"Mom…" I tried not to cry. Her eyes were closed and she was so white, as white as her nightgown—but no. It was red now. All of it was covered in blood.

My cheeks were wet and I raised a hand there. I couldn't have—oh—I was crying. Those were tears, I wiped them off roughly. She couldn't see me cry. She'd get mad.

Oh god.

"Mom." I couldn't leave her, but she wasn't answering. Then I looked back to the hallway. Was dad awake? I should go to him, but my knees were knocking against each other. Because I couldn't stand, I fell to the ground. My knees touched the blood now… oh god…I couldn't stop crying. She wouldn't want me to make any sound. She never wanted me to make a sound, but this…I tried crawling to her.

"Mom…"

"Hey!"

Mason was crouched on top the bed, on top of me. His legs straddled me as his head was bent low, eye level to me. He'd grown pale, but when I gasped, he visibly relaxed. He didn't move from my lap, his head fell low to my chest and his hands clasped my waist. His thumbs rubbed back and forth, a fresh set of tingles went through me. As he pressed a kiss to the dip between my br**sts, his shoulders shook.

I lifted my hands there. Was he laughing?

No. As I bit my lip, confused at what had happened, he lifted his head again. His concern was evident as he lifted a hand to run his finger over my lip and cheek. Then he cupped my face again and breathed out, "Where did you go? I almost crapped my pants, Sam."

I let go of a long breath. As it rushed past my lips, my insides clenched together. The horror from that night was back. I couldn't get it out of me. I had forgotten it, pushed it down, and numbed myself, but it was back.

"Hey, hey," Mason soothed in a quiet tone. He pressed his soft lips to my forehead. "What's wrong? What's happening?"

I couldn't tell him. I hadn't told anyone, not even David. He should've been told long ago.

"Sam!"

I cried out, still held prisoner by those memories, but then I shook my head. My hands were trembling.

"What's wrong? Tell me. Please."

Everything was quaking in me, my legs jerked against his; I couldn't lift my arms because they were shaking so much. I knew my voice was going to break so I kept quiet and laid my head against his chest. I couldn't do anything. I waited, hoping he would let it go. I couldn't tell him, and after awhile his arms swept around me again. He lifted me above the sheets and curled me into his lap.

It was going to be okay. He was going to push that nightmare aside, he always did.

He murmured, "I have no idea what just happened, but you scared the shit out of me. You're going to have to tell me, Sam. Sometime, you're going to have to tell me."

But not today, not yet.

I closed my eyes and I burrowed even further against his chest. I wanted to curl into a ball and disappear.

"Sam, do you hear me?"

I nodded as I clung to him.

Then he relaxed, slowly, as he sank down into the bed. The memory was still with me, I felt its dirtiness on me as if I were actually back in that bathroom again so I tried to concentrate as I told myself I wasn't there. Her blood wasn't all over me and I was with Mason, I was safe. After awhile, a long while, my heart slowed to a regular pace, and then exhaustion kicked in. Mason he pulled the blankets back over us.

The sound of the party still sounded, but in his arms, as his warmth sheltered me, I didn't really hear anyone else. It was just him and me.

It was early in the morning when I woke, but it didn't matter. The security cameras were up, the code had been keyed in. I was screwed. Analise would know where I'd been since she knew I would never spend the night with Adam Quinn.

Adam.

I sighed. Crap. What was I going to do about him?

Mason shifted in the bed. His arm lifted as he reached for me, but instead of letting him pull me back down, I sat up on the edge of the bed. Everything seemed harsh as I slipped away from the warmth of the blankets. The morning seemed brighter than normal, and it was damn cold.

I didn't slide back under the covers. I couldn't close my eyes and burrow into him anymore. When he rolled back over and continued sleeping, I decided that this was the day everything either went to shit or everything went fine.

With my mother, everything was probably going to go to shit.

I ducked inside the shower before I dressed and headed out. I hoped to find someone still awake downstairs that could give me a ride back home, but if not then I would wake Mason. I just didn't want to. If he took me home, he would come inside and the confrontation would be worse.

My hair was wet and I had Heather's clothes in a bag, grateful that Mason took some of my clothes with him to Nate's earlier. I thought his foresight had been ludicrous, but he hadn't. He was convinced I would be there sooner rather than later—he'd been right on two occasions already.

When I slipped from the room, I didn't look at Mason. I couldn't or I would've crawled back with him.

People were everywhere. Some had fallen asleep near the stairs, a few at the bottom of the stairs. As I circled around the set of couches on one side of the house, I saw a lot of people I didn't recognize. When I crossed over the center area and bypassed the square set of couches there, there were a few from my school. Then I smelled the coffee and a big smile came over me.

That smell would pull me anywhere, but then I turned around. "Oh."

Adam gave me a sheepish wave. "Hey."

My stomach dropped. "Morning."

He gestured to the coffee pot and slid his hands into his front pockets. The green polo and pants were wrinkled.

When I glanced around to see who else was awake, Adam misunderstood. "It's six in the morning."

"You stayed here last night?"

Of course, he had. I flushed at the stupid question.

He hesitated before he surged forward a step. Uncertainty was all over him as he cleared his throat, "Hey, uh, they're wrong, you know. I don't like them. I almost hate them, but not you. I don't want to hurt you. And I really meant it when I said I want to be friends. I…I told you about my dad, Sam."

I didn't move. I didn't say a thing, but I waited. He had something to say so I would listen…I also needed a ride home…

"I apologized for what I did and I came clean to Becky long ago." He jerked a tight shoulder up in a shrug. "She hasn't come to you, even though I told her that I came clean to you. That's on her; I'm more worried about my friendship with you. I do care about you and yeah, it might not be in the strictly platonic way, but I'm above that…or I'm trying to be above that. I'd never hurt you and I know hurting him would be hurting you too. I'd never sue. I don't want Mason and Logan to get between our friendship. I really do want to be your friend."