Sitting at the kitchen table a little later I ask Hayley a question that I’ve been scared to ask “Where are they now? The boys that hurt you?” I ask her round a mouthful of sandwich “Well, Nathan was released but went back to prison shortly after for attempted murder. He bottled someone in a bar and almost killed him, he’s still in prison to this day, One of others died in prison, he got on the wrong side of a convicted murderer……. and the last one got released on good behaviour. It kept me up for months when he first got out, I thought he would come for me, but I’ve got a protection order in place. He can’t come anywhere near me or my house, I’ve learned to live with the fear” she says while cutting her own sandwich in half, if someone as strong as Hayley can get to the point of coping with her demons and live a full life, then it makes me feel better knowing that I have a chance to do the same.
Chapter Twelve
Staring at my phone ringing away on Reid’s bed after lunch, I swallow past the lump stuck in my throat, I can do this. Steeling my spine, I try to stop being a coward and pick up the phone “Hello” I say as I click answer “Hello, is that Becca Hughes?. Its Dr. Trent” the lady says on the other side of the line “Yes. I’m Becca” I say with a shaky voice “I’ve called for our scheduled phone appointment. Are you okay to talk for a while?” she asks. She had a kind, soft voice “Erm…. Yes, I can talk for a while” I say, I sit on the bed to stop my legs from shaking “No need to be scared Becca. We can talk about everything and nothing if you want to. We can start with getting to know each other a little bit, does that sound okay to you?” she asks. I feel relieved that she’s not going to ask me to relive what happened straight away, I need some time to come to terms with what happened to me before I can explain how I feel to a stranger.
For a while we talk about normal stuff. We talk about my dancing, she tells me she used to dance in school which makes her earn some brownie points. I tell her about Sherri and Brady, she tells me she thinks they sound like amazing friends. Finally, I tell her about Reid “He sounds like a hotty” she says making me snort “The hottest” I tell her. This is nothing like I expected, I thought she would be really clinical and impersonal. But instead, it’s like talking to another friend, she’s so open and easy to talk to “So you’re living with him and his mum right now you said?” she asks “Yes, they’ve been amazing, I feel very at home here” I tell her honestly, I kind of never want to leave, laughing to myself “Well, you’ve made me want to come visit. I need myself some new man candy and this Brady sounds like a treat” she tells me making me laugh “Yeh he’s a good one. Gavin is pretty nice to look at as well. I will tell you, I think Brady’s heart belongs to another” I still need to work on setting him and Sherri up “Oh I have no doubt. With the way you were describing them, him and Sherri should have gotten together long ago” she says “That, I completely agree with” I say laughing at how she hit the nail on the head. We talk for a while longer about our lives, all the tension leaves my shoulders when I realise I like her. She’s let me get to know things about her until I’m comfortable on the phone, it’s just what I needed. Ending the call with an appointment for next week, I feel a lot better about the prospect of talking to her about what happened, things are looking up a little for me.
It’s about damn time.
At 5:45pm Reid comes home from work asking about my day. I tell him about Sherri letting me know she couldn’t come today and that she says she will come over to annoy me tomorrow. I didn’t tell him about the conversation with his mum, that’s for her to tell him if she chooses to. Finally, I tell him about my counselling session “I’m glad
