CHAPTER 12 Joy’s Story: A Tragedy


    Cristos


    The start of the next school year was near and for Joy’s twenty-first birthday, we decided to go to


    Sebastian’skehouse at Lake Tahoe.


    After finding Sebastian drowning his sorrows at De Luca’s club, all three of us now knew we were in


    love with the same woman. While Sebastian was pessimistic, Xavier and I, on the other hand, were


    optimistic we would find some sort ofpromise. As Xavier put it, “maybe loving the same woman will


    make the bond permanent.


    First, we agreed to confess our feelings. It will allow Joy to choose. Second, we agreed to ept


    whatever she decides. If she will choose one of us, reject all of us, or hopefully choose all of us, we will


    abi de by her decision. It was risky, but all is fair in love and war.


    Luckily, Joy’s parents trusted us enough to allow her to travel and stay with us without a chaperone. To


    put their mind at ease, I told them my sister would being with us. Actually, Ca ssandra would be


    staying over her friend’s ce which was near Sebastian’skehouse, so it wasn’t entirely a lie. I really


    hated lying to the Taylors. After what they’ve been through.


    Sebastian’s family’skehouse is a two-storey, six bedroom mansion made of wood and ss fronting


    theke with its own dock. It was hardly ever used, but since the house was built by Sebastian’s


    grandfather, the Domenico’s could never sell it.


    When we arrived, Joy was amazed. She was like a little girl, running through the wide living room,


    running her hands over the the granite countertops, jumping on top of her bed.


    While Xavier started a fire outside in one of the fireces at the expansive outdoor terrace of the


    mansion, Sebastian raided the winery and I stocked the kitchen with the groceries we purchased on


    our way here.


    “What can I do?” Joy asked, plopping herself on top of a stool and watching me. I was preparing the


    ingredients for smores and had already popped in a couple of frozen pizzas in the oven. Mama Rose


    had made us some pizza sauce which I only needed to reheat. Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.


    “You’re the birthday girl,” I said. “You do nothing.”


    “I can make a sd,” Joy offered.


    “Actually, Mama Rose prepared everything, so all you need to do is sit.” She sighed, watching


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    CHAPTER 12 Joy’s Story: A Tragedy


    the sky turn to dusk.


    “It’s so beautiful here. I used to live in a house surrounded by nature. I miss it,” she murmured. It was


    the first time she ever mentioned her previous residence.


    “Yeah? Where’s that?” I asked coyly.


    W


    silly. New Salem, North Dakota,” she answered. “I’ve told you that, right?”


    ever mentioning it,” I said. “Did you live there long?”


    in high school, right before I was-” She stopped abruptly, hearing


    ter and Sebastian sing. They both appeared from outside; Sebastian was holding a cake while Xavier


    had a couple of bottles of champagne.


    “Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday dear Joy. Happy Birthday to


    you.


    She blew out the candles and pped happily like a young girl. She unexpectedly stood up and kissed


    us each on the cheek. If she ever rejects uster, I vowed to never wash my cheek again.


    We all had dinner at the terrace. It was a magnificent starlit night. After dinner, the party began.


    “No more fake ID’s for me!” Joy eximed as we raised our sses to her name.


    “To Joy!” We downed our sses of Jagermeister, already tipsy from the bottles of wine and


    champagne.


    “You know guys, I never thought I’d have friends like you. I actually thought I’d never be happy again.


    Toy said, beginning to be talkative. She was like that when she was tipsy. Some men would think it


    annoying, but we found it adorable.


    “Why do you say that, Joy?” Sebastian asked. I nced at him. He was manipting her to talk.


    “You know why. Sebastian,” Joy mumbled. “Remember the first day you guys saw me… scars on my


    face, a limp in my step. These boys I was in high school with… they tied me up on the boy’s vertical


    bench press, tore this beautiful white gown I made myself, raped me then beat me to a pulp. After that,


    they want back to the spring formal like nothing ever happened and left me in the boy’s gym room to


    die. It was all a big mess.” Joy took another shot while the


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    CHAPTER 12 Joy’s Story A Tragedy


    three of us stared at her, shocked to hear her talk about her assault. After two years, none of us knew


    she had been sexually assaulted.


    I walked to where she sat and hugged her. She patted my arms like I was the one who needed


    comforting. Xavier, I noticed, was furious. Sebastian, for the first time, wast speechless. I was mad


    mainly at myself for not finding anything about her and giving up. I should have done more digging.


    “Honey, ssshhhhh. Everything is okay,” I said, rocking her in my arms.


    “No. You deserve to know. You told me the truth about yourselves, so I should tell you my story,” she


    said. “Right, Sebastian?”


    I looked at him from above Joy’s head and shook my head. But he nodded his head instead, agreeing


    with Joy. I wanted to punch him in the face.


    It was her birthday and this was suppose to be a happy asion. I moved a chair to sit next. to her just


    in case she needed my strength to help her.


    I actually wanted to run to theke and scream, but Joy needed me and by her side I’ll be.


    “Alright then,” Joy took another shot, rubbed her hands together and began to tell her story. She


    sounded like she was telling us a horrifying ghost story.


    “It was the most anticipated event of junior high… The Spring Formal. Months before it, I designed and


    made this white backless dress. I wanted Noah, my bestfriend, to be my date, but his friend Liam asked


    me first. What’s funny was, I agreed to be Liam’s date minutes before Noah asked me.”


    “At the night of the spring formal, I was alone at the auditorium, waiting for Liam to get back from the


    washroom, when my friend Lisa and Liam’s ex-girfriend, Nicole, told me Noah was waiting for me at the


    boy’s gym.” Joy ced her hands on her chest and we instantly knew, once upon a time, this Noah


    was special to her. “I thought finally… finally… he was going to confess he had feelings for me,


    because ever since our freshman year, I developed feelings for him. I didn’t want Liam or any other


    boy. I just wanted Noah. Since Liam had been away for so long, I thought he wouldn’t mind if I snuck


    out for a bit to talk to Noah.”


    “When I got to the boy’s gym, the door was open. I was expecting to see Noah standing in the middle


    of the gym, you know, with some flowers in his hand, kneeling down, so handsome in his tuxedo.” She


    laughed at herself “I had a very vivid imagination back then.” She suddenly shook her head and closed


    her eyes. She was quietly beating herself up for being so naive. I took her hand in mine and held it


    tightly. She gazed at me with unsure


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    eyes, inhaling deeply, mustering enough courage to continue. The tragedy wasing.


    There was a single light on, but no Noah. I even called out to him, but there was no answer. Thinking it


    was another of Nicole’s pranks, I turned around to leave, but the doors suddenly closed. There stood


    Liam and his three bestfriends, Cris, Jack and Dan, who were waiting for me with these evil grins on


    their faces.”


    Her face suddenly changed from confident to frightened. Her hand was shaking and a cold sweat


    appeared above her brow.


    “I tried to run away, I did, but I tripped on my dress and fell. They picked me up from the floor and threw


    me against the vertical bench press. While Liam and Cris held me down, Dan tied my wrists and ankles


    down. Then, he ripped my dress apart, ripped my underwear and shoved it in my mouth.”


    “Cris was first. He couldn’t get it up for whatever reason, so he started punching me. Every time his fist


    connected, he became hard. He did a nal first, thrusting so hard while beating my face. Then, when he


    was about toe, he stuck his penis into my vagina, pumping until he came while he grabbed my


    head with his two hands, hitting my head against the bench


    press.


    “After Cris, Liam raped me then Jack. Liam smashed my face with a barbell when he came, screaming


    “Death to all Taylors” while Jack strangled me so hard, I almost died.”


    “Dan, instead of using his di ck, used the end of a mop instead and inserted it all the way in. After that,


    he took a baseball bat, broke my arm my leg, and some of my ribs.


    “When he was done with the bat, Dan told the others to fix up so they could go back to the spring


    formal before everyone noticed they were gone. He said to leave me there. The janitor will surely find


    me dead in the morning. I remember the sounds of theirughter before they left the gym. Whatever


    they did to me, they clearly enjoyed it.”


    “And no, the janitor didn’t find me. A girl did. I couldn’t see who she was because both of my eyes were


    closed shut from the beatings and sadly, I didn’t recognize her voice. She said she would call Noah to


    take me home.”


    “Once I heard my parents’ voices, I tried to tell them who hurt me, but my jaw was broken, so I wasn’t


    sure if they heard me. I passed out on our way to the hospital. When I woke up, was lying in a hospital


    bed being treated for my injuries.


    I


    “I expected to hear Liam and his possé were already behind bars, but I overheard the Sheriff telling my


    father that they found the boy’s gym clean… that no one was talking. I also


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    CHAPTER 12 Joy’s Story: A Tragedy


    overheard him say evidence had gone missing, including my gown. With no evidence and no eye


    witnesses, the Sheriff told my dad if we decided to file charges, it would be a case of “he id, she said.”


    We would definitely lose and I would bebeled as the town’s w h ore. All the sin our school were


    already gossiping about the dress I wore, saying it left nothing to the magination.”


    “After I was discharged from the hospital, my dad would go to the local pub and drown his sorrows in


    alcohol. One night, instead of my dading to the pub, Old Man Eugene brought a bottle of his finest


    bourbon to our house and told him nothing was going to happen if my father kept drinking.


    “The next day, my dad said it was time to move on. We would sell everything even the grocery store


    that has been in his family for three generations and fix my face. I told him we shouldn’t, but he said


    nothing is as important to him than me. He said it was a small sacifice for my future. And he was right.


    If it weren’t for his decision, I wouldn’t have met you guys and I wouldn’t be this happy.”


    “I really love you three. You guys mean the world to me.”


    Chapter Comments


    Luna-Mom


    yay it’s finally out there that the trio love her WWI


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