“So, when do you plan on telling Henry about last night’s incident?” Bryan finally asked, getting Amy’s attention.
Amy had a shocked, sad and confused look. She thought they were over this subject. Why is he still bringing it up? She wondered.
She stared at Bryan, who was staring back at her, patiently waiting for her reply. Knowing the kind of person Bryan is, he isn’t going to give up until she gives him an answer.
“I don’t intend to tell him.” She quietly replied, deciding to just tell Bryan the truth.
“Are you being serious?!” Bryan exclaimed with a confused expression.
“I decided not to say anything to Henry because I felt this wasn’t an issue to be discussed over the phone…” He continued.
“You don’t seriously plan on keeping your father in the dark about such a grave issue?”
“I can, and I will.” Amy stated, making Bryan even more confused and regretful.
He shouldn’t have listened to her, he should’ve told Henry everything straightaway.
“What is wrong with you, Amy?!”
Bryan couldn’t hold back anymore, as he finally expressed his anger at her stubbornness.
“Do you want to continue living like this? Zoning out when you’re alone. Flinching away whenever someone touches you or being unable to sleep at night because of the nightmares?”
“Telling my dad won’t make any difference.”
“Is that what you think? Or is that a fact?... Look Amy, telling Henry what happened is going to help you a whole lot… It’s going to give you a sense of security.” Bryan said, as he tried to make Amy understand his point.
Amy at this point regretted why she called Bryan in the first place. She thought he would be there for her without judging her like her parents, but she was wrong. She should’ve just called an Uber and gone straight home, that way she could’ve avoided this scolding. Stray tears started to trickle down her cheeks.
“I don’t wanna be a laughing stock.” Amy shakily murmured, already feeling embarrassed at how people would react if word got out about last night’s incident.
Most of her peers wouldn’t see it as her almost getting raped, they would probably see it as her chickening out from having sex with a hot stranger.
“What are you talking about, Amy? No one’s going to laugh at you.” He calmly said, joining her on the couch once more as he had earlier stood up from the couch during his outburst.
“You don’t understand. You’ll never understand.” She said, covering her face with her hands and crying into her hands.
“Princess, Henry is going to help you get through this. He’s going to be a lot more supportive.” Bryan explained, gently removing her hands from her face and wiping her tears with his thumbs.
“Are you already tired of looking after me?” Amy asked with so much sadness and disappointment in her voice, as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.
“That’s not what I meant, Amy.” He immediately countered.
“Henry is your father, he knows you better than I’ll ever know you. I’m only suggesting that you tell him everything because he’s your best option if you want to get over what happened.” Bryan further explained to make his point clear.
“And what about you, huh?! Did you actually think I didn’t think it through about telling my mom or dad before calling you?!” She angrily asked, shoving his hands off her face as she was already tired of his persistence.
Amy’s sudden outburst took Bryan by surprise. He never intended to upset her, he was only trying to help.
“Amy, I-“
“Don’t!” Amy said, cutting him off before he could even get the chance to apologize.
“What do I tell him, huh?! That I was almost raped at a party by a total stranger? You insist I tell him the truth without thinking of the consequences that comes after! Have you sat down to think about how humiliating it would be for me if this goes public?!” Amy decided to reveal her fears, hoping that would make Bryan understand why she wants to keep this away from her dad.
Her dad, although loving and sweet, never lets anyone get away with trying to hurt his family, and in this situation, that isn’t the best option, because, in the process of trying to get back the guy who almost raped her, she would also be humiliated. She doesn’t think she can live with that, so keeping this a secret from her dad is the best decision.
Bryan stared at a sobbing Amy, finally getting why she insisted on keeping this away from her dad. He had thought she was only scared of how her dad would react, but he was wrong. He now realize that she is scared of it going public, she is scared of the drama and attention that comes with a case such as this. Why didn’t he think of that sooner?
“Princess, I’m so sorry.” He apologized, hugging her so she could cry into his chest.
“I’m sorry.” He kept repeating, placing soft kisses on her head until she stopped shaking against his chest, indicating that she had stopped crying.
When her sniffles died away, he whispered,
“Do you wanna talk about what actually happened last night?”
“I don’t want to relive it.” She murmured in reply, shaking her head.
“Then, how can I be of help to you?” He calmly asked, feeling a strong sense of responsibility.
Amy reluctantly pulled away from his warm embrace and stared into his concerned eyes. There was only one way that could help her forget about last night’s incident.
“I want you to act like last night never happened.”