Isaac looked over at him. "Tay? What's wrong, bud?"

Taylor looked over at his brother and shook his head. "It's nothing." He grabbed his backpack and unzipped it, pulling out a picture of him and Ashley at an amusment park he took her to the week before he left for Europe. She had her arms around his waist, staring up at him with her green eyes, a beautiful smile on her face. It was one of Taylor's happiest memories. It was the only picture he had of her. I wonder if Zac has any of Ashley and Dawn together. He looked over and noticed Zac sound asleep, snoring softly. Taylor sighed and returned his gaze to the picture.

"Problems in Paridice?" Isaac asked, grinning.

"Shut up, Ike." Taylor snapped, not taking his eyes off the girl in the picture. He traced his thumb over the paper version of the girl that he loved...the girl he was afriad he was losing.

"Jamie, why can't you just tell me what it is? Or give it to me tomorrow." Ashley whined.

Jamie grinned. "Because I want you to have it tonight."

Ashley crinkled her nose. She noticed for the first time he had a small amount of alcohol on his breath. Oh God! He's been drinking again. "Jamie, I think I better go home now. I mean I have cheerleading practice tomorrow and I need to get some sleep."

"Shut up!" Jamie yelled suddenly. He coughed and lowered his voice. "I'll take you home later."

Ashley bit her lip and kept quiet. she slumpped lower in her seat. I shouldn't be here. I should be at home, with Taylor.

Jamie pulled into his driveway and killed the engine. "Get out and come inside." he instructed her. When she hesitated, he got out and slammed his door. He roughly opened her door and pulled her out by the back of her neck. "I said get out!"

"Jamie! Stop! That hurts!" She cried. Oh God, not again.

Jamie kept a tight grip on her neck. He unlocked the door and pulled her inside. He relocked the door, letting go of her.

Ashley rubbed the back of her neck and winced.

"Go sit on the couch and I'll be right back." Jamie walked upstairs. "Don't move."

Ashley walked into the bathroom and lifted her hair. She took her compact mirror out of her pocket and held it up so she could look at her neck. It was slowly turning black and blue. She heard Jamie walk down the stairs and call her name. She reached over and flushed the toliet. She waited a few seconds and put her compact back into her pocket. She washed her hands then opened the door and stepped out.

"What were you doing?" he demanded. He had gotten a beer from the kitchen while waiting for her.

"I had to go to the bathroom." she whispered and sat down on the couch.

"Oh." Jamie sat down beside her and took a big gulp of his beer. "Want some?"

"N..No thanks." she replied. "So what did you want to show me?"

Jamie didn't answer until he finished his beer. He sat the now empty can down on the coffee table in front of them. "This," he whispered as he moved closer. He pinned her arms to the side and pressed his mouth against hers. Hard. He moved himself on top of her.

Ashley squirmed under his weight. She tried to push him off of her, but he was too heavy. She tried to cry out but his mouth was pressed so hard against hers that she couldn't. She quirmed even more when she felt him moving his hand up her skirt. "Jam-ie!" she managed to get out. "Please stop!"

He didn't listen. He reached for the zipper on his kakhis and pulled it down. He exposed himself through his boxers and started to work on her underwear.

Ashley's eyes widened. She tried to scream as loud as she could, but he held one of this hands over her mouth tightly.

"Shut the fuck up!" he screamed.

Tears cascaded down her face as she felt his hand slip inside her underwear. A picture of Taylor popped into her head. His beautiful bright blue eyes, loving smile, his strong arms. The arms that were around her now was not Taylor's. And the eyes were not as joyful and loving as his. "Get off me! I have a boyfriend!"

With all the remaining stregenth she had left, she kneed him as hard as she could and pushed him off her and jumped up.

"God damnit you little whore!" He grabbed her arm and slapped her across the face. "Don't you ever kick me again!"

Ashley touched her cheek. There was blood on it from where his ring had cut her. "Don't ever come near me again." she turned and ran out of the house.

Dawn paced around her room. She was worried. Ashley's curfew was twelve thirty. It was now reaching one in the morning. Suddenly pain shot through her leg. She fell on the bed and paged Zac. He called back five minutes later.

"Dawn? It's almost one in the morning. What's going on?" Zac asked, concerned.

"It's Ashley." Dawn said, rubbing her leg.

"What's wrong with Ashley?" Zac asked yawned.

"I think she's hurt."

Ashley ran all the way home. She quietly walked up the stairs and sliently cursed when she saw Dawn's light was still on. She quickly wiped the tears off her face and went into her room. She undressed and noticed the blood in her underwear. "Shit." she murmured. She tossed her clothes in the cornor and got into her shower.

"Dawn is Ashley home yet?" Taylor asked after stealing the phone away from Zac. "Zac said something was wrong with Ashley."

"I'm not sure. Hang on." she opened her door and looked across the hall. Ashley's light was on. Oh thank God, she thought. "Yeah she's home."

Taylor breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. I have to go. Tell her to call me when she wakes up tomorrow."

"Okay. Bye Tay."

"Bye."

Dawn got up and walked into her sister's room. She could hear the shower going through the bathroom door. She saw Ashley's clothes laying in a pile in the cornor of the floor. She picked them and started to fold them when she noticed the bloody pair of underwear and Ashley brand new skirt was ripped. Suddenly she remembered the pain in her leg from earlier. Oh God, She pouned on the bathroom door.

Ashley opened the bathroom door a few minutes later, a towel wrapped around her. "Dawn?"

"What happened at Jamie's tonight?" her sister asked frantically.

Ashley's eyes were filled with pain, but she frowned. "Nothing. I don't want to talk about it. Now, please leave so I can get dressed and go to bed." she quickly ushered her sister out of her room and locked the door. She grabbed her dirty clothes and toosed them into the bathroom clothes basket. She grabbed her clothes she would be wearing to bed and put on a maxi. She jumped into bed and pulled the covers to her chin. She grabbed Taybear, the teddybear Taylor had won for her at an amusement park three years ago and hugged him tight. She reached over anf turned off the light, and cried herself to sleep.