Page 4 of Remember That Time

Could the sex have been so bad that I blanked it out?

I tried to remember who had attended that damn party. Considering that was the only blank space in my memory, I had to believe that something had happened then. If I could remember who attended maybe I could question them about who I couldn't remember.

I pressed a hand to my stomach as it began to swirl. Assuming I had slept with someone—I wasn't ready to admit that yet—I had to assume it was a one-night stand or I would have heard from this mysterious person by now.

"Hey, look," Henry said. "I know this can be scary, but it doesn't mean it's a bad thing."

"You don't understand, Henry."

I didn't even understand.

Henry's voice was gentle when he asked, "What don't I understand?"

"I don't remember sleeping with anyone." At least if I remembered, it might explain my current condition. I'd know why and how I ended up this way. It was hell not knowing.

"You don't remember having sex?"

"Ugh," I groaned as I dropped my head back and stared up at the ceiling. "As far as I know, I haven't had sex in nearly two years, so this is something of a surprise for me."

Major understatement right there.

"Bloody hell, Gianni, were you raped?"

I gasped at the implication, and then quickly turned and puked into the toilet again. My thoughts had never even gone in that direction, but now it was all I could think about.

Had I been raped?

After wiping my mouth again, I sat down and leaned back against the wall. Henry flushed the toilet before getting me a glass of water so I could rinse my mouth.

Henry knelt down in front of me, a wan smile crossing his lips. "It's just you and me here right now, okay? And whateveryou share with me will stay between us unless you give me permission to say something."

I gave a small nod.

"Can you tell me what happened or what you remember?"

"That's just it," I replied. "I don't remember anything. I went to an afterhour's party hosted by one of the medical residents I work with. We'd all just gotten off two weeks of hell and wanted to cut loose a little."

"And what happened while you were there?"

"I remember coming home after rounds at the hospital and changing into some casual clothes. I remember going to the party and accepting a drink from someone. I don't remember much after that."

The entire night was still a complete blank for me.

"Were there signs that you had been raped or had sex?"

My brows drew together as I tried to remember waking up the next day. "I had one hell of a hangover and I kind of felt like road kill, but I didn't have any bruises or anything."

"That's a good sign," Henry said.

"How so?" I asked, because I didn't see it.

"People who force themselves on other people don't tend to care how they treat the person they are assaulting. If you didn't have any bruises or signs of rape, you might not have been raped."

I didn't think it worked that way.

"Just because I didn't have any signs of rape didn't mean it didn't happen, Henry." I was a little pissed that he would think that. "If I wasn't in my right mind then I could not have agreed to have sex with someone, and since I don't remember a single second of that encounter, well..."

Pretty sure the facts spoke for themselves.

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