I Don't Need You To Save Me

"So what's it to be?" Soffy asked Frankie, who sat on the long leather couch in the middle of the living room. "High School Musical or Return to Halloweentown?" Frankie shrugged his shoulders.

"High School Musical is boring." He looked like he was in deep thought. Over a film. Little kids are so funny. "So Return to Halloweentown."

"My thoughts exactly." Soffy smiled and opened up the DVD case. I walked into the living room from the kitchen and placed the bowl of popcorn I had just managed to make (without burning, thankfully) on the coffee table. "Are you okay watching Return to Halloweentown Hayleigh?"

I nodded and popped a piece of pop-corn into my mouth. Instead of going out for a meal with the majority of the Jonas clan, I had opted for staying in with the youngest Jonas and Soffy, using the 'I'm really tired right now' kind of excuse. After all, I didn't want to sound rude, I just didn't want to go out to dinner with a family I barely knew.

So instead I would stay at said family's house and watch a film with the youngest member of the family and his babysitter, whom I didn't know either. But this way I wouldn't have to think of as much conversation.

"High School Musical sucks!" Frankie decided to let us know his opinion rather randomly. Soffy agreed, of course. I thought about disagreeing, but seen as though it was two against one I stayed quiet.

"Well said Frankie, well said." Soffy laughed and stuck her hand into the popcorn. She turned to me while the trailers flashed across the screen. "So how are you liking Wyckoff?"

"Its nice." I smiled. Soffy raised an eyebrow, clearly my answer didn't satisfy her. "Ok, so its a little quiet for my liking, but it could be worse."

"It grows on you. Honestly, when I moved here from London I really didn't want to be here. I wasn't happy leaving all my friends behind. But now I love it here." Soffy explained. "Kevin, Joe and Nick have helped me through quite a few rough patches over the past year and a half, I don't know how I would have managed without them."

I nodded and turned to look at the screen where opening scene of the film had just begun to play. Frankie shushed us and we watched the film, which I had seen so many times before, flash before my eyes.

An hour and a half later, the film had finished and I had just put the popcorn bowl into the kitchen sink when my phone started to ring in my pocket. I pulled it out of my jeans pocket and checked the caller ID. Whoever was ringing me had with-held their number.

Normally, I wouldn't have answered the call. But for some reason I did.

"Hello?" I asked down the phone. I heard somebody cough and then they began to talk.

"Hayleigh, darling. How are you?"

Oh god no.

"There was a reason I changed my number all those years ago you know. So you would never ring me. Now please tell me who the hell gave you this number so I can track them down and go murder them." I mumbled down the phone.

"Now, now darling. Calm down."

"Do not call me darling." I raised my voice a little, but not to the point that I would be shouting down the phone. I didn't want to worry Soffy or Frankie in the other room.

"Why not babe? Are you still mad at me?" He sounded hurt. If I had been more naive I would have fallen for that, but I knew his tricks. He was an actor after all.

"Well what do you think?" I asked venomously. "Now I want you to tell me where you got my number."

"Oh, I got it from a friend of mine. She is very sweet, letting me borrow her phone. I might ask her out on a date." Darren sighed. "Who knows, she might end up as my next girlfriend."

"Don't you mean your next victim?" I asked and I hoped the sound of my voice put across how angry I was. "And I do hope your not trying to make me jealous Darren."

"It depends, is it working?"

"No."

"Damn." Darren's voice smooth voice sent a shiver down my spine once again.

"I hope that wasn't your plan Darren, because there is no way on earth that I would be ever jealous of any other girl that is with you. Ever. In fact I feel sorry for them, knowing how you will probably just screw them over." I took a deep breath. "Do you understand?"

"Denying it only makes it more obvious Hayleigh." He chuckled and I shivered again. "I hope your prepared for my visit."

"You are not coming up here Darren." I whispered.

"Oh of course I am. When you least expect it. I always stick to my word." He laughed. "You'll be thanking me in a few weeks when you're bored out of your head. Maybe we could pick up where we left off..." He trailed off suggestively. I froze and almost dropped my phone. I couldn't swallow properly, my mouth had gone dry.

He wouldn't dare. Not now. Not ever.

Quickly I hung up the phone and dropped it onto the counter, putting my hands against the island counter in the middle of the kitchen, breathing slowly. In and out, in and out. I at first thought I was going to throw up, right there in the middle of the kitchen.

"Hayleigh, are you alright?" Soffy's voice reached my ears and I stood up straight.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I smiled.

"Are you sure, you look a little ... I don't know. Pale." Soffy’s face looked genuinely concerned. Like Nicks had been earlier on that same day. I just nodded again and closed my eyes.

"Yeah, I just went a little dizzy all of a sudden." I smiled. "I think I'm just tired, I didn't sleep very well last night." That was almost the truth. I wasn't tired, but I didn't sleep much the night before. "I think I'm going to go to go lay down for a bit."

With that I quickly walked out of the kitchen and up to my room. I didn't mean to be so rude to Soffy, she was a genuinely nice girl who was honestly concerned for my welfare, but I just needed to think things through. Once my bedroom door was fully closed behind me I collapsed onto my bed and buried my head into the pillows.

- - -

"Hayleigh.”

I awoke with a start and gasped. I didn't know weather someone had said my name in reality or in my almost nightmare. I sat up, bolt upright and put my head in my hands, breathing in and out slowly. My cheeks were slightly damp from what I guessed were tears. Blinking I brushed my blonde hair back from my face and stared at the wall. For the past week I had dreamt the same thing, a recurring dream that was more like reliving a bad moment in my life. Every time I closed my eyes my mind kept wondering back to the same night two years ago. The night I wanted so badly to forget.

"Hayleigh?”

I looked over to the door and saw Joe standing there. I cringed and looked away from him. “What do you want?” I asked quietly whilst trying to keep my voice normal.

"I thought I could hear you talking or something...” Joe explained and I heard the bedroom door close. Great, now I was talking in my sleep. “Are you alright?”

"Erm, yeah. I must have just been talking in my sleep.” I mumbled hoping I just sounded tired, and not like I had been crying. Joe was clearly not convinced because I heard the door close with a quiet click and soon after I felt a hand resting on my shoulder.

"You don't sound too sure.” Joe sounded really concerned. What was it with these Jonas boys and their need to care about what's going on in my brain.

"Really Joe. I'm fine.” I spoke a little louder this time but my voice wobbled. I couldn't hide the fact that I was, in some way, upset any more. I felt the bed shift as Joe sat down next to me, his hand still comfortingly placed on my shoulder. I took a deep breath in and then looked down at the bed sheets. “Its nothing. Really.” I told him with a deep sigh.

But of course he didn't buy it. “Hayleigh, what's happened?” He asked. I looked up at him and frowned.

"Like I said, its nothing.”

His concern meant that he wouldn't drop the subject completely. “Ok, fine. You don't have to tell me exactly what has happened just yet. I'll wait.” I closed my eyes and shook my head.

"You'll be waiting a while.”

"I don't mind.”

I opened my eyes again to find him staring at me intently. Even in the little light, I could see that he actually cared about me and my problems, honestly cared about them, he wasn't just being nice to me because I was some spoilt celebrity. It brought more tears to my eyes.

"Don't say that.” I turned away from him and tried to stop the tears from flowing down my cheeks. I felt Joe's arm instantly wrap round me and he gave my shoulder a squeeze. Then I did something that I don't think either of us expected. I turned round to face Joe and wrapped my arms around him.

"I'd rather not talk about it. Ever.” I whispered into his t-shirt, that was slowly getting stained from the tears that had escaped. Joe didn't much after that, he just tried to stop me from crying, stroking my hair and giving me comforting hugs, and then stayed with me till I drifted off to sleep. I must admit I did feel a lot better and a lot more reassured with him there as I slipped into unconscious.