"There was a priest who taught at my boarding school. You know him, he's been in the media just recently."

"The one whose being investigated," I replied. "I didn't know he taught you."

"He did more than that." Simone said and my heart stopped. "He was only there a few months," she continued on. "But a lot of us got hurt."

"Every time his name comes up in the news or on my news feed this wave of memories comes over me. And I can shut down my computer or turn off the radio but its always too late, the images are right there."

I cut her off with a strong hug. "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked her, holding her close to my chest partly to nurse the new break in my own heart.

"I didn't want to hurt you and everything you stood for." she replied.

"Simone," I whisper.

Then she began to cry. It was quiet at first but it slowly got louder. Digging back in my own memory, the last time Simone cried like this was when I told her I was entering seminary. Paige looked up at me from across the park with alarm in her eye.

"Okay Simone," I whisper, patting her back. "Let's go get you in bed."

I feel her nod into my chest. I lift her up into my arms and nod for Paige to get the doors. Soon I have Simone laying down in my bed at the rectory. I pull the covers up and tuck her in gently before sitting next to her on the bed, one arm resting on her side. A small touch, but I want her to know she's with me; so she can stay grounded in reality.

"Jack," Paige whispers from the door and gestures for me to come out. I look down at Simone who nods.

"I'll be right back, okay? Just relax." I give her a kiss on her forehead before meeting Paige in the hall.

"She ok?" Paige asks.

I nod. "I'm gonna stay close by for the night and then we'll take game plans in the morning."

Paige nods. "And you? How are you doing?"

"I'm fine." I say, my voice breaking. I sigh. "I just can't believe she didn't tell me."

"She didn't want you to know. There was nothing you could've done."

"She's just been hurting in silence for all this time. And I had no clue."

"Jack," Paige says grabbing my arm. "The last thing you should be doing right now is blaming yourself. It won't help you and it won't help Simone."

I sigh. "I know. Thank you Paige. For everything."

She smiles, squeezing my arm. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye."

I quickly turn my attention back to Simone who is staring straight ahead at the cross on my wall.

"Simone?" I ask but she continues to stare straight ahead. I sit back down on the bed and shake her shoulder a little bit. Her eyes come back up to meet mine.

"Where were you just now, huh?" I ask giving her shoulder another squeeze.

She closes her eyes and shakes her head before sitting up. "I should go. Jack the last thing you need is me and my problems."

"Simone." I insist strongly, holding on to her shoulders. "Look at me. I'm not letting you go anywhere right now, okay? I want to help you. How many times do I need to tell you that? I'm here for you, okay? Don't push me out."

When I finish, I notice there are more tears leaking from her eyes and her bottom lip is quivering. "If you keep pushing people away when these feelings come up, its never going to get better. Let me in, Simone."

"It just hurts so much." She whispers and she coils in, drawing her knees to her chest. Before she locks her arms around her knees, I draw her into my chest and allow her to latch on to me instead. "Its okay, Simone. You're in a safe place. You're safe with me. No one is going to hurt you here."

And finally, Simone falls apart. Her body shakes as she sobs into my shoulder. I can feel the years of held in pain wash out as she cries. I just hold tight to her and allow myself to be her rock of support.

After a short time, the sobs quiet to whimpers and the shakes to small shivers. I leave my arms around her and wait for her to make the next move. She's in charge.

"I don't think I've ever allowed myself to cry like that about all this before." she whispers.

"Its good you did. You need to in order to heal."

"I'm guessing this is the start to a long road ahead."

"Yes, but look at me." I say, drawing her chin up so her eyes meet mine. "You won't be alone. There are people here in Erinsborough you can talk to for counseling and you'll have my support as well."

"What if I want to go back to Queensland?"

"Where it all happened?"

"Yeah." Simone says, sitting up. "Maybe I can call my mom and explain everything to her and go to counseling there."

"This is your recovery journey, you're in charge."

"I think that's what I want to do."

"Okay, we can call your mom tomorrow morning."

"For now though, I just want to sit here for a little while longer."

"Of course. Take however long you need."

So Simone and I just sit in the quiet for a few moments longer, our breathing falling into a relaxing, steady pattern.

"Simone," I begin, breaking the silence. "I want you to know that you are incredibly strong and brave. Many people go through their whole lives never facing their problems, and you're going to tackle them head on. I commend you for that."

"I couldn't do it without you, Jack."

I smile. "Why don't you get some rest, yeah? You can stay here - I'll sleep on the couch in the office."

Simone smiles once more as I help her settle back under the covers. "If you need anything, just give a shout, okay?"

She nods. I lean down and give her a tender kiss on the forehead. "Goodnight Simone."

"Goodnight Jack."

I stand up and shut the light, shutting the door a little before heading down the hall to my office. I kneel down against the edge of my couch to begin my night prayers, thinking of Simone and also thinking of Paige; thinking about all of my experiences since arriving here in Erinsborough and thinking where God has lead me through this all. And I hope, at the end of the day, I'm doing Him proud.