01.

I LIMPED THROUGH THE HALLWAY, my bad leg struggling to keep pace with my right one. Each step sent a jolt of sharp pain through the ankle and shin and I struggled to bite back my winces.

Normally, my legs worked fine, but this week had taken its toll on me. The humidity flared up my old injuries, and I'd pushed myself too hard riding my bike to school each day. I had no room to complain, though. This was my own fault.

Beside me, Piper carried my books, chattering away about some school gossip she'd overhead at lunch that I'd zoned out from ages ago – when we'd started walking and my leg started aching.

Even if she pretended not to notice, I saw how she slowed down for me. I noted her excuse to carry my books for me and the worried glances she kept sending me when she thought I wasn't looking.

I pursed my lips, trying hard to straighten my back and appear nonchalant, but my next step only hurt more than the last and my lips were pulled back into a grimace.

"That's him," Piper said suddenly, her voice dropping to a whisper. She stopped in front of me and I stumbled to a pause, narrowly avoiding clashing with her back.

I blinked, returning my focus to her. "What?"

Piper sighed dramatically, sending me a dangerous look that clearly said weren't you listening? – although being almost a foot shorter than me, it wasn't that threatening.

"The new kid," she said exasperatedly.

She nodded over my shoulder and I turned, following her gaze.

He walked down the hallway towards us. At first glance, he looked like your average high school kid, with messy brown hair and a frown tugging at his lips.

But then he stepped forward and his crutches trembled under his weight like he was new to using them. He avoided people's eyes, though it was obvious everyone was watching him. It wasn't every day we got new students in the middle of a semester.

I frowned, watching him stagger forward. It reminded me of myself, last year.

I remembered the ache in my arms. The frustration. Throwing the crutches to the floor in a tantrum. The worried looks people shot me. The whispers. Did you hear about Amber Liu and Jasmine Ali?

I shook my head, shoving those thoughts away.

"I wonder what happened to him," Piper whispered. She followed him with her eyes, frowning, and I knew she was picturing me in his place.

"What's his name?" I asked Piper, suddenly curious.

She quirked a brow at me. "Could it be? Jasmine taking an interest in something? It's a miracle."

"Shut up," I shot back, rolling my eyes with a smile. "I used to have plenty of interests."

Before the accident.

Piper, sensing the words missing from the end of my sentence, cleared her throat. "Jace Wilson, I think. He's a senior like us."

A senior on crutches transferring in the middle of the school year? I narrowed my eyes at him. It was too familiar. Too similar.

A lump began to grow in my throat. I felt myself spiralling, descending down that dark trail of thoughts – the trail that lead to Amber.

Suddenly, the boy's – Jace's – eyes dragged up from the floor, locking directly onto mine. I stiffened, my heart faltering at the sudden eye contact.

He was handsome, with light brown eyes the colour of honey, and striking cheek bones. His skin was pale, and I immediately got the impression that he didn't go out much. I had the urge to look away, but there was something distant in his expression.

Something tired and weathered, like an old man who'd seen too much of the world.

Something familiar.

"Anyway," Piper said finally, flicking her long, black hair over her shoulder as she turned to face me. I blinked slowly, snapping out of my daze.

Jace's eyes ripped away from me, continuing his slow, stuttering walk with his crutches. I spun to face Piper.

"Are you working after school today?"

"Every Friday," I reminded her, raising a brow.

She pouted. "Come on, Jasmine. You can't take one day off? We haven't gone out for ages, and I heard Callum is having a party. Besides, they don't even pay you."

A pang echoed through me at the thought of a party. My jaw clenched and I squeezed my eyes shut, images of Amber's skewed body coming back to me. Her voice. Her screams. The stabbing pain in my legs before they went numb. I swallowed thickly.

That was a year ago, I reminded myself. You're okay now.

I scratched at my wrists and forced the memories away, opening my eyes again and clearing my throat. Suddenly, my leg seemed to hurt a lot more now.

"Yes, that's the point of volunteering, Piper," I chastised, trying to play it off nonchalant.

Piper didn't notice. She only sighed, reluctantly giving in. She was used to my volunteering at this point.

"Alright," she said, pausing at my locker to put my books away for me. She sent me a pointed look. "But Saturday we're going for brunch after work."

I flashed her a wide grin. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

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"Excellent work, everyone! Now, arms!"

I stretched my arms up, counting to eight out loud. Water splashed as the women in front of me copied my movements, struggling to reach their hands over their heads.

"Beatrice!" I called out, my voice echoing across the tiled, indoor pool. "Bit higher than that, come on. I know you can do it."

The old lady frowned, her brow furrowing in exertion as she pushed her arms higher, until finally she reached above her head. She grinned widely and I matched her smile, sending her a wink.

"Knew you could do it."

"Jasmine!"

I spun at the sound of my name. Jenna, my manager and trainer, was walking in from the large glass doors that separated the pool from the rest of the physiotherapy centre.

"Keep that up for five more counts then take a break," I ordered my group, before turning to meet Jenna half-way. "What's up?"

"How's the session going?" she asked, nodding towards the pool.

I narrowed my eyes at her, knowing this wasn't the reason she came here. I'd been running this session for eight months now, and she'd never checked in before. She was stalling.

"Good," I started carefully. "I think Dr George is right. Beatrice should be ready by next week."

"Great, great," Jenna smiled. She wavered for a moment before finally meeting my eyes. "I have a new student for you."

I arched a brow. She never interrupted a session to tell me about a new student. They just tended to show up.

"Okay, when should I expect them?"

"He's actually here now," she said. She lowered her voice, giving me a look. "But he's a bit different from our usual participants. It's not arthritis or exercise. He... He went through some things. Similar to you."

She paused and I felt my heart sink at the memory. Amber. The blood. I shoved the thoughts deep down.

"Okay," I started slowly, though my voice faltered. "So, is he joining us now?"

"No," she shook her head. "He'll join Saturday morning, but I wanted you to meet him first. To be aware of his situation."

"Right."

"It's a bit sensitive."

"Got it."

"Okay," Jenna said, nodding to herself. She released a breath and sent me a small smile. "I'll go call him in. Just... be nice. Okay?"

"Of course," I replied. It went without saying that I'd be as nice as possible – especially if I wanted to keep volunteering at the physio centre.

Jenna's smile grew a little and she turned back to leave the pool section, pushing through the glass doors that led to her office.

I shuffled on my feet, trying to keep my heart rate level. If Jenna was warning me about him before he even joined our classes, I didn't know what to expect.

He went through some things. Similar to you.

How similar? I flexed my left leg, feeling the taut stretch of my calf muscle and the stiffness in my ankle. I wondered if he experienced the same thing – the same painful reminder everyday about what had happened.

As if the nightmares weren't reminder enough. As if the contact in my phone with the disconnected number and the calendar marked on January 12th weren't reminder enough.

The door to the pool slammed shut and I looked up to see Jenna had re-entered, talking animatedly with the new patient. She smiled as she spoke, her hands waving as she pointed at the pool, then towards the change rooms and bathrooms, before finally gesturing at me.

I smiled, lifting my hand in a wave, when his eyes met mine and my heart faltered for the second time that day.

Honey brown.

Messy hair.

Jace. The new student from school.

He still had his crutches which clicked against the slick tiles with every step, but he walked faster than when I saw him a few hours ago – more confident and comfortable. He even had a small smile pulling at his lips as he nodded to whatever Jenna was speaking about.

Eventually, the pair reached me.

"Jace," Jenna began, nodding towards me. "This is Jasmine. She'll be your instructor for your water aerobics lessons."

"Hi," I managed, my voice sounding small. I sucked in a deep breath, trying to strengthen my words. "It's nice to meet you."

Jace nodded curtly, his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Well," Jenna cut in carefully. "Jasmine will walk you through the lessons and what you'll be doing tomorrow. I'll come back in five minutes, okay?"

Jace nodded wordlessly again and Jenna wavered. She stepped back, out of his view, and sent me a pointed look. I raised a brow at her, and she mouthed be nice before turning to leave us alone.

"Right," I started awkwardly. I turned towards the pool and gestured vaguely at it. "So, that's the pool where our classes take place."

The pool was empty of people now. My class was taking a break on the side – drying themselves with towels, sipping on water and chatting together.

Most of the students were elderly – greying men and women who came every week to get low impact exercise or to help with any joint problems and back pains that came with old age.

Every now and then we'd get some younger people. I'd had some middle-aged businessmen who'd torn a muscle. Some mothers who'd sprained their ankles. Even young adults in college with ligament tears.

But Jace was the youngest person we'd had – other than me.

"My classes are for beginners with mild injuries. It's all low impact and the water's warm so it really soothes any injuries you might be experiencing," I continued. "I've been teaching it for almost a year now. Jenna trained me herself."

Jace didn't speak. I glanced at him to see he was warily looking at his peers – at all the elderly people on the benches. I frowned, turning to face him and lowering my voice.

"I know it's weird being the youngest in the class," I said, trying hard to keep the bitter sarcasm out of my voice. Trust me, I know. "But they're all very kind and welcoming. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Jace turned to look at me. His eyes met mine – his golden, honey ones against my dark, chocolate ones. It was hard to read his expression. He was an expert at keeping a deadpanned face, despite the downward tilt of his lips that seemed to be permanent.

There was a long pause. His eyes stayed on mine – blank and narrowed. Yet, something shone in them, something deeply knowing, and I felt painfully self-conscious beneath them.

"I saw you at school," he said, finally. "You were limping too."

I stilled. His voice was deeper than I'd expected. Somehow, it made him seem older. I blinked, processing his words.

At school.

So that was why he'd met my eyes. He'd noticed my limp. Slowly, heat crept up my neck and a blush bloomed against my olive skin.

"It's an old injury," I said quickly, embarrassed. "It flares up sometimes, so..."

He said nothing, only continued to stare at me. I looked away, unable to bear his eyes any longer.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you tomorrow morning. You'll have fun, I promise."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him nod again, his eyes turning dark. There was that hint of a sad look again. That hint of familiarity.

Before I could stop myself, I met his eyes once more and sent him the most encouraging look I could muster, with a wide grin. A genuine one. One I'd needed a year ago, when I first stepped foot in this physio centre, pallor and barely able to walk.

"It'll be good," I said, my voice steady and clear. His brows furrowed the slightest bit and his cold, deadpan expression wavered. I bowed my head in a nod, keeping my eyes on his. "I promise."

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hello everyone! Welcome to my new story! This one's more of a slow burn, so stick with me hehe. Thank you so much for reading and commenting, I was so touched by all the kind support I've gotten since posting the foreword! I really hope you enjoyed this first chapter!

Please let me know what you think so far! What are your thoughts on Jasmine and Jace? Any predictions? Let me know!