"I still love her."

I remembered my relationship with Scorpio vividly. I remembered being drawn in by his mysterious facade. I couldn't tell what he was thinking by looking at him, and that made me want to get even closer to him. I wanted to do everything in my power to understand him. At first, that was my only intention. But as I got to know him better, I found that the wild, spontaneous side of me was falling hard. And eventually, I kissed him, losing control of my feelings.

He'd kissed me back. Said he loved me just as much as I loved him. Maybe even more. He was never boring or shy. He did what he wanted and there was something undeniably attractive about a guy like that. But he was willing to try harder for me because he wanted to stay with me. He became better for me. I sighed, the guilt from last year's breakup rising back up. And I broke his heart.

I would be lying if I said I didn't feel anything for Scorpio. In fact, my feelings were stronger now than ever before. But I just couldn't bring myself to be with him again. I was too scared that he'd ruin my life again. That boy was trouble. He was danger. And my relationship with him was oh, so perfect-until he made me jump.

.....

"Libra, I'm asking you to trust me." His glistening eyes found mine, two orbs of light on a dark, deserted cliff. He just needed me to jump. That was all I had to do. "If you do this, we'll be free. We can put all of this behind us." The sound of approaching motorcycles grew louder. "Libra, they'll kill you. Just jump." He reached for my hand, taking it softly, gently. I walked forward hesitantly, looking down the tremendously long drop from the cliff face. He looked at me, desperation and pain written across his face.

I dove off the cliff face, bracing myself for the iciness of the swirling obsidian water below.

Even though the impact sent chills through my bones unlike those I had ever felt, I chose not to swim out of the river and wait for Scorpio to come down. I waited and waited, He never jumped. He surrendered to them and made me risk my life for him. And in that moment, I knew it was over. I swam an easy breaststroke through the river, the chill of the water feeling warm compared to my frozen heart.

.....

I walked toward Scorpio, determined to hold my ground. "Well, I left any feelings I had for you in that river." I pushed Scorpio off of Leo, helping the quarterback up. "You okay?" I asked, looking at the bruising all along his spine. He groaned. "I'm not sure." I put an arm around Leo's back for support. "Let's get you to the doctor." With one final glare at Scorpio, I walked away from the scene, helping Leo to the school gates.

"Hey, lean against this pole while I call Gerald." Leo slouched against the pole, wincing at the pain he felt. "Gerald, it's me. I need you to come pick me up as fast as you can-my friend needs to get to the doctors." I hung up. Within minutes, Gerald had arrived with the limo, helping Leo into the car. Gerald decided that the best call for Leo was the hospital, so we drove there, getting him in a wheelchair as fast as possible.

I looked down at Leo, concerned. "Are you okay?" Leo cracked a smile. "I'm fine because you're with me." He relaxed in the wheelchair. I smiled, wondering how the idiot had managed to make me like him in just a few weeks. "Okay, we're ready to see him."

.....

"So you're telling me some kid threw my baby to the floor?" Leo's mother had arrived and was asking me what had happened for the hundredth time. "Yes. It was my ex-boyfriend, Scorpio, like I mentioned earlier." Leo's mother glared at the floor indignantly as if blaming it for her son's back. I stood, naturally beginning to pace. It wasn't a secret that I had severe anxiety. I had, in fact, been clinically diagnosed with hypochondria, or health anxiety, after an ankle injury in the sixth grade. I dealt with the disorder up to this day.

"Okay, he's ready. He'd like to see.... Libra?" The nurse paused. "Other then her, only family." I declared myself as Libra to the nurse, following her to the ward with Leo's mother. I let Leo's mother go in first, staying outside to speak with the doctor myself. "So, will he be okay?" I asked anxiously. The doctor smiled. "Yes. He's a strong boy. The injury won't leave any permanent scars or problems, and it luckily only hit his muscles. No ligaments or tissues were torn and thankfully there was no spine damage."

The doctor paused. "We've got Leo on painkillers and he's being treated with cream, just to speed up his recovery. He's lucky he's got muscles." The doctor chuckled. I smiled, relief washing over me. "Would you care to explain how he was injured?" I nodded, biting my lip. "Well, my ex-boyfriend was being rude to me, so Leo stuck up for me. My ex slammed Leo to the floor." The doctor nodded. "You're lucky to have such a caring boyfriend." I shook my head frantically. "Just friends!" The doctor frowned.

"Well... I suppose I'll just let you speak." The doctor bustled off. Leo's mother came out momentarily. "He wants to speak with you." She paused before reaching for my hand, taking it in her own. "Thank you for helping my son. Not many people would stand up to someone they used to love the way Leo tells me you stood up to that Scorpio boy." I cracked a small smile. "You're welcome, Miss..." She chuckled. "Just call me Aria." I nodded. "Aria, then." I ducked into the room, rushing to Leo's side.

He gave me a groggy smile. "Leebs." I took his hand in mine. "Leebs, I... I think I like you." I decided to ignore this comment since Leo was on vey strong painkillers. "Okay, Leo. That's great." He pouted as I stood up. "No, stay. Don't let go of my hand, I liked that." I nodded, smiling as I pulled the chair closer to Leo's bed. He laced his fingers with mine, giving me a smirk. "That's more like it." Leo fell asleep, holding my hands. I gently combed his hair off his face, looking down at him.

"Libra.... Let's stop pretending....." I stopped to listen. "You agree?" A long pause. "Now we can be together.... in real life...."

He began to snore. I planted a kiss on his forehead, pulling off my golden bracelet and leaving it by his bedside table with a small sticky note.

I like you too.