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shouts.
    Dax looks like he’s about to lose his shit. Both girls are holding on to him with their faces buried in his shirt. They are afraid to look, while I can’t look away.
    Jake is always the leader, always the one in control, so to see him lying there, clinging to life, so helpless, isn’t possible. This cannot be happening. We were just together, just holding hands.
    Cam is pacing, pulling at his hair like he does when he is stressed. Then he kneels down next to Jake so he is up by his head while the paramedics work feverishly.
    “Fight, Jake! You need to fight, dammit! Fight!” he yells. It’s earth shattering to hear him so desperate.
    Just as quickly, I am pulled away. I’m not sure by what, but I feel hands press on my neck, unfamiliar hands.
    Someone yells, “We’re gonna need another ambulance.”
    Then I hear someone else say, “He’s in bad shape.”
    Who? Jake? Marcus? Who is in bad shape? Why can’t I see them anymore?
    And then there is silence again. Warm, inviting silence. I choose to go there. No stress, no worries about anyone. It’s calm, peaceful.

 
     
     
    Chapter Four
    Three months ago – December
     
    I shove my books into my locker, grateful that it is Friday. We have cheer practice, but I know Coach will go easy on us since we have a game tonight.
    “Hey, D.” I hear as hands flip under my skirt, hands I don’t recognize. Hands that are now caressing my butt, touching my underwear.
    I clench my fist and start to shout, “What the hel—” as I turn around. But before I can get the words out, there is a blur of motion, and the guy who was touching me is slammed against the lockers behind us.
    Jake is holding him up by the collar of his shirt. The noise his body makes when it slams into the lockers is a deafening, bone crunching sound.
    “What exactly do you think you’re doing?” Jake tightens his grip on Joel’s shirt.
    “Sorry, man, I was just saying hi.” Joel is dangling at least a foot off the ground as Jake continues to press him against the lockers.
    “Next time, say it with your mouth and not with your hands,” Jake retorts, tightening his grip even more.
    “Dude, that’s a little tight.” Joel coughs as he gasps for air.
    “Good. Remember how this feels, because if I see you touch her again, I will do much worse.” Jake pushes him harder into the metal lockers and raises him up higher for extra emphasis. Then, as soon as he lets go, Joel collapses to floor, gasping for air. “She has a boyfriend, asshole!” Jake shouts in his face as Joel tries to regulate his breathing.
    “Yeah, well, it’s not you, so what do you care?” Joel says as he pulls himself up off the ground. I’m impressed by the balls this guy has after what Jake just did to him.
    “What did you say to me?” Jake asks calmly, inches from Joel’s face.
    I know this calm Jake, and it’s not good. This is the calm before the storm. Joel knows he is playing with fire. Jake’s reputation is well known. He is not someone you mess with … ever. Not to mention, Joel is about four tiers below him on the social ladder, so this is like social suicide.
    Marcus walks up just in time with Dax right behind him. Marcus instantly wedges his way between the two of them, and I see relief wash over Joel.
    “What are you doing?” Marc’s eyes are locked on Jake as he pushes Joel back into the lockers with his other hand. “You know Coach won’t let you play.” He doesn’t need to finish that sentence.
    Dax pulls Jake back to calm him down while Marcus takes care of Joel. They are like a well-oiled machine, a perfectly choreographed play on the court, even now operating as a team. They know exactly when one should push and the other should pull. They know how to help each other.
    My eyes finally lock with Jake’s, and he gives me the tiniest smile. There is something about the look in his eyes, his smile. Things have been different with us since the night in the tree house, but what? I can’t