Suzie's Lessons Ch. 06

Suzie seemed like the only one that was not sure. She was worried about Mary's frail condition. She finally agreed. They made her be the one to tell Mary. Curt would feel out Mark in the meantime. They dropped Andy and Janie at her house while Suzie used her cell to call Mary. After about five minutes of waiting, Mary's mom finally got her to the phone.

"Mary, everything okay?" Suzie asked.

"Well, I've managed to keep it from my parents so far, if that's what you mean," Mary whispered.

"Mary, I want to come over now and see you. I have something to talk with you about," Suzie said.

"Suzie, I really am not up for company right now," Mary said.

"Please, Mary, I have something to talk with you about that can't wait," Suzie said.

"Okay," Mary said.

When Suzie hung up, she told Curt she was all set to go to Mary's. Curt said he was going over to Mark's too. He would drop her at Mary's then pick her up after he was done with Mark. When they pulled into Mary's driveway, Suzie leaned over to give Curt a kiss.

"I missed you," she said.

"I missed you worse," he joked.

"No, you didn't," she shot back with a smile.

"I was hoping to have a joyous reunion with you," Curt said.

"I know," Suzie said. "Me too. Sorry to spoil it."

"Not your fault," Curt said. "Suzie, I'm proud of you for being so strong last night and saving Janie from that ass Bart. I think I might have a few words with him," Curt said.

"Curt, please don't get hurt or anything," she worried.

"Don't worry about me," he smiled.

They kissed a couple times before Suzie exited the Torino and Curt backed out of the driveway. Mary greeted her at the door. She was showered and dressed nicely and you would not have known anything about last night from her appearance. They walked down into the basement to a rec room and closed the door. Mary turned on a TV fairly loud and they sat down on the sofa facing each other. Suzie took Mary's hands in hers.

"How are you today? You look great!" she smiled.

"I feel okay considering and thank Janie for the text message. I did douche last night before showering and going to bed. I took a long hot bath this morning. I can wash away the evidence of last night but I can't wash away what happened or the embarrassment. Hopefully, I won't get pregnant as a result," Mary said as she fought back tears.

"I hope not, honey," Suzie said. "You're probably right about your cycle."

"What'd you want to talk about, Suzie?" Mary asked.

Suzie looked at her long and hard wondering if this was the right thing to do and if it was far too soon to even try but she decided to plug ahead.

"Mary, how'd you like to go to the prom with us?" Suzie asked.

"What are you joking, Suzie?" Mary said, flabbergasted she would even ask. "That's what you wanted to ask me? I don't have a date remember and after last night no boy in his right mind would every consider going with me."

Suzie was beginning to regret agreeing to this but pushed on.

"Mary, we may have a date for you," Suzie said. "A friend of Curt's from the football team."

"How...what? Does Curt know about me and last night?" Mary asked.

Suzie worried for a moment she shouldn't have told him.

"Yes, Mary, I told him. I couldn't keep that from him. He probably would have known something was wrong anyway because all I can think about now is you and getting you happy again," Suzie said.

"Suzie, Janie and you promised you wouldn't tell anyone. Soon everyone will know and I'll have to move away because I won't be able to show my face in school without someone looking at me like I'm a whore. 'Oh, there goes that girl that did all those guys at a party'," Mary lamented. "Did Janie tell Andy too?"

"Yes, we all went to get tuxes this morning," Suzie said. "They'll keep it quiet, I promise you, Mary."

"That's what I thought you both agreed to last night. Now two more people know," Mary cried.

"I'm so sorry, Mary, but Janie and I need their support to help you through this thing and you'll see - they can help too. This was Curt's idea to make you happy by going to the prom with us," Suzie said.

"Suzie, I can't go to the prom. It's way too late and no one will go with me anyway," she stated.

"Janie and I could help you find a dress today. Curt is sure he can get you a date too," Suzie said.

"With whom? And it's not fair to them. I'm damaged goods," Mary said.

"You certainly are not and don't talk that way about yourself! You were drugged and raped. It was not your fault at all. The way I see it, you're still the friend I had on Friday, nothing more. Please, Mary, consider it. It would be so much fun for you to be there with us," Suzie added.

"It'd not be fair for me to go with any guy, Suzie. What if they found out the day before? How would they feel towards me then?" she asked.

"That's why they need to know too," Suzie said.

"Oh, great, another person. Why don't we just tell my parents and then announce it over the school PA system," Mary said. "Then I really will feel like killing myself."

"Please don't talk like that, Mary. You're right, the boy needs to know but Curt says these are good guys and very understanding," Suzie added.

"Who're you talking about anyway? Someone I even know or like. Not some complete nerd, I hope. It would take a complete nerd though to want to go out with me now," she said.

"That's not true and these guys are not nerds. I don't want to say who until Curt has a chance to talk with them though," Suzie said.

"Oh, so he's going to ask a bunch of his friends if they want to go to the prom with a rape victim? Great!" Mary cried.

"No, he's not going to mention the rape until they agree to go with you and you them. And he believes they'll still be willing," Suzie said.

"Great, I'm a misfit that someone has to be talked into spending time with," Mary said.

"Suzie, this is probably a bad idea."

"Would you have gone with this guy before last night?" Suzie asked.

"Well, probably, I guess," Mary agreed.

"Then nothing has changed and you should still go," Suzie demanded.

"But things have changed. Many things have. For one, I'm not a virgin anymore. I guess from what you told me, I'm quite the experienced lady though I don't remember any of it. I guess I avoided the pain of having my cherry broken, huh. Lots of things have changed for me, Suzie," Mary lamented.

"You're still Mary, my friend, and I want you to go to the prom with Janie and me just like you would have before things changed," Suzie said. "Tell me you'll consider it when I give you the boy's name," Suzie said.

Mary looked at her friend for a long time, and then nodded yes. They hugged each other tight. Mary thanked Suzie for being such a good friend. Suzie told her to be strong and Janie and she would help her through this thing.

"Mary, it sounds like you've decided to do nothing about last night?" Suzie asked.

"Suzie, I just want this to go away. I don't know if I can keep it from my parents or from getting around school but I want to try. I don't want to go to the police either," Mary said. "I could never stand the embarrassment of the public finding out or a trial."

"You're going to let those bastards get away with what they did to you?" Suzie asked.

"That's the hardest part. I'd like to kill them but it's far easier for me to carry on with my life if I just forget about it. If I dwell on it, I'm afraid I'm going to become a basket case and become hopelessly depressed. I need to move on, Suzie," Mary said.

"Okay, it's your decision to make but I only hope you're doing the best thing for you," Suzie stated.

"I know it seems weak on my part or like I'm just giving up but, Suzie, I really have no alternative as I see it if I want to go on living as normally as I can," Mary said.

"Well, Janie and I will support you and try to keep it quiet and help you return to your normal life," Suzie said.

"My thanks to both of you for your help. I can really use it," Mary said.

Suzie was just about to say, 'Honey, we are here for you,' when Mary's mother called down that Curt was there. Mary was not sure she could face Curt so soon, so Suzie went upstairs alone. Suzie found Curt talking with Mary's mom in the front yard. She was outside working in her flower beds when Curt had arrived. When Suzie arrived, they briefly wrapped up the conversation they were having on gardening and Mrs. Williams went back to her yard work. Suzie and Curt moved off to the driveway by his car to talk.

"Mark May would be glad to take Mary," Curt said.

"Really? That's great. Did you tell him yet about last night?" Suzie asked.

"No, I played it like we discussed but I don't see him changing his mind over that. I can convince him not to anyway. He really wants to take her," Curt said.

"Oh, Curt, that is fabulous news," she said.

"Yeah, but were you able to convince Mary to go?" he asked.

"Mary didn't want to at first but I convinced her to. She would have gone if not for last night. So I convinced her, she should go now. She couldn't argue against that," Suzie said.

"Good job!" Curt said. "I guess you can be very persuasive."

"Thanks," she laughed. "Let me go tell her. She knows him right?"

"Yes, they know each other from several classes together," Curt said.

Suzie walked back into the house and down to the rec room. Mary was watching TV waiting for her. Suzie walked over and sat by Mary on the couch.

"Mary, Curt has a date to the prom for you if you want it," she said.

"He really does? But who," she asked?

"Someone on the football team like I told you, a guy that knows you from several classes. Actually, Curt said he was thrilled at the chance to take you," Suzie said.

"He was! But, he won't be when he finds out I'm damaged goods," she said.

"You're not damaged goods and please stop saying that! It hurts me as your friend to hear you talk that way. You're a wonderful person and fun to be with. Nothing about that has changed unless you allow yourself to change for the negative," Suzie stated.

"Does he know yet ... about me, that is?" she asked.

"No, not yet but Curt is convinced it won't matter to him because he was very excited about the chance to take you," she said.

"Oh, God, Suzie, who is it? I can't wait any longer," she said.

"Mark May," Suzie said.

"He'd have been my first or second guess with the hints you gave. I don't know many of the football players and fewer yet from classes and even fewer that know me well enough to consider going with me," Mary said.

"What would you have said to him if he had asked you Friday?" Suzie asked.

Mary smiled as she knew her friend had purposely worded the question like that to force her to say yes.

"I'd have told him I would love to," she said with a continued smile.

"So does that mean you're saying yes and I need to go tell Curt?" she asked.

Mary's smile changed to a frown as she responded.

"Suzie, I would say yes but I'm afraid to. Many of the people at the party last night will also be at the prom. Something is bound to be said and then Mark May will get hurt. I don't want him feeling like he has to protect my honor because he's the unfortunate one with me. That's not fair to him, is it?" she stated.

"Mary, I think you need to leave that up to him. Curt is going to tell him but my guess is he'll still be glad to go with such a pretty girl as you and defend you if need be. From what Curt told me, he's a very big guy. He is the center on the offensive line and around six foot two and 260 pounds, so I'm sure he can take care of himself," Suzie said.

"But can we really get a dress and tux in time?" she asked.

"I think we can if we keep it somewhat simple," Suzie said. "So what do you say?"

"I hope I'm not making a big mistake but I'd love to go with you guys and Mark is a great guy. I do like him and you're right, I'd have gone with him before my rape," Mary said.

Suzie wished Mary didn't use the word rape. She might forget sooner if she didn't remind herself with that word. But, then again, she could not criticize Mary as she had no idea what Mary was truly going through.

"Should I tell Curt to go get Mark May and bring him back here after he tells him about last night?" Suzie asked.

"Yes," Mary said. "Please ask Curt to see if he'd still want to after knowing."

"He will," Suzie said as she got up.

She kissed Mary's cheek and said, "I'm so glad you agreed to go. I'm sure Mark will want to go with you so be ready to go dress shopping when we get back."

Suzie went back out to see Curt but instead of sitting in his car, he was helping Mrs. Williams with the gardening. When he saw Suzie coming, he excused himself and met her half way.

"She said yes," Suzie said beaming.

"Very good then," said Curt. "Shall I go tell Mark the rest and bring him over here?" he asked.

"Do you want me to go with you?" she asked.

"You could, but might be better if you stayed here with Mary," he said.

"Maybe you're right," she said.

"Okay, I'll go get him," Curt said.

"What if he changes his mind, Curt? Mary will be broken-hearted again," she said.

"I don't think he will," Curt said with assurance.

They kissed and Curt went to the Torino to go pick up Mark while Suzie went back inside to see Mary. About twenty minutes later Curt was back with Mark May. Curt had told Mark all about the rape and Mary's reluctance toward attending the prom because it wouldn't be fair to her date. Mark had agreed with Curt that she should not feel that way and that he was glad to take her.

Mark and Curt said hi to Mrs. Williams, who was still gardening when they arrived. She said they could go right in, so they proceeded down to the rec room. Curt called for Suzie as they were descending the steps so they would know they were both coming down. As the guys entered the room, they spotted Mary and Suzie sitting close together on the sofa. As they approached, the girls stood to greet them.

"Hi, Mary," Curt said, trying to sound chipper and nonchalant as they shook hands.

"Hi, Curt, good to see you again," Mary said, warily shaking his hand.

Curt and Suzie kissed a quick hello as Mark said, "Hi, Mary," and shook her hand.

"Hi, Mark. We meet outside of math class for once," Mary said trying to sound excited.

Curt said, "Mark, not sure you know my girlfriend, Suzie Johnson. Suzie, this is Mark May."

"Hi, Mark, "Suzie said. "I believe we meet somewhere before but I also know you, of course, from watching you play football with the team. Thanks for opening those big holes for Curt to run through," Suzie added with a smile.

"Hi, Suzie. I believe you're right. We met somewhere before. I'm glad too you're such a football fan. You're going to need to be if you're going to hang with Curt," he joked.

They small talked a little bit but then Curt told Suzie they should wait outside. They left Mary and Mark alone and ventured outside. They talked to Mrs. Williams as she planted annuals and Curt even help shovel dirt a bit.

In a short while Mark came out and the three all walked over by the Torino. Curt asked how it went to Mark. He smiled and said fine. Suzie asked for more details, so Mark told them how he asked Mary to the prom. Before she could answer yes, she started crying. They sat down on the couch together until she calmed down. Mark assured her that he wanted to take her and nothing else mattered to him accept he wanted to see her happy. After some more assurances on his part, Mary agreed to go with him and thanked him several times for his understanding and invitation.

Curt and Suzie were still talking with Mark, when Mary emerged from the house. They joined Mary by her mother. Mary told Mrs. Williams that Mark had asked her to the prom. Mrs. Williams was delighted for them but asked if there was still time to get ready. They told her time was short but they felt they could pull it off. In fact, they were all going shopping that afternoon.

Curt and Mark went to get Mark's tux squared away while Suzie, Janie and Mary all went dress shopping. The guys were to tell the tux shop that they would call later with the dress color for coordinating the tie and vest.

Mary seemed to cheer up appreciably while they were shopping but her friends could tell she was still hurting underneath. Mary's sleek body fit in many dresses which dramatically improved their chances of finding a good dress at the last minute.

They were not the only ones still shopping for dresses. There were several other girls doing the last minute thing. By four o'clock they had Mary's dress, a beautiful tangerine number that set off her brown hair and figure, and they had called the boys with the information.

By 4:30, everyone was back home to get ready for the evening. They had agreed to go out together, the three couples, to celebrate Mark and Mary going to the prom with them. Inwardly, Suzie was a little disappointed. She had not been alone with Curt since Friday night and she would rather spend the time with him. However, she knew keeping Mary involved was the best and it would be fun all going out together for dinner.

When Curt dropped her off at her home so she could get ready for the evening, she ran into Beth while headed to her room. Beth had a newspaper in her hand and wanted to talk to her. They went into Beth's room and sat on the bed. Suzie asked Beth how her date had gone Friday night. Beth thanked Suzie for her advice beforehand because it came in handy.

"Will you guys be going out again?" Suzie asked.

"We're going out again next Friday, so that's cool," Beth said.

"Did you like him?" Suzie asked.

"I liked him. I kissed him. It was easy like you said," Beth answered.

"Did he try anything else?" Suzie asked.

"No, nothing much," Beth joked.

"What're you going to do next time?" Suzie asked.

"What do you mean?" Beth asked.

"Are you going to a movie again or what?" she asked.

"Probably a movie," Beth said.

"Okay, I need to get ready for my date with Curt tonight," Suzie said.

Beth said, "Did you see this in the paper. Mom pointed it out to me."

Beth handed Suzie the article and Suzie read the title, "Rape alleged at high school party."

Suzie read the article. Apparently, the police had responded to her 911 call and gone to Kevin's house. They found the front door ajar and went in. They discover several college kids drinking in the backyard. They also found a girl, whose name was being held as she was a minor, having sex in one of the bedrooms. The girl appeared to be drugged and had been taken to the hospital for tests.

The police had searched the house and found a bra that did not appear to belong to the drugged girl. They also found what looked like semen stains on the carpet in another room where the bra was. Semen stains were found on a pillowcase in the hamper. DNA tests were being performed on the articles found. Two of the college kids were not twenty-one and were arrested for underage drinking. The two brothers that owned the house were taken in for questioning. The college boy that was having sex with the minor was also booked and held pending further investigation.

"Oh, my God," Suzie said.

"What?" Beth asked. "Do you know any of these guys?"

"I know this guy Kevin whose house the party was at," she said.

"Wow," said Beth. "He's in a world of trouble, it sounds like."

"I'll say. Beth, I got to go get ready. Can I have this article?" she asked.

"Sure, Mom wanted you to see it anyway," Beth said.

Suzie nearly ran from the room into hers and called Janie immediately. Janie answered the phone on the third ring.

"Janie, have you seen the article in the paper?" Suzie said excitedly.

"No, what article are you talking about?" Janie asked.

Suzie described the article to Janie and she nearly shit. "Go read it and call me back," Suzie said.