Hey guys!

Thank you so much for reviewing! I just love to see that people are actually reading and enjoying what I write.

So here's the next chapter!

The next morning, Danny was the first to awake. He looked down at the beautiful body next to him and smiled to himself. She still had some dried tears from the night before and her hair was a mess, but that didn't matter. Since she was wearing a tank top and shorts, Danny could see all of her scars, all of her fresh cuts and burns, everything. It broke his heart to see Sam like this; he didn't understand why she was harming herself like this. He didn't know how long it had been going on for and how long he was oblivious to it.

On Sam's upper arms, he saw several scars all in a row. Some looked like the cuts she had made were pretty deep, and others looked like they could have been just scratches. He couldn't see the other arm of hers because of the way she was laying, but he could see her legs. They were covered in cuts and scars, more than her arms. He noticed something, though. On her thighs, it almost looked like she was carving a name, or names. Before he could get a good enough glance and figure out the names, Sam rolled over onto her back and rubbed her face, her way of waking up, Danny knew.

She rubbed her eyes for some time then tilted her head in Danny's direction. When she finally opened her eyes, he could see her beautiful green orbs that she always covered up with her purple-colored contacts. She smiled up at him and he smiled back. "Morning," Danny whispered to her.

"Good morning," she said hoarsely. She began to try and get under the covers, obviously insecure about her damaged body. Danny started to help her get under. Once she was comfortable, they laid together, staring into each other's eyes.

When Danny finally gained the courage to confront Sam about her problem, he said: "So...why? Why do you do this? I-is it because of me? Did I do something to make you feel this way? I mean-"

"Danny, shh," she whispered, placing her petite finger over his lips. "This has nothing to do with you. This has everything to do with me and my idiotic self, okay? You can't go blaming yourself for decisions that I made, not that you made. I-I'm okay. Really."

"How long have you been doing this?"

There was silence. After about a minute, she finally responded. "Almost two years..." If you were close enough, you could literally hear Danny's heart break and shatter.

Tears swelled in his eyes; he couldn't take people feeling sad and depressed, especially when they were as close to him as Sam. He tried to look away to gain some strength back and not have to show Sam his tears, but she noticed anyway. "Dan, whatever you're thinking-"

"I...I-I just don't understand," Danny said with his voice breaking. "I don't understand why you would do this, why you would feel this lost, this broken, this hurt to harm yourself. And, hell, even attempt to kill yourself. I mean, what about me, Sam? How do you think I would react if I found out you were gone and I never got to even say goodbye?"

"I-I don't know," she mumbled. "I-I guess I just thought that...it would be one less person to have to look out for. I mean, I'm sure I cause more problems on the battlefield with you than not, right? I'm sure all of your enemies know that Tucker and I are your weaknesses, but they're gonna go after me more likely because even I've noticed you get weaker around me than Tucker. And as long as I'm out there with you...you have another target for them...easy prey...I didn't think that would be such a bad thing for you to not have to worry about." She was on the verge of sobbing.

"Aww, Sam..." Danny said, pulling her into his chest. He felt her cry and cry and he felt tears run down his own face. He stroked her hair gently and kissed her head softly. "It's okay," he cooed. "It's okay, I promise. I promise you that's not true at all. It's okay," he continued to repeat.

She cried for a while into his chest, soaking his shirt, but Danny didn't mind. "Danny, please don't tell anyone. Please, please, please," she begged. Sam looked him straight in the eye with her puffy, bloodshot ones.

Danny looked at her. "Sam...you need help. I can get you help. I don't want you doing this again. We don't have to talk to your parents; we can talk to mine. Or we can even talk to Tuck's or a school counselor or something. But you need help Sam. I-I just can't see you hurt like this. I'm not planning on doing anything stupid but...you need help. You need professional help; not just help from your teenage best friend, okay? And I'm only doing this because I love you."

Those words lingered in both of their ears. I love you. Neither one of them had ever said that to the other, or at least not in a serious way. He loves me? Sam thought to herself. She tried to smile at him but now all that caught her attention were his lips. He had been planting kisses on her throughout the morning so maybe, just maybe, he did love her. She decided to take the chance. She stretched her head and neck up to him and kissed him softly and quickly.

Danny was caught by surprised. He had been thinking about doing that all morning too, but he didn't want Sam to feel like he was taking advantage of her vulnerable state. With her kissing him by surprise, he wondered why. I love you, he thought. I said "I love you" to her. I said it without thinking. Maybe she loves me... Taking a bold chance like Sam, he leans down and kisses her after she quickly pulled away the first time. It was the most loving kiss either of them had ever experienced. It was so real, so passionate. The love the two of them had for each other was enough for everyone in the world to love each other.

Moments passed and they finally pulled apart. "Sam..." Danny said, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear, "I love you so much. I love you to the third galaxy over and back twice. I can't lose you, I just can't. You need help. Trust me. It'll help. Please...just talk to my parents with me. They'll be understanding."

"No, no," she said. "I-I don't wanna bother your parents about this."

"They wouldn't be bothered," Danny responded. "They'd be worried sick. They think of you as another daughter, you know that. They love you slightly less than me." She smiled at that statement. "Okay, how 'bout this. On Monday, we go see the school guidance counselor together and see what she thinks, deal?"

Sam smiled. "Deal," she finally confirmed. "But until then, you have to stay with me. You can't leave my side because you make me feel better. I don't know why, I don't know how, you just do. So promise me you'll stay?"

Dan smiled. "I promise."

Yup. That's finally chapter 2! I've been so lazy! I have no excuses.

Anyway, I love y'all for reading this. You know that.

LOL (lots of love)
xxSam