May 16, 1974

After trying to get past the initial shock of seeing his friend break down in front of him, Pascal assessed the situation and struggled to find the best course of action he could take. He had always sensed there was something a bit off about Victoria, but he'd made the mistake of attributing her unusual behavior to the fact that she was a foreigner still trying to adapt to her new life abroad. Now, it was clear to him that wasn't the case. His mother had been right- there was much more to Victoria underneath the surface. Judging by the fear in her eyes and the way she'd recoiled from his touch alone, Pascal gathered that, whatever Victoria had been through, it had taken an enormous toll on her.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he promised, attempting to ease her pain. It killed him to see her like this. Pascal couldn't imagine the horrors Victoria must have endured in order to get to this point, but if there was anything he knew it was that he was determined to help her.

Despite their reassuring intention, his words did nothing to assuage Victoria's anxiety. Tears were still spilling from her eyes as her breaths became more and more uneven. Eventually she averted her gaze, unable to face him.

"Victoria," Pascal pleaded, "you're safe. I promise I'm not going to hurt you."

No response.

The two of them remained in their same positions for what felt like an eternity until Victoria's cries finally died down a few minutes later. Pascal waited for her to say something but the silence between remained unbroken. Instead, he reached out a hand for her to take.

"Let me help you."

Victoria tentatively reached for his hand, still refusing to meet his gaze. Pascal pulled her up into a sitting position but refrained from wiping the tears away from her face, worried it would send her into panic mode again if he did.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," he said after a long pause, "I shouldn't have tried to stop you from walking away."

Victoria shook her head, "I deserved it."

"What?"

"For hitting you," she clarified.

"I'll forgive you if you'll forgive me," Pascal said playfully in an attempt to lighten the mood. He could tell Victoria felt embarrassed over him having seen her in such a vulnerable position, so he tried to diffuse the tension as best he could by not mentioning it.

Victoria wiped her remaining tears before turning to face him, "You must think I'm crazy."

As much as she appreciated Pascal's patience with her, she didn't understand it. She had given him no reason to continue being kind to her, yet here he was, pretending she hadn't just made a complete fool out of herself. No one had ever bothered to take Victoria's feelings into account the way he did, and it scared her because she knew she would only end up disappointing him in the long run.

"I don't think you're crazy, Victoria. I know you're not."

"You're just saying that."

"I'm not," Pascal assured her, "I know there are things you haven't told me."

A part of Victoria wanted to tell him everything so he would understand why she kept pushing him away, and why she failed to reciprocate his affections. It would be so much easier for her to come to terms with her past if she had someone she could discuss it with comfortably. More than anything, though, she wanted to be able to acknowledge Patrick. Having to keep him a secret made her feel like she was denying his existence, which brought her a great deal of guilt and often kept her from sleeping at night.

At the same time, Victoria knew she could never tell Pascal the truth about what she'd been through. She couldn't handle him looking at her with disgust instead of adoration, and she knew that, once he learned she'd been made a victim of repeatedly, that was all her would ever see her as.

"Do you want to talk about them?" he pressed.

Victoria could feel a knot beginning to form in her stomach. No matter how patient he was with her, or how tempted she was to confess everything to him, she knew she had to remain strong.

"I can't."

"You can," Pascal encouraged, "keeping it inside will only destroy you in the end."

"It's a little late for that," Victoria said bitterly.

The abuse she'd suffered at the hands of her mother, stepfather, and Jimmy Brennan had already broken her spirit and shattered any hopes she had of ever finding true happiness. She would always carry around the shame of having been taken advantage of by so many people, and nothing Pascal said could ever change that.

"Victoria, please."

"No," she said defiantly, "You would never look at me the same way again."

"Try me," he dared, "give me a chance to prove you wrong."

Victoria found his persistent nature both endearing and irritating, depending on the circumstance. They had known each other for nearly a month now and, still, she had yet to discover what is was Pascal had seen in her at the flea market the day they met. The way he continued giving the benefit of the doubt, even now, baffled her. God knows she certainly hadn't afforded him the same courtesy in return.

"Why?" she asked him, genuinely curious, "Why should I give you a chance to do anything for me?"

"Because," Pascal said seriously, "you can trust me."

Victoria knew his words were genuine. She knew that he had never lied to her, and that he'd given her every reason under the sun to trust him. In the short time they'd know each other, Pascal had been provided with so many opportunities to debase her the way so many others had done before him, yet, for some unknown reason, he had chosen to preserve her dignity instead.

Initially unsure of how to respond, Victoria decided to mentally outweigh the pros and cons of confessing the entire truth to him and, after some deliberation, ultimately came to a decision.