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“Are you okay, Mia?” Malcom asks, and we all wait.
She shrugs, still looking hopeless. “Yeah, I’m okay. I’m just tired of being a victim. I’m tired of not being able to fight for myself.”
“They were five big guys,” Travis defends, but she just shrugs, still feeling helpless, I’m sure, and I know where she is coming from.
After having this happen, it plays on your mind, and I can imagine her need to defend herself.
“Well,” Danny says, “you’re okay now, and if you want a couple of nights off-”
“No,” she says quickly. “I just want things to be normal. Don’t treat me like glass, because I won’t break.”
I look at her, putting my ice pack down as I say, “Oh, we know.”
Now I just need to get her to see what strength she has, and I know exactly how to do it. I just have some phone calls to make.
CHAPTER 33
MIA
Iwrap my hands around my mug of hot chocolate, the warmth comforting me. I’ve been telling the guys and Riley all day yesterday that I'm fine, but that's a lie. I'm shaken at what happened. It wasn’t the first time a guy thought he could manhandle me like I was his and that’s what’s so bad. Do I have a sign on my head that says I’m easy to take down and hurt? I’m an easy target because I can’t defend myself?
All I’ve had is my smart mouth, and yes, that’s gotten me into trouble and I have gotten into fights before, but I’ve never been made to feel so helpless as I did that night in the bar when Laurence had me pinned. He could’ve done anything and if Riley hadn’t turned up, he would have.
I'm grateful that Riley was there, but Riley might not always be there.
I look down at my mug after telling Ava everything that happened as she sits across from me at Deb’s Diner, also with a hot chocolate and Charlie curled up, asleep in her arms. She gasps, and I look up to see a look mixed with sadness and sympathy.
Honestly, I don't know what I wanted. I don't want sympathy, but I also don't want it played off like it was nothing because it wasn’t. It didn’t feel like nothing, but I just wish it didn’t happen.
“I’m so sorry, Mia. I wish that never happened to you.” I know that if she wasn’t cradling Charlie, she would have reached across to hold my hand, so I just shrug, unsure of what else I should say.
“Unfortunately, it happens every day.” And those women don’t have Riley there to save them. My heart instantly breaks for those women.
“That doesn’t make it okay.”
I look at Ava. “I know that. That’s not what I am saying.” I run my hand through my hair, feeling frustration tensing my shoulders. “I just don’t know what to say. It happened, and fuck, I wish it didn’t. I hate that it happened to me and that I couldn’t stop it. It made me feel…”
Thinking of the word, I sigh, hanging my head, when Ava finishes my sentence. “Helpless.”
I look back up at her, seeing her face soften in understanding as she says, “How you’re feeling, it’s normal. It fucking sucks that this happened to you, but you are far from helpless. You have had to deal with a lot of shit, yet you still stand strong. You didn’t let anything corrupt you, and you’ve always been this amazing person. I love you, Mia.” She holds Charlie up slightly. “We love you, and you will get through this because you have so many people that love you and have your back.”
I bite my lip, touched by her words, but not wanting to dwell on this right now. I wasn’t even gonna tell her, but she knew as soon as she saw me that something was up and she was not gonna let it go. But now there are other things I want to ask about.
Taking a sip of my hot chocolate and burning my tongue slightly, I ask, feeling nervous at the possible response, “Speaking of people we love, how is Hunter doing?”
The softness leaves her face, but the sadness stays there as she gives a long, sad sigh. “I think he’s taking your parents deaths pretty hard. He’s going through something, but he won’t talk to anyone. Logan has had enough. Conner has tried, and so have I.”
“He won’t even see me,” I say, trying to hide how much that stings, how much I wanna scream and cry because he was never like this. Even as children, he would never run and hide from me, so I have to wonder what has happened to make him act like this?
I tense my lips to control the emotion bubbling within me, feeling Ava’s sad eyes on me. The silence lingers, filling with pain that surrounds us until Ava clears her throat. “Well, you might have your chance to talk to him.” I look at her with raised brows as she explains, “Conner and I are planning a BBQ one night. Kind of like a housewarming party. I know it’s late, but why not now? I’ll invite Hunter, Logan, Riley, and I’ll even invite the guys from the bar.” She gives me a hopeful smile. “It’ll be fun, and you’ll get to speak to Hunter and figure out what’s going on.”
I nod, taking this in, wanting to speak to my brother, but worried about what he will say. Is his behaviour as bad as I fear? Is it because of our parents, or something else? Will he even tell me this time?
The questions continue to buzz around my head as I ask, “When is it?”
Ava thinks for a moment, pursing her lips. “We’re thinking Saturday night.”
“I’m not sure if the guys can take a night off from the bar on a Saturday night, but it doesn’t hurt to ask,” I tell her, knowing that if Riley and I won’t be there, Danny will either need the guys or call in a favour.
