A/N: It's been a while, but inspiration finally came back and helped me finishing this chapter. It's kind of a quiet one, I just felt it was needed to explore Peyton alone on her first night back home. I promise there will be more Leyton eventually!

Also, I've decided to rewrite a lot of the chapters, especially the oldest ones, because God… the writing is really bad in the beginning, I just need to make some improvements. I'll put a message at the beginning of every chapter, once I've posted the fixed versions, so you'll know when it's been updated (if you want to reread the new versions). I don't think there will be any major changes, even if there are some things in the story that makes me cringe, but there is only so much I'll be able to salvage without messing up the whole story. So anyway, Chapter 1 has already been updated, feel free to read it if you want to!

Peyton pulled her car over, as she had just reached her house. She smiled to herself. It had been a terribly scary day, finding out her brother was really some perverted creep, and barely getting out of his motel room safely. She'd been looking over her shoulder ever since, but thankfully Derek was now in custody, and Lucas was even coming by in a while. And not to speak of, Nathan and Haley were pregnant! She envied the two of them for the relationship they had, how they had managed to get past so many obstacles together, and she hoped she'd find love like that someday. Lucas was the one she hoped to find that with, but well… it seemed like he would never think of her as anything more than a friend again. A sigh passed her lips. Well, she'd rather be his friend than not having him in her life at all. She turned off the ignition, the blasting music disappearing with it. It suddenly was very quiet. The eerie silence didn't register to her though, as she grabbed her purse and started walking towards the porch. Her eyes scanned the door, and she suddenly felt her stomach knit up. She felt as if she'd been here before, in this moment. She could feel her pulse drum in her ears, but still her feet carried her forward as if nothing was wrong.

And then her phone rang, and it was like she almost knew it would. It was Lucas. She put the phone to her ear, and although she felt like this exact moment had happened before, although she recognized this experience from another time, a long time ago, and her chest was filling rapidly with dread, her voice still answered the phone as if nothing was wrong.

"Hey!"

And Lucas' frantic voice yelled through the speaker. "They got the wrong guy!"

"What?"

"Derek- he's still out there! Don't go home!"

It felt like all her worst fears had been confirmed, and she shivered as she slowly turned around. She already knew who was waiting behind her, but her breath still got stuck in her throat when she saw him standing there.

Leaning over her car, his blond hair falling into his blue eyes. Where the hell did he even come from so fast?!

She forced a smile to him, even as her insides were screaming. "Hey, Lucas I gotta go," she spoke into the phone in a desperately nonchalant voice. "I just got home and my dad's waiting for me… and Derek's here." She tried to keep calm, he was standing there watching her, following her conversation, and she couldn't trigger him into doing something crazy.

She could hear Lucas freaking out on the other end. "No, wait- didn't you hear me?!"

Her digits trembled as she slammed the phone shut, and she prayed Lucas would hurry up and get here.

Derek took a dangerous step forward, and she followed, carefully stepping backward, still having an unnatural smile on her face. "Hey Derek," she laughed nervously.

He didn't say anything, he just continued to near her, his expression steely and unsettling.

"Look, I told you, my dad's home now-"

"No… he's not," he interrupted calmly.

She knew then that the act was over, and her face fell. She turned around whimpering, hurrying towards the door, but- dammit! It was locked.

"I locked it," his voice uttered from behind her.

Why?! What do you want from me? Just leave me alone!

Her hands shot into her purse in search of her keys, and then his arms were suddenly on her again, forcefully holding onto her, and she wondered if she would ever escape this. Would his torment ever stop? But still, a voice deep inside her screamed at her. Just get inside! Get away from him and you'll be safe! Get inside!

She knew if she could just get inside that door, then everything would be okay. Lucas was on his way, he would be here soon, and she needed to alert the police in the meantime.

As he whispered words of love and affection into her ear, she grabbed for the pepperspray, and in the next moment, he was screaming in pain from the poison that had hit his eyes.

Peyton turned the locks of the door and ran inside, crying in fear, but once the door slammed shut behind her, she froze in shock.

The house she had just entered was not her home. Not at all.

It was her Hell.

There was the couch and the TV, and the little kitchen, and the horrible picture of her with him on the wall, and the fireplace in the corner. There was the closed up smell of forest and wood, clammy and cold. She held onto a shocked breath, her head twitching in denial.

No. No. No. No.

And suddenly he was grasping her arm, tightly like a vice, smiling at her. "Come on, let's go to the bedroom baby." He held up his camera. "Let's make a fun little film."

She tried to protest, but he dragged her without a single effort, her struggling futile.

"No. I don't want to. Don't- I don't want to, please."

He shoved her onto the bed. "Be a good girl and do as you're told now."

Tears streamed down her face, and she started sobbing. "N-no, this can't be happening! P-please.."

His merciless face stared down at her. "Don't disappoint me, Peyton."

And she reluctantly nodded, her spirit suddenly gone. There was no point in fighting; it was going to happen whether she wanted to or not.

He stood before her. "Unbuckle my pants." He held the camera, pointing it down at her, and she hesitantly reached her hands to his belt, noticing the bulge in his pants as she unzipped him.

She turned her face away, but his hand grabbed onto a handful of her hair, forcing her face forward. "You're mine, baby. Do as I tell you now."

She instantly woke up, a scream fighting to escape her throat. Her arms were clutching at the mattress below, her body shaking in panic. She was breathing so hard it felt like she'd just ran a marathon. She stared up at the roof, the room set in darkness.

She tried to calm her breathing. Her eyes flickered around the room in panic, making sure there were no one unwanted waiting for her in the darkness. She could still feel the overwhelming panic swelling up inside her, and she hurried to roll over, reaching for the light on the nightstand. Waves of light flooded the room, and she looked around again. There was no Derek hiding there. She saw Penelope though, curled together at the bottom of her bed. Peyton smiled half-heartedly, pulling the covers away. She stretched her legs, feeling the unfamiliarity of pajama pants on. Being able to cover her body up more than what she'd grown used to was a small relief, even if no one was watching her at the moment. It just felt a little… liberating.

She tiptoed over to her closet, grabbing a T-shirt and some sweatpants, and also Ellie's old jacket. When she'd gotten dressed, she inhaled the scent of her jacket. It reminded her of safety somehow, and she really needed that.

She silently slipped into the hallway leading to the stairs.

It was dark and quiet inside the house. She could only hear a distinct snoring coming from her father's room, as she tiptoed down the stairs. She hadn't even been home for 24 hours, yet she couldn't stay in any longer. She was too restless in her own skin.

Sleep had come and gone during the night.

Her bed felt so different; being alone in her own room again… it felt strange. She didn't know how she was supposed to deal with it. She'd spent most of the night staring at the roof, and had only gotten small breaks of sleep, before she woke up again, sweat covering her body from dark nightmares of him. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't help but feel like this wasn't actually happening. She was so scared she'd suddenly wake up, and Derek would be next to her again. She just wanted to feel like this was real.

Being back home didn't feel the way it was supposed to. She had expected to feel happy, to feel safe again, but so far, it had only felt weird and uncomfortable. It all felt so out of place, like she didn't belong here anymore. What if she didn't?

Peyton carefully pressed in the code of the newly installed home-safety alarm, which Larry had explained how to use the day before, and she slid outside on the porch. The neighborhood was dark and quiet; it was just as she remembered. Goosebumps covered her skin; she wasn't sure whether it was from the cool air or if it was from fear. She nervously gazed down the street, making sure no one were hiding in the shadows, ready to attack.

No one were. She was alone.

She looked to both her sides one more time, before going over to the garage. She felt the pockets of her leather jacket, and her keys were thankfully there. She internally thanked whoever had put them there. Probably her father; he knew she'd want to take a drive again sooner or later. He knew how much she used to love it. As the garage door opened, her eyes fell on it. The comet. Shiny and clean, looking good as new. She bit her lips, a smile of longing touching her lips.

She stood silently for a moment, taking in the sight of her car. Then she eagerly walked over to it, her fingers tracing over every detail, making sure nothing looked wrong. She could see Larry had worked on it; it was shining as if it was completely new. She was thankful though, glad he'd made sure it hadn't went out of order.

After she'd finished going over every single detail, her hand took hold of the door lid, and she carefully opened and slid inside, into the red leather seats. Her hands traced over everything, memorizing the day when she had first gotten this car.

It was for her 16th birthday. She'd been complaining for months about how she wouldn't even have a car to drive once she got her driver's license, while secretly her dad had been fixing up an old, dusty model he'd bought. It hadn't been too expensive, considering it had been missing a lot of parts, and it was out of order. But once Larry had gotten his hands on it, by her birthday it had looked brand-new. She remembered how she'd squealed and jumped in happiness once she saw it, and then she and Brooke had spent the rest of the week driving everywhere, no matter how close or far away their destination was.

She removed the top of the car; she wanted to feel the wind blowing through her hair again, she wanted to have that feeling of freedom while driving again.

She put the keys into the ignition, gritting her teeth as she started the car, hoping she wouldn't wake up the whole neighborhood in the process. And then she felt the rumbling motor beneath her, everything else disappearing from her mind.

God, how she'd missed this.

But one thing was lacking.

Music.

Peyton looked in the small shelf underneath the CD-player, and there were a few of her CDs laying there. Her precious music.

Friends With Benefit. There it was, catching her eye, and she instantly grabbed the old CD, staring at the cover. The cover that her own face filled, with the beautiful artwork of her birthmother. The CD she'd worked on with Ellie. It had been some of the best weeks of her life, doing that. She'd learned and experienced so much.

Somehow all these life lessons she'd learned had now been completely erased. None of the bravery and passion she'd held inside then existed anymore. Gone.

She shook that dark thought away and injected the CD, but paused it before it could start.

She wanted to be completely by herself when this started.

Slowly, she pressed on the gas pedal, and the car almost floated forward, into the silent neighborhood. She inhaled the cold night air, her hands gliding over the wheel.

It almost felt like she was flying. Her driving was slow, as she tried to get used to the gear and the other car settings. She drifted down the dark streets, enjoying the privacy, enjoying this feeling.

Only when she was safely on the highway did she dare press play, and suddenly music was playing. It was playing beautifully, mind-blowingly, and she turned the volume up. The speed of the car increased as she pushed on the gas, and her hair whipped in her face. All these familiar sounds filled her ears, drowning out the blowing wind and even her own thoughts.

She couldn't remember ever hearing something so beautiful. If there was one thing he could never take away from her, it was the beauty of music. That was the one thing he hadn't managed to corrupt.

I'm here, I'm now, I'm ready

Holding on tight

Don't give away the end

The one thing that stays mine

She found herself singing along, her voice disappearing amidst all the loud instruments.

The melody, the voice, all of it… It sent chills down her spine, it made her want to cry out at its purity. It was unbelievable, the way sounds managed to fill her up, how they made sense of her world, just as they used to once upon a time. This hadn't changed.

She was taken back to her previous life… a happier life. She longed for it all again. A time when she could step outside her own house without a concern. A time when her own home felt safe, when she felt safe. A time when she wasn't so self-conscious about everything. When she truly felt, truly lived.

But she didn't want to think about all that now, and that's what she did. She blocked it all out. Peyton turned the volume up to the highest, so loud that it drowned all other thoughts out. She drove down the empty roads, sucked in the music, felt the engine roaring beneath her, without another thought. She took in the peaceful nature around her, and saw the sun rising in the distance.

This was what freedom felt like.

Song lyrics from the song '23' by Jimmy Eat World, which is to find on the Friends with Benefit album.