Rachel looked around, she was in the stable. She saw Bianca standing nearby with Jason, a wicked grin plastered onto her face. She laughed at Rachel and pointed her finger, before she realised it, Jason was laughing to, both of them ridiculing her.
"Look, it's stupid little stable girl", Bianca said and Rachel noticed Carol, Rose and Jenna appear as well.
"Who would ever want somebody like that", Jason said as he leaned in for a kiss from Bianca which was obviously reciprocated.
"She's just like her father", Carol said with an angry look.
"A nobody", Rose and Jenna said in unison.
Rachel felt dizzy and the images started to waver when she noticed her body was being shaken a little, she wobbled around on her feet when she heard something.
"Rachel", She saw Jason say, she was surprised, Jason had just kissed Bianca right in front of her, "Rachel, you gotta wake up."
Rachel's eyes shot open and she realised that the images she had just seen were in no way real, however this information was not in any way consoling. She realised that she was alive and unfortunately, she was still freezing, she felt like she had lost all her body warmth, she couldn't even move.
"You alright?" Jason asked with a look of concern.
"Couldn't just let me die, could ya?" Rachel muttered, before saying more clearly, "Yeah, look I'm fine, thanks though, for, um, you know, waking me up."
"No problem, I was worried when I saw you there like that, glad I came when I did otherwise the cold would have beat me to ya", Jason explained as he helped her up off the ground and once she had gotten her bearings she started to walk again, "Hang on a sec, you're coming home with me, I didn't realise you were walking home before, I thought you had a car just around the corner."
"No, I'm fine, really", Rachel said, she hated drawing attention to herself because it always backfired and she knew that if Bianca found out about this it would be all over the school noticeboards tomorrow.
"No, you're coming back with me", Jason ordered as he picked up her body and put her in his truck, got in himself and drove off with her. He became worried when the heater wasn't working probably, her body looked more like it was convulsing rather than shaking from the cold, "Don't worry, we'll be there soon."
They pulled up to the stables and Jason pulled her out of his truck and carried her to his room. Unfortunately for Rachel it was about nine thirty and both Rose and Jenna saw this, she knew she would be in for it but she was too dazed at the moment to care. Jason put Rachel on his bed and turned on his heater, he felt her wrist and was worried to find that it was extremely cool. He knew how to treat hypothermia, he had done a course in first aid when he was younger.
"It's okay Rachel", He said soothingly as he noticed her lips were slightly blue, he took her jacket off, her dress and her singlet leaving her only in her undergarments before he pulled of his shirt as well and held her close to his body.
Rachel was barely aware of what was happening, she had floated in and out of consciousness during the car ride since the heater failed to work. All she knew is she finally felt warm, when she finally started to be relieved of her hypothermia, only then did she come to the full realisation that she was hugging Jason Sanders in her undergarments. She got up from the bed and started putting on her clothes when Carol burst in, followed by her two daughters.
"My God! Rachel what have you done!" She yelled and Rachel just continued to put on her clothes.
"That whore! I should have known she would do something like that!" Rose whined and pouted.
"No but you don't under…"Rachel said before she was cut off by her other step sister.
"We shouldn't have let you anywhere near him, you just can't help yourself can you!" Jenna screeched, Jason stood aside from the group of girls who soon left leaving Rachel standing there nearly in tears.
"I'm sorry, I didn't think, I should have known that they would assume things", Jason said with a look of solemnity, Rachel tried to look into his eyes but couldn't for too long, she wanted to tell him she was C but he probably thought C was some high class, beautiful girl with rich parents who lives in a mansion. Rachel didn't believe herself to be any of those, she wasn't high class, she was pretty even though she didn't admit it and she certainly didn't have rich parents, or any parents for that matter.
"It's okay, really, thanks though for like, saving my life, even if it's not worth living at least I know there's somebody out there who cares enough", Rachel said and was about to leave when Jason stopped her.
"Hey, um, if it's not too much trouble I have a note for C, if you could give it to her, next time you see her, would be great, I mean I know you've been through a lot so don't feel too pressured and I can't thank you enough for helping me talk to her, she seems like a really wonderful girl, she's agreed to go to the ball with me", Jason explained.
"Oh really, that's wonderful, I'm sure C is really excited to finally get to know you", Rachel said before she left.
Up in the loft that evening, once she had sorted everything out and done all her chores she opened up the letter that Jason had given her, or C really.
Hey C
So glad to know you're coming, I can't wait to see you. It's so good we can finally meet each other, I've been wanting to meet you in person for ages now. I have to go now, jumping practice waits for nobody, and on that topic I saw you jumping on today (or Sunday because I'm not sure when you'll get this) but you were pretty good, I hope to see you competing in the advanced class.
Yours truly,
Jason.
