Chapter 10

1 month later

"Well everyone, school is almost done which means that final projects are due soon. I am going to need each project b y the end of next week. I know that doesn't give you procrastinators a lot of time, but that is how much time I need to grade them. So, now back to Shakespeare…" Jamie couldn't concentrate on anything that Mr. Brandsman was saying. She just couldn't believe how time had flown by. One day she was walking down the street alone and unhappy and the next she was going out with Lucas Scott (her long time crush) and happy to be hanging out with a lot of friends. She also couldn't believe that she only had about a month and a half left of her junior year of high school.

"Psst…James…you are still my partner right."

"Of course Luke. Who else would I partner with? Tim? I don't think so."

"Okay…good. So where are we going to finish our documentary of Shakespeare?"

"Mr. Scott…I would think that you and Miss Bausch could talk…" Just as Mr. Brandsman was starting to yell at Lucas for talking in class the bell rang and everyone ran out.

"Okay, so anyway. Where are we going to finish? My house is a little full tonight, seeing as Brooke is having Felix over and my mom is having dinner with Keith tonight."

"We can have it at my house. My dad isn't going to be home, plus it is my video camera so it just makes sense to have it there." Lucas nodded his head in agreement. Lucas thought about asking her if her dad still hit her, but he had noticed that she had been coming to school with fewer bruises. Either her dad had stopped or she was doing a good job of covering them. They decided that they would meet at Jamie's locker after their last class and then head over to her house. When they got to Jamie's house they grabbed the ketchup and the cheetos and headed up to her room. They had finished the project sooner than either had expected and so they started goofing off with the camera when they heard the front door slam. Lucas put down the camera and walked over to the closet. Neither teen was expecting to get interrupted by anyone being at Jamie's house, not even her dad. Lucas gave Jamie a kiss and walked into the closet just as John walked into her room. It was at that second that he realized that he left his bag and sweatshirt on Jamie's bed.

"WHAT IS THIS SHIT?" John yelled. Jamie hadn't realized what he was talking about until she saw him pointing at the stuff on her bed.

"Um, I had to get a new backpack because my other one broke yesterday and then I spilled some grape juice on my shirt at school and a friend let me borrow a sweatshirt."

"YOU ARE A LYING LITTLE SLUT! I KNOW ALL ABOUT YOU AND YOUR BOYFRIEND. YOU HAVEN'T TOLD HIM ANYTHING HAVE YOU?" Jamie didn't know what to say and even if she did she couldn't say anything she was so scared.

"BECAUSE IF YOU DID…" he trailed off when he started hitting her. Lucas couldn't make out too much of what John was saying because he had to plug his ears so he wouldn't hear Jamie crying. It hurt him so much to hear her cry. After what seemed like an eternity he heard the door slam. He stuck his head out of the closet expecting to see Jamie slumped up against the door like she had been the first time, but instead he saw her lying on the floor not moving. He jumped out of the closet and ran for his bag. He grabbed his cell phone and started dialing.

"911…what's the emergency?" he heard the operator say.

"It's my girlfriend. She's on the floor of her bedroom and not moving. She's bleeding badly too." Lucas choked out.

"Where are you?" The operator sounded too calm for Lucas' sake, but he ignored it hoping they would get there sooner.

"1723 Apricot Street, in her bedroom at the top of the stairs."

"What happened?"

"Um…" Lucas knew he had promised Jamie not to tell anyone, but he also promised himself that he wouldn't lose another person.

"Sir, we are sending someone over, but you have to tell me what happened."

"Um, we were working on a project for school at my girlfriend's house. Her dad was supposed to be out of town, but he came back early and so I hid in the closet. When he came into her room he started yelling and then he started hitting her."

"Was this the first time that this has happened?"

"Um…no…"

"Okay, the ambulance will be there shortly. Would you like to stay on the phone until they do?"

"No." he said as he grabbed Jamie's hand. He sat there staring at the wall. He couldn't believe what was happening. He hadn't heard the ambulance or the cops pull up. He didn't even realize they were in the house until they ran into Jamie's room. One cop walked over to Lucas who had backed away at the EMT's request.

"Son, what happened here?"

"Um, her dad hit her." The cop looked shocked.

"Do you have any proof that it was her father?" Lucas looked shocked.

"Do you think I did this?" The cop just looked at him. "I could never hit her. I love her, the tape!" The cop looked confused. Lucas ran over and saw the record button was still on. He handed the tape to the cop and walked over to Jamie, they were just getting her on the stretcher. Lucas finally noticed how much blood there really was, but he couldn't and wouldn't let go of Jamie's hand. He couldn't help thinking it was his fault. He should have gone to the cops as soon as he found out. They weren't supposed to let people other than family members in the ambulance, but Lucas wouldn't let go. They started cleaning up the cuts and blood on her legs, arms, and face but they couldn't tell what else was wrong. When they got to the hospital they rushed Jamie into the ER. Lucas wanted to follow, but the cop that he had talked to stopped him from going in. Lucas leaned up against the wall and slid down. He couldn't believe why he was at the hospital. He kept picturing Jamie lying on the floor barely breathing. He had been pretty calm the entire time, but he couldn't take it anymore. He finally broke down and started crying. He was taken away from his thoughts when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Nathan and Haley standing over him. He was pretty confused because he didn't remember calling them. Maybe they saw the ambulance at Jamie's so they followed it over.

"Lucas, what are you doing here?" Haley asked. She hadn't seen Lucas cry in a couple years and this was scaring her.

"Um, Jamie is here." Lucas could barely get the words out. He just kept picturing her on the floor.

"Why is Jamie here?" Nathan asked breaking the silence.

"Um, her dad was um…hitting her." He couldn't believe how easy it was for him to tell people.

"Oh my gosh! Is she all right? Was it really bad?" Haley asked starting to cry.

"I don't know, we just got here a couple minutes ago. And she wasn't awake." Lucas couldn't hold the tears back for the second time. "Haley, I'm so scared. I should have done something. I was there, but I couldn't do anything. It was all my fault." Lucas cried into Haley's shoulder. Nathan knelt down next to his wife and brother.

"Lucas, there was nothing you could have done. If he knew you were there you could have gotten hurt too and then you would both still be laying on her floor. You probably saved her life." "NO, I SHOULD HAVE TOLD SOMEONE WHEN I FOUND OUT! BUT I WAS TOO STUPID! AND NOW LOOK AT HER!"

"What are you talking about Luke?"

"I've known that her dad hits her for a month. But she made me promise Haley." Neither Nathan nor Haley knew what to say so they just sat there trying to help Lucas feel better. After about an hour, Nathan got up to call Karen and tell her where Lucas was. He didn't want her to think that something was wrong. After he hung up with Karen he went and got some coffee.

"Here, you look like you need some caffeine. I, um, I called your mom and told her where you were. She said that she was coming.

"Thanks Nate. I appreciate it." About half an hour later Karen came running into the waiting room.

"Lucas how is she?" she asked pulling her son into a hug.

"I don't know. They are still in the operating room. They won't tell me anything." Karen already knew what happened because Nathan had told her on the phone. About 2 hours later Doctor Morris came out of the ER.

"Lucas Scott...how are you related to Jamie Bausch?"

"I'm her boyfriend."

"Are there any family members here?" Lucas shook his head.

"Okay, well she is stable now. We almost lost her, but she pulled herself through. She was in pretty bad shape. It almost looks like she was in a car accident."

"Well, she did get hit by a drunk." Nathan cut in. He saw Lucas let out a slight smile so he knew Lucas would be fine.

"Can we go in and see her?" Haley asked.

"Well, visiting hours are over, so I am going to have to say no. I'm sorry."

"Please let me see her. I need to have reassurance that she is fine." Lucas pleaded with the doctor.

"Actually, you are a different story. You are allowed to stay here with her because you are the closest family she has here. That and right when we thought we lost her she whispered your name." Lucas was surprised. "We were quite surprised too because she wasn't awake. She still isn't awake. So you can go in."

"Don't worry mom. I'll call you if something happens." He gave her a hug and then hugged Haley and Nathan. "Thanks guys I appreciate everything." Haley, Nathan, and Karen left after Karen told Lucas that she would call him in sick. Haley and Nathan promised they wouldn't say anything except to Jamie's close friends. Lucas walked into the hospital room. Jamie wasn't moving and she had tubes and needles going into her arms and nose (she wasn't even breathing on her own). Now he knew how his mom and friends felt when he was here. He also realized that she could hear everything that people say. He sat down in the chair next to her bed and picked up her hand. It was dark in the room, but he could still see some of the cuts and bruises on her face.

"Jamie…hey…it's me…Lucas." He choked out. "I am so sorry. It was stupid of me to hide in the closet. I should have just stood up to your dad. I blame myself for everything. I should never have promised you to not tell anyone. It was like I was agreeing with you that you deserved it. But you don't. You are the sweetest girl and you don't need that." He couldn't help crying again, but at least this time no one was around. He laid his head on the bed and soon fell asleep. He woke up to a beeping noise and a bunch of nurses and doctors running into the room. "What's going on Doctor Morris?" Doctor Morris looked up. He pulled Lucas off to the side.

"We are moving her to ICU. Her condition has worsened a little. Don't be too scared. She's a tough girl." They wheeled her out and Lucas went to find the coffee machine. When he finished the horrible drink he started walking to Jamie's room. He turned around when he heard his mom yelling to him.

"Mom, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to go to the café for a while."

"I was, but right before I left the phone rang. I thought it might be you, but it was the hospital. It's about Abby." Lucas' face dropped.

"Abby?"

"That is what I thought. They said that she was in ICU at Tree Hill Memorial Hospital." Lucas couldn't believe that Abby was back in Tree Hill. Whey didn't she call? But then he thought that she was probably driving somewhere and this was the nearest hospital. Karen came back from asking what room Abby was in. They walked to the intensive care unit and found her room. They walk in and see Jamie lying on the bed.

"Mom, this is Jamie. Are you sure it was room 112 and not room 212?"

"Yes Lucas, I am almost positive." Just as she was going to ask the receptionist Doctor Morris came in.

"I'm glad you are both here. Now I know you are really confused, but let me try and explain. This morning we had one of the nurses folding Jamie's clothes and this picture fell out of her pocket. It was a picture of Roger, Kelly, and Abigail Winters. I did some searching and found that Abigail Winters disappeared about 2 months ago. The same time that Jamie Bausch came to Tree Hill. I was then examining her and I found a very weird scar on her knee, in the same spot that Abby's scar. This is Abigail Winters." Lucas and Karen looked stunned.

"This can't be Abby. I knew her dad and that guy was not him." Lucas said.

"I know. Roger died 5 years ago. I got an obituary from the Independence Daily News. Abby moved in with Dana and John Sanchez. About 2 years later Dana was killed in a hit and run. And then John must have moved here with Abby or Jamie." Lucas couldn't believe it. "We are looking at fingerprints right now." The doctor walked out of the room for a second to just leave Karen and Lucas thinking. He came back 5 minutes later. "Well, the finger prints were a match to Abigail Winters." Lucas couldn't believe it. He had been dating Abby for the past 2 months. Why hadn't she told him? Karen and Lucas just sat in Abby's room. Neither knew what to say. They were cut from their thoughts when the door opened and Brooke, Felix, Peyton, Mouth, Anna, Haley, and Nathan walked in. The girls walked up and gave Lucas a big hug. They knew what really happened unlike the rest of the school. They thought she was in an accident. They still had to go back to school because it was lunch, but they needed to see Jamie. Right before they all left to go back to school Lucas pulled Haley off to the side.

"Okay, first…what were you and Nathan doing here last night?"

"Um, I had a doctor's appointment."

"For what?" Haley just shook her head. "Okay fine…second…maybe you should sit down." Haley sat and Lucas continued. "Jamie isn't really who she says she is."

"What are you talking about?"

"Jamie isn't Jamie. She's Abby."

"WHAT?"

"Shh…"

"Are you sure? How did you find out?"

"The doctor found out because she had a picture of Roger and Kelly in her pocket. And now I can see the resemblance."

"But you can't be sure. If it is Abby she would have told us."

"I know, that is why we have to find out why she didn't tell us when she wakes up."

"Wow, Abby is back! How exciting is this?" Haley couldn't contain her emotions while Lucas didn't seem as enthusiastic.