just before school ended. He seemed frazzled. "It's just...it's a lot, you know? You being arrested."

"It's a lot worse for me," Clay told Ani, curtly.

He eyed her quickly before looking away. He couldn't look at her the same. Not since learning about her relationship With Bryce.

Ani could tell he had something on his mind that he didn't want to talk about, so she brought up something new.

"I've been thinking a lot about my Ophelia theory," Ani told him. "How she may have convinced Montgomery to kill Bryce."

Clay shook his head. "I don't think that happened."

"But, listen," Ani said, "this theory, even if untrue, could definitely shift the blame away from you."

Clay frowned. "I'm not going to shift the blame to someone I know is innocent."

"But we don't know that, we just suspect she's innocent." Ani sighed. "Listen, ask Charlie St. George. I think Montgomery admitted to him that Ophelia and him were together Homecoming night. And not just together, but together. Sexually together."

Clay suddenly snapped at Ani, "Can you just trust me on this? They had nothing to do with Bryce."

Ani blinked, stepping back. Her mouth fell open as she realized, "Do you know what they did that night?"

Clay just looked away.

Ani pleaded, "Clay, you have to tell me, I can-"

"I don't have to tell you anything," Clay snapped, angrily. "Just like you didn't tell me you were fucking Bryce."

Ani scoffed, stepping away from him. "My past with Bryce didn't affect the case-"

"We don't have a case," Clay told her. "All we have is a little mystery you dragged me into because you wanted to find out who murdered your rapist boyfriend. And honestly, Ani? I want to find out who it was too. So I can thank them."

Ani looked at him, disgusted. "You don't mean that."

Clay turned away from her.

She was frowning now. "So Ophelia and Montgomery. I was right. They were with each other."

"Leave it," he told her.

But she wouldn't.

She refused to.

And Clay refused to wait and talk to her. Instead, he marched out of the school. He found the benches near the locker rooms, where he knew Ophelia went after school to wait for Zach to get out of football practice.

Usually, she sat with her earphones in. She never wore them anyone. She didn't trust the boys at Liberty enough to lose her hearing for even a moment.

Clay walked up to her, quickly. Ophelia noticed him.

"Hi, Clay," she said, quietly.

Marisa's words of what Zach said about her running through her head, constantly. Marisa's words of Anthony, and the experiences she had the year prior also on her mind. It filled her with dread.

Marisa told her to never speak of what she told her again. But Ophelia wanted to talk her through it so badly. She couldn't the thought of her friend going through something so hard alone.

Ophelia didn't know what she would do if she found out she had ever been recorded during a moment as intimate as sex. Boys were so crude without a sex tape. If they saw her, naked and exposed, Ophelia thought she would die of humiliation. Just like she had from the polaroid of her intimacy with Montgomery in the clubhouse.

Zach would never do that. Yet, she was still feeling humiliated.

Clay sat down across from her, which she found odd.

She looked around, quickly and suspiciously. Ani, the girl who she assumed was watching from somewhere, wasn't to be found.

"We need to talk."

Ophelia bit her lip, nervous at his voice. "Talk?"

Again, she looked around.

"No one else is here," Clay told her, softly. "Ani...Ani isn't here."

She noticed his pained voice. "Did you two...get in a fight?"

The rumors of Ani and Bryce together flashed across her mind. If Justin knew, Clay had to find out eventually, right?

He laughed, but his voice was angry. "Yeah, I guess you could call it that."

She felt compelled to ask, "Do you want to talk about it?"

She felt so selfish going to people with her problems, and thought she didn't return the favor often enough.

"No, that's not why I'm here," he said quickly. "I..."

Ophelia watched him, carefully. His face scrunched up, and he was obviously struggling to speak.

"I heard you and Tyler talking in the dark room the other day."

Ophelia's heart dropped, and she felt her breath escape her body, leaving her sitting there still. Not moving, not breathing.

"I-I didn't mean to eavesdrop," he tried to tell her. "I heard Tyler talking, and I wanted to think of a way to comfort him when he was done, and then you started talking..."

She continued sitting, unmoving.

"What Tyler said made me sick to my stomach," he told her. "But then, what happened to you-"

She snapped out her trance suddenly, and with anger. "You had no fucking right to listen to that!"

"I'm sorry!" he said. "I didn't mean to! But, Ophelia, I'm not sorry that I found out! It's fucked up!"

"I don't care what you think about it!" she hissed at him.

"Bryce was murdered, and that fucking psychopath has been running around-"

"It wasn't Montgomery," Ophelia insisted. "I know that."

"Even if it wasn't him, that doesn't mean he shouldn't go to prison," Clay said. "He drowned Tyler. He got angry enough about a fucking baseball field being burned that he wanted to kill him. You want that kind of person walking around?"

"I don't," she told him. She groaned. "Clay, you don't understand. This kind of shit wouldn't just ruin Montgomery, it could ruin me, and it could ruin Tyler if anyone finds out what it drove him to try to do."

"You're fine with going to school with him?" Clay asked, shocked.

"I don't want to be here!" Ophelia shouted. "I've been trying to get out of this fucking school!"

"He's dangerous. We need to get him out of here."

"Tyler is dangerous," Ophelia snapped. "And you didn't care how I felt about him."

Clay leaned back, frowning.

"Does Zach know?"

Why were so many people asking that?

Ophelia looked down. "Zach's the best thing that's ever happened to me. With all the shit that's happening right now, I don't know how he'd take it. Once we've graduated, and once we're away at college, then I'll tell him."

"You think that's better for him, or better for yourself?"

Ophelia frowned at the accusation. "Better for both of us! He won't have to be as worried and I'll...well, I'll be passed it. I'll be able to answers his questions without problem."

"You know how Zach gets, he'd rather know now-"

"Are you going to tell him?" Ophelia accused. "Are you going to fucking write it online, put it on a blog, expose me like you exposed my tape?"

Clay just shook his head. "I've noticed you acting weird. Everyone else has too, even if they don't mention it."

Ophelia bit her lip, wondering if people actually did notice it.

"You're going to be the one that exposes yourself. On purpose, or accidentally."

O

O

"Was Scott really asking about Ophelia?" Zach asked Montgomery as he stepped off the field.

Montgomery grabbed his water bottle. He was exhausted and hot after the running drills. The ice cold water was helping.

Montgomery laughed, Zach's upset expression was also helping.

"Why, you worried?"

Zach just shook his head and looked away.

Montgomery took that as a 'yes'.

But Zach denied it. "He's not the first guy who's bothered her."

Montgomery said, "Of course not, you were."

Zach bit his lip, not wanting to continue the conversation now that Montgomery was going to use it to berate him.

Zach wondered why Scott would be asking about her. And he wondered, suddenly, if he had sent that photo out himself hoping Ophelia would see it. Either way, the possibility he left his girlfriend for Ophelia seemed more realistic.

And he didn't like it.

"I'm gonna grab some icy hot from the locker room," Montgomery told him.

Zach just told him, "Hurry up with that. We're doing back ends today."

Montgomery started leaving.

"Justin!" Zach called.

Justin, on the field, ran over. He smiled when he took off his helmet, hoping Zach was going to tell him practice was ending early. Justin always got so bored at practice.

"What's up?"

Zach nodded towards the locker room. "Go with Montgomery to the locker room. Make sure he doesn't take forever."

Justin groaned. "Me? Why do I have to be the one to tell him he can't jerk off?"

Zach took a step back, cringing. "What the fuck? I just meant make sure he doesn't go in his phone."

Justin sighed, "Okay, fine."

Zach dared to ask, "Do some of the boys...do that during practice?"

Justin shrugged. "Sometimes if it gets too stressful."

"And how would you know that?"

Justin suddenly started walking away. "I'll just follow him then."

Zach shook his head, trying to make the information he just heard leave him brain.

Montgomery made his way towards the locker room, but once he got close, he was suddenly taken aback by Clay Jensen speaking very closely and very loudly to Ophelia.

She was sitting near the locker rooms. That was her usual spot where she waited for Zach. Although, Montgomery remembered when she used it to wait for him.

"I know you don't mean to," Clay had said to her, "But keeping this a secret is only protecting him."

Ophelia opened her mouth, "Clay, if Zach finds out-"

"You were assaulted!" Clay cut her off. "That needs to be answered for."

"I can't just-"

Ophelia stopped, dead silent, as she saw that Montgomery was approaching the locker room from the field. She looked away, and stood up, grabbing her bag.

"You need to let it go," she hissed at him from under her breath. "You were never supposed to know that in the first place."

Ophelia tried to keep her eyes on the ground, and not make any noise, hoping Montgomery had heard nothing.

But Clay wasn't giving up.

"So Montgomery just gets to act like nothing-"

"Shut up!" she hissed.

Her eyes grew wide, and fearful. She glanced at Montgomery and realized, yes, he was close enough to hear. But she hoped to everything he hadn't been listening.

Behind Montgomery, Justin jogged up. "Let's go, Monty. Zach wants you to hurry up."

Montgomery barely paid any mind to him. He kept looking at Ophelia, and Clay.

He swore he heard his name. And he was planning on staying exactly where he was until he figured out what they were talking about.

Because Ophelia talking to Clay, especially knowing how obsessed he was with finding out where everyone was Homecoming night...it terrified him.

Clay stood in front of Ophelia, momentarily. "Please, let me help you. If not you, then come talk to Tyler with me."

Ophelia struggled. "Clay, just get out of the way."

He stayed put. "Ophelia, please."

Justin looked ahead, following Montgomery's eye line. He spotted Clay and Ophelia together.

Justin watched as his brother stood in front of Ophelia, blocking her. He frowned, wondering what the hell was happening.

"What's going on?" Montgomery snapped. He had tried to keep silent, to just listen, but he couldn't. He was anxious, and that took ahold of him.

Clay turned around to glare at him. He said nothing.

Montgomery scoffed, unimpressed with Clay's attitude.

"Hey!-"

He stepped forward, but Justin held out an arm.

"Leave em alone, Monty." Justin spoke protectively in front of both of them.

"No," Montgomery snapped. "The fuck are you guys talking about?" He looked directly at Ophelia when he asked.

Clay just rolled his eyes. "You heard Justin, leave us alone."

Justin became nervous by his brother's words. He clearly said it to make Montgomery angry. And it was working.

"Clay," Justin whispered, hoping he would catch the hint and leave.

Clay turned to Ophelia. "Can we talk more at your car?"

"Clay, please," she breathed, eyes darting between him and Montgomery.

"Why don't you get out of here, freak?" Montgomery spat. "Stop bothering her."

Clay whirled around. "You want me to stop bothering her? Or you just want her to stop talking?"

Justin stood between them. "Clay, why don't you head out? I'll walk home."

Montgomery glared. "You got something to say, Jensen?"

Clay dared to ask, "Are you worried, Montgomery? You got something you don't want to risk Ophelia saying?"

"Clay!" Ophelia screamed. She felt like she was on the verge of tears.

Justin frowned, looking between Montgomery and Ophelia. His eyes rested on his brother. "What's going on?"

The other three seemed to ignore him.

"I-I didn't say anything," Ophelia suddenly said. Her voice terrified, and quick.

"What do you mean?" Justin asked, worried. He suddenly turned and glared at Montgomery. "What the fuck is she talking about?"

Justin had no idea what was happening, but he knew Ophelia was scared. And Montgomery was the man who usually scared her.

Montgomery stood, taller. Suddenly, he didn't seem nervous. He seemed confident. Because he forced himself to be. He convinced himself he had nothing to fear.

He forced a laugh. Montgomery looked to Ophelia. "If you want to say something, say it. Go ahead. No ones stopping you. No ones threatening you."

Ophelia cringed. What a sick game he was playing.

He had already threatened her, several times. But that wasn't in front of people, it was when they were alone.

Maybe the reason he chose to sent her voicemails, and corner her in PE, was because he didn't want anyone else to see his panic.

He wanted to act innocent. And he was such a great actor. In fact, sometimes, he even fooled her.

Because when he spoke to her, so casual about her bringing up Homecoming night, she felt completely at fault. She allowed Montgomery De La Cruz to walk her home. She invited him into her empty house. It was easy to blame everything on those decisions, wasn't it?

Ophelia looked at Justin now. His spirits dropped completed at seeing the devastated expression on her face. "T-Tell Zach I'll be waiting in my car, okay?"

She briefly thought she saw Montgomery smirking, but she didn't look at him completely to notice.

Justin dared a step forward. "Are you alright, though?"

He wanted her to answer him honestly, but he knew it might not be possible with Montgomery standing so close.

So Justin tried to say, "Monty, grab your stuff and head to the field."

Montgomery didn't seem to want to move. "How about you get your buddy out of here before something worse happens?" he threatened, so casually.

Now, Justin was mad. "He's not my buddy, he's my brother. So leave him the fuck alone."

Montgomery wasn't intimidated by Clay, or Ophelia. But he found himself scared of Justin, rarely. He knew he was a druggie. And druggies were fucking crazy when they wanted to be.

So Montgomery stepped back, backing off. He turned to the locker room, breathing heavily to release his anger slowly.

Clay was more brave than he should have been. He still didn't back down.

"You're a fucking piece of shit," Clay snapped at him. "Where were you after homecoming?"

"Fuck!" Ophelia whispered, stressfully. She covered her face with her hands.

Montgomery turned around immediately. He came up on Clay, quick. He shoved him.

"Hey!" Justin was in front of Clay in an instant.

"You need to mind your fucking business," Montgomery snarled at Clay. Now, he looked at Ophelia. "What the fuck have you been running your mouth about?"

Ophelia choked. "I-I didn't say anything-"

"Of course she wouldn't say anything!" Clay said, "She's too fucking scared of you! I found out myself! I know what you fucking did!"

"And what the fuck did I do?" Montgomery waited. But Clay stayed silent. Because Clay knew that if he told him, he wouldn't be the one to pay for it. Ophelia would. Tyler would.

Ophelia wished he had realized this earlier.

"Stop it!" Ophelia yelled again.

Justin pushed back Montgomery.

Montgomery let out a laugh, seeing Clay stay silent, and seeing how desperate Ophelia was to keep him that way.

"Exactly."

"Clay, what the fuck are you talking about?" Justin demanded, wanting to know what the fuck was going on.

"How long do you think Charlie's gonna cover for you?" Clay asked Montgomery. "You're going to jail for what you did."

"What?" Justin repeated.

Montgomery laughed at Clay, forcing the laughter to make him feel smaller. "You're the only one going to jail, Clay. Didn't they arrest you yet?"

"Montgomery, stop it!" Ophelia insisted. She grabbed Clay's arm, trying to pull him away.

"Wait, what's going on?" Justin asked her. "What are they talking about? What happened?"

Montgomery just chuckled cruelly at his cluelessness.

"Stop fucking laughing!" Ophelia yelled at him.

"You're a piece of shit," Clay snapped at him.

"What the fuck did you do, Monty?" Justin asked him.

They heard whistles on the field. Their absence wouldn't be allowed for much longer.

"Everyone's gonna find out eventually," Clay said.

Ophelia felt herself beginning to hyperventilate. "Please..stop..."

She felt panicked. Worse than that. She felt helpless.

"Did you touch her?" Justin asked Montgomery.

Montgomery scoffed. "Fuck you too, Foley."

"Justin..."

Ophelia put her hand over her forehead, suddenly feeling very hot, and very out of breath.

"Someone better tell me what the fuck is going on," Justin demanded.

"How about to tell your brother to get the fuck away from me, and to stay the fuck away from me."

"Or what?" Clay snapped. "You're gonna kill me?"

Justin yelled, "Clay!"

"Clay, please..."

"I didn't do shit to Bryce, and you know it," Montgomery snapped.

"I'm not talking about Bryce!"

"Jus-"

A thud was heard, and there was a new silence behind them.

Justin was the first to turn, and the first to process what had happened.

"Oh, s-shit!" Justin fell to his knees.

Ophelia had collapsed, and it was apparent from her lack of movement that she was now, suddenly, unconscious.

"Oh my god..." Clay breathed.

Justin tried sitting her up, but had to hold her. He put his hand on the back of her head, feeling for any blood.

Justin recalled a time when he was eight, when his mother overdosed, fainting and falling onto their hard kitchen floor. She was bleeding, and had to go to the hospital for weeks. Justin didn't feel any blood, but he was still scared.

Montgomery's attitude was gone in a second.

"Is-Is she okay?"

He wanted to kneeled down and help her. But he was too prideful, and would be embarrassed to do so in front of them.

All his anger was forgotten, and all he could for us on was Ophelia unconscious in front of him.

"Ophelia?" Justin said lightly. He shook her.

"Don't shake her!" Clay said.

"Should I slap her?" Justin asked.

"Slap her?" Montgomery asked, surprised.

Justin snapped. "I'm not looking for you to fucking volunteer."

Montgomery scoffed. "I wasn't fucking-"

"Did you drive?" Justin asked Clay.

Clay nodded. "You were with me."

Justin didn't bother trying to think back to that morning. He put his arm under her knees, and kept one under her shoulders, and lifted her up. He held her in his arms.

"We need to go to the hospital," Justin suddenly told Clay.

Justin felt the weight of Ophelia in his arms. And he was terrified, because at the same time he convinced himself he had her life in his hands.

She didn't stir. It only worried him more.

"Let's go!" Justin yelled, watching Clay stand still. Clay snapped out of his shock, and grabbed the keys out of his pocket.

Montgomery felt himself snap out of his trance as well.

"She's never done this before," he said, worried.

"No shit!" Justin yelled. "Most people don't fucking collapse like this!"

Montgomery knew Ophelia had problems with sleeping, problems with nadeau and problems with weight gain. But he's never know her to have problems of passing out.

"I can drive," he offered. "I know the fastest way."

Montgomery was forced to go to the hospital many, many times.

"Fuck you!" Justin snapped at him. "I don't what the fuck is going on, but I know this is your fault!"

Montgomery was at a loss for words.

"I just...I just want to help," he tried.

But Justin was tired of his mind games.

As he carried her to the parking lot, and turned back to say to him, "You can help by telling Zach where we're going, and then by leaving her the fuck alone."

O

O

Ophelia did not regain consciousness until they were at the hospital. And even then, it was slowly. First, she opened her eyes to see the sky, as Justin ran into the building with her in his arms. And then she blinked, and it felt like so much time had passed. The next time she opened her eyes, she was inside.

She sat up, abruptly, and quickly. She yelled as she did, becoming frightened beyond belief.

"Hey, hey, hey, it's okay-"

She felt someone touch her back. She pulled away, abruptly.

She turned, and saw Justin, who now had his hands raised. "Sorry, sorry. I was just checking."

"Checking?" Ophelia breathed. She looked around. She was laying on a leather bed, covered with material. She was at a hospital. But it didn't seem like she was on a bed from an hospital room, more like one of the ones that you sit on while having a checkup.

The paper crinkled beneath her.

"What-?" She tried to stand. Justin stood in front of her and stopped her. "What's happening?"

"Don't stand up," he told her. He placed both hands on her knees, softly, keeping her on the table. "We just got here. The doctor is on his way in."

Ophelia sat up straight, and she felt her eye sight adjusting to the new brightness.

"Doctor?"

It clicked in her mind.

"I'm at a doctor's office?"

Justin told her, "A hospital. You-You passed out."

Ophelia held her head. She felt dizzy.

But she still had enough energy to correct him by saying, "Fainted. My-My mom says men pass out, women faint."

Justin nodded, the hint of a smile on his face. "Okay. You fainted. Back at school. Me and Clay drove you."

Ophelia felt her cheeks flushing red with humiliation. "At school? Did-Did everyone see me?"

"No," Justin told her. He left out Montgomery's name. "Me and Clay saw you. Zach's on his way, or in the waiting room. I'm not sure."

Ophelia tried to stand, but Justin kept her seated. His grip on her legs were firm.

Ophelia felt the air in her throat catch. "Let go. Please."

"If you stand, you'll probably just fall-"

"I promise I won't stand," she breathed. "P-Please don't hold me like that."

Justin let go, and felt himself becoming guilty for touching her at all. "I'm sorry, you just...you had me really worried. The doctor took blood. That's bad, right?"

Ophelia frowned. "He what?"

For the first time, she noticed the cotton all taped to the inside of her elbow.

"He took my blood?" Ophelia thought that doctors couldn't do that without consent.

"He asked and I said it was okay," Justin admitted. He winced. "I'm sorry if it wasn't. I mean, you couldn't get in trouble would you?"

Ophelia blinked. "I don't take drugs, Justin."

"I know, I know. Of course." But how could he have been sure?

"Can I see Zach?" Ophelia asked.

She was desperate to see him, and desperate to hug him. She felt like she hadn't been wrapped in his arms for years.

"He's not allowed in," Justin explained. "But I'll go tell him you're awake."

"Oh." Ophelia felt dumb. "Yeah. Of course he's not. How long have I been unconscious?"

"Less than an hour, I think," Justin told her. "I'm not sure, I never really looked at a clock."

Ophelia bit her lip. Had anyone called her mom? Zach might have. Honestly, she didn't want him too.

Ophelia frowned, suddenly. "Justin, why are you allowed in here?"

Why would Justin be allowed somewhere Zach wasn't?

Justin looked guilty. He looked away. "I brought you in."

She stared at him. "Still..."

Justin blew out a breath of air. "Look, I told them I was your husband, okay?"

Ophelia's mouth fell open. Before she could say anything Justin quickly spat out, "They wouldn't have let me in! Did you want to just sit here alone!"

"Justin!" Ophelia hissed. "That-Thats not-You can't say that!"

"I gave us a beautiful story. Our parents approve, that's why we're so young," he tried to reason.

"Oh my god, what if Zach hears?" Ophelia groaned. "You go out there right now and tell him I had nothing to do with that lie."

He got so jealous so easily, Ophelia couldn't be too careful.

"Ophelia, you were fucking passed out-"

"Justin, what do you think will happen when they realize I'm seventeen?" she asked him. "And the fact that Zach probably came in asking for a girlfriend? What if they think you're, I don't know, trafficking me."

Justin shook his head, but seemed worried.

But she was unconscious, and he didn't want to leave her alone.

He made that mistake before and he never, ever wanted to repeat. He's rather die.

"You look so suspicious all the time," Ophelia told him.

"I'm sorry," he groaned. "Look, I'll go grab Zach. I'll say he's the real husband-"

"Mr. and Mrs. Tristano?"

The door suddenly opened. And older gentlemen stepped in, smiling at them.

He was glad to see her awake.

"Hi, Ophelia? How are you feeling?"

Ophelia glanced at Justin, before back at the doctor. "I'm-I'm feeling fine."

"Ophelia..." Justin mumbled.

She bit her lip. "Dizzy. Confused, I guess."

"I understand," he told her. "Luckily for us, your fainting spell was harmless. It actually did you more good then bad. Your body was exhausted, and forced itself to get some rest."

Ophelia shook her head. "I get lots of sleep. Every night. I don't know what happened."

"It could be physical exhaustion, or mental exhaustion. Either way, listen to your body. Get some more rest."

Justin patted her back, "Are you listening...sweetie?"

Ophelia gave him a side look. "Yeah. I don't feel exhausted. I just feel embarrassed."

"Fatigue is a common symptom in this stage. Have you been nauseous as well recently?"

Ophelia thought about it. "I'm always nauseous." She cringed, thinking about how she threw up while going down on Zach. "But, yeah, recently a bit more."

"Perfectly normal," the doctor told her. He looked down at the clipboard. "Honestly, I'm surprised you're not showing yet. Normally, with the teen marriages, they tend to begin showing quickly. Then again, you have more of a petite bone structure."

Ophelia blinked.

"What?" Justin, besides her, tensed. "Showing what?"

The doctor looked back towards them. "Your guys' pregnancy. Congratulations, you two, by the way."

Ophelia felt her mouth run dry. And honestly, she felt the need to faint again. But she didn't. She couldn't. Her body was too shocked to do anything.

"Our..." Ophelia lost her voice.

Justin's hand flew to his mouth, turning to Ophelia with the most bewildered expression. He gasped.

"We're pregnant?"