Ashley's light blonde hair is the first thing I see, and her squeaking moans resound through the room. She's bent forward over a billiard table which stands in the middle of the room, and the scrap of cloth of a skirt she's wearing is rucked up to her waist.

My eyes widen as I look behind her.

"Jackson?" I croak out as I spot Nora's boyfriend who is relentlessly pounding away into Ashley but stops as soon as he notices my presence.

"Olivia?" he pants, and quickly pulls up his jeans. His expression is at least as surprised as mine must look like.

Ashley huffs in annoyance and straightens herself. She readjusts her miniskirt and then storms past me and out of the room.

I cross my arms and glare at Jackson who ties his black hair back into a bun.

"What the fuck are you doing here, Jackson?" I ask him in a harsh tone.

I can't believe I just caught Nora's boyfriend cheating with that blonde bitch.

"I could ask you the same thing. I didn't know you hang around in those circles," he snarls.

"I just caught you cheating on Nora and you reproach me?" I ask him in disbelief. I always knew he is a prick to be honest, but I never thought he was that bad.

"Damn right. I am angry with you. You just screwed up a fucking good fuck for me," he hisses and slowly steps closer.

I unwittingly step backwards and swallow. His demeanor scares me, and I have an awfully bad feeling about this situation.

The moment I turn around, and make an attempt to run off, Jackson grabs my wrist and pulls me back. He shuts the door with a bang and pushes me further into the room.

"Let me go!" I say. My voice comes out much weaker than I intended it.

"You will make up for your mistake and let me spill my load into that little pussy of yours," he groans and opens the zipper of his pants.

I instantly feel sick, and the room starts spinning around me. Images of Terrence touching me and threatening me in that old moldy house return to my head, and I feel like I'm not able to breath anymore.

"Jackson... please," I beg as he pushes me to the billiard table and forces me to bend forward.

"Shut the fuck up. You will end my relationship the second you leave this room, so you owe me one good fuck at least," he shouts.

I feel numb as I hear him pulling down his pants, and for a second I'm not able to move, but I quickly come to myself and start kicking him and writhing under his beefy body to break free from his harsh grip. With no success.

Why do all those assholes have to be so strong?

"No! Get the fuck off me!" I scream as loud as I can in hopes that anyone hears me, but I doubt it. The hallway was empty when I came downstairs, and the music is too loud to let my screams get through to the people in the living room.

The moment I feel Jackson's hand on the waistband of my pants, I hear the door getting teared open.

"What the actual fuck?!" I don't need to turn around to know who just appeared in the door. Caleb.

"Jackson, you son of a bitch! You shouldn't have done that," he roars, and I feel the weight of Jackson's body removed from me.

I quickly straighten myself and turn around, just in time to see Caleb's fist connecting with Jackson's face.

Jackson groans in pain and falls to his knees, covering his left eye with his palm.

"Fuck off, Caleb! She literally begged me to fuck her!" Jackson growls at Caleb.

"What the fuck is happening here?" Zach. My face snaps towards the door where Zach is standing with horror in his face.

"Did he hurt you?" he asks me with a strained voice. My throat is too dry to answer, so I just shake my head.

"This motherfucker was about to rape her. If I hadn't come in, he would be burying his microscopic dick in her right now," Caleb explains with bloated nostrils. I'm honestly surprised by Caleb's protective behavior, but he couldn't have picked worse words to explain Zach what happened.

"You're dead!" Zach dashes to Jackson and takes him down to the floor.

A dizzy-making crack is to be heard as soon as Zach starts beating him again and again, and I'm pretty sure he just broke this asshole's nose. Jackson's attempts to break free out of Zach's attack quickly stop and he looks like he's already unconscious. Zach is going to kill him if he won't stop beating him.

"Zach!" I shout and make a step towards him. He's so furious, he doesn't even notice me.

"Zach, you're going to kill him!" I begin to panic. The last thing we need is Zach to be charged with murder.

"Hey. He's had enough!" Caleb exclaims, and steps forward. He grabs Zach's arms and pulls him off of Jackson. Zach who seems to awake from his trance spins around to face me. His white dress shirt is stained all over with Jackson's blood, and his chest raises and falls rapidly.

"Are you okay?" he pants, and steps closer with a worried expression.

I didn't notice I was crying until now. Tears are relentlessly streaming down my cheeks, and I'm breathing laboriously.

Zach lifts his arms to wrap them around me, but I step backwards.

"His blood is all over your shirt, Zach," I croak. I would love to bury my face into his chest, but I don't want to have Jackson's blood all over my body and face.

Without hesitating, Zach starts to unbutton his shirt and takes it off to use it to wipe the blood off his knuckles. Then he holds his arms out for me, and I give in and collapse onto his bare chest.

Although, I can still make out the smell of blood on his skin, Zach's familiar warmth soothes me instantly.

"Here. Drink that!" Caleb's voice pulls me out of my state of shock. He holds out a glass of water to me, and I pull away from Zach to grab it.

"Thanks," I mutter and take a sip of the cool liquid. "And thanks for... you know... for saving me from him," I stutter and point to Jackson, who's sitting with his back leaned against the wall by now. He wails with his eyes closed and holds his nose with his hands. Blood is streaming out of his nose in an alarming amount, but I really don't care right now.

"That's not a big deal. I don't give a shit about that wanker anyway," Caleb retorts with a shrug.

"Why did you even come downstairs in the first place," I ask, taking another sip of my water.

"I was just walking into the hallway because I needed to piss, when I heard the door getting slammed. I wanted to know who's roving about in my basement, so I came downstairs. I saw the shards in front of the door and then I heard you screaming," Caleb tells us.

Zach clenches his teeth.

"What did you do down here?" he then asks me with a harsh voice.

I frown at his tone. Is he really reproaching me right now?

"I was searching for you, actually. You went to talk to that Ashley bitch, and didn't come back for the next twenty minutes. I was slightly worried, so I went to look for you. When I came downstairs, I found Ashley moaning and bent over the billiard table. For a short moment I thought it was-" I stop myself. I didn't mean to accuse Zach of cheating because I didn't actually think he was.

"Go ahead. Say it!" Zach challenges me.

"Zach, I didn't... I just...," I stutter. I don't know how to free my head from the noose.

"Just say what's on your mind, Liv. Say you thought it was me who fucked her!" I can tell by the look in his eyes he's angry and hurt by my mistrust.

"I didn't actually think it was you," I try to defend myself, but Zach shakes his head.

"I can't handle this right now," he mutters, and storms off.

"Zach, wait!" I run past Caleb, who's watched our argument with raised eyebrows, and follow Zach upstairs. He runs straight for the front door.

A group of three men in dark suits who just arrived look at Zach with confused faces, as he pushes them aside to leave the house. I don't look at them as I rush past them right after Zach. I'm very glad that it has stopped snowing a few days ago, and due to the slightly warmer temperatures the snow is nearly gone by now. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to follow Zach that fast in those shoes.

"Zach, can you please wait?!" I call after him, and finally he stops. He's already halfway down the stony path which leads to the road.

"What? What do you want, Olivia?" he snaps and turns around.

I stop right in front of him and give him a pleading look. I ignore the goosebumps I feel on my whole body. Even though it's not as freezing anymore as it was one week ago, it's still pretty cold.

"Can you please just hear me out?"

Zach sighs and runs his hands through his hair.

"I don't know what to think. I just can't believe you thought I would cheat on you, even if it was only for a second." He turns around and walks away with his bloodstained shirt over his arm.

"I can't do this right now, Olivia!" he shouts without looking back.

I look after him with tears in my eyes. As hard as it is for me to not follow him, I know he needs to be alone right now.

"Hey." Caleb's voice startles me, and I turn around.

"Don't cry, he'll come around!" I can't believe he's actually being nice. I could swear I even spot the outline of an empathetic smile on his thin lips. "Do you want another drink?"

I smile weakly and reach into my purse to get my phone.

"No, thank you. I think I'll just head home," I reply.

Before I turn around, I thank him again and say goodbye. I call an Uber and drive home, hoping that Zach is waiting for me there, but of course he isn't.

I remove my makeup and take a shower. After slipping into my pajamas, I grab my phone to see if Zach has called or texted me, but I have no notifications. I type a quick text to Zach.

*I'm sorry Zach. Please call me when you're ready to talk!*

I wait twenty minutes, but I get no response.

With a deep sigh, I plop down on the sofa and close my eyes. In my mind, I replay the earlier situation. Zach's disappointed face is burnt into my memory and won't go away. With an aching heart, I slowly doze off.

My doorbell makes me jump, and I immediately sit as straight as a pole on my sofa.

With high hopes, I run for the door and tear it open.

"Zach!" I say with relief clearly audible in my voice.

"I was at my place, but we've brought all my clothes and toiletries to your house," Zach explains and looks down. He appears much calmer than before.

"Come in?" I cautiously suggest, and Zach nods and steps inside.

We both walk into the living room and stop next to each other. It's an awkward situation, and Zach as well as I don't know where to look at.

"Uhm... Can we talk?" I ask him lowly.

Zach sighs and nods again. We take a seat on the sofa next to each other, and I take a deep breath before I start talking.

"I'm sorry, Zach. I didn't mean to accuse you of cheating on me." I look into his hazel eyes, searching for a reaction. He chews on the inside of his lip and watches me intently.

"I was waiting for you to return and after twenty minutes I thought I should go and look for you. When I didn't find you at first, the thought crossed my mind, I must admit, but I banished it immediately," I tell him honestly.

Zach closes his eyes for a second and inhales deeply.

"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have run away after what happened. I was hurt by the thought of you distrusting me, and I let my emotions cloud my brain," he finally says after a few seconds of silence.

"I would never cheat on you, Livie, and it still hurts me that you thought I could!" he adds in a whisper.

"I know," I state. "I'm sorry."

Zach smiles weakly and gently places my hand in his.

"Are you okay after what happened with that Jackson guy?" he asks quietly.

"I'm fine, but I don't know how to tell Nora," I confess my concerns.

Zach frowns and tilts his head. I realize that in all the hustle and bustle I haven't told him yet who Jackson is.

"Jackson is Nora's boyfriend," I explain, and watch as Zach's eyes widen in shock.

"Shit, that's fucked up," he states and scratches his neck.

"Yea. I feel so bad for her. I mean they always had a toxic relationship, but I never thought he would cheat on her," I say and look down to my lap. I honestly have no idea how to tell Nora. She will be devastated.

"How long have they been together?" Zach asks.

"Three years. They broke up at least ten times since they started dating, but they always ended up back together," I tell him.

"When will you tell her?"

"Tomorrow, I guess. I thought I'd invite her over for lunch or so," I reply with a shrug.

"Good idea!" Zach states, and gives me an awkward smile.

I frown and tilt my head.

"Zach?"

"Huh?"

"Are we good?" I ask cautiously.

"Of course, we are. Come here!" he retorts and pulls me into his chest.

I snuggle up to him and frown as an unfamiliar scent invades my nostrils. That's when I notice the strange t-shirt and jacket he's wearing. I sit up and eye his attire.

"What are those clothes?" I ask him with a puzzled face.

Zach chuckles deeply and looks down at his clothes.

"That's from my stepdad. When I left the party, I called an Uber and drove to my apartment. I nearly froze to death, since I left my jacket at Caleb's place, and the shirt I was wearing today was bloodstained, so I had to improvise. All my clothes are here at the moment, and I didn't want to wear T's clothes, so I grabbed an old shirt and a jacket from my stepdad," he explains.

I smile and trace my fingers over the light blue fabric of his t-shirt.

"Well, now that you're here you can change into your own clothes again," I state.

Zach nods and smiles warmly.

"Can I ask you something?" I utter barely audible and fumble with my fingers.

"Sure," Zach replies.

"What did Ashley want from you?" I ask sheepishly.

"Money of course. I didn't expect anything else from her, to be honest. I wasn't willing to give her anything, so she had a little tantrum and yelled at me for killing Terrence. After that she stormed off. I needed to use the toilet so bad already, and when I returned into Caleb's living room, you were gone. I searched the whole room for you, but I didn't find you. Eventually, I went downstairs, and yea... You know already what happened in the basement," he explains.

I look up and smile at him. "Okay."

Zach softly kisses my cheek and gives me a tender look. Then he stands up and walks into the bedroom where the box with his clothes is.

"I'll take a quick shower," he calls out to me from my bedroom.

"Sure. I think I'll go lie down. I'm exhausted," I shout back and force myself up from the sofa.

When I enter the bedroom, Zach pops his head in from the bathroom.

"I'll join you in a minute!" he states with a dimpled smile, and I can't help but smile as well when I slip into my bed.

Before I fall asleep, I think of Nora and the bad news I have to tell her tomorrow. Being cheated is one of the most hurtful feelings which I sadly had to experience firsthand before. I wish I didn't have to tell her, but there's no way I can keep this a secret. It's high time that she dumped that prick anyways.

With a deep frown on my face, I doze off, and only just notice Zach slipping into bed next to me and placing a soft kiss on my shoulder before wrapping his arm around my waist.