“Right. You said that. Do you think you need to go to the hospital or your doctor and get tested for STDs?”
“Son of a bitch. I don’t even know if he wore a condom! Ohmygodohmygodohmygod.”
“Okay, so let’s start with that. Make an appointment and get tested just to rule that out so you’re not worried about it.”
“What am I going to tell Gage?”
At this, Marley sat up straight and gave Hailey a worried look.
“You tell him the truth. Remember, you did nothing wrong. You were unconscious half the time. He can’t blame you for this.”
Hailey’s first thought was that he’d find a way.
———————————
After a much needed nap when she got home, Hailey didn’t wake up until around midnight. She was starving and a little lightheaded so she grabbed a string cheese and a glass of water before getting back into bed and grabbing a romance book off her nightstand to read until she drifted back to sleep. Hailey woke up the nextmorning groggy with her mouth feeling as dry as a desert. She couldn’t wait until tonight when it would be time for bed again. That’s how she felt most mornings, but today she really didn’t want to leave the comfort of her bed at all.
She grabbed her phone off the nightstand and saw she had a text from Avery.
AVERY:One of my kids was wearing this shirt at a house visit today and I asked them if I could take a picture of it just to show you.
The picture was cropped and just showed the image on the front of the shirt. He definitely couldn’t send a picture of the kid’s face. It was Super Mario walking Pikachu on a leash, and it was the first time Hailey smiled in days.
HAILEY:You have no idea how much I needed that
AVERY:Why, what’s wrong? You okay?
HAILEY:It’s a long story and I’m still processing it, but I’m okay. Thanks
AVERY:I’m here if you need me. We could go grab a drink if you want to talk about it. Or ice cream, or kick the ball around… whatever you need.
The fact that Avery knew the ways to make her feel better did not escape her.
Hailey didn’t want to tell Avery before she told Gage. She technically was still in a relationship and it just felt inappropriate to talk to him about it just yet, if at all. What would he think of her? She decided the best thing to do was to go to Gage’s house and tell him what happened. This wasn’t something you say over text or on the phone.
Hailey showered and scrubbed extra hard everywhere. It was a miracle she still had skin. Afterward, she put on her softest leggings and a hoodie and then put her hair up in a messy bun. She needed comfort clothes. Any kind of comfort she could get. She forced herself to eat something, despite losing her appetite. A banana was all she could stomach. She made her way out the door and hopped in her car.
This was the day of the week where Gage was able to work from home so she knew he’d be around.
She pulled up along the street in front of Gage’s house and stayed in the car for a moment. She took a deep breath before chanting, “It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault.” This was not going to be an easy conversation. All she could do was hope Gage could take it well. Things weren’t great between them and she was looking for a way out, but she couldn’t shake this feeling she did something wrong. She got outof the car and made a slow trek up to his porch and opened the door that Gage rarely ever locked until he went to bed. The confidence of men astounded her sometimes.
When she got through the doorway, she froze. All Hailey could hear was the sound of a woman moaning and she suddenly felt lightheaded. Fuck it, she had to find out what was going on because she was just done with this day.
She walked down the hallway toward the living room off his kitchen and peeked around the corner to see what she was about to walk into. Gage was watching some girl-on-girl porn while jerking off on the couch.
Okay, that could have been worse, but this certainly isn’t a good segue.
“So, this is what you do when you bring your work home with you?”
Gage jumped off the couch in shock and his eyes darted from Hailey, to the TV, then back to his dick. Then he did something Hailey did not expect. He smiled.
“You want to finish me off?”
Hailey felt bile rising in her throat but managed to keep it down.
“No, sorry. But I need to talk to you and it’s important.”
It seemed like he finally took in Hailey’s appearance. She was still a little pale and had bags under her eyes. Herushed for the remote to turn off the TV, and then he stuffed himself back into his pants. At least he was taking her seriously.
