"It's disgusting." A muscular male glared down at Alfie, stood with a few more of his friends. Alfie had, unfortunately, had quite a few run-ins with this particular jock, Lucas, and he didn't really want to be near him.

"Wh-What?" The shorter, frail male spoke shyly and softly, looking up from his sandwhich. He'd been invited to an end of year party at a rich classmate's lakeside house, and didn't quite know why, but assumed it was because she'd pited him. He'd accepted, just because he felt like he should do. Besides, it was nice at the lakeside, and there was free food and drink.

"Being a faggot." Came the gruff response of Lucas, as he advanced towards him. "And we need to teach you a lesson, don't we?"

Alfie scrambled to his feet from where he'd been sat on the bench, intending to break into a run. Crying out in fear as he was grabbed by two members of the gang, he was dragged, kicking and screaming to the lake edge.

With a SPLASH!, he was thrown into the lake, sinking down into the cold, murky waters of the lake. He'd never learnt how to swim, being scared of water... How he regretted not trying harder to quell the phobia, to get over his fear, to make sure he'd survive...

Everything seemed to slow down as he sunk down into the depths of the lake, feeling the water pushing on him, forcing him down from above, and seemingly pulling him down from below, as if a monster had ensnared it's tentacles around his thin, frail form. He didn't quite know where the bottom of the lake was, nor did he quite know if he'd ever find this out...

Closing his eyes, he finally let his mouth open, swallowing dirty water into his lungs as he could no longer keep his mouth closed...

"Yo Gina, shit-for-brains is up to something on the dock." Gina looked up from her conversation at the sound of Jack's voice

"What?"

"The dock. Lucas." Jack jerked his chin towards the lake, which sat at the bottom of the steep grassy slope upon which the house was situated. Everyone in earshot stopped and turned too, just in time to see Lucas, star of the wrestling team, lift their tiny classmate off the dock and throw him into the lake. Lucas laughed, turned around and saluted the people watching from deck above.

"Hey Gigi!" she heard him yell, "Got rid of a little nuisance for you! We don't have time for party poopers and freeloading faggots around here, right?" Gina watched the water anxiously, expecting the boy to bubble up and start splashing immediately, but he had disappeared like a rock.

"Are you drunk?" her best frienemy and resident resting bitch face Christa piped up from somewhere on Gina's right, but she couldn't take her eyes of the lake and its all too calm surface.

He didn't even struggle, she thought.

"Don't I deserve a kiss, Thunder Thighs?" Lucas had started jogging closer when it hit Gina. He's drowning. He doesn't know how to swim.

"Shit!" she muttered to Jack, who looked at her funny, "I'll be right back." Handing him her cup, she took a running start and vaulted over the deck's edge and hit the ground with smooth roll over her shoulder. She had underestimated how steep the hill would be and ended up being thrown in a roll almost all the way down. As soon as the ground flattened out she jumped to her feet and sprinted to the edge of the dock, jumped over the back of the back of the bench, paused to peel her dress off in one fluid motion and dove into the clear water of the lake.

This was her mother's home, and she knew the lake as well as anyone could. Luckily, the water was clear, though icy cold, and the sun was out. She could see for a few feet in each direction and immediately found the dark shape of her classmate's body. In two powerful strokes she had grabbed him, and in two more they broke the water. Gina, holding they boy's head carefully above the water, swam for the dock, where Jack was already waiting to help pull both of them out of the water. He turned the boy on his side and pounded him on the back while Gina crawled up on her hands and knees. Her friends were sprinting down the hill towards them now, Christa and Tommy bursting forward.

"Don't crowd us, guys! Stay back!" Jack called as they all anxiously eyed the figure lying on the ground between them.

Coughing, the boy coughed up the water he'd swallowed when he sunk down into the water, along with vomit and a touch of blood too, due to a chronic lung condition.

Wheezing, the boy began to fumble in his pockets for his inhaler, whimpering and coughing violently as he searched through them, unable to find it. Panicing more, his breathing rate quickened, along with the tears rolling down his face.

Jack hauled the boy up into a sitting position, leaning his head on his shoulder and rubbing soothing circles on his back while Gina caught her breath on all fours nearby. Tommy and Christa nervously shooed the gathering crowd away.

"Gi, can you get his inhaler?" She nodded and quickly searched through all of the boy's pockets.

"It's not in any of his pockets," she said, turning back to the water. "I'll go look for it." She stood and went back to the edge of the dock and looked into the water. A half-eaten sandwich lay on the gravelly bottom, and something glinted in the mid-afternoon sun. Gina expertly dove, and in a minute she was gently wrapping the boy's fingers around the inhaler and guiding it to his mouth.

"I hope it still works," she muttered, watching the frail figure anxiously. She knew him from school, of course, it was a small private school where everyone knew everyone, and she always looked out for the small and the weak, but Christa had been the one to actually invite him. He looked even smaller and sicker than usual, especially compared to Jack's burly hockey arms. Without realizing it, she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder the way a mother would to her sick child.

Taking a puff from his inhaler, Alfie attempted to steady his nerves the best he could. After a few more deep puffs, and a few moments to compose himself, Alfie glanced up at the four people surrounding him.

"Th..thanks.." He wheezed softly as he regained his breath, taking Gina's hand on his shoulder as an invitation to rest against her. Coughing a bit more, he sighed weakly.

Gina panicked when the boy shifted his weight to lean against her and exchanged a panicked looked with Jack. He nodded, encouraging her until she awkwardly wrapped her big arms around the boy and gently rubbed his back.

"Um, you're welcome? Take all the time you need, um, I .... don't know your name." She patted him once more and let her hand rest there. She wasn't really the best with words or gentleness.

A few days later, Alfie sighed as he glanced into the mirror, looking over himself. At 17, he lived pretty much alone, with his father often away, being a long-distance truck driver.

Moving away, he picked up a card, opening it again.

To my son,

Happy 17th, Alfie! Sorry I'm away, but I'll be back in two weeks. We'll celebrate then.

Love, Dad x

Wiping his eyes, Alfie threw the card on the floor, frustration bubbling within. All he wanted was to see his father, but he knew he never would...

Gina biked past Alfie's every day on her afternoon bike ride. The detour added an extra five miles onto her route, but she considered that a good thing. Not that she ever actually rang the doorbell, only made a few loops around the building and stopped for a drink of water before continuing on home. It was about 1:00; it would take her an hour to get home. Jack and Christa had demanded she get home early so that they could properly get ready for prom. Gina hated things like prom, but for her friends, she supposed she could do anything. Besides, she had been banned from the MMA gym until her fingers healed and she rethought her decision to punch Lucas until he passed out.

She wondered if Alfie had any plans. Her gut told her no, and before she knew what she was doing she had biked up to the door and pressed the bell.