A car zoomed along the darkened street as Kate walked next to Nathan and Ian. She watched over her shoulder as the car screeched to a stop at a red light. When the light changed a second later, it jerked forward again, disappearing around the corner. The street was mostly deserted, even though it was only ten in the evening.

"I was kind of disappointed in the movie, if I'm honest," Ian said.

"Why?" Kate asked, skirting a telephone pole.

"It had great reviews but I thought it just sucked," Ian explained. "They could have done so much better."

"I was just happy I got to see Colin Farrell shirtless," Nathan said happily.

"You're easily pleased," Ian joked.

Kate didn't try to decipher that comment for a double meaning. Instead she walked alongside the two young men, dodging the occasional telephone pole or street light post. Their conversation drifted toward summer internships.

"I'm doing an internship with Marc Jacobs in New York City," Ian said happily. "Two whole months in my uncle's flat in Chelsea! What about you, Kate?"

She shrugged. "I'm not actually sure yet. Last year my dad had me work with him, but I think I might try something different this summer."

"Nate?" Ian asked.

"I - I don't know either," Nathan mumbled. "I haven't thought it out too much yet."

Unspoken words hung between the trio. Last year, Nathan had gotten an internship with his family's business. But this year, things had been so tense with his family that it seemed like he was lucky to be alive still.

"Well, I'm sure you'll find something," Kate said reassuringly.

They continued on for several minutes in silence before Ian spoke.

"Kate, where did you park?" he asked, looking up and down the street. "I think I just saw Jesus's sandals back there," he joked

"It's just another couple of blocks. It was the only place I could find near the restaurant earlier," she replied aplogetically.

"Are you sure its not in BFE?" Ian added with a smirk.

Kate rolled her eyes. "You're welcome to drive next time, Ian."

The trio walked past a small group of men sitting on the front stoop of an apartment building. The group had spilled off of the concrete steps and onto the sidewalk, forcing Kate to follow single-file behind Nathan and Ian. The two boys were holding hands as they slipped between people. She could hear a murmur go through the group, but she ignored it. The three of them were thirty feet down the sidewalk before she heard it.

"Hey, where are you going?" a voice called from behind her.

Kate tensed and picked up her pace slightly, following Nathan and Ian.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" the voice said again.

She slowed and turned around. "Can I help you?"

Ian and Nathan stopped next to her.

"Easy, girl. I just wanted to talk to you," a man said, closing the space between them.

A car drove by, its headlights illuminating the sidewalk.

"Yeah well she doesn't want to talk to you," Nathan said. "Leave us alone."

"She can speak for herself," another man said, appearing next to the first one. "We weren't speaking to you, fag."

"What the fuck did you just call him?" Ian asked, stepping forward.

"Fag. Faggot. You make me sick," the second man said.

"Hey! Don't call them that!" Kate insisted.

The air around them crackled with tension.

"Or what? They'll hit us?" the first one asked with mock fear. "Hear that, Gus? They think they're so fucking tough!" The whole group behind them dissolved into laughter.

The group slowly started to surround the three teens and Kate felt sick. There were so many ways this could go wrong.

"Look, we don't want any trouble, OK?" she insisted, trying to keep her voice strong.

"Too late," Gus said, reaching up and touching her face.

"Don't touch her!" Nathan shouted, slapping Gus's hand away.

Without warning a punch was thrown and Nathan stumbled backward. Kate was elbowed in the face and she tasted blood. Shouting erupted and chaos began. Nathan and Ian seemed to catch the worst of it, but two men tried to pull her across the street.

"GET OFF ME!" she shouted, throwing her head back and thrusting her elbow backwards violently.

She heard the crunch of bone hitting cartilage and pulled herself free before either man could regain their grip.

Call 911, she thought.

With fumbling hands, she grabbed her phone from her purse as she ran across the street. She dialed the number and looked over her shoulder.

"911, what's your emergency?" a female operator asked on the other line.

"Help! I need help!" Kate gasped as she struggled to force her way into the crowd. "I - my friends and I are being attacked."

"Where are you right now?" the operator asked.

"Uh - um, I don't know!" she exclaimed. Through the wall of bodies she could see Nathan and Ian huddled on the sidewalk, taking blow after blow. "Please hurry!"

Suddenly the phone was knocked from her hand and she felt herself stumble backwards. Her foot slipped off the curb and she landed on the road, her head bouncing on the asphalt. Everything went black.

***

"Hi - I need to know where my daughter is," Jared rushed out as he all but collided with the nurse's station in the emergency department at Cedars-Sinai.

"Name?" the nurse asked.

"Uh - Kate. Kate Wexler," he panted. "Someone here called me and told me that - that she'd been brought in."

The nurse typed on his keyboard. "She's in room four. Down the hall, second door on the right."

Jared was off running before the nurse finished his sentence. Differrnt scenarios ran through his head as he rushed along the corridor. The nurse that called him hadn't given him any details beyond the fact that Kate had been brought in with a head injury. He skidded to a stop outside room four and took a calming breath. The last thing anyone needed was his panic. He pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Kate was sitting up, her feet swinging over the side of the gurney, wincing as a doctor stitched up the back of her head. A large black and blue bruise dominated the right side of her face.

"Kate! Oh holy fuck, you're okay!" Jared exclaimed rushing over and embracing her.

"Ouch!" she winced as the doctor pulled the needle through her skin.

"What happened?!" Jared asked the doctor. "Is she okay?"

"Mr. Leto, your daughter will be fine," the doctor answered. "She sustained a slight concussion and needs a few stitches, but she will be fine. We'd like to keep her overnight for observation."

He turned his attention back to Kate. "What happened?" he asked again.

She sighed. "We were walking back to my car and this group of guys just ambushed us," she winced. "I tried to stop them but they just kept going, beating up Nathan and Ian. Then somehow I got knocked out while I was on the phone with the police. I don't remember what happened next."

"The officers are still here," the nurse assisting the doctor remarked. "They said they wanted to talk to you whenever you got here. They're at the other nurse's station."

Jared sighed. "Are you okay if I go?" he asked.

She nodded and he left the room. He walked down the hall to the other nurse's station where two police officers were waiting. They pushed off of the wall when they saw him approaching.

"Mr. Leto," one said holding out his hand. "I'm Detective Zakinsky and this is Detective Wyatt. We're with LAPD. Do you have a few minutes to talk to us?"

He nodded. "I was actually wondering if you could tell me a bit more about what happened. I'm pretty much in the dark here."

"We'll fill you in. But we've got a few questions for you first," Zalinsky said. "Did your daughter have any enemies?"

"Enemies? She's a seventeen year old kid. How the hell could she have enemies?" Jared asked. "She never mentioned anyone. She's well-liked at school. Pretty popular. I haven't heard her say anything about anyone."

"What about the other two?" Wyatt asked, pen poised over his notepad.

"Other two?"

"The other two boys your daughter was brought in with," Wyatt said, exchanging a look with Zalinsky.

"Who?" Jared asked.

"Nathan Suzuki and and Ian Wallace. They were brought in with your daughter at the same time," Zalinsky said.

Jared's heart sank as he realized what happened. "Yes, they're - they're her friends. One of them - Nathan - is a student at her school. The other one is his boyfriend."

"So they're gay?" Wyatt asked, jotting down notes.

"I - yeah. Why does that matter though?" Jared asked.

"We're investigating this as a potential hate crime," Zakinsky explained. "When officers arrived, a small group of men were seen running away. We haven't been able to find any of them yet, but there is a search going."

"Where are they? Nathan and Ian?" Jared asked, feeling panic and anger rise in his throat.

"They've both been admitted to the hospital. Unfortunately that's all we can share," Wyatt explained.

Jaded cursed under his breath. "Is that all you have for me?" he asked, anxious to get back to Kate.

"Yep. That's it," Zalinsky said. "Just your contact information in case anything changes." He dug in his pocket for a card. "This is my desk phone. Call if you see anything suspicious."

Jared took the card and gave them his cell number before hurrying back down the hallway. He passed a room just as an Asian couple came out. He caught a glimpse of the patient just before the door closed.

Nathan.

He was laying in the bed hooked up to machines. Jared couldn't see anything else before the door closed. He cleared his throat and approached the couple.

"Mr. and Mrs. Suzuki?" he asked, offering his hand. "I'm Jared Leto. My daughter was with your son tonight."

The man looked at him in confusion for a brief moment before taking the hand. "Nice to meet you."

"I'm so sorry this happened," Jared apologized. Neither of Nathan's parents spoke. "I - I was wondering if...if you could t-tell me how he is? I just - I'm sure Kate will want to know," he stammered.

Mr. Suzuki cleared his throat. "He is unconcious for the moment," he replied in a heavily accented gravelly voice. "He has several facial fractures, broken ribs, and probably a concussion."

Jared felt sick to his stomach. "I am so sorry."

Mr. Suzuki sniffed and adjusted his jacket. "It would seem he got the brunt of the group's rage."

"The police are investigating this as a hate crime," Jared offered. "They say that the nature of the attack is evidence."

"I'm aware of what the police are saying," Mr. Suzuki cut him off. "However I'm sure Nathan did something to provoke all of this. Him and that...that other boy."

Jared stiffened. "They were walking down the street. They didn't provoke anything."

"Yes he did!" Suzuki shouted, drawing the attention of everyone in the corridor. "If he wasn't acting like that, he wouldn't be in this position right now! He-he's an abomination!"

Jared took a step back in surprise. "He's human," he said softly. "He's your son."

"Not anymore, he isn't," Nathan's father growled. "He's an adult. He can sort himself out from now on. If he insists on living this way, he is on his own."

Jared couldn't get the words out of his mouth. Anger and frustration combined to make a Molotov cocktail in his stomach, threatening to combust right there in the hallway. Instead, he bit his tongue and sidestepped out of the Suzuki's way. When they had disappeared, he sighed and opened the door to Nathan's room.

The noise of machines beeping steadily filled the room as the door shut heavily behind him. Nathan lay in the bed with wires attached to him, eyes closed. Jared took a seat in the chair next to the bed and sighed, taking in the bruises and cuts on Nathan's face. The teen looked so helpless, laying there.

"Thank you," he whidpered, knowing that if Nathan hadn't stepped up, things could have been a lot worse for Kate.

"Don't mention it," Nathan muttered in a soft voice.

Jared's eyes snapped to Nathan's face and he saw the young man was actually awake. "How long have you been awake?"

"I was never unconscious," he sighed. "I just didn't want to deal with my parents."

"Did you-?" Jared started.

"I heard them," Nathan answered. "I heard everything," he said as a tear slid down his stitched-up cheek.

Jared sighed. "I want to help you. I'll pay your bills. Anything. Please let me help you," he pleaded.

Nathan didn't respond. Instead, he stared at the ceiling as another tear ran down his cheek.