A/N: Don't worry, I realize I thoroughly confused anyone that read that
last chapter. You all probably thought you knew where it was going with
Kate's behavior and then, something happened and POW! you're lost again.
I'll say this though, most likely, you were right with what you were
thinking. Just a little off at the same time. Or maybe, you weren't
thinking it at all. I don't really know, because I don't have the power to
read anyone's mind, especially over the Internet. And I'm just going to
make myself believe that the majority of you were just oh so confused that
you didn't know what to say in a review. And that's why you didn't. Thanks
to the two people who did.
I've realized that everyone I'm writing for is so cynical and sarcastic about everything. Because that is how I am. It worked for Miranda, because that's how I see her, but I'd like to know what you think. Do you think Kate is being too snappish? Or do you like how she's acting and feel it fits her situation?
Reviews:
--- : Yes, it is confusing. That is my master plan, to confuse everyone. It'll all come together in this chapter, though.
Care*Bear 1017: Well, if you think it's...
Chapter 3: Monday and Tuesday
^Monday^
~Kate~
"Kate? Are you sick?" Parker had followed me into the bathroom.
"Parker, just go away." I didn't hear any movement and the one minute bell had rung. "Parker, just go to class."
"If I didn't have History first, I would so still be here. But, this isn't over Kate. There's something you're hiding, and I'll find out what it is. One way or another."
I heard Parker's feet shuffle towards the door and she left. I stayed in the bathroom all of first hour. I was only at school today because I had two tests that I couldn't miss.
I ended up being able to avoid Parker the rest of the day. She was probably off doing whatever it is she has been up to lately or trying to find out what happened. Which will never happen.
^Tuesday^
I really had wanted to stay home today, and my mom almost let me, but I can't let this get to me like that. I can't show anyone that it affected me the way that it has. Even though only the hospital, my family, and one person that I'd prefer NOT to think about knows what happened. I wasn't going to crumble. I'm Kate Saunders, I don't falter.
I had managed to get through all of my morning classes as easily as possible. And now, it was lunch. I decided to just sit outside by a tree. I really didn't want much company, but I was going to get it either way.
"Ready to talk, yet?" Parker just wouldn't give this up, would she?
"There's nothing to talk about."
"Kate, people just don't throw up for no reason. There's something going on, and you're the only that knows anything. Trust me, I've been busting my butt trying to find something, but there's nothing. So, it's all up to you...."
"I'd rather not. Thanks though." I said as irritated as I could get. Which wasn't too hard to try considering she was pummeling me wanting answers.
"Fine. But, just so you know, I'm here and so is everyone else. We want to help you, Kate. Whatever it is, whatever happened, it's best if you just talk about it and get it off your chest."
If she only knew how much I wanted to do that.
"Do you want a tissue?" Parker was really confusing me, but then I felt it. Or rather, them. I was crying.
Great, now she's not going to be leaving anytime soon.
"Parker, I know you're my friend and you just want to help, but I don't think I can say any of it again."
"Can you try?" She looked really concerned.
I looked around, making sure that no one, absolutely no one, was anywhere in ear shot. Coast was clear. Or, so I thought.
I took a deep breath and wiped the tears. "Okay." I whispered.
Parker looked like a little kid in a candy store. She was just so excited that I had finally decided to tell someone. I'd rather not see that expression leave her face in thirty seconds when I say the first sentence of the story.
"It was Saturday morning, the day after the Joey's party and I woke up with this horrible headache. It was like a hangover times ten. And I looked around and realized I had no idea where I was, or how I got there. I figured out by the room, that it was the poolhouse. And I went to get up off of the bed, but I realized that I was in excruciating pain. I could hardly move my legs without feeling the sharp pain."
I had started to cry again and Parker had definitely lost that original expression. I'd say this one was more of a 'I've just seen a ghost and lost all the color in my face.' I think she knew partly what was coming.
"The cover I had on me, fell as I sat up, and I was not in the clothes I was originally wearing to Joey's. I didn't even see them anywhere in the room from where I was. I didn't know what was going on and I didn't know what had happened. A million questions were running through my mind and I was just trying to figure out anything. The only thing I knew, was that I could not stay where I was. No matter what pain I was in, I had to get out. I gathered up all the strength I was capable of and got out of the bed, looking for some semblance of my clothes. I found my shirt first, at the foot of the bed, and I as I stood up, I saw it." I felt like throwing up again, the images were playing back in my mind like they had been in my nightmares. "Parker, I, I don't think we should continue."
It took a minute for my last words to hit Parker, she sat there with her mouth open until they did. "But, Kate, I mean, I know it's hard to get everything out, but it helps when you talk."
"I know it does. But, I don't think I can tell any of my friends just yet. I don't think you'd be able to take all of it. I can't."
"That's not it. Well, not all of it. You just haven't started coping with whatever happened to you." Congratulations, Parker, you've just won an all expense paid trip to Hawaii!
"True." I really do need to start that coping thing everyone's been talking about. No time like the present, huh? "I'm going to start coping. We'll continue."
"What did you see?" Parker was back to that intense fear look. Her voice was barely audible.
"Blood. This spot on the bedsheets. I sat there for like five minutes just staring at it. I don't know what I had expected from it, maybe I wanted it to tell me everything, tell me everything that had happened. I pieced some things together, you know, sex education does teach you some stuff that you need, and my best guess was that I had been...." Could I really say it again? The first time, I almost fainted. "....raped."
"By who?"
I ignored the question. "Once my mind came back to the room, I did the only thing I could think of. I found the rest of my clothes, took the bedsheet because I didn't want anyone finding it and miraculously got into my car and drove to the nearest hospital without anyone noticing. I didn't want to go to a hospital, but I didn't know anything about the previous night and I needed answers. I needed to know. I pulled into the ER and went up to the desk."
[Flashback - Saturday Morning - Hospital]
"How may I help you?" The woman at the desk asked me. I didn't answer. "Miss?"
I finally found some words. The only ones I could muster. "I think I've been raped."
The woman, an older woman with reading glasses on, looked surprised to say the least. "Well, alright then." She turned around for a moment. "Ah, Sharon, will you please get this young lady some robes and put her in room 4?"
"Yes." Sharon left and I waited.
"Fill out these forms while everything gets ready." She pushed a clipboard with papers attached to it. I took them and started writing down everything I could. I didn't know much about my health insurance, so I just left all of it blank. My mother could fill it in after she gets here. "Miss, can you give me a number of a family member that I can call to come down?" The lady read my mind.
I wrote down my mom's name and my phone number just as Sharon returned with everything.
"Follow me." She took me into room 4 and I laid down on the bed. It was uncomfortable, but I knew I needed to fall asleep. I was almost there, but a doctor came in.
"Hello," She flipped her pile of sheets, "Kate. How are we today?" Obviously these doctors aren't filled in ahead of time. I didn't answer. "Right. That probably wasn't the best question." Or maybe they were. "Alright, then. How about you tell me what happened?"
"I don't remember." This alarmed the doctor for a moment, then she scribbled on one of the sheets.
"I see. So, what makes you think you were raped?"
"Well, I woke up and I didn't remember anything. I didn't know where I was or how I got there. And my legs were really sore and I have some bruises. I had no idea what to think, but then, after I got off the bed, I found blood on the sheets. I know from school and everything, that girls bleed a little when they lose their virginity. I'm a virgin. Or, I was." Great, I lost my virginity to some random guy.
"I'm not going to lie to you, there is a very good chance that you were raped. We're going to do a few short painless tests to see...what's in your system" She wasn't used to working with rape victims. She seemed really young, probably right out of Medical School.
"I don't drink. And I don't do drugs."
"And I'm not saying you do. It's just that, you might have been given something with a drug in it. You not remembering events from the previous night and all, there's a possibility."
"You mean, some guy slipped me a Rufie?" No way.
"Well, it could be rohypnol, or another version of the same drug."
"But, nobody touched my drink. I had it with me the whole time I was drinking it." I had even gotten it myself. How could this have happened? It's just not possible.
"Your eyes can't be watching your drink the whole night. Sometimes, even the girls who play it safe, get the unlucky hand."
[End Flashback]
"Kate, sweetheart, I'm so so so so sorry. We should have been paying more attention to you." Parker and I were hugging.
"It's not your fault Parker. It was going to happen to someone at that party. It just happened to be me."
We pulled away and I noticed Parker was crying a little bit too.
"Was it rohypnol?"
"Yeah, it was. My mom came while the test was out and we talked. And she and the doctors talked. They wanted to call the police, but I said no."
"Why?" She practically screamed.
"Well, at that point, I didn't want anyone else knowing. I didn't want people at school to find out, and I didn't know who did it." Now, I do. Well, most likely.
"That makes sense. So, you can't report this and he can't go to jail or anything? He can do it again?"
"The hospital said I have until Thursday to call and report. They gave me the number and the name of the guy to call. I just don't know if I want to report it yet."
"I thought you didn't know who did it."
I hesitated. "Well, I don't, really. I don't know. Bells going to ring, come on." I started to stand, but Parker pulled me back.
"Who? Who did it?" She looked like she was about to kill him. Just as long as I get to watch.
"I'm not positive. But there are some clues and my instinct is sort of pointing the person out."
"Who?" I bit my lip and looked around for somebody to save me. Even Ethan. "Come on, everyone at that party goes here, tell me."
"That's just it. He goes here."
Just then, Ronnie was walking in from his lunch. "Hey, Parker. Kate."
Parker returned the greeting and I froze. I had yet to talk to Ronnie and I had avoided all classes and opportunities to see him up until now.
Parker looked back at me and got it. "Are you kidding me? Ronnie? It was him?" Obviously, my expression gave me away.
I nodded and cried some more. "Don't do anything. This is between Ronnie and me."
"Press charges."
A/N: That was quite possibly the hardest and longest chapter I have ever written. You all better appreciate this and review like crazy. I want to hear what everyone thought of it. Please. If you never review anything I write again, review this. I beg of you. I need to know if this chapter was good or not.
I've realized that everyone I'm writing for is so cynical and sarcastic about everything. Because that is how I am. It worked for Miranda, because that's how I see her, but I'd like to know what you think. Do you think Kate is being too snappish? Or do you like how she's acting and feel it fits her situation?
Reviews:
--- : Yes, it is confusing. That is my master plan, to confuse everyone. It'll all come together in this chapter, though.
Care*Bear 1017: Well, if you think it's...
Chapter 3: Monday and Tuesday
^Monday^
~Kate~
"Kate? Are you sick?" Parker had followed me into the bathroom.
"Parker, just go away." I didn't hear any movement and the one minute bell had rung. "Parker, just go to class."
"If I didn't have History first, I would so still be here. But, this isn't over Kate. There's something you're hiding, and I'll find out what it is. One way or another."
I heard Parker's feet shuffle towards the door and she left. I stayed in the bathroom all of first hour. I was only at school today because I had two tests that I couldn't miss.
I ended up being able to avoid Parker the rest of the day. She was probably off doing whatever it is she has been up to lately or trying to find out what happened. Which will never happen.
^Tuesday^
I really had wanted to stay home today, and my mom almost let me, but I can't let this get to me like that. I can't show anyone that it affected me the way that it has. Even though only the hospital, my family, and one person that I'd prefer NOT to think about knows what happened. I wasn't going to crumble. I'm Kate Saunders, I don't falter.
I had managed to get through all of my morning classes as easily as possible. And now, it was lunch. I decided to just sit outside by a tree. I really didn't want much company, but I was going to get it either way.
"Ready to talk, yet?" Parker just wouldn't give this up, would she?
"There's nothing to talk about."
"Kate, people just don't throw up for no reason. There's something going on, and you're the only that knows anything. Trust me, I've been busting my butt trying to find something, but there's nothing. So, it's all up to you...."
"I'd rather not. Thanks though." I said as irritated as I could get. Which wasn't too hard to try considering she was pummeling me wanting answers.
"Fine. But, just so you know, I'm here and so is everyone else. We want to help you, Kate. Whatever it is, whatever happened, it's best if you just talk about it and get it off your chest."
If she only knew how much I wanted to do that.
"Do you want a tissue?" Parker was really confusing me, but then I felt it. Or rather, them. I was crying.
Great, now she's not going to be leaving anytime soon.
"Parker, I know you're my friend and you just want to help, but I don't think I can say any of it again."
"Can you try?" She looked really concerned.
I looked around, making sure that no one, absolutely no one, was anywhere in ear shot. Coast was clear. Or, so I thought.
I took a deep breath and wiped the tears. "Okay." I whispered.
Parker looked like a little kid in a candy store. She was just so excited that I had finally decided to tell someone. I'd rather not see that expression leave her face in thirty seconds when I say the first sentence of the story.
"It was Saturday morning, the day after the Joey's party and I woke up with this horrible headache. It was like a hangover times ten. And I looked around and realized I had no idea where I was, or how I got there. I figured out by the room, that it was the poolhouse. And I went to get up off of the bed, but I realized that I was in excruciating pain. I could hardly move my legs without feeling the sharp pain."
I had started to cry again and Parker had definitely lost that original expression. I'd say this one was more of a 'I've just seen a ghost and lost all the color in my face.' I think she knew partly what was coming.
"The cover I had on me, fell as I sat up, and I was not in the clothes I was originally wearing to Joey's. I didn't even see them anywhere in the room from where I was. I didn't know what was going on and I didn't know what had happened. A million questions were running through my mind and I was just trying to figure out anything. The only thing I knew, was that I could not stay where I was. No matter what pain I was in, I had to get out. I gathered up all the strength I was capable of and got out of the bed, looking for some semblance of my clothes. I found my shirt first, at the foot of the bed, and I as I stood up, I saw it." I felt like throwing up again, the images were playing back in my mind like they had been in my nightmares. "Parker, I, I don't think we should continue."
It took a minute for my last words to hit Parker, she sat there with her mouth open until they did. "But, Kate, I mean, I know it's hard to get everything out, but it helps when you talk."
"I know it does. But, I don't think I can tell any of my friends just yet. I don't think you'd be able to take all of it. I can't."
"That's not it. Well, not all of it. You just haven't started coping with whatever happened to you." Congratulations, Parker, you've just won an all expense paid trip to Hawaii!
"True." I really do need to start that coping thing everyone's been talking about. No time like the present, huh? "I'm going to start coping. We'll continue."
"What did you see?" Parker was back to that intense fear look. Her voice was barely audible.
"Blood. This spot on the bedsheets. I sat there for like five minutes just staring at it. I don't know what I had expected from it, maybe I wanted it to tell me everything, tell me everything that had happened. I pieced some things together, you know, sex education does teach you some stuff that you need, and my best guess was that I had been...." Could I really say it again? The first time, I almost fainted. "....raped."
"By who?"
I ignored the question. "Once my mind came back to the room, I did the only thing I could think of. I found the rest of my clothes, took the bedsheet because I didn't want anyone finding it and miraculously got into my car and drove to the nearest hospital without anyone noticing. I didn't want to go to a hospital, but I didn't know anything about the previous night and I needed answers. I needed to know. I pulled into the ER and went up to the desk."
[Flashback - Saturday Morning - Hospital]
"How may I help you?" The woman at the desk asked me. I didn't answer. "Miss?"
I finally found some words. The only ones I could muster. "I think I've been raped."
The woman, an older woman with reading glasses on, looked surprised to say the least. "Well, alright then." She turned around for a moment. "Ah, Sharon, will you please get this young lady some robes and put her in room 4?"
"Yes." Sharon left and I waited.
"Fill out these forms while everything gets ready." She pushed a clipboard with papers attached to it. I took them and started writing down everything I could. I didn't know much about my health insurance, so I just left all of it blank. My mother could fill it in after she gets here. "Miss, can you give me a number of a family member that I can call to come down?" The lady read my mind.
I wrote down my mom's name and my phone number just as Sharon returned with everything.
"Follow me." She took me into room 4 and I laid down on the bed. It was uncomfortable, but I knew I needed to fall asleep. I was almost there, but a doctor came in.
"Hello," She flipped her pile of sheets, "Kate. How are we today?" Obviously these doctors aren't filled in ahead of time. I didn't answer. "Right. That probably wasn't the best question." Or maybe they were. "Alright, then. How about you tell me what happened?"
"I don't remember." This alarmed the doctor for a moment, then she scribbled on one of the sheets.
"I see. So, what makes you think you were raped?"
"Well, I woke up and I didn't remember anything. I didn't know where I was or how I got there. And my legs were really sore and I have some bruises. I had no idea what to think, but then, after I got off the bed, I found blood on the sheets. I know from school and everything, that girls bleed a little when they lose their virginity. I'm a virgin. Or, I was." Great, I lost my virginity to some random guy.
"I'm not going to lie to you, there is a very good chance that you were raped. We're going to do a few short painless tests to see...what's in your system" She wasn't used to working with rape victims. She seemed really young, probably right out of Medical School.
"I don't drink. And I don't do drugs."
"And I'm not saying you do. It's just that, you might have been given something with a drug in it. You not remembering events from the previous night and all, there's a possibility."
"You mean, some guy slipped me a Rufie?" No way.
"Well, it could be rohypnol, or another version of the same drug."
"But, nobody touched my drink. I had it with me the whole time I was drinking it." I had even gotten it myself. How could this have happened? It's just not possible.
"Your eyes can't be watching your drink the whole night. Sometimes, even the girls who play it safe, get the unlucky hand."
[End Flashback]
"Kate, sweetheart, I'm so so so so sorry. We should have been paying more attention to you." Parker and I were hugging.
"It's not your fault Parker. It was going to happen to someone at that party. It just happened to be me."
We pulled away and I noticed Parker was crying a little bit too.
"Was it rohypnol?"
"Yeah, it was. My mom came while the test was out and we talked. And she and the doctors talked. They wanted to call the police, but I said no."
"Why?" She practically screamed.
"Well, at that point, I didn't want anyone else knowing. I didn't want people at school to find out, and I didn't know who did it." Now, I do. Well, most likely.
"That makes sense. So, you can't report this and he can't go to jail or anything? He can do it again?"
"The hospital said I have until Thursday to call and report. They gave me the number and the name of the guy to call. I just don't know if I want to report it yet."
"I thought you didn't know who did it."
I hesitated. "Well, I don't, really. I don't know. Bells going to ring, come on." I started to stand, but Parker pulled me back.
"Who? Who did it?" She looked like she was about to kill him. Just as long as I get to watch.
"I'm not positive. But there are some clues and my instinct is sort of pointing the person out."
"Who?" I bit my lip and looked around for somebody to save me. Even Ethan. "Come on, everyone at that party goes here, tell me."
"That's just it. He goes here."
Just then, Ronnie was walking in from his lunch. "Hey, Parker. Kate."
Parker returned the greeting and I froze. I had yet to talk to Ronnie and I had avoided all classes and opportunities to see him up until now.
Parker looked back at me and got it. "Are you kidding me? Ronnie? It was him?" Obviously, my expression gave me away.
I nodded and cried some more. "Don't do anything. This is between Ronnie and me."
"Press charges."
A/N: That was quite possibly the hardest and longest chapter I have ever written. You all better appreciate this and review like crazy. I want to hear what everyone thought of it. Please. If you never review anything I write again, review this. I beg of you. I need to know if this chapter was good or not.
