Disclaimer: I do not own Tower Prep.

A Year without Rain

A day without you is like a year without rain

-Selena Gomez-

Prologue

CJ knew Ian wasn't surprised to see her on the other side of the door – she could tell in the way his eyes twitched, the way he gripped the doorknob…all those little things she always noticed. Not even her pent up emotions and the struggle she was having with herself could stop her from reading Ian, not this time. Because she already knew he knew, and what she read with her abilities just reinforced it.

He stepped back from the door, but he didn't close it. He was letting her in. He was going to hear her out. She couldn't tell if he thought she deserved it, but that didn't matter now – what mattered was he was letting her explain. He wasn't turning his back on her.

This, she was sure, was the proof her father claimed he wanted – proof that her friends were there for her. Even if she never mentioned it to him, this was enough for her.

"Before I start," she said as Ian sat in his desk chair, his arms crossed over his chest, looking up at her with a stern expression that was terrifyingly similar to her father's, "I want you to promise you'll listen first and ask questions after. No interrupting."

Ian nodded. "I promise."

CJ gave him a shaky, grateful smile, and took a deep breath. "You already know I'm the leak," she said after a long moment – and she felt a weight lift from her because that, she knew, was the biggest step. She took another deep breath and soldiered on. "I'm not going to make excuses, not really, but there's something you should know." She forced herself to keep her eyes on Ian's face, focusing on the way his lips twitched and his eyes scrunched. "Headmaster is my father."

She paused, waiting for him to react. If he was going to, it was going to be now, but he said nothing and CJ continued, struggling to keep her voice from shaking. "Tower Prep is all I've known for all my life," she said. "I always wondered what was out there," she glanced at the window, then quickly back at Ian, "what else the world had to offer. Until you came, I never thought I'd be able to see it."

"So why-" Ian started, then he cut himself off and leaned forward in his chair, his elbows on his knees.

He wanted to hear her story through.

"I had to choose," she said, "my father, my life, or you guys. I didn't want to. I did my best to give him useless information, but as we got closer to the answers it got harder to hide things from him." She paused, gauging Ian's reaction – he believed her, or at least he wanted to. Right now, that was enough. "I didn't know what else to do," she finished, letting her hands drop against her legs with a thud.

Ian nodded slowly, then stood up. He stepped forward and settled a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you for telling me," he said, "but it doesn't change anything."

"I know," CJ said. "I still betrayed you. I'm still the reason Suki is AWOL and Gabe is in West Campus." She looked away. "But I think I can fix it."

"How?"

"Leave me behind."

"CJ, no."

She looked up at him again, fighting the tears in her eyes. "You know you'll come back," she said. "You have to. After everything we've learned…you can't just leave. And you'll need someone here, someone to help you." She settled a hand on his arm. "Let me do it, Ian," she said. "I can keep Headmaster off your trail, I can help you get back. I can help you fight."

"This isn't a war, CJ," Ian said, and she knew he wanted to believe it.

She smiled sadly at him. "It will be," she said.

Ian hesitated, then he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. "I'll come back for you," he whispered. "I promise."