The two guys charge down the hallway and out the door.
Someone must’ve told Bryce, because when we get to the first floor, he and Holly are running toward us.
“Oh my God, Maddy!” Holly runs up to us and flings her arms around her friend, helping her onto a nearby bench.
I step away just as several police cars with flashing lights pull up outside the dorm. Hardly any time passes before a policewoman is interviewing Maddy, and I’m giving my statement. Various security officials spread out to search the campus, including at least one officer with a German Shepherd on a long leash.
By the time I get back to my room, it’s after midnight. Maddy was taken to the hospital to make sure she was okay. Holly and a few other friends went with her. Bryce and the other RAs went room to room to make sure we keep our doors locked, and Campus Security has an officer stationed in our foyer.
Even though I’m dead tired and should really go to bed, I know I’ll never be able to sleep. The events of the night keep replaying in my head in a continuous fast-forward loop. My head throbs. I can tell I’m on the verge of a massive headache. I should’ve gone to the doctor for a refill on my medication. At least I don’t have to work tomorrow.
I slump down on the bed and that’s when my hands start to shake. I held myself together earlier but can feel myself unraveling now. My teeth are chattering. I’m freezing cold. As I lie there wrapped in my quilt with my knees pulled to my chest, I hear a dinging sound. It takes me a moment to realize it’s my computer. The chat window with Jon is still open.
Jon_KREX: Ivy? Are you back?
The time stamp indicates he typed that over an hour ago. He’s probably not still at the station, but I try anyway.
IOTR: Jon? U there?
A few minutes pass and he doesn’t reply. He must’ve gone home. I grab my phone and debate whether to text him or not. I want to talk to someone, so I take my chances.
Hey, Jon, are you there?
Yes. And then, Thanks for coming to the KREX chat room tonight. That was fun.
A knot forms in my stomach. It sounds like he’s talking to one of his Parishioners.
Jon?
Yeah?
My hands are really shaking now. I’m not sure I can type.
Ivy?
I don’t know what it is, but I’ve been able to hold myself together until now. Tears are stinging the backs of my eyes.
Ivy? Everything all right?
Not really.
What’s wrong?
Someone was attacked. The police came.
When? Where?
Before I can text back, my phone rings.
“What the fuck, Ivy. Who? When? In the dorm?” Something crashes in the background.
I feel an odd weightlessness. Like I’m outside my body looking down at myself. “What was that noise?”
“Just my guitar. Goddamn it, Ivy, what happened?”
I need to stay focused. Jon is asking me a question. “A girl. In my dorm. I found her. Down in the laundry room. She’ll be okay. I…I got to her before he…”
My hands are shaking even more. I almost drop my phone.
“Where are you?” His voice is strong and commanding. A door slams on his end of the line.
“In my room.”
“Is Cassidy home yet?”
How does he…? Then I remember telling him earlier that she wasn’t here. “No, she went home for the weekend.”
He curses under his breath. By the way he’s breathing, I can tell he’s running. “Get your shit together. I’m coming for you.”
“What? No, Jon. I’m…I’m fine. I just…wanted to talk to someone. I came back to my room and—”
“You can talk to me in person in five minutes.”
“No, you totally don’t need to come. I’m fine. They have Campus Security stationed downstairs. They’ve got everything under control.”
“I’m serious, Ivy. You’d better be ready or I’ll pack your shit for you.”
Jon
I pull up to her building less than five minutes later and spot her through the glass doors. She’s with a guy and a girl in the lobby.
I kill the bike’s engine and sprint to the entrance. She comes out to meet me and waves goodbye to her friends. She’s wearing pajama bottoms and a PSU sweatshirt, and she’s holding a pillow and her backpack. I leap up the steps, crashing into her at the top and pulling her into my arms.
“Jon,” she gasps, dropping the backpack and pillow.
For a split second, as the momentum propels us against the glass, I recall her panicked reaction back at the bar when we were in a similar position. I don’t want to scare her or hurt her, like someone else has obviously done to her in the past. I’d die a thousand deaths if I ever hurt her.
She clings desperately, like I’m a life raft. The only one who can help her.
Her reaction shatters something inside me that I’ve been trying for weeks to ignore. Something I’ve been denying even exists. I want to be here for her. To be her rock, her support. I want to be everything she needs.
When I heard what happened, I couldn’t get here fast enough. And now, with her in my arms, I think about what might have been. What if it was her and not some other girl who was attacked? And then my head goes into a really dark place. What if I lost her?
“God, Ivy.” The words stick to the back of my throat. I can hardly speak as the gravity of the situation hits me hard.
She sniffs and grabs my hair tighter. I think she might be crying though there isn’t any sobbing. It’s like she’s keeping it tucked deep inside and won’t let it out.
“I gotcha, babe. Nothing’s going to happen to you now.”
“I know,” she whispers in my ear. And then, very quietly, “I’m glad you came for me.”
Her hair is sticking to her wet cheeks, but my mouth finds hers anyway. I roughly push the strands away, until it’s just my lips against hers. I kiss her too hard. Too desperate. She smells sweet and tastes even better. It’s as if I’ve been thirsty all my life but didn’t know it, and now I finally have water.
Someone whistles from across the street. Ivy stiffens in my arms, her lips still pressed to mine.
“Yo, dudes,” a male voice calls out. “Get a room.”
There’s a burst of laughter and someone else says, “That’s some serious goddamn PDA.”
“Yeah. Another minute and they’d be going at it against the wall.”
“Why’d you stop them, idiot? I’d have watched that.”
Reluctantly, I release her and pick up her things.
A Campus Security officer rounds the corner on foot and beams a flashlight in our faces. “What’s going on?”
“I’m picking her up and taking her to my place.”
“Is that correct?” the officer confirms with Ivy.
“Yes.” Her voice rings out in the cool night air, her breath fogging in front of our faces.
I grab her hand and head toward the bike. “Have you found the guy?” I ask the officer.
“Not yet, but we’re still looking.” He heads across the street to talk to the group of guys, then continues his patrol.
“Jon, I—”
I touch a finger to her lips. I can tell she’s tired. “We can talk about this later. I need to get you home.”
chapter fourteen
The very first moment I beheld him, my heart was irrevocably gone.
Jon
I survey the mountain of dirty dishes in the sink as we enter the kitchen. “Sorry for the mess. I’d have cleaned if I had known…”