***Emi’s POV***

                “You’re dating that waste of space?!”

                I glared at Craig and nodded. “Don’t insult him Craig! You don’t know him! Can’t you just be happy for me?” I begged, really not wanting to start a fight with him.

                Craig clenched his fists tightly and narrowed his eyes at me. “How can I happy when my best friend is dating the biggest waste of space drug addict in the school?”

                “Craig, stop it! You don’t understand!” I snapped in annoyance. He opened his mouth to say more, but I stormed away from him. I didn’t want to hear it. I was actually in a good mood, and I didn’t want Craig to ruin it for me.

                Gavin had been beyond thrilled when I told him. He had begged me not to hurt Taylor, but he didn’t have to. Maybe I could actually help Taylor.

                “Hey beautiful.”

                I smiled and turned to face Taylor. He was leaning against one of the lockers. He smiled and came over to me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing my forehead. “Ready to go?”

                I nodded and he took my hand in his. We left the school together and got on his bus. We sat together and he pulled out his iPod and handed a headphone to me.

                He put on Good Charlotte and I rested my head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped me comfortingly. We got off at his house and went inside.         

                “Hi Taylor! Hi Emi!” his mom greeted.

                “Hi Mrs. Ryan,” I said with a polite smile. Taylor smiled widely. “Mom, Emi and I are dating,” he said happily.

                “Aw Taylor! That’s adorable,” his mom said with a huge smile. “I’m happy for you two!”

                Taylor went over to her and whispered something. Her face paled but she nodded slowly. She hesitated before hugging her son tightly. Taylor came back over to me and gave me a somewhat shaky smile.

                “I’ll be right back Emi. I’m going to take a quick shower,” he said, kissing my cheek before leaving the room. I stared after him in confusion.

                “Emi, come into the living room. We need to talk about Taylor,” Mrs. Ryan said with a sigh. I followed her into the living room and sat down, puzzled.

                “Emi, I’m sure you’ve noticed Taylor’s…hallucinations,” she started nervously and I nodded. Obviously I had. I shuddered at the memory of him scratching at his arms and screaming about bugs.

                “Well, there’s a reason Taylor slips into those hallucinations. He’s…he’s embarrassed to say it,” she continued and wet her lips nervously.

                “What’s the reason?” I asked, burning with curiosity. This was it. I finally got to find out what was wrong with Taylor. I finally got to find out why he hallucinated the way he did.

                Mrs. Ryan’s eyes exploded into agony and she bit her lips. “Taylor is…Well, Taylor has schizophrenia,” she said slowly and winced a little, as if the word caused her pain.

                Schizophrenia…I didn’t know too much about that, except that it was very, very bad. Oh god; poor Taylor.

                “Is that why he…” I trailed off, not wanting to say anything about his drug and drinking problems. What if it offended his mom? God I should’ve just kept my big mouth shut.

                Mrs. Ryan’s face paled and she nodded slowly. “God, you must think his father and I are terrible parents. We know. How could we not? But it’s the only thing that stops the screaming. He was on medicine, but it wasn’t working. Only the….substances…calm him down and keep him sane. We let him do those terrible things because we love him.”

                Her voice was quiet and full of pain and love for her mentally ill son. I nodded to show I understood what she was saying. I couldn’t find the words to say that.

                “Emi, please, please, please be good to him. I can’t see him go through any more pain in his life. When we found out he had schizophrenia, it tore my husband apart. Taylor is our only child. We hate to see him in pain,” she whispered.

                “I won’t hurt him Mrs. Ryan,” I promised quietly. At least, I would try my best not to hurt Taylor. His mom was right; he didn’t need more pain in his life. Having schizophrenia and a dead best friend was enough, wasn’t it?

                We heard the sound of Taylor coming downstairs. His mom offered me a weak smile before getting up and leaving the room. A minute later, Taylor entered with wet hair.

                He sat down next to me and pulled me into his lap, kissing my forehead. “So now you know. Are you…” his voice trailed off, barely audible.

                “Taylor, that doesn’t change anything. You can’t help that. You shouldn’t have been embarrassed to tell me,” I said and rested my head on his shoulder.

                “It’s just hard,” he whispered.

                I squeezed his hand comfortingly and he gave me a weak smile. I shifted and gently pressed my lips to his. He gently put his arms around me, holding me close to his warm body.

                “You make It go away,” he said when he had pulled away from my lips. He rested his forehead on mine, staring into my eyes deeply. “Even Ari couldn’t make It go away.” He leaned back in, connecting our lips once again.

                I pulled away and smiled softly. I placed my head back on his shoulder and he kept his arms around me. He was so, so warm.

                “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered in my ear.

                “Taylor, we should go out tomorrow,” I said, smiling up at him. He happily nodded in agreement and kissed me. “Yes. Of course,” he said. The terrified, paranoid look was completely gone from his eyes, and I realized that maybe, just maybe, Taylor wouldn’t need drugs or alcohol anymore if I really made whatever It was go away. That thought in my head, my smile grew wider and I kissed my boyfriend, not caring if he had schizophrenia.