Ch 17- Going Home
The telephone rang early that next morning as Spinner stirred and answered it.
"Hello?" he answered groggily.
"May I please speak with a Ms. Paige Michealchuck?"
"Hello?" she responded when Spinn handed off the phone as he went back to sleep.
"Ms. Michaelchuck? You reported a rape, correct?"
"Yes..." she answered hesitantly, unsure of where this was going.
"Well, it is my duty to ask if you want to press charges since we have the prepatrator in custody."
"Oh!! Umm...yes, I do," she said firmly as she thought about it.
"Ok well you're going to have to come down here and fill out some paper work..."
"That's fine; when should I come down?"
"Anytime is fine Ms. Michaelchuck."
Paige hung up the phone and rubbed her forehead. Pressing charges against Dean? This was not going to be a fun trip, not at all.
"Pressing charges. An officer called this morning," Paige answered simply.
"Oh my God, you're really, finally going to do this," Ashley spoke up.
Paige just shrugged her shoulders while Ash gave her a hug. "You're finally getting your turn...this is your chance now."
Paige just smiled faintly, not amused by the idea of facing up to him in court and just kept walking. "Look guys, I just don't really want to talk about it ok?? I'd rather not think about it honestly."
Hazel and Ashley just shrugged, let it drop and continued the walk downtown. Nobody noticed Lisa, standing against the wall, silent and downcast as they were all talking about this. Nobody also noticed Lisa slowly walking behind them, not saying a word as they continued downtown chattering away.
-later that night-
"Ok so when do you go to court again?" Craig asked that night.
"In about one month they said."
"Damn..." he trailed off thinking.
"It's ok. I know that you guys have lives to get back to. You don't have to stay here and baby sit me...I'm a big girl. I think," Paige softly added that last part on as to where nobody could hear.
"No Paige, we wanna be here," Jimmy started.
"Please, you guys have lives too. What about your jobs?"
They all just looked at each other and she assured them again that she would be fine and they made plans to leave in the next two days.
"Are you sure you'll be ok?" Spinner asked again before he put his stuff in the car.
"Hun, you need to go home! People are probably thinking that we've fallen off the planet!" He gave her a quick kiss and then got in the car with Craig and Ashley and headed for home. Sean had went home earlier, instructed to start looking for another place to live. According to Ashley, they weren't breaking up, they were just taking a small break. Paige just shook her head as she anticipated Manny's response to Craig and Ashley possibly happening again. They were grown adults now, and he still couldn't decide. She waved them down the street and then went back inside and sat down on the couch, taking advantage of the first quiet that the house had had in the past three weeks. Paige leaned her head back against the headrest and just sighed. She came here to think and she ended up getting raped again, "breaking up" with her fiancé, having her best friend almost get raped, having her best friends fiancé almost tell her that he didn't love her the way she wanted, and finally leaving with a lawsuit and her relationship securely intact. She hated some of the events that had happened, but it's what made her Paige. When bad shit happens, she takes it in stride...at least as well as she can.
"What?" she jumped as Lisa barreled through her door.
"Are you ready for this?" she asked.
"Ready for what?"
"The trial!! What else would I be talking about?" Lisa questioned.
"How about something that could be happening sooner than six days from now?"
"Oh. Did I tell you that Ben and I are together?"
"It's about damn time!! God like for three years I have been itching and now you took all my fun out of setting you up!!"
"What do you want me to do? Break up with him so you can set us back up?"
"Yeah...that'll work!" Paige exclaimed as they started laughing.
Suddenly Lisa grew quiet. "Are you really ready Bumbles? I mean this isn't something small...this is a rapist that has abused you and now you have to look at his face again."
"I know," Paige answered quietly. "No I'm not ready...I'll never be ready. I still see his face in my nightmares. I'm still afraid to go out at night. Half of me just wants to let this drop. He'll probably win anyways."
"You can't do that!" Lisa said in a random outburst. "You've come this far and after all that you've been through...you totally deserve your day at least."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. I just wish that I didn't have to see him...or answer any of those questions about that night. Anything that help me forget any of this would be so greatly appreciated."
"Know how you feel," she replied as she rubbed Paige's back. "Know how you feel."