never feel guilty for setting boundaries that protect your peace

The next day came far too soon. Neve didn't speak to Christina, and Christina didn't speak to Neve. Neve cared yet didn't at the same time, keeping her stance on how unfair it was that Christina got to continue to live her life as if nothing happened whereas Neve couldn't.

"Going to the library after school," Neve shortly told her aunt as she walked toward the front door.

"Location on and constant texts every half hour," Christina responded just as shortly.

Neve didn't say anything. She just put in the security code and threw open the door, beginning the walk to the bus stop.

Christine didn't think it was ideal for Neve to ride the bus but didn't argue with the younger girl when she insisted on taking it. She wanted to say something but the wounds were still fresh - and the last thing they needed was another fight. She'd already felt guilty enough for slapping the girl, so she allowed her to do a few things she'd usually be more strict about.

Neve listened to music as she took the lengthy walk to the bus stop, but didn't bother paying much attention to it. Her thoughts were consumed by the past events from the day before, her eyes clouding with tears anytime she thought about how her aunt had hit her.

The sudden feeling of someone touching her arm caught her attention. Her fight or flight immediately kicked in as she kicked her foot back, aiming for anything that would give her the upper hand. She turned and grabbed the hand of whoever had grabbed her, turning their body so she twisted their arm behind her back.

Her phone fell out of her hoodie pocket as she did this, her earbuds yanking from her ears in the process. She heard a familiar voice groan in pain as she held their hand behind her back tightly, her knuckles turning white from the grip she had.

"Neve, it-it's me," Zach weakly spoke, his breathing heavy from the sudden action.

Neve immediately let go of his arm, stepping back. She watched in horror as he turned to face her, stretching his arm out to relieve the pain she caused. He flexed his arm, and she watched as the muscles tensed and relaxed.

"Zach, I-" Neve stopped, not knowing what to say. She knew she should apologize as she could've seriously hurt him, but at the same time if she hadn't reacted like that she could've seriously ended up hurt.

Zach's lips pressed into a thin line before he smiled, "You've got quite the grip on you, Neve."

Neve's cheeks burned, her palms growing sweaty. Suddenly, she wished she hadn't asked to ride the bus that morning.

Zach bent down and picked her phone up from the ground, inspecting it to make sure it hadn't broken. Once he saw that it was fine he reached out, offering it to her. "Dropped this," He told her.

Neve looked at it for a moment before taking it. She shoved it in her pocket, standing there awkwardly. "You should-" She stopped for a second before continuing, "You should really be careful sneaking up on someone like that, you could get hurt."

"I see that now, thank you." Zach smiled at Neve again, "I just saw you walking and thought I would offer you a ride."

"A ride?" Neve asked, looking at him.

"To school. That's where you're headed right? The- the bus stop?" He pointed.

Neve turned, seeing how close she'd made it to the bus stop. This surprised her because it really didn't feel as if she had been walking for that long.

She noticed the boy she met before - Jackson - standing at the bus stop. He watched the two with a confused look on his face, but once their eyes met he looked elsewhere.

Looking forward again, she caught eyes with Zach. He'd already been looking at her, although she wasn't sure whether he was just studying her face or waiting for an answer. She looked behind him to see a car parked next to the sidewalk, the door wide open.

She knew she should say no. She'd already pissed her aunt off by simply letting Zach bring some packages of hangars over to the cart at the store yesterday, and if she were to find out she accepted a ride with him - she'd probably kill Neve herself.

But then she remembered what had happened. The argument hadn't subsided, as a matter of fact, it escalated worse than it usually did.

Neve was finished letting Christina control her. She was done letting the older woman treat her so horribly, all while being selfish and living her own. She'd spent the last few years hiding, sad, and alone all because she did every little thing Christina said.

Finally, Neve looked up at Zach. He was patiently waiting for her response, not seeming all that bothered by her silence. "Okay," She told with.

He smiled bigger, his teeth showing. He nodded as his cheeks turned red, motioning to the car behind him. "I'm parked that way. We should get going."

Neve nodded, following Zach to the car. Her stomach fluttered with butterflies, her heart beating quickly as she got into the passenger seat. She wasn't the type to ever break Christina's rules, and so this was new to her.

She felt stupid for feeling so giddy or something so tiny, for something that people did every day of their lives. But Neve didn't - and so this feeling was very new to her.

Zach drove away almost immediately, stealing numerous glances toward the girl. "So you live over here?"

Warning signs flashed in Neve's mind. If Christine were here, she'd say to never let anyone know her address. That's high up on the long list of rules given to Neve, but just the thought of the older woman was enough to break all of them without care.

"Yeah. It's further down that road," Neve spoke as she pointed toward the road she'd been walking on. "Too far from the bus stop. My aunt usually takes me but I wanted to ride the bus today."

"You were willing to ride the bus? Over getting a ride?" Zach asked in confusion.

Neve didn't say anything. What was she supposed to say? Despite not caring as much about forming a friendship with Zach, she still knew better than to tell him her life story. She couldn't tell him this was the little bit of freedom she got. If she did, she'd have to explain why - and Neve wasn't good at coming up with lies. She couldn't lie to save her life unless it was something small, simply because she didn't interact with people enough to know how to make it sound believable.

She stayed silent for a moment, thinking of what to say. She began to stammer over her words, trying to figure out what to say. "Christina was just a little too much to deal with."

It sounded horrible, but it was true. She had been so unbearable that Neve wanted nothing to do with her. She already felt confined as is, and so with everything going on with Christina - it was almost too much to handle.

"Right. Helicopter aunt." Zach nodded with a smile. He pulled into the parking lot of the school, parking further back in the lot.

"Told you," Neve softly told him as the two got out of the car.

"You did indeed," Zach said.

He walked next to Neve as she made her way into the school. Some people looked her way as she walked by, but most didn't pay much attention. She liked it, as it made it much easier for her to blend into the background.

Neve stopped at her locker, putting the combination in. She hadn't even noticed that Zach was following behind her, looking almost as if he were a lost puppy dog. He just watched her in silence, watching as she carefully traded out different textbooks she'd need throughout the day.

"So since uh-" Zach stopped, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Since your aunt isn't here, maybe you could give me your number now. If-if you want, you know?"

Neve stopped her actions, looking over at the boy. He was much taller than her, towering over her small frame by at least a foot. "What?" She quickly asked, cursing herself for how stupid she sounded.

"Yesterday, I asked for your number," Zach stated, explaining it anyway. "But then you kinda just left."

Neve slowly shut her locker door. "Right," She said. "I didn't realize you wanted it that bad."

It sounded much better in her head, and she inhaled a deep breath when she realized how bad it sounded. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

"No, it's okay." Zach suddenly smiled, "I mean, would it be so bad if I did?"

Neve looked at him, tapping her fingers against the textbooks in her hand. She went to respond but the warning bell rang, indicating she only had a short amount of time to get to class. "I need to go, I'm sorry."

Zach began to respond, but Neve was gone before he could get a word out. He just watched as she weaved her way through the full halls, her red hair disappearing shortly after.

Neve made it to class before the final bell rang, thankfully. She went through the school day as she did every day - paying attention, taking notes, and enjoying the bit of freedom she had outside of class.

She didn't make it to the class she shared with Zach and a few of the others in his friend group. She had gotten stuck in the office, waiting what felt like hours for a small meeting with the Principal about what classes and other extracurriculars she'd need to graduate with the senior class.

This only managed to make her more bitter about the things Christina had done to her. She wouldn't be so far behind on graduating if it weren't for the fact she had to constantly move around, and thanks to different states requiring different credits to graduate - she was behind.

So as the last bell rang, she grabbed every textbook in her locker and shoved them into her backpack. Not all of them fit and she had to carry some, but didn't complain as she walked out of the school and toward the public library.

She sent texts to Christina - as requested. It was a simple thumbs-up emoji, but it was more than enough for an update to her aunt.

The walk to the library felt like an eternity. Her arms ached due to the textbooks she changed from one arm to the other, but smiled in victory as she found herself a table toward the back of the building.

She sat at one of the tables, choosing the chair by the wall. This meant her back would be to the wall and face everyone to the best of her abilities. If she could see all angles surrounding her, then this meant that she didn't have to worry about anyone sneaking up behind her.

It was doubtful that if her birth father found her - had he even been looking - he'd find her there. She didn't know how much he knew about her. As far as Neve was concerned, he didn't even know she existed until the day everything happened. If that were the case, the only way he'd be able to genuinely find her was if he were able to get ahold of files only detectives could.

That calmed Neve down when it came to being in places like this. It was because she knew it was unlikely for him to find her and finish off what he started that day.

Her fist clenched in her hand. The thought of him finding her always eased its way into her mind, even if Detective Forbes assured her that they'd been watching for him. They've been waiting for him to come after Neve. They figured he would, so even years later they sat here and watched and waited for something to happen.

But it never did.

And the thought killed her all the same. Although she was grateful he hadn't attempted to come after her yet - to her knowledge - it didn't change the fact that he was still out there. He was still walking free, unchained, and living his life on the down low. Whether he planned to come after Neve or not was unknown, but the thought that he possibly could be was more than enough to cause anxiety.

The wooden pencil in her hand snapped. The movement was enough to bring her from her thoughts, and she looked down to see a giant splinter lodged in the palm of her hand. Blood immediately began to drip out onto the table, droplets splattering all over the notebook she'd been attempting to write in.

Her balance was uneven as she slid along the floor, attempting to get away from the man. Blood covered her hands, the dark substance thick as it dripped from her fingertips. Genevieve pushed her hair out of her eyes, gagging as the blood smeared across her cheek.

However, she didn't focus on that. Her focus was heading straight to the front door, which had still been open from when she'd first arrived home. Her feet found the carpet and just as she was in reach of the doorknob, something grabbed onto her backpack. She cried out in pain as she was flung back, her entire body hitting the ground roughly.

She cried as she attempted to stand up, slipping on the blood underneath her. She'd been thrown back into the hallway. Her mother's blood covered her entire body, the sticky feeling between her fingertips making it harder to get a grip on anything.

The man stalked closer to her, the same knife he used on her mother in hand. Genevieve cried as she attempted to back away, throwing her backpack off to attempt to move faster.

It wasn't long until he was hovered right above her, legs on either side of her. He kneeled down as she cried, shaking her head with pleas for him to stop.

But the man didn't. He gripped the knife with both hands, ready to plunge it straight down into her chest. Genevieve heaved in as many breaths as she could, looking around in a desperate attempt to get herself out from underneath him.

"P-please," She begged, "Please don't kill me."

The man looked at her. He didn't have any emotion as he stared at her, his eyes dark enough to where she could see her reflection in them. They were dark and empty. He was planning on killing her the same way he killed her mother and stepfather, and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Neve!" A voice spoke.

Neve blinked, looking at the blood again. It had begun to dry up, the splinter still sticking out of the palm of her hand. In one quick movement, she yanked it out. She looked up to see Zach standing on the other side of the table, looking at her in concern.

"Are you okay?" He asked, grabbing the back of one of the chairs.

"Are you stalking me or something?" Neve couldn't help but ask. She pulled her backpack over from the chair next to her, opening the front pocket.

She grabbed an alcohol pad and a bandaid before zipping it up. Zach didn't say anything as she cleaned her hand and the table, applying the bandaid quickly before it began to bleed again.

"Stalking? No," He answered with a laugh. "Seemingly bumping into you everywhere? Yes."

Neve glanced up at him, smiling as she saw the big grin on his face. "I guess so," She spoke with a shrug.

"What happened to your hand?" He asked.

"My pencil broke and it stabbed me." She responded, gathering her trash. She picked up the pieces of the pencil and threw them in a nearby trashcan, one that had been conveniently placed near her table.

"Ouch," Zach said. "Mind if I sit?"

"Shouldn't you have something to do?" Neve asked in response, "Surely you're not always just conveniently free when I run into you outside of school."

He shrugged, sitting down in the chair across from her anyway. Neve carefully watched as he pulled his backpack from his back and sat it on the chair next to him, mirroring her position. He then rested his elbows on the table, holding his hands out to her. "Here," He said.

"What?" She asked, looking at him.

He motioned to her hand. Neve looked down at the palm of her hand before looking back up at him. He waited with his hands out, wiggling his fingers as he waited for her to put her hands out.

Neve looked around. There weren't too many people in the library and the few that were there were too occupied with whatever it was they were doing. She sighed before putting her elbows on the table, holding her hands out.

Zach grabbed the one with the bandaid, gently massaging the area around the cut. "You know, when I was younger, my mom used to do this thing for me-" He explained, glancing at her every so often.

Neve's heart hurt at the mention of his mom, but didn't let it show. She just listened as he gently rubbed her palm, his eyes bouncing between hers.

"Whenever I would get hurt- whether it be the cat scratched me or I fell and cut my hand. If it were a simple injury such as those, she'd rub the surrounding areas." He told her. He then pulled her hand closer to him, bringing his lips down to the bandaid. He kissed it lightly, and just as soon as his lips touched the top of the bandaid, they lifted away.

Neve's heart jumped. Any ache from before disappeared as her mind grew cloudy with thoughts. She'd never had much interaction with boys - or with anyone in general. Christina would kill her if she even tried.

"I know it's kind of weird, but she called it the ultimate medicine to ouchies. When I was younger it was the only thing that made me feel better." Zach smiled. He hesitated before pulling his hands away and putting them back on the table.

"Ouchies?" Neve asked.

Zach's mouth fell for a second, before nodding. "Yes. Ouchies. Feels better though, doesn't it?"

Neve smiled, "No."

He pouted, "Well, maybe it just hasn't kicked in yet."

Neve put her hand in her lap, running her thumb over the bandaid. "Maybe," She mumbled. "So what are you doing here?"

"I always come to the library to study. Quieter than my house." He answered, "Just happened to see you when I came in. Funny since the moment we met we keep running into each other like this, huh?"

"It's a little odd," Neve replied.

"Maybe it's fate," Zach said. "Do you believe in fate?"

Neve shrugged, "I don't know. If fate is real, it's really screwed up."

"You think so?" Zach asked, leaning his head on his hand.

"Yeah," She breathed out.

"Well, I know one thing." The boy then told her, tapping his fingers. "Whether fate is real or not, I'm sure of one thing."

"What's that?" Neve asked.

"Clearly fate's trying to tell us something by our frequent meets. Now that we're here with no distractions, maybe you should-"

"Zach!" Another voice spoke, cutting him off.

He looked over to see Dina standing there. Next to her stood another girl Neve had yet to meet. Dina warily glanced between Neve and Zach, a smile on her face.

"What are you doing here?" Zach asked.

Dina grabbed his backpack from the empty seat next to him and sat down. "Just studying." She answered. She then looked to the blonde who had been standing next to her, motioning to the chair that held Neve's stuff. "What about you guys?"

Neve grabbed her bag, ignoring the odd look from the blonde. She held her backpack to her chest as the blonde sat down next to her, putting her attention back to the two in front of her.

"Same," Zach responded.

"Great! We'll join." Dina happily said, "You don't mind, do you Neve?"

"No of course not," Neve denied. She did mind, but Dina had been nothing but nice to her since they met.

Not to mention she was intimidating, along with the blonde next to her.

"Ah, Neve, this is our friend Riley. You can call her basically anything." Dina introduced, "Riles, this is Neve. The newbie."

"Most call me RJ or stick with Riley," Riley explained.

Neve nodded, "Everyone calls me Neve."

Riley nodded, seeming to be just as awkward as Neve was. Neve looked away, watching as Dina started a conversation with Zach.

Zach listened, responding to his friend every once in a while. Riley would even chime in here and there, leaving Neve out of the conversation.

Not that Neve minded, she didn't care to talk. She was okay with talking to Zach when it was just them two, but she felt more awkward whenever Dina was around and she couldn't explain why. She just pulled her homework out and began to work on it, unaware of the boy watching her from across the table.

Eventually, Riley began to study as well. This left Dina and Zach, the girl still rambling on about whatever came to mind. Different topics of anti-violence and other things she supports, stuff that Neve didn't care to listen to since she had her own things going on.

It wasn't her business anyway, and she knew that.

In the corner of her eye, she saw something slide into her view. She looked to see a folded-up piece of paper and glanced forward to see Dina focused on something on her phone. Her eyes then traveled to Zach, who sent her the smallest smile.

Grabbing it, she opened it behind the book so neither Riley nor Dina could see it. She was quick to notice the rushed handwriting, her eyes skimming over the words carefully.

the fate gods have spoken and i refuse to lose my chance this time. below is my phone number so do what you will with that

p.s. pls don't leave it up to fate for us to speak again, i think i'll lose my mind :(

++

I really love Zach and Drew is perfect for his fc I fear <333

Please comment if you're reading this <3 I enjoy feedback!