Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 109178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
“You escaped the life you were dealt. You went to college. That says somethin’ about your toughness and perseverance.”
“Yeah, I went off to college, then started law school, but dropped out.” She tossed up her hands. “I’m a stripper and do live videos for money. I am fine with that. But I’m not stupid. I know how judgmental people can be. On paper, I am the classic stereotype of a loose Black girl. The only thing missing is a bunch of kids from a bunch of different baby daddies.” She shrugged. “I know how this looks… I know how people perceive me. People don’t understand me, but there is a rhyme behind the reason.”
“Perception and reality are rarely completely in sync.”
“On this, we agree.” She took a taste of her wine. “I’m going to tell you what happened. The parts you couldn’t have seen from that report.” She stroked her glass with her fingertips. Looking down into the wine, she studied her reflection in it.
“Okay. Fill me in.” He leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. Waiting.
“I was a junior in college. Things were going okay. I met this other student and went on just a couple of dates with this guy…” She closed her eyes briefly, then continued. “When we first met, I saw him as attractive. Seemed smart. He started flirting with me, and everything was normal. We kept talkin’ and getting to know one another, and I realized we weren’t that compatible, so I told him I just wanted to be friends.” She reached for her glass and took another sip. “That didn’t go over too well. He started yellin’, accusing me of being a tease, shit like that. I thought he was crazy, and moved on. Thankfully, he wasn’t in any of my classes for the next semester.
“So, weeks pass, I barely see him, I am thinking everything is fine. One day, I am goin’ back to my little studio apartment, and this guy is standing by the door. It’s raining so I’m in a hurry to get inside. I go up to him and ask him what in the world is he doing, and he proceeds to tell me that he wants another chance and that I was too hasty. I tell him I appreciate that, but I’m not interested. He says okay, that I couldn’t blame him for trying, and he wishes me well and walks away. Then I tell him bye, open my door, and he bum-rushes me. I remember… I remember how hard it started to rain. It was like… a dream. A bad one. He tried to drag me inside my apartment, but I fought. I kicked! I screamed! No one came to help me. Suddenly, I felt intense pain at the back of my head. I started blackin’ out, but saw him looking down at me. Drenched. Holdin’ what looked like a small bat. I don’t… I don’t even know where it came from. I blacked out completely.
“When I came to, I was in the hospital. He’d beaten me so badly that the doctor said it was a miracle I was still alive. Two broken ribs. Brain swelled up. Bruises from my forehead down to my ankles. Deep cuts. Chipped tooth. Inflamed. Battered. Bloodied. Everything hurts. Rape kit showed nothin’, so I guess I should’ve been grateful he didn’t do that to me, too. Would’ve been easy while I was unconscious. So eventually, the police came to the hospital. I said who did it.” She looked down into her glass of wine. “Told them that the guy’s name was Corey Elroy. They said they’d follow up. Long story short, I was nobody. There were no witnesses. His word against mine. He claimed to be studyin’ and in his dorm room all night. His roommate vouched for him. He got away with telling a big ass lie.”
She sighed and shook her head.
“Did the police actually interrogate the roommate, or just ask once?”
“I have no idea, but I doubt it would’ve mattered. Nobody believed me, Len, and the police treated me like I was crazy. They even asked me many times if I was on any kind of drugs. Like I beat my own damn self up!” She sucked her teeth and rolled her eyes. “He was popular. His parents were loved in the community. I was this girl that nobody knew. A stranger. He was used to getting what he wanted. Nobody told him no. He was royalty. Some high yellow golden-boy with good hair who was gonna be goin’ to medical school, and he came from a great family. Here I was, this skinny, brown-skinned, knock-kneed child with unruly coils and big lips. I had a thick Texan dialect at this prestigious college, sounded even more country than the Georgia peaches. It was assumed I got in due to affirmative action or some quota, versus the fact that I was just smart as hell, and my high school test scores proved it and I remained on the Dean’s list until the day I graduated. Even after this incident. I tried, Len. I tried…