This chapter is pretty intense just so you guys know, but then again, the past few have been like that. Anyway, I hope I updated fast enough, I know you guys were just dying to know what would happen next ;) The song on the right is by one of my favorite bands, Paradise Fears, they're really really good, I hope you guys take the listen :)
“What the fuck happened?” Blake grabbed my shoulders forcefully.
I began to sob uncontrollably and Hannah walked over to us. “Blake, just calm down, take a seat and we’ll talk.” She sounded like my mother, or at least what I could remember of her.
He sighed and obeyed.
I sat down next to Hannah who gave me some tissues to wipe my eyes. “It was that night of Paul’s party, you were there right?” I started to say after I stopped crying.
He nodded.
“Well, he, he-“ I couldn’t.
Hannah put her arm around me and whispered in my ear, “Come on, it’s okay.”
“He took me into one of the bedrooms,” I continued, “and at first it was just kissing and then he was moving too fast. Before I knew it, he forced me to do it and I just lay there yelling but he covered my mouth. It was over fast but it was probably the most gruesome thing ever. He left after that, went back to the party and acted like nothing had happened.”
“Wow,” his eyes widened. “Mandy, I had no idea,” he shook his head. “You know what this means, right?”
“He gets kicked out of the band?” I guessed.
“Well, we could, but where are we going to get a guitarist for the rest of the tour?” he wondered.
“That’s true,” I admitted.
“The tour’s almost over though, only a week and a half left, right? You can hold up until then?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Good, after that, we’re gonna have to get everything settled,” he paused, “are you going to press charges?”
I shrugged. “Probably.”
“You should,” Hannah turned towards me.
I gave her a look that said, ‘Don’t worry, I will.’
“I don’t get it-“ Blake shook his head.
“Get what?” I questioned.
“Why he would do something like that,” he answered.
“Asshole,” Hannah thought aloud.
“I thought he was our friend…” he trailed off. “Whatever,” he shook himself out of his daze. “Let’s just make sure we follow with the plan,” his blue eyes stared at me wistfully.
“Kicking him out of the band after the tour’s over?” I tried.
“Okay,” he confirmed.
* * *
They were sore losers. All of them, I was tired of them, it had to end now, I thought as I stuffed my clothing into the suitcase. This was it. I was leaving.
Let me explain before you go off on me. Blake promised that we would kick Ryan out of the band after Warped, but that never happened. We had a lot of good stuff going on for us, press interviews, free shows, etc.
To be brutally honest, I didn’t give a shit about any of it.
What kills me the most is that Blake didn’t even tell the guys what Ryan had done to me. Like, what the hell man? I thought I knew you! If he told them, then I guess they’d want him out too. And that would mean no more great record deal privileges. But, still…I’m so fucking tired of it.
I’m packing my bags and going back to Arizona. It’s time to go.
Did I tell the guys I was leaving? No, because they would have begged me to stay, bribing me with tons of my favorite things, most likely. They wouldn’t have to worry, I was just leaving silently, in the middle of the night, and John was already waiting outside.
When I was good to go, I hopped off the bus and starting walking to the light near John’s car until someone tapped me on the shoulder.
“Mandy, what are you doing?” Hannah stood there in her pajamas, which consisted of a pair of her brother’s boxers and a pink tank top.
“I have to go, Han,” I continued walking forward, not bothering to slow down.
“Are you leaving forever?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Just tell the guys I wasn’t feeling well, okay?”
“You think that’s going to cover it all up,” she crossed her arms over her chest. “They’re gonna find out eventually, what’s the point of lying?”
“Fine,” I calmed down. “Tell them the truth. Tell all of them,” I was nearing the car now. I tossed my suitcase in the trunk and climbed in. “If you’re my friend, you’ll tell them the truth,” were the last words that came out of my mouth.
We sped off into the darkness; John didn’t even bother to question my actions. The entire ride was silent until we neared the Arizona border.
“So, what’s going on?” John turned his head to me.
I didn’t answer.
“Look, I know you probably don’t want to talk but if anyone hurt you, you need to tell me,” he stated firmly.
“I don’t want you to yell at me,” I whispered.
He pulled off to the side of the road. “I’m not going to tell at you, I’m your brother, you can tell me anything,” he reminded me.
I cleared my throat. “Promise you won’t get mad at me?”
“Promise.”
How could I possibly tell my brother this without him getting all defensive? There was just no way.
Before I could control the words that would come out of my mouth, I started sobbing.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” he unbuckled his seatbelt and wrapped his arms around me.
“He raped me,” I finally managed to blurt out.
I expected him to jump up and honk the horn or something crazy like that but instead he just calmly asked, “Who? Who did it?”
“Ryan,” I sobbed some more.
“Everything’s gonna be fine, okay, sis? We’ll go to court, we’ll get a lawyer, we’ll press charges, we’ll do everything we can to make him pay,” he assured me.
“I hope so.”
“It will, it will. Don’t worry.” For the first time in ages, I had seen the compassionate, sensitive side of my brother. I couldn’t have been more grateful.
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She's Got the Rhythm
Teen FictionMandy Hawthorne never wanted to play the drums. After being forced into playing by her dad and brother, she actually finds herself enjoying it. She hasn't told anyone that she's a drummer because she's afraid of what other people are going to think...
