The faint light of dawn seeped in through the window, bathing my room in a soft glow. Outside, I could hear the birds chirping, being exceptionally loud, the sound pushing the sluggishness out of my mind.

I squinted at the alarm clock on my bedside table and groaned into my pillow. 6 am.

What the fuck are birds so excited about at 6 am?

Why was I even awake? I rubbed my eyes and just then, I heard a muffled voice outside my bedroom door and everything that had happened last night came rushing back to me. Tyler.

I bolted upright and walked over to the door. As soon I opened the door I found him pacing outside, in only a pair of boxers, talking to someone on his phone, his head hung low. "Are you sure? Okay. I'll be there..."

I tried really hard to not ogle him, while he had his drool worthy body -my personal brand of kryptonite- on full display. But I didn't possess that kind of self restraint.

He got off the phone looking completely upset and let out a long defeated sigh. He ran a hand through his unruly hair, before looking up and locking his eyes with me.

"Hey." I gave him a tentative smile, wondering what was going on.

He did not return my smile and my stomach dropped. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, his expression unreadable, before silently walking over to me and pulling me into his arms, engulfing me in a fierce hug.

I held him back tightly, not saying a word and wanting to never let go.

"I'm sorry about last night." I heard his muffled whisper.

"You have nothing to be sorry about."

"I shouldn't have gotten so drunk."

"It's okay. You were upset." I placed a soft kiss in the crook of his neck. "Who were you talking to?"

"Dad. They told him this morning that Mom is supposed to have a surgery in two days." He sighed, pulling away from me and resting his forehead against mine. "I need to leave and get back to the hospital. I'll call Jace to pick me up, I don't have my car."

"Can I come along? I could drop you."

"What about school?"

I didn't want to miss school, but I wanted to be there for him. I knew more than anyone, how much his family meant to him. How much his mother meant to him and I could see how all of this was affecting him. He wasn't saying much, but that's alright. I just wanted him to know I was here for him.

"I'll skip. Or maybe go in late. I want to see Julian too."

He hesitated for a few seconds but then, gave up and nodded, before kissing my forehead. "We'll leave now. Dad asked me to pick up a prescription, so I'll have to make a quick stop on the way."

"Okay." I nodded. When he made a move to pull away from me, I pulled him closer and pressed a soft kiss on his lips, and then another and another, making him smile.

Kissing Tyler was a lot like eating potato chips. You could never have just one.

***

Tyler had declared that he did not trust my driving skills early in the morning, before snatching my car keys from me and I had wholeheartedly agreed. I was trying not to doze off in the passenger seat when he parked the car in front of a pharmacy. After a few seconds when he made no move to get out, I turned to look at him with a frown. He was staring at something in the rearview mirror with a hard look on his face. "What are you looking at?"

That seemed to have brought him out of his trance and he looked at me before shaking his head. "Nothing. I'll be quick, just stay in the car, okay?"

"Where else would I go?" I frowned.

"Uh...yeah, " he muttered, his eyes darting back towards the mirror and back to me. "I'll be back soon."

Well, that was weird.

As soon as he left the car, I shifted in my seat and had a good look around, but I found nothing. There were very few people on the road and I could see nothing weird.

I took out my phone and shot off a text to Ash and Avi, letting them know where I was. They were still asleep when we left the house, so I hadn't bothered to wake them up.

When I looked up from my phone, my eyes landed on the last person I wanted to see, and suddenly Tyler's weird behavior made sense.

Engrossed in his phone Max was walking over to a car parked behind mine. A black Camero. The same car that was parked in front of my house the night of the break in.

Something took over my mind. Everything single thing he had done to me and to those I cared about came to my mind and I lost it.

My screams for help. The bruises on my body. The gripping fear, I felt when I realized someone was in my house the other night. Julian's tears. The pain that Tyler was going through.

It was all because of him.

Before I even realized what I was doing, I found myself getting out of the car and marching over to where he was standing. My vision narrowed down to him and everything else disappeared. I just felt the red hot rage, the blood rushing in my veins, and a strange feeling of determination settled over me.

"Hey, asshole!" I yelled, striding towards him.

He turned around and smirked when he spotted me. "Hey."

A small part of me, the rational part, knew this was a stupid idea. But I couldn't bring myself to stop. It wasn't me to back down from a fight or take shit from people. I'd never done it before. And I wouldn't do it now.

"You think it's funny to break into someone's house?" I spat, standing just inches away from him. "Throw a damn brick through a window?"

"A little. Why do you ask?"

The look of pure amusement on his face sent me over the edge. I swung my fist before I could even think about what I was doing. My knuckles made hard contact with his jaw with a loud crack, and he stumbled back, cursing loudly.

Fuck that hurt! I cradled my hand, trying not to cry out in pain.

I felt satisfied when I saw his lower lip bleed and he fixed me with a nasty glare. But the feeling didn't last for long, because he closed the distance between us in a flash and grabbed both of my wrists, before pinning them to my back with a strong grip.

"A feisty little thing you are, " he whispered nuzzling the side of my head. "I can't wait to find out how you're in bed."

"I'll die before that happens."

"Hmm, maybe. We'll see, won't we?"

I tried pulling away from him but failed. "Are you threatening me?"

"Do you feel threatened?"

Bastard. I spread my legs a little to get a good solid standing, ready to break out of his hold when I felt something, or rather someone slam into us and within a second I found Tyler standing in my place.

A seriously pissed off Tyler.

He had Max by the throat, a murderous glint in his eye. The anger radiating off of him is almost tangible, and I'm thrown off guard for a second. I've never seen him so angry. There could be mayhem swirling around him and he is always calm and in control.

The first punch he lands on his face is so quick, I almost miss it. "I warned you to stay away from her."

"So you're still together, huh?" Max asked, rubbing his jaw and Tyler visibly stiffened for a second.

Max glared at him, but didn't make any other move. I was actually shocked that he didn't try to fight back.

"Whatever problem you have with me, you deal with me. You leave my family and my girl out of it. You get that!?" Tyler snapped.

There was a small crowd forming around us now, and I cringed. Some of the kids had their phones out and pointing at us, probably hoping for a fight, and I realized that was probably the reason why Max was not fighting back. He couldn't tarnish his Dad's reputation in public by getting into a fist fight.

I slipped my hand into Tyler's and tugged, silently asking him to step back. Max noticed and his eyes zeroed in on our hands. If it were possible, his glare got a little more hateful.

Tyler stepped back and clutched my hand tightly, but just when I thought the worst was over, Max opened his mouth again. "I heard your Mom's in the hospital. What was it? Another heart attack?"

"Shut up, Max!" I warned.

"I wonder how many more of those attacks will it take for her heart to finally give up." He casually leaned back against his car, his gaze trained on Tyler. "Anyway, give her my love."

This time it was me who lunged for him and Tyler held me back, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I swear to God I'll kill you and I'll enjoy every minute of it!" I spat, my hands trembling with rage.

"Oh, I know that. And let me tell you, beautiful, the feeling is mutual. I'm just waiting for the right time." Max gave me a wink and smiled before getting into his car and driving away.

I stood there and watched him go, his words leaving a bad taste in my mouth.

***

Tyler was silent all the way to the hospital. His jaw clenched, he was holding the steering wheel in a death grip that turned his knuckles white. I know he was angry and I know that a lot of it was directed towards me. But I wish he would talk to me. Yell at me. Do anything but stay quiet. The silent treatment is killing me.

"Talk to me." I finally broke the silence.

"I have nothing to say to you." The lack of emotion in his voice is hard for me to handle. But I force myself to talk in a steady tone.

"You do. You're pissed at me."

"I am."

"Then yell at me."

"It won't change a damn thing. You'll always do what you want. You just can't help getting into fights. No matter the cost."

I closed my eyes and turned away from him, to hide how hurtful his words were. He was right. Of course, he was. I know I was reckless. I know it was stupid. What did I accomplish by that little stunt? Nothing.

But he made me sound like a maniac who loved violence. He of all people should know the extent to which Max affected me. One look at him and I could feel my insides burning with anger. He had made it his life's mission to hurt me in any way possible. I had every freaking right to punch the daylights out of him, any chance I got.

When Tyler pulled up at the hospital's parking lot, he got out of the car without another word, leaving me to scramble after him in a hurry.

Five minutes later we walked into the cardiac unit, I was doing my best to act normal when I felt my insides twisting uneasily. I freaking despised hospitals, with a passion. Who didn't? Tyler was talking to a doctor, while I took a seat in the lounge area, nervously looking around.

This brought back unwanted memories that I had long forgotten. The night I was admitted after my encounter with Max, last year. It was all a blurry memory, but there were some parts of it I remembered clearly. Pain, blood- lots of it, Ash crying hysterically by my side, Neil cussing out everyone in a 10-mile radius and Avi's soothing reassurances, while I drifted in and out of consciousness.

Breathe. A panic attack, in broad daylight, in front of so many people would be a disaster. Just breathe. I silently coached myself and tried to get my laboured breathing under control.

"Hey." I suddenly found Tyler kneeling in front of my chair with a concerned look. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I shook my head. "How's your mom?"

He didn't answer me straight away, obviously not convinced that I was okay. "She's resting. We can meet her later, that is... if you want to?"

"Of course." I gave him a weak smile and he nodded.

"We need to get your hand looked at." He took my right hand and examined it carefully. My knuckles were red from punching Max, two of my fingers- mostly my thumb, were slightly swollen but other than that it looked fine.

"It'll be okay, it's no big deal." I pulled my hand away and he frowned.

"It is a big deal. What if it's broken? There's a slight swelling too. Does it hurt?"

"A little bit." I tried to flex my fingers and winced. God, this was embarrassing. I tried to punch Max and broke a bone? I liked to think I had a pretty impressive right hook. But in my anger, I had forgotten the basic rule for throwing a punch. Never tuck your thumb inside your fist!

"Let's go." He got up and started walking away, leaving no room for argument. I sighed and quietly followed him.

One hour later I was back to sitting on the same chair in the lounge area, wearing a splint for my dislocated thumb. Tyler had hardly spoken to me. He seemed lost in his own world, brooding in silence.

Just then, the other Crosby brother walked in, looking disheveled and tired. His face lit up when he spotted me and I grinned.

I gave Julian a tight hug and stood beside him. He stole a few worried glances at Tyler who didn't bother to acknowledge him and let out an exhausted sigh.

"What happened to your hand?" Julian asked.

I glared at my hand. "I'm mad at it."

"Huh?" He gave me a confused smile.

"I mean, I punched my number one enemy in the face today. It was supposed to be a satisfying moment for me but no...I dislocated a thumb." I scowled.

"You met Max?" He asked, looking panicked.

"Yeah, " I mumbled, stealing a quick glance at Tyler. "I don't want to talk about it, right now. How are you holding up?"

"How do you think? Mom in the hospital, expelled from my school for something I didn't do..." He trailed off and gave me a wry smile.

"You haven't told me what exactly happened." Tyler suddenly spoke up, surprising both of us. "How did you get into this mess?"

Julian squirmed in his seat and I gave him an encouraging nod. Time to come clean. So, he finally told Tyler everything, from how he found out about Max being a dealer, then deciding that if he could get a solid proof regarding it he could help us somehow and about his few meet ups with Max and his friends. Then finally when he refused to join them when they last invited him, he walked into his school the next day to be falsely accused of being in possession of drugs. He spilled out all the truth and was met by silence.

Tyler's expression transformed before my eyes. His brows lowered, lowered again. His eyes narrowed into two slits and his jaw hardened. I wanted to take a step back and that look wasn't even directed at me.

"Even after I told you to stay away..." he shook his head like he was disappointed. "Why do you think he was friends with you? Why do you think someone like Max Stone was including a new nerdy kid -who's three years younger to him- in his inner circle?"

Julian just gave him a subtle shake of his head in answer, his eyes downcast and I felt my heart squeeze painfully at the sight.

"Tyler..." I murmured, but he ignored me.

"Because he knew you were my brother. He knew who you were and he set you up. And even after all my warnings, you walked right into his trap." Tyler looked away from him, with a sullen expression.

I saw a lone tear trickle down Julian's face and he quickly wiped it away. "I'm sorry."

"C'mon, Ty. He was just trying to help," I tried to reason with him. "When I told him it was risky, he listened to me. He backed out, but it was too late. It's not really his fault."

Tyler snapped his gaze in my direction. "You knew about all of this?"

Oh shit. "Um...yeah. I saw him with Max and his friends that day, after the dance. Then I confronted him about it when I had come over to your house, and he told me about everything."

"You knew about all of this and you didn't tell me." His simple sentence felt like a kick in my gut and I looked away guiltily.

"I'm sorry, I...I didn't realize it would blow up in our faces like this."

"I told her not to tell you." Julian jumped in. "It's not her fault."

He scoffed and cast one long look at both of us before walking away without another word. I stared at his broad back disappearing down the hallway with guilt churning in my stomach.

It was a small fight and I knew we could work it out. Still, for some reason it felt like everything was slowly falling apart.

And this was just the beginning.