It's no secret that Baker and I are dating. Everyone in school knows it. At first there was quite a bit of gossip surrounding the details of how we got together, but now everything has settled down. No one cares anymore. So what if one of the star players of the football team is dating Summer Lumen, School Smarty Pants? Old news.

Prom is just around the corner, and even though Baker hasn't asked me yet, I think, since we're dating, it's a given that we're going together. My mom and I have already made plans to go dress shopping with Beth and her mom, and I find myself getting excited at the idea of prom, something I never really gave much thought to before. But it's different when you have a date, and you know you have a date. When everyone else seems to know you're off the market as well. And that's what I think. Or at least, that's what I tell myself.

Until Ollie stops me in the hall one Friday afternoon after lunch, leaning confidently against a locker with a devilish smile on his face that makes me sick. I try not to look at him as I grab the books I need for my next class. "What do you want, Oliver?" I ask him scathingly, ignoring the nausea building in the pit of my stomach.

"Oliver, huh?" he says with a smirk. "What happened to Ollie?" I don't answer him. "Wanted to let you know I broke up with Gina MacIntyre," he continues, and I tense.

"Condolences," I say monotonously as I slam my locker door and keep on moving down the hall toward my next class. He follows me, and the hairs on my arms stand up, alerting of me of danger.

"Thanks," he says, running to catch up even though he's several inches taller than me. He grabs my arm, not hard, but in a way that sends a wave of anxiety rolling through me. "Hey, hold on a second. I wanted to talk to you."

My heart begins to race. Deep breaths, Summer. Deep, calming breaths. "About what?" I growl as I attempt to yank my arm away. His grip tightens. "What are you doing? Let me go!"

"Do you have a date for prom?" he asks me, and I seriously cannot believe this is happening. "Because if you don't, I was thinking—"

"Get your hands off my fucking girlfriend," Baker yells from across the hall, and relief crashes over me as he comes storming toward Ollie, fury blazing in his storm gray eyes. Ollie's grip tightens, and I wince as the two of them glare at each other. Baker's nostrils flare as he gets in Ollie's face and spits out, "I said... get your hands off my fucking girlfriend, you rat bastard."

The cocky smile widens on Ollie's lips as he releases me and steps closer to Baker, who doesn't budge. "I beat your ass once before, Scott," he whispers. "And I'll do it again."

This is too much for Baker, who shoves him so hard it knocks the smile right off Ollie's stupid face. Ollie stumbles back, surprised before he catches himself. But before he has a chance to speak again, Baker rushes forward, grabs Ollie by his shirt collar, and says, "You ever touch her again, and I'll blind you, you fuck. Leave her alone. Don't forget. I know what you really are. I saw you that night."

Ollie's face turns red as he snarls back, "Tough guy now, huh? Christ, how whipped are you? Surely her pussy can't be that goo—"

Baker's fist makes contact with Ollie's face, and I look away, too horrified to watch. This isn't happening. It can't be happening. A crowd of kids begins to form around the two boys as the fight picks up. Ollie throws a swing at Baker, hitting him in the mouth and busting his lip. Baker attacks and throws him down to the ground as I scream and search around, scanning the area for a teacher.

"Hey, hey," Mr. Wright says as he rushes forward a couple minutes later, forcing his way between the two boys and breaking up the fight. Ollie's nose is pouring blood like a broken faucet, but aside from the little cut above Baker's lip, he's barely hurt at all. His chest is heaving though, and I see the rage burning in his eyes, reddening his face. "You two, principals office! Now!"

Baker and Ollie glare at each other as the two of them begin walking over toward the principal's office, Mr. Wright following closely behind them to make sure they don't start fighting again. I want to throw up, and for a second I think I'm going to. My eyes check my watch. I'm already late for class. Might as well skip the whole thing. Before I have a chance to talk myself out of it, I run to the principal's office, and when I get there I see Mr. Wright telling the receptionist what happened.

When Baker sees me, his face hardens. "Go to class, Summer," he says firmly as Ollie holds an ice pack to the back of his neck and a towel to his gushing nose.

I shake my head. "No. I want to tell the principal what happened."

Baker closes his eyes and takes a breath. "I got this. Just get out of here. Go to class."

"This doesn't look good," I tell him as I gesture toward Ollie standing a few feet away. "Please, let me stay and—"

"Baker and Oliver," the principal calls a moment later, and I jump, startled at the sound of his firm voice. Our principal, Mr. Worthington, is a man in his mid to late 50s with a bald spot right in the center of his head and a pair of wireless glasses perched on the edge of his nose. His mustache ruffles as he says, "Get into my office, right now." Then his eyes fall to me, and his face falls a little. "Ms. Lumen? Is there something I can help you with."

Baker's eyes shoot to me, as if trying to silently demand me to go to class. I step forward. "Yes, sir. Please. I was part of this too. This fight. I know what happened."

His eyes widen in surprise. "You were part of the fight?" he asks, and I nod. He closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose before sighing and saying, "Okay, fine. Come on in." He looks at the receptionist and says, "Would you mind brining in a third chair? I only have two and—"

"I can stand, sir," Baker says quickly, and I can see he's still physically shaking from anger. God, I've never seen him so furious. "Please?"

Mr. Worthington looks like he doesn't quite know what to sigh. "Fine," he finally says with a sigh, and he steps aside to allow the three of us into his office. Ollie takes the seat directly across the Mr. Worthington, and I take the seat beside him. As promised, Baker stands, but he makes sure to stand directly behind me, his hand placed protectively on my right shoulder.

I have never been to the principal's office for something like this. I've never been in trouble in my whole life. Even now, as I sit across from the head of the school, I find myself shaking with nerves just a bit. Baker senses this, and he gives my shoulder a light, reassuring squeeze. I wonder if he's ever had to do this before. Then I remember what he said about how he's not a fighter, and guilt fills my soul. He fought Ollie because of me. I'm the reason here's here. So I have to figure out a way to get him out of this mess.

"So," Mr. Worthington says as he leans back in his seat, his mustache ruffling with each breath he takes. "What happened today? I must say, this is unlike all of you. So what's going on? What's the story?"

Before either of the boys have a chance to speak, I jump in and say, "Oliver asked me to prom, sir. And he knows Baker and I are dating, so—"

"The fight started because of Oliver asking you to prom?" Mr. Worthington asks, and I wince, knowing how bad that sounds.

I shake my head. "No, that's not...." I look up at Baker for help, but his eyes are closed, like he can't believe this is happening himself. I sigh and say, "It all started a couple years ago, actually. Oliver and I were dating. We broke up. Then we almost got back together, but things happened between us...." Ollie glares at me, and it gives me the strength needed to go on. "He tried to assault me, sir. He was drunk, and... no. He was drunk, and he did assault me. Sexually." I blush at the last word, and Baker gives me another reassuring squeeze.

Mr. Worthington sits up straighter in his chair, his eyes focused on Ollie now. For what it's worth, all the blood seems to have drained from Ollie's face. "Is this true?" he asks, his brown eyes staring Ollie down as if he's going to find the answer written on his face.

"It is," Baker cuts in, and Ollie glares at him. "It is true. Summer and I weren't together yet, but I witnessed it. I actually pulled her out of that situation. And then I took her home where she would be safe."

Mr. Worthington's mouth falls open. "So... that's what the fight was about?" he asks. "This alleged assault that took place two years ago?" He doesn't say it in a way that invalidates my experience. More like he's trying to piece it all together.

I shake my head. "Sort of. Baker and I started dating last summer. And so we're obviously planning on going to prom together. But Oliver seems to have missed the memo. He asked me just a bit ago, and when I tried to walk away he grabbed my arm." I show him my arm, and sure enough, there are already light bruise marks from where he squeezed. Baker sees them, and for a second I'm sure he's going to pounce on Ollie again. "Baker saw it, and he jumped in to protect me. That's how the fight started."

The principal nods his head. "Okay. And Oliver, what do you have to say about this?" he asks. "Are those your fingerprints on Ms. Lumen's arm?"

"Well, yeah," he says quickly. "But I didn't mean to hurt her. I was just trying to—"

"Mr. Scott. Ms. Lumen. You are both excused. Thank you for your time. If I need either of you any further, I will reach out."

Baker's mouth falls open in surprise, like he can't believe he got away with no punishment. I'm stunned as well, and for a moment the two of us just stand in silence staring at our principal. It's not until he gestures toward the door that we know we're truly being dismissed. Without another word, the two of us turn and walk out of the office together, choosing to stay silent until we get in the hallway.

Once we're alone, I lean against one of the lockers and let out a sigh. "God, that was close. I really thought you were going to be suspended or—"

"Why did you do that?" he asks, and when I look at him I see he's still angry. "Why did you do that, Summer?" he repeats, and I blink in shock.

"Do what?" I ask, confused.

"Why did you tell him about the party that night?" he snaps, and I cringe. "You didn't have to do that. I told you I had everything under control. I didn't need your help there."

"You didn't need my help?" I say, my chest burning with a quiet fury. "Really, Baker? Because you were about ten seconds away from getting suspended. Or worse. I mean, did you see what you did to Ollie? And look at you! Barely a scratch! If I hadn't told him what really happened—"

"Then I would've gotten suspended, and I would've dealt with it," he yells, and my jaw drops. "You don't have to come to my rescue all the time, Summer! I don't need to be saved!"

I can't believe this. "Are you fucking kidding me?" I ask angrily. "You should be thanking me. And besides, you wouldn't have even been in there in the first place if you hadn't come to my rescue! So you can just fuck off with the macho bullshit, Baker, because I am not here for it."

He stands there staring at me for a second, his nostrils flaring with rage. Then, in the blink of an eye, he crumbles. His face falls, and I see his eyes glaze over with unreleased tears. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just... I've never hit anyone before. Never. But when I saw him touching you, I just sort of... snapped. And I... I don't want to be like him, Summer."

My breath catches in my throat as I walk over and wrap my arms around him. He buries his face in my shoulder, and I think I hear a small sob as he places his cracked knuckles on my waist. "Shh, Baker. It's okay."

"It's not okay," he cries. "It's not. It's bad enough I look like him. But if I start acting like him... I can't. And what if it goes on my record? How am I going to get guardianship of Ian? What if the court denies me? God, Summer, that was so stupid. I can't be doing shit like that. I can't."

I nod my head. "No, you can't. But, Baker, it's going to be okay. He released us. We're not in trouble. You are not in trouble. And what you did, you did out of love. You're nothing like him, okay? Nothing."

He sniffs and nods his head against me. "I'm sorry I was angry at you," he whispers as he pulls away and caresses my cheek with the back of his hand. "That just scared me. Those feelings... it was so new. I haven't felt that way since... since that night, you know? At the party. I mean, I could've lived with him asking you to prom. But seeing him touch you...."

"I know," I whisper back. Then I smirk a little as I say, "But you know, if you had just asked me to prom, he probably wouldn't have even tried to begin with. So this is on you."

He cracks a small smile. "Sorry, I didn't know I had to ask. I just assumed, since we're dating and everything, that we would go together."

I poke him softly in the chest. "Well, you know what they say about assuming," I say teasingly.

A laugh escapes his lips as he pulls me closer. "Makes an ass out of you and me. All right, all right. Summer Lumen, do you want to go to prom with me?"

I gasp as I pull away, playfully offended. "Really? That's it? That's all I get after all that? Just, 'do you want to go to prom with me'?"

He groans and gets to his knees, causing a blush to form against my cheeks. "Summer Lumen, love of my life," he says softly, and even though I know he's joking with me, his words still send me spinning. "Would you do me the absolute honor of accompanying me to prom this year?"

I quirk my lips to the side, as if I'm considering the question. "Hmm... well, I don't know. I'll have to check my dance card and all that." He makes a face, and I giggle before rolling my eyes. "Yes, weirdo. I'll go to prom with you. Now get back up here. If anyone saw you right now they'd think you were proposing marriage or something."

He laughs as he gets back to his feet and presses his lips against mine. I could get lost in the kiss, but we're already super late for class, and I don't know how long our passes from the receptionist are going to hold. When I pull away, he smiles and says, "Would that be such a bad thing?"

"Would what be such a bad thing?" I ask, still a little dazed from the kiss.

"If I was proposing marriage?" he asks as his fingers play with the ends of my hair.

My heart comes to a full stop before dropping into the pit of my stomach. Marriage? He's kidding. We're only teenagers. "Baker, come on," I say, trying to cover the awkward question with a laugh. His face falls, and I can tell he's a little hurt by my reaction. I sigh and say, "We haven't even graduated high school. Can we just... you know... take things one step at a time? Not leap to the top of the landing?"

"Sure," he replies, smiling in a way that doesn't quite meet his eyes. "You're right. Baby steps."

I nod. "Baby steps. Yes." We stand in silence for a few too many seconds as I think of something to say. "Um... we should get to class. Before we get in trouble again."

"Yeah," he replies, taking a step back. "Yeah, okay. Thanks for... um... helping me out in there. You didn't have to, but... but I do appreciate it."

"Yeah," I say back. "Yeah, of course. And, you know... thanks for coming to my rescue. Again."

Now he really does smile. "You're welcome. I'll see you later, right?" he asks, and I nod my head. "Okay." He walks forward and gives me one more quick kiss. "Love you."

"Love you too," I reply with a sigh, and a moment later we're going down different halls toward our separate classrooms. We don't have any afternoon classes together, and for once I'm grateful for this. His question about marriage has me feeling a little overwhelmed. I haven't even thought that far ahead, and I'm a planner. I can hardly brush my teeth without making sure it's scheduled ahead of time. So the fact that he's thinking so far ahead... I can't tell if it scares me or excites me. And despite the fact that I shut the conversation down before it could really begin, I find that I can't stop thinking about it for the rest of the day, wondering what being Mrs. Scott would actually be like. Dreaming of a future that's beyond any of my current plans.

Author's Note:
Some big conversations happening in this chapter. What do you all think? Has Baker lost his mind to be thinking of marriage when they're so young? Let me know in the comments! Next chapter coming as soon as I can write it. Stay safe and healthy until then, my dears!
XOXO,
~Aly