You Got It Wrong - Part Twenty Nine

Chapter Twenty Nine

There was nothing Nina could do, but lie rigid on her bed for what seemed like ages. She tried to read her book, the latest Dan Brown, but his rather elaborate and often farfetched mystery couldn’t drag her away from the reality that was her life. She’d had such an up and down day, from being abandoned in bed that morning, to being shouted down by her best friend.

Eventually her anger at what had happened subsided, it had to. It wasn’t gone, but in her mind was replaced by memories of the previous evening...and morning, before it all went wrong. Theo. She’d never relaxed in a man’s company like she had with Theo, it had been amazing. She couldn’t believe the things he’d done...that she’d let him do, and then what she’d done to him. After being burnt as a teenager, she’d been more than frugal with her male companions. And in over ten years she’d never let go like she had the previous night, and she’d never wanted to. She blushed, then stretched, savouring the tingles and the aches all over her body. The body of a siren, a sexy goddess, that’s what Theo had made her feel. Special.

But Lilah once again invaded her thoughts, the woman who’d been so derogatory to her earlier had been more than a friend for SO many years, she was a sister. And she was never anything more than supportive of her. Yep. Nina sat bolt upright, that wasn’t Lilah that she’d encountered downstairs, her caring, understanding bestest friend wasn’t the woman who’d talked down to her. Lilah hadn’t seen Daniel the night before, Nina knew that for a fact, and maybe she’d be disappointed at that, but she’d never been vindictive, Lilah wouldn’t hold that against her best friend. That wasn’t Lilah. And the one thing she knew better and in more detail than herself was Lilah.

She had to find her. Moving forward, trying to haul herself to her feet, head back downstairs she froze when her phone started to ring. Glancing at the screen, she gasped, her heart flew to her mouth and she collapsed onto her back. Only four letters could do that.

                “Theo?” her voice was a croak of emotion.

His was like a warm kiss, “hey Nina. Thanks for earlier. I really can’t thank you enough.”

                “No problems, she’s a pleasure. A credit to you...how’s Mansell?” There was a stilted awkwardness between them that she hated, but couldn’t change.

                “Argh...the concern is STILL all for him then?”

She giggled, “he came first, I knew him before I knew you existed.”

He groaned loudly, “do you have any idea what you’re saying?” When she giggled at the innuendo, he added, “and you’ve been lying on your bed all day thinking of him have you?”

It was her turn to gasp; she was just relieved that he couldn’t see her blush.

                “I guessed right? WOW!” His comment was far too cocky, but Nina was suddenly embarrassed, she had to salvage things.

                “NO!” she exclaimed rather too quickly, “I’ve just had a hard afternoon. Remembering last night...and this morning has made the afternoon go quicker.” That made her blush again. Her foot was finding her mouth FAR too many times.  

He exhaled a long, slow sound, “I cannot tell you what that makes me think...you are...ARGH!”

She giggled again, wishing she was a little more frugal with the truth, she shouldn’t wear her heart on her sleeve, but she was so un-savvy when it came to relationships, she couldn’t play those games.

Finally he managed to muster, “I want to see you, as soon as possible...but Melody.”

                “I told you, I understand.” She WANTED to understand a lot more than she did, but really she wanted to see him, kiss him, touch him. She blushed again, what was going on with her?

There was a pause before he said, “I know you do. I just wish I could sort things, but I have to protect her. I have to keep her separate to us.” She loved the sound of ‘us’, and couldn’t fight the inane grin. “I’m in a meeting til about two on Wednesday, I collect Melody at four. A late lunch?”

It wasn’t much, but it was more than she could have had without him being awkward, “sounds amazing I’ll come into town, text me when you’re free.”

Once again Theo sighed, “you are so...perfect. Thank you Nina.”

As the line went dead, she blushed again, but there was no one to see it, or to hear her rapid breathing and speeding heart. But it had been a long time since someone had called her perfect for no reason. And a long time since she’d felt boneless, lying in a mush on her bed.

When she was on the phone she’d heard footsteps on the stairs and the bathroom door locking. Since she’d hung up it still hadn’t opened.  So Nina hauled herself back to her feet and set off in search of Lilah.

Tapping on the bathroom door, she called out, “Lilah, you still in there?”

                “Go away,” she snapped through the closed door.

The two words started in an attempted snarl, but ended as a sob, and suddenly Nina was worried, “what’s up babe? You sound...”

                “Nothing. Just leave me alone.”

Nina lowered herself onto the floor, and tried to peep through the keyhole, but she saw nothing, “I can’t do that. Let me in. Please.”

There was no reply to that, and Nina thought she would honestly walk away, until she heard what sounded like a stifled painful cry. Uncaring of the possibility of hurting herself, or even damaging the house, Nina stood and shouldered the door three times until it flew open, then she almost cried out herself. Lilah was stood naked in the bath, a scourer in one hand, and a bottle of bleach in the other, her stomach and legs looked red raw, and tears ran down her face in rivers. As she looked at Nina and met her eyes, she slumped to the floor of the bath.

                “Shit!” Nina wasn’t sure what happened next, but within seconds she had removed the bleach and the cloth from her hand, and was flushing her friends skin with a cool shower on full blast. “What have you done darling?”

She reached for Lilah’s face, lifting her chin and begged her to open her eyes, instead silent tears slipped through her tightly closed eyelids. Nina imagined she’d have to keep the water running for at least half an hour, but she wasn’t sure that Lilah would manage that long, she was pale, and very unsteady. Nina pulled her close, and Lilah’s head slumped onto her shoulder, and the hand not holding the showerhead, wrapped tightly around her. All the time Nina was murmuring encouraging words, exactly what she said she had no idea, but she just kept talking.

When her friend started to shiver, Nina finally helped her out of the bath and across the hall to her bedroom; Lilah’s was too far away. Dry and reclined on the pillows, Nina placed cold damp clothes over her stomach and thighs, and then helped her into a t-shirt.

                “I need to call a doctor darling.”

Lilah reached out and grasped her wrist, “no. Please.”

                “You’re burned,” Nina was petrified, her lower abdomen and thighs were now sporting some blisters, she was no medic, and she worried about dressing them, infection. She looked at Lilah’s face, but her friend had turned towards the window, reluctant to even look at Nina.

“Tell me what happened please?” Nina knew that she was crying too, she couldn’t stop, she had no idea why her friend was hurting herself, why she was switching off to everything, but she knew it was something serious, that life would never be the same again...that Lilah would never be the same again.  She didn’t remember starting to cry but her face was wet with tears and she wasn’t surprised to find them coursing down her cheeks, she’d never been so scared. Lilah still faced away from her, so Nina climbed onto the bed next to her and held her in her arms until she was quiet, presumably asleep.

It gave Nina chance to check her skin. There were small patches on mainly her right thigh and right hip that were blistering, the rest looked better, red, sore, discoloured, but intact. So she headed back to the bathroom for dry dressings and pain killers. When she was happy that she’d covered the most sore parts, she helped the now stirring Lilah in to some tight pyjama bottoms to help secure the dressings, then pulled the duvet over them both.

Lilah’s head was on her shoulder and she was stroking her friend’s hair when she spoke next.

                “What happened? You were happy going out last night.”

Lilah gave a gentle head shake of refusal and in incensed Nina, “you were trying to burn yourself Lilah, you can’t tell me it was nothing, TELL ME what happened, or I’ll call the doctor, and a mental health nurse, and the police if I have to. You are too important for me to pretend this has happened. I LOVE you; tell me what is tormenting you, please?”

For ages Lilah’s eyes were held tightly closed, refusal to even be part of the moment only frustrated Nina further, but then she turned in her direction, opened her eyes for the briefest second, then spoke in a quiet, restrained voice, “I thought I was going to see Daniel.”

Nina stroked her hair, hating that Daniel’s absence had contributed to her friend’s pain, and wondering what the hell had happened at that dinner to make her like this, she was emotionally fragile, Nina knew that, had seen it in the past, but this was something else, something more. “He was babysitting for Theo,” she offered.

She nodded as she swallowed a sob, “I like him, he was the only reason I went, ‘look what you could have won’ type thing, you know?” She stifled a sob, “but he wasn’t there...and Mark...the date...he wasn’t happy...”

Again she broke down into sobs, and Nina stroked her hair patiently, yet nervously, dreading the next words that her friend was going to say, “I was going to stay at Amelia’s...but he followed me out of the taxi, so I reluctantly gave him coffee. When I tried to get rid of him...he told me I was a tease...”

Nina felt sick, bile had risen to the back of her throat, and her fists had gripped into fists, “you’re not that baby, don’t EVER think that. What did he do?”

Through more hysterical tears, Nina could barely make out a word, it was all gasps, random words uttered through sobs and cries, it was all incoherent...except for a few words, a few devastating, earth-shattering words,  “...angry...force...rape...”