I Don't Know Your Face Anymore

"Ayres and Oliver...Jordan and Johnson...Burgess and Phillips..." The teacher rattled off names of the pairs who would be working on a project on World War II together. Faye Ayres groaned, wanting to cry. She was stuck with Tason Oliver. Just his name brought all of the memories she struggled to drown, right back up to the surface. Mrs. Jamison plopped down behind her desk, signaling their dismissal.

"Faye." A deep voice called. She looked up hesitantly. He immediately drew her gaze. His ocean blue eyes called to her. They weren't the soft, caring eyes she used to know. They were hard, hateful, and determined. It made her sick.

"What?" She demanded, her eyes locked on a spot above his shaggy hair. She couldn't stand to look at him. It's been three years and he was still giving her that disgusted look...What right did he have?

"Ugh..." He sighed and stood, rising to a height nearly a foot higher than her own. He pulled up a chair next to hers and placed a hand on her back, playing with her long waves of dark blonde hair. She shivered. "You're staying over this weekend right?" She nodded, clutching her hands in her lap to stop them from shaking.

"Jace and I are going to the theme park tomorrow." He nodded, his eyes losing that hard, unfamiliar look.

"I heard. How about I give you a ride to our house after school and we can get started on a few things?" He smirked slightly and she frowned.

"Not this weekend, Tason." He stiffened.

"Fine. Have fun fucking my brother this weekend." She recoiled as if he had hit her.

"Go to hell." She hissed, standing with her amber eyes flashing. He stood, towering over her, regret taking over his features.

"I didn't mean...shit...I'm-," Tason stumbled over his words. She just stared at him, stunned, shaking her head. "I'm sorry." She pushed him and the bell rang just in time for her to flee, tears beginning to cascade down her cheeks. How could he say that? He'd been a complete ass for the past three years. And he had absolutely no right to be.

She struggled to catch her breath as she felt a panic attack coming on.

Not here...

Faye practically ran to her hiding place. An abandoned janitor's closet had become her safe haven ever since she started high school. Only one person knew that that was the place she'd escape to.

Jace was the only person she could trust. The only one who didn't treat her like she was crazy, like she was fragile. He'd never turned on her. And he never would. She knew him like the back of her hand. He had sandy blonde hair that made him look younger than he was and his deep blue eyes always lit up when he smiled. He was her best friend. And she'd be lost without him.

She opened the door to one of the few places she felt safe and slipped inside, relaxing immediately. This was the place she found solace on her darker days. Where she could think, cry, and express herself in any way she pleased. She curled up on the dark red armchair that Jace brought in for her. Not long after the tears began to flow, the door opened and two figures stood, the light from the hall throwing their faces into shadow.

"What did you bring him for?" She sniffed, nodding in Tason's direction. Jace sighed softly.

"He followed me. He said something someone said hurt you." She laughed humorlessly, a sob struggling in her throat.

"Oh, so he actually cares? Three years was finally long enough?" She said bitterly. "Go away." She wiped her cheeks furiously and sat up.

"Faye, listen to me dammit!" Tason ran a hand through his dark mop of hair, mussing it up even more. He gave Jace a pointed look. Jace sighed and wandered away.

"I'm not going to listen to someone who hates me for no reason!" He groaned.

"I don't hate you!" She was shaking her head before he even finished his sentence.

"Liar." The word rang in the silence that hung thickly between them. For a good five minutes, they just glared at each other.

"Faye, please, stop acting like that." He stepped inside the closet, shutting the door behind him. She clenched her fists.

"Sorry that you don't like that I'm standing up for myself." He shoved his hands in the pockets of his tightly fitted jeans.

"That isn't it. Stop acting like no one likes you. If you weren't so...." He trailed off and her brow furrowed.

"'So,' what?" She stood, placing her hands on her hips.

"If you didn't act so pathetic about it, maybe someone would want to put up with you! If you didn't push everyone away, Jace wouldn't be the only person you have! If you weren't so...you...we wouldn't even be having this argument. You're so goddamn stubborn. You only care about yourself!" They were shouting now, and she didn't give a shit. This fight was three years overdue.

"I only care for myself? Any time I tried to talk to you after that, you wouldn't look at me! You wouldn't even give me the time of day! And you really have the nerve to make it seem like it's my fault? Like you not being able to help me is my fault? I was screaming for you and you were too fucking drunk to hear me! You wouldn't come no matter how loud I cried. I tried, Tason! I tried!" She wrapped her arms around herself, beginning to hyperventilate.

"Faye, I-," the door swung open.

"Guys...Lunch is almost over," Jace said cheerily. He was always so happy. That's why Faye needed him. He found the bright side in nearly everything.

"The big kids are talking, Jace. Get the fuck out of here." Tason growled. Faye forced her breathing to slow and caught her breath slowly, but steadily.

"Faye's younger than us. And you're only two minutes older. Get over yourself." Jace snapped and stormed off, pulling Faye in tow.

Jace Oliver was, yep, you guessed it; Tason's twin brother. Faye had known the twins since she was born. And then when her dad took off not long after her second birthday, her mom and their mom bonded more closely so that they were pretty much attached at the hip. Faye was always at the Oliver's and as she grew up, with the boys, everything was perfect.

Until one dark, horror-filled night wrecked it all.