I woke up in a daze. My mind was spinning, along with the walls around me. My head was throbbing and on instinct I immediately reached for my head and began to rub soothing circles on my temples. What did I do last night? I had blacked out and couldn't remember anything. I opened my eyes up to the blaring sun coming into the room. I groaned and rolled over to see a very attractive looking blonde boy sitting next to me lighting up a cigarette. I let out a surprised yell and shot up quickly.

"Who the hell are you?"

He took a puff of his cigarette and ran a hand through his long blonde hair. He was wearing a grey t shirt and a pair of rolled up jeans. He looked normal enough.

"I'm the guy who saved your ass." He smirked.

"I don't need anyone to save my ass. I usually do that for myself thank you very much." I huffed and ran my hands through my tattered hair.

He took another puff and flicked some of the ashes out the nearby window. "Well forgive me, I haven't checked my eyesight in a while, but it sure as hell didn't look like that last night."

It was then in my hungover state that I realized I wasn't even in my room. I looked around me to see different posters hanging on the walls, decks of cards, chairs, and a stack of porn magazines tucked away in a corner. I was in a freaking tree house. I must have really been going crazy. I put two hands on my head and groaned. I knew what had happened. I had gotten crazy drunk as usual and hooked up with some random dude that I didnt even know. It was bound to happen at some point.

I turned to the boy and sighed keeping my hands in my face, too embarrassed to look him in the eyes. I had to admit though, he was pretty handsome for a drunken one night stand. "Don't worry about calling me or anything...I didn't even mean to-"

He quickly interrupted me. "What?" He said holding back a laugh.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Okay just tell me one thing...was I..good?"

He just watched me, biting his lower lip to keep from laughing. he seemed to be getting a kick out of this.

I felt my cheeks go red. I was not the type of girl to get embarrassed like this but when It came to sex, I took it seriously. I was still a virgin and had always hoped to lose it to that one special person, this however was nowhere near special. "Oh god." I groaned and leaned back on my elbows.

His face quickly softened. "You really dont remember what happened last night?"

I shook my head, my eyes wide. There was honestly no telling when it came to me. He threw the cigarette out the window and moved over to grab a mirror from the table. He slowly lifted it up to my face so I could see myself. I gasped and touched my face lightly. I had gashes and cuts all over my face and my eye had blackened pretty bad underneath. And that's when it all hit me. Ace, his gang, the club, the alley, I got my ass beat by grown men. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I didnt want to remember any of it. I think that was the first time I was grateful for a blackout.

I looked over to the boy with scared eyes. He seemed to pick up on what I was thinking and he gently spoke. "You're alright. Nothing is broken from what I can tell and I got there before anything happened."

By happened I knew he meant he had gotten there before ace pinned me down again and proceeded to have his way with me. An innocent 16 year old girl. Minus the innocent part.

"You..you saved me?"

He smirked and nodded. "I guess I would like to think so."

I looked down and exhaled a sharp breath. "My angel..." I mumbled to myself.

"You feelin okay?" He asked moving back over to the window and leaning himself against it.

I looked over to him and ran a hand through my mess of brown hair. "Not really..but I'll get there right?"

He nodded. "You were pretty messed up last night, what made you think you could take on Ace Merrill?"

"It's not like I went looking for the guy. And I didnt even know who he was."

"Oh that's right. you're the new girl around here." He said with a grin that would make any girl melt. But not me. I wasn't that easy.

I sighed. "Does everyone here know me already?"

He shrugged. "No. But now that you took on Ace they sure will."

"The last thing I wanted to do was make an enemy my first night out."

"Everyone is Ace's enemy around here. Him and his gang pretty much scare the living shit out of most of the kids. At least they know not to mess with him."

I leaned back on the wall and crossed my arms. "Well I ain't a kid and I ain't scared."

He smiled and nodded slowly, as if he could see right down into my soul with those eyes. "So I was right. You did try to fight them."

"It's called self defense. I had no other choice! and as you can see it didnt turn out so well for me anyways." I said motioning to my beat up face.

He reached into a tiny box and pulled out what looked to be an ice pack. It was dripping water, which told me he must have tried to use it on me during the night. "Here. Press this on your eye. It will help with the swelling."

I did as he told and winced as it stung my eye. "Why are you helping me?"

"Let's just say I've been where you are right now, but probably 10 times worse."

I smriked holding the ice pack to my face. "What? Ace and his gang beat you to a wimpy pulp too?"

He pursed his lips. "That..and my brother is one of them."

My eyes widened. I suddenly felt very bad for him. I mean, I only got beaten once from them but for him, it was probably an almost everyday thing.

"Oh wow...I'm sorry I didnt know."

He shook his head quickly. "Nah. It's okay. I don't ask nobody for their pity. I've lived with him for so long I'm just used to it."

"Does he ever go easy on you?"

He sighed. "Nope. They all treat me as if I was just another person on their hit list. Not eyeball's little brother."

I raised an eyebrow. "Eyeball?"

"His real name is Richard chambers."

He wouldnt tell me how he got the nickname eyeball. I wasnt quite sure I wanted to know either. I sighed and tried to lighten the mood. "Well, I got your last name..would you trust me enough to give your first?"

He smirked. "Christopher. But If you ever call me that I'll have to pretend like I dont know you. I prefer Chris."

I gave him a smile back although I probably looked a little pathetic considering my face was all distraught. "Im Sophia Hartmen. And if you ever call me that, I'll just pretend you dont exist. Call me Sophie."

We both chuckled and he seemed a little more relaxed. I bit my lips and played with a loose string on the end of my shirt. "So...we didn't...right?"

He picked up on what I was referring to and let out a beautiful laugh. "No. We didnt don't worry."

"Oh thank god." I breathed out and laid back on the blankets that were spread out underneath me. I let the ice pack hit the floor beside me.

"You might want to keep that on your face." He spoke. "They got you pretty good."

I sat back up and felt the soreness in my ribs. I winced and he was at my side in a second. "Hey, take it easy. You'll be sore for a couple days, maybe even weeks. Im sorry I couldnt have got there sooner. Wish like hell I would have." He frowned eyeing my injuries. "I didnt think they would ever sink so low to have done this to a girl."

I held on to his arms as he helped me sit up more. "That just goes to show that nobody knows anything about me. Im not like any girl."

"Is that how Ace got the bruise to his chin?" He asked.

I smirked. "Well he didnt get it from talking back to his momma."

Chris grinned and almost looked proud. "Bitchin."

He held out his hand for a low five and I slapped it quickly and let out a laugh. "Just promise me something?" He asked.

"I just met you Chris Chambers and you're already asking for promises?" I smirked.

He smirked and leaned back up against the wall across from me. "You also just met me and we've already spent the night together." He said with a cocky wink.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Yeah yeah...what do you want?"

"Just try not to get youself in anymore trouble like that?"

I smiled. "If you only knew.."

His face was serious and he rubbed his palms on his pants. Nervous habit?

"Are you worried about me?" I asked with a smirk.

"Look, all im saying is I can tell you're not afraid to speak your mind and you're not afraid to punch the most dangerous guy in Castle Rock...and I just don't know if I'll be there to save you if your ass gets caught in some deep shit again."

I sighed. I was never the type of person to need someone else and that wasn't about to change. All my life everything I had done was for me and my benefit because that's all there ever was. Just me. Sophie Hartmen. I got myself into some stupid shit but I also got myself out of some equally stupid shit. I never had anybody else there for me and I had learned to like it that way. Whether that was good or bad..It was going to stay like that.

"Chris, I can handle myself alright? That's all I ever did in the last 3 towns I've been in."

"Yeah? Well you're in Castle rock now sweetheart." He said pulling another cigarette out of his shirt pocket.

Did he just call me sweetheart? "What is that supposed to mean?"

I watched as he lit it up and tossed the lighter to the side, inhaling the smoke and exhaling it through his nose. I'll be honest, he made smoking look like a commercial for abused puppies.

"It means that people here are ten times meaner and ten times tougher and ten times more likely to not give a fuck about you." He spoke gently, worried he might scare me.

I shook my head and bit down on my lower lip. "I can promise you, I've seen it all and been through the worst of the worst. I'm used to people not giving a fuck about me anyways."

He licked his lips and sighed. "You're not an easy one to crack."

"Not in the slightest."

He took another drag from the cigarette and to my surpise, smiled at me. "Looks like I'll just have to keep an eye out for you then."

I sighed and looked down at my old worn out converse. "Would it even help if I argued?"

"Nope." He said showing off a big grin.

"So what? You're stalking me now?" I said crossing my arms to my chest.

He scoffed and held his chest dramatically. "Is that how you thank the person who saved your life? I could have left you laying there. And trust me, It already wasn't a pretty sight when I showed up."

I held myself tightly, trying to forget the events that had happened the night before. He was right. I know what would have happened if he hadn't walked by. And even though I wanted to deny it with every fiber in my body...something was telling me that there was a reason it just so happened to be Chris and something was telling me that he would have never left me there regardless.

"Thank you." I suddenly blurted out.

He almost looked surprised at my sincerity and he smiled and nodded. "Anytime."

I looked around us at the two sleeping bags and blankets in a mess all around the floor. "You actually stayed with me last night?"

He nodded. "Just didnt want to risk them finding you again. And I know they would have never found you here."

I looked around me still a bit confused. "Where is here?"

"I would tell you but...then I would probably have to kill you.." He said with a tilt of his head, making his sandy hair fall into his eyes.

I crossed my arms and smirked. "So a mysterious boy comes to my rescue and whisks me away to a safe house and I'm not even allowed to know where it is?"

"Hey im not mysterious, I told you my name didnt I?"

I sighed still crossing my arms. Chris Chambers was defiantly not like any guy I had ever met in all the towns I had moved to. There was something different about him. And I wasn't quite sure what that was yet.

He smiled and ran a hand through his hair once again, something that probably made all the girls swoon around him. "We're in me and my buddies tree house. We've had it since we were just kids and it's always been somewhere we can all go and feel safe."

I raised my eyebrows. "And you decided to bring me here? Wow I feel special Chris Chambers. When do I get the free massage and continental breakfast?"

He chuckled. "Ya know. You have a pretty screwed up way of thanking your hero."

At that I rolled my eyes. "What would you prefer Mr. Chambers?"

He flicked the cigarette out the window once again and scooted closer to me, then leaning back on his hands with a smug look. "Come to a real party with me tonight."

I squinted my eyes at him. "Are you serious?"

He shrugged looking confused. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Oh I don't know maybe because the last party I went to resulted in the reconstruction of my face." I winced pressing on my blackened eye.

I looked back to him to see a soft smile playing on his lips. "The only difference is this time, you'll be with me. And obviously I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"I don't know Chris...I think my partying days should be done from now on."

"Hey. Who says you have to drink and get wild to have fun? All im asking for is one night. Just one night to have a little fun, get loose..not too loose and just don't worry. After the night you had, you need that." He stared me down with his green eyes. They were so mesmerizing I found it hard to look away. I still had no idea what it was about this kid. I mean, we didn't even know eachother and I could already tell I could trust him more than most people in my life. Of course, I would never admit that to him.

I stood up slowly, making sure to hold my sore ribs as I did. He watched me with hopeful eyes. I sighed and let my arms fall to my sides. "What the hell."

He flashed me a grin and stood up with me.

"But what about my face?" I asked him. "Everybody's going to know."

"Who cares what people think? Like I said you'll be with me. Stop worrying so much."

I sighed and turned to the small pocket sized mirror and tried to smooth out my wild hair.

"Plus." He added. "If this wasn't such a small town, people would think you've lived here all your life. You fit right in Sophie." It was the first time he had said my name and it sounded so angel like in his soft voice.

I turned to him. "How do I even know I can completely trust you?"

He smirked. "Meet me at 22nd at 9 tonight and find out."

I know I shouldn't have went out with him. I know I should have just went home, cooked a nice dinner for me and my father, got in my pjs and went to bed like a good well behaved young woman. But let's be honest. I was defiantly not well behaved, and I could tell Chris wasn't either. He was the typical greaser guy that I always messed around with. He had a dangerous vibe but at the same time, made me feel safe and protected. Something about that drew me in so intensely. I had never felt it before so of course, I acted on it like an idiot.