"Jasmine?"

"Mm?" Jazz exclaimed, opening her eyes and jerking away from the window.

"We're at the apartment," Kevin said softly. "I didn't know if you were asleep or not, but I figured a bed would be the better place for you."

"Oh, right."

Jazz opened the car door and tripped outside. She was ashamed that she'd been thinking about last night with Tucker, Kevin sitting next to her. She was even more ashamed to say that she was turned on by thinking about it. She grimaced to herself and then headed into the apartment complex. She and Kevin weren't living together by any means – she had a residence on campus – but that didn't mean she didn't spend a lot of time at his place. She even had her own key, but he unlocked the door this time.

"You go lie down in bed," Kevin instructed, "I'll bring you some water and you can sleep for a little while, okay?"

"Okay," Jazz agreed.

She made her way to his bedroom. She didn't want to curl up in her dress – it was cute as an angel's costume, but it did not work well as a nightgown. It felt dirty, though, wrong to put on Kevin's clothing after what she had just done with Tucker. She checked to see if she had left anything here, even a t-shirt that would be more comfortable to sleep in. She found an old tank top – one so stretched it fit her more like a dress than anything else. Contented, she changed into her tank top and slipped into Kevin's neatly made bed.

She turned onto her side, hugging Kevin's pillow. It smelled strongly of his favourite soap, and it made her heart ache. It wasn't fair to Kevin, what she and Tucker had done. She didn't know how to tell him, or when she would do so, but she had to. She couldn't let Kevin live in ignorance, not when he was so good to her. But she was utterly afraid of telling him. She didn't want to lose him. They had been together for a little less than a year, but she could acknowledge how well they fit together. She could acknowledge that he was good for her and that she wanted to keep him.

"Hey," Kevin greeted, creeping into the room. He sat a glass of ice water on the nightstand by the bed, and then he took a seat next to her. "How are you feeling?"

"Like crap," Jazz replied honestly, and she wasn't just speaking of the hangover.

"Anything I can do?" Kevin asked, "Or do you just want to go sleep?"

"Do you want to lay in here with me?" Jazz asked. "Please?"

"Sure … Just let me grab my textbook – I have an important test tomorrow."

"Okay," Jazz agreed, feeling as if she had said that word far too much in the last little bit.

He turned his back to leave the room and Jazz couldn't help but stare, wondering just how badly she had screwed up.

(-.-)

Tucker was working his way through his house, kicking people out as they woke up and cleaning the mess that they had left behind. His parents had been reluctant to let him have a party and he wanted to prove to them that they could trust him and that he was responsible … in some aspects, at least. As he cleaned, he thought of Jazz and the mistake they had made. He didn't know if he could make it better – having sex had likely caused Jazz her relationship with Kevin - and it wasn't as if he could just avoid her – she was Danny's sister after all.

Speaking of Danny, he and Sam finally crawled their way up the basement steps early afternoon, just as Tucker was finishing the cleaning.

"And how was your night?" Tucker asked, padding after his two best friends and heading into the kitchen.

Danny chugged a bottle of water while Sam prepared herself a cup of coffee. After Danny had finished his drink, he glanced at Tucker and grinned wolfishly. "Eventful."

"Nasty," Tucker shook his head.

"And what about you?" Sam pressed. "What did you do last night?"

"Oh, nothing," Tucker answered quickly, hoping that they didn't catch his lie. "Just a lot of drinking."

He really wasn't lying about that.

"There was a lot of drinking all around," Danny commented.

"Hey Tuck," Sam began and then stopped.

"If you're going to puke, just remember the trash can is under the sink," Tucker told her quickly.

"No, not that. What's wrong with your neck?" Coffee mug in hand, Sam crept toward her best friend, eying his dark skin carefully. And then, in contrast to her slight hangover, Sam became giddy. "That's a hickey!"

"No," Tucker protested, clamping a hand over the spot on his neck that Sam had been inspecting. He'd been hoping that his dark skin would hide any bruises or marks that Jazz had left behind. "No, it's not."

"Don't you lie to me," Sam exclaimed. "That's a hickey! Tucker hooked up with someone!"

"Aww, our little baby Tuck," Danny cooed, "Finally losing the v-card."

"Shut up," Tucker groaned. "Guys, just let it be."

"But you're, like, a man now. We need to celebrate or something," Danny insisted.

Sam snorted. "Please tell me I did not just hear you say that."

"Fine," Danny agreed. "You didn't just hear me say that."

Sam rolled her eyes and said, "So, Tuck, who was the lucky lady?"

"Guys!" Tucker whined, burying his head under his arms so that he was hidden from his friends. "This is not important."

He hadn't even thought about the fact that last night was his last time actually having sex with a girl. He had been too consumed with other things like guilt; like worry for Jazz's well-being. It didn't matter to him that he'd been a virgin last night and this morning he wasn't. It hardly seemed like the milestone that it had been made out to be when he was fourteen and hadn't so much as kissed a girl.

"Then who was it?" Danny pushed.

"No one!" Tucker insisted.

"It had to be someone," Sam reasoned, "Or you wouldn't be so upset."

Tucker sighed. "It's complicated."

"Why?" Danny asked immediately.

"Because … because she has a boyfriend," Tucker revealed without thinking. These were his best friends, and he couldn't remember the last time he'd hidden something from them. "I was dancing with this girl last night and we just kept drinking and drinking and, eventually, I woke up with her this morning. But, she's got this guy she's been with for a really long time, and I feel like crap about it, which is why it's not important."

"What the hell? A boyfriend? Are you insane?"

"Danny, I don't need to hear it right now. I know we messed up and I know that there's really no way to fix it."

"Actually," Sam argued, "I think you need to hear a little bit of it right now. Alcohol is no excuse for helping someone cheat on their boyfriend! What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing. I mean, I didn't mean it. She didn't mean it. I just –"

"Tucker," Danny interrupted.

Tucker looked to the side, where his best friend was sitting. Danny had gone rigid, eyes flashing his icy blue eyes flashing green.

"The last time I saw you last night, you were with my sister."

"Don't accuse me of that, man," Tucker denied automatically. Neither he nor Jazz wanted Danny to know the truth. He may be a bad liar, but he definitely thought that he could get away with lying if he was passionate enough about it. And if he was saving his own ass. There would be no chance of survival if Danny found out what he and Jazz had done. "I may have screwed up, but I'd never do it with Jazz. Moreover, she'd never let herself get drunk enough to screw up her own life. Give me a little credit."

"So where is Jazz?" Danny asked. "What did she do last night?"

Tucker shrugged. "I lost track of her, really. I woke up unnaturally early this morning, though, and I was up when Kevin dropped by to get her."

Danny held Tucker's gaze for an agonizing moment, and then he nodded. "All right, dude. I believe you."

"Thanks," Tucker muttered, feeling his heart rate return to normal.

"So," Sam began. "What are you going to do about the girl?"

Tucker shrugged. "Her move, really. I mean, I think she wants to stay with her boyfriend, and I'm not really trying to get in between them."

"But do you like her?" Sam asked. "Are you interested?"

"I … I don't know," Tucker finally admitted. "We've always been just chill. We didn't go out of our way to hang but it was cool when we ended up in the same space. If I like her, it's just a baby crush, not something that has any significance."

"Are you going to tell us her name?" Danny wondered.

"Nope," Tucker answered in a rush. "I'll take that secret to my grave."

"Her name isn't the point," Sam scolded Danny. "The point is what Tucker's going to do."

"Yeah," Danny agreed. "So what are you going to do?"

"I like his original plan," Sam said before Tucker could answer. "Let her figure it out – she has the most to lose. But, you should still talk to her. She might feel weird if you just abandoned her."

"Abandoned her?" Danny repeated. "Why would she feel like that? She has a boyfriend."

As Danny and Sam began to bicker, Tucker moved from his spot between them to make himself another cup of coffee. He already knew the path that he had to take. He had to be the same Tucker that Jazz has always known. He didn't know if she wanted things to go back to the way they were, but he was determined to do what was best for her. Until she told him differently, he was just going to be there.

He wanted to be there, more than he ever thought he would want to.

(-.-)

It was six o'clock at night before Jazz felt secure enough in her sobriety to get out of bed. Kevin had been critical of her for drinking but he had also catered to her hangover, bringing her water and little things to eat. He'd also left her in bed most of the day – and if Kevin hated one thing, it was people who stayed in bed for the duration of the day. In fact, for most of the time, he had been next to her, studying his textbook and notes for his upcoming test.

Thoughts of Kevin were bubbling in her mind as Jazz locked the bathroom door, crossed over the bathroom floor and turned on the shower. Jazz stripped and stepped into the water. She tried to keep her thoughts on Kevin, and on how wonderful he was, but her mind drifted to Tucker. She didn't want to be thinking of him, but in a way, she knew that she had to.

Because she had to decide what she was going to tell Kevin.

If Jazz was being perfectly honest with herself, she would admit that she didn't want to tell Kevin anything. She would keep her mouth shut and not admit that anything had happened last night. Kevin was a good man, an honourable man, and she thought wanted him in her life for a long time to come. Kevin cared about her and she cared about him. She wasn't willing to lose the safety and security that Kevin brought to her life, and she knew that if she revealed the truth, she absolutely would.

But, by not telling him, what did that make her? A liar, at best.

Jazz picked up her washcloth and began to systematically run it over her skin. She took comfort in the routine of her shower, but only until she noticed the bruised prints on her hipbones. She dropped the washcloth and twisted her hands around so that she could push her fingers into the fingerprints. She thought of Tucker's hands, reaching up to hold her waist, and her heart stuttered a bit.

Despite the heat of the shower, Jazz felt tears streak down her face. She had made a mistake and she didn't know how to own up to it. She didn't know what to do. She felt helpless and childlike, dealing with an adult issue. She had gotten herself into this situation – she knew that – and she could sob about it all she wanted, but that didn't change the fact that she was a horrible person and that she needed to grow up.

"Jasmine?" Kevin called, knocking on the door. "Are you all right in there? It's been a long time."

"Fine," Jazz choked out. "I'm just getting out now."

She turned off the water and stepped out into the cool air. As she slowly began to towel herself dry, she made an acknowledgement to herself: she couldn't keep her mind off Tucker. With this acknowledgement, came a realization: she needed to talk to him again. On the heels of that realization came a decision: she wasn't telling Kevin anything, not yet.

It was a horrible decision, and Jazz felt certain that her hatred for herself would only grow the longer she let that decision stand, but she could think of no other option. It was, for the time being, the lesser of two evils.

One more chapter to go after this! I don't own anything recognizable.

~TLL~