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Once Juliana could get herself to stop crying she got up and walked into the bathroom and closed the door. Randy got up off the floor and slightly tapped on it, "Jules, I know you're scared, I know you've been hurt, but don't lock yourself in there. I am going to be here for you." Just as he was about to go on, the toilet flushed and Juliana came out.
She looked slightly embarrassed and bit her bottom lip just a little and looked up into his eyes, "Um, I just had to go to the bathroom. I wasn't going to lock myself in there."
Randy put his head down and ran his hand through his hair, "Sorry." And he pulled her in his arms and held her close. "Now can we talk about this guy?"
Juliana nodded, "Yeah, we can. But only on one condition."
"What's that?"
Juliana looked embarrassed again, "I want to put on my pajamas and my slippers. Then I'll tell you everything."
"No prob,." Randy said noticing her picture wall. He smiled looking at them, it brought back such good memories. They were together in most of them. She even had up a picture of them with their friends at the bar the night before they broke up. He couldn't believe it.
She changed into her pajamas and walked up beside him, "Ready for this?"
He nodded, "I'm ready."
They walked out to the living room and sat down on the couch. "Well, I met Steve at college. First we were study buddies, then we became friends, and that's when things started going down hill. We were never even an official couple. He lost his job and couldn't afford the rent, so I let him move in with me. That was the biggest mistake. I went to school all day and worked well into the night. I would come home after working and Steve would be just trashed. He would look for reasons to rag on me. I would have better grades, or I worked later than I was supposed to, or I spent too much time watching tv on the moments I did have free. One night we got into a fight and I told him to pack his shit and get the hell out of my apartment or I would call the cops. Well, that didn't sit too well with him, because he beat me black, blue and bloody. After that night, the physical abuse became more frequent." Juliana explained. As she spoke, her eyes were wide open and every now and then she would shudder. This was like re-living it all over again for her, but she knew that Randy needed to know what she was dealing with.
Randy sat there holding her hand and just letting her talk. For him it was like a flashback to when they were younger and he would get her to open up and be honest about what her father used to do to her. He remembered every word from those conversations, he remembered the bruises, the cuts, the rope burns, the belt marks, and he was pretty sure that Jules was feeling the same way. He knew that he had to bite his tongue and not interrupt or she would stop telling him. She didn't open up very often, so when she did you had to take the opportunity.
"One night I had to go to work and I had a black eye, a swollen lip and really sore ribs. He had knocked me around and thrown me down the stairs trying to get me to leave the apartment because he had some other tramp over and I had left work early so I walked in on it. When I got to work, my employer told me that no waitress looking like me would keep business so he fired me. I got home and knew I had to tell him." Juliana stopped and took a deep breath, "I walked into our apartment and there he was with another woman. I got pissed and I threw my purse across the room at them, and I screamed at him, "If you can't get off your lazy ass to get a job, and help pay bills. But you can surely get off your ass to get laid, then it's time you go get laid somewhere else because we're through. Get the hell out of my life, grab your shit and get out of my apartment."
The chick started laughing at him and called him a loser. She grabbed her stuff and left. The minute the door shut behind her, he started after me. I locked myself in the bathroom and tried to pry open the window so I could run, but he broke through the door. He grabbed me and started to punch me and kick me screaming insults at me the whole time, he used my hair to slam me into the sink, he slammed me into the toilet, then he turned on the bathtub and he threw me in there. By this time I was going in and out of consciousness and I know that he raped me in the tub because when the police got there that's what he was doing. Some neighbor heard the commotion and called the police, and the police officers that responded came to see me in the hospital because they needed a statement to keep him. They told me that I should be damn thankful of whoever called the police because they probably saved my life. I pressed charges, but he was out on bail until his trial. He showed up the night before we appeared before the judge and told me that if I told of all of the past he would kill Nana. I couldn't put her into danger, so when we appeared before the judge I said it was the first time, and he did 30 days, had a year of probation and had to go to chemical dependency treatment and anger management. By the time he completed the inpatient program I had already graduated college and moved out of state."
"Was that the first time he had ever raped you?" Randy asked.
Juliana hung her head, the tears were flowing down her cheeks, "No, no it wasn't. That's the only way he got any. He would slap me around and then he'd drag me towards the bedroom and I knew what was coming."
Randy held her close. He could just kill him for what he put her through. He rubbed her back, and let her cry.
Juliana sat up, "When Nana got sick, I moved back here and rented this townhouse and got an unlisted phone number. I was trying to keep a low profile, but after I made the newspaper for being hired as the new marketing director for the hospital, he found me. I've been trying to hide from him ever since. He's shown up at my work before, and that's when I got a restraining order. A week later I was in intensive care. He told me that if I testified against him he would kill Nana and Nikki so I didn't say anything. He's been stalking me ever since." She looked Randy in the eyes, "I'm giving you the shortened version, I can't bring myself to tell you all of the details. He barely let me talk to Nana, I could only go see her if I didn't have any bruises on my face. He wouldn't let me have friends, so the only time I could talk to Nikki was at school or if I was at work. I was a prisoner in my own house all over again. It was like he was dad reincarnated and coming after me for ever trying to tell on him."
Randy was quiet for a few minutes, he held her close and thought very carefully about what he was going to say. He took Juliana's hand into his and looked into her eyes, "Jules, you're not safe here. You have to get out of here."
"Randy, I'm trying. I have my application in at a few different places, I can't make them review them any faster." Juliana reiterated. "But Nana died, I have her funeral tomorrow and he said that he's coming tomorrow to see me. I have to be there Randy, I can't not. And I don't have a restraining order, so the cops won't do anything."
"Jules, the whole reason I signed up for the house show here was because I knew she passed away. I was going to show up at the funeral and pray that you wouldn't hate me for being there. I loved her almost as much as you did. Will you please come back to mom and dad's, spend the night and I'll escort you to the funeral tomorrow? I don't want you here alone tonight." Randy said holding her hand tightly.
"Randy, I'm not going to burden you or your parents like that. Besides, you have company and you don't need me tagging along. I appreciate your offer, but I'll be ok." She tried to argue, but Randy wouldn't hear it.
"No, you're not pushing the offer away just like that, stay with me tonight, and we'll figure out what to do next after the funeral." Randy said standing up. "I'll help you pack an overnight bag. You can even stay in your jammies, I'll warm up the car."
Juliana laughed, "You know, for as much as you say you've changed, I'm glad that not everything about you has changed. Alright, no more arguing, I'll stay with you tonight." And they headed into her room.
What do you think will happen next? Will he show up at her house? At the funeral? Randy has Wrestlemania on Sunday, what then? Please continue to read and review!