Home

When we walked into the lobby, it was the usual party scene. There were people everywhere, with drinks in their hands, and food set up on tables around the room. I scanned the crowd quickly, looking for Orlando, but didn’t find him anywhere. I went to the bar and got a drink, a dirty martini, and joined Lisa and some of the other company members.

“He’s not here,” I said to Lisa. “I guess he went home.”

“He’s here somewhere,” she said, standing on her toes to look around. “I know I saw him. He’s probably in one of the groups of people.”

I looked around again, but still didn’t see him. “There’s Nick, I’ll ask him.” I hurried over to where Nick was.

“Happy New Year, baby!” he exclaimed, wrapping me in a gigantic hug.

I smiled. “Not for another ten minutes or so,” I said, hugging him back. “Nick, is Orlando here?”

“Somewhere,” he said, slurring his words a bit. He’d obviously been drinking, and since he didn’t hold his alcohol well, it didn’t take much to get him tipsy. “He went thataway.” He pointed toward the entrance to the theatre, then cackled like mad. “Tell him when he’s done with that cute little blond number, I want a chance with her.”

“I think you’ve had a bit too much to drink already,” I said, chuckling as he stumbled over his own feet and nearly knocked us both down. I hoped the ‘cute little blonde number’ was a figment of his drunken imagination. I managed to get Nick sat down in a chair, then headed into the theatre to find Orlando.

He was sitting on the edge of the stage, and, just as Nick had said, a blonde woman was sitting next to him. As I got closer, I saw that it was Kate. I stood in the aisle, partially hidden by the wall, and listened. I knew I shouldn’t, but I wanted to know what he was doing with her.

“You can’t tell me you don’t love me,” Kate was saying, as she inched closer to him. Their legs were almost touching. She put her hand on his arm and he looked at her, a tender expression on his face. I knew that look all too well, and to see him using it on someone else made my stomach turn.

“You’re right, I can’t,” he said softly, so softly I had to strain to hear him.

“Then let’s get out of here,” she said, lightly stroking his thigh. “You don’t have to stay for the party. It’s not your show.”

He put his hand on top of hers. “You don’t understand, Kate,” he said, shaking his head. “I refuse to just leave with you. We both know what would happen if I did.”

“Would that be so bad?” She leaned in closer to him.

He looked down at their hands on his thigh. “I can’t do that to Charlie,” he said finally. “It wouldn’t be right.”

“What’s not right is ending our relationship for some chick you met just a few months ago,” she said, her voice getting louder. “How can you compare what we have to that?”

“What we had,” he corrected her, pulling her hand off his leg and putting it on her own. “I asked you not to come here, I asked you not to call me, and yet you’re doing it anyway. If circumstances were different, I would have no problem going back to your hotel with you, but they’re not different, and I can’t.”

“You said she’s mad at you,” Kate said, her tone slightly pleading. “What makes you think she’ll even want you around tonight?”

“Whether she does or not, that’s between Charlie and me,” he said patiently, much the way he would to an obstinate child. “I think you need to leave.” He stood up.

She rose as well and wrapped her arms around him. He hesitated, then hugged her back. My heart sank as I watched their embrace, as I watched her press herself to him in a way that was clearly an invitation. I silently hoped he’d push her away, but he didn’t.

“Two minutes, everyone!” someone called from the lobby behind me. I couldn’t move, as much as I wanted to turn around and run the other way. I felt riveted to my spot, wanting to see what happened next between them.

Ever so slowly, Kate pulled back, and entwined her fingers in his hair, gently pulling him down to her. I held my breath as I waited for their lips to connect, but they never did. He turned his head away and her kiss landed on his cheek.

“Why did you do that?” she said, her hands still in his hair. “Orlando, kiss me.”

He shook his head and stepped away from her. “I can’t, Kate,” he said softly. “I’m sorry.” He turned and walked toward the opposite aisle from where I stood.

I shook myself, and hurried back to the party, not wanting him to know I’d been there. As petty as it sounds, I wanted to know if he’d tell me what happened.

“Where’ve you been?” Lisa asked as I re-joined her. “It’s almost midnight. Did you find Orlando?”

I gulped down my drink and grabbed another one from a waiter with a tray who was passing by. “Uh, yeah, I did,” I said, concentrating on the champagne in my new glass.

Everyone around us started counting down, “Ten, nine, eight,” and I tried to keep a smile on my face. Lisa was practically jumping up and down. I saw Nick stagger past, toward the big television that was set up in the corner, with the live coverage of the ball dropping in Time Square. “Four, three, two, one, Happy New Year!”

There were hugs and kisses all around, people grabbing whoever was closest, the spirit of the season and the plentiful alcohol flowing through them. I tried to be lighthearted, but I still hadn’t seen Orlando yet. Part of me wanted to hug him and kiss him and be happy about the fact that he hadn’t given in to Kate, but the other part of me wanted to know why he was even there with her in the first place. She shouldn’t have even been at the party, let alone by herself with him in the auditorium while everyone else was in the lobby.

I hugged my friends, finished my drink, then went back into the dressing rooms to get my coat. I figured I’d just go home, Orlando would have to come back there eventually. I was just digging through my purse and grabbing for my jacket, when I heard the door open behind me.

“Sorry, no one’s supposed to be back here,” I called over my shoulder, rummaging around for my keys.

“Especially me, right?”

I spun around, dropping my purse. “Sean, what are you doing here?” I asked, bending down to pick up my stuff. “You’d better go.”

“No, I want to talk to you,” he said, closing the dressing room door behind him. “Nick fired me because of you.”

“No, he fired you because you were a jerk,” I said, slipping my arms into my coat and zipping it up. “Don’t make this any more difficult than it needs to be, okay?”

“I didn’t get to apologize for what I did,” he said, taking a step toward me. Instinctively, I backed up. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Charlie, I really didn’t.”

“Whether you meant to or not, you did,” I said, refusing to let him off the hook for what he did. “I can’t just tell you it’s okay, because it’s not.”

“You’ll never make it easy on me, will you?” he said, taking another step toward me. He didn’t look dangerous, but something about him made me afraid. It became very apparent to me that we were in a small room, alone, and he was blocking the doorway. I clutched my purse tighter, and waited for him to speak again.

“You pissed me off, Charlie,” he said, his voice low. “You think you’re so much better than the rest of us, that you’re this perfect angel that no one can touch, but you’re nothing. You’re just another nobody. I’ve dealt with people like you all my life, you holier-than-thou types who think you can shit all over everyone and it’s okay.”

“Are you finished?” I said, tears stinging my eyes. What he’d said was a horrible description of me, and not one I ever thought would be applied to me.

“Not by a long shot.” He advanced again. “You need to be taken down a peg, to learn where you stand. That boyfriend of yours may let you call the shots, but I don’t put up with this shit from bitches like you.” He moved quickly, and before I knew it, he was directly in front of me, his hands digging painfully into my shoulders, even through my heavy coat.

“Sean, back off,” I said, trying to step backwards. I hit the coat rack. I had no where to go. “This isn’t going to solve anything.” I was terrified of what he’d do, but I wouldn’t let him know that.

“I haven’t got anything to lose, have I?” he said, his breath hot and sour on my face. “You took my job, my girlfriend, my home, hell, even my self-respect. Why should I have nothing and you have everything?”

“You’ll get another job,” I said, hoping my voice sounded more stable to him than it did to me. “You’re talented, any show would jump at the chance to have you.”

“Not if it gets out why I was fired,” he said, pulling me closer to him, until I was pressed tight against him, my purse between us. “You think anyone is gonna hire me if they know I manhandled my leading lady?”

“I’m sure if you talk to Nick, the two of you can come up with another reason you left the show,” I said, refusing to look into his face.

“He won’t do that.”

“Let me talk to him,” I said, desperate for any way to get out of the room. It felt like the walls were closing in around me, and it was getting hard to breathe. “I’m sure I can get him to see reason.”

“Oh, so you get to be the hero again?” he spat into my face. “You’d love that, wouldn’t you? Having to save me, to make me your charity case? Well screw that, I can deal with my own career, thank you very much.”

“Then what do you want from me?” I burst out, finally meeting his eyes. His face twisted into an ugly sneer, and I knew exactly what he was thinking. “Don’t you dare,” I hissed, dropping my purse and shoving him away.

He wouldn’t let go, only held me tighter, grinding himself against me until I thought I would be me sick. I knew no one would hear me if I screamed, they were all too far away and far too drunk. My only hope was to reason with him.

“Sean, if you walk away now, we can forget this,” I said as he began to slobber on my neck, his hands on my back, holding me tightly in place. “No one will ever have to know you were here.”

“You’ll tell that pretty boy you’re dating, and he sure as hell won’t forget,” he said, his one hand unzipping my coat while the other held me in place as I struggled against him. He stuck his hand inside my coat and grabbed my breast roughly through my shirt. I thought I would vomit right there, but I forced myself to stay calm. I clenched my fists against his chest and shoved again as he began unbuttoning my blouse.

“I won’t tell Orlando,” I said softly, twisting to get away. I managed to break free of him, but he was too fast for me and he beat me to the door. He shoved me back into the room, and I stumbled, but managed to stay on my feet. I knew if he got me on the floor, I didn’t stand a chance. “Sean, just let me go.”

He laughed, a cold, cruel sound. “Not on your life,” he said, his eyes sparkling with hatred. “You’re not going to get out of here, so you may as well relax and enjoy it.”

I turned away from him and re-zipped my coat. I felt him come up behind me and put his hand over my mouth, pulling my head back painfully. His other hand pulled the zipper on my coat down again. I began fighting in earnest, struggling wildly, ramming my elbows back into him, kicking back with my feet, anything I could do to hurt him, to get him to stop.

“Quit fighting me,” he hissed in my ear as he rammed me forward, into the coat rack. “You’ll enjoy this, I promise.”

Against my will, tears started to stream down my face as he pressed me into the coats, his hands straying all over my body. I felt him start to pull me to the ground, and I panicked, spinning in his arms and smashing anything I could with my fists. I wouldn’t be his victim, I wouldn’t lie there and let him do what he wanted. Though Ramsey had never raped me, the memories of his beatings were still very fresh, and I would not let myself go through that again. I started shrieking at the top of my lungs, pounding and kicking and even biting.

“Bitch,” he cried when I bit his hand. He slapped me, hard, across the face, and sent me reeling. I stayed on my feet and flew at him again, clawing and scratching his face. He began hitting me back, slamming his fists into whatever part of me he could reach.

“Don’t you fucking touch me!” I screamed, my finger nails slicing across his cheek as my knee came up into his stomach. He grabbed my arms where the bruises were, and I winced, giving him the opportunity to throw me on the floor. I felt the back of my head hit the concrete floor, and I laid there for a second, waiting for the room to stop spinning, before lunging up again, grabbing his knees and pulling him down. I punched whatever I could, and I bit and I screamed, and I kicked, while he tried to get my pants off. He couldn’t get me to hold still enough so he could use the zipper, so he just began ripping at them. I felt one leg rip, then the other, and I went wild, clawing at him, hitting him with all the strength I had as he forced me onto my back on the floor, trying to rip the rest of my pants off. With Ramsey, I had been the victim, I hadn’t fought back, and I was hell-bent I would never be in that position again.

I heard the zipper on his jeans open, and I knew what was coming as soon as he managed to get my pants off. I held still for a moment, letting him get on top of me. While he was working on the button on my pants, I brought my knee up, hard, right where I knew it would hurt him most.

“Fuck!” he gasped, doubling over and falling to the side, clutching himself. “You stupid bitch!”

I didn’t wait for him to get up, I opened the door and stumbled from the room, into the dressing area. Luckily he’d only ripped the legs on my pants, so I was pretty much wearing shorts now, and I was still covered. My head hurt from where it had hit the floor, and I had scratches all over me from my struggles against him. But he hadn’t raped me, that was the main thing. I’d gotten away.

I stumbled into the theatre lobby, crying openly now, and looked around for Lisa, hoping she wasn’t too drunk yet. I hadn’t even been gone half an hour, it was only twelve-thirty. I spotted her by the bar and made my way over to her.

“What the hell happened?” she gasped when she saw me. She immediately wrapped her arms around me, and I sobbed on her shoulder, shaking from head to toe as the shock of what had happened finally caught up with me. “Oh my God, Charlie.” She led me away from the party, into the auditorium, and I knew people were staring at me. The noise had died down, as everyone watched us, dumbfounded.

“Okay, what the fuck happened to you?” Lisa demanded after she’d sat me in an aisle seat and crouched down beside me. “Charlie, who did this?”

I couldn’t say anything for a minute, needing to calm down. My voice was hoarse and raw from screaming and yelling, and my entire body ached. I took a deep breath and tried to stop the shaking as I answered, “Sean attacked me in the coat room.”

“Sean did this?” She looked like she’d been punched in the stomach. “We have to call the police.” I nodded. “And you need to be checked out at the hospital. There’s blood in your hair.” She stood up. “Don’t move, I’m going to call an ambulance.” She hurried away and left me in the dark theatre by myself. I doubled over on myself and started to cry again.

Lisa came back a few minutes later, Orlando hot on her heels. I’d forgotten about him and Kate during my whole ordeal with Sean, and I had to admit, I was completely relieved to see him now. I felt safe when he was around.

He didn’t say a word, just came down on his knees beside me and pulled me into his arms, gently, careful not to touch any of the marks on my legs and face. The rest of me was covered by my coat, so I didn’t know the extent of the damage there. I cuddled as close to him as I could, and the tears came again, this time tears of relief.

“The ambulance is on its way, and some of the guys have gone to look for Sean in the dressing rooms,” Lisa said, standing behind Orlando.

I went to stand up, but couldn’t, and collapsed back into the seat again. Orlando tried to hold me, but I pushed him away just in time, as I retched all over the floor at my feet. I couldn’t help it, the more I shook, the more I got sick, and the more my head throbbed. The floor started to spin, and I felt myself being lifted into Orlando’s arms, and carried out of the auditorium.

The ambulance came quickly, and I was loaded into the back. Orlando came with me, and Lisa rode in the front with the driver.

“Stay with me, love,” Orlando whispered as the ambulance attendant looked me over. “You have to stay awake until we know if you have a concussion or not.” Concern radiated from him, and he kept stroking my hair and squeezing my hand, talking gibberish to me the whole time. I had trouble focusing on his face, but I was able to concentrate on his voice, and I didn’t lose consciousness.

“Charlie, can you answer some questions for me?” the ambulance attendant said, moving so I could see her. She had mousy brown hair, pulled back in a ponytail, and her nose was fairly pointy, but she had a sweet smile, and her eyes were the most peculiar blue colour I’d ever seen. I tried to focus on them as I answered her questions.

“When is your birthday?”

“March third, nineteen-eighty-two.”

“Where do you live?”

“New York City.”

“Where were you born?”

“Kitchener, Ontario.”

“What’s today?”

“New Year’s Eve.”

“What is your boyfriend’s name?”

“Orlando.”

“Orlando what?”

“Orlando Bloom.”

“What does he do for a living?”

“He’s an actor.”

“What do you do for a living?”

“I’m in Wicked on Broadway.”

The questions went on like that for the rest of the ride to the hospital. When we arrived, I was taken into a little room, on the stretcher, given some blankets and a pillow, and lifted onto the bed. Orlando was shooed from the room as nurses came in with a hospital gown and more forms to fill out. I was just nicely settled in the bed when the doctor came in.

“Hello, Charlotte,” he said, consulting his clipboard. “I’m Dr. Cuthbert. I see you’ve got some nasty injuries that I need to look at.” He smiled at me. He was an older man, I’d say late forties, early fifties, with brown hair streaked with grey, and bright blue eyes. He seemed very nice. “So, why don’t you tell me what happened?” He pulled up a chair beside the bed and began taking notes as I talked.

It took a good half an hour to get the story out, as tears kept choking me. He didn’t say anything, just nodded and smiled reassuringly when I cried. I wanted Orlando there, but he wasn’t allowed in the room until after Dr. Cuthbert had checked me out.

“Okay, we’ll need to take a look at all of your injuries, to see how serious they are,” the doctor said, opening the door and calling to a nurse. He checked over my limbs and torso, noting some pretty spectacular bruises on my chest and abdomen, and some pretty deep gashes on my legs where Sean’s fingernails had dug in. Then he checked the back of my head, where it had hit the floor.

“You’ve got quite the lump forming back here,” he said, gently moving my hair aside. “A little bit of blood, but nothing too serious. I think we’ll keep you here overnight, just to see how you are in the morning. You’ll have to be monitored in your sleep tonight, because you have a mild concussion.” He smiled. “And there’s going to be some pretty nasty bruises on your ribs and around your abdomen. They won’t show until tomorrow, but the skin is red and irritated right now. Otherwise, the rest of this will heal in a few weeks. You’ll probably have some muscle spasms, but I don’t think there’ll be any scarring. We’ll keep an eye on it just in case. There’s a police officer waiting in the hall to take your statement. Do you feel up to that right now?”

I nodded and pulled the blanket tighter around me. “Can Orlando be here for that?”

Dr. Cuthbert smiled. “Sure he can,” he said. “I’ll be back in a bit to check on you. Use your buzzer if you need anything.” He gestured to the rope beside the bed and left.

The door hadn’t even closed behind him when Orlando opened it again and came quickly into the room. He took me in his arms, and I could feel the tension in him.

“Darling, I was so worried when Lisa said you’d been attacked,” he said, his lips against my ear. “If I ever see that tosser again, I’ll kill him myself, I swear. I should have decked him when I had the chance.”

“That wouldn’t have solved anything,” I said, clinging to him. “The police will find him, and I won’t have to worry about him.”

“Miss Madison?” A female police officer poked her head around the door. “Will you be able to give me your statement now?”

I pulled away from Orlando and nodded. I spent yet another half an hour going over what had happened, and by the end of it, I was exhausted. The nurses came back with a pill to help me sleep, and I settled down into the bed, with Orlando on a chair beside me.

“Orlando,” I said sleepily, looking over at him. “Will you hold me?” I wanted nothing more than to fall asleep in his arms, with his scent surrounding me, making me feel secure.

“Of course, love,” he said, getting up from the chair. I shifted over in the bed so there was room for him, and he wrapped himself around my back. “Just get some sleep, I’ll be here when you wake up.”

“Thank you,” I said, then drifted off.