A few days later, Raven found herself laying in bed at the start of a weekend. She had been excused from school for the rest of the week after the incident, and after being discharged from the hospital, Raven hadn't really left her bed much at all. Just as she was getting ready to turn over and fall asleep again, she heard her father yell from downstairs. "Raven, will you wake up, already! You have a visitor!"

Raven rolled her eyes and sat up. She knew that he clearly didn't care about her, but she was surprised that he was acting slightly disrespectfully around a visitor. Her father was a fairly large man, ripped with muscles and didn't have an ounce of fat of his body. Along with being a bit of a body builder, he was also a spectacular business man. He was a workaholic, and didn't care much about anything else except for free weights and his job. He was rarely home, and never bothered to keep in touch with his daughter when he was gone on production trips. Most of the time, Raven didn't even he was coming and going. Since her mother died, her father just broke down, she assumed. After the passing, he just sort of disappeared and became consumed with her work.

Raven hurried over to her drawer and pulled on a pair of blue-jeans, and a green Taking Back Sunday shirt. She vigorously pulled a brush through her hair and ran out the door and down the stairs. "Daddy," Raven screeched as she saw her dad's aggravated face waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs. Distracted by her annoyance with her father, she missed a step coming down the stairs. She toppled over and landed at the bottom of the staircase. She groaned and wearily rubbed her head.

"Raven, get up! You're keeping your visitor waiting." Her father grunted and waited for his daughter to stand back up. "Your visitor is waiting for you in the kitchen. You better tend to him as soon as possible. I don't even see why he's here." He glared in her direction then retired to the basement for a reason Raven did not know of. But frankly, she did not care.

Standing up, she stretched her back around and tried to get her blood circulating through her body again. Her limbs felt numb from the fall but she was able to make her way into the kitchen without falling again. "Garfield! What are you doing here?" Raven said, realizing who her visitor was. He was sitting at their breakfast table with his arms folded neatly. He smiled at her surprised face.

"Visiting you, silly! How did you back home? I realize that I should have taken you instead of leaving like I did before." Garfield chuckled and took a sip of the iced tea that Raven's father had poured for him.

"Hmm," Raven sat down on the chair across from Garfield and just stared. She didn't flinch when he moved or cleared his throat. "What are you really here for? I don't need your assistance or company, and you know that." Raven spat, slightly aggravated but also slightly unsure why she was aggravated in the first place.

"Well, okay, you got me. I have a question for you. Will you go out with me tomorrow? If you accept my offer, you will not regret it!" Garfield grinned, trying to put his best charm forward. He knew she had been through a lot recently, and wanted to cheer her up in the best way that he knew how.

"You're starting to sound like a salesperson. But, I guess I could go. It isn't like I have much else to do. My father will not care, and he won't be home for the next week or so. He's leaving tonight." Usually, Raven didn't ever know when her father would be leaving, but she overheard him on the phone earlier in the week chatting with a business partner over the phone. Sometimes, Raven wished her father would include her more in his life, but then again, she didn't include him much in hers either.

"That's great! Okay, I'll pick you up around nine in the morning. I suggest you get a good night's sleep. I'm going to head out now, but here is my phone number. Call me if you need me." Garfield stood up, and handed her a piece of paper with his number scribbled on it. He then bent down and gave her a peck on the cheek. He didn't wait for a response for he was afraid she's hurt him, so he left as quickly as he could.

Raven blushed slightly and stood to leave for the bathroom. Her days were often spent in her bathroom. She loved to take warm baths and relish in the soft bubbles and hot water. She would bath every day, and sometimes twice a day. They helped to calm down her nerves when she was stressed or feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders. She started the water in the tub, and wearily walked over to the weighing scale in the corner of the room. She stepped onto the scale and sighed, stepping back down. She had lost more weight.

"I'm now down to 94 pounds. Why am I losing this weight?" She spoke aloud to herself and started to shed her clothes. Over the past year, Raven started to experience rapid weight loss. She didn't think much of it until she was down fifty pounds and weighed less than 100 pounds. While many people would kill to have such successful weight loss, Raven wasn't even trying. She knew though that if it got much worse, she would need to see a doctor soon.

Raven bent down and cut off the water. She slipped her hands into the warm water and relished in the slight sting that it gave her. She slowly stuck her feet in one at a time and then finally, she sat down in the clear water. Relaxing back against the tub, she thought about Garfield and what he had planned for their little date. Should she call it a date? He didn't call it those words, but what else would it be? She couldn't help but doubt his honestly and doubt his intentions. Was he just using her? Did he make a bet with his friends to see if he could get her to date him? She knew he was popular with most of the jocks in the school, but she doubted that he would actually use her like that. He seemed genuinely nice.

She gently played with the water and slid under the water to wet her hair down. She held her breath under the water, the hot heat from the water entering her ears and tickling her cheeks. She came up for air and relaxed back down against the tub. For the first time in a long while, she finally felt at peace. The steam from the water floated up around her and created a misty hue in the bathroom. Allowing the warmth to surround her, she drifted off into a slumber.

Until Next Time…