Wrong Number 💙

Chapter 18

Chris woke up in the middle of the night, finding the bed empty beside him. Concerned, he got up and went downstairs to discover the back patio door open. Stepping outside, he spotted Lennon sitting on a patio chair, lost in her thoughts. He returned inside to grab a blanket and then approached her, gently draping it around her shoulders.

"Len."

Startled, she chuckled softly. "Chris. Sorry, you scared me."

He let out a sigh, taking a seat in front of her. "You're scaring me, Len." His worry was evident in his voice.

"I'm fine, Chris."

Shaking his head, he reached out and cupped her cheek, turning her gaze to meet his. "Len..."

She placed her hand over his, her gaze avoiding his intensity. "You've stopped calling me Lenny."

He nodded, his thumb gently caressing her cheek. "Yeah, I've cut back."

Lennon acknowledged with a nod. "My dad calling me Lenny wasn't the only reason I didn't like it when you did."

Chris moved his hand away, resting it on her thigh. "I figured there was more to it. Please, talk to me."

She let out a frustrated groan, leaning her head forward until it rested against his. "Chris..."

"I love you, Lennon. Please. There's nothing you can say that will change that."

She nodded slowly, her voice strained. "I know that. But it doesn't mean I want to talk about it, or that I have to."

Chris withdrew slightly, his concern etched on his face. "I talked to Liam about Eric."

Lennon abruptly stood up, storming inside and slamming the door shut behind her.

"Dammit," Chris muttered, following her quickly. He found her in the bedroom, crawling into bed. "Len."

Lennon sat up on the bed, watching Chris stand at the edge of the bed. "You had no right to go to Liam behind my back Chris!"

He shook his head, sitting on the edge of the bed. "We love you Lennon. And we're both worried about you."

She pulled her hand away as he tried to hold it. "What did he say?"

He sighed. "Only what he knew. He said you wouldn't talk about it to anyone."

"I did. To my therapist. That's all that matters."

Chris stood up, angrily pacing. "No! That's not all that matters! You're zoning out, you're not sleeping. I love you Lennon! Please, let me in."

She shook her head, feeling sick to her stomach, "I can't talk about it Chris. Please don't make me." She watched him sit back on the bed beside her, placing his hand on her cheek. "Chris." Her voice was pleading and desperate as tears stung her eyes.

He rested his head against hers. "I'm not going anywhere Len. I love you. I'm sorry I went to Liam, but you wouldn't talk about it."

She nodded, chewing momentarily on the corner of her mouth. "What can you knowing change anything Chris?"

He sighed, resting his hands on her thighs. "It would help me understand you more. I don't want to have anything hidden between us. And I want you to feel as if you can tell me anything Lennon. Because you can." He paused for a moment before continuing, asking the question weighing on his mind. "It wasn't just Eric, was it?"

She groaned, feeling her chest tighten as she leaned away from him, pulling her knees to her chest. "What makes you think that?" He didn't say anything, only watched her as he moved closer to her cautiously. "Chris. Please."

Chris nodded with a small sigh. "Why don't you just tell me about your relationship then."

"Okay..." She swallowed hard, resting her chin on her knees. "I was 16 when I met him. He was 21. I was infatuated with dating a college guy. I got to brag to my friends about dating a hot older guy that went to Harvard. He was sweet at first. I didn't realize until later how manipulative he was. Or abusive. We dated for roughly a year. Until ... well, you know."

"And what happened that night?"

She groaned, shaking her head. "If you talked to Liam, then you know."

Chris shook his head. "Only how it ended. Not how you got there."

She shrugged, pulling away from him as she stared down at the bed. "He invited me to a party at his fraternity. I don't know what you want me to say." She stood up from the bed, pacing nervously as she felt his eyes following her.

"What happened at the party Lennon." He gently pried, his voice soft. 

"We went to his bedroom to have sex." She turned to find him watching her, waiting for her to continue, but she only shook her head. "I've never told anyone Chris."

He stood up and pulled her tightly against his chest. "Well, whenever you're ready Len."

She hesitated, tears streaming down her cheeks now. "They didn't believe me."

Chris shook his head, pulling her away to look at her as he heard her voice breaking. "Who didn't?"

She shrugged, embarrassed. "The police. The boys all stuck up for each other, closed ranks. They spun the story that I snuck into the party to get drunk and after I left, whatever happened to me was on me."

Chris groaned, swallowing down the bile in his throat. "But?"

"But what happened to me happened to me there." She pulled away from him, looking at the floor. "He took me to his room to have sex, which I was fine with. Or, drunk me was anyways. He wanted to tie my hands and blindfold me, and I didn't want to say no, so I let him." She began to pace again as she remembered that night, feeling the knots in her stomach. "Well he invited a few of his friends to take turns. I blacked out towards the end, shutting down. When they untied me, I tried to fight back, but what is a 16 year old girl against three to four grown men, I'm not even sure how many because they didn't remove the blindfold. Last thing I remember is waking up in the hospital."

"Ugh. Lennon." He couldn't control his own angry tears as he pulled her back to him, her burying her face in his chest.

"Please don't tell Liam. I never told him, or anyone." She felt him pull away, placing his hands on her cheeks gently.

"I can't have you alone with him for one. And you need to not shut me out. I love you, I only want to protect you and take care of you." He sighed as he continued. "And I can't have you not sleeping and not eating Len."

She groaned, trying to push him away, but he only held onto her tighter. "I'm not a 16 year old girl anymore Chris. I can take care of myself. I've taken self defense classes."

"I know you can. But sometimes we need other people to take care of us. I'm afraid of you spiraling, and so is Liam. He suggested you going back to therapy to have someone to talk to."

She shook her head admantly. "I don't want to. I won't shut you out. Please don't make me go back to therapy."

"Lennon. If you continue to not eat or sleep, you'll have to."

"Fine."