Back at the manor, Prue and Phoebe took turns pacing the floor.
"Where could she be, Prue? It's almost 11:30. Lonny said she'd left P3 awhile ago."
"I know. I think I'm going to take a ride over to P3 and see if maybe she got lost in the crowd. After all, it is one of her favorite bands playing tonight."
"Well, let's go." Prue shook her head.
"Phoebe, you should stay here just in case she gets home before I do."
"Okay. Good thinking. That's why you're the oldest, Prue. You're always looking out for us." Phoebe smiled. Prue gave Phoebe a glance and headed for the door.
"Be back in a few," she called out, shutting the door behind her.
Nearly twenty minutes after Prue left, Piper entered the manor. She opened the door slowly, making sure no one was there to greet her. When she realized the coast was clear, she entered fully, closed the door, and ran upstairs.
'A shower...I need a shower' She thought to herself as she ran the water as hot as she could stand it. She had to scrub herself and rid her body of what that animal had left. She could hardly come to terms with the event that had transpired. Still in a daze, she dropped her gown and entered the shower. The water beat upon her skin like a steady drum. She glanced down as the water hit her body, noticing the slight shade of red falling from her legs and trickling to the drain. She knew he had been too big. The pain...she stood without emotion. She didn't cry; she didn't scream. She just lathered herself and scrubbed until her skin was completely red.
Her silence was broken by a knock at the bathroom door.
"Piper?" Phoebe called. "Piper, you in there?" For the first time since her attack, she'd felt herself 'snap' back into her body. It was as if she were under a spell, and only the voice of her sisters could break it. She blinked a few times and answered.
"Y-yea, it's me..."
"Prue went looking for you. I'm gonna go call her and let her know you're alright." Piper closed her eyes. 'Alright?' She thought. If only her sisters knew. They were so ignorant to the fact that she was far from being alright. That monster...he had taken much more than just nonconsensual sex that night. He took a piece of her...a piece she realized she was empty without.
What's up with her?
The morning sun shined brightly through Piper's window, causing her to squint immediately after opening her eyes. She held up a shielding hand, and inhaled deeply. Slowly exhaling, she stood up, her breath quickly catching in her throat as the ache from her inner thighs registered to her brain. She slowly sat back onto her bed, staring blankly at her door. She could hear Prue downstairs, talking to someone. The other person, she could not make out. Piper grabbed her robe and headed downstairs.
Just like the morning a few days ago, she was once again greeted by Leo's bright orb.
"Good morning, beautiful." He bent to her lips for a kiss, but surprisingly, she backed away.
"Morning," she replied dryly, as she ran her fingers through her hair from the hairline of her forehead, to the ends of the long strands. She noticed a change in Leo's facial expression.
"Piper, w-what happened?" he asked as he reached for her forehead. She quickly ducked his advance and found a mirror. She had completely forgotten about hitting her head, and now there was a deep bluish-purple bruise to remind her.
"Oh, I, um...I-I hit my head at P3," she lied.
"I could heal that for you."
"No! Leo, I don't want you to touch me. Just please..." her voice trailed off as she realized how frantic she'd become, also noting the hurt in Leo's eyes. She had to pull herself together. There was no need for everyone to find out what happened, how she failed to protect herself like her sisters no-doubtedly could.
"I'm...I'm sorry, Leo," she began. Before she could continue, she followed Leo's glance toward the ceiling.
"I'm needed up 'there,'" he said.
"Go ahead." She started to walk away, when Leo grabbed a hold of her arm. She immediately held her breath and tensed.
"Piper..."
"Leo, I'm fine. Just go, please." She looked back at him and forced a small smile upon her face. With that, Leo orbed out of the manor.
Releasing a deep sigh, she reappeared in front of the mirror. Her sisters could not see the mess her forehead had become. She quickly adjusted her hair so that it covered a good amount of the bruising. Releasing another sigh, she headed for the kitchen.
As soon has Piper stepped into the kitchen, all eyes fell on her. She couldn't bring herself to look into her sisters' questioning eyes just yet, so she focused on the coffee pot and went for a cup.
"Morning, Piper," Phoebe said, breaking the awkward silence.
"Morning." Opening the cabinet doors, she couldn't spot a cup.
"You feeling okay, Piper?" Prue always knew when Piper and Phoebe weren't feeling well, even before they did. Piper walked over to the dish rack and searched for a cup. Nope, no cup there either.
"I'm fine. Where are all the damn coffee cups?" her words laced with frustration.
"Dishwasher. The cycle just ended." Prue eyed her younger sister curiously. Something was up with her, but she couldn't quite figure out what. Phoebe sat at the table, eating a bowl of Froot Loops. Piper sat across from her, mug in hand, smelling the aroma of the fresh coffee in front of her. Her eyes were closed. It was like she drifted to a place that gave her a burst of well-needed energy.
"Piper, you don't look so well," Phoebe concluded.
"Would everyone stop worrying about me?! I'm fine, okay? I just...I didn't sleep well last night. That's all." She sipped her coffee and placed it on the table, focusing all her attention on a spot on the table. Finally she stood and emptied her almost-full cup of coffee into the sink.
"I'm going back to bed for a little." She said heading for the kitchen doorway.
"Well don't sleep too long. Darryl's coming over at noon. Sheila's out of town and I thought it would be nice if he came over for lunch." Prue explained. Piper froze in her tracks and took a deep breath. She wasn't sure if she could handle seeing Darryl right now, with him being a cop and all. But she'd have to, for her sisters.
"Piper, why don't you spend the morning with us? I mean, you were supposed to spend last night with us, but I guess you had...better things to do. If you wanted to see the band that badly..."
"No, Pheebs. It wasn't that..." Piper started. She hadn't realized that her breaths had become a bit shallow and found it was becoming harder to breathe.She looked down at her feet when Prue approached her.
"Piper, please. I know something is wrong." Tears began to spill down Piper's cheeks as Prue's comforting hand pushed the strands of hair behind her ear. Phoebe was too worried to continue eating her cereal. She immediately jumped up and stood on the other side of Piper, her arm gently wrapped around her shoulder. As Prue pushed the hair from Piper's forehead, she noticed the bruise.
"Piper, what happened?" Piper quickly removed herself from her sister's embrace and walked to the opposite side of the kitchen. She was now sobbing quietly, her back turned to them so that her sisters could not see.
"Piper, please...please tell us what's going on." Prue pled. Piper turned around, slightly shaking her head.
"I-I can't..."
"Piper, whatever it is, we can help you, but you have to tell us what it is," Phoebe tried.
"I...you'll be mad at me," she managed to say through breathless sobs. Piper had begun to shake. Prue quickly walked over and put her arms around her younger sister. She was scared that something had her shaken up like this.
"Piper, sweetie, we can never be mad at you. I-I've never seen you like this, Piper, and I'm scared. Just please...please, what's going on?" Piper looked up into Prue's eyes and knew what she said was true. She looked over at Phoebe, who now stood with her arms wrapped around herself, tears threatening to expel from her worried eyes. Piper knew she had to tell, so she took a deep breath, laid her head on her big sister's chest, and began.
"The guy from P3...you remember him, Prue?" her voice was barely above a whisper. Phoebe had to get closer to hear what she was saying. "He sent me the drink, and I sent it back."
"Yes, I remember..." Prue didn't like how this was starting to sound.
"The call from Lonny...I went to the club to sign the papers." Piper's voice was slightly muffled as she talked into Prue's shirt, but they could still hear her...barely. "It took longer than I'd expected. Lonny and I talked and I knew that I needed to get home, to be with you and Phoebe."
'Keep going, Piper. You can do it.' She thought to herself as she sighed. She paused for a few seconds, and then continued.
"My car, it was in the back. So, I walked out to it, but then...I dropped my keys. I said something to myself, I don't remember what. Then, the guy came up behind me..."
"N-no..." Phoebe said as the tears came pouring down her cheeks. Prue's eyes were closed, but the tears still fell from them. She tightened her hold around Piper, and Piper continued. Her voice was a little more high-pitched than usual, and it was almost as if she were talking about someone else.
"I-I begged him not to, but he hit me and...and I hit my head on the bumper of my car. He picked me up and threw me behind this big...car, and...and..." Phoebe had turned away from her sisters, her sobs threatening to overtake her. Prue lifted Piper's face and cupped it into her hands. She stared into her sister's eyes, as Piper met her gaze. Neither of them was crying at this point. They just stood there and looked into each other's eyes, as if they could read one another's mind.
"Piper..." Prue's words trailed off as Piper slightly nodded her head.
"He did it, Prue. He...he raped me." For a few moments more, neither one tore away from their intense gaze, and then, almost in unison, they fell into each other's arms, sobbing harder than they could ever remember. Still in each other's embrace, they slowly slid to the floor. Phoebe quickly joined her sisters as Prue wrapped her arm around her to include her in the circle. There, the three of them sat for nearly an hour, weeping heavily in each others embrace.