Her lip trembles, and where I’d usually crumble at the first sign of tears, I refuse to let her emotionally blackmail me.
She pulls at one of the sleeves on her sweatshirt, exposing her wrist, and that’s when I see the marks. I lean over, gently take her arm and push the material up; fresh bruising and finger marks.
“Naomi, you can take this to the police. I’ll come with you. You won’t be alone.”
Pulling her arm away, she pulls her shirt back over her wrist, shaking her head. “They won’t do anything. There’s no point.”
I don’t get it. I really need to talk to Olly. Maybe he has some more insight because this is confusing as fuck.
“Will you at least stay and have one drink with me?”
Nodding my head, I stand up. “Yeah, your usual?”
“Yes, please, babe.”
I refrain from rolling my eyes. What I thought was a term of endearment before only makes me annoyed now.
While I’m waiting at the bar, I type out a quick text to Olly.
Me: Hey, man. Can I ask if you know why a victim of abuse will stay with their abuser rather than leave or go to the police?
Maybe it’s a naïve question. After all, my mum didn’t leave our father. If it weren’t for fear of upsetting her, I’d ask her, but I wouldn’t want her to think I was victim shaming. Hell, we lived with him, too. We know what he was capable of, and she had four children to take care of. The only one to blame was him.
“Hey, what can I get you, darling?” the petite blonde behind the bar asks.
“Can I get a G and T and a coke, please?”
She nods and reaches for some glasses.
Olly: It’s complicated, but a lot of the time, it can be like Stockholm syndrome. Or it could be deeper depending on her past. Is this about Naomi?
Me: Yeah
“That’ll be nine pounds, please,” she says, sliding over the drinks.
I pull out a tenner. “Thanks, keep the change.” She smiles, and I return it with one of my own.
Olly: I’ll send you a link for her if she wants to have a look. It offers advice and help.
Me: Thanks, man.
I stuff my phone back in my pocket and return to Naomi.
“Thank you,” she says, bringing the glass to her lips and taking a small sip.
Pulling my phone out, I put it beside my drink, tracing the glass condensation with my index finger.
“So, I have this friend, he has a lot to do with support groups and charities. He sent me a link. I think you should take a look,” I say, grabbing my phone and forwarding the link to her.
“Okay, I’ll look, but not now.”
I nod. “Fair enough.”
“Are you seeing someone else, is that why you said there’s nousanymore?”
No, there’s not anyone else, even though Violet suddenly comes to mind.
“Naomi, I promised I would never become anything like my dad, he was a cheat, and he was abusive. You made me into one of those things, and that’s a hard no for me.” I look around, but no one is paying us any mind. “I’m not trying to hurt you. You’re already going through enough. Even under the circumstances, I refuse to be anything like him. Please try to understand.”
