Fireworks 1 and 2

Jungle: Chapter Eighty-Eight

    Beyonce walked further into the room, allowing the hotel suite door to swing closed behind her. "This is a beautiful suite," she commented, surveying the living room.

    "You didn't have to come here to check up on me," Mia told her.

    "Don't be silly. Of course I did." Beyonce turned to face her. "This industry...it doesn't always make sense. Jay and I having to make ourselves scarce so we weren't associated with drama that started and ended with Trevor. I hated leaving you and Drake there that way. The whole way home, and even when I woke up this morning, I didn't feel quite right. You know? Especially considering the fact that I actually like you."

    Mia tilted her head to the side and leaned back against the kitchen counter.

    "When I say I like you, I don't mean in the bullshit industry way," Beyonce went on. "I don't mean that I'm willing to smile with you whenever someone turns a camera on us. I truly do like you. You have a spirit that is refreshing. You remind me of my friends back home in Houston. So the fact that something this horrible happened...it does weigh heavy on my heart. Leaving you last night...that weighed heavily on my heart, too. I wanted to be able to stay with you throughout everything. But the kind of lives we lead didn't really allow me to do that.

    "Even so, I did have to come and check up on you. To make sure you're okay." Beyonce gave her a once-over. "Are you? Okay, I mean."

    Mia took a deep, shuddering breath. "I'll be fine."

    Beyonce's eyes narrowed. "I know that talking about this kind of thing isn't the easiest thing to do. But keeping it bottled up will make it worse, and will probably make it more difficult for you to get past. So...you don't have to open up to me, but you should open up to someone."

    Mia lifted her eyes and looked at Beyonce. Then she glanced at the bodyguard who accompanied Beyonce. She wanted nothing more than to be able to talk to someone. It felt a little too soon to talk about it now. Her feelings were a little too raw. Talking about Trevor...even thinking about him felt like she would be summoning him back from the dead. Her mind was still processing yesterday's events. It was hard to believe that the man who'd assaulted her was no longer breathing. She sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. "Well...I guess you could say I'm having a hard time dealing with everything that happened," she replied. "The whole thing was just...bizarre to me. Why he'd be that obsessed with me...I still can't figure that out. I keep trying to, as if that will make understanding the situation any easier. But...now I hate being in a bathroom of any kind. I feel like he's going to come bursting through the door any minute, and I get...really freaked out. It's probably just a phase or something, but...I can't seem to shake it. I don't know." She looked away from Beyonce.

    "What you went through was horrifying," Beyonce told her. "You're allowed to take some time to heal." Her gaze landed on the suitcases lined up along the back of the couch. Then she lifted at the sound of Drake's voice. He was on the phone again, and his voice traveled down the hall. "I take it you're not going back home?"

    "Off to the next city. Continuing the tour."

    Beyonce nodded slowly. "It takes someone truly strong to perform despite going through something as tragic as you both have."

    "I don't feel strong," Mia said, her voice shaking. "Quite the opposite. I feel weak. Weak for allowing Trevor to get to me. Weak for not having fought him off. Weak for still letting him get to me, even though he's not even alive anymore. He'd dead, but...for some reason, it still feels like he's won. Because he's still haunting me. He's still there." She felt tears gathering in her eyes and lowered her voice to a whisper. "I go to into a bathroom, and I can't even close the door. I take a shower, but it feels like I can't wash him off of me, not completely. It feels like he's still here, still touching me." With her arms still wrapped around herself, she began rubbing up and down each arm.