Embry's POV

I was dead for the whole rest of the day. Not that, I ever was alive during class anyways. But it was a different dead. It was a sad, throbbing dead that ached in the bottom of my gut. I needed to be with her. I needed to feel her soft velvet skin against mine. I needed her to be right here, with me.

The final bell rang, and I jumped out of my seat and ran to the door.

"In a hurry there Embry baby?" Paul teased as I bursted through the door and sprinted down the hallway.

Then I saw her.

"Hey, hey you in the pink!" I called out to her. It was the girl KT had been sitting next to at lunch.

She turned around and blushed. "Yeah?"

"I was looking for KT. You sat with her at lunch, and I was wondering if you had any idea where she was?"

She stared at me blankly, then spoke. "KT and I are going to swim practice. We were supposed to meet at my locker..."

She turned then and looked behind her, but it was empty. I couldn't feel KT anywhere near here.

"Thanks for the information," I said quickly, turned on my heel, and walked slowly back down the hallway.

Then a thought came to me. Maybe I could watch her practice? I'm sure the coach wouldn't mind if I stood right outside the door. I just had to see her.

With my spirits up again, I walked quickly to the natatorium. When I got there, I decided not to go in, cause I didn't exactly want KT to see me. She was already pissed at me, so I thought I shouldn't push it. I watched all the swimmers come out of the locker rooms, and when I spotted her, I had to grip the wall as hard as I could. Why did she have to be so damn hot in a swimsuit? She jumped into the water to get wet, then put on her swim cap with the goggles. Even though it made everybody else look like aliens, she made it look like the new fashion.

"Six laps warm-up!" The coach shouted and everybody got out to choose a lane.

KT went over and talked to the coach about something I couldn't make out from the splashing and shouting. Her goggles were pushed up on her head and had already made red rings around her eyes.

Damn she was beautiful.

The coach then suddenly nodded and pointed to the last lane, farthest away from my sight. Shit.

But something was wrong. I could tell by the look of her face, something wasn't right. She had suddenly blanched as she came close to the large starting blocks. And her eyes, as far as I could tell, seemed to be slightly glazed over, as if she was lost in another world. Shaking it off, she climbed on top of the block and pulled her goggles down. Her hands were shaking uncontrollably.

I scooted a little closer to the door.

"Embry?"

Great, my mother. I turned slowly around.

"What are you doing honey?" She had her arms crossed over her chest, and an eyebrow raised.

"Just..uh..watching the swim team, Mom." I shifted uncomfortably.

"Really? Why?"

"Umm, well..." I turned around and looked for KT. She was not by the blocks, so she must be in the water.

But the lane was empty.

"Well why?" she insisted stubbornly.

"Uh..." A sort of numb feeling suddenly swept over me and I instantly knew what was wrong. She was drowning.

I then yanked open the door and sprinted as fast as I could.

"Embry! Your grounded!" I heard my mom yell after me as I ran to the last lane.

I saw her limp body floating deeper into the water. I dove in and propelled myself as fast as I could towards her. She was so pale. Wrapping my arms around her waist I then pulled her to the surface.

Everyone was suddenly there.

"Is she ok? What happened?" Several people asked as I pulled her out of the water.

"Move," I ordered and carried her through the crowd and laid her on the ground.

"What's going on?" I heard the coach shout as I started pumping the water out of her system.

She started coughing up water and I helped her roll on her side so she could get everything out.

"Breathe," I whispered several times as she started hyperventilating.

"What happened?" the coach asked nervously patting her back to help get the water out.

I noticed a large goose-egg on her forehead.

"She must have hit her head when she dove in," I assumed, turned her back over so she was cradled in my arms again.

Her eyes had red rings around them from the goggles and her eyes were severely blood shot. I gently pulled the swim cap off her head. The whole time, her eyes held mine.

"KT, can you hear me?" the coach asked gently, leaning over to look at her face.

But she gave no answer.

"KT honey, please answer," I whispered and gently cupped her face.

She swallowed, choked a little bit then barely whispered, so that you could hardly make it out.

"Dad..."

I studied her face as she closed her eyes and snuggled against my warmth.

"What'd she say?" the coach asked, looking at me, concerned.

"Dad. But I think I'm just going to take her home so her guardian can check her out. I'm pretty sure she has a concussion. We'll take her to the hospital then."

The coach nodded. "Next time we'll keep a closer eye on her."

Someone handed me a towel and I wrapped it around her, then carried her out to her car where I set her in the passenger seat and raced to Sam's. Once there, I carefully picked her up in my arms again and carried her inside.

"What happened?" Emily's panicked voice rang from the kitchen. Sam came running from a different room.

"What's wrong? What's happened?" Sam concerned voice seemed to slightly wake KT from her sleep.

"She hit her head at swim practice. I don't know how hard though. I think she might have a concussion." I stroked her face gently.

"Should we take her to the hospital?" Sam questioned as Emily ran to get a washcloth and ice pack.

"No," KT croaked when Sam said hospital.

"What?" I asked softly.

Her eyes were suddenly wide and she was struggling out of my arms. "No, hospital, I don't want to go. Please don't take me there, please."

I didn't let her go when she tried to get away because she toppled slightly and fell back into my arms.

"But you have a concussion," Sam and I insisted.

"I can't go, please..." she whispered, as her legs gave out beneath her.

"Here, let's get her to her room and lay her down. For now we can just give her some acetaminophen and let her rest. If she's not better by the morning we'll take her to urgent care," Emily led us down the hallway and to her room.

"How are sure?" I asked as I laid her down on the bed.

"My brother's used to play football and they'd get concussions all the time. This is what my mother always did."

Gently putting the washcloth over the bump and then the ice pack, Emily pulled a couple pills out of her pocket and set them on the table next to her bed.

"You should give her some time Embry," Emily said softly as she pushed us out. "She's probably still in shock right now and you need to just let her be, ok?"

I nodded and forced my legs to move. I didn't want to leave her like this. She seemed like she was in so much pain. Not physically, but mentally. I wondered what she had meant when she called me dad.

"Embry, KT is going to be fine. Why don't you go home and get some rest. You need it," Sam suggested, putting his arm around my shoulder.

"No, I can't leave her, you don't understand. Listen, when we were trying to wake her up after she had been unconscious, we asked her if she could hear us, and she called me dad. I'm really worried about her Sam."

He sighed and nodded. "I am too Embry. I think right now, she's just trying to get used to this. It's very hard going through what she is going through. When a parent dies... when both parents die, it takes a long time to get over that and try to deal with it. I don't think four years is long enough for her. I don't think she's ready to face the world again. I've seen it in her eyes."

"We can't let her give up. There's more life for her to live, more life for us to live. Now that she's here, I'm bound to her with heart soul and mind. If she goes, I go."

Sam nodded. "Embry go home and get some sleep."

"I can't leave her."

"Embry, I believe you have some explaining to do with your mother. Go home."

I grimaced.

"Don't worry Embry, if anything changes, you'll be the first to know," Emily came in after helping KT change out of her swimsuit.

"I guess your right, but you have to swear to me, if anything changes, anything, you call me right away. And if she says she wants to see me, even if it is the middle of the night..."

"Embry," Sam interrupted chuckling, "we will call. Now go home, before Emily and I have to literally kick you out."

I groaned then regretfully stomped out the door.

I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.