Page 121 of Contempt

I let myself enjoy tonight as if tomorrow will never come.

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The unwelcome sound of my alarm clock is what wakes me.

I’m confused at first, annoyed at the sound and the too-bright light streaming in through the windows.

At first, it’s just like any other morning following a long night of not sleeping enough, but while the burning of my eyes is a familiar sensation, another is not.

Between my legs, I feel wet and sticky. A bloom of horror breaks open inside me when I touch the inside of my thigh and memories of last night come rushing back to me.

Landon fucked me last night.

I swallow, looking at the empty side of my bed. There’s no sign he was ever there, so he must have left after I fell asleep.

I fish my panties and shorts that he took off while I was sleeping out from beneath the comforter, then I gaze with horror at the stained bed sheets.

Oh my god. What do I do?

Antonia is coming today, but I can’t let her see these.

With shaky hands, I do the only thing I can think to do.

I call Hannah.

“Hello?” she answers, sounding a little alarmed since I don’t usually call her in the mornings.

“Hey, I have a question.”

I can hear my voice shaking. My legs feel wobbly with panic, too.

“Okay,” she says tentatively.

“It’s a cleaning question. Um, it might be kind of gross.”

“Okay,” she says, her tone even more unsure.

“Do you know how to get blood and cum out of sheets?”

For several seconds, she doesn’t say anything.

“The maid is coming today. Or the housekeeper or whatever, but I don’t want her to see them because she might tell my mom or Hayden. I don’t know what the housekeeper code is, but I’m guessing something like that might be reported. And then if that gets reported, I have to explain it, and Ican’texplain it. So, I don’t know what to do. I have these sheets on my bed and I… should I just steal them? Should I shove them in my backpack and ditch them at school? Should I burn them? Can I just clean them? I don’t know what to do, Hannah.”

“Breathe,” she says calmly, since it’s clear from my ramble that I’m panicking. “Take a deep breath, then let it out.”

I do, blowing the breath out audibly as I try to gather my wits.

“Now, are you okay?” she asks.

“I’m fine. I’m okay. I just don’t know what to do with these sheets.”

“Are you sure? Did he… hurt you?”

“No. He… didn’t hurt me. I don’t want to talk about that right now, I just need to figure out…”

“The sheets,” she says softly. “We can handle the sheets. As it happens, I do know how to get both of those things out. If you want, you can bag the sheets and bring them to me. Or I can walk you through it.”

I nod. “Okay. Yeah. Thank you.”

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