Be aware: this chapter gets a little intense.

Whit goes on talking like nothing just happened. For her, this is true so I keep everything to myself and let explain the next picture.

"This is us with her the last time we ever saw her." She points to a picture of three smiling little kids. They look a little older in this photo, but the major difference in the is that Jackie lays in a hospital bed while the other two kids hug her.

"What happened?" My memory is unclear when it comes down to most things to do with the fire, all that's burned in my mind are the screams that tore through the house as the fire and smoke put out my internal lights.

"It's a long story." She grimaces, her voice wavering slightly.

Interesting.

"I've got time."

Whit quirks an eyebrow at this, her facial expression openly asking: what about the party?

"I..ah..don't really care for parties." I shrug slightly. "If you don't mind, I'd like to hear what you've got to tell."

She looks uneasy and it's clear that she'd rather do anything than what I'm asking, but like the girl I vaguely remember her to be, she probably won't say no. She never could, and by the way, she leads me back towards the couches, it seems like that hasn't changed.

"I don't really mind, I guess." Whit takes a deep breath in, holds it for a few seconds, and then lets it out quickly. "So the girl in the picture with King and I is Jackie. She was our best friend for as long as either of us could remember. We used to do everything together. We went that far back. Seriously, like, we have pictures of us and her in diapers, at Disneyland, the zoo, school, everywhere." A fond sigh escapes her lips at the memories.

Nothing leaves my own. Even though I'm almost one hundred percent she's talking about me, I can't remember anything. I can't even picture myself living the glorious life she describes. My tattered timeline only has three memories on it: The fire that destroyed Jackie at five, The first person that made Lin feel like she was truly alive at thirteen, the guys that took everything away at barely fourteen, and created Jacqueline.

"That sounds really awesome," I whisper, smiling comfortingly at her.

Whit actually seems to still be hurting.

What gets me though, is why? Yes, I get that she was close to Jackie, me, but that was doing a very young age. Plus it's been twelve years. Shouldn't she have already forgotten everything?

"It was."

"So what happened, like why was she in the hospital?"

Of course, I know the answer, but I want to hear it from her point of view: it'll make everything seem more real.

"It happened the week before school ended. Her family was at their house in lake rogue. When these-" As if she was just snapped out of a daydream, Whit's voice transforms from the bored, emotionless mask it'd taken moments earlier, and into this more high pitched tone.  "When this fire broke out of nowhere. No one saw it coming. No one." She clarifies once more.

It's like she begging me to believe her, the way her eyes hold mine with so much intensity.

Interesting.

"What happened to the family?"

"They all died." Her voice returning to its normal tone.

Are you sure about that?

"They did?"

"Yeah."

"Everyone?"

"Yes!" Her voice is exasperated this time.

I know I should stop here, leave while I'm ahead and all that. Yet I don't. My primary reason is: What else does this girl know?

"What about the little girl. Jackie, was it?"

Whit physically freezes in her seat for the fastest of seconds. In fact, if I hadn't been watching her so carefully, I'm sure I would've missed it. "What about her?"

Playing dumb, aye?

Isn't funny when one dummy calls another dummy dumb? Jax smirks, I imagine, but I pay no attention to him.

"Well, you have a picture of her smiling in the hospital bed. It seems, to me anyway, that she's perfectly fine."

"Oh. Yea. She was fine until she wasn't."

"What do you mean?" My voice is already soft and quiet, but I still lower it and sprinkle in as much kindness as possible: I want her to feel comfortable. Not like I'm accusing her.

Isn't that what you are doing though?

Shut up.

"Wel-"

"Wassup, sis?"

King and the two girls from the mall, spray tan and mixed girl, waltz into the room like their supermodels. Glamorous and each too beautiful.

Movie moment.

I think before smiling quickly at Whit and leaving the room before anyone can stop me.

I'll get more answers later, but right now fresh air sounds nice.

I bow my head down as I stumble my way through the living room full of teens. Most of them sit down on the many couches drinking from little red cups while others dance to themselves in the middle. No one pays any attention to me as I head out the front door and into the night air.

It's way crazier here, but I manage to find a little quiet spot by a huge oak tree. Taking a seat under it, I take a couple of deep breaths of the sweet air. Thoughts of what Whitney just said evading my mind on their own will.

I'm so deep into my mind that I don't hear the footprints that inch closer and closer to me by the second. Truth to be told, I don't even realize I'm no longer alone until the person takes a seat extremely close to me, like in my personal space close.

"Wellll hello!" The person turns out to be a guy-- his deep voice gives him away. A drunk one who smells of too much beer and vodka.

Talk about instant turn off.

I can't see him that well due to the darkness, and that only makes this situation more unappealing.

"Hi," I say the word as politely and sweet as I can. Evening going as far as tossing a little, fake smile the guy's way before getting up.

The sigh of relief that leaves my lips once I think I'm a good few feet from the dude is short-lived when a cold hand grabs mine. Trying not to panic, I turn around.

Horrible mistake.

Chapped lips land on my own in the fastest of moments, I don't even get time to register what's happening, as the guy's hands reach around my much smaller frame to my butt.

It feels like time holds still as my body goes into shook mode, not moving an inch. I feel the guy's hands all over me, even his awful lips as they travel from my lips to my neck, yet I can do nothing but wish for everything to stop.

Why again?

_______

Hey lovely people:) Thank you too much for reading, I appreciate it. Please vote, comment and share if you want to.

Apologizes: I know I was supposed to update Tuesday or Wednesday, but things got in the way. The school recently started, and I'm already in over my head. So from now on, the update day is FRIDAY! I promise to post a chapter then, and if I get lucky, one randomly thru out the week:)

Always with love, Liv~

DF: Sep.7.17, pm
DP: Sep.8.17
WC: 1,125