Jaided

by Rose, Ashley

  Leith touched one shoulder tentatively and then pulled her up by her arm so he could help her into the clothes. Once she was dressed, he sat her down on the bed, clenching his teeth when he noticed the red welt on her cheek and bruises forming on her arms.

  Leith sat down beside her and waited a few minutes before asking her a question.

  "Jaide, I need to know if you think you are okay."

  She took a breath and opened her mouth but no words came out. She shook her head and tried again. "I'm not hurt."

  "And Parker didn't actually ...”

  "No, he, well, just no."

  "Okay, good. And what about you? Are you okay?"

  "No."

  "Mason should be here soon. Do you need anything?"

  "I feel sick."

  He rubbed her back soothingly. "Just let me know if you need to puke."

  "I hit Blaize."

  "Uh?"

  "I don't know why. He was too close and I couldn't think, and my head hurts."

  "Want some aspirin?"

  "No, I just, too much stuff in my head."

  "Want to talk about it?"

  "I have them mixed up - my dad, Parker, Blaize - how do I know they aren't all the same?"

  "Because we know Blaize, you know Blaize."

  "Yeah, but we knew Parker. We were all friends."

  "I don't know what to tell you, I'm sorry. But you know Blaize. You know he would never hurt you."

  "I know, but my wires are crossed. I can't help it. When I saw him, I just got really scared."

  "It's okay. You’ll get them straightened out."

  She leaned against his shoulder. "I'm so weak."

  "What are you talking about?"

  "I mean Parker didn't even, and I'm like broken."

  "It obviously brought up some stuff you had stored away in the back of your mind."

  "I don't even want to look at Blaize right now. I'm so ashamed."

  "You have no reason to be."

  "I haven't told him yet. He doesn't know. He doesn’t know what you know."

  "You'll tell him when you're ready."

  "I don't want to lose him. I feel like I'm losing him."

  "You're not. He’s probably standing outside the door right now."

  As if on cue the door crashed open, except it wasn't Blaize. It was Mason.

  "Jesus Christ."

  Jaide leapt up and ran into his arms, hugging him tightly, getting as close as possible.

  "Mason!"

  "It's me." He stepped back, touching her arms, ribs, neck. "Are you okay? Nothing hurt? Anything?"

  "I'm okay."

  Leith was quietly slipping out of the room and shutting the door but Mason stopped him. "Wait," he turned back, "two seconds, Jaide."

  Mason stepped out of the door but Jaide could still hear him. He was talking to Blaize.

  "The police are downstairs. They have Parker outside in a car, and you need to go give your statement."

  "I want to see her," Blaize insisted.

  Leith cut in. "She's not ready for you right now."

  Mason spoke firmly, "Look, she needs space. Just go down and give your statement. Tell them that Jaide will be down in 5 or 10 minutes. They have a female officer and separate room that she can give her statement in. Just make sure they don't come up here."

  "Okay, Mason, I ...”

  "We are going to talk later."

  Mason came back into the room and put the chain lock on the door. Then he returned to Jaide and wrapped his arms around her again. "Just relax and tell me what happened."

  Jaide tightened her arms. "I don't want to."

  "I know you don't want to but I know you and that's the only way you are going to get it out of your head. And you’re going to have to repeat it all to the police and I want to make sure you can get through it without ..."

  "What?"

  "Without breaking down."

  Jaide sighed and stepped away from him. "I really want to shower."

  "You can't."

  "I need to shower, Mason. I feel really gross."

  "I know, sweetheart, but ..."

  "He didn't actually ..."

  "I know but ..." he picked up Jaide's hand and inspected her fingernails, "You fought him, right?"

  She looked at his large hand holding her smaller one. "At first, but then I froze."

  He squeezed her hand and spoke softly. "The sooner we can get down there and get your statement, the sooner you can take a shower. So sit down, and tell me what happened."

  Chapter 21

  Mason was walking Jaide downstairs to the lobby where a few policemen were standing around, and Jaide's teammates were talking to them. Everyone got quiet when they noticed the two enter the lobby.

  Mason immediately steered Jaide into a meeting room off the lobby, where a female police officer was waiting at a large table. She had a notepad.

  "Good afternoon. I'm Officer Morrison."

  Jaide nodded and sat down a few seats away where Mason held out a chair for her.

  "You are prepared to give your statement?"

  "Yes," Jaide said.

  "Sir I'm going to have to ask you to wait outside."

  "What? Why?" asked Mason.

  "Are you family?"

  "No."

  "Then you are going to need to wait outside."

  "I don't think I can ..." Jaide started to show she felt uncomfortable, twitching and moving her hands nervously.

  "You'll be fine." He turned to the officer. "Can I talk with you outside for a moment?"

  The officer nodded. "Of course." They stepped outside, leaving Jaide alone in the room.

  Mason gave the officer a level look. "You can do that thing where you call someone’s information in on your radio, right?"

  "Yes."

  "I want you to call in Mark Adamson."

  "Why? This girl is ..." she looked down at her notepad, "Jaide Williams."

  "Please?"

  The woman shrugged and took the radio off her belt. "260 to Dispatch."

  The radio spoke back. “Go ahead, 260.”

  "Info on Adamson, Mark."

  Silence for a few seconds.

  Adamson, Mark: deceased , convicted of several felonies; murder in the first degree, and a few accounts of each: child abuse, gross negligence, child molestation, sexual battery.

  The officer cut off the radio. "Thanks, Dispatch." She looked at Mason. "Did you have a reason for this?"

  "Now try Jaide Williams."

  She looked at him and then sighed, grabbing her radio again. "Dispatch, info on Williams, Jaide."

  “Former name: Jaide Adamson. In the foster system for a few weeks, no criminal record.”

  "Thanks, Dispatch." The officer put her radio back on her belt and looked at Mason. "Why did you request that I know that information?"

  "So that you'll understand why this is such a big deal for her. This is incredibly hard on her and I don't want you to push her. She’s on the verge here."

  She sighed, dropping the professional attitude. "Look, I'm just going to ask her to repeat to me what happened. We’re going to take scrapings from under her nails and pictures of her bruises if they have started showing up yet. You can come back in as soon as the story part is over with. You just have to stay outside for that part. It’s protocol."

  Mason nodded. "I understand."

  Once the police were done with Jaide, she went back upstairs with Mason. Blaize was sitting on a folding chair across the hall from their door. He stood up when he saw them coming.

  "Hey.”

  Mason nodded at him and opened the door for Jaide. "Why don't you take that shower? Call me if you need anything."

  She nodded and glanced at Blaize before closing the door.

  Blaize sighed and looked at Mason. "How is she?"

  Mason stepped forward. "How is she? How is she? God, you are so fucking stupid!" He grabbed the front of Blaize's shirt and slammed him into the wall. "I don't know what the hell your prob
lem is but you need to get your shit together."

  Blaize didn't fight him. "What are you talking about? This isn't my fault. No one knew Parker was like that."

  "That's not what I'm talking about. If you could just get over this whole ‘not sleeping’ with her thing, then she could trust you and she wouldn't need to freak out. Do you have any idea how difficult this is for her?"

  "I can see that. But I mean, it didn't happen. I don't understand."

  "You fuckhead. You think it's what Parker did? You think ... damnit. Jaide was abused, sexually abused by her father for years. Do you understand that? Do you have any idea what kind of effect that has on someone's psychological health? She may seem normal but she still has stuff going on up there that she hasn't sorted out. That's why she hit you. That’s why she can't trust you yet. That’s why she doesn't want to get anywhere near you. She needs someone who can actually help her, someone who can handle her. You aren't doing any of that right now."

  Blaize closed his eyes, trying to take in what Mason had just said. "What did you say? About Jaide's dad and what?"

  Mason looked angry enough to kill. "Is that going to be a problem? Does it disgust you? Does it make you sick? Make you want to never see Jaide again?"

  Blaize shoved him hard, making him lose his grip. "What the fuck kind of guy do you think I am? Just give me a second to absorb what you just told me.”

  A few seconds of silence.

  "Done?"

  Blaize rubbed his hand over his face a couple times. "Yes."

  "And?"

  "It doesn't change a thing. It explains a hell of a lot though."

  Mason eyed him for a moment. "Changes nothing?"

  "No! I mean, it's a bombshell but it explains everything. I wish she would have told me, but why didn't she tell me?

  "She didn't feel comfortable with it."

  Blaize groaned and ran a hand through his hair. "That's terrible."

  Mason looked deadly again.

  "No, I mean, it is terrible, but I feel like such a jerk that she can't trust me."

  "Well, you know what to do about it."

  "Yeah, I'll work on that as soon as she comes near me again."

  "Good, because I kinda like you. I don't want to have to beat the shit out of you."

  "Uh huh."

  "Mason?" A quiet female voice came from behind them.

  Mason whipped around and Blaize looked over his shoulder. It was Jaide, wrapped in a towel.

  "Hey, sweetheart, let's get you ..."

  "Were you talking about what I think you were talking about?"

  "Jaide, let’s ..."

  "No. You told him, didn't you?"

  "Jaide."

  She took a step back into the room, a hurt look returning to her face.

  Blaize stepped around Mason. "Jaide, it’s okay. I don't ..."

  She pulled back the rest of the way into the room, stumbling, unsteady. She looked like her world was crashing down. Blaize tried to follow her but she was just shaking her head.

  "No, I ..." She suddenly came back and tried to shut the door but Mason stopped it with his hand just before it closed.

  "That was probably a really big mistake," Mason said.

  Blaize shook his head. "But I don't care. Doesn’t that make a difference?"

  "This one is my fault but ... just … I'll fix this, alright?"

  Blaize nodded. “I just want her to be okay."

  Mason nodded and entered the room, closing the door behind him.

  Jaide had her back to the door and was half dressed but still digging through her bag for some clothes.

  Mason sighed and went into the bathroom, picking up the over-sized sweats and T-shirt that she had worn before her shower. "Put these back on."

  She didn't look up. "I don't know whose those are."

  "Does it matter?" He pulled her away from her bag.

  "Damn it, Mason!"

  "Just put some clothes on before you start yelling at me."

  She took the clothes from him and forcefully pulled them on. "I can't believe you. God, I don't… you ruined everything!"

  "I didn't ruin anything, Jaide."

  "What is with today? First I get assaulted, then I hit someone that I care about, and then my best friend goes around telling one of my deepest darkest secrets!"

  "Just calm down. About the assaulted thing… are you okay? I mean, you can yell at me for the other stuff later. I just need to make sure that you're going to be alright to go back to school. Do I need to give you a ride?"

  "I'll be fine."

  "With a bus load of boys? Including Blaize, who you are still scared of right now?"

  "Like I can help it!" Her voice was frustrated and angry.

  "I know that, sweetheart, but that doesn't change the fact that you're still not going to be able to get too close to him for who knows how long. I know you Jaide. I know you better than you know yourself."

  "I'll be fine."

  "I'll talk to Leith. He’ll sit with you on the bus, make sure you’re okay."

  "I don't need your help, Mason."

  "Yeah? And that's why after you almost got raped, you asked for me and only me?" His words were harsh but she knew they were the truth.

  She sat down on the bed, putting her face in her hands. The entire situation was coming down on her. "God, I can't believe this happened."

  Mason sat down too, wrapping both arms around her and pulling her onto his lap. "You'll be okay with everything. It’ll just take a little time."

  "I'm sorry about what I said. I do need your help. You're everything to me. You keep me in one piece."

  "And I'm sorry that I told Blaize your secret but he needed to understand. Still, I shouldn't have said anything so you could tell him on your own time."

  She leaned against his chest. "I forgive you, but the Jaide-and-Blaize thing is probably over, huh?"

  "Why would you say that?"

  "Well I'm sure he's repulsed by it all. By me."

  "No way, Jaide. He said it doesn't change a thing, and I believe him. It doesn't matter to him, Jaide. He's a good guy. You have to give him a chance."

  She nodded. "I just ... I need some time."

  "I'm sure he's willing to give you all the time you need." Mason rubbed her back soothingly.

  "Thanks for all this, Mason."

  She felt glad when he wrapped his arms around her again.

  "Try to sleep. I won't let them leave without you."

  Jaide got comfortable in his big arms and felt a nap coming on. "Thanks again for everything."

  "No problem."

  Chapter 22

  It seemed to Jaide that the melodrama in the Arlington Hotel had provided so much confusion and excitement that the only possible recovery would be a long autumnal snooze. She found during the return bus ride, nothing but the pleasant sound of 20 boys and a girl snoring away. The bus unloaded at their Exeter Creek dorm a weary but fairly content load of students, each of whom managed in his or her own individual way to stumble to their appointed room.

  That evening, the inevitable recalcitrant demeanors of two at odds roommates coalesced around a now familiar scene. Tentatively, Jaide reached up and touched his cheekbone where a faint bruise was appearing. "I'm really sorry about that."

  Blaze took her hand. "It’s nothing. I shouldn't have crowded you in that situation. I just didn't have any idea what I should've been doing."

  "I'm still sorry."

  "I'm sorry for being so thick about everything and that you feel bad about it now."

  "You're not thick."

  "I didn't handle myself very well. I just wanted to make you better."

  "I know."

  "Is there anything left bothering you? I mean, obviously I think it's fair to say you are going to be a little shaken up for a while but other than that, is there anything that I can do? Anything that I need to do on my end?"

  "Just, well, I'm really, really sorry about how I reacted."

  "You had every
right to react that way," he assured her. "Anything else?"

  "About what Mason said. I want you to be perfectly honest because I know it should really repulse you, and I don't know how you can even sit in the same room with me right now."

  "Jaide, please, when I said it doesn't change anything between us, I meant it."

  "I know you said that but I just want you to know that you have the right to change your mind about it at any point. If you ever start to feel weird about anything, it's okay. You won't hurt my feelings if you want to just go another way.”

  Blaize kissed her soundly on the lips, effectively cutting off her sentence.

  Jaide seemed surprised and he pulled back, giving them a little space. "Sorry, didn't mean to push you or anything. I know you're going to need a little time or whatever on that front but I just wanted you to know that none of that matters to me. I mean it."

  Jaide took a deep breath and closed the space between them, sliding under his arm and wrapping both of her own arms around his waist. "I'm sorry it's hard for me to understand and believe all this, but I think I'll get it down soon. I'll try my best okay?"

  Blaize wrapped his arms around her also. "Of course. Just keep me informed, okay? I want to be good for you. I want everything to work out."

  "I'm tired of drama."

  "Me too."

  "So we're agreed, no more drama."

  "No more."

  A knock sounded on the door. "Pizza!" Alex's voice called through the door.

  Blaize kissed Jaide on the head before standing up to get the door. Alex was standing in the hallway with five pizza boxes and a few other small boxes.

  "Wow, that was fast. Five pizzas? Really?"

  Alex nodded. "I wasn't sure what Jaide liked so I got 10 different kinds. Each pizza is in halves. Um, cheese and pepperoni, sausage and extra meat, extra cheese and vegetarian, pesto chicken and barbecue, and then deep-dish half pepperoni and half cheese and extra thin crust half pepperoni and half cheese. Bread sticks, too: cheesy bread sticks, garlic bread sticks and cinnamon bread sticks." Alex leaned around Blaize to look at Jaide. "Hey, Jaide, how are you? What sounds good?"

  Jaide jumped off the bed and ran to Alex. She handed the stack of food to Blaize before pulling Alex and into a bear hug. "Thanks so much."

  He rubbed her back soothingly. "Uh, no problem sweetheart. It’s just pizza."