Lucas walked right into the nurse's office and laid me down on one of their beds. The nurse ran from her desk and into the room we were in to see what the matter was. Though Lucas had set me down, I still held onto him. I couldn't seem to let him go.

"Daisy, I'm going to be right back. I'm only going to tell the office that you're here and that I'm with you so we don't get in trouble for skipping. I'll have them call your mom. I'll be right back." He kissed my hand and squeezed it once, gently, before leaving the room.

"Now, what happened?" The nurse asked me, staring down into my face. I was silent. She took my temperature among other things since I didn't reply, and when she was done she stood back, her hands on the edge of the bed. "I need you to tell me, Hun."

I didn't know if I could tell her that I was in the pool and that someone had tried drowning me. Why would she believe me? In the state I was in, she would think I was overreacting.

I didn't know how long it had been before Lucas barreled through the door again. He came over to me, but looked at the nurse.

"Did you find out what's wrong?" He asked out of breath, and the nurse shook her head. He lowered his head down and whispered, "Tell me what happened to you."

Looking into his face, I could see that he had already formed an idea, but was hoping for me to deny it. He was praying that it wasn't true. He didn't want to face the unbearable truth of what he suspected.

"Ashlee--she tried to kill me. They-They tried drowning me--" My voice shook as I remember the water filling my mouth and nose. The surface of the water getting farther away as I was pulled under.

Lucas ran a hand through his hair, and exhaled. His hand was still on his head as he looked at me and then a look crossed over his face, one I had never seen before. Anger.

"That's it. I'm dealing with this, right now! They have gone way too far!" He tore from the room, the nurses door banging closed behind him. The nurse looked at me worriedly and began to sit me up.

"So... Do you think you coughed most of the water up? Do you feel alright?" I nodded and she patted my hand. "You're just scared mostly, huh?"

She had no idea how scared I was. The nurse wrapped a towel around me to dry me off and stayed there in case I needed anything else. Minutes later, Lucas came in through the door, holding the arm of Ashlee. He pushed her and she stumbled through the doorway. 

"What is this?" He demanded, looking at Ashlee and gesturing with a hand at me. "Why did you do this? Are you that keen on separating us, that you'd take the lengths to kill her?"

"It was only an accident--It was a joke that went wrong. I didn't know she was drowning!" Ashlee protested. She looked at me and her eyes were begging. "I'm so sorry! I know we don't like each other, but I would never try to kill you--"

"Why should either of us believe you?" Lucas hissed with tons of hatred. "I'm sick of this fighting. I'm sick of all of it! If I even see that you lay another finger on her, I swear that I will shove you into the pool and hold you under the water until--"

"Stop!" I yelled and the nurse seemed grateful for the fact everyone fell silent. She was standing to the side of the room, her hand placed over her heart, unable to form any words. "Please stop, Lucas. It's not worth it."

I didn't like this side of him. I didn't like the threats he was making. I didn't like the fiery look in his usual calm and gentle eyes.

"What are you talking about? You're worth everything." Lucas's voice instantly became gentle as he rushed to my side. He kissed my forehead, his eyes shining. "I'm not letting them to do this to you anymore. I won't allow it. You're not going to suffer because of me."

"Um, Ashlee, is it?" The nurse asked quickly, looking at Ashlee. She nodded to the nurse. "Okay, Ashlee... I think if you could retrieve Daisy's things from class and bring them here, that would be very kind of you."

"Your stuff is in the blue bag, right? In the open locker?" Ashlee asked me and I nodded. "I'll be right back with your stuff!"

Lucas, the nurse, and I all watched as she fled the room and then the nurse also left the room to return to her desk. Lucas turned back to me.

"Daisy, I want to stay with you. I don't feel like I'm... like I'm living when I'm around Lydia. But everything is real when I'm with you." That's when he sat himself down on my bed and gathered me up to him, towel and wet swimsuit and all. I finally noticed how damp his clothes were. And he didn't seem to care, or maybe he hadn't realized yet. "It's about time I told you everything."

"You don't have to. I just..." My whisper trailed off as I buried my face deeper into his shirt. I could hear the loud beating of his heart and feel the soft fibers of his scarf against my cheek. He was comforting and safe--I wanted to tell him to stay. "I want you to go before you get into too much trouble with Lydia. My mom will come by soon and I'll be fine."

"I'm staying. I'm not going anywhere until your mom gets here." He said stubbornly. "It doesn't matter what I do now. Ashlee will still tell Lydia I was here and I'll be in trouble anyway."

I pulled away from him and wrapped the towel around me tighter. "Um, by the way, thank you for the gift you gave me. I love it a lot and it's really beautiful--and thoughtful."

"I... you're welcome." He whispered, bringing up a hand to smooth my damp hair. "Daisy--I really think you should know... It wasn't my choice to go out with Lydia. A couple years ago, I spent a little time with her and my mom took it the wrong way and started to invite her over all the time. Lydia took that as a sign we were dating and told everyone, including her family. My mom was really happy about the idea of Lydia and I together...

My mom and I are close to poor. My dad died when I was six and left us with close to no money... Daisy, Lydia's family gives us a lot of money to live on and my mom's life is easier because of it, not counting the fact she thinks I'm happy with Lydia. I don't want to hurt my mom with the truth, but I love you so much it hurts me. I don't know what to do."

I pulled away a little and gazed at him. He stared back at me, his eyes sad and unblinking. I didn't know what to say. I couldn't give him advice, couldn't tell him he had to choose. My finger stroked his cheek lovingly, though a voice inside me said it was better to stay away from him. His eyes showed he felt the same conflicted feelings, but he slid a hand slowly behind my neck anyway. He started to lean down...

"Here's your things. Very sorry, again. It really was an accident." Ashlee said coming into the room and dropping my things beside the bed. Lucas and I sprung apart and her face gave in a little to her usual look of distaste as she stared at us. The bell sounded and after a quiet moment, she finally spun on her heel and left the room, calling back over her shoulder, "Have a nice afternoon... Blondie."

"I need to get dressed now..." I said quickly, getting off the bed, my head down. Lucas wrung his hands and turned, standing up from his spot on the bed.

"Yeah, um... I'll see you around, then." Lucas said. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

He left without another word and didn't look back. I shut the door behind him and dried myself off, pulling on my clothes. When I opened it back up again, I gratefully thanked the nurse for her help and went to my locker to grab the rest of my things before heading to the office.

My heart grew heavy again with every step I took. I could've managed to say something to Lucas. He obviously felt he was stuck in his situation and I did absolutely nothing to help. I was still caught up in my thoughts when my mom burst into the office.

"Daisy, Honey! Are you okay?" My mom exclaimed, "Oh, you don't look so well, my poor baby! Come on, let's get you home."

She opened the office door for me and I followed her out to the car. I got into the passenger seat and waited for my mom to get in and start the engine. Though my mom worked not too far from the school, I hated bothering her for anything. I wished I didn't have to wait until I was eighteen to drive, but it would be cheaper than if I had done it sooner.

"Your birthday isn't going very well, huh?" My mom said when we turned around the block. "I'll fix that when we get home."

"Mom, you should go back to work, I'll be fine while you're gone. I'll get some sleep and then we'll do some stuff when you get back. That's enough to make any day better." I said giving a small smile to my mom. She glanced at me long enough to smile back, a hint of worry in her eyes.

"You sure?"

"I'm sure, Mom."

When she left me at home, I barely had any sleep. Blankets of water washed behind my eyelids every time I closed them. I was drowning still--but it wasn't just water that washed over me. It was also sorrow.