"This was a perfect idea, Cam."

I leaned back against his chest, staring out over the rushing water below us with a smile, listening to the sound of music from the bonfire upstream.

"No parents wants their child at a college party." Cam whispered in my ear, "No good parent, at least." I tilted my head back and nodded in agreement.

"I. . . can I ask you something?" I questioned. He smiled down at me, leaning back on to his hands.

"'Course." He responded.

"Last night, did you-"

"I don't remember." His face flushed as he cut me off, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cool breeze brushing his curls wildly on his head.

"Cam-"

"What good is talking about it going to do? Let's just have fun." He rested his chin on my shoulder, "The time of our lives." I gave a weak attempt at another smile, huffing out a sigh before starting to squirm in his grip.

"Let's go back to the party." I tugged Cam's hand until he rolled his eyes and stood up, snaking his arm around my waist as we headed back for the narrow path that led back down to shore.

I smiled at the feeling of sand slipping into my sandal, the sound of people cheering. It felt nice, to be able to be out on a Friday night for once.

"I will be back, My Lady. Want anything?" He nodded toward the keg across the beach. I shook my head, not trusting that there was anything over there that wasn't spiked.

"I'm good." He kissed me quickly before maneuvering through the large crowd of people.

I glanced around me, seeing a few people I recognized, but most of them were Jake's age and probably hadn't ever seen a seventeen year old girl wandering around at a college party by herself.

"You came!" I felt unwanted arms wrap around me from behind, alcohol on his breath.

"What are you doing, Jacob?" I tried to squirm from his grip, but he was dragging me back toward the rocks Cam and I had sat at for a while when we first got here, away from the crowd and Cam.

"How you feeling, Birthday Girl?" He asked, taking a swing from a flask in his hands. I shifted uncomfortably.

"My birthday's next Friday." I answered. Sober Jacob would have known that.

"You didn't come here alone, did you?" He tipped my chin up so I was staring into his bloodshot and dilated eyes.

"You never know the kind of creeps that hang around these things." I bit my tongue to stop myself from saying something I knew would only make this worse.

"Did the cat get your tongue, Blake?" He moved closer, forcing me back against the rough surface of the rock.

I held my breath, glancing over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of anyone who might look in our direction. It was too much to hope that this was going to play out like a movie or book, where the hero shows up just in time to save the girl from the bad guy.

"You want some?" He offered the flask with one hand, his other behind me on the rock.

"Let me go, Jake." I whispered, not risking trying to push myself away from the rock-and him.

"I just wanna play, babe." He took another swing, "You remember when we were kids? We all used to play in that ratty treehouse." I swallowed, my stomach suddenly lurching at his words.

"Jake." I pleaded with my eyes, "Please." Any hope that the Jacob I knew was in there was gone the second he discarded the flask and forced his body on to mine. A growl rose in my throat once he started getting handsy, my heart becoming the only sound I could hear.

"I wanted you that night too." He brushed his lips against my ear, "But my brother came in and ruined it. You would have been mine." I struggled again, but it only made things worse. He pushed his knee between my thighs roughly, his tongue trying to force its way into my mouth. I felt myself starting to give up hope.

Even if I tried to scream, no one would hear me over the music. Cam had probably become to preoccupied with someone he knew, and the Jacob Mendoza I had been in love with was nothing but a distant image of the man forcing his hands up my shirt.

I shut my eyes, turning my head as tears began to sting them.

I should have known better. I should have known that there would be drunk college guys here, drunk guys in general.

I felt his hand start to unclasp my bra, his breathing ragged once he realized I had stopped fighting.

I waited for it to happen, something. But he was gone, his hands on my back, his knee between my legs. He was gone.

My eyes fluttered, sure I'd find Cam standing in front of me like some superhero saving the day. It wasn't Cam standing in front of me; it was Wes.

He was throwing blow after blow, even when Jacob was on the ground, he continued to make Jake's face a bloodied mess.

"Wes." I forced myself away from the wall, pulling on the worn blue shirt he was wearing until his clenched fists fell to his sides, Jacob out cold beneath him.

"What are you doing here?" I took his ashen face in my hands, "Why aren't you at the hospital?" He climbed off Jake and cupped my cheek in his hand.

"They released me an hour ago." He lowered his eyes to the ground, "Shay's been trying to call for hours, but it went to voicemail. Raymond told us you were here." I was still too overwhelmed with shock over what happened and what I'd seen to say anything else.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Anger returned to his face, "Coming to a college party by yourself? Do you understand how stupid that is?"

"Cam's here." I gestured weakly toward the party ahead. The party that had no idea that I had been minutes away from being raped by my first crush, my boyfriend's older brother.

"Cam's here?" Wes snapped, "And where is he, Blake? If he's here with you, why isn't he by your side right now?" I opened my mouth, trying to come up with some sort of defense for Cam.

When I looked back toward the party, my heart started to sink in my chest. He was standing in between a brunette I recognized from school and one of the guys on the team, smiling and laughing. Had he forgotten he'd brought me here with him?

"You can't teach an old dog new tricks." Wes stepped forward, taking my wrists gently in his hands, "He's never going to change, Blake. He's a player, a douchebag, a dick. Even you can't change that." He shut his own eyes, his long, beautiful black lashes fanning along his high cheekbone.

"I'm not saying this because I'm in love with you too, Blake. As much as you'd like to believe that. I'm saying this because I'm tired of seeing you hurt. The last few days you've visited, you looked worse than I did. And I was the one in the hospital bed." I brushed my finger along the bandaid on his forearm.

"I love you, I care. And when you pull stupid shit like tonight, how do you think we're going to react? We were worried sick." He made a gesture toward Jacob's hunched over figure on the ground, "What if I hadn't gotten here when I did? Cam doesn't look like he's even considering coming back over here. What would have happened then?" I pulled away from Wes and turned back toward the party.

"What's going on with you, Blake?" I shook my head, eyes still stinging.

"I'm scared, confused, and I feel betrayed. I. . . it hurts, you know. Finding out your mother kept your father away your entire life, blaming yourself only to realize it wasn't your fault at all." He reached for me, but I shook my head.

"I don't like you like that, Wesley." I managed to continue, "Cam's my boyfriend, here to save the day or not. Thank you, you saved me, you protected me. But you aren't always going to be able to be there, and you need to realize that it's not going to happen." Hurt. Pain. Anger. Hurt again. Every emotion possible seemed to cross Wes' face, but he kept his composure.

"I'm not going to stop trying. Not until I understand why you're with him." I tried to speak again, but he held his finger up and went on before I could.

"For the record, you've been dressing like a slut for the last month and a half. Jacob isn't the first guy to talk about making any sort of advance on you, he was the first to act on it." He dropped his fist back to his side, "My sister sat and cried against my chest for hours thinking she did something wrong, Blake. Because you turned your back on her entirely without a word." I bowed my head, tears finally escaping my eyes.

"I don't say this to hurt you, believe me, it physically hurts me seeing you like this." Wes was closer now, but his voice sounded distant, "I'm saying this because I want my Blake back. Shay's Blake. Not Cameron's little bitch." I lifted my hand up, ready to smack him, but he caught it and gripped it tightly.

I had just started to pull it from his grip when he leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine before I could stop him. I stood there, still, not knowing how to react until he pulled away.

"I have a boyfriend." I pushed him back, my mind starting to drift, "Leave me alone, Wesley. Please." I turned and started to walk away, but paused after a moment.

"Thank you." I said, before rushing back over to Cam and sliding under his arm, burying my face against his side so he couldn't see me crying.

"What happened?" He asked, taking me away from everyone and forcing me to look up. I buried myself against his chest again and let out a choked sob before I could get coherent words out.

"How much time do you have?" I saw anger flicker in his eyes for a moment.

"All the time in the world, Blake. Now tell me which son of a bitch did this to you so I can go kill him." 

***AN***

Hope you guys enjoyed!

Let me know what you thought!

~ChasingMadness24