Darkness and water surrounded her. Faye was sinking down and it was getting even darker. She waved her hands and kicked her feet, but her body was like a rock. The more she struggled, the further she sunk down. Her head was getting dizzy and she was losing air. Water pressed closer against her body, as if it was trying to force its' way through her skin. No!

Faye's eyes popped open and she gasped for air. It was a dream. Just a dream. She sat up, trying to calm down her beating heart. It was then she realized that she was soaking wet. And that she was on a bed at an unfamiliar place.

"You're awake."

Her eyes followed to the place the voice was. To her surprise, it belonged to Alex. He sat on the bed next to hers, wet from head to toe.

"Where am I?" Faye asked.

"The school's infirmary. You've been out for only a few minutes. You woke up as soon as I brought you here," he said with a gentle smile.

Faye tried to recall what happened earlier. Judging from how both of them were wet, she probably fell into the pool after the ball hit her, and Alex jumped in to save her.

"Thank you," she said, feeling a bit foolish for being so careless in PE.

"Don't thank me. I did what I had to. Besides, I was the one who kicked the ball. It was an accident, of course." He studied at her for a while. "What are you feeling right now? Want me to go and catch the nurse?"

"I'm fine. Sorry for being such a bother."

Alex threw her a white towel. "You better dry yourself or else you'll catch a cold."

Faye nodded and wrapped the towel around her. She was shaking slightly, and her clothes were sticking uncomfortably unto her body. If Alex wasn't there-and if she had her bag with her-she would have changed out of her PE clothes.

"I brought your bag with me when I took you to the infirmary," he said, as if he read her thoughts. Turning around, he went over to the table in the corner of the room. Stacks of the nurse's papers lied messily on the table. Faye's hands itched to clean up the mess, but she stayed still.

She took a moment to study the room. It was her second year in high school, but she hadn't once stepped into the infirmary before. Never had a reason to.

The room had the same size as regular classrooms. Three beds were lined up along the length of the room. The other length of the room had floor-to-ceiling shelves. On her left was the door. Alex and the messy table were on the opposite side. Behind her was a row with small windows, facing the parking lot. It seemed like the weather hadn't changed since PE lesson.

"Here you go," Alex said, as he laid down her bag beside her.

Faye gave him a weak smile. "Thank you... again."

He returned the smile and sat down on the bed next to hers. "What exactly happened? You didn't even see the ball coming."

"I... had a lot on my mind."

"Like what?"

"Nothing much... Just boring stuff, nothing important."

Alex leaned forward, challenging her with a smile. "I'm not so sure about that."

"It's nothing, really," Faye said, feeling nervous all of a sudden. Since Alex's clothes were clinging onto him, she couldn't help but slightly see his abs beneath the soaked, white shirt.

"Something is obviously bothering you. Why don't you just let it all out?" His tone told her that he was absolutely serious. Faye didn't know how to react to that. All of those who were close to her didn't notice anything, but he, practically a stranger, saw right through her.

"Why are you so interested?" she asked straight out.

"Why not? Sometimes, it's easier to talk to strangers than close friends," he said. "It looks like you've been bottling things up. That's not very healthy, you know."

He saw her hesitation and stood up. Closing the distance between them, he stared into her with his ocean colored eyes. "Tell me your story, and I'll tell you mine."

The pressure of his gaze was too much for her, so Faye tore her eyes away. It was so weird to get attention from a guy. Of course, Jack did give her attention. He was her boyfriend after all. Yet, she always felt like he never really looked at her. She hadn't ever received full attention like she did now.

Alex returned to his earlier spot. "Believe it or not, I used to be twice my size now." He laughed at his own statement.

"And my grades were the worst of all the students. Basically, I was the very opposite of who I am now."

Faye looked at him in dismay. "Really?"

"Yeah. I was bullied most of my childhood. It was the worst time of my life." He closed his eyes and leaned back. "But a person saved me. When everyone laughed at me, that person stood up for me and boldly stayed by my side." Alex opened his eyes again and slowly smiled.

Faye blinked. She could barely believe what she just heard. Who would've thought that Alex had such a past?

"That person must be very important to you," she said softly.

"Yes, more important than you'll ever know. That person was so different from me. Social, smart, funny, selfless, full of courage... Yet, somehow, still cared for a loser like me."

"Too bad I moved away and never met that person again. I decided to change myself and help someone just like I was helped," he said.

Alex looked at her intensely. "I can't leave you alone when something is obviously bothering you. Let me help you, Faye. That's the only way I can thank that person."

Faye blinked, taking in every word he said. Seeing his sincerity, she reluctantly told him about her worries. She told him everything, from the stalking to the teddy bear and pictures. Alex listened to her silently, his eyes fastened on hers.

She could feel her mind running like a watermill as she talked. Her head was sorting out the information and tried to make sense out of it.

"I don't understand what's happening. It's frightening," she said, unable to stop the overwhelming feeling of fear. Someone was watching her, but why?

Alex stood up from the bed and turned towards the door.

"You should change your clothes. I'll wait outside and make sure nobody enter while you're changing," he said, while walking out.

"Wait, there's no need-" Faye started, but Alex had already shut himself outside.

Sighing, she stripped off her dripping clothes. While she was changing she wondered what Alex was thinking right then. He listened to her from beginning to end, but what did he think of it? Did he think she was paranoid or downright insane?

She finished, gathered her things and walked out.

"Done? Let's go," he said and walked down the hallway.

She jogged to keep up with him. "Go where?"

"Home, of course. I'll walk you to your house." He took the turn to the right and she followed.

"Don't you have practice today?" she asked.

"What practice?"

"Basket, of course."

He glanced at her, looking slightly confused. "There's no basketball practice today."

What?

Jack clearly told her that he had practice after school. Why did he lie?

#######

"What a let-down," a shadow said. "Faye is broken."

The shadow stood under the dead streetlamp behind Faye's house, watching her change her clothes through a small crack between her curtains. Turning its' eyes away from the window, the shadow looked at Faye in the picture it was holding. Her face had a bright, yet fake smile. Almost as fake as her existence.

The shadow ripped the picture into small pieces and let them fall to the ground.

"If it's broken, I might as well throw it in the trash."

#######