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Chapter (35): Healed Bruises

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Danni. I'm sorry for being mean to you" She cried. "I should've listened to you"

"It's okay, shush" She wiped her tears away with her thumb. "Just tell me what happened" She spoke softly trying to sooth away her pain.

"... It was Raymond Gray; you were right about him" She sobbed.

"He is the one who did this to you?"

Avery nodded and wiped her tears with her sleeve and got embraced again by Danni.

"That son of a bitch!" said Danni angry as she gritted her teeth.

"I'm sorry" said Avery as she began to calm down in her protective embrace and her sobs eased off. "I should've listened to you"

"No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not being there for you and for not protecting you"

Danni pulled away from her, and raised Avery's chin up, looking her in the eye and Avery's blue eyes were a little bit watery but when she saw Danni's she calmed down and found herself breathing steadily again.

"You need to tell me everything, okay?"

She nodded and took a deep breath. Danni took her hand and guided her to the bed to sit on it, waiting for her to speak.

"The night I went to his house, everything was going so well until April called me and told me that the project we were doing was presented by someone else 3 months ago and you can't make a copy of the same project because it is considered cheating..." She sniffed and continued. "When I hung up with April and went back to him, I told him about what she told me... he asked me that if I knew about that then why I was at his house and then before I know it... he attacked me and tried to rape me" She cried and suppressed her sob.

Danni swallowed the lump in her throat and held Avery's hand, encouraging her to continue. "And then what happened? Did... did he do it?"

She shook her head. "I tried to get loose from his grip but he was too strong and his nails dug onto my wrist and my waist when he tried to grab me that's how I got the bruises... but I kicked him in his stomach and then in his balls and ran away quickly from the house as fast as I could"

"Why didn't you tell me this yesterday?"

"... Because you were right and I couldn't face you. I was ashamed of myself for not believing you and it was so hard to talk about it with anyone. I'm sorry"

Danni hugged her again and whispered in her ear and kissed her temple. "I'm not mad at you, okay? I'm glad you told me this" She pulled away, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Does April know about this? Or your mother?"

"No" She shook her head. "Only you"

"You better call the police and tell them everything"

"I-I can't"

"Why?"

"Because he is blackmailing me"

"... Blackmailing you? How?" She frowned.

"He has this video and I'm in it with someone who will lose his job and his family if it is published and I'll probably go to prison"

"We need to tell someone about this, Avery" She brushed a strand of hair away from her face, to have a good look at her, then wiped a tear that almost fell.

"I know but what should I do?"

"I think you should tell your parents or at least April, she is your best friend and she will worry about you"

She nodded. "I will tell them both. April and Steve"

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Avery called April and Steve, they came to her house and sat in her bedroom and they noticed her tired look. She filled them in with everything and April felt so angry that she kept yelling and calling Raymond every name in the book and Steve had this deep frown on his face and was angry as much as all of them but he controlled himself.