Lonely Hearts Meeting

Chapter 20 - Guilty or Not guilty?

Trigger warning//Sexual coercion 

Flashback

"Taylor" His voice is pleading, despite her having already said no - reminding him how exhausted she is at the moment. 

"Adam, please. Tomorrow I promise" She tries to walk away, she's scared. He seems slightly out of it and it hurts her to realise she doesn't feel safe with her own boyfriend right now. 

"Y'know what good girlfriends do Taylor? No, of course you wouldn't. Because you're a bad girlfriend." Her back is turned to him so she squeezes her eyes shut, would never admit how much it hurts to hear him say that. Because she tries so hard for him, but these days she feels as though nothing she does is enough. "Well because you don't know, I'll tell you. A good girlfriend pleases her man, in every way possible. Sex is a given, I shouldn't have to fight you for it Taylor." She hadn't realised how close he'd been standing to her until she feels his fingers on her waist. She flinches, actually flinches from his touch. 

"Adam, I'm so tired. You know how crazy my work has been these past few weeks. It wouldn't be any good anyway, I have no energy." She feels his lips on her neck and her blood runs cold, he'd never actually...would he?

"Then let me make you feel better. I know I can. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy it." She doesn't want to do that, she just wants to go to bed and watch TV before she has to go back to work tomorrow. But she really does want to please him, he's being so persistent. 

"Tomorrow, I promise." She tries again and he backs away, clearly in a rage. 

"Damn it Taylor! Here I am, offering you such a nice thing tonight and you're choosing to be a petty bitch about it?! What, because you're slightly too tired?" He yells, furious that his girlfriend isn't participating with this. Taylor doesn't remember when things got like this, when he'd get so furious over a simple no. It hadn't always been like this, he used to pamper her after these long weeks - run her a bath or just cuddle with her in front of the TV. But then something changed and she can't figure out why. She loves him, of course she does. She'd do anything for him, but she had been hoping for a little understanding tonight. 

"I'm sorry." She whispers, flinching as he throws a glass to the ground. He'd scared her before, but nothing quite like this. She wants to run, but she has nowhere to go and she wants to figure this out. She craves what they had before all of this, she misses that Adam. 

"Sorry isn't good enough Taylor. I had expectations, but no whatever - you're tired." She feels bad suddenly, like she'd implied something and hadn't been willing to follow through on. Adam still stands in front of her, clearly still waiting for her to change her mind. Taylor steps through the broken glass, doing her best to avoid being cut. She cups his cheeks, pressing her lips to his - trying to calm him down. She doesn't want him to feel angry, or let down by her. 

"Okay, I'm sorry. Maybe we can do something..." Immediately as she says those words, his anger evaporates, replaced by a rather terrifying grin. His arms wind around her waist. It's supposed to feel nice but she just feels her skin crawl. How had she gone from an adamant no to a yes? That's a little odd she thinks but just goes with it, she doesn't want to see that side of Adam again. Just this once she'll let him drive this. 

"Now because of your behaviour tonight, I expect a whole lot of special treatment." He whispers in her ear, grabbing her hand and leading her over to the couch. Almost immediately he's on top of her, roughly kissing her and taking off her clothes. She's supposed to be enjoying this she realises, but she's so tired - that's must be why this feels so wrong. She just wants to please him, and hopefully that's what he'll feel tonight. She can take a bit of discomfort for him, she loves him. 

She remembers that night so vividly now as she's filing into the courtroom, Joe's hand firmly around hers. She feels him squeeze her hand twice before letting go, both of them finding their seats. He's right behind her and she feels comforted knowing that he's just there, no matter what this verdict is. That memory is something she'd thought about since it happened, because she'd never been able to figure out what was wrong with it, it had just hurt. That is until now. Now she can pick out everything wrong with it, from the very beginning. How she'd let that happen every single time. Of course he hadn't technically assaulted her, but she wonders if she'd never ended up saying yes - would he have just rolled his eyes and made her do it anyway? What would've happened during their relationship if she hadn't been so agreeable? 

Taylor finds herself holding her breath as the judge appears.

"Have the jury made their decision?" The words echo around in Taylor's head, so much so that she barely hears the answer. As the juror stands up, Taylor clasps her hands firmly together. This is the moment that is going to change her entire life, no matter the result. 

"We on the jury find the defendant..." The pause feels like an eternity. "Guilty, on all charges." 

Taylor wants to cry, it feels like an out-of-body experience - has she seriously just won? 

"The defendant will be sentenced to two years in jail with a no-contact charge and a restraining order upon his release. That is all." The judge slams her hammer down and people begin chatting and leaving the room. She stands up, breathing a sigh of relief, finally she can heal from this. Joe's arms are immediately around her, his face holding the same amount of relief as hers does. She's free - they can do whatever they want now. They can start a life together. She can make her own choices, be her own person. God she didn't even realise how trapped she'd been feeling until right now. 

After her lawyers explain some of the finer details about her victory, she's able to leave. Joe's standing just outside the room, waiting for her with a huge grin on his face. She throws her arms around his neck, excited that she can now do so freely. Joe's arms wrap around her waist and tears begin streaming down her face, it's been an emotional day. 

"You did it love, you did it." He murmurs into her ear. 

"I couldn't have done it without you." She squeezes him a little tighter. 

"How do you want to celebrate?" He pulls back to look at her, gently wiping away her tears. 

"I'm honestly so tired, can we just go home and have a glass of wine or something?" She knows it's not that exciting for him - considering they've been locked indoors for so long now. 

"Of course we can, we'll order takeout and watch a movie and know we don't need to draw the blinds anymore." He gently kisses her forehead and she blushes. She's finally with someone who understands her, who allows her to just simply exist as his partner - she doesn't have to go above and beyond for him to be happy. She likes the simplicity of what they have. 

"That sounds perfect." She smiles, relieved. She presses her lips to his before they make their way out of the courthouse. It's a place she never wants to visit again, but she's so glad he'd helped her come here. That she'd been given the chance to speak her truth and now, she's free. 

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I'm sorry this took me so long to update! I've been swamped with uni work. This is NOT the end just yet, I've got some more for you guys but just be patient with me! Thank you so much for reading this far <3