When trust is questioned
Chapter 18
Two weeks later.
Mona and Angela sit at the breakfast table and talk about the work.
"Mother, don't worry, I'll manage it, I'll come to the agency with you today." Mona looks at Angela skeptically, "um, ok... But please slow down."
"All right, Mother." Angela finishes her coffee. "Do we want to then?"
She says goodbye to Tony and gives him a fleeting kiss on the cheek.
"Angela, take care of yourself... Mona, please take care of her!"
Angela rolls her eyes. Mona gives Tony a quick wink.
When they arrive at the agency, they both take off their jackets and bags.
Angela looks around. Mona has freshly prepared everything and Tony has made sure that everything is sparkling clean.
Mona walks over to his desk. Angela goes straight to her office.
She opens the door, stops in the doorway, takes a deep breath in and out when she sees the desk.
Everything tidied up as if nothing had ever happened. She sits down in her office chair. Try to keep a clear head.
Angela bites her lip. Like lightning, the images shoot back into her head as if it happened only yesterday... She gets sick. She has to swallow. Gets up and grabs a glass. Then she gets water from the water dispenser and sits down again.
Her own voice goes around in her head... how she begged Roger to stop, how she literally begged... Tears well up in her eyes.
She closes her eyes, breathes in and out deeply. Several times in a row, she gets dizzy and again very nauseous.
... I can't do that... I can't do that... I can't do that...
"God, what am I supposed to do?" she says to herself quietly and in panic.
Suddenly, her phone rings. She is snapped out of her mind by
"Bower Agency, Angela Bower".
...
"Hello?"
...
Hung-up... hm ok... strange.
She rests her head on her hand. The bandage is off and the wounds are gone. Outwardly, you can't see anything of the sexual assault, but inwardly, Angela keeps struggling with herself. She sleeps badly, has nightmares again and again... without Tony, she feels lost and helpless. She never wanted to be so dependent on a man.
The therapy to process everything started only a week ago.
Then the phone rings again.
"Bower Agency Angela Bower on the phone, hello?"
...
"Hellooooo?"
...
Nothing.
Angela looks annoyed. And rolls his eyes ... Great joke haha...
Angela takes a pen, scribbles something on a piece of paper... she hears the clock ticking loudly. Louder and louder. LOUDER.
... Oh my god...
She quickly gets up from her chair, walks up and down her office, nibbles on her nails, then the phone rings again... She panics... "I can't!"
She says loudly, storms out of the room, grabs her jacket, runs down the stairs to the outside.
Mona looks after her in surprise and with a worried expression.
Angela stops in front of the entrance, gasping for air.
At the same time, Mona calls Tony "Hey Tony, it's me Mona, I think Angela needs you here... no... No, not really... panic attack... Yes I know... aha... OK... Yes, see you soon!"
Mona goes downstairs to Angela.
"Hey dear..." Mona says in a soothing voice.
Angela looks at Mona in panic.
"I know, my darling... Everything will be fine."
Angela's eyes fill with tears, but she tries to suppress it and looks up at the sky.
"Mother, how can I... I... No idea. Everything reminds me of the situation, I'm still going insane in it."
Mona quickly takes her in her arms "I know dear, I can imagine how hard it is for you. You should go home, you need time, you can continue working from home."
Angela is not so enthusiastic about it. She hates that she can't stand it in her own agency. HER agency, which she built up and now some fucking guy has just snatched it away from her.
"Angela, let's go back inside and wait upstairs."
Angela looks questioning, "waiting for what?"
"On Tony, he'll pick you up here".
"Oh Mother, he doesn't have to, he has enough to do, he can't take care of me forever, how is that supposed to work..."
Mona abruptly interrupts her, "ANGELA, you should listen to yourself! Tony's here for you, we're all here for you - accept the help we give you!"
Angela shakes her head reluctantly.
"Angela, look, we only want your best. If you're not ready to come here yet, then so be it, no one is forcing you to do it, you can work from home... You"
Angela interrupts her: "At home, mother, the ceiling falls on my head, I'm still going crazy, I can't hide forever!"
"You shouldn't do that Angela, you should just take care of yourself, something bad has happened to you, it won't go away overnight."
Tears suddenly stream down Angela's face, "do you think I don't know, Mother," she says in a loud voice, "do you think I don't process this every fucking day... Day after day... Nightmares, I can't sleep, everything keeps coming back to my eyes like a movie - over and over again..." She sobs.
Mona looks at her with sad eyes.
She's just about to say something when Tony comes running up. He finds a completely distraught Angela in front of him and looks at Mona worriedly.
"Angela, hey Angela, I'm here..." He embraces her quickly. Angela gives free rein to her emotions and cries loudly.
"I'm sorry Tony for keeping you from your work, it wasn't my idea..." she whines softly.
"... shhhh all good, that's totally fine" he says in a soothing voice.
Mona: "I'm going back in. Angela, see you tonight... thank you Tony".
He nods at her.
"Come on, Angela..."
Together they get into the car.
Angela is silent and looks out the window until she finally says something about herself: "I feel like a pile of misery Tony, I have no idea what's wrong with me. In the agency I suddenly panicked, the phone rang a few times, no one answered i have no idea. I suddenly saw everything in front of me again... When will I finally hear this, I'm still going crazy!"
Tony takes Angela's hand and squeezes it tightly. He smiles sideways at her. They are silent.
When she gets home, Angela hangs her jacket on the coat rack and quickly runs to her office.
She sits down at her desk and immediately gets to work.
Tony goes after her.
"Angela..." Tony says louder.
"Tony, no, I have to keep working here, I can't do anything else..."
He looks at her with a worried doggy look.
"Oh Tony no, not that look... I'm fine again. I'm here now and..."
"Angela! Stop it, we need to talk about it, you need to talk. You need rest!"
Tony walks up to her, stands in front of her. Angela gets up from her chair and avoids him. She crosses her arms.
"Tony, my therapist told me I can go back to work, and when I feel safe, I can go back to the agency... Well, that didn't work out now, but I have to continue working here, otherwise I'll lose my customers!" she suddenly says to him harshly and heatedly.
Tony looks at her in amazement "oh ok Angela, if that's what you mean. But I don't mean that! I don't agree with you!"
He grabs her lightly by the upper arms and holds her tightly "what you need is time, a lot of time! I know you're a workaholic, but Angela, you're not doing yourself any favors." he says seriously.
She starts biting her lower lip. He's still holding her tightly, dodging his piercing gaze and looking down. She suddenly feels the discomfort, the exhaustion, how everything is still too much for her. She can't change anything about the situation, what happened to her constricts her and robs her of her last breath.
She starts to breathe faster Her heart beats in her chest, her face consumes and tears shoot from her eyes. She slumps in his arms. She gives free rein to her feelings.
Tony hugs her very close to him and holds her.
"Angela, I told you I'm always there for you, really, always, don't worry, we'll make it work!"
Angela nods.
She slowly calms down. And breathes in and out deeply.
That's when the office phone rings.
She frees herself from Tony's arms, " it's okay again " she says softly. And answers the phone: "hello Angela Bower, Bower Agency".
...
"Hello?" she looks at Tony questioningly and shrugs her shoulders. "Again, no one's turn".
"Someone is probably trying to make a joke," says Tony.
"Yes, maybe..." Angela answers.
"I'll make us something to eat, ok," Tony says in an encouraging voice. Angela agrees.
She sits down at her desk for a moment and stares questioningly at the phone.
Tony leaves the office.
A short time later, as Angela continues to work on her sketches, the phone rings again. She answers: "Angela Bower, Bower Agency hello?"
...
"Helloooo? That's not funny!" She slams down the phone.
15 minutes later, Angela is done with her sketches and puts them aside.
Then the phone rings again, completely annoyed she answers "YES, Angela here, hello what do you want?"
"Oh hello... excuse me, Miss Bower, this is Offizer Shawn."
Angela's face suddenly turns pale, "Oh excuse me, yes?"
"Miss Bower, we have Stanton, but he is free on parole until the trial, until the hearing, you understand? He is not allowed to approach you. Please come to the police station tomorrow and I'll explain everything else to you."
Angela's thoughts are buzzing around in her head again... free... On probation, why?...
"Miss Bower, are you still on it?"
"... um yes, yes that's me excuse me. Yes, I will come to the police station tomorrow."
She hangs up the phone again. Remains seated in shock. She stares at the phone...
... Released on parole.... does her head go back and forth...