The two made their way into the meeting room, the blonde anxiously awaiting. That one morning in which they had interacted had stuck with her each day. After the previous night with Roger all she wished to do was listen to Vivian ramble on about her week and Jamie. Anything to distract her from the memories.
Both of them took a seat on two couches opposite each other but within close proximity so they weren't separated from one another. A smile crept across Vivian's lips as she stared at the woman before her. The relief that overtook her entire body the moment she saw Siobhan's face this morning was overwhelming. There was always a fear in her heart for the woman although she didn't know the full extent of her struggles. The blonde had scarcely touched on the subject, informing her of Roger's controlling and manipulative ways. It reminded her all to well of her ex wife. Seeing the way that Siobhan flinched at any sudden movement made her heart shatter into a thousand tiny little pieces. She only wished she could feel safe enough to truly open up to her, to let her in.
"How have you been Bon Bon?" an innocent sounding question yet it brought so much panic to the blonde. Typically she would lie through her teeth stating she was fine but something about Vivian it made her feel as if she could share how she really felt.
"I... i'm-" flashes of the night before ran through her mind and refused to leave. She tried a desperately to get her words out but the lies just simply would not escape her lips. She wasn't thinking straight and she knew it but a sudden surge of confidence flowers through her. "Viv do you promise me whatever I say here stays between us?" she awkwardly fidgeted with her ring in defeat.
"Of course I wouldn't dream of doing that to you. I've got you." she didn't want to push any boundaries but she slowly leant forward, making the pair closer to show she was truly listening to whatever she had to say.
Siobhan tried to speak but it was as if somebody had turned a tap on as her eyes poured with tears. She felt ridiculous, the humiliation was unbearable but she couldn't stop. All of her pent up emotion was pouring out in front of Vivian as she desperately tried to hold it together. Her hands shot up to her face to cover the sobbing expression on her face. She just wanted to sink into the floor and forget that this ever happened.
Vivian instantly ran over to her, kneeling down in the space before her bringing her hands into her own. Slowly the blonde allowed for her to take her hands away from her face, her eyes red as her makeup began to wash away. Her lips quivered aggressively as she tried to hard to fight the sobs threatening to escape her lips.
"Hey hey let it out Shibs. I've got all the time in the world take your time. I'm here for you, you don't have to hide yourself from me I would never judge you" the blonde had never heard her voice sound so soft, it comforted her in ways she couldn't understand herself. Vivian lifted one of her hands to tuck her hair behind her ear gently, a sympathetic grin plastered on her face. "Whatever has happened you can tell me, you can trust me Siobhan" hearing the words come out of her mouth made the blonde cry even further because she knew she could trust her. She was just petrified, utterly petrified of what would happen if she places her trust in someone once again. The last time she trusted someone she ended up in the abusive relationship she now found herself trapped in. Deep down she knew Vivian would never do something like that to her but the question still lingered of what if?
"I don't know what to do Viv. I can't keep living like this. Everything hurts. I can't even walk properly I look ridiculous. It's humiliating" she choked on her sobs as the confession poured from her mouth.
The other woman's gaze softened from the previous concerned look which overtook her face. She had known this was coming, she had noticed the limp in which Siobhan had recently adopted and instantly knew. She understood never to bring it up with her and let it come out in its own time. Rage bubbled up inside her but she refused to let it show, in this moment she would be there for her... friend.
"Oh babe. I am so sorry. You don't deserve a single thing of what this man is doing to you. Who could want to hurt such a beautiful soul? You have so much love in you Siobhan I can feel it, he's a prick for not noticing how lucky he got." her eyes locked on the baby blues of the blondes before her she watched Siobhan's gaze switch. Beautiful soul. Beautiful soul..? This was a new phenomenon for her, people had always adored her looks, her figure, her face. Never her soul. The girl she was inside. "We need to get you out of there" the tone of her voice gradually getting more serious.
"I can't. Viv I don't know what to do. He's everywhere. He knows everything I do everything I say there's no escaping. You don't know what he will do to me if he finds ou-" her rambling got interrupted by the sound of her phone pinging aggressively. One. Two. Three. Four. Eight? She was beginning to lose count of how many notifications came through purely because of the sheer speed in which they came in. Her breath hitched as the texting stopped but was soon followed by the sound of her ringtone.
Her eyes darted towards Vivian, fear evident within them as the inner corners of her eyebrows drew up in panic.
She couldn't breathe.
It was as if the breath was snatched from her lungs as she panicked. Her breaths were swift and uneasy. Vivian had had far too much experience with panic attacks. She knew all too well what Siobhan was going through right now. Although she knew the woman hated physical touch it was the only way in which she knew how to help her.
Swiftly she shot up and sat on the space next to Siobhan on the couch. She embraced her into a warm hug keeping her breathing stable and regulated so the blonde could copy her. She rubbed her hands slowly up and down her back to attempt to soothe her.
"Copy my breathing okay? Slowly in. And out. You can do it." the reassurance from the woman cause Siobhan to calm down. She tried with all her might to match her breathing but the task was much more difficult than she had expected it to be. "See you've got it. You're okay Siobhan. You're safe. He can't get to you here" it took the blonde roughly 5-10 minutes to properly calm herself from the panic that coursed through her veins.
Reality began to settle in her bones as she realised what she had just done, what she had said. She had put the one person she truly loved in danger, god knows what Roger would do to her if he ever found out about their meetings. Vivian knew too much and that would be her downfall. She couldn't allow that to happen, she had a whole life ahead of her, she had a son to raise. She took a deep, shaky breath.
"I'm sorry. That was unprofessional of me. I would really appreciate it if you could keep this between us it won't happen again I can assure you." her usual cold demeanour seeped out as she tried so desperately to push Vivian away.
"I know what you're doing and it's not going to work Shibs. I'm here to stay you can't push me away that fast." Vivian could see straight through her it was as if they were interlinked. She understood her on a level nobody ever could.
"Please Viv... I can't let you get hurt I shouldn't have told you anything. I've put you in more danger than you know" the panic began to rise up in her again as she knew she wasn't going to back down. She knew her far too well for that.
"I'm not going to let this insecure, arrogant man child control your life any longer. He cannot keep getting away with this. I know it's not going to happen straight away but I will get you out of here I promise you that" she would keep that promise even if it was the last thing that she did in this lifetime.
"I don't deserve your kindness... I must go now he will only grow angrier if I ignore him any longer. It was a pleasure to see you today Viv. Thank you for everything" she got up from her seated position, fixing her makeup in the mirror that adorned the wall in front of her.
"You deserve the world Siobhan. Remember you always have my number if you need me. If you ring I will be there in an instant." she nodded towards her and the blonde nodded back in agreement before exiting the room slowly followed by Vivian.
She walked out in the car park to return to her car only to be met by Roger. His icy cold gaze staring daggers into her soul.
