𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐦𝐛 | 𝐇. 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑

[ 13 ]

warning: graphic description of sexual assault ahead

𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐘𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐅𝐀, 𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 𝐅𝐈𝐗𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐘'𝐒 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐊𝐄𝐘 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄. Her legs were curled up and Harvey could see her body trembling from his desk. The couple could feel Donna's watchful eye on them as they sat in silence, especially since Harvey had demanded that she didn't listen in on this conversation. Harvey didn't know where to start, and it was clear that Marilyn was at a loss, so he decided to simply be patient, noting that he'd made the mistake of being anything but during their last encounter. And judging by his behaviour that morning, his impatience had cost him plenty.

Marilyn didn't know how to go about it, not even sure if she could talk. She'd waited for someone that she could come to for so long, and whilst Harvey had always been that person, the fear inside of her was undeniable. Because she was here, this was really happening. Everything that she'd carried for as long as she had was going to come out, and she couldn't control how Harvey reacted. The burden that had only been hers was about to be shared, and she didn't know how to feel. Because she couldn't anticipate how Harvey would feel, either. This entire situation was out of her control.

Harvey sighed, deciding that it was best for him to begin. This wasn't going to be easy for Marilyn and it was bad enough that he hadn't been there to protect her from it, never mind the fact that he'd attempted to force it out of her the night before. Whilst this wasn't really his doing, he couldn't help but feel like it was, and that he was eternally indebted to Marilyn, since she'd gone through something that he could never understand. He hadn't been there and that had killed him. Now, he had to do everything he could to help her through it; not taking complete control but ensuring that she stayed true to herself, made wise choices, and got out of the other side.

"Your mom's in my apartment," he began, his eyes trained on her. He didn't know whether this was one of those situations where he could offer her a smile, but he knew that his eyes were pitiful. Marilyn absolutely despised pity, but Harvey couldn't help himself. There was a part of him that could be angry, but instead he was deeply hurt. He couldn't imagine what it was that she'd been through, and the unimaginable was awful enough, never mind having to carry such a significant burden for years. A burden that's constantly chipped and chipped away at her. A burden that he could not repair.

Marilyn's eyes widened and she shot Harvey a look of shock. She knew that it was something she should've seen coming, especially given the phone call that she had with her mother the day prior, but she just hadn't expected Radha Kaur to have gotten over her fear of flying, for her sake. Then there was the fact that her mother had gone straight to Harvey's apartment, rather than her own. Again, something she should have anticipated, but didn't. Plus, Harvey wasn't her knight in shining armour – only she could make this situation better for herself. Then again, her mother didn't even know what was going on, just that her daughter was a shadow of who she used to be.