Belle crawled through Flynn's window; she had done it many times since they were kids, but tonight was different. Instead of hiding like she usually did, she came to him. He had known about Gaston, her boyfriend, hurting her for years, but she always tried to hide it. He believed that this was a good first step, telling someone. He could now help her, and she could start to heal.
"Flynn," He braced himself for the words he already knew were coming, "I'm in trouble."
"I know."
Her eyes brimmed with tears and her bottom lip quivered, "He hit me…" By the look of her, he hit her more than once. "He got so mad… I-I didn't know what to do" Flynn wrapped his arms around her, making her tears spill over, "That's not the worst part." She was crying, but trying to keep herself calm and tell the entire story. "I said 'no', but I didn't think he would get that angry; he was yelling and calling me names. I said I was sorry, but he just got angrier and he started hitting me and hitting me-"
"Wait… What?" Flynn said, "Slow down. Take a deep breath." She closed her eyes and breathed. When she opened her eyes she looked almost tranquil, which scared him. "Now what did you say 'no' to?" He thought he knew the answer, but prayed he was wrong. He was still holding her; his shirt was damp with her tears. He positioned himself so he could look into her eyes.
"He wanted… He… wanted… to have sex." Her tears had stopped. She looked nervous and ashamed. Those words, though expected, jolted through him. He wasn't in love with her, but none the less it hurt. She was practically his little sister. He looked at her as she continued, "He was nice and kind afterward," She almost smiled as she told him of Gaston's caresses and gentleness after he beat her and, essentially, raped her.