Page 15 of Catch My Fall (Catch)

I’ve been thinking about it practicallynonstop and as fuzzy as I am, I believe that I know the answer.

I gulped down the bile rising up in my throat before whispering, “I think… I think they drugged us… and… I think that they did things to us. We need to call the police.”

She screamed, an animal sound of distress and agony before she started slamming her fists against the dashboard and yelling, “No, no, no, no, no!”

“Stop it Macy! You’re going to hurt yourself!”

She cried and cried, and then cried some more. I held her tightly and rocked back and forth with her, the two of us sobbing together. Pulling back, she took my face in her hands.

“Did they rape you?”

Shaking my head I whispered, “Not that way, they only used my mouth.”

Looking me in the eye she said, “They raped me, and I can still feel them inside of me. I think that other things happened too. Bad things. Things I don’t want to remember. I kept coming to and hearing them talking. Did they put us in the pool or did we want to go in?”

“They must’ve put us in the pool, although I don’t know why.”

Closing her eyes, she sat back and leaned against the headrest.

“Then I didn’t dream any of what I remember. They put us in the pool to wash away the evidence. They scrubbed at us both for a long, long time. Even if we go to the police now, no one will believe us. It’s Brady fucking Howard and Chad Winthorp for fuck’s sake. Mia… I think they took pictures. A lot of pictures.”

Closing my eyes I realize that sheis right.

Flash.

Flash.

Flash.

“Mia! Mia, wake up! Wake up, wake up, wake up!”

I sat straight up, clutching at my chest as my heart pounded, my eyes taking in the fact that I was in my dorm room and Darby was standing over me. I was tangled in sheets soaked with sweat and I was shaking like a leaf. Looking at Darby, I could tell she knew something was really wrong with me and, just like that, I lost it.

She held onto me as I cried, and she stayed with me until I fell into an exhausted sleep an hour or so later.

I love her for not pushing me to tell her what was wrong right then and there, because I don’t think that I could’ve said the words.

Chapter Eight

Darby was gone by the time I woke up this morning and I felt relieved that I’d been granted a reprieve of at least another few hours before I would have to explain to her what was going on with me. She left me a note telling me she’d see me during the break in between our morning classes, and she also reminded me that she was going out with her mom to dinner and a movie tonight. Apparently they have a mother-daughter date every fourth Friday, and have done so for years. I think it’s adorable, but I’m also a little bit bummed out because I won’t be able to go to Tristan’s if they’re having people over tonight.

After I was happy with my hair andmakeup I spent more time than usual choosing an outfit, and I totally admit it’s because I was about to see Tristan. I was excited to see him but also nervous because I wondering if he would say something to me about the fact that I was in the pool hall last night when the shit hit the fan between him and Tiffany. I hated that he was with her at all but I kept reminding myself that it was none of my business.

Grabbing my bag, I headed out across campus to class. When I reached the hall that the class was in, I stumbled when I saw Tristan leaning back against the wall next to the door, but luckily he didn’t see me fumble. Taking a deep breath, I walked up to him with a casual smile.

“Good morning, Stan.”

His breath let out in a whoosh and he ran his hand through his already tousled hair before he said anything. “Mimi…you’re not pissed at me?”

I had felt a lot of things about him last night, but pissed wasn’t one of them.Jealous? Yes, I was definitely jealous. But I wasn’t stupid or crazy and he didn’t owe me any kind of an explanation at all, so I don’t know why he would think I would have been pissed.

Cocking my head to the side I blinked at him with confusion. “Why would I be pissed at you, Tristan?”

“I realized when you and Darby left with Tiffany that meant you were friends with her. I figured I looked like a fucking gigolo piece of shit. I texted Darby like five times last night and when she never answered, I assumed you guys were ready to burn me in effigy.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “In effigy for what, having sex with a slut?” Okay, I had to get the one catty dig in. Sue me.

“Tiffany is one of the girls that live in the same dorm house we do, but she certainly isn’t a friend, especially not after how she used us, Darby in particular, last night. I don’t know the exact reason Darby didn’t answer your texts, but I do know that some of it is because she’s hurt that, once again, someone befriended her to get to you and Trace.”

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