Disclaimer: I don't own the TV-show/series Heroes or any of the original characters. All I own is my imagination and the plot.

A/N: This story takes place right after Brody tries to push Claire for more in ''One Giant Leap,'' only in this version Brody does not accidentally kill Claire and I decided to try my hand at writing the scene where she tells Zach about it. This is all you need to know at this moment, so I hope you'll enjoy reading my first attempt at this pairing and this TV-show. :)

''I don't think I can do this alone.''

She couldn't breathe, but Claire kept running, not catching her breath until she had reached Zach's house. It was the only place she knew she could go to. Her parents would ask too many questions—it was still too early in the evening to sneak in without them noticing—and this wasn't anything she wanted to answer to her parents about. She didn't think she would be able to get the story out without crying.

She began to bang on the door with her fists, having made sure that the driveway was empty. His parents wouldn't be home until tomorrow, just like he had told her. He was the only one she could trust. The only one she had felt comfortable with before tonight and would feel comfortable with after, though she wasn't yet sure if she would tell him the truth of what had happened, momentarily forgetting that her tousled hair, the rips in her cheerleading outfit, and the dirt smeared on her legs would give away instantly that something wasn't right.

For the moment, she didn't care. All she wanted was to get inside, even though she knew that Brody wouldn't be foolish enough to follow her.

She raised her hands, the door flying open before she could bring them down on it. Zach was on the other side, dressed in his usual t-shirt and slightly baggy pants. She couldn't be more happy to see him.

''Claire? Aren't you supposed to be at the bonfire?''

''Can I come in?'' she asked, ignoring his question. ''I need to come in.''

''Yeah, okay.'' He stepped aside to let her in, noticing the way she looked as she passed him and the light fully hit her. ''What happened to you?'' he inquired while quickly closing the door, worried.

Claire self-consciously crossed her arms across her chest and offered him a half-shrug. She lied. ''Nothing.''

Zach also crossed his arms and looked at her. ''Right, so this all just the aftermath of some new cheerleading routine Jackie came up with?''

He was being sarcastic, really sarcastic, and she knew he only acted that way when he was losing patience with her, something he did very slowly when it came to her, but he still got tired of how she tried to lie to him even when she knew that it was already too late for that. She knew how unfair it was not to want to tell him everything, when she was the one who came to him in the first place.

She uncrossed her arms and dropped them to her sides, taking on a more open stance, hoping that it would matter in even the smallest of ways. ''Look,'' she began, ''I didn't have anywhere else to go. You're the one I trust, and if I'd shown up like this at home, my parents would have grilled me for answers, especially my dad. He always knows when something's wrong. It's like he can sense it or something. I just can't deal with that right now. I can't.''

''So, something is wrong then?'' Zach intuitively took a step towards her, as if sensing that she needed the proximity, though he saw how she flinched at the unexpectedness of his movement. He also saw how she balled her hands into fists, squeezing until her knuckles turned white and her nails were digging into her palms. It was something she did when she felt nervous, or threatened, scared even.

Claire bit her lip and raked her teeth across it in a slow manner while debating with herself whether she should tell him or not. She wasn't even sure what to do with what had happened herself, but she realized that by confiding in him, she wouldn't have to be alone in this, and she would have gone through the events at least once, just to remind her that it really had happened to her.

''Come on, Claire, you can tell me.''

She finally nodded. ''I know, it's just…'' Her hands went to her hair, wiping strands away from each side of her face simultaneously. ''You can't tell anyone.''

''You mean like I did with your other secret?''

''This is different,'' she firmly told him while looking him in the eyes. ''And you can't tell anyone, no matter how much you want to. Okay?''

''Okay, you're kind of freaking me out here.''

''Just promise.''

Zach sighed and held up both of his hands. ''Fine, I promise. Now, what happened?'' he repeated his earlier question while gesturing towards her.

She took a deep breath to calm herself down, though both of her fists remained balled. She tilted her head and her hair fell right back into their former place, covering her eyes and making it harder for the both of them to look at one another.

''Brody kissed me at the bonfire,'' she began her confession, already losing her nerve when he interrupted her. ''I don't—''

''Just let me get this out, okay?''

Zach nodded, not telling her that the last thing he wanted was to hear about her hookup with Brody Mitchum. The guy was a jerk.

''He kissed me,'' Claire said again, eyeing Zach through her locks to gauge his reaction.

He gave her another encouraging nod, all ears the second time around. He could tell that was what she needed.

''He wanted to talk afterwards, so we went to the bleachers. It was stupid to even go with him,'' Claire chided herself. ''But the thought of not being part of the crowd sounded appealing…'' She took another breath before continuing. ''We didn't talk, at all. He didn't want to talk, he just wanted to—He kissed me again, and I was into it, until he slid his hand up my thigh.'' Claire took a brief pause, averting her eyes from Zach. ''I told him to stop, and he did, but when I wanted to get up he, I don't know, he didn't want to let me go. He kissed me again, and his hands—I shoved him and ran, but before I knew it, I was lying on the ground and he was on top of me.'' Her voice broke and tears spontaneously sprung to her eyes. They remained glazed as she went on. ''He was pinning me down and went to unbuckle his belt. I had stopped screaming because there was no one around. I even looked for you because I know you sometimes go to these things to take pictures for the yearbook…''

Zach gave her a faint and sad smile, the words that followed just above a whisper. ''I didn't think we needed any more pictures of jocks and cheerleaders getting drunk and partying.''

She didn't return the smile, but he hadn't expected her to; instead, she bowed her head, almost as if in shame and defeat.

He took a quick step towards her, gently touching the side of her upper arm with the tips of his fingers. ''Did he—'' He couldn't finish the question, afraid of the answer: she might be invincible, but she was still just a girl.

Claire shook her head. ''No. I fought him off and ran.'' A sob managed to escape through her stubbornly tightened lips.

''Listen, Claire, you have to tell someone about this.''

''I just did.''

''No, I mean, you have to tell your parents, or the school counselor or something.''

She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hands and shook her head. ''No, I can't. No one will believe me anyway. The bruises are already fading.'' She lifted up her skirt just a little, showing him one of the few bruises that were still in the process of fading. It was on her thigh.

''Oh my God,'' Zach uttered, as if the reality of the situation had just hit him. He had always been a very visual person.

''But I'm okay.''

''But you couldn't have been. You could have actually been hurt. Bruises fade and disappear, but if you had been—''

''Stop,'' Claire demanded.

''Brody should be arrested.''

''For what? He didn't do anything. It was just an attempt.''

''Just an attempt?'' Zach looked at her in disbelief. ''Are you listening to yourself? What he did, or tried to do, is serious.''

''But I don't—I mean, it came out of nowhere. He never tried anything like this with me before.'' Claire pulled down her skirt, the bruise she had intended to cover no longer there. ''Maybe I led him on, or maybe I gave out certain signals or something. The clothes I wear can be a little on the—''

''This is not your fault,'' Zach cut her off.

Claire continued to shake her head. ''I shouldn't have gone with him.''

''Claire,'' he said, stopping her rambling by taking her by the arm. ''This is not your fault.'' He met her eyes. ''Okay?''

She nodded. ''I know, but I…'' Tears filled up her eyes again. ''I didn't think this would happen to me, you know?''

Zach nodded. ''Yeah, I know, but you're okay, right?''

Claire nodded again. ''I am.'' Then she began to shake her head. ''No, I'm not. Who am I kidding, Zach? I have to go to school tomorrow and face him, pretend like nothing happened. I don't think I can do that, but I don't think I can tell anyone about it either.''

''Hey, hey,'' Zach began and gently drew her into an intimate hug. ''You're forgetting one major thing.''

''I am?''

Zach nodded. ''Yeah, you're forgetting that I'll be there, too.''

Claire managed a smile through her tears.

That was true.

''Thanks, Zach.''

Please review? (: Yes, despite my busy studying schedule I have been writing, namely stories that center around the pairing of Claire and Zach in Heroes. It's a pairing I've begun to love right after the very first episode that featured these two. I'm aware that they were only friends in the show, and in this story I decided to stick to that, though it hints at more. Anyway, I would really like to know what you thought of this, so please drop me a few lines. Thanks. :)