Saint Joseph School

((DISCLAIMER: This story deals with the an incident of date rape and the emotional abuse that followed it. It centers around the feelings of the victim upon confronting her attacker again and what happens when a person gets backed into a corner one too many times. Please direct all questions and comments to this thread.

This story is rated for language, violence, and mentions of abuse.))

The cold winter chill flew through Bri's hair as Stephen steered his car into the parking lot of the football field. The game wouldn't start for another couple of hours but there were already a few people waiting in the stands. Students come to show their school spirit. Parents supporting their kids. A smile crept across Bri's face. It was almost like they were a normal school. She reached forward and flipped down the visor, applying liberal amounts of glittery powder over her face. She craned her head to the side and swept the brush down her neck and then across her collarbone. As she turned to work the brush back up the other side of her neck, she noticed Stephen watching her. She grinned at him. "Hey, handsome," she said, snapping her fingers in front of his face. "See something you like or are you just gonna drool on your leather seats?"

Bri laughed a little as she stepped out of the car. She could smell the grass on the field and inhaled the scent deeply. She had slways loved game day at Seacliff. It was her moment to shine. To lead her squad, to cheer on her guy. The excitement and exhiliration of it all seemed to stay with her, even at Saint Joseph. Sure, she wasn't the head cheerleader anymore. But she was still there, right on the front line. She looked over as Stephen rounded the car and offered her his arm. She took it gladly and they started for the stadium. And I still have my guy, Bri thought, squeezing Stephen's arm.

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"Come on! Go Flyers!" The final quarter was drawing quickly to an end, and Saint Joe's was down by four points. Bri stood at the sidelines, with the rest of the squad, pom poms pressed together, yelling her support of the team. They still had over twenty yards to cover and under half a minute to cover it in. Stephen took the snap and fell back a few steps. But instead of setting up the kick for Sam, he looked to Frank to pass. But Frank was too well covered and Stephen could clearly see a gap in the defense. "Go, Stephen!" Tucking the ball into his arm, he sprinted down the field, losing his two assailants. The crowd stood as he neared the goal line. Bri drew in a deep breath and jumped as two tacklers took him down, wincing with the hit.

The crowd, which up til this moment had been holding it's collective breath, erupted in a cheer as Stephen stood both feet firmly planted in the endzone as the referee called the touchdown. Bri grinned from ear to ear as the clock ran down the last few seconds and the buzzer sounded. Behind her she could hear the squad go into a cheer, but Bri was focused on the guy being surrounded by his teammates, all trying to voice their congratulations and praise at the same time. He looked her way as he removed his helmet and winked at her. She smiled and blew him a kiss, nearly laughing with pride. It was just like it was before. At Seacliff. Just like the glory days.

Bri was still smiling over half an hour later as she exited the girl's locker room, running a brush through her hair a few more times before unzipping her duffel and shoving the brush in next to her make-up bag and uniform. She scanned the area, trying to locate the quarterback, to see if he was waiting on her yet.

"Bri? Oh my God, you looked great out there!" Bri turned to the voice behind her as a smile spread quickly across her face. She'd know that wavy brown hair and high voice anywhere. She stepped to the other girl and embraced her tightly.

"Ash, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to Korvus now!" Ashley Kingsley giggled lightly and brushed some of her hair out of her face as she stood back from Bri. Still wearing too much make-up, Ash, Bri thought, but continued to smile at her old friend. And good God, that outfit. What were you thinking? I taught you better than that.

Ashley just smiled and tossed her chestnut hair a bit. "Stephen said that he and Diyar and you are having a bit of trouble at Saint Joe's so he invited us as a surprise for you!"

Bri's smile never faltered as she tilted her head to the side. "U-us?"

Ash just giggled again and did a little bounce, before nodding, sending her waves of hair back over her shoulders. "Yep! Me and JD! He's around here somewh- Oh! There he is! JD! I found her! Over here!" Ash jumped and craned her neck, waving an arm. Bri turned her head to see a seven-foot-tall, muscled teen approaching quickly, his star jock smile plastered on his face. His dirty blonde hair just barely touched the tops of his ears and his blue-grey eyes sparkled slightly when he smiled. He, like Ashley, still wore his Seacliff letterman's jacket. Once upon a time, Bri had thought him handsome, charming, and that smile would have melted her knees. But now... Now, it made every muscle in her tense up. Without her willing it to, Bri's hand started to shake slightly. To hide it she grabbed the strap of her duffel and shouldered it. It wouldn't do for John David Langston to know she was still terrified of him.

And she was. After six months of separation and thousands of dollars in therapy, every time she saw him, she was thrust back to that night two years ago, when she groggily woke up to the pain and fear. When she came to on that couch, JD's hand pinning both her wrists above her head, his other hand unbuttoning her shirt and working its way up her leg, under her skirt...

Bri blinked and swallowed audibly. "Hey, JD. How's Korvus treating you two?" Bri screamed at herself to run, to get away. But if she ran, he'd know. He'd know that he still had power over her, could still manipulate her. The fear she had fought so hard to forget snaked up her spine, making her shiver more than the December wind that whipped across the field. She willed herself to stop shaking as JD embraced her briefly and smiled at her as he draped an arm over Ash's shoulders.

"It's going good. I mean, we really miss you and Stephen and Jenn and Trevor. Not quite the same without the whole gang, you know?"

Bri nodded slightly, suddenly conscious of the fact the he could probably see right through her facade. His eyes caught hers and the sparkle was gone. In it's place was a cold, calculating stare. Bri looked away and smiled at Ash. "So did you make cheer squad at Korvus?" When the girl simply nodded, Bri continued. "Oh, that's great, Ash. Like there was really ever any doubt."

The group spoke for another few minutes, the tension mounting in Bri until she knew she couldn't hide it much longer. She looked over her shoulder, searching for an excuse to leave, to escape. She noted a few of her classmates out in the parking lot, probably discussing where to celebrate the victory. But they were too far away and she didn't know them well enough for them to call her over. She could claim to have left something in the locker room. Yes, that's it. Then she could call Stephen's cell and have him meet the three of them. She'd have her protector with her. She wouldn't have to be scared then. JD wouldn't try anything with Stephen there.

"Oh, shoot." Bri looked up as Ash spoke, pulling her cell from her too tight jeans. "I gotta take this. It's Daddy. I'll be right back." Bri wanted to beg Ash not to leave her alone, to stay nearby, but before she could speak Ash had rounded the corner and disappeared.

"Well, I, uh... I left something in the l-locker room. So I'll..." Bri took a step towards the door. She jumped as JD slammed his palm into the wall, his arm blocking her path. She paled slightly. "JD, I'll just be a minute."

JD's charming smile was gone now. His face was cold and frightening. "Hang on just a sec. Been a while, Babe." He brought his hand up and ran it along the side of her face and into her hair, grimacing as she flinched away. "You still remember don't you? The deal we made?" Bri nodded quickly, her eyes growing wide as JD grabbed her shoulder and pinned it against the wall. "Good. Tell me again."

Bri's voice was barely a whisper as she slowly spoke. "I don't t-tell anyone what happened." She took a deep breath as JD grabbed her right shoulder, his large hands enveloping her entire upper arms. "A... And you don't..." Bri trailed off. She could already feel the tears starting to well up in her eyes. She hated him. She hated what he had made her. She hated the "deal" they had made. She hated keeping quiet and playing the perfect best friend.

JD painfully squeezed her shoulders and pushed them back as far as he could into the wall. He leaned in next to her ear and whispered, "And I don't snap your pretty little neck, Princess."

The tears came freely now. She could feel JD smile next to her, pleased with the effect he still had on her. She shook in his grasp, making no struggle to escape. The terror of that night and the year that followed at Seacliff, the days of pretending that everything was okay, watching her friend date her attacker, all of it welled up in her.

And beneath it all, she could feel it. The groggy, fuzzy feeling she got on patrol. Normally, she'd be horrified for it to happen on campus. But for now, she embraced it. It was an escape, a refuge where she didn't have to be afraid. As JD grinned a twisted version of his charming smile and moved a hand to her neck, she let herself slip. She let the feeling wash over her and cover her completely. She could already feel her fist tightening, tensing under the strain, waiting to be unleashed. As her vision narrowed and blinked out she heard JD laugh. "And we wouldn't want that, would we, Babe?"

Stephen grinned widely to himself as he pulled his tee shirt on, picked up his recently used bag of football equipment and started walking towards the locker room exit. Just like Seacliff, he could be a hero again. Admired by his friends, chased by girls, envied by people that he didn't even know existed. The feeling was wonderful. Stepping out of the locker room, he closed his eyes as the cool night air washed over him. When he opened them, he looked around. Bri was probably still in the locker room. He couldn't wait until she found out the surprise he had set up for her, but it didn't look as if any of them were here yet. Shrugging off some pats on the shoulder and flashing his million dollar smile at a clustered group of girls, he made his way back towards the stands to see if he could find Myshka. She was always complimentary towards him and he had no doubt she had alot to say about his touchdown.

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"Stephen, that was wonderful!" Myshka exclaimed as he walked beside her and Diyar a few minutes later back towards the locker room. "It was quite exciting when you caught the "snap"! And during the quarterback sneak! You did an excellent job of sneaking!" Stephen walked beside her, taking one lazy step for every two of hers. Diyar had his arm around Myshka's waist, the lines on his forehead bent inwards in a half-scowl at all the flattery.

"Well," Stephen smiled at her, "I have my moments." Myshka giggled and flipped her hair a little bit causing Diyar to frown a little deeper at her side. Stephen didn't notice. They were approaching the locker rooms now. "Bri should be around here somewhere. I wonder if she's found JD and Ash yet."

"I don't know if she could miss JD if she tried," Diyar said.

Stephen grinned an nodded then explained to Myshka, "He's HUGE. He did some real damage on the Seacliff football team." Diyar nodded in agreement.

"I am certain he did! I am very anxious to meet him. And Ash, too," she said smiling.

"You'll like 'em," Stephen smiled and stepped around the corner of the locker room building and into the orange glow of artificial light that was facing the parking lot. When he looked past it, his heart sank and his fists clenched. Standing a ways down the building was 7 foot tall JD leaning towards Brianna, his back to the newcomers. It looked as if they were kissing. Barely thinking, he let his bag strap slide off the end of his arm and hit the ground. Leaving the couple standing there next to it, Stephen started walking quickly over to the two huddled figures. He was about to say "What the HELL are you two doing?" when something unexpected happened. He saw Brianna's elbow move quickly then heard loud, distinct punching noise. JD stumbled back a few feet from the pretty blonde girl. Now, Stephen really did say it, "What the HELL are you two doing?" Without waiting for a response, he sprinted the last few yards to where his friend and girlfriend stood, grabbing JD by the shirt, pulling him backwards then spinning around his friends arm to get between the two.

Stephen looked from one to the other quickly. Neither of them seemed to notice that he was there, but instead kept their eyes focused on eachother. Tear stains ran down Bri's cheeks. There was defenitely something wrong. He turned around to face his friend, "JD- " He didn't have time to finish before Brianna had put both hands on his back and shoved him out of her way very hard. He stumbled over JD's giant shoes and hit the concrete. Instantly, Bri was on JD punching into his solid stomach for all she was worth. Stephen looked up from the ground. Something ran through his mind. Just a flicker of memory back to Seacliff when he had been leader of the Ruby Team for combat training. Ruby Prime had been his codename. His right hand man, JD, was Ruby 2, Mechala had been Ruby 3, Trevor was Ruby 4, Jenn 5, Bri 6, Ash 7, and Dylan was Ruby 8. He had no clue why he remembered this now, but he did. And it gave him an idea.

"Ruby Six! Ruby Two! Quit it!" Immediately, the two stopped. Bri's fists relaxed and JD took a step back. Three people Stephen recognized as his teammates Noah and Bill along with Diyar stepped forward from a small crowd that had formed around the them and group tackled JD. The large boy resisted but the others had his arms held down tight. Stephen stood up, brushed himself off and walked over to Bri. He wrapped his arms around her but she stayed stiff and made no move to hug him back. Over her shoulder, Stephen saw Ash standing wide eyed and fearful at them. Shit... Stephen thought as he let go of Brianna and turned towards JD.

The thrill of victory was quickly fading.

She was lost in the fog. The hazy mist that crowded her mind when her fear took her. It both terrified and relieved her. No one could hurt her here. She could just stay here and never have to face JD again. She knew that JD was probably still holding against the wall. Bri was too scared to try and fight against the fog. If JD was still holding her down, she doubted she wanted to know what he was doing to her. She just wandered through the quiet darkness, afraid to disturb the peace.

Then, she felt herself get jerked aside. No! I don't want to go back! The curtain of fog parted, and she was near blinded as she was slammed back into reality. Brianna felt arms around her and feared the worst. Instinctively she stiffened up. JD would not just hug her. What was... She saw him. Held back by three of her schoolmates, Stephen standing protectively between them. Her arms and neck hurt from where JD had held her, and her knuckles throbbed. Bri looked down to see a smear of blood across her hand. She must have hit him. Hard. Her eyes darted around. A small crowd had formed around the group of them, all of them staring in confusion. Bri took a step back and felt the concrete against her back. Unable to hold back anymore, she slid down the wall, tucking her head against her knees and sobbed.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on?" Stephen's voice sounded over the hushed crowd. Bri heard a few sets of footsteps fading into the distance. Gone to get some adults no doubt. Bri didn't care anymore. She was tired of hiding, tired of lying. She felt a tiny arm around her shoulders and looked up to see Myshka kneeling next to her, a concerned look creasing her features. "I said will someone tell me what the hell is going on?"

"I'll tell you! That bitch attacked me! For no goddamn reason!" JD's voice was filled with venom. Bri had never heard him like that before. And it scared her. He locked eyes with her for a moment and it spoke volumes to her. Say anything and I will kill you. I will break free of these morons and break every bone in your body. Bri broke the gaze first, not wanting to see him anymore.

"Bri?" Stephen knelt in front of her, his expression unreadable. "Bri, what happened?"

The words welled up in her throat and spilled out before she could stop them. She pointed an angry finger at her nightmare. "He attacked me, Stephen! He attacked and threatened to kill me if I ever told! He told me he'd snap my neck!" She couldn't look at any of the people around her. Their disbelieving stares were more than she could handle right now. Bri turned into her friend's protective embrace and cried.

Myshka held Brianna's shoulders and trembled slightly. She wasn't exactly sure what she was feeling, fear, anger, resentment, a whirlwind of overwhelming emotions, not hers but those that belonged to the girl she held tightly to. Reading her was like reading Diyar... complicated. There was something different. Something that wouldn't let her get the complete picture, just random flashes that Myshka's brain tried to process into the right order. JD had hurt her, deeply. A chill ran through the young Russian when she made eye contact with the larger former Seacliff student.

Myshka's eyes narrowed into tight slits as she cursed in Russian, before saying soothing words to her crying new friend, forgetting she couldn't understand her. "English, Mysh..." She could hear Arkady chastise in her head.


"It will be okay, it will be okay." She soothed. "No one will hurt you again. It will be okay."

"C'mon, little space, back it up." Samantha Douglas called, looking uncomfortable as she made a shooing motion to the crowd that gathered. The last thing that Brianna or anyone would need is on-lookers hovering over her. Noah, Bill, and Diyar held fast to JD for the few seconds it took Coach Waters and a few of the parents to step in, as Sisters Mary Thomas and Mary Margaret helped Brianna to her feet, coaxing her into the school.

She sat outside the office, Diyar's arm wrapped protectively or possibly for support around her shoulder as the police, Mr. Conrads and the school physician spoke with Brianna. Stephen paced angrily, his hands balled into tight fists, his eyes blazing with a combination of anger, hurt and confusion. Myshka was thankful Coach Waters sat nearby, holding his hat in his hands and playing with the brim, there to support not only his quarterback, but in case he was needed. His presence meant she wouldn't pick up the emotions overflowing from both her friends, which would have conflicted with the ones still resonating from Brianna. She flinched once or twice, confusing her further. Her gift never gave her problems, not like that. Why couldn't she decipher them? It had been the same with Diyar. Some sort of block, as if only partial images were able to slip through the cracks.

Why? She hated him too, JD. She didn't even know him. She hated him for whatever he had done, for hurting her friend. She wished pain on him, a hundred times over from whatever he had caused with Brianna. From the looks on both Stephen and Diyar's faces, he'd pay for whatever it was he'd done.

Diyar had his hand in Myshka’s, squeezing every now and then to comfort her in some small way. His face, however, seemed to be set in stone, anger carved in and rage seething from him. He was glad the coach was so close: Myshka wouldn’t be able to feel the rage that he struggled to contain.

He looked up at Stephen pacing back and forth. Stephen stopped for a moment outside the door to the office, looking in through the frosted glass, trying to look in at Brianna. His eyes shifted quickly, and he caught Diyar looking up at him.

Diyar looked away, squeezing Myshka’s hand again, his mind wandering back…
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“I don’t know if she could miss JD if she tried,” Diyar said.

It was true…the kid was huge. Diyar had met him the first day he arrived at Seacliff, when he accidentally took the football player’s spot at the lunch table. Ever since, the two had been civil, at best. It was hard to like footballers…especially when you were a runner…

They turned the corner, and stopped dead in their tracks. Diyar and Stephen both stared, amazed.

There was JD, his back to them, hovering over Brianna. And from where Diyar was standing, he could see JD’s other hand reaching up, as if he was holding Brianna’s head.

Stephen dropped his bag and started walking forward, fists clenched. The same thought was running through Diyar’s head…“What the hell are you guys doing? You broke up years ago, and if I remember, it was a bad one too…what gives...” That’s when Brianna’s elbow flew up into JD’s nose. Myshka gasped as Stephen ran forward now, voicing his thoughts.

“What the HELL are you two doing?” Diyar let go of Myshka’s hand, starting to step forward, watching Brianna and JD.

The teens’ faces were stoic, eyes staring but not seeing. Shit…

“What’s going on?”

Diyar turned to his right. Noah had just rounded the corner, Bill close behind. “What happened, Diyar?”

Diyar shook his head, turning back to the scene in front of him in time to see Stephen trip. Brianna was on top of JD now, pummeling him. JD lifted his arms, and Diyar moved to rush forward, knowing what was happening next.

“RUBY SIX! RUBY TWO! QUIT IT!!” Stephen had shouted, still on the ground. Brianna stopped, her tiny fist inches from JD’s stomach. JD’s fist had also stopped-inches from the side of Brianna’s head. They lowered their hands, and took a step back.

Diyar rushed forward, JD nothing but a shadow in front of him. Noah and Bill were close behind. Diyar grabbed the larger kid by the shirt collar and pulled down with all his weight. JD crashed to the ground, and Diyar instantly went back to his training from Seacliff. Before JD had even hit the ground, Diyar had his knee in the larger teen’s chest, propelling him faster the ground. His forearm came up into JD’s neck, pinning him to the ground. There’s a reason I’m an Onyx, you jack-ass, he thought as Noah and Bill joined in the tackle; Bill pinned down his legs, while Noah grabbed JD’s wrists, as the larger kid snapped back to reality and began to struggle.

Diyar looked down, locking eyes with JD. Blood oozed from his nose, and his eyes were wide as he recognized the smaller kid on top of him.

Do it! Do it now!!

Diyar began the incantation under his breath, so that only JD could hear. “Shon…Roj Ster…”

“Will SOMEONE tell me what’s going on?!” Stephen’s voice cut through, stopping Diyar from finishing the chant. Probably just as well…there was enough chaos already…he didn’t need to hurt JD anymore than he already was…

"I'll tell you! That bitch attacked me! For no goddamn reason!" JD's voice sounded evil, and Diyar heard Brianna let out a small gasp as JD brought his head up to look at her. Diyar leaned forward, forcing his weight onto his arm to keep JD’s head on the ground. Stay down, you son-of-a…Diyar’s mind slipped back into his Kurdish upbringing, his thoughts switching from English to the language he could best describe himself. He heard himself speak a few of the words, and Noah looked up, slightly grinning.

“…and he threatened to kill me if I ever told!” Diyar froze, eyes wide in anger. What did she just say? His eyes narrowed, and he caught himself tunneling in, focusing only on the boy writhing under him. There was a firm hand on his shoulder, and Diyar shook his head, clearing his vision.

“I’ll take it from here, son…” It was Coach Waters, a sad but reassuring smile on his face. “Thanks, Mr. Delavar…”

Diyar nodded, slowly getting off of JD and back to his feet. He turned to see Myshka walking away with Brianna and the nuns that had finally come. Sam was behind him, shooing the crowd away with help from Ty and Bryan. Noah and Bill patted Diyar on the back, Noah giving him a nod, before they went to help disperse the crowd. Diyar turned back around and jogged to catch up…
__________________________________________________________

Diyar squeezed Myshka’s hand again. She squeezed back, sighing.

Stephen huffed, and Diyar looked up. He was standing in front of the door again, eyes closed, fists clenched.

Diyar tilted his head to the side, causing his neck to pop loudly in the quiet hall. Stephen opened his eyes, looking down at Diyar.

Their eyes locked, and then both men nodded in silent agreement…

Noah had just finished changing and was hanging out with Diyar and Bill. It had been the same things running through his head, thoughts of the game and victory. Then there was a quick flash of something disturbing, and somewhat familiar.

"Hey Guys" Noah said calmly, "Lets go ahead head out"

He thought something might be wrong, although he had no idea what. He didn't want to let on to anything either. As they walked from the locker room they saw Stephen.

Stephen dropped his bag and started walking forward, fists clenched. That’s when Brianna’s elbow flew up into JD’s nose. Myshka gasped as Stephen ran forward now, voicing his thoughts.

Noah had just rounded the corner, Bill close behind. “What happened, Diyar?”

Diyar shook his head, turning back to the scene in front of him in time to see Stephen trip. Brianna was on top of JD now, pummeling him. JD lifted his armsNoah knew then what was going on, at least, he could guess.

“RUBY SIX! RUBY TWO! QUIT IT!!” Stephen had shouted, still on the ground. Brianna stopped, her tiny fist inches from JD’s stomach. JD’s fist had also stopped-inches from the side of Brianna’s head. They lowered their hands, and took a step back.

Diyar charged towards JD, and Noah was right behind him. They grabbed him dropping him quickly to the floor. Noah wanted so badly to say something, but it wasn't his place. Bri had to find the courage to face her own fears.

“Will SOMEONE tell me what’s going on?!” Stephen’s voice rang out

"I'll tell you! That bitch attacked me! For no goddamn reason!" JD yelled in his defense...of course, lying to a psychic can be a tricky thing. Noah saw Diyar press his head into the concrete and smiled.

“…and he threatened to kill me if I ever told!” Bri said in tears, as she told Stephen what had happened. Diyar looked angry, and rightly so. Noah saw the Coach heading over. He leaned in quickly, whispering in JD's ear.

"Everyone knows now you son of a *****" Noah whispered, "Trust me, theres nowhere on this planet you're gonna be able to hide from us"

“I’ll take it from here, son…” It was Coach Waters, a sad but reassuring smile on his face

Once the Coach was there he saw Diyar getting off the boy. Noah followed suit, making sure to "accidently" give him a nice rib shot on the way up. Noah followed Diyar over to shoo away the crowd.

"Please state your name for the record."

Bri swallowed past the lump in her throat, careful not to make eye contact with young man in the suit to her right. "Brianna Amelya Landers." She scanned the faces before her. Her father and mother were sitting in the front row, silently giving her all the strength and support they could. Kara sat just behind them, her red hair pulled up tight.

Mr. Davids, a kind looking man whose dark hair was just starting to grey, nodded to her and stood just in front of the prosecution's table. "Thank you, Miss Landers. Where do you attend school?"

"Saint Joseph School. In Paragon City." She realized she was slowing rolling the hem of her tailored jacket between her fingers and quickly folded her hands in her lap. "I transferred there last summer."

"I see. And where did you attend school before that?"

"Seacliff School in Connor's Bay."

Mr. Davids took a couple steps forward and motioned slightly to the defense table. "With Mr. Langston?" His face was etched with concern, knowing how hard this was going to get for the blonde girl before him.

"Y-yes. I did. I mean, we did. We had a some classes together." Bri looked down at her hands, her thumb running over her manicured nails, nervously. She knew what Mr. Davids was going to ask next. He had prepped her before hand, laying out the order of the questions, trying to let her know the pace and give her a little comfort in this.

"Why don't you tell us about the evening of September 15, 2006? Just take your time. I know this will be hard."

Bri's hands tightened into tiny fists as she slowly began to speak. "There was a party at the ReDoubt. That was the clubhouse where the popular kids hung out. We were celebrating a football win. JD- Mr. Langston and I were there together. We... we were dating at the time. He brought me my drinks and we danced and talked to friends and..." Bri paused and cursed the scratches in her voice. She took a deep breathe and continued, keeping her eyes on the floor in front of her. "After a while I started to feel really groggy and J- Mr. Langston offered to walk me back to my room. I remember leaving the party and then I blacked out." Bri could feel the color drain out of her cheeks as she looked up at the prosecutor, knowing what he was going to say.

"What happened when you came to?"

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Bri leaned against her father for support as she sat back down between her parents. Her mother was crying, wiping her eyes with a tissue and grasping Bri's hand with her own. Her father looked almost stoic, but Brendan Landers had never been one to let his temper show. Bri's mascara had begun to make dark circles under her eyes and her hands were shaking. The defense lawyer had not missed a beat. It had all happened so fast, Bri barely had a chance to answer most of the questions before Mr. Davids had objected.

"Were your drinks alcoholic?" "Had you drank alcohol in the past?" "How were you dressed that evening?" "Did you say anything to the defendant that could have been construed as a tease?" "Why wait two years to say anything?" "Are you sexually active, Miss Landers?"

Bri felt a hand on her shoulder and looked back to see Kara, her jaw set and fire behind her eyes. She couldn't imagine what the redhead girl was feeling in this emotional chaos, but having her here, having her support meant the world to Bri.

As she turned back towards, the judge, Bri heard the Mr. Davids's clear voice. "The prosecution rests, Your Honor."

"Very well. The defense may call it's first witness."

The lawyer, a Ms. Hall, stood and smoothed her skirt. "Thank you, Your Honor. The defense calls John David Langston." A mummur rippled over the court room as the young man stood and walked purposefully to the witness stand. Bri couldn't help but notice that he looked confident. He thought he was going to walk.