Chapter Seven

I woke up to feel a hand rubbing up and down on my arm, gently, “Karenile,” a voice said. I jumped, startled scared to see that it was another rapist, “ It’s OK, it’s OK,” he was trying to calm me down.

“You came back for me?” I asked.

“I said I would.”

“But you didn’t come, before he raped me,” I pointed out, while tears started to drip down and onto my bra. “Listen, I’m supposed to be in here to have sex with you, right? Well, I’m here to get you out, OK? You have to be quiet. We’re gonna go out that window right there,” he instructed. He opened a bedside drawer and in it, he found a key. He placed them in the keyhole of the handcuffs. He unlocked my right hand first, then he put his body over me to reach for the left side. His hard chest was in my face and he was close enough for me to smell his cologne. He looked down at me, before he placed the key in the cuff. There was something in his eyes. Love or protection? I couldn’t like this guy just because he’s helping me escape out of here. What was I thinking? “ Thank you,” I said.

“ Don’t thank me. I don’t deserve it,” he pleaded.

“Why? You’re helping me get out of here,” I explained.

“But I was here with the rest of them, last night,” he said. He disconnected the connection with our eyes and reached over and unlocked my other arm. I let my arms down and they were sore. They hurt, badly. He was still on top of me, trying to get off. I reached for him and I hugged him and laid my head on his chest. I felt his head touch mine and he placed his hand on my head and ran his hand over my hair. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered. Tears started to fall onto his shirt. “It’s OK,” I looked up at him and I don’t know I just couldn’t help myself. I kissed him. And it was a good one too. It was different. Even different from Jake’s kiss. I grabbed him and really got engaged in the kiss. I turned him over onto his back and started kissing him harder than I started off with in the beginning. “Hey, hey, hey,” I interrupted, “ We can’t do this,” I reminded him, “You’re supposed to be helping me out of here. We’re not supposed to be having a makeout session, you know. Even though I would like to, but we can’t,” I said. I got up off of him and directed him to the window.

“ I’m sorry, but I don’t know there’s just something about you and it’s not your body like Devin and BJ see. I know that’s all they see,” he said.

“Just get me out and may be we can talk later,” I said.

“I like that plan. Come on,” he lifted up the window and he helped me out of the window.

“ Look I live down the street. Come to my house and I’ll get you back to yours, OK? I can drive you back. Does that sound fine?”

“Yeah.”

    We showed up at his house and he grabbed his phone and car keys. We got in the car and we drove off. “May I borrow your phone, so I can cancel all my credit cards?”

“ Yeah,” he handed me his phone, while he was driving me to my house, “ Do what you need to do and if you need help getting anything, please let me know,” he added. I called and got my credit cards cancelled. Once, I got off the phone, I noticed that he had missed the exit to get off of to get to my house, “ Hey where are you going?” I asked him.

“ I’m going to buy you a new phone. Please, let me,” he said.

“Why do you care so much about me?” I wondered.

“ Look, I don’t know, but what I do know is that I owe you from last night.” I turned in my seat to where I could face him. May be I could read a little more of his facial expressions more than his words. See a little bit more behind his words. Understand him more. “Can you really tell me what happened last night? From the beginning? Please, because I’m lost,” I said.

“ Well, you came in and Devin um, rolled you a blunt. You took it and finished it off by yourself. Then Devin offered you a drink and BJ brought you one and Devin tossed you over his shoulder and from there, he took you to the room where you woke up this morning,” he told me. He wasn’t telling me the rest, because I know I do remember seeing a vaccination shot in front of me, “ OK, then what happened?”

“ BJ was telling me and the boys that we should all get to smash you in one night,” he explained. “Do you remember BJ sticking me with something?”

“ Yes. He gave you Xanax. He didn’t want you to remember anything, because he didn’t want you to go back and tell anyone what went on that night,” he said. I shook my head in disbelief and turned back around and looked out the window.

“ Tell me something. Did you?”

“ Did I what?”

“ Get your chance with me? Please be honest with me,” I pleaded.

“ Yes. I mean I kinda had to, because BJ and Devin were there, so I couldn’t make myself look like a scare, you know?”

“And you didn’t want to do the right thing either, huh?” I pointed out. I started crying. Frustration started boiling back up into my body, “ I’m sorry, I just, I just don’t understand how you want to help me now, but when it came to last night, you didn’t think twice did you?”

“ No. Look I was messed up, alright? I know I did wrong, OK? You don’t have to tell me that. Really, I’m probably gonna get high tonight, so I don’t have to think about as much.” I reached over and ran my hand over his face, “ Don’t get mad, please,” I said calmly. I couldn’t believe this, the only person that I would’ve ever comforted like this would have to be Jake, so why am I sitting here comforting this guy? One, I don’t even know his name and two we just met. This was crazy!

He looked at me, sincerely, “ I’m not mad. I’m just so sorry, Karenile.”

“I forgive you,” I said. I took my hand back and sat back and closed my eyes.

     “We’re here,” he woke me when we got to the cellular store. “Oh’ my gosh, I fell asleep, I’m so sorry,” man you could tell I was tired and exhausted.

“I don’t blame you. If I was being abused like you were, then I would be doing the same.”

“ I rather not talk about that, please,” I said. It’s like every waking moment the subject comes up.

“ Alright,I’m sorry. Let’s go get you a phone,” he suggested.

   Turned out that the phone that he bought me was an expensive one, so he must’ve really wanted me to stop being mad at him and the world. He pulled up to my driveway and put the car in park. I sat there in silence, not knowing what I should say. I wanted to reach over and kiss him again, but that I believe would be too much. May be that would give him the wrong impression. What if I just ask him to come in? Would that be worse than reaching over and giving him a peck? “Hey, do you wanna come in?” I asked.

“ Sure, why not?” he turned off the ignition and I walked him to the front door.

“ OK, so this is the living room,” I showed him the living room. I lead him to the kitchen, “ And this is the kitchen. Are you hungry? Can I get you something to eat? Drink?” I offered.

“What do you have?” he asked. He was standing around like he didn’t want to sit down because he didn’t know if that would be polite or rude of himself. “ Well, I have water,” I went to open the refrigerator, “ Um, sweet tea and one last can of Dr.Pepper,” I listed.

“ Well, I’ll take some good oh’ southern sweet tea.”

“ Alright. Please, take a seat. Make yourself at home. Take your shoes off if you want, it doesn’t matter to me,” I said.

“Wow, but I’ll leave my shoes on,” he laughed.

“That’s fine.” I fixed him the sweet tea and lead him to the living room. I sat down on the couch and patted the cushion to indicate that I wanted him to come and sit with me. I did, I really did. I wanted that moment again, like when we he rescued me from BJ. When our lips were touching and his hands being so gentle on my body. He sat the glass of tea on the coffee table in front of us. I placed my hand on his back as he was bending over to place the glass on the table and I moved my hand around, to show some love to him. He turned his head to look back at me and gave me a smile. He turned his muscular body to me and while he laying on his back, he pulled me on top of him. 

 “ You’re so beautiful,” he complimented. 

I reached down for a kiss and not for a second did I want him to let go of me or my lips. I started crying, because it felt so good to be loved at a time of hate, war, and violence. He wiped the tear from my cheek. He caressed my arms and from there he took off my shirt. Not rough, but in a loving and gentle way. I have never felt so loved and protected throughout my life of living.