Lucy Lahey trusted the man she was dating, and it turned out to be her biggest mistake. Reeling in the aftermath of a rape that stole not only her virginity, but her confidence, her love for MMA, her clarity and more, Lucy now finds herself in Jerse...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"You've got some nerve."
I roll over in bed, squint through one eye and find dad next to me with his hair standing up and an old t-shirt and boxers on. He rips the comforter off me and starts to shout. "Not even a text to let me know you aren't coming hom—what's that?"
My heart is pounding while I try to pull the comforter back, my legs are exposed in cotton shorts and even though I no longer need the band aids, my cuts are red and visible.
"Nothing."
"What happened?"
"I walked into some rose bushes in Hamilton Park last night, it was dark, I couldn't see."
He stares at me while I huddle back under the comforter. "You walked home alone?"
"No, Niles walked me home."
"What time?"
"I don't know, midnight. What does it matter?"
He palms his jaw and paces beside the bed. "It matters because I didn't know where you were, and you couldn't send me one single text message to let me know. Rude, Lucy, rude."
"Hypocrite."
He stops and the outrage is so comical I could laugh. "Excuse me?"
"You didn't come home the other night; I got no text."
"First of all, I did text to let you know I would be out, second of all, I'm a grown ass man, there's no need to be worried about whether I've been raped or not."
The word is like a cold bucket of ice, it stings, it's a harsh slap and I see red as I stand up and fling the comforter back. Suddenly, I'm covered, head to toe in a crawling sensation, I can't see, I can't hear my own thoughts. "Fuck you."
Dad watches me barge past him, heading for the shower, his jaw is on the floor but I'm too sick to stop and acknowledge the hurt on his face. I slam the bathroom door, turn on the shower and throw up, as quietly as I can, in the toilet.
"Lucy," he pounds on the door. "What the hell? What did I do?!"
Tears streamline down my cheeks, empty stomach vomit stings my nose and burns my throat as I drag myself into the shower, clothed. He continues banging, demanding to know what he could've possibly done to upset me so much.
"Leave me alone," I scream.
Rape. Rape. Rape.
The word makes me gag and more bile comes up, swirling around the drain hole.
You're so beautiful, Lucy. Can't fight me off this time. Shut up, shut up.
"Lucy Lahey, open the fucking door and talk to me."
"I hate you."
I hate him, the one whose hands are all over me, fingertips digging into my skin, his voice in my ear and his breath on my skin.
