An: Okay, guys, I am sorry for not updating sooner. I have been reading SO MUCH Fanfiction lately from so many amazing writers, and I've been sucked in neglecting my writing, this is DONE, and I still haven't posted… ANYWAYS just so you have some perspective, it's currently 12:50 am, I still need to shower, and I have to be at work at 9 am… Also, I am typing this before I proof this chapter, so if I make it to bed by two, it will be a real miracle! I want to say thanks to all the writers who are reading this and also writing amazing stories. I recognize your usernames! Thanks!
It was the weekend of Halloween. Noah insisted on dressing up as a pirate. He also wanted to go with Dalton trick-or-treating. His mom worked that day, and Olivia agreed to take them around the apartment complex, and drop Dalton off back at his apartment before going and meeting up with Raphael. The two kids got more candy than she knew what to do with. There buckets full just from their apartment building. Olivia looked through all of their candy, throwing out some homemade items just in case and stealing a treat or two for herself.
When Olivia dropped Dalton off at home, she was worried no one was home. No one was answering the door, but luckily his aunt was right behind her. She had run to get food for dinner.
"I am so sorry the bodega across the street is a madhouse." Dalton's aunt claimed.
"I understand," Oliva claimed.
"You know Dalton can come over anytime Raphael or I am here. I know we're not here every day, but Noah and Dalton seem to be close, and I don't mind watching him if you have things you need to do." Olivia claimed.
"I appreciate that. If he asks, I will come to knock on your door." Dalton's aunt replied.
"Well, Happy Halloween," Olivia claimed.
Olivia and Noah made it to the NYU campus right on time. The whole area was decorated; kids were all over the place. It seemed they had a children's area set up, as well as activities for the students. She was sure it was a deterrent from drinking, but it did seem like a lot of fun. There were so many people dressed up. She had a witch hat on, but that was as far as she was going. It was only after Noah begged her to dress up too.
Olivia and Noah walked into the Law school. There was a line to get in. Apparently, the law school had made a kid-friendly haunted house, and it is decorated top to bottom with all the usual Halloween themes. It wasn't overly scary, but people were popping out of doors. There were college students dressed up like zombies saying, "I have to get this paper done." or "I forgot to study for the test." She was laughing more than being frightened. There were several open rooms giving out cand, and they finally made to the room Raphael was in.
"Daddy!" Noah screamed. Several people looked at him, the little boy.
"Hey, Noah! How was your day?" Raphael asked.
"Dalton and I got so much candy. He was dressed up as a magician." Noah explained.
"That's really cool," Raphael claimed.
"Well, there are a lot of kids who want some candy. You and mommy finish here, and I will be done before you know it, and I will meet you outside for some of the other things, okay." Raphael stated.
"Can't stay and help you?" Noah asked.
"It will be boring after a while mijo, just go with your mom and get more candy. I will see you soon." Raphael stated.
Olivia gave Raphael a peck on the cheek and went on to the next few rooms with Noah. When they were finally done, a student was passing out schedules of events for the rest of the evening.
It was still early evening Raphael would be done by 6pm, and it was currently 5:30. Olivia read through the events. They were split into family-friendly adults only and students only. She had to laugh when one of the events was scary trivia. It was for adults only, and the description stated: Join us for a multiple-choice trivia party, this isn't about horror movies or books, this is about scary, real-world statistics.
She looked at the family-friendly events. It included a historical tour of the university leaving every 30 minutes. An apple cider press with free cider. There were a pumpkin carving and decoration station. They had a few other crafting options. They also had various street vendors, face painting, and usual carnival-like events. The student's lounge also had a bird sanctuary showing off owls and crows. The last event ended at 8pm, and it was kid-friendly ghost story in one of the older buildings.
When Raphael was done, Noah insisted on watching the apple cider being made. Of course,, it was on the opposite side of campus, not a long walk, but it was already getting dark, and once they got there, they thought Noah wouldn't be very interested.
The man making the apple cider was very engaging. There were a few people around but not too many, so Olivia allowed Noah to stand in front to see how the press worked. To Raphael and Olivia's surprise, Noah was very interested in the way everything worked. Noah didn't ask any questions but was very engaged with the man's storytelling, and showing each step of the apple cider process. When his demonstration was over, he had small cups of cider to try and had half gallons for sale. Noah was in awe of the fact that he had watched the cider was drinking be made right in front of him.
Olivia and Raphael had decided a street vendor was the best way for a meal tonight, and Noah looked around, deciding that he wanted tacos. Olivia and Raphael agreed tacos sounded good. They were authentic, not like a lot of the pandering taco truck filling flour tortillas with a little bit of meat and a ton of lettuce and cheese. They had pork beef chicken and fish. They had corn tortillas and a multitude of options for toppings. There was no seating but several high top tables. Olivia sat Noah on the table, having his tacos on his lap. She knew it would messy, but that was the best they could do unless he sat in the dirt. So they ate their tacos and then started walking to the student lounge because Noah wanted to see the birds.
They were halfway to the lounge when Raphael noticed a student of his Mya. The girl was tall with brown hair and brown eyes. She stood out in his intro to law school class, she had good intuition, and when they had debates about law, she wasn't afraid to share her opinion. He thought she was an excellent candidate for law school. There were only about 10 kids in his intro into law that seemed to go the extra mile, and she was one of them.
"Mya enjoying your Halloween?" Raphael asked.
It was then he noticed she had been crying. The tears were not actively falling, but there were streaks down her face. Her nose was bright red, and her eyes were bloodshot.
She quickly put on a fake smile. She diverted the question.
"This must be your family," Mya stated.
'Yes, this is Noah and this Olivia." Raphael claimed.
Mya instantly squatted down to Noah's level.
"It's nice to meet you, Noah, you know your daddy is a good professor."
Noah shook his head. He was usually shy, but for whatever reason, he opened up to her.
"Yeah, mommy is a cop. She finds the bad people. Daddy used to make sure they stay in jail, but now he teaches others so they can make sure the bad people stay in jail." Noah claimed.
Mya put on a real smile.
"Well, it sounds like your mommy and daddy are doing really good," May claimed.
Noah smiled and shook his head.
"Why were you crying, did someone take your candy?" Noah asked.
Mya laughed, but it was a bitter tone.
"No, Noah, something else, but I'll be okay," Mya claimed.
Olivia and Raphael obviously heard the exchange.
"Are you okay, Mya?" Raphael asked.
Mya looked at Raphael. She could see the concern in his eyes, and she broke.
"No," Mya claimed, and she leaned into the man, without knowing what else to do, he wrapped his arms around her.
"Is this okay?" Raphael asked.
Mya shook her head.
"Is there something I can help you with?" Raphael asked.
"I don't know," Mya stated.
"Well if it's school-related I can see what I can do, you said someone took something, did someone steal something Olivia can help you with a police report." Raphael began.
Mya lightly pushed away.
"I don't know," Mya stated again.
"Just tell us what's wrong," Olivia stated.
Mya looked down at Noah and shook her head.
"Oh, okay, um, would you feel more comfortable talking with professor Barba or me?" Olivia asked.
"Just forget about it," Mya said quickly.
Raphael sighed.
"Can I least make sure you get where you're going safely?" Raphael asked.
"I'm in campus housing, I was on my way back my building is right there." Mya pointed.
The building was across the street a couple buildings up.
"Here, if you think I can help you in any way," Olivia stated.
Olivia had a business card on her she always did, and handed it over to Mya.
"Thanks," Mya stated.
"I just really want to get home. If I need something, I'll let one of you know. \
"What was that about?" Olivia asked.
"I have no idea," Raphael stated.
"Maybe she just had to much to drink and was headed home. She's a good student. I can't imagine her having academic issues." Raphael stated.
Olivia just nodded.
The interaction all in all was only about 5 minutes, and even though both adults were a little shaken by the event, they continued to the student lounge.
There were a lot more people here, a lot of students and families alike were currently in the large ballroom. The bird sanctuary had several birds on display. They were all sitting out well trained. They were going bird by bird, showing several owls and talking about how owls became a symbol of Halloween. Then they had a crow and talked about that as well. Although they didn't have bats because bats were not birds, they discussed them as well. Noah once again was engaged in the topic and was excited every time one of the birds would fly around the room. The whole thing lasted an hour, and Olivia and Raphael both agreed they should be headed home, back to her apartment tonight. He was ready to crash, and sometime tomorrow was responsible for taking down all the décor he had to put up and put it into storage.
The three of them were walking back to their car, it was in the direction of the building Mya had stated was hers.
This time Olivia had noticed that Mya was outside of the building, a guy was yelling at her.
Olivia simply pointed in the direction of the noise. It wasn't so loud that many people would notice, but it was well above conversation tone.
"Randy, I told you to leave," Mya stated.
"Listen, Randy, if you don't leave, I'm calling the cops," Mya claimed.
Mya walked back towards the building, but Randy grabbed her by the arm, stopping her dead in her tracks, and she pulled back hard. He couldn't maintain the grip. Mya almost fell.
Raphael was about to storm over to the building, but Olivia stopped him. They continued to watch.
"Fuck, Randy, go away," Mya stated.
She went towards the door again, but this time, Randal wrapped his arms around Mya's waist. She screamed loudly as he picked her up off the ground.
Noah was hiding behind Olivia, and she was dialing 911 frantically.
As Mya began kicking and screaming, Raphael started screaming at the man to stop.
Randal continued for a brief second before dashing off.
"Mya, are you okay?" Raphael asked.
"Yeah. I'm fine."
"Olivia called police," Raphael stated.
Mya sighed.
"I don't really want to talk about it. You scared him off." Mya claimed.
"This time." Raphael retorted.
A university police car stopped by.
"Mam is this man bothering you?" a young police officer asked.
"No, everything is fine," Mya claimed.
"I got a report that a man was trying to kidnap you."
"I'm fine, this man scared him off," Mya stated.
The university cop got out of his car.
"Do you need medical attention?" the officer asked.
"No, I'm fine." Mya insisted.
"Well, a police officer called this in. Usually, a police officer doesn't call 911 unless there is a problem." The officer described.
At this point, Olivia walked over with Noah.
"Mya, why don't you make a police report," Olivia claimed.
Noah was in his mother's arms at this point.
"Mya, are you okay that man was scary," Noah claimed.
"I'm fine, Noah. I just want to go to my room."
"Can you just tell me what happened?" The officer asked, starting to get annoyed.
Noah wasn't crying, but he was shaken up by the event.
Olivia sighed.
"Mya sweetheart, is this the first time something like this has happened with him?" Olivia asked.
Mya nodded, no.
"Okay, I'm NYPD, would it be okay if I took her statement?" Olivia asked.
"Look this university jurisdiction." the police officer stated.
"I know that, but I've been with SVU for 20 years, let me just talk to her," Olivia claimed.
The police officer nodded his head.
"Is there somewhere private we can go talk, this gentleman needs to sit in on it too," Olivia stated, pointing to the university cop.
Mya shook her head no.
"You can use my office, but I have to be present," Raphael stated.
"That sounds okay," Mya stated.
Olivia called Lucy, who happened to be close by.
Raphael was walking Mya and the university police officer to his office.
"Lucy, I am so sorry, but this is am emergency, Raphael and I witnessed a crime to one of his students this evening. Noah too, and it's going to take a while." Olivia explained.
"Yeah Liv, James and I are out, I have to admit we've had a few drinks, but I promise I'm not drunk," Lucy claimed.
"Just meet me in front of the law school," Olivia stated
Lucy and James came walking across the street.
"Take him where ever you want, I don't know how long we'll be just let me know where you are," Olivia claimed
"Actually James doesn't live too far away from here, is it okay if we take him to James apartment?" Lucy asked.
"I get to see James's apartment?" Noah asked.
"Yeah, sweet boy." Olivia smiled.
"I will text you the address, and you let me know when you're done. Don't worry about how long it takes." Lucy stated.
Olivia walked into Raphael's office.
The police officer had gotten basic demographics of her name birthday address, where she was from. Randy's full name age and where he lived in the city.
Raphael had sequestered himself away in the far corner of the room, the police officer was in one of the chairs along the sidewall. Olivia was sitting in Raphael's chair, and Mya was directly across from her in a chair the opposite side of the desk.
"Okay, Mya, I just want you to be honest, okay," Olivia stated.
Mya shook her head.
"How do you know the man from earlier tonight," Olivia asked.
"We have a mutual friend," Mya stated.
"How long have you known him?" Olivia asked.
"About 1.5 years," Mya claimed.
"How did you meet him?" Olivia asked.
"I had a friend here at NYU, who was a year older than me. When I told her I was thinking about coming here, she let me stay the weekend with her." Mya explained.
"Okay, and that's when you met Randal," Olivia asked.
"Yeah, they are both theater majors, and I went with her to rehearsal," Mya explained.
"So, are you in a relationship with him?" Olivia asked.
"Not exactly," Mya claimed.
"What do you mean by that, Mya?" Olivia asked.
"He asked me outright after he met me, I was 16 at the time, and I told him that. I'm from upstate, he didn't seem to care." Mya stated.
"What do you mean he didn't seem to care," Olivia asked.
"He said it didn't matter that I was beautiful, and if I was coming to NYU, he knew I must be smart."
"I was flattered, but I was a senior in high school, and I knew it wouldn't work out," Mya explained.
"So you graduated high school, you're 17?" Olivia asked.
"No I am 18, we met a week before my birthday so it must have been September 25th, I just turned 18 at the beginning of the month," Mya claimed.
"Okay, so you come to school, and what happened?" Olivia asked.
"To be honest, I forgot about it. I didn't think I'd ever see him again. My friend Maddie said he was sort of creep. She told me not to worry about him. Here I am taking political science as a major with a minor in pycology. I thought I had a pretty low chance of seeing him around, it's a big city." Mya mentioned.
"Do you think he stalked you?" Olivia asked.
"No, he ended up having a math class with me. That first class, he asked me out again." Mya stated.
"I told him no, he seemed to accept it and asked if we could at least be friends. I was hesitant but agreed, and at first, nothing happened." Mya stated.
"What changed?" Olivia asked.
"He would sit next to me in class, we would study together, with a few other kids, I thought everything was fine, but then when we had midterms things changed. He said he was afraid he was going to fail, and since I was so good at math, he asked me to help him out. I agreed, and we meet either at his apartment or mine, he never made me feel uncomfortable until the night before the exam. He begged me to help. He was having a meltdown crying, begging me to go over everything one more time." Mya stated.
My stopped and tears were streaking down her face.
"I showed him all the steps, and he was doing it all right, and at first I just thought he was really excited that he was finally grasping the concept the day before the test, and he kissed me. He immediately apologized, and although I was uncomfortable, I thought it was just excitement. So I let it go." Mya stated.
The next night there was a party after the midterms. I had a few drinks. One of the math students hosted the party, and Randy was there. He smiled at me and thanked me for helping him, and then he started kissing me again. I told him to stop, but he told me I was making a scene. I told him I didn't care that he needed to stop, and I pushed him away. A bunch of people noticed, and he stormed out. He texted me, telling me he was sorry and wanted to meet me at Starbucks for an apology. I agreed to go." Mya explained.
"He told me he was sorry about the night before that he was drunk and he didn't mean to do those things and hoped we could still be friends, I told him this was his last chance," Mya stated.
"Then what leads to tonight?" Olivia asked.
"I was with our mutual friend Danielle, I didn't know she was taking me to a party with all the theater majors, and he showed up. I told Danielle I needed to go, and I didn't feel comfortable with Randal being at the party. She rolled her eyes and said to me that I was dramatic, and I needed to switch majors. He wasn't drunk when he came around me, he told me he liked my outfit, he talked about his classes, he wasn't really flirting. I thought that it would be okay. I was only there for about an hour, and it just seems like his whole personality changed. Danielle had asked me if I wanted something to drink, but I didn't want to be drunk around him. He got mad because I wasn't drinking and said I didn't trust him.
I told him I just didn't want to drink, and all of a sudden, he had me pinned against the wall. He said that I was trying to find an excuse not to want him. He kissed me hard, and pushed his hands up my shirt, I went to leave, and I ducked under him, but he pushed my head forward into his crotch and moaned out like I was giving him oral."
Mya stopped with the storytelling and began sobbing.
Olivia looked around desperate for tissues, Raphael hadn't needed them in his office but knew there was some in his desk drawer. Olivia looked over at him, and he pointed, she found the box opened it up and handed her the box.
"Take your time," Olivia stated.
Mya sat there for 15 minutes before she continued the story.
"People started to look when he moaned out. I tried to break free, but his legs were pinning me. I stood back up and kneed him the groin, it got him to move off of me, and I went for the door, he grabbed my wrist and said don't be shy. I pulled away from him Danielle saw and told him to get away, and walked me back to the corner of my building she lives over in Greenlawn apartments, so she walked in the right as you and professor Barba saw me."
"Mya, do you know the address of the apartment you were at?" Olivia asked.
"No," Mya stated
"Is it on campus?" Olivia asked.
"No, it's over towards the village," Mya stated.
"Okay." Olivia looked back at Raphael and smiled, the sexual assault was in her jurisdiction, the attempted kidnap she might be able to argue.
"So, what happened between the times we saw each other?" Olivia asked.
"Well, in the apartments, they have security, but everyone knows Randal because he has been there regularly. They wouldn't have thought anything about him being in the building. He knocked on my apartment door, I was in the bathroom my roommate Jessica had no idea, and I didn't want her too. She let him in while I was in the bathroom. I told him to get out, and he said he was just there to apologize and asked me to go back to the party. He was screaming at me, to the point he was scaring Jessica, and she called security. They escorted him out, but our doors are wide open until 9pm, and I was making sure he didn't just walk right back in. Once outside, I told him that I never wanted to see him again and that we no longer friends. He told me that he couldn't live without me, and he was just trying to repay the favor. He kept begging me to go to the party. I told him to leave, and before you got there, he was already trying to pull me out towards the street to follow him, that's when you guys came." Mya stated.
"Do you think he was drunk?" Olivia asked.
"No, I never saw him with a drink, it was just like a flip of a switch," Mya explained.
"Are you willing to press charges?" Olivia asked.
" I don't know I mean he's a senior, and couldn't he get kicked out of class?" Mya asked.
Before Olivia could answer, the university police officer had something to say.
"If you allege he tried to kidnap you, yes, he could very well be expelled, but come on. Obviously, he just wanted you to go to the party." He stated.
"Wait a minute, I saw what happened, He physically picked her up like he was trying to take her."
"She yelled and kicked and got away." The officer stated, "I will file a report. We'll get back in touch if we have any questions." The university officer said, before walking out without even a goodbye.
Mya just wept in the chair.
"He's going to get away with it," Mya stated.
"No, you weren't on campus when he sexually assaulted, you and that's what he did Mya. If you want to, you can press charges for sexual assault, and I can see what the DA has to say about the rest of the night." Olivia stated.
"How could I be so stupid, the university is just going to sweep it under the rug," Mya claimed.
"They might try, but like I said, they have no jurisdiction over what happened at the party. The argument can be made you were on public property, not campus property, with what happened earlier.
"Do you feel safe going back to your apartment?" Olivia asked.
Mya nodded her, yes.
"Do you want to press charges?" Olivia asked.
Mya nodded her head again.
"I need his address," Olivia claimed
Mya gave her the information.
Raphael had heard the whole story, he tried to stay out of her line of sight, but Mya knew he was there.
"Professor, this isn't going to change anything in class, is it?" Mya asked.
"Why would it?" Raphael asked.
"I don't know I mean if Olivia takes this, you were a witness, and can't this hurt your career?" Mya asked.
"I guess technically I could be threatened, but I don't have tenure. They can fire me for any reason, really. I am a lawyer though Mya, if that was the cause I could sue them, it would be difficult to prove I have friends in high places in the city. You shouldn't worry about anything. If you need anything, you know my office hours. I will be here." Raphael stated.
"Thank you," Mya stated.
Olivia gave Mya yet another card wrote her cell phone number on it. She also begged her to come into the precinct so she can provide her contact information for counseling, and explained to her she will have to go over everything with the DA.
"Do you want me to walk you home?" Olivia asked.
Mya sighed.
"We're going that way anyway we're parked on the next block," Raphael stated.
Mya shook her head, Raphael turned off his office lights and locked the door. Olivia and Raphael stayed a few steps behind the girl and watched from across the street and watched as she swiped her ID to get into her apartment.
Raphael sighed.
"That's a first of many, most I will never hear about," Raphael stated.
"I'm sorry, Rafa," Olivia stated.
"Just glad you're here," Raphael stated.
"I wonder how many students have a similar story, that they will never tell," Raphael stated.
"Statistically 1 in 3 girls 1 in 5 boys," Olivia claimed.
"I know, but when you put faces and names to numbers, it makes me sick," Raphael stated has stomach churned.
"Just let your classes know you're a safe space, Rafa," Olivia stated.
Olivia and Rapahel walked to the car together, picking up Noah from James. Both were mentally exhausted from the day's events and had to reassure Noah for a long time that night that no one would try to take him away. By the time Olivia and Raphael got to bed, they instantly fell asleep.
A/N: For this chapter and the next, I am going to make university police out in a bad light. I know that it's not the case for every university or police officer. In my job, I work closely with the police. It can go either way, no matter what level of law enforcement. I know where I went to college we were flat out told by professors, RA's and TA's and many other staff that university police were useless because they were pressured into not pressing charges. After all, it makes the campus look bad. Most college students got in trouble in town when they were out drinking at the bars, and local law enforcement arrested them. I worked security for a campus dorm for 3 years. In all that time, I only dealt with police a handful of times, 1 time a kid was given a fine for marijuana possession. Another time they brought a kid home drunk. They made his roommate sign for him (basically asking 1-18 year old to be in responsible for another 18 years old until the one sobered up.) I can't remember the details of the rest.