Before You, He Had Me

Ten

⚠️TW// high ⚠️
(SA, descriptive)

"Look at your pretty complexion, that Australian sun must toast your skin just right to be this pretty." Meg flinches as his rough fingers slide across her collarbone.

"Stop. Please." She begs.

"I told you, sweetheart, I make the rules." His voice is sickening as he drops his lips close to her ear, her back already pressed against the wall with no way to escape.

"I'll scream!" She threatens more boldly than she feels.

"No one will hear you, the music is too loud. Besides, if you scream I will bash your head against the wall. Shut the fuck up I'm trying to enjoy this." His hand moves to grip her neck as he threatens her, staying loose enough that she can breath but tight enough to scare her into submission.

"Now where was I?" He chuckles darkly, his knee pushing between her thighs hard to separate them. A sob falling from her lips as his hand touches her underwear.

"Shut up." He tightens his fingers around her neck as he gets angry, yanking her panties away easily as he does.

"Please!" She sobs, "Don't."

"I said shut up!" His hand and in turn her neck yanking forward.

Meg startles as someone grabs her arm softly, shooting up into the dark room, her breathing labored as she tries to figure out where she is. Her head was about to connect with the wall, she could feel it coming, but it doesn't hurt, and no one is touching her neck or between her legs.

"Meg." She startles again, turning to see the shadow of Michael sitting beside her, even in the dark his eyes looking panicked.

"You scared me." She sighs, her shoulders relaxing slightly.

"I scared you?" He frowns, reaching over to turn on the lamp, "I'm headed to bed after being online gaming with Calum and Brian and I walk past your room to hear you crying out in these terrified ways. What were you dreaming about?"

"It was just a nightmare. Everyone gets them sometimes. Sorry if I freaked you out." She shrugs him off, turning to look at her lap instead of him.

"You know you can talk to me, right? We're as close as anyone but I feel like you're hiding something from me, and I'm worried."

"I'm fine, Mike, I promise. Just overworking myself and afraid to lose this opportunity so I'm working myself up and having nightmares."

"You're okay?" He asks more blatantly.

"I'm fine."

"Don't overdo it okay? Make sure you're taking care of yourself too."

"I know. I will." She nods. "I'm really tired though, can I go back to sleep now?"

"Ya, sorry. I just had to check on you."

"I appreciate it." She nods, leaning over to hug him tightly.

"Whatever's on your mind, I'm always here to listen."

"I know. Right now I want to sleep though."

"Just yell if you need anything."

"I'm twenty-two not two anymore." She laughs.

"Always my little Meg though."

"Ya. I'll see you tomorrow okay?"

"Good night, Meg."

"Night, Mike." She smiles, rolling to turn off the lamp as he leaves the room.

Laying on her back in the dark she can't help but feel uneasy, the memory fresh in her mind again after the nightmare. Waiting a good five minutes of focused breathing, she rolls over to grab her phone, hitting call on Calum's contact without a second thought.

"Meg?" He seems shocked as he answers.

"I had. I had a nightmare about it again. And I, I can't seem to catch my breath." She pants quietly.

"Meg, this isn't healthy. You need to tell Michael and Crystal what's going on. I'm not going to be your call boy for nightmares and anxiety attacks. You don't even like me." He sighs, before taking a deep breath, "breath in. One, two, three, four. Hold. Hold. Hold. Hold. Breath out. One, two, three, four. Hold. Hold. Hold. Hold." He repeats the breathing with her slowly for a few minutes until he can hear her easing up through the receiver pressed to his ear.

"Thank you." She whispers as he hears her take a deep and mostly steady breath.

"You need to talk to someone, Meg, I can't be your hero. You need real help, a therapist, a support system. Not just me. I'm one person, one person you hated for eighteen years until this happened. You need to put your trust in people you have liked for your whole life, or at least as long as you've known them. Michael's not going to blame you for what happened to you."

"I'm not worried about that, Calum. I'm worried about being babied and treated like I'm broken."

"What's wrong with being a little bit broken, it just means you're admitting you need help. It's okay to let this situation break you a little bit. And the longer you hold that off, the bigger the break will be. I can't be your hero anymore, Megan. You have to rely on someone else. I'm not saying I won't be there if something happened to trigger you. But I can't be the one and only person who knows anything about your assault. I just can't."

"I can't tell anyone else. It's been over a week and a half... they'll be upset I kept it a secret. They'll baby me. They'll want me to be pursuing it more directly, despite having no leads on who did it to me other than his eyes. I just want it to go away, to forget it happened."

"It's not going to go away, Meg. It happened. I wish it hadn't but it did. And wishing it away is not going to change that. You have to face it and you have to give yourself the support team you need to do that."

"I'm not telling Mike."

"Then you're on your own, Meg. I won't step in unless I feel the need. Late night phone calls will not be a thing anymore. I got you through week one, while Michael wasn't here to be that support. But you need to let him be your go to now."

"I can't."

"You can. Bottle things up is making you afraid to open up. And you need to open this one up wide and let the burn happen so it doesn't get worse for you."

"No."

"Yes. Good night, Annie."

"Don't hang up. And don't call me Annie."

"I'm not a hero. Stop trying to make me one." He responds before the line cuts.

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Calum said I'm done playing this game...

Is he right to want her to open up? To give her the ultimatum of opening up to someone else?

Will she open up?

Vote and comment!

I love you guys!!!

~M =)