Peyton stirred and groaned. Her eyes moved but they did not open. Instead, she began to drift once again…

"Lucas, I made a mistake. When you said you wanted to be with me, I got, I got scared but the truth is, I want all the same things that you want…and I want them with you."

"Peyton…"

"I love you. I love you, Lucas. I was afraid of that before but not now. Because I know what I want and the only thing that scares me now, is not being able to love you."

His blue eyes welled with tears. It had been such a long night. Nathan had passed out on the court and scared everyone half to death. And through all the normal pressures and stressors, Lucas had still been dealing with his underlying issues with Peyton. He had waited for her to show up at the game that night but she hadn't. Not seeing her killed him, took him to a dark place. But Brooke had been there, flirting up a storm as usual. And there was nothing in him to stop her…at first. So she had followed him home and when they were sure Keith was sleeping, she had changed into one of his sweatshirts. He knew what was to happen next. Brooke Davis wanted him bad. And just when it was getting hot and heavy he stopped it. Lucas could not go through with that. She was a pretty girl and he liked her but casual sex, friends with benefits, if you will, just wouldn't cut it. Not when his heart belonged to another.

With Brooke gone, he had felt pretty low. And she had been quite upset. He had expected the worst with the late night knocking on the door but his wildest dreams couldn't have prepared him for the best. There she was, stumbling over her words but they were words he had waited for months to hear. All he could do was hold her. There was no need to rush what would ultimately be inevitable. And all she could do was cry. Peyton Sawyer had never felt safer…

"Lucas…" she whimpered.

But there was no answer. There was simply darkness. Darkness and silence.

…

Peyton frantically dashed into the motel. It was just as they had left it but it had to be there. For 24 hours her emotions had been in an uproar. She thought her father was dead and the long drive to discover the truth had been one of clarity. With her for comfort was her boyfriend, Lucas Scott. He was always with her in times of need.

"It has to be in here", she pulled down the bed, gasping when she finally saw the bracelet her father had given her.

"Got it?" Lucas asked as she started to cry. "Hey, it's okay. Everything's okay now."

She closed her eyes. Everything was okay. It was okay because her father was alive, because she had found her bracelet…and because Lucas was her boyfriend and no matter what, he'd always be by her side.

Their eyes met and they embraced. He was so close, she could feel the heat from his body. Looking up, she captured his lips with hers. He kissed back, loving the very taste of her. She closed her eyes when his strong hands expertly removed her jacket before taking off his own. She sat on the bed and Lucas took off her top shirt. Gently he eased her down, taking his time as he kissed every exposed inch of her flat stomach. He moved up to her neck, taking off both their clothes until they were completely undressed. After months of yearning, wanting and waiting, the sexual tension was too much and in one quick thrust, they became one, just the way it was meant to be…

Peyton gasped. It was so hot, so hard to breathe. Her head turned slowly from side to side but her eyes would not open no matter how hard she tried. Every muscle of her body seemed to ache. It felt like she had been dreaming forever, a series of dreams she just couldn't wake up from.

She could see Brooke. Since the time they were little girls, they had been quite the pair. With pigtails swinging, they rode their bikes down the lane and when they were a little older, they'd sneak off to the mall for make up and CDs. They baked cakes in the Easy Bake Oven, were sack race partners at camp, made up cheerleading routines, and bought their first box of tampons together. It was a friendship that could endure anything.

"Brooke", she called out.

If she could just open her eyes, just reach out, she could see that brunette hair and that dimpled smile. "Come on, P. Sawyer, let's get out of here", she'd say. And then everything would be alright…

She could see Haley and Nathan. They were so happy, so in love. And in their arms was a beautiful baby, with light hair and a button nose like its mother and crystal blue eyes like his father. They were a family, a real unit determined to break free from the chaotic and often heartbreaking Scott family cycle. Peyton called out for her friends, yearned to touch them but it was like they were too far away, enclosed in a bubble of bliss where she simply couldn't break through.

"Nathan! Haley!" she tried to scream but her voice was just too hoarse.

She could see her father. Larry Sawyer had no biological ties but from the moment he had held her, just minutes old, she had been his little girl. He loved her with all his heart. He had listened to her dreams, shared with her their hopes and comforted her fears. Through it all, she just wanted to find herself, make him proud. He had always been there to take care of her, why couldn't he help her once more.

"Daddy! Daddy, it's me! Please come for me! Please come get me! I'm scared! Don't leave me out here all alone."

But he didn't come. Not this time…

She could see her mother. There was Anna. She wore a white dress that made her look like an angel as she walked through a beautiful garden of many colors. Light radiated off her face as her blonde hair blew in the breeze. She stopped and smiled, waving right at Peyton.

"Mom! Mom, come back!"

But the more she called, the farther Anna went until she completely disappeared. Then came another figure, more blonde hair whisping in the wind.

"Ellie", Peyton grinned. "You…you came back for me."

Ellie just smiled.

"I love you, sweetie. I told you we would see each other again."

Peyton tried to run to her but it was too late. Why was everyone leaving? Why couldn't she get to them. Her frustration built until she heard him call her name. If she could just open her eyes, she knew he would really be there.

"Lucas!"

"Peyton!"

"Lucas!"

"Peyton!"

She smiled through tears. She knew he would come for her.

"You…you're my angel. You always save me."

He reached his hand out for her but she couldn't grab it. And then, he too was gone. Peyton was all alone as the images from her mirage slowly began to fade one by one. And then it was there. She felt the presence before she saw it and it made her blood run cold. It was the Dark Angel, an alter ego of sorts, the other side of Peyton.

"Well, well, well", the Angel of Death smirked, in her black winged costume. "Look who we have here. It's you."

"You", Peyton repeated.

"Look at you. Absolutely pathetic but I guess I should have known."

"What do you want? You always haunt me in my dreams."

The angel looked right at her.

"Are you sure this is a dream?"

"What are you doing here? Why are you here? Leave me alone."

"Don't you miss me? Don't you miss the daily talks from that little voice inside your head."

"Go away!"

"You don't mean that, Peyton. After all, you need me."

"What is going on? What's happening to me?"

The Angel paced around.

"People always leave. Isn't that what you're always bitching about?"

"You said before that I drive them away."

"Not this time."

Peyton shook her head.

"Why are you doing this? Why are you back? Last time, it was because of Ellie."

"I'm back because you need me…because you need to be stronger now than you've ever been."

"Why? What are you talking about?"

"Promise me."

"No! I won't promise you anything!"

"When you promise me, Peyton, remember, you promise yourself. Now you have to be strong. That's the only way to get through this."

"Get through what?"

"Promise, Peyton! Promise! Promise! Promise! Promise! Promise!"

The Angel was getting irate.

"Fine!" Peyton yelled. "I promise! Damn, are you happy now? Alright? I promise to be strong! What about you?"

The Angel only smiled as she began to fade away.

"Of course I do. But I'm only as strong as you'll let me be. You can wake up now…"

And just like that, Peyton's eyes popped open. She blinked at the dimness that was only lightened with candles. There had to be hundreds of them. She tried to sit but she couldn't and that's when she realized her feet were tightly bound but the rope around her bruised and battered wrists was loose enough to pull free. Peyton did so, wincing at the pain she felt all over.

She tried to remember. Where was she? How had she gotten there? Why did she hurt? Why was she so groggy? In the corner was a dusty, old broken mirror. Summoning her strength, Peyton dragged herself over to it. She looked like hell, clammy and pale with large bags underneath her eyes. And her face. What was that red mark near her mouth? And it hurt so bad. It looked like a chemical burn.

Peyton tried to shake it off. She had to be dreaming or at least hallucinating again. Sometimes her mind played tricks on her, like when that damned dark angel from her Halloween costume appeared. And then she desperately tried to remember the last thing that had happened. She was in front of her house in her car and she had not been alone. Who was there? Her father? Lucas? No! No, it had been Derek. Derek had been with her. Peyton smiled. All she had to do was find Derek and he would make it better.

"Derek! Derek!" she called out louder and louder.

It was to no avail. The room was dark and small and she used her hands to feel around. It had to be a mistake. What was going on? Where was she? And she smiled again. On a lone wooden chair, was Derek's white wife beater. It was okay. She was safe.

And then she saw it. Her groggy eyes widened as she rubbed them. Looking in the mirror had been frightening but nothing had prepared her for the other side of the wall. There was a sick shrine, illuminated creepily by the candles. Dozens of hundreds of pictures of Peyton taken over the last two years of her life. She gasped for breath, falling down at her ankles still bound by the tight rope and that's when it hit her. It was no dream. It was no hallucination. The scene before her was horrifically real.