"Tessa. Tessa baby wake up" I hear echoing from the corner of my mind.
"Tessa!" I hear, closer this time, as my body floats over sickening waves of water. Am I still drowning?
"Tessa, please!" I hear again. This time directly into my ear. The floating sensation is replaced with a shaking, as the feelings of sickness, pain, and misery come rushing back.
My eyes shoot open to find Zed within inches of my face, tears in his eyes. I feel just as bad as I did when I passed out. After Dan...
My eyes go wide as I search the room for the man who tried to kill me.
"What's going on? I thought you left but your phone location said you were still here. What happened to you and Steph?" Zed asks frantically, wiping the vomit from my arm as I struggle to keep my eyes open, still desperately searching for Dan.
"How did you two get so drunk?" A voice asks next to me. Using all my energy my weak body has to offer, I turn my head slightly to see a nearly passed out Steph leaning against Tristan. She can barely open her eyes, let alone sit up right or speak, and alarmingly resembles a zombie.
"Seriously. We come up to find you locked in here, your toga barely on you. Don't worry though, nobody saw," Zed reassures me, doing his best to clean the vomit from my hair.
I look down to see I am now longer naked. A purple sheet now covers me - Dan must have draped me with it.
A wave of intense nausea hits me hard as I remember his hands on me, and I only have a second to lean my head further sideways before I projectile vomit onto the floor.
"Jesus Tessa, I think we need to take you to the hospital" Zed says, concern and disgust both apparent in his suggestion. Using the pillowcase as a towel, Zed quickly walks over to my other side to clean my face.
"Dude watch the glass on the floor" Tristan warns, as Zed nearly steps on a large shard of the broken glass bottle. Then, Zed completely freezes, his eyes on the bottle.
"Where did you get this?" Zed asks me, picking up the torn piece of the beer label. My eyes still struggle to stay open as my body tries to reject the immense amount of Everclear in my system, and I can't seem to answer him.
"Tessa, was Dan here? Did he do this?" Zed asks, furious lines breaking over his face as his fists clench.
"Yeah" is all I can manage, before another stream of vomit explodes from my mouth and nose, drenching my hair once more.
"I'll fucking kill him!" Zed screams, before scooping me up, the motion almost excruciating as my head spins.
"What?" Tristan asks, doing the same with Steph's limp body, my eyes barely focusing on her messy, red braid. The one Jace nearly ripped from her head.
"You know Dan only drinks this shit," he says gesturing to the broken bottle. "He did something to them. After we take them to the hospital, I'm going to find him and fucking KILL HIM," Zed seethes, finally opening the door as the music blares into the room, my feet nearly swinging into the door frame.
Just before we leave, as Zed turns my body through the doorway, my eyes land on the barely ajar closet - and a pair of blue eyes and a sinister smile, all too happy to have gotten away with his latest crime.
-
"She should wake up soon. We've given her medicine for the nausea and fluids to counteract the alcohol and hangover symptoms," a pleasant, soft voice says.
"Thank you."
Now that voice I know - Zed.
My eyes flutter open, the brightness of the room overwhelming my vision as my head throbs.
I am in a hospital room. Zed is in the chair next to me, his head in his hands.
How did I end up here?
One minute I was with Steph, drinking margaritas and the next I am here. My mind is fuzzy and my body aches like I have the flu.
"Tessa!" Zed says, letting out an exasperated sigh.
"Zed. What's going?" I ask, confused and slightly scared. Looking over my body, it seems fine. No bruises, bumps, or cuts. Just a lingering smell of something foul.
"You don't remember?" Zed asks softly, his hand on my cheek, caressing me softly.
"No. I was at the party with you. And Steph. Now I'm... here?" I say, looking around the room, my eyes landing on a clock that reads 7:32am.
"Tessa, I'm going to ask you something and I don't want you to get upset. I'm right here," Zed coos, grabbing my hand.
"Okay" I say apprehensively.
"Did you see Dan last night?" he asks cautiously, his eyes almost fearful.
"Dan? I don't think..." I begin to answer, when foggy memories of Steph in the closet and me on a bed come flooding back.
"Wait, maybe" I continue, closing my eyes and fighting to remember.
"Hardin took half their stash"
"They didn't care about Hanya's Death"
"Dan and Jace are here"
"Here you go ladies, drink up"
"...start our photoshoot shall we"
"I bet you like that"
I cannot help the sob that rips from my chest - followed by a sharp, guttural scream. All I can do is scream. I remember what happened, not all of it but enough. I was raped last night - by Dan.
"Tessa, you're okay" I hear Zed say next to me. He is trying to keep it together, trying to be strong, but the fear in his eyes can't be hidden. As the tears fall from his dark eyes, I see he already knows what he hopes is not true.
I let the screams and sobs rack my body, my heart and mind too broken to cope with the after-effects of being so violently assaulted.
Finally, a nurse rushes in, yelling to someone behind her. Looking up, I see her grab my IV back, injecting something into the line as my body quickly begins to calm.
"This should calm you down. What is going on sweetheart?" the nurse asks, as the urge to fall asleep washes over me.
She grabs my hand, Zed moving out of the way so she can get to me.
"Do you need to tell me something? Did something happen to you last night?" she asks, her voice soft but knowing. Perhaps she has seen this before.
I nod, not even wanting to admit what happened. I feel dirty even thinking it. As if I am too tainted and embarrassed to say.
"Did somebody hurt you? Touch you?" she asks in a low voice, clasping her other hand over mine.
I look away, my mind screaming not to acknowledge what happened. But I nod anyways.
"Okay honey, I'm going to get our social worker in here if you're comfortable, and we can help you" I hear her say, as my body seems to shut off.
I nod, and soon begin what will be some of the hardest hours of my life.
YOU ARE READING
AFTER THERE'S YOU // ZESSA
Fanfiction"'Tessa, he's manipulating you. Still! He's abusive can't you see that?' Zed yells from across the room. I have a feeling this time he's right." What if Tessa hadn't gone back to Hardin in "After We Collided" and instead decided to live for herself...
