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Dedication: Keliamp21 for being a supporter of all my stories! Thank you for your continuous voting and commenting. I really appreciate it. :)

Recap:

I swallowed uneasily. Hayden seemed unfazed as he stepped back, leaning against the locker door, folding his arms across his chest. His usual, tense self was back. The skin on his jaw was taunt as he clenched it.

My legs felt like lead as I walked out the doorway, my heart feeling heavy in my chest.

I was in serious trouble.

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Climbing out of the pool, I padded over the wet cement, my body dripping.

"Not your best, Connaway," Ashton sneers haughtily, making my eyes narrow into thin slits as I glare at him, my vision glowing red. If he isn't careful, I am going to drag him into the pool and hold his stupidly handsome head under the water.

Of course I wasn't swimming my best. He "had a word" to Hayden and now Hayden is nowhere to be seen. Great. It wasn't Mia I should have been afraid of, it was Ashton.

Goosebumps scattered across my skin as I hug my arms to myself.

"To be on this team, you need to be performing your best at all times," he snaps, his eyes trained on me. "No matter what is going on in your life, when you're swimming, it's a top priority. Have I made myself clear?"

I glower down at the ground, shivering from the harsh cold, my teeth gritted.

"Connaway?"

"For fuck sake," I yell, throwing my hands up. "Leave me alone, would you?"

I stomp past him, ignoring the shocked stares of my teammates. I storm into the locker room and towel off, shaking angrily.

"My office, now," Ashton barks as he walks into the locker room.

"No."

"Connaway, I will pull you from this team," he warns.

My main concern right now is Hayden.

I dress and ignore the stares and whispers from everyone as I exit, going in the opposite direction of Coach Brennon's office. I hurry out to the car park, half-hoping to see his black ute. I scramble to get my phone, dialling his number. Straight to voice message.

"Fuck," I hiss, trying again.

Running an agitated hand through my wet-drenched hair, I feel an ache throb in my forehead. I sped-walked home, slamming the front door behind me with far too much aggression. I toss my bag onto the kitchen floor, before leaning over the kitchen sink, slowing down my breathing.

Ashton can't toy with me about Hayden. My emotions are far too strong.

After calming myself down, a tiny bit, I ring Harvey.

"Hello?" he chirps.

"Hang with me tonight," I demand. "Please."

"I have a date night with Caitlyn. Raincheck?"

I scrunch my face up in anger, before smoothing it out.

"Yeah, you can raincheck with her. I'll hold."

He chuckles, the sound only making me more annoyed. "I love you but I have to hang with my girl tonight. Tomorrow?"

I blow out a breath in frustration. "Fine."

"Sorry."

"You know Harvey, Thursday's used to be our nights," I snap, before hanging up.

I feel like pegging my phone across the room, but I control myself.

Still feeling cold from my swim, I move upstairs to have a warm shower. Showers always make me feel better.

I decide I'm not going to go over to Hayden's house. I can't just show up unannounced all the time. I have to distract myself from my own thoughts for a while. I had just grabbed a jar of nutella and was about to set up Netflix, when I hear someone knock at my door.

I cringe. The only person who knocks that I know is Ashton. If he is at my door, I'm going to go mental.

After hearing the knocking again, I sigh, getting to my feet.

When I swing the door open, Hayden is standing there, a pained expression on his face. His eyes wet as he stares at me, his face expressing such vulnerability that it made my heart clench.

"Hayden," I whisper. "What happened?"

"I just need you," he chokes out.

"Come here."

I pull him towards me and wrap my arms around him. This hug is different from our others. Usually, my head was snuggled into his chest, with his big, warm arms around my body. This time, I was the one holding him.

After a few moments, I pull back. A tear slides down his cheek and I have possibly gone into shock at the sight.

Hayden Cameron is crying.

I swipe my thumb across his cheek, collecting his tear. Surely if Ashton had told him, he wouldn't be here, crying... He would be punching holes in the walls, maybe, but definitely not crying.

"Tell me what happened," I murmur softly.

"My dad," he chokes, his voice breaking. "He rang me."

Considering I don't know anything about Hayden's father, I cluelessly stare at him. 

"Is that quite uncommon?"

He groans as if having forgotten I didn't know.

I follow him up the stairs and into my room. He sprawls out his long frame across my bed. He pats the spot beside him. I crawl to his side and rest my head on his chest as he hugs me to him.

"Can we just sit here and not talk for a while?"

"Sure."

"I have a lot on my mind."

"I get that. What do you want to watch?"

"Anything." he sighs, closing his eyes, resting his head back.

Biting my lip softly, I lazily search through Netflix, trying to find a comedy we could watch.

"What did Coach Brennon say to you?" I ask after a while, slowly wringing my fingers together nervously.

"Oh, that was good news actually," he mumbles. "He told me a scout from the University of Sydney contacted him. He wants to come to watch me at our next comp."

"Oh wow, that's amazing!"

"Yeah, I went to call mum and tell her the good news, but he rang," his voice turns bitter at the mention of his father. "That changed things pretty quickly."

"Did you answer?"

"Hmm?" he asks sleepily.

"Did you answer the call from your dad?"

"Oh," he replies softly, letting out a sigh. "No, I didn't accept--no."

"Okay."

"Thanks for being here and just... yeah," he pushes me off of him and props himself onto his elbow. I lay down on my back as he hovers over me. He drags his fingers through my still-damp hair.

"That's okay."

"Grace," he pauses for a beat, as if trying to find the right words. "I want to be with you."

"You are with me."

"As in, you be my girlfriend..." he trails off.

A slow smile spreads across my face. "Aw."

"Well?" he presses, tangling his fingers in my hair.

"I guess so, yeah," I tease even though my cheeks are feeling hot and it feels like a bag of butterflies have been released inside my stomach.

"Good," he leans down and presses his lips to mine softly.

He shifts so that his hard, lean body presses into mine. He deepens the kiss, his hand tracing the curve line of my body, as my fingers slide underneath his shirt, feeling his hard muscles.

"Make me forget," he whispers against my lips, his warm hands gripping me.

He takes my bottom lip in between his own and sucks. A startled gasp leaves me. I feel his lips curve into a smirk as he nips at my lip with his teeth, before releasing it. Lowering his head, he moves to my neck, my ultimate weak spot. He bites me softly and I arch my back, wanting to get closer to him.

Suddenly, his phone begins blaring. He let out a deep sigh, pushing himself off me. He withdraws his phone from his pocket and sends a withering glare down at the screen.

"You've got to be kidding."

"Your dad?" I ask softly, a little breathless as I reel into sitting position.

"The one and only," he replies through gritted teeth, before declining. He exhales deeply, standing up. "That asshole had to ruin the moment."

"It's okay."

He lets out a breath, running a hand through his hair. "Do you have any food?"

"Yeah," I laugh. "Go help yourself."

"Thanks," he forces a smile onto his face before loping out of the room.

Questions upon questions swirled in my mind. I am so curious.

A few moments later, Hayden's phone began ringing again.

My fingers reach for it before my mind processes what I am doing. I don't know what I planned to say but my fingers slide across the screen as I answer.

Before I can speak, an automated voice reached my ears.

"A prisoner from Silverwater Prison is trying to contact you. Do you accept the charges?"

My eyes widen as the phone slides from my hand.

What the hell did I just do?

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Sorry about the short chapter but I felt it was important in the story line. So, did you any of you expect Hayden's father to be in prison? What do you think he's in there for?

Did anyone else scream when Hayden asked her out, or was that just me? ;)

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