Chapter 19
"Cody?" Squib entered her room quietly, for the third time that day.
"How did you get in here? I told you not to come back…EVER!" Cody was enraged that he'd even thought of talking to her. Hadn't she made it clear he wasn't wanted?
"Look…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! I just thought that you didn't trust us enough to confide in us…we're Top Gun. That doesn't include just the tennis players, Citygirl." He winced. "I mean, Cody."
She shut her book; it was a thin disguise anyways. When Cody turned to face Squib, he could see tears still making their way down her face. He stepped closer, hesitating in case Cody objected. When she didn't, he sat on the bed with her and gave her a hug. "It's ohkay, you know. Well…it will be. We're here for you." When they looked up, they saw Megan and Adena standing in the doorway.
"Squib's right…"
"For once," added Adena.
"You can always trust us, no matter what Cody," said Megan softly.
"So, what's wrong?"
"You don't know?" asked Cody.
"No…well, we've been pretty busy fighting with each other. For no reason."
Sebastien showed up, and crept into the room, unnoticed.
"We should never have done that…it was so stupid!" said Squib.
"It doesn't matter…the important thing is Cody, right now," Megan interjected.
"Do you think you're ready to tell us?" said Sebastien. They all turned, surprised that he was there. He shrugged. "I thought I'd find you guys here."
"Well…I have to be, considering the circumstances." Squib wiped away Cody's tears and she explained where she and Sebastien had gone a few days earlier. When she got to the part where Jake told her to come over after the show, she stopped.
"Jake said the only way for him to play was if Cody came home with him after the show. Otherwise…" started Sebastien.
"Otherwise he'd hurt Seb. And I know he'd do it, he's hurt other people before!" cursed Cody.
"Like you," breathed Megan.
"Yes. Like me." She drew breath, hoping to gain strength from the air. Instead, she found it in Squib. "I used to spend all day just hanging out with Jake. My dad was here, at Cascadia, and my mom was busy…she never cared where I was as long as I was home before midnight. So…things got deeper. At first, Jake and I were just friends. Then he started hitting…" she flinched, almost as if he was in the room at that moment. "And touching. I couldn't say anything because he always threatened to hurt my friends, like he did this time. Finally, one night it got too far. He…" she gulped. "He forced me onto the bed and whenever I tried to get away…" she motioned viciously. "He had a very strong fist. I couldn't leave…no matter how hard I tried. Luckily, I didn't get pregnant that night."
The gang all rushed in to join Cody on her bed. They didn't speak, because they knew she wasn't done. "I didn't come back to his house the next day, but he came to find me. I was home alone, so no one noticed. He brought me to his house, and I got a big talk about how I should have been grateful, and I should thank him for doing what he did. I argued back, and he beat me unconscious. I don't know what happened in between then, and when I woke up…but I have a feeling nothing good happened. I…was practically naked when I finally came out of it. I grabbed my clothes and ran home, good thing he was sleeping on the couch. My dad came to pick me up a week later- he didn't know, he still doesn't know. It was just good timing. And Squib! I owe you an explanation…this is why I couldn't keep going, after that night in the boat. I was scared…"
"You know I'd never do that to do," he said.
"I do…" She turned her face towards his, and they kissed, right there in front of all their best friends. On the floor, Sebastien had taken his best friend's lead and took Megan's hand. She looked at him, and they swore their undying love with a single kiss, and no words.
"So where do we go from here?"