Alex arrived at her job fifteen minutes early, quickly grabbing her apron and tying up her hair. She lingered against the counter, waiting for a certain blonde to arrive for work. As she waited, her mind began to wonder. Why haven't I told Devan about Graysen yet? She knew that Devan was a good guy, a guy worthy of the elaborate plan he had for his life. She grabbed a wet rag, slowly dragging it across the sticky tables as she pondered.

Green eyes lit up as he sat down at the lunch table. Devan pressed close against Alex, excitement radiating off him. She shot him a confused glance. "What's up, Devan?"

At the prompt to explain, he turned his entire body to face her. His lips were stretched into a toothy grin. "I got a football scholarship!" Grayson from across the table turned his blond head to face the excited boy. At the news, he too smiled, reaching a single fisted hand across the table for Devan to bump. "I'm so proud of you, man! I know how much it meant to you."

Alex winced, remembering the memory and the boyish joy in his features. He didn't deserve the possibility of death if Graysen was to do something reckless. Devan deserved a secure future and Alex knew that more than anything, but she still hesitated. Why? The door swung open, revealing the girl she had been waiting for. The blonde teenager strolled in through the door, slight smudges under her dark eyes.

The girl brushed past Alex, grabbing her apron and throwing herself into a chair. Something in the burgundy-haired girl told her to give the other teenager some space, yet she still walked forward. "Hey...." Her voice was soft, careful to not upset the girl.

Opening her eyes, the blonde looked up at Alex, waiting to hear what she had to say. Her body was shaking, her eyes skittish. "Uh, are you okay?" When the upset girl ignored the question, she pushed forward, "I'm sorry, I overheard your conversation the other day. Is it true your mom has a split personality?"

Eyes narrowing in rage, she sneered. "Why do you care?"

Alex froze, unsure of how to answer. Telling a complete stranger appeared to be a bad idea, but for a split second, Alex couldn't help but wonder if that was her best idea. To tell someone who couldn't use her bias to make Alex pick. Who couldn't turn them in. "My boyfriend has a split personality."

The girl's shot up from her seat next to the counter. "Did you turn him in?" Alex opened her mouth to speak, but the girl left no room for a response. "You have to turn him in, get him help. It will kill him, like it killed my mom."

Alex froze, taking a step back from the enraged girl. The split personality had killed her mom. What if Graysen... "I-I'm so sorry, I didn't realize." With a subtle nod of her head, the blonde stood up and strode to the front counter of the ice cream shop, ready to serve the oblivious customers.

"Graysen, can I come over?" Silence answered her. Looking down at the smartphone in her hand, she checked to see if the call had really gone through. It had. "Hello?"

"Yeah, you can." His voice was timid, untrusting of her motives. She could hear him shuffling around in the background, perhaps cleaning his house. "Why did you ask this time?"

Alex swallowed her embarrassment. Slowly placing the dish she had been washing back in the sink, she began to slip on her shoes. Placing her coat on her shoulders, a thought came to her. She knew that it wasn't one of her smartest ideas, but it could be fun. "Graysen... do you want to go swimming?"

His gasp could be heard across the phone. "What?"

She arrived at the lake, holding her coat closer to her shivering bikini-clad form. In the dark, the water shimmered. Sand squished beneath her bare feet and the silence seemed to envelop her whole. As she looked out at black water, a thought struck her. He could drown Devan out here. The thought began to swim inside her brain, causing her to pull out her phone to text Graysen to forget about it. Just as Alex had begun to type the text, a shadow cast across her vision. With air catching in her throat, she shot her head up to face the figure. Graysen was here. He stood in front of her, his light eyes staring down at her, taking in her outfit. His face was stone, his lips drawn into a shape closely resembling a straight line. Alex observed him, the way he stood, ready to flee. The way he watched, as if he was collecting data. Why did I decide to trust him? She watched the way his eyes had lightened with something closely resembling excitement. Is it because he looks like Devan? Alex looked at his arms, arms that she had come to recognize, but not because of Graysen. Because of Devan.

Becoming aware of her lack of clothing, she slowly moved her coat against her body tighter to hide her lack of clothing. Graysen's eyes didn't wander though. He still stared at her intently. The two of them stood at a standstill, watching each other. His gaze seemed to devour everything about her to the very individual hairs on her head. Before it could soak in and a blush cursed her, she dropped her coat behind her and slowly waded out into the water. The freezing water sent a chill through her slim body, though she passed it off as a thrill, not stopping to reconsider. As she slowly entered its dark depths, the water lapped up against her bare legs, seemingly pulling her in farther. Her eyes had glazed over, pulled into her own thoughts entirely. As if on instinct, her eyes shut, tuning out all around her as she continued to go farther. The more the water increased its hold on the girl, the less and less she felt, and the less she could tell that she could no longer breathe.