That Night
Scarlett
I’ve grown up surrounded by people who love me.
It’s the kind of love that conquers all and gets you through the hardest of days.
I’ve always had the most support from Dad and Sophia.
They’d do anything for me, and they know I’d do anything for them.
Today, I need to do this for all the good times that were robbed from us.
But more importantly, I need to do this for myself. I need to face my monster.
I’m halfway through my drink when something feels off. I’ve always been a lightweight, but this is different. I need to lie down for a while before I can get back to the party. I stumble into a room upstairs.
The room is dark. I feel so drunk, fading in and out. My legs are heavy as I crawl across the bed. I just need to rest for a few minutes.
As my head lands on the pillow, the door opens. It’s too dark to identify who’s coming in. “Soph?” I moan.
She doesn’t respond. Two more figures pile into the room.
I want to tell them that I’ll be here for a few minutes, but I can’t get the words out.
Three of them surround the bed. There’s one at each side with the tallest figure standing at the bottom of the bed.
I recognize him. It’s my psych professor.
They speak quietly to each other. I can’t see their faces, but the tall one’s body looks familiar. Unlike the others, his figure doesn't have bad posture or his hands in his pockets. He carries himself differently.
Professor Elliot stands straight. He’s clearly the leader of the pack. He leans over and puts his hands on the bed. He doesn’t come toward me, he just stays there for a minute and looks at me.
I close my eyes, unable to prepare for what comes next.
His hot breath hits my neck, and he tries to pull my shorts down. I try to move my hands to stop him, but I can’t.
“Stay still, sweetheart,” he whispers in my ear.
The pillow under me gets wet from my tears as he pulls himself out of his shorts.
Someone barges into the room. It’s too dark to see him.
Professor Elliot is pulled off from on top of me and a fight breaks out between the two of them.
Once the perpetrator is taken away with the other two that were with him, the fourth man comes over to me.
His hood is up as he stands over me. Something cool runs across my face and I drift to sleep.
I wake up and my head is pounding. My hair sticks to my face in the hot air.
I can’t spot anything that I recognize. The walls are a deep red, and I’m on an unfamiliar bed.
I pat my clothed body down. My ears ring as I sit up.
A small light shines in the corner of the room and I spot a closed door.
I look around for my phone and find it on the floor.
Tears run down my face. I bend over, grab my phone, then lunge for the door.
Something doesn’t feel right. My legs ache. I don’t remember coming here.
I open the door and hear the loud music. I’m still at the party.
I stand outside of Professor Elliot’s office. My hands shake as I open the door.
“It was you.”
He’s slow to lift his head from the paper he’s grading.
“What was me?” He doesn’t look phased. While I’m spiraling on the inside, he sits there in his perfectly paired shirt and styled hair, like he has it all together.
“That night, I remember. It was you.”
“What night, Scarlett? You’re going to have to be specific.”
“Don’t act stupid!” His silence lights a fire deep within me. “The night you tried to rape me!”
He adjusts his glasses. “Scarlett, I must say, I’m really disappointed. I would never expect this from you of all people.”
“How did you do it?” I won’t let him make me think that I’m crazy.
“I expect this from a couple of women in the class who can’t keep up, but blackmail? Scarlett...really?” He sounds annoyed.
“How did you fucking DO IT!” I yell.
He gets up from his desk, slowly circles around, then leans against it. Leaving only a few feet between him and me. Scents of citrus and cinnamon fill the air.
“What do you think you remember?” He slowly looks me up and down with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer.
“You on top of me. Then someone coming in before you were able to do anything.” My voice doesn’t shake but it stings to get the words out—it’s the first time I’ve said them out loud.
“Are you sure that wasn’t just a dream? Hmm? Are you sure it’s not just something you want to happen, so you made it up?”
“No, I remember. There were other people there.”
“Oh, let’s go ask them then.”
I scan the office, embarrassed. I really shouldn’t have come here alone. I feel like an idiot.
“I don’t remember them. I didn’t see their faces.”
“Oh, isn’t that a coincidence that you saw my face but not theirs?
It almost sounds like maybe you aren’t telling the truth.
Or maybe, your trauma has recreated this in your head.
” He takes a beat. “Trauma can do that, Scarlett. It can recreate memories in your head to fit what you want to see. It’s okay, I won’t hold it against you. ”
I fight back the tears in my eyes.
“No, I know. I remember. It was you, and everyone is going to know.” I feel defeated. He can’t be right, can he?
“No one will know, because you can’t go around spreading rumours that aren’t true. It would be unbecoming of you when you’re about to graduate and get into a master’s program. No one would want to work with someone who lies about their colleagues.”
“But it’s not a fucking lie!”
He takes a step toward me.
“Do you know why I wear this cologne, Scarlett?” The scent causes memories to flood in.
“All you tacky fucking women love it. There’s something about this mediocre scent that makes you pathetic women drawn to me.
It was the first thing you noticed in my class.
I could tell by the way you looked up at me on your first day in my lecture, like something caught your attention. ”
I look to the door, just realizing that I shut it on my way in. He steps in closer. My heart beats faster.
“It makes you think that I’m relatable and not too expensive—or else I would’ve been out of reach.”
“I never wanted you.”
“Oh, but you did. You showed me without ever needing to tell me.” The confused look on my face pushes him to go on. “Your curious face always told me you wanted more.”
“I wanted to learn.” I spit from between my teeth. He’s created this illusion in his head.
“You wanted more than that. No one is that interested in psychology, Scarlett. You don’t need to lie.”
“You must be an idiot to believe that considering you specialized in psychology.”
“You believe whatever you need to tell yourself, to play the victim.” He takes another step. “It’s too bad that you didn’t finish that drink. I think we could’ve had a lot of fun.” His lips come close to mine.
My body tries pulls away and my right jab lands on his cheek. He’s not going down without a fight, not this time. He touches his face as I step further back.
“Jesus, Scarlett, you don’t need to hurt me.”
“Isn’t that what you’re trying to do to me?” He lunges for me and grabs my hair, pulling me back. My fists try and connect with his head, but he holds me too far away.
“It didn’t have to be this way, Scarlett.” He says, trying to dodge my next punch that connects with his shoulder. He grips my hair harder and drags me toward the back of his desk.
He slams my body against the ground and crawls on top of me.
I claw at his skin, trying anything to distract him. Nothing seems to slow him down.
“I’m going to enjoy this. You have no idea how many times I’ve thought about—”
Just then, he’s pulled off from me. Callum holds him by his hair on his knees. He wears a leather glove on the hand that squeezes Elliot’s face. He stares deeply into his dark eyes.
“Finish that fucking sentence, I dare you.”