Later that day, Ana and I were at an expensive European store, looking for a dress that she had seen in a magazine advertisement. I didn’t feel comfortable there—I felt odd with her…as enemies.
“So, a date I heard.” Ana gave me a forged smile.
I looked up at her, expecting her eyes but she was scanning through the dresses already. “It should be nice.”
“Oh…hmm,” she said annoyed—as if she didn’t want to be there with me.
“Yeah, why?”
“Why what?”
“The attitude?”
“No, no attitude here,” she pouted her lips.
“Sure, whatever.”
“No, I like you Lily. Odd to say or even hear, but it’s just…”
“Just what?”
“I don’t like him…for you.”
“Really? Why? Isn’t he your assistant?”
“Yeah I know, just ever since that whole France situation, I kind of look at him differently.”
“Oh typical, you would have loved to see me die in the hallway. You are such a—”
“What are you talking about?”
“In France, Jason is the one who found me. I was passed out cold.”
“No he didn’t!”
“Yeah, he did. In the hallway, he found me,” I said. “Someone beat me up.”
“Because he beat you.”
“No he—”
“Yes he did, Lily. I called the cops when he dragged you to your hotel room by your hair!”
Paul’s words came back to me—in the hotel room, in France.
“Then, why does the police reports say I was found in the hallway? Everyone is saying I was found in the hallway.”
“He beat you to unconsciousness in the hotel room. When I went in there, he was gone. So, I ran back to my hotel room to call my security and then, when I went back out Jason was screaming and I guess he dragged you to the hallway,” she said.
“But, why would he tell police that he found me in the hallway?” I said.
“A cover up, duh!”
“How would Paul know then?”
“Know what?”
“He told me I was in the hotel room—”
“You must have heard him wrong, because there is no way he would know. For my safety and my sanity, I didn’t say anything because no one would have believed me,” she whispered. “You should know that Jason has this charm that would make anyone believe him!”
I turned my head from her and I began to cry. Nothing made sense anymore.
“I’m sorry, Lily,” Ana said.
“No! He didn’t!” I cried. “I think you’re lying.”
“Okay stop it! You’re causing a scene.” She grabbed my arm to leave out the store but I punched her away.
“Aw! You are such—”
“Sorry.” I began to hyperventilate, not wanting to believe it. “But…what if it’s not the past? What if it happens again?”
“Well, if it does, I’m here. Really I am. I’ve known Jason for a while now and I know he has gone through some hard times, but he loves you.”
“Hard times? What hard times?”
“Ooh nothing important. Trust me nothing will happen again. You and I will act like that never happened and you will stay with Jason. No one will ever know. I promise.”
“But, shouldn’t I just leave him?” I said. “Strong women don’t stay with abusive men.”
“No, he just has some anger issues, but he loves you a lot. He needs a girlfriend, Lily. Just please don’t dump him. If you do, I will have to deal with him and you don’t want that.”
“But Ana…”
“If it happens again, you can take it to the media and they’ll be all over him.” Ana gave me a hug and she grabbed a dress for me to wear. She twisted my fingers into hers and we walked to the cashier…as friends.