Prologue

Lexi

June 25th, 2016 | 7:00 pm

"Who's ready to celebrate the last day of school so hard we'll probably forget it all by the morning?" Rick shouted.

Everyone cheered and laughed as they all walked into the abandoned building. Austin had his arm around Lexi and held her closer than usual tonight. His hands had hardly left her body all night, almost as if he was making sure she stayed next to him the whole night. Lexi figured it was just because he didn't trust the people they were popping pills with but she was scared that if she asked him why then he would stop holding her and Lexi liked the way his touch made her feel, especially tonight.

"Are you sure this is how you want to spend our one year?" he asked as they found the room they usually got high in.

Lexi gave him an annoyed look. "Don't think of this as our anniversary," she said as they sat down. "Not this date."

Austin kissed her forehead softly and hugged her. "You're right, we can celebrate our anniversary another time."

Rick pulled out the bag of pills and started passing them out. Austin reluctantly gave Lexi the bag and she smiled as the relief soothed the rough edges of her overworked and tired body. Finally, she let go of all of the grief and sorrow she felt. Within moments, all of them were feeling the high the pills gave them. Austin and Lexi were laughing in each other's arms as they tried to tell jokes that they had forgotten the endings to. She smiled as he brushed her dark hair out of her face and kissed her.

"I love you, Lexi," he murmured into her ear.

"You love me?"  Lexi asked giggling like a little kid.

"Until the day I die," he said, kissing her again.

"I love you too," Lexi whispered. He took her into his arms as she put her head on his chest. "Until the day I die," she repeated.

"You own a piece of my heart," he said, taking her hand and putting it over his heart.

"You will always have a piece of my heart too," she said softly before kissing him.

These were the moments Lexi loved more than anything. When Austin poured his heart out to her. Lexi loved Austin with her heart and soul. He was the one, he was all she had. They were made for each other. She knew they would last. So, as he held her in his arms when they first heard the cops, she stayed calm. They would get through this.

Her first instinct was to get up and run though. That was what people did when they heard police sirens right? However, Lexi was as high as a kite and could barely stand. Her brain was fuzzy and she was completely disoriented. She reached over to Austin. He took her hand and helped her up.

"Come on babe, we have to go."

He practically dragged her out of the abandoned structure they had all decided to get high in and they ran as best as they could. They were both high off of whatever pills Austin's friends had given them. She was trying her best not to fall as they ran through the back alley.

"Austin," Lexi said out of breath. "I can't keep up."

He turned around and looked back at her. "Lex, we have to go now. The cops are right behind us."

"I don't feel so well." Lexi's vision began to blur and her hands were shaking.

That was the last thing she remembered saying before passing out. Lexi felt Austin's strong arms catch her as her vision blurred and her legs gave out.

June 25th, 2016 | 11:30 pm

Lexi woke up in a hospital bed. Correction: she woke up handcuffed to a hospital bed. Lexi could barely move, her whole body hurt. She looked towards the entrance of the room and could just barely make out a bunch of people gathered at the nurse's station outside the room. She could just hear the conversation.

"Parents aren't really around."

"Ran from the cops."

"Drug test panel came back positive."

"She was the only one they caught."

"Poor thing probably doesn't even know."

How had she really been the only one caught? Surely Austin was around here too? Had they not been together when she passed out? She tried to remember more of that night but her head hurt and she could barely think. Lexi was starting to freak out. What happened? Where was she? How did she end up all alone? Almost immediately a bunch of machines started beeping, and a nurse ran in and began checking on her, but she was too dazed to process anything. She blacked out again.

Where was Austin? She wanted her boyfriend. He was all she had. Where he he gone?

June 28th, 2016 | 9:00 am

Lexi woke up again much later, at least a couple of days had passed since she had last been conscious. There was a cop sitting in her room this time.

"Good, you're awake," he said when their eyes met.

He called someone in and almost immediately, they started unhooking all the machines and handing her some clothes.

"What's going on?" Lexi asked, still groggy and confused.

"It's been a few days now, the doctor cleared you, so we're taking you to the police station until we can get in contact with your father."

Lexi stared at the cop as the nurse shoved a pair of sweatpants on her. They were taking her to jail until they could reach her father. Well, that wasn't going to happen. Lexi sighed and snatched the t-shirt from the nurse and put it on herself.

When she was ready, the cop took the end of the handcuff that was attached to the bed and put it on her other wrist. Everything around her was a blur as they took her to the police station. What was going to happen now? What would they do when they realized her father wasn't coming?

Lexi sat in the holding cell for who knows how long. All she knew was the cop closest to her had already eaten lunch and dinner so it must have been close to the end of the day. She wanted Austin, where was he?

"Alexandra Cross?"

Lexi sat up annoyed by the man who called her by her full name and unlocked the jail cell door for her. She stood and followed him to an interrogation room. She sat down and they cuffed her to the table.

"Do you remember what happened the night we arrested you?" he asked her.

Lexi shook my head. Even if she did remember anything she wasn't about to give any details to a cop.

"Alexandra," the cop said seriously.

"It's Lexi," she said, scowling at the use of her full name. "I overdosed, didn't I? How am I supposed to remember anything?"

The cop sighed. "We have not been able to reach your father."

"Not surprising," she muttered.

"You have a court date set for later today, we'll keep you here until then," he said starting to stand.

"Wait, don't I get a phone call or something?" Lexi asked.

The cop called someone over who handed her a phone. The cop waited in the room with her. Lexi figured that he was under the implication that she was going to call her father and he would miraculously answer the phone that Lexi knew for a fact was out of service. Instead, she called Austin. She anxiously waited for him to pick up and when it went to voicemail, she felt a lump form in her throat. What had happened to him?

"I don't know where you are, but I'm in jail, you know I have no one else to go to. Can you just come and help me? I need you. Please? I love you, Austin."

Lexi ended the voicemail and the cop raised an eyebrow at her. "Was this Austin guy with you that night?"

She shook her head. Knowing he only had speculation, the cop gave up and took her back to the cell. She sat there for hours until they finally brought her some water and a sandwich. She ate it, but the entire time her mind was racing a mile a minute. Where the hell was Austin?

Normally, when she felt this erratic, Lexi took pills to make it all go away. She highly doubted that these cops would give her anything. She tried to sleep but the cell was uncomfortable and her mind was still racing. Eventually, the time came and she was transported to the courthouse.

While they waited for her turn, they sat on some benches outside the courtroom. She stared at all the other people as they entered the building, hoping and praying that by some miracle Austin would be among them.

When it was her turn, the cop who brought her, escorted her in. As they walked, she passed a mirror and caught a glimpse of herself. Lexi didn't even recognize the girl staring back at her. Her dark hair was messy and her brown eyes looked tired. She had dark circles under her eyes and she had a sullen expression on her face.

They walked in and Lexi took a seat next to her lawyer, whom she had barely even spoken to. She looked like a busy woman, Lexi figured she was a public defender, there was no way anyone she knew could have afforded anything better for her.

"Hello, Alexandra," she said, shaking her hand. "I'm your lawyer, Anisa. I need to know a few things before we get started."

Lexi nodded her head and she continued on. There was no point in telling this woman she preferred Lexi.

"When was the last time you had contact with your father?" she asked while getting out a pad and pen.

"I don't know, why?"

Anisa's expression looked grim. "You are only seventeen, you might need to be released to your parents or legal guardian."

"Crap," Lexi stated. "Can I get emancipated or something?"

"Do you have a job and the money to live on your own?"

Lexi shook her head. "Not enough money."

"Then no," she said, writing more stuff down.

"What are my options?" Lexi asked.

"I'm going to present you as a minor with no good influences, I'm going to recommend a summer in rehab and hope the judge agrees that jail won't do any good for you. Also, lucky for you, the rehab facility I am going to recommend won't require you to be released to a parental guardian."

Lexi gave her a quizzical look. "You don't seem all that worried about my lack of parental presence."

She offered Lexi a sad smile. "I read your father's case file."

"Oh."

Lexi looked away, now was not the time to cry.

"Any more questions? Or are you ready?" she asked.

"Just one more thing, how come no one else got caught?"

Anisa looked through more notes. "Apparently by the time the cops arrived to the scene, everyone had left and you were passed out by a fire escape. The paramedics had been called already and they brought you to the hospital. They said you suffered a seizure from an overdose."

"Has anyone called for me?" Lexi asked, hoping maybe Austin had looked for her.

She shook her head sadly. Lexi once again tried not to cry as Anisa informed the bailiff they were ready to proceed. If only she had a couple of pills right now, her hands were shaking.

Within a few minutes, the judge entered the room and they waited for it to begin. He asked Anisa a few questions and she answered just as she told Lexi she would.

"Your honor, my client has a terrible addiction that would only get worse if sentenced to jail. Because this was her first offense, I believe a summer in rehab would do her good and help pave the way for her to become an asset to society."

"Miss Cross?" he asked looking over at Lexi now. "Are you willing to follow all of the rules of the rehab facility and try your very hardest to get sober and stay sober post-rehab?"

Anisa looked over at Lexi and the look on her lawyer's face told Lexi that she wanted her to say yes regardless of what she was actually thinking.

Lexi heard herself say yes. Her mind, however, was elsewhere. She wanted Austin, where the hell was Austin?