Author's Note: Hey all, sorry it's forever since the last update. I didn't have Microsoft Word for a while. But, I'm back now. Anywho, here's another chapter for ya. Reviews would be fabulous.

Music Credit: "Damaged" – TLC
I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT OR THE CHARACTERS.

Chapter Four:

~*.*~
'I know I'm kind of strange to you sometimes.
Don't always say, what's on my mind.
You know I've been hurt, by some guy.
But I don't wanna mess up this time.

And I really, really, really care.
And I really, really, really want you.
And I think I'm kinda scared.
'Cause I don't wanna lose you.

If you're really, really, really there,
Then maybe you can hang through.
I hope you understand –
It's nothing to you.

My heart's at a low –
I'm so much to manage.
I think you should know that I've been damaged.

I'm falling in love.
There's one disadvantage –
I think you should know that I've been damaged.

I might look through your stuff, for what I don't wanna find.
Or I might just set you up, to see if you're all mine.
I'm a little paranoid, from what I've been through.
Don't know what you got yourself into.'
~*.*~

"Well, I didn't see that coming." I whispered. James stroked the side of my face.

"You didn't see what coming?"

"Yesterday – all of it. Everything yesterday caught me off guard." I told him. He nodded.

"Do you regret any of it?"

"A little bit. I mean, I regret not being able to fight Jeff off alone. When he's like that, I freeze. I can't help it. It's like my brain turns off. Sometimes I'm able to fight. But, it always hurts a lot less when I let him have his way. I feel so pathetic."

"You're anything but pathetic. You'll see that soon enough. When push comes to shove, you'll kick ass. You're learning how to defend yourself. I won't let him touch you until I know you're ready to take him on."

"You sound so sure."

"Angel, I am sure."

"It sounds so naughty when you say it." I told him, finally meeting his eyes. He smirked.

"Even angels have fallen. Do you regret what we did together?" He asked. His eyes roamed over my body. I immediately felt ten degrees hotter. I know he's talking about what went on right before Emmett walked in. He's so much different than anyone I've met and what happened yesterday was unlike anything that I've ever experienced. Do I regret it? No. Do I want to do it again? Not yet.

"I don't regret it." I told him, quietly. "But, I not ready to it again. Or for sex. I wanna take things slow with us, especially with everything else going on." I told him.

"You're calling the shots in that department. I don't want to rush you into anything or push you to anything that you're not ready for. I care for you, Karson. I don't want to do anything to tarnish that. You're my girl." A lazy smile spread across his lips.

"It's refreshing to be in charge of something for once." I admitted. "I gotta shower and get ready. I told Emmett we'd talk this morning. I think it'd be better if we talked face to face." I told him.

"Do you want company?"

"Will you hang out in the bathroom with me while I shower? I'd feel more comfortable with you in there." I told him, getting up. He nodded.

"Of course, Angel." I swear, every time he calls me that, I melt a little inside.

"Like that, naughty." I told him. He chuckled and followed me to the bathroom. He kept his eyes on my face as I changed. It's crazy how the smallest things feel intimate with him. It always takes me by surprise.

"Maybe it's on purpose Karson."

"I can handle going to talk to Emmett alone." I told him as I got into the shower.

"Alright. Call me if you need me. I have a few things to take care of. I'll be back by the time you're finished with the Cullens."

"What did you want to do later?" I asked him.

"I think we should talk to your mother about her husband and what he's been doing to you." He said softly. I didn't answer him. I washed myself with record speed and shaved before turning off the water.

"What makes you so sure that she'll care? There's no way that she doesn't know that something has been going on. I mean, sometimes it's so obvious even though he always tried to hide it. She'd walk in and he'd be on me or leaning in the kiss my neck or just holding me to the wall. Sure, he'd turn around and smile and tell her something to distract her and play it off but I don't know how she never saw it. Maybe she never wanted to. Either way, what's she gonna do?" I asked him. He turned around and let me dry off with privacy. I got dressed and brushed my teeth.

"If you tell her, she can't say that she never knew. That's why. If he gives her a divorce, he won't leave her with nothing. He can't. Not if she threatens to tell the judge. You won't know until you try."

"What happens if she doesn't believe me?" I asked him.

"We leave. You can stay with me at my place. There's nothing holding you here, anymore. If he does anything to your sisters, he's dead. He won't breathe long enough to hurt another soul if he tries anything."

"You're always so sure." I whispered. He cupped my face.

"I've been around for a long time, Angel. There's no one that can hide from me. I'm what you'd call a tracker. I was always good at hunter when I was younger. After I was turned, my ability amplified. I'm not afraid of him. You have nothing to fear from him, anymore." He assured me. My voice caught in my throat. I wish I could say that I have as much faith in this that he has, but I can't. He held me. "No one is going to hurt you."

"I believe you." I told him. He nodded. "I should get going. I'm sure Emmett's wondering what's taking me so long. I'll call you when I'm heading back."

"Do you want a ride?"

"No, I wanna walk. It'll be nice to clear my head. Fresh air would do me good." I told him. I gave him a quick kiss and left. The walk to Emmett's seems so much longer this morning. Maybe it's because we've never had to have a major talk like this one before. I'm not even sure how I'm going to look him in the eye today. I mean, he saw yesterday, all of me, exposed for him to see. It's not every day that you're best friend walks in on you naked. Naked would have been better than what he walked in on. It doesn't help that I know that he has a thing for me. Every time I see him I'm going to picture that moment.

I finally got to the Cullens' house. I didn't have to knock. Emmett was waiting for me outside. He didn't say anything when he saw me. Well, this is officially awkward.

"Let's take a walk Kar." He suggested. I nodded. He offered me an arm. I took it and we set off in silence. I'm guessing he doesn't want the rest of his family hearing this conversation. "I don't think any less of you because of what I walked in on yesterday. I know that you're worried about it. I can see it written all over your face."

"Am I that transparent?"

"No, but I know you. I love you, Kar. That's not gonna stop just because you're shacking up with James. I heard what you were saying. I'm doing my best to keep an open mind. So far it seems like he's been good for you. Until he stops being good for you, we won't have any problems. I can be civil for your sake. We both want what's best for you. I just want you to be okay. He took care of Jeff. That's huge."

"You don't know how good it is to hear you say that. You're my boy. I don't want anything to change that. I've never had a friend like you, Em. You're fucking special in the best kind of way." I told him. He gave me a sad smile.

"But you're with him and I have to respect that. Just tell me one thing… If I had said something before he got here, would I have had a chance with you? I didn't do anything until it was too late. Someone already stole you away."

"Let's not go there." I tried to deflect his question.

"I have to know."

"Yes. I have feelings for you. Is that what you wanted to hear? Yeah, had you said something before then we would have had a shot. You're a catch." I told him. We stopped walking. We were in the middle of the woods. He turned to face me. The hurt in his eyes tells me that I shouldn't have told him anything. He's going to wonder what could have been.

"I fucked up and it's my fault. Just promise me one thing." He tucked my hair behind my ear. I nodded. "If things don't work out with James just remember that you have someone else waiting for you." He whispered. I nodded. He broke my heart in one sentence. That's all it took. I felt tears well up in my eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Emmett." I told him.

"Hey, no tears over me." He pulled me to his chest. "I'll keep things platonic. I won't put you in that position. I care about you, too much."

"I'll remember. I promise. I don't see this thing between James and me ending anytime soon. I appreciate you respecting that. I don't know what I'd do without your friendship. You mean the world to me, Em. You really do." I told him. I pulled away.

"You'll never have to find out. And if you ever need help with anything, I'm here for you."

"The same goes for you. I know I'm not as old as you are and I'm not nearly as strong, but I'm here for you – even if it's just because you need someone to listen to you. You're not alone." I reached up and ruffled his hair.

"What are you going to do about Jeff?" He asked.

"Well, James has been giving me self-defense lessons. I'm better prepared to take care of myself now than I ever was. Right now it's just the waiting game. We're waiting to see what he'll do next. He's unpredictable.

We went back to Emmett's and talked a while longer. I had lunch with him and talked to Esme. She helped explain some of their culture with me. They're vegetarians. I have nothing but respect for them. I feel like I'm waking up in this crazy dream. I never thought things like this were possible. I guess nothing is as it seems, not really.

I called James and started walking home. The walk home was a lot faster than the walk to the Cullen's place.

"Karson, don't you know little girls shouldn't walk through the woods all alone?"

"It's a good thing I'm not a little girl, then." I spun around. Why is he here? How did James not scare him off?! I never thought he'd come back so soon. Of course he'd try to get me alone.

"But you are little, compared to me. You used to be such a good little girl, so willing and so eager. What happened? Did your little boyfriend make you defiant? You need to be reminded of your place." He leered at me, creeping closer. I took a step back. I can't freeze. I can't freeze. I repeated my mantra. If I freeze, I'm as good as dead. I can't let that happen. I don't want to die and I sure as hell don't want him to force himself on me, either.

"I'm not yours. And I'm not his. I'm my own person and you can't hurt me anymore." I told him, my voice shaking despite my determination.

"Who's going to stop me?"

"I will. I'm better than this. I don't deserve it. It's not right." I told him.

"I've never been with anyone who felt more right. Your pussy is so tight. It feels so much better when I take it from you. Part of you has to enjoy it. If not, you'll learn to like the pain." He clasped his hand around my arm. I jerked away from him. His eyes glittered with amusement. "What are you gonna do? Your boyfriend's not here to save you, now."

"I don't need to be saved. I can save myself."

"Since when? I'm going to enjoy beating the confidence out of you." He sneered. He yanked me to him. I lunged forward and jammed my knee into his groin. He groaned and doubled over, taking me with him. I squirmed underneath him, struggling to get free. "Stupid bitch." He spat. He backhanded me and started fighting to undo my jeans. I managed to get a hand free. I grabbed his face and squeezed before pushing him away from me. "Stop fighting it!" He screamed.

"Never." I slammed my palm into his nose. I felt it break. Blood squirted onto my face. He froze and clutched his wound. I took advantage of his pause and scrambled away from him.

"You're dead. Get back here. You're going to wish I killed you. Your pussy is going to be sore for days." He growled, failing to get to his feet. I looked around for a make-shift weapon. There has to be something. I grabbed a small log and made my way back to him. His eyes are livid. I can see his erection straining the button on his pants. I gulped.

"Stay away from me. This is the last time I'm going to tell you. If it comes down to you or me, I chose me." I told him. He smirked, staining his teeth crimson with blood.

"What are you going to do? Hit me?" He taunted.

"If you give me no other choice, yes." I told him. He's only a man. It's him or me. I can do this.

"Hit me Karson. That's the only way you're getting out of here. I think we both know that. You don't have it in you." His eyes raked down my body. He bit his lip. "I'm going to make that body scream." He promised.

I saw red. I ran at him, raising the stick. I hit him as hard as I could. I hit his shoulder. He yelled in pain. He pushed me away from him. I hit the ground, hard. I couldn't focus my eyes. I just knew he was on me. He punched my jaw. Payback for what I had done to him, only he didn't stop. He kept hitting me, finding new targets. I gritted my teeth. I will not cry for him. I struggled against him, grabbing whatever I could as leverage to get away from him. I finally hit flesh. I heard him hiss in pain. I wiggled out of him grip and tried to crawl away. He pulled me back to him. I grabbed the stick and swung it at him wildly. I heard a sickening thud. I sat up, shaking. Oh, my God.

Is he dead? I tried to stop my hand from shaking long enough to feel for his pulse. He's alive. There's isn't any blood on his head. I got up backed away from him. I couldn't look away from him. I really did it. Oh, my God. I really did it. I stood up to him. I've been waiting for so long for the chance to stand up to him.

I pulled out my phone and called James.

"Angel, where are you? I've been waiting for you."

"James…" My voice cracked. "Jeff, he found me on my way back. I hit it. He fell so hard. He's breathing. I don't know what to do. What do I do?" I'm hysterical.

"I'll be right there. Don't move." He hung up the phone. I waited in shock for what felt like hours. I'm sure it wasn't any longer than a minute. He all but flew to me. I held me from him, taking in my appearance. "How far did the bastard get?" He asked, seeing my jeans torn and falling off. I shook my head.

"He didn't. It didn't go there. I didn't give him a chance." I told him.

"I'll kill him for hurting you." He growled. Before I had a chance to say anything he let go of me and picked up Jeff by the scruff of his neck. Jeff jolted awake. "Give me one reason why I should let you live." He snarled.

"I won't touch her again. I'll get out of town and leave her mother. I'll leave her with more than enough to live comfortably and to pay for the girls' futures. You'll never hear from me again. I swear." He coughed. He's shaking. He knows he fucked up this time. I lost my voice.

"You will file for divorce today and don't think that I won't follow you. You'll agree to all of her mother's demands and you'll move out of state. Do you hear me?" He asked. Jeff nodded. "I'll keep checking up on you. If you hurt another woman I will be there to end you. You won't have time to breathe, to run, to plead, nothing. Do you understand?"

"I-I understand. I'll tell Lauren everything. I'll leave tonight. I'll pull whatever strings I have to get the divorce pushed through right away." He whispered.

"Good. Go now. I'm giving you a five minute head start. You have thirty minutes to pack your things from the house and explain everything."

"I d-don't have the divorce papers." Jeff whined. James let Jeff fall to the ground.

"Get them. You have an hour." He barked. "Before you go, apologize to Karson for the scumbag you are." James stared him down. Jeff froze, taken aback. He looked at me, completely fearful.

"I'm s-sorry, Karson." He stuttered.

"If he doesn't kill you, I will. I don't want to see you after today." I told him, quietly. He nodded and ran. As soon as he was out of sight I felt my body sag. All of my adrenaline is gone. I feel exhausted. James picked me up in his arms and held me.

"I'm so sorry, Angel. I should have known that something was wrong. I never thought that he would try something like that so soon." He whispered. I didn't say anything. I can't feel my hands. I can't feel anything. I can't think. What just happened? I couldn't answer him. He put me down and took my phone out of my hand. He dialed some number. "Emmett, it's James. Karson was attacked. Can I bring her there? Her house is out of the question at the moment." He asked. "I understand. We'll take our time getting there. Are you staying or will it just be Carlisle?" There was a pause. "Alright. Thank you." He hung up. "Let's go. We're going to get you cleaned up. Emmett will be back to see you after you're cleaned up. I nodded.

The walk to the Cullens' was silent. James didn't try to get me to talk. I think he figured it out. He knocked on the door.

"You must be James. Please come in. How is she?" Carlisle greeted us.

"She's in shock. I don't know how much damage was done. I got thereafter the fight. She held her own." He told him, proudly.

"Good for her. She's such a sweet girl, but that's often the case, isn't it?" Carlisle asked. "Let's take this upstairs, into my study. I have my medical supplies up there." We went upstairs. James put me down. "I'm going to have to take off your clothes to assess the damage, Karson – do you understand?" He asked. I forced myself to nod. My clothes were gone before I realized it. He kept my undergarments in place. For that, I'm thankful. He gently pressed his fingers on my skin, trying to see how badly I was hurt. "He did a number on her. Healing is going to be a painful process. I can prescribe some medication that will make it easier on her… Are you going to stay with her?"

"I'll only leave her side when I have to feed. I won't leave her alone. I'm sure Emmett wouldn't mind helping while I go." He answered. Carlisle nodded.

"While we're on the subject, I hope you appreciate the fact that this is claimed territory. There is no killing in Forks. This is claimed territory." Carlisle told him. James nodded.

"I respect your ways. I won't do anything to threaten my future here."

"How long are you planning on staying?"

"As long as she'll have me – I've never been much of a settler."

"Why her?"

"I'm still trying to figure that one out. She… enchants me. I know I can help her. She doesn't realize how amazing she is. In all of my years, I've never met someone like her."

"Is it because of your similar backgrounds?" Esme asked him, coming into the study. I looked up in surprise. "It wasn't hard to see."

"In part, but not entirely."

"You really care for her." Esme continued. She watched his reaction. "It's nice to see. She's changed since you've been in her life."

"Karson, you have two broken ribs. You're lucky he didn't break your jaw. I'm going to have to reset your shoulder." Carlisle told me. I nodded. I braced myself as he yanked my arm back into place. I screamed. He flashed a light into my eyes. I zoned out through the rest of his tests. "You have a slight concussion." I didn't hear anything else he said. I couldn't focus on anything.

Eventually he sent James out to pick up the prescriptions. Emmett took me home. He let me wear some of his sweatpants and a shirt from Alice. I didn't say anything the rest of the night. I feel numb. I can't stop feeling numb. He tucked me into bed and went to explain things to my mother. I guess Jeff had already been by. She was hysterical.

I blinked, trying to focus my eyes. I don't remember falling asleep. Emmett kept waking me up ever twenty minutes. James is here now. It's daylight out now, so I guess I'm okay.

"Is he really gone?"

"He's not coming back. You're safe. I promise."

"Don't leave me."

"Never."

~*.*~
'And I really, really, really want you.
And I think I'm kind of scared,
'Cause I don't want to lose you.

If you're really, really, really there,
Maybe you can hang through.
I hope you understand.
It's nothing to you.
(It's nothing to you.)

My heart's at a low.
I'm so much to manage.
I think you should know that I've been damaged.
(Ooh, I think you should know that I've been damaged.)
I'm falling in love.
There's one disadvantage.
I think you should know that I've been damaged.'
~*.*~

Author's Note: Jeff is finally out of the picture. Review, review.
-Anneryn