"Emily."

My name, how does he know my name?

"Happy birthday. I wish that I could give you a present. Trust me Emily, you'd really like it."

As I splashed the cool water over my face, my heart began to beat faster and faster by the second. Is this what a panic attack feels like? I tried to control my breathing by counting to twenty and hoped that I wouldn't break down in the women's bathroom. Not here. Please God. Anyplace else than here.

Why did I have to forget to take off my name tag? Forcing myself to calm down, I tried to focus on my breathing, but the more I thought what just about happened, the more erratic my breathing became. The faster my breathing became, the scarier my thoughts became.

What if Will never walked in? What if the guard wasn't there? Why did this have to happen to me?! I can't do this. I can't. I need to go home or somewhere else other than this hospital. I need to get out of here!

A loud knock broke my stream of thoughts that were threatening to spill over as tears.

"Just as a warning, I'm coming in. What were you thinking of going in there alone?"

I turned around suddenly and Will's angry expression turned into a concerned one.

"Emily, are you okay? What's wrong? Tell me."

I tried to control my breathing. "I'm fine Will, I promise. I just need a minute."

"Em, you're hyperventilating. Something is wrong: tell me please," Will pleaded as I began to pace back and forth.

Gasping for air, I managed to breathe out the words, "Just leave, please. I'll be fine."

As Will locked the bathroom door, he crossed over the area of the bathroom and pulled me into a tight embrace.

"I'll stay here as long as you need me to, but you need to tell me what's wrong. I'm your friend; I'm going to make sure that no one hurts you. You're safe here. Just relax, take a deep breath, and tell me what's wrong," Will said soothingly as he sat down and started to rub my back in gentle circles.

"I was raped during my sophomore year in college." I said in a rush. "I stayed late at the library one night and walked across campus on my own. I was careful; I had pepper spray, and had 911 on speed dial. I didn't see it coming. One minute I was walking, the next thing I knew, the back of my head hit the concrete and my skirt was being ripped apart. He said that if I told anyone that he would kill me and then punched me so hard that I passed out."

"The campus police found me and took me to the hospital to get a rape kit. After that, I got counseling and seemed to move on. This case impacts me more than you know. Even though he's handcuffed, what he said brought back those terrifying memories."

"Emily, why didn't you tell me?" Will said while trying to keep him composure.

"It's simple; I didn't want anyone to know."

As Will continued to calm me down, he whispered against my cheek, "Does anybody else know?"

"No one else, just you, me, and my parents."

As our pagers went off at the same time, I stood up and put my lab coat on. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and rinsed my face off with cold water to hide that I had been crying.

As we both left the women's restroom, Will stopped me for a moment.

"Emily, I meant what I said. I'm your friend, and as long as we're friends, I'm going to make sure that no one ever hurts you like that again, okay?"

Before emerging through the throng of people in the hallway, he pulled me aside and hugged me firmly and kissed my temple.

As we parted our separate ways, Will looked at me without missing a beat and stared at my face with a concerned expression.

"I'll see you later at the party. Let me know if you need anything."