You Just Think You Know Me

The Move To NC

To me, even though I was only seven, moving to NC – meant having a new start. Everything was going great, my mom and Johnny got married, I was going to a new school, and had new friends. I loved the trailer we lived in, because there was a nice creek across the road. Shortly after moving to Lincolnton, Hurricane Hugo hit. The trailer we were in at the time, got completely flooded. Which in turn, caused us to have to move.

We moved into a nice house on Monroe St. in Lincolnton. Moving meant changing schools again, which was fine with me, I wasn't attached to anyone at the other school yet. I started attending S. Ray Lowder school, where I met a girl named Monya. My assigned seat was in front of her. Back then, I had hair that was so blonde it was almost white. Monya fell in love with my hair, and wouldn't stop playing with it. I went home that day and told my mom some colored girl was playing with my hair, and wouldn't stop! Come to find out, Monya also went home that day and told her mom, a new white girl started school, and that she had beautiful hair. Needless to say, we became favorite friends. (I'd say best friends, but we always told everyone we were favorite friends!) When she wasn't at my house, I was at hers. We were inseparable! She would spend hours braiding my hair. She was and still is the definition of a true friend. She has no idea how much she helped save me over the years, just by being there.

A couple months went by, and we found an auction to start going to. I loved going there, because there were lots of kids. That is also where I met my best friend Diane. She was one year older than me, and we got along so good. She had a brother whose name was Richard, he was the same age as me, and I really liked him. He quickly became my first boyfriend, at the same time, Diane and my brother Nick was also boyfriend and girlfriend. We went to the auction every weekend, sometimes we sold stuff, and sometimes we just went to buy stuff. One night at the auction, when we were there, a man that had never been there showed up. We didn't think nothing about it, because new people came all the time. My brothers, Diane and her brother, and myself would always go outside to play. This man sat in the back where the door was. Of course, us being kids, we would run in and out all night long. Our parents made us come in to eat, and we all decided to sit in the back. We only sat there so we could run outside as soon as we got done eating. Diane and Richard finished eating first, and went outside. Which only left my brother Nick and me inside until we got done. That strange man was also still sitting in the back as well. This guy started talking to my brother, as we were finishing up eating. I wanted to hurry up and get outside, so I was running to throw away my trash, when all of the sudden this strange man grabbed me and asked where was I going so fast. I was scared, and said, "Outside to play with my friends, let me go!" He didn't listen, he just kept holding me, and then he touched me through my clothes. My brother started running to the front of the auction to tell my mom; when the man realized what my brother was doing, he dropped me, then ran outside and left. My brother told my mom and Johnny that some strange man touched sissy on her private spot. When they came to the back of the auction, I was curled up in a ball crying uncontrollably. Johnny went outside to try and find him, when he couldn't find him, we left to go home and call the police. When the police got there, they had me use a doll to tell them what the man did to me. Once I told them and they left, I then finally told my mom and Johnny about what Mark had done to me. They were horrified, they called my granny, and the police in Ware Shoals where it happened. Come to find out, they claimed nothing could be done because there was no evidence, just my in-depth detail of everything that happened. When I found out nothing could be done, I was devastated. After all this time, Mark was right. My mom was hurt, and nothing was going to happen to him. A few days later, we also learned nothing was going to happen to this strange man either. I felt so alone and scared. What if it happened again? What was I doing to cause these men to do these things to me? My mom and Johnny started taking a metal bat with them to the auction, just in case this man showed his face anymore, even though he was barred from the auction. Life went on for a little bit after that. Diane and I became inseparable; if she wasn't spending the night with me, I was with her. I never could figure out why she wanted to spend the night at my house, more than she wanted us to stay at hers. That is until I stayed over one night and we decided to sleep in the living room. Her dad Fred, would wait until we were asleep and then he would come into where we were sleeping and slip his hand down the front of my pants and finger me until he got himself off. I always pretended like I was asleep, because I was afraid; and given my past, I knew nothing would happen to him. This abuse went on for years, and I still never told anyone; not even Diane, even though I believe she was molested by him as well. Once I turned 10, I tried not to go over there as much, but at the same time, I was scared for my friend.