24. Chapter 24 #2
“I’m sorry– I didn’t mean to wake you.” Annie tried wiping away her tears again, but they wouldn’t stop.
“Shh, don’t worry about that.” Molly squeezed her shoulder.
“Don’t apologize, that’s what we’re here for,” Peter said firmly. He exchanged a worried glance with Molly as the two women sat on the couch. “I’ll make some tea.”
Annie buried her face in her hands. Her friends were the sweetest, but she was so embarrassed.
“Talk to me, sweetie. What’s going on?”
Annie hiccupped. “Chris wouldn’t stop texting me today.” The words tumbled out. “He won’t let go. It just felt so… scary. ”
“Can I see?”
Annie hesitated, but pulled out her phone and retrieved the archived conversation. Molly scrolled through with a deepening frown.
“Holy… Counseling? After what he did? That’s ridiculous.” Molly’s voice hardened. “You don’t owe him anything.”
Peter returned with two steaming mugs. He set them on the coffee table at their feet. “What’s going on?”
“Oh, you’ll love this. Chris is harassing Annie with texts.”
Peter stood up straight and his hands curled into fists. Annie had always been aware of Peter’s stature, but now he loomed over them. His normally gentle eyes darkened.
“Do I need to have a conversation with him?” His voice possessed an edge she’d never heard before. “Because I will, Annie. Just say the word. I can send him a message he won’t forget.”
Annie’s eyes widened. She was reminded that he’d been hired as a security guard for the jewelry store he worked at for a damn good reason. “No.” She wiped her eyes. “I blocked him. It’s handled.”
“You sure? I’m happy to explain the concept of boundaries to him. Very, very clearly.”
“It should be over now.”
“Should be.” Peter said, unconvinced. He sat on the coffee table, elbows on his knees. “Guys like that don’t always take a hint. If he starts showing up in places or finds another way to contact you…”
“Pete’s right.” Molly handed Annie a mug. “You don’t have to handle this alone.”
Annie sipped the chamomile tea. She hadn’t considered that Chris might stalk her. She didn’t think he was that kind of person, though. That required… effort .
“I appreciate that, but… I don’t want to escalate things. I’d be worried that negative attention will make things worse.”
“Well, at the very least we can block him. That way, he’ll hit a wall there, too. He can’t get to you through us.”
“Not sure why we didn’t think to do it sooner,” Peter said, rubbing his face.
“If you don’t want us engaging with him at all, we won’t,” Molly said. She gave her husband a pointed look.
Peter’s expression softened. “We’ll follow your lead on this.”
Annie nodded, grateful. “Thank you both. Sorry for all this drama.” She thought about bringing up Julian, and how she missed him, too, but that seemed too irrelevant in that moment.
“It isn’t your fault,” Peter said gently.
“Not even a little bit, hun. That man is the only one who should be apologizing.”
“I feel so stupid sometimes,” Annie admitted. “For staying as long as I did. For not seeing what was happening.”
Peter shook his head firmly. “That’s what manipulators do, Annie. Even smart, capable people can fall for their acts.”
“I guess that’s true.” Annie dabbed her cheeks.
The tears had stopped, but her eyes were puffy and her nose was stuffed.
Bell settled at her feet, her small head resting on Annie’s toes.
She felt drained, but her friends made her feel more loved than ever.
“Thank you both so much. For everything– the room, the support, just… being here. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you guys. ”
Molly held her hand, and Peter reached out and did the same. Molly smiled. “That’s what family does.”
At the word “family," Annie almost lost it again. She clutched her half-full mug. She’d always felt that way about Molly, and then Peter, but it had never been said out loud. “You guys really are my family,” she whispered, her voice thick. “I’m just glad there’s no scorekeeping. Because how could I ever repay you?”
“You’d never have to,” Peter said.
They sat in comfortable silence for a few more moments before Annie set her mug down and wiped her eyes one final time. Her exhaustion was bone-deep now. “I think I need to sleep for a day straight.”
Molly helped Annie to her feet. “Everything feels more manageable after some rest. Oh, hun, it will get better.” Molly pulled Annie into a hug, and Peter followed suit. “You’re going to be okay.”
“Love you guys,” Annie whispered.
Annie headed to her room. She crawled into bed. Tomorrow was a new day, one that Christopher wasn’t going to ruin.
Before closing her eyes, she woke her phone to set an alarm. Without thinking, she then ended up in her contacts list. She hadn’t had the heart to delete Julian’s number. She paused, finger hovering over the little phone-shaped icon.
She’d never missed anyone so much.
But I still don’t have a home of my own, she thought, setting her phone aside. I’ve settled nothing. I’ve made no progress!
Sighing, she set her phone aside. He didn’t need her mess.
And she still needed to save herself.