One of the main ways to get him to study was if he asked her for help. At least she would know that he wanted to try, and she wasn't just nagging him to do it. Personally, Kai would have a stress attack if she got grades lower than a C ever. That would be her wake up call to do better. She felt that C wasn't that high of an expectation, but she would at least pass a class on the first round. She knew that to be a good student, it helped to have family support. You also had to be willing to work, and a really good teacher never hurt.

"I am not sure why it would be hard," her face clouded a little with thought. "Sometimes it is harder," she shrugged not sure what to say. Grades could be a touchy subject. She had seen friends get offended, if you mentioned your good grade, because they got a bad one. She didn't want to make him feel bad, but as students, she felt like that would be a topic in their conversation that would pop up at some point. She could feel Eric getting worked up about it. She had cried before, because she hadn't gotten the grade she had wanted or she had felt pulled in too many directions.

She didn't want him to feel that right now. Luckily, they were able to move on with Gunner. "Good point I suppose," she sighed, "Good manners means you have to restrain your adoration of me," she gave him a teasing smile. Technically, she was able to see how much he liked her, because she could read his thoughts unlike the dog. However, she didn't want to make him uncomfortable around her, so she didn't remind him of that too much. Everyone was gradually calming down, but the sound of a car door had scared all of them.

It was hard to feel reassured and go back to doing what htey had been doing. She felt worried. If that was true, they shouldn't have gone to that party. Who knew how Mr. Godfrey could find out? Eric hadn't even had fun for it to be half way considered worth the risk. She had been wondering how he was able to get away so easily, and now he had explained. Even though he was sneaking behind his father's back, she didn't feel too upset with it. She was more annoyed with herself, because she couldn't decide how morally wrong this was.

She looked through his house, but still felt nervous. Was this really worth it? She was trying not to be a coward, but her nerves kept telling her to get a move on. She stayed slightly behind Eric, so she didn't go into any rooms she wasn't allowed in. She smiled and nodded at the bathroom. That was a valuable location to know, and she mentally stowed that away. She didn't need to remember how to get to the office, but she reminded herself to stay out. She peeked into the family room.

There wasn't much in there, and she felt sad, as he told her they weren't a family anymore. They started toward the stairs he had mentioned earlier. "You have to go through your dad's office to go upstairs?" she asked a little nervously. Wouldn't that be a bad way to get trapped up there? "What's upstairs?" she asked sort of wanting to be able to come up with some premade mental pictures. She accepted his hand, hoping that if she slipped he would stop her from toppling over and breaking something else. "Maybe I'll follow Gunner's lead and run up on all three," she gave a little smile.

Eric smiled at her tease. "Of course I have to restrain myself." he said, lightly teasing back. "If I didn't someone would end up getting hurt." It was a joke, but he was unaware of how true that simple statement really was, and how literally it could be taken. Having an affection for someone you weren't married to took a lot of restraint, and most often that restraint was out of respect for one's self and the other party.

He felt a slight twist in his gut as she pointed out something. They had to go through his father's office in order to get upstairs. He didn't want to think too far into that. "Yeah there's no other way up." he said lightly. He could tell she was on edge, and so was he, but he didn't want to just drop everything and boot her out so quickly. But he didn't know how to make her feel better, either. "My room's upstairs, along with my sister's old room." He felt a bit comforted that she had still taken his hand, and he started walking slowly up by her side, helping keep her balance. He laughed at her remark.

"Believe it or not I used to go up the stairs like that when I was young." he admitted, slightly embarassed. "I did for way too long, too." Once up the stairs completely, he let go of her hand and headed to his room. It was the first door that you could see, so it only made sense. He pushed it open and walked in first so that she didn't think he was luring her in or trying to shut the door behind her. Gunner bolted in as well, trotting straight to his kennel and walking inside, lapping up the clear water in his bowl. Eric smiled.

"This is my room," he said calmly, reaching down and picking up a book that had been left on the floor. He set it down on his nightstand out of the way. His room was fairly small and simple, but yet it seemed to be the homiest room in the house. His bed was made neatly, there was a small wooden nightstand next to it with a lamp and a small pile of books, one of which had silver letters that read, The Bible. A bookshelf up against the far wall, all three shelves full. A window opposite his bed that looked out over the driveway and across the street, Gunner's kennel sitting beneath it, a medium sized wooden desk with four drawers and a chair. Drawing supplies were stacked neatly atop that desk, with the exception of a few stray pencils here and there, and draped over the chair were two hoodies and a leather jacket. A closet was pressed up against the wall a few feet from his bed, and around the corner he had his own bathroom and shower combo.

The wooden floor in here was scratched up a bit, obviously Gunner's mark on the place, but it wasn't too bad and the room looked to be swept. In front of the closet doors there was a basketball, and next to it his basketball shoes. Laying on the floor on the left side of his bed were a few sets of dumbbells, various weights. Overall the room was pretty neat and tidy, a stark contrast to his father's portion of the house. He walked smoothly to the window, opening it up a little to let some air in.

"I spend probably ninety percent of my time at home up here." he said quietly to her. "It's the only place I can just unwind and relax, be myself without fear or judgement." He straightened the covers on his bed before walking towards the closet. "I want to show you something," he said, giving her a shy grin. He looked like a small child about to show something to his parents, something he really loved but was embarassed to show.

He opened the closet doors and kind of shuffled around for a bit, digging back into the very back before gently pulling out a small object. He turned to Kai and gave a small smile, holding it out to her. In his hands rested a small but fluffy stuffed animal. It was a relatively small stuffed horse, golden tan in color with a small white diamond on its forehead. Its legs were long and flopped all over the place, but in typical stuffed animal design, its features were rounded and soft, plushy.

"I got this in the hospital, the day my mom died." he said. "My sister Summer and I went down to the little gift shop area to kind of get away from all the tension and stuff. She found this and bought it for me." He swallowed, letting her hold it. "I brought it back up to Mom and tried to show her because she loved stuffed animals. She whispered to me that it was cute and floppy, and it made her smile really big." His voice had dropped, sounding soft and sad but yet happy all at once. "I named it Flopsy, and I kept it ever since." He shrugged. "Call me sentimental, or make fun of me. But I got really attatched to it after she died. So it's been sitting in my closet, and sometimes I bring it out to look at it." He knew that on occasion he slept with it as well, when things were going really bad, or whenever his depression got strong. He would hold it to his chest and cry, praying to God and asking Him if everything was going to be okay, or talk aloud in hopes that his mother could hear him.

Who knew that such a small object could mean so much to someone and hold so much sorrow and love?

This wasn't her place, and she wouldn't be welcomed here by Mr. Godfrey. Eric had made it quite clear what Mr. Godfrey thought about her, and she didn't want to face his wrath. What if he decided to hurt her? What if he was so drunk and out of it that he couldn't think straight? What if Eric was injured? What would she do? While normally she wouldn't want to be booted out of anyone's house, she wouldn't mind if he suggested that they go ahead and take her home. Carefully, she climbed the steps, while admiring how quickly and easily Gunner had made it up.

She cocked her head, and laughed a little, when he admitted that he had done it too. He seemed slightly embarrassed, but she considered it a normal thing for a kid to do. She found it easy to believe, because Eric would have been a normal kid. He walked into his room first. At the door, she hesitated. Her mother didn't want her going into boy's bedrooms. However, she sort of followed him inside, since it would be weird to just stand in the hall way. Eric should understand if she didn't go in there, but she didn't want to make things awkward or seem like she didn't trust him.

After all she could read his mind and figure out his intentions. Even though she didn't think anything would happen, she made sure that Eric didn't get between her and the door. It gave her a little sense of peace, even though he was perfectly capable of surprising her and closing the door. Besides he was stronger than her, and he didn't even really need to trap her. While she got none of those type of thoughts from Eric at all, she figured it was better safe than sorry.

She smiled as Gunner headed straight to his kennel. He knew right where he belonged. Her face changed a little, "Isn't it hard on dogs to go up the steps?" she asked. She was worried that in long term Gunner might suffer. She felt dumb asking Eric these questions, when it was obvious he took excellent care of Gunner, but she had felt a moment of worry. She looked around his room, knowing that her mother probably would not approve. It was neater than she had expected, and cleaner too.

From her experience of teenagers, they tended to be messy. Her own room had stuff strung out in it. As she was observing, she noticed some scratches on the floor, and assumed that Gunner was the cause. It made her a little sad, that he considered this place his shelter from everything. From what he had said, he had no one to confide to. How had he managed to go through life without someone he could depend on? She wasn't sure how she could help with that, but she was determined to be a good friend.

She noticed that he straightened the covers, and she assumed it was because he was nervous that she would think his room was messy. Hers tended to be messier. She was glad to see his Bible in full view. She wondered how often he got to read it. Her head cocked to the side again, because he seemed to have a shy demeanor. What was it that he wanted to show her? She gave him a smile, because his shy little kid smile was adorable. After a few moments of searching and digging in his closet, he emerged, and held out a fluffy stuffed animal.

It was a smallish little horse in a golden tan color. It had a small white diamond on its forehead, and its long legs flopped everywhere. She smiled and relaxed for a moment. She was amused that he had wanted to show her this. Her eyes widened a little, as she realized what a precious little treasure she held. Gently, she took it from his hands and looked it over. Her eyes filled with tears, because she found it to be a sad moving story. "Why would I make fun of you?" her head turned up at him.

She may tease him, but it was simply, because sometimes they needed a laugh. "That's really sweet," she told him, "I love the way you treasure the little things." She considered it even sweeter than the little chain he wore. It gave her a little happiness that he had treasured this as a little child, and perhaps even now. He had at least kept it. She hoped he didn't mind her asking, but she didn't see a reason why he would share this with her. "Why did you want to show me this?" she asked. Was there some deeper hidden meaning? Had she totally overlooked something?

Eric tilted his head at her question. "I mean, yeah I guess it is." he said. "Especially for his breed since they tend to have hip problems. But I'm not keeping him downstairs by himself. We need each other, and until the day comes when I have to stop, he'll be up here with me." He shrugged. "I love him, I wouldn't do anything to put him in danger on purpose, but..." he trailed off, not sure what else to say.

When she took the stuffed animal into her hands, he could faintly see tears brimming her eyes. "Why would I make fun of you?" she asked, looking up at him. There was a moment of silence as he quietly stuck his hands inside his hoodie pocket, letting her continue to hold it. "I don't know." he whispered, the only answer he could give. He turned up the corners of his mouth into a very faint smile as she complimented him, saying it was sweet. She then asked him why he wanted to show her this, and for some reason deep within him, his heart gave a huge leap and then fell straight down into his stomach, twisting and wrenching. He couldn't look at her, and he shifted his bright blue eyes to the floor as the brimmed with tears.

He swallowed, trying to find his voice and keep it level as he spoke. He shifted his feet a little, distracting himself from the painful memories. "I don't know why," he said softly again, feeling the ever so slight tremor in his throat as he spoke. "Because I trust you? Because you're someone I feel like I can talk to." He forced himself to look at her, even though he knew it would probably reveal his tears. He didn't know why he was so choked up and emotional about this. It had been almost four years since his mother's death, and Kai had just asked a simple question. But for some reason, it carried with it such a heavy weight.

He hadn't spoken to anyone about his feelings, how he was coping with the loss of his mother, the effect it had had on both he and his father. It was a touchy subject, and who really cared enough about either of them to want to listen anyway? He'd always been the "kid in the background" at school, even before his mother passed away. Just because of his shyness. But that had evolved into something much deeper and darker. When she died, the physical abuse started, he showed up with cuts, bruises, scabs, and then the rumors began. He was no longer simply the quiet shy kid. He was the quiet shy kid who did things behind everyone's back. He was the quiet shy kid that would probably shoot up the school. The kid who took advantage of girls, the kid who was in a street gang, and much much more. The rumors were crazy, wild, some even unbelievable. Yet somehow people still whispered them, spoke them, believed them.

His entire reputation within the school building had changed after his mother's passing, and he had spoken to no soul about it. Because...who cared?

Kailey did.

He'd found someone who cared, someone he could trust and talk to. Someone he cared about too. Someone who wanted him around and didn't mind being around him in public. He'd found a friend in her, and a good one at that. Friends were able to talk to each other, confide in each other, and he felt that with her. It was such a simple little object, and a simple little question, but to him it held so much power and meaning. A power and meaning he hadn't even known it had until she asked the question.

"You're the only person outside of my family that I've ever showed this to." he said quietly to her, pushing away all the emotion that had been building up. He didn't want to cry in front of her. As much as he trusted her, he still wasn't completely comfortable around her to cry. "I trust you, and...and I can talk to you about things that I don't feel like I can talk to other people about." He shrugged lightly, glancing at Gunner, who was now laying down inside his kennel with his head on his paws. Eric had left the kennel door open so he could follow if he wanted, but the dog seemed content.

Eric took in a deep breath and then let it out, reaching out and gently taking the stuffed toy back. "You're my friend," he told her, putting back in his closet. "I guess that means you're stuck with me and have to deal with all my problems now." He tried to joke lightly, giving her a small smile. It was a joke, but it was also true. If she really was his friend and wanted to stay friends, she could count on him needing to talk and let things out every once in awhile. He had so many things built up and stored inside himself that he only had released to God.

"But anyway, there's one more room to show you and then I should probably get you home." he said, brushing past her. He walked to the door and slowly out of it, down the hall a few steps and then turning into another room. This one was a little bigger than his own, but perhaps it only looked that way because it was almost completely empty. All the furniture that was left was a bed and a closet. No covers, no pillows, just the bed frame and mattress. The closet was dusty and empty, as was the rest of the room. A window sat on the wall next to the bed, the thin curtains pulled shut. It was starting to get a little dark outside, so in turn the whole upstairs was as well.

"This is my sister Summer's old room." he said. "She moved out two years ago to head to college. She's married and still going to school. I haven't seen her in person since she left, and I have no idea who her husband is at all. She doesn't visit, and she rarely texts me." he said kind of sadly. "I don't blame her though. I wouldn't want to come back here, especially if I'd found a soul mate and my life was starting over happily." He didn't go inside her room, but he let Kai look. Then he shut the door. There was another room a little further down the hall, but he didn't even look that direction at all, almost as if he was avoiding it.

"Anyway, we should probably get you back," he said. "Sorry that things got a little...heavy. I didn't mean for it to." He started walking back down the steps, having left his bedroom door open just in case Gunner wanted to follow or go back outside. "Thanks for coming though, maybe we could hang out a bit tomorrow someplace?" He offered her his hand again as they made their way down, just in case.

Once they reached the bottom of the steps, Eric froze, hearing Gunner's growl from his bedroom. He heard the front door shut, and footsteps walking towards David's office. Eric's heart sped up furiously, and his brain went blank. He started to turn around and tell Kai to go up and into his room, but he hadn't processed fast enough. The door handle began to turn, and Gunner's growls grew louder, the sound of his claws scraping against the plastic floor of the kennel reaching Eric's ears as the dog got to his feet.

Eric let his hand slip out of Kailey's as he tried to make his way to the door in order to go out before anyone could come in and see Kai. But he was a few steps too late, and the door opened, a tall figure now blocking the only way out. David Godfrey walked slowly into the room, forcing Eric to walk backwards towards the stairs. He was a tall man, just a hair taller than Eric himself, and he was built like a lumberjack, his chest broad and his arms muscled heavily.

On his head was a brown baseball cap, and his chin and jaw was adorned with scruffy whiskers, a moustache gracing his upper lip. His eyes were a bright golden amber, alight with anger. He wore a red and black plaid tee, dirty and ripped jeans strapped around his waist with a black leather belt. His boots were heavy and dusty work boots, dried mud encased on them. His eyes rested first on Kai, then shifted over to Eric, who stood stiffly in front of him.

Eric's heart was pounding heavily in his chest, the worst thing imaginable happening. He back up towards Kai, wanting to keep her well out of David's reach. "Somethin' you wanna tell me, boy?" David rumbled, sticking his thumbs in his jean pockets. Even from this distance, Eric could smell the alcohol on his shirt and lacing his breath. His words came out slightly slurred, and that made Eric even more nervous. He was on the verge of being drunk, and he was angry. He knew all too well what those two things could cause in his father.

Eric was so shocked that his brain couldn't process anything to say. He couldn't speak, and he was so terrified that he could barely even breathe. "Answer me, son!" David said stronger, louder. Eric didn't look at Kai, but a message flashed quickly in his mind to her.

I'm so, so, so sorry Kailey.

He opened his mouth, about to speak, when David walked briskly forward, grabbing him by the collar of his hoodie and yanking him to the side. He didn't even take another look at Kai, all of his attention focused on his son. His anger was building rapidly, faster than usual due to the alcohol consumption. He shook Eric, his amber eyes burning with fury. "I said answer me!" he yelled, letting go fiercely enough that Eric stumbled back.

"Dad, I-"

"I said no girls!" David yelled, tossing a hand in the air. "I said no girls, no women! You know what they do?! You know what they do?! They turn ya into filthy man whores, that's what they do!" Eric clenched his jaw, wanting to snap back, but his fear was overriding that, and he continued to steal glances back and forth between his father and Kai, hoping that David didn't suddenly turn on her. If he did there would be no hesitation on Eric's part. He wanted her safe more than anything, and his chest was burning with guilt and sadness that he'd gotten her into this mess. He wanted her out, he didn't want her to have to witness this, and he didn't want her to get hurt.

"I said no damn girls! I said no seein' em! What do you do? You bring one into the house! In my damn house boy!!" Eric swallowed, standing firm. Normally, he would be avoiding any eye contact, because to David it was a challenge, a sign of defiance. But he was too worried about Kai to even think about that. David noticed, and he grabbed him by the collar again, giving him another shake. He let go, staring deep into his son's face, and with no warning whatsoever, he raised a hand and smacked Eric across the jaw. The blow was so fierce it sent him stumbling into the wall, his shoulder sharply hitting the wood. He let out a cry of pain, but not because of the slap. Because of the pain that exploded in his shoulder.

It took a minute for the sting of the slap to rear it's ugly head, and when he put his hand down, he could see a few drops of blood on his fingers. His nose was starting to bleed. David then turned to Kailey, his gaze still burning with anger.

"Get outta here." he said sharply, the words spitting off his tongue in a disgusted manner. Gunner let out several fierce barks from upstairs, and then came tearing down, bursting past Kai and snarling at David. He looked down at the dog and kicked him aside. "Hush up now!" he screamed.

She wanted to reassure him that she would never do something like that, but as a sinful human being, she was perfectly capable of carelessly being rude. He sounded like he was having a hard time getting out anything he was saying. When he tilted his head toward her, she could see that her own eyes weren't the only ones tear filled. She gave him a little smile glad that he at least seemed to trust her. She knew there were a lot of rumors flying around about them.

Personally, she had never paid attention simply because she didn't care. She was thankful that God felt that she should meet him. He had become a great friend, and he was the only person she could talk about certain things. There was so much potential for their friendship. He was such a nice guy, she wasn't sure how they believed all of those rumors. If anyone had any brains, they would have guessed the truth. She supposed it wasn't that surprising that she was the only one he had shown this stuffed animal to. Even if you did have lots of friends, this probably wasn't the type of thing you showed them.

She didn't want him to cry, and he seemed to be trying to pull himself together. With a reproving grin, she gestured towards Gunner. "Gunner is not other people, and you can trust him," she gave a little smile. She didn't continue with her teasing, because she didn't want to be too annoying, when he was talking about something serious. It would be rude, if she interrupted something, but she was trying to make the mood a little more upbeat. Gently, she relinquished the stuffed toy.

Her head cocked toward one side, as she listened to him. "Yeah...I guess so," she gave a bigger smile. Now that the moment was over, she tried to pull herself together. She followed him back out of his room not a hundred percent sure what he would show her, and why he wanted to complete the tour. She felt like he had been wanting to show her the house, and she wasn't sure why. It was like he was trying to tell her a story about his life and family, but she wasn't sure if she was getting the whole picture.

They headed toward the last room that he wanted to show her. She had no idea if there was anymore to the house, but this was what he wanted to show her. It was a bare little room, and she couldn't see well, because of the gathering dark. She wished that Summer would contact Eric. It wasn't his fault that he was stuck here. She was sure he hadn't done anything to his sister, and Eric needed someone to rely on. Family would be better, because they are harder to drag away. All it took was for her parents to change her mind, and she would never see him again.

She wanted to protest that Summer could contact him, but she supposed once you got away, you wanted to be away for good. She noticed another door, but he made no move toward it. Kai didn't feel a need to make any inquiries. She gave him her best smile that was a little sad that she could muster, "Yeahhh. It was good though. Totally, we should hang out tomorrow," she nodded in the affirmative. She took his hand as they went back down the stairs.

Once they were at the bottom, she froze along with Eric. Footsteps. Her eyes widened in horror, and she could feel her stomach climbing up her throat. They were too late. There was no where to hide, that wouldn't look ridiculous, and the door knob began to turn. She noticed that Eric was moving toward the door. She wasn't sure what he hoped to do, but she watched silently. Mr. Godfrey was large, which she found extremely intimdating. She would hate to have to go head to head with him.

Her eyes were wide, but she was still able to silently breath. How would she ever leave now? It looked even worse, because they were in his house. It wasn't a simply hanging out, but he would be even more mad, because she had the audacity to come here. Why had she thought this was a good idea? They were both going to be dead meat. She wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to stay here, and defend Eric, but her instincts told her to get out of here as quickly as possible.

She was determined not to be cowardly, and she kept her mind open for instructions from Eric. She could tell that Eric seemed to be trying to protect her. Would he be sucessful? Was it worth it? Kai stayed frozen. She couldn't acknowledge the apology, and Mr. Godfrey was wrath incarnate. She hadn't realized that this was what Eric's father thought of her, and her mouth dropped slightly open. She barely managed to keep the tears from coursing down her face. Instead they stayed in her eyes and clouded her vision.

Kai winced, when Mr. Godfrey became even more offended, because she was in his house. She thought that might be the last straw. All of a sudden, she reflexively moved backwards. A loud smacking sound resounded, and her eyes tracked trying to figure out what had happened. Mr. Godfrey had been staring at his son, when Eric went staggering backwards. He went stumbling into the wall, and she gave a little involuntary cry, "Eric!" His cry made her more frantic. Had he been surprised or actually hurt? She headed over toward him, but she kept an eye on the unpredictable Mr. Godfrey.

If he really was drunk, she hoped that he wouldn't be too steady on his feet, and she could out manuever him. Fear would lend speed to her feet. She wanted to help him up, but Mr. Godfrey's rough words turned her attention. When Gunner rushed down, she raised her hands to her face. Anxiously, she knew that this would be bad for everyone. She let out a little gasp as he kicked Gunner aside, and his scream did nothing to calm her. She looked at Eric wondering what she should do. She felt as a friend she couldn't leave him, but everything was urging for her to leave.

"No, it's okay," Eric responded to her. "I'm glad you worry for him. I do too. But so far he's doing okay, and he isn't exactly a young dog anymore. I think he's doing pretty good for a middle aged man." He chuckled.

As she looked up at him, she tried to joke. It was kind of funny, but it came across to Eric as oddly comforting. He smiled softly at her back, and glanced over at Gunner, who was laying with his head on his paws and his eyes focused on the two of them calmly. "Yeah," he said. "Poor guy gets to hear a lot of stuff that he doesn't understand." Eric had basically just admitted that he did talk to Gunner when he had no one else to talk to, but he didn't sound ashamed or embarassed. It was just something that he'd been doing for years now, and he figured that she would have been able to guess that he did things like that, considering that he took Gunner everywhere he possibly could with him.

He was glad to see her smile widening as she agreed with him, and he felt the light brush of her hand against his as he took the toy back. He felt a little better when she seemed to be okay with how dark things got for a minute or two, and happily agreed to meet up somewhere tomorrow. But all of that took a turn for the worse, and all the happiness left his body in one whoosh as his father arrived in the room.

The slap had been fierce, a hard blow, and he'd faintly heard his name being called as he hit the wall. As he was looking at the drops of blood on his hand, he saw Gunner out of the corner of his eye tear down the steps at an alarming rate, and charge at David. His father promptly booted him out of the way, a common thing to occur when he was annoyed with the dog's behaviour, but this time was harsher, his muscles reacting sharper due to the consumption of alcohol. Gunner let out a piercing yipe, and Eric slid down the wall, his mind still a bit dazed. Anger surged up as he heard Gunner's yipe, but the dog didn't stop. He started to growl, his lips curling back into a snarl as David turned back to Kai.

"I said get outta here!" he yelled at her, louder this time, veins popping in his neck. Eric felt anger swell in his chest again, and this time he was able to do something. He could tell his father was about to advance on Kailey, and under no circumstances would that happen. He lunged forward, grasping his father's arm. David turned toward him and shook him off harshly, sending him stumbling a few steps back.

"Kailey," Eric said, his voice cracking with desperation. "Please go. Please." He felt a tear slide warmly down his cheek. He needed her out. She needed out. He was deathly scared of what could potentially happen to her if she stayed any longer. He didn't think he could bear it if his father did something to her.

"Go on!" David yelled at her, tossing his hand at the office door. Eric could feel the blood seeping from his nose and over his lips, and his right cheek was burning hotly from his father's hand. His shoulder was throbbing lightly, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Gunner let out a gutteral snarl, and David turned fiercely to him again. Eric reflexively reached down and stepped between he and the dog.

"Back Gunner," he commanded. The dog was still growling, his hackles raised, but he obeyed his owner. He could feel the stress and tension and fear in the room and as a dog he was supposed to protect. "Kailey..." Eric said again, tears sliding smoothly down his cheeks. "Please."

I'll text you when this is over. He thought to her. I'll let you know if everything is okay. I promise. Just please leave. No matter what I want you safe. Please go.

Her eyes snapped back to Mr. Godfrey, as he began advancing. She began to shrink down even though she felt like it might make her more of a target. She noticed a tear slid down his cheek. Should she go? She didn't want Eric to have to fight his own father to protect her. Would that even be possible? It seemed that Eric had it under control. There was nothing that Kai could do. Right now Gunner was safe. She felt a tear slip down her cheek, which she swiftly wiped away.

No more tears.

Not until she was safely at home. So much for getting an escort home, but she definitely wouldn't be waiting around. After another gaze darting between them, she obeyed both of them. Quickly, she began to move toward the door without another word. As she slipped by Eric, she squeezed his hand, and smiled at Gunner. She wanted to say things, but she didn't want Mr. Godfrey to hear anything. She gave Mr. Godfrey a very wide berth. Before she opened the door, she made the prayer hand sign hoping that he would understand.

It was something she thought of impulsively, and she hoped it would bring some comfort. As soon as she got home, she was texting him. Hopefully, his phone wouldn't be taken away. Once she was outside of that room, her ears perked for any sounds. Once she was outside, she took off at a steady lope. Thanks to Eric, they had traveled between their houses enough where she wouldn't get lost. When she got home, she said good night to her parents and headed toward her room.

She was glad that nothing had happened to her walking home. Now safely in her room, she took a moment to think about what had happened. Had she made the wrong choice? Should she have stayed and tried to do something? Should she tell her parents? Sitting on her bed in silence, she ruminated on her options. She decided that she may not have made the best choice, but it wasn’t wrong. Eric and Mr. Godfrey had told her to go away, and the whole situation had been scary and tense. Impulsively, she grabbed her phone and sent off a message.

Are you okay? What happened?

She had no idea when to expect a response, and she didn't know how long the abuse sessions lasted. Would he be able to text her? She couldn’t wait for the school day to begin, because she needed to talk to him in person about what had happened. She needed to see that he was okay. She began to think about what could she do, and she realized that there was one other thing. While she wasn't very good or consistent at it, she knew that prayers were powerful. After getting off her bed, she kneeled down with her head bowed.

She didn't even say the prayer aloud, but it was very sincere. She prayed that he wouldn't be hurt, and that her visit hadn't made anything worse. She prayed for peace and comfort for that family, and that they become a real family full of love. She prayed that there would be wisdom to know how to react. She prayed for Gunner's safety, and that no one would get seriously injured. She prayed for wisdom to know if she should get her parents involved. She prayed that Eric would know that somebody loved him.

Eric stood behind his father, his blue eyes filled with tears and pleading. Kai stood for a moment longer, her gaze flitting back and forth between Eric and his father, before finally moving. She walked past Eric, and he felt her hand slide into his briefly, giving it a squeeze. His heart fluttered at her touch, and a wave of emotion smacked him across the face like his father's hand. He felt a strong sense of longing for her, a longing for her to stay. But he knew that it would be very unwise and very dangerous for her to have stayed any longer. He wasn't sure what would have happened, but he was glad that it was now being avoided.

He caught her hand signals before walking out the door, and a sense of relief cascaded through his heart. Once she was gone, he looked back to his father, who was standing stiffly and staring at the door, listening to make sure she was really gone. When the front door opened and closed, he turned back to Eric, his eyes burning with anger.

"I gave you one rule," he rumbled, his words slurring just slightly together. He wasn't drunk, which was a good thing, but he definitely had had a few drinks. He raised a finger, pointing at Eric and advancing towards him slowly, backing him back up against the wall. "I gave you ONE rule...and you broke it. You shattered it like glass, boy. I said stay away from her. Stay away from girls. Your grades are bad enough as it is, you don't need a distraction like that adding to the dump that is your grade card."

"She's my friend." Eric said, feeling braver than he usually was. He didn't avoid eye contact as he usually did, instead he looked him in the eye. "She's my friend, Dad. I think I should have a right to be able to spend time with a friend." David shook his head, exhaling in a disbelieved manner, as if he couldn't believe that Eric was talking back, issuing a challenge. Gunner's hackles were still raised, his growl rumbling in the back of his throat. David raised a hand and Gunner barked, charging forward.

"Control that dog or you're done boy!!" He screamed at Eric. Eric grabbed Gunner by the collar and moved him out of the office and into the living room. David followed him swiftly out as he led Gunner out the back door and into the yard. Eric turned around to face his father, leaning against the hallway wall. "Friends are good things to have," David amended. "But when you got grades as low as yours, you can't let friends interfere with that. And that girl ain't no friend to you!" He said sharply. "You met her what, a week ago? After school? Yeah, you remember that little conversation we had, don't you?" Eric swallowed, clenching his jaw.

"Eric, she's nothing but a pretty little distraction to you! Wake up boy! If your mother was here-"

"If Mom was here, she'd be happy that I have a friend!" he yelled, interrupting. His voice cracked with emotion as he stared his father in the eyes, tapping his fist on his chest. "She'd be happy to know that somebody cared about me! She loved me, Dad! You don't seem to care about anything that I do!" He swallowed, tears running down his face.

"Stop your cryin'."

"No!" he shouted. "No, listen to me. Listen to me for once in your life! You don't care about anything but your stupid alcohol. You barely even notice me anymore! You go to work, then you come home and you sit on that damn couch and drink your life away. You don't even dare spend time with your own son! Your only child left in this house, the only one left who has ever tried to be anything you would notice. Mom's gone, Dad. Summer's gone, and neither of them are ever coming back. Mom couldn't help it, but Summer never wants to come back here because of you."

He swallowed, his heart pounding with nerves. He couldn't believe he had enough strength to be doing this. He couldn't believe his father hadn't done anything else to him yet. "She left as quick as she possibly could, and she's never coming back here. She has no life she wants to come back to. She has everything she's ever wanted right where she's at! Kailey's my friend. She's the only person since Mom died to really care about me and how I feel. The only person who's taken the time to actually listen to what I have to say. All you know about me is what the school sends you! You see my grades, you get the reports. You don't know me. You haven't paid much attention to me at all within the last four years!"

"You best be shuttin' your jaws real soon, Eric." David threatened.

"Why?" he challenged. "Why, because you can't handle any sort of emotional talk? Because you can't stand to hear that you have flaws like any other human being? Because you know that you're bad father?" As soon as the words left his mouth, David popped him in the jaw and slammed him against the wall, pinning him there by the shoulders.

"You ever treat me with this kind of disrespect again, and you'll be layin' in a hospital bed fightin' for your damn life." he threatened through clenched teeth. "You understand me?" Eric wanted to talk back, he wanted to spit some snide remark in his face, but he knew that he'd already overstepped. He didn't want to go any further. His nose was still bleeding quite profusely, and his father was getting angrier by the second.

Besides, he promised that he would text Kai and let her know that he was okay. That promise would be sharply broken if he said anything more. David let go, stepping back. Eric stayed against the wall, staring at his father with a fierce icy blue gaze. "You ain't leavin' this house until school." He commanded to his son. "If you didn't think I was payin' attention to you before, you better believe I will be now." Eric was surprised that he hadn't had his phone taken from him, but that surprise didn't last long.

His father was aware that he was hardly ever on his phone to begin with anyway, and taking it away would do virtually nothing. In the heat of the moment, David Godfrey hadn't even been aware of the fact that perhaps his son had exchanged numbers with Kailey Adair. Eric nodded and walked up the stairs, leaving Gunner outside. He was afraid to let him in for fear that he would attack his father and end up getting hurt.

He entered his room and spotted his phone on his art desk. He walked over and picked it up, his heart fluttering as he saw that Kai had sent him a message about fifteen minutes ago. He took it into the bathroom with him and switched on the light, standing in front of the mirror. He texted her back saying,

I'm okay. Just a bloody nose. Can't leave the house until Monday. I'm so sorry that this happened, I thought he'd be gone longer.

He set the phone down on the side of the sink, and slowly took care of the bleeding. He was up for a couple more hours texting her, assuring her that he was okay, and asking her how she was holding up. More than once, his father would come up the stairs and open the door, just to stand in the doorway for a second or two and then walk back out. He was making sure that Eric was in his room and not sneaking out.

When David finally went to bed, Eric went down and got Gunner, bringing him quietly up the stairs and into his room. He left him out of the kennel as per usual, and the dog slept peacefully by Eric's side that night, waking up at every sound.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday morning finally arrived, and Eric had his school things ready. He had texted Kai a few times over the weekend in order to keep in contact with her, but he was more than ready to see her in person again. Once at school, he stepped out of his car and made his way towards the building, keeping his eyes on the lookout for her.

By not being able to leave his house for the rest of the weekend, he'd been able to finish his history assignment and math homework, although he wasn't sure how much of it was actually right. He was a little bit early this morning, with about ten minutes to spare before the bell rang, and he wasn't sure if Kai was even here yet or not. He knew she was prone to running late, and he wondered if today was one of those days.

He spotted Daniel in the hallway, but gave him no more than a glance. He went straight to his locker, opening it and taking out some items he wouldn't need for his first few classes.

Kai, where are you? he reached out with his thoughts, just trying his luck. I'm by my locker, I want to talk to you. He knew that if she was here she would hear him, and if she wasn't, he was speaking to no one but himself. It was a win win situation and wouldn't effect him badly. He did hope she was here though, he was practically shivering with the urge to see her.

After the weekend she was ready to go back to school. Normally, she was more resistant, but she wanted to see Eric. She had been worried, and her parents had noticed. While they had asked, she hadn't told them exactly what was going on. They still hadn't bought her a new car, so her dad or her mom would drive her. As the car pulled up, she hopped out with her stuff. She hurried inside hoping she would have time to talk to Eric before class. Because her parents drove her to school, she wasn't as late as she used to be, and sometimes she got here early.

When she went in, a small group came up to her with rude facial expressions. "You really like those basketball players don't you?" they asked her. The only thing she could think of was the party. How were they to know if she kissed one of them were not? She hadn't chosen to go into the closet with one of them. Her face stayed blank with a little confusion. They soon walked off, but it wasn't a good start to her day. Another person came up. She was someone that Kai sort of considered a friend. She would tell her the basic stuff, and they hung out together, when none of their real friends were around.

"Are you dating Eric Godfrey?" she gushed out the question.

"Noooo?" Kai dragged out the word not sure where this was going.

"I heard that you two were together. You did leave that party with him," she pointed out.

"Why would that mean we're dating?" she asked.

"We'll...." her friend's face blanked, "Nevermind, I'll talk to you later."

Her friend dashed off, and Kai watched her go puzzled. Her eyes widened as she realized from her thoughts what she had meant. They thought that she had such a good time in the closet, that she had gone home with Eric. After all she had gone to his house. While it wouldn't make sense, it could turn into quite a story. Whoever was spreading this story would have to be quite the stalker. Would her whole reputation be ruined, because of one party? She went back to looking for Eric, but with a little less enthusiasm than before.

If someone had seen her got to his house and then leave, they could have jumped to all sorts of conclusions. She had ran the whole way home, so it looked like she had been trying to escape from someone. It was sort of the truth, as she had been very scared. She started realizing that every four people were thinking about her. They weren't thinking nice thoughts either. She felt a little depressed, but she tried to move on. When she began to approach Eric's locker, she heard his thoughts. Not that she could reply, so she started off at a run.

When he came into sight a few tears spilled onto her cheeks. Between relieved that she could see him, and all the mean thoughts, she felt like crying. She slowed down, but embraced him in a hug. For a moment she just stayed like that relieved that he was solidly in her arms. "I am so glad to see you. I thought something serious would have happened," she told him her voice muffled by being so close to him. "What happened? Are you okay?" she asked, backing up to give him space.

She looked him up and down for injuries. "How is Gunner?" she asked. "What did your father say?" she interrogated him. She felt a little shaken by how close she had impulsively gotten too him. She hoped that she hadn't been over the top. She wasn't sure what she wanted to hear from him. Would they be able to meet up any? Should she? She wasn't sure if she could do it, if he had gotten seriously hurt. "I am sorry that I left or that I didn't leave fast enough. I wasn't sure what to do. I wanted to keep you and Gunner from getting hurt, but I didn't know how. Your father was very scary, and I feel like I took the coward's way out," a few more tears were leaking down her face.

Eric stood at his locker, the door still open as he placed books from his bag inside, and started rearanging the mess of papers that were everywhere inside of it. He had just shut the door with a metal click when he turned to see Kai walking up to him. He started to smile, but that quickly faded as he noticed the glimmer of tears in her eyes. He had no time to speak before she pulled him into a hug. It was a longer hug than it usually was, but he didn't mind at all.

He reciprocated the hug, tightening his arms around her body as she spoke, her voice slightly muffled. After a moment she backed up, asking questions. "I'm okay, I promise." he said softly, giving her a small smile. But worry was evident in his eyes. Not for him, but for her. His right cheek was bruised ever so slightly, along with the side of his nose, and under his right eye was a bit darker than usual, but other than that he appeared fine.

"Nothing major happened, he just threatened me with his usual crap and whatnot. I'm fine." He spoke softly, his voice close to a whisper so that no one else could hear the words he was saying. He noticed her looking up and down him, he supposed checking for any other injuries. She asked how Gunner was, and what else his father said. "Gunner's okay," he answered. "He isn't limping or anything, so that's good. My dad just wants me to keep staying away from you, but I hope you know that's not happening." He said.

She started to apologize for leaving, and his heart broke for her as she started to cry. He just shook his head as she spoke, taking her hand and waiting until she was done before he spoke at all. "Don't be sorry for leaving, Kailey." he whispered to her, subconsciously pulling her closer to his body. "I told you to leave. I told you to leave because I didn't want you hurt. You did the right thing, don't worry. You aren't a coward. Don't say that."

He felt horrible for ever even bringing her to his house. If he hadn't, she wouldn't have had to witness any of the things she witnessed, and she wouldn't be feeling this way. He pulled her gently into another hug, holding her in a way that was firm but yet at the same time as if he was holding the finest of china.

"Everything's going to be fine," he whispered to her, dipping his head so that he was whispering in her ear. "I'm here, I'm alive, and you're here." He had no idea of the things that people had said to her already, no idea of the rumors that were starting to begin. He pulled back, looking down into her face. He wasn't sure if she was crying because of the events over the weekend, relief that he was okay, or if something else was going on. But he wanted to make sure she was fine.

"Is anything else bothering you?" he asked quietly, his face carrying on an inquisitive and protective look. He reached up and carefully brushed a tear off of her cheek, sad to see her cry. Seeing her crying made him want to as well, but he didn't want to head into first hour looking like a mess.