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Dedication: -November for sending in the awesome cover! Thank you so much! <3

Recap:

"It's okay, I'm here," he told me, grabbing me and lifting my body. He hugged me to him.

I felt myself crying as he carried me down the stairs. My cries drowned out his heavy breathing as he placed me in his car.

"Stay with me, Grace," he urged, gripping my shoulder as he started the car. "Stay with me."

Those were the last words I heard, before I blacked out.

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The first sense to come back to me is hearing.

My body is motionless but my mind starts whirring away. Gradually, things around me get louder.

"She had sleeping pills in her system, Dr Connaway," I hear an unfamiliar female voice say. "Is there any reason why she would have taken four times the recommended amount?"

I fade in and out of focus when I hearmum's hushed reply, saying something about a situation at school and that I've never done anything like that before.

A crackly groan emits from me before I can stop it.

"Grace, honey?" I hear mum say, her fingers pressing against my shoulder. Another strange sound came froms my throat before my heavy eyes finally open. I squint around the bright room, trying to focus on my mother's concerned eyes.

Continuing to make weird, unnatural noises, my mother frowns.

She springs to her feet and I distantly hear water running, before the bed dips beside me.

"Here, drink this," she instructs, passing me a plastic cup.

Slowly, my arm feeling like lead, I lift it, only to feel a ripe, burning feeling shoot through it. A strangled scream leaves my lips at both the pain and the physical sight of seeing my arm in a cast.

"Don't freak out, you're okay," she says to me in a soothing voice. "All your muscles will be sore for a while."

She leans forward, lifting my hand and wrapping it around the cup. Tingles shoot through my arm but not as bad as the pain that my left side endured. Pushing my hand to my face, she forces my lips open and tilts the cup. The cold, delicious water feels amazing on my dry tongue. My throat burns as the water trickles down it.

After skulling three glasses and suddenly feeling a stomach ache form, mum pushes my hair back from my face.

"What do you remember?"

Running my now-moist tongue over my dry, cracked lips, I feel much better. I can finally form a coherent sentence.

"I'm really confused," I whisper and gingerly touch at my sore neck. "Am I at your work?"

She nods. "Yes."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure on the details," she says to me. "Hayden brought you in two days ago-"

"Two days?" I hoarsely exclaim.

"You've been in and out of consciousness, due to the stress and exhaustion your body faced and also due to the sleeping pills in your system," she explain in her doctor voice that she always uses with patients. "Why did you take them? Did someone force you to?"

"I just wanted to have a break," I hang my head, my eyes tearing up. "I wanted to sleep for a while and forget about everything."

"Because of the fight you had with Hayden?" she questions, the nurse hovering over her shoulder, listening.

"Yeah."

"Grace, you've had an accident of some sort. Did... Did Hayden attack you?"

"What? No, of course not," I immediately defend, looking at her like she is crazy as the memories of what happened to me crashing into my mind. Ashton. His vicious, drug-filled eyes. His strong hand as hitting me. His fingers wrapping around my throat. His harsh words as he screamed in my face. "He brought me in when I couldn't get hold of anyone. Why would you say that?"

"Well, you told me you two had a fight, you took sleeping pills which I've never seen you take, you have been attacked and Hayden is the only one who seems to know anything about it. He also had bruised and bloody knuckles so that didn't really make things look good for him."

I let out a frustrated groan. "That was because of our fight but he didn't punch me. Does it look like I've been punched?"

"Yes," she replies bluntly. "You have face lacerations here," she points and traces her finger lightly on the left side of my jaw. "Your bottom lip is cut open here," she continues, pointing towards the corner of my mouth. "You have distinct strangle marks, here," she lightly traces the part of my neck that hurts. "You've split you head open which required stitches and you've injured your left arm."

"Swimming career is over then," I state flatly.

"You will be fine, you just need to rest it. Hopefully you've only sprained your wrist, which is what caused it to swell. It could possibly have a fracture, which is why it's in a cast. We can't tell for sure until we x-ray it."

I nod slowly, finding that easier than talking.

"We needed to shave a bit of your hair, for the stitches," she says slowly.

"Oh God," I groan. "I'm rocking a bald patch now?"

The corners of her mouth twitch. "Yes, but it's not that noticeable. You won't notice it, your hair is so thick and long, you'll be able to cover it easily."

I nod, still not too happy about it but there's not much that can be done now.

"Grace, I need you to be honest. I know you really like Hayden, but did he hurt you?"

"Ugh," I groan in exasperation. "No. If he did, I would just tell you."

She bites her lip, looking unconvinced. "Why are his hands beat up?"

"Because they are," I reply vaguely, not wanting to tell her about his temper tantrum and hitting his beloved ute. "Why would he bring me here if he's the one who attacked me?"

"To make himself look innocent," she replies back without hesitation.

An unsettled feeling sinks in my stomach I stare at mum.

"Where is he?"

"I had him arrested." 

"What!?" I exclaims, my throat so sore and overwhelmed from talking. "What for?"

"I didn't know if he was responsible for hurting you or not, Grace."

Exhaling deeply through my nose, I glare up at the ceiling. "I can't believe this has happened. Is this going on his record?"

"No, I haven't pressed any charges. I wanted to talk to you first."

"Ring the police and let him go! He is not the one who hurt me, I promise. He saved me."

"Who did then?" she presses. "Who hurt you?"

I clamp my lips together, trying to think. Should I turn Ashton in? It would be the smart thing to do. He wasn't in his right mind, surely he wouldn't have hurt me if he hadn't been under the influence.

Wait, why am I defending him? He assaulted me.

But then I'll have to explain everything...

"Ashton Brennon," I whisper so quietly that I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't hear me. "The swim coach at school."

Her lips part as her eyes widen. "Ashton? Why on earth...?"

Tears prick at my eyes. "I had... I had a fling with him at the start of the year. It was so stupid, I know. I just... felt so lonely and he was kind to me... it all happened so fast. He's tried to get back with me a couple times and I've said no... and now that I'm with Hayden, he hates me and apparently it's my fault all this stuff happened to him. He's just nuts, I suppose. I'm not the first girl either... there was another one he was with and she left the school because people found out. I didn't know that at the time, of course."

I almost face-palm myself when I realise that I'm talking to my mother who is dating the said girl's father.

"Wait a minute," she looks baffled. "You and your swim coach?"

"It was months ago, mum," I say to her, as if that would make all the difference.

"Wait," she repeats. "This story sounds familiar..."

"Yeah, Carrie was the other girl."

"You know Carrie?" she asks, her eyebrows raising. "Justin's daughter?"

"Yeah, you have no idea."

"I haven't met her yet, but I've heard a lot about her," mum tells me.

"She's like my twin, mum. She used to go to Byron Elite. She used to date Hayden. She had a fling with Ashton. She swam... It's kind of ridiculous how similar we are, actually."

"Why am I only hearing about all this now?" she questions, furrowing her eyebrows together.

"You're never home," I reply weakly, quickly running out of strength. "How am I supposed to tell you when you're never home?"

Squeezing her eyes shut, she places her head in her hands. "My God."

"Carrie and Ashton have still been seeing each other, FYI," I tell her. "Just in case you want to mention that to Justin so she doesn't have the same fate I did."

"He's a child predator," she murmurs. "I can't believe it."

I roll my eyes. "Mum, I was old enough to make my own decisions. I am just as guilty as he is."

"Did you have sex with him?" she bluntly asks.

"No, thank God."

She let out a visible breath of relief. "Good. He wouldn't want to be charged with assault and rape."

"Mum! God, don't use the R-word! He was never horrible when we were... hooking up. He was just like a regular guy."

"But he's not a regular guy, Grace," she snaps irritably. "He's your swim coach!"

"Is he? I had no idea," I retort sarcastically.

"This is a lot to take in."

"Well, while you're processing it all, can you get them to release Hayden from custody?"

"I don't know Grace, I still don't know the whole story..."

"Mum!" I burst, my throat on fire. "He had nothing to do with it. His hands are bloody because he found out about me and Ashton and he punched his car window. He didn't lay a finger on me, he never would. Oh and he punched a locker as well, but again, not me or anyone else, okay? He drove me to hospital, even though he wanted nothing to do with me and how does he get repaid? By you sending him to lock up. For two days? Jeeze mum, way to ruin the last chance I ever had with getting him to forgive me."

Her eyebrows raise at my rant. "Okay, okay! I'll go make the call."

"Thank you!" I say to her, a little annoyed it took me that long to convince her.

I love that she is so fiercely protective of me and wants to do the right thing, but I feel so terrible for Hayden getting caught up in all the mess.

"Look, try and get some rest and I'll sort out the Hayden situation, okay? I promise."

"I'm not going to be able to sleep until I know Hayden is safe and out of lock up," I admit.

"Grace," she exhales.

"Got any sleeping pills?" I joke. She gives me a flat, deadpan stare. "What, too soon?"

A small smile breaks through her stern gaze. "Here, eat this yogurt. It might help your throat."

"Thanks mum. I love you."

"I love you, too. Buzz if you need anything, okay? I'll come back and let you know when I know more about Hayden."

"Please do."

Exhausted from my long and way too honest conversation with mum, I sink back into the pillows and let my eyes close again.

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Hayden's in lock up! What do you think about everything that has happened?

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