When Ru Shi and Tanisha returned, both only had classes until around three, I only told them that Karen had been taken to the hospital, without giving any details, hoping to at least partially preserve her privacy. Sadly, that did not work, as they had already heard that something had happened with David, who apparently had kept shouting profanities from time to time as the officers had escorted him out. In the tight living quarters of the dorm, quite a few people had heard him and rumors were flying fast and furious.

Some of them were hilarious, claiming that David had caught Karen and a lesbian lover in bed together and said lover had decked him when he got angry. There were a few variations of that story all centered around quarrel between a lesbian and David over Karen. In David’s rants he apparently had told everyone in earshot what he would do to the ‘dyke bitch’ and none of it was pretty.

Others were closer to the truth, which had Karen and an unspecified number of her roommates, from zero to three, getting raped by David and an unspecified number of accomplices.

When Ru Shi and Tanisha confronted me with those rumors, I gave enough details to set them straight and we all settled in together in the common room, waiting for news about Karen. The atmosphere in the room was a little strange, none of us was talking and both, Tanisha and Ru Shi stuck close to me. Not that I really minded, I was shaken as well, just trying to imagine hurting someone like that and not just a random someone, I would have to imagine hurting Sophia in such a way and my mind just refused. I could not even imagine doing something like that.

At about five, Ru Shi got a call from the hospital, asking if she could bring some clothes over for Karen. She got something to wear for her and we all trooped out, going together. Karen might send us away, but all of us wanted to show her that we cared.

When we got to the hospital, we were allowed to go to Karen’s room and told that once she was dressed, a doctor would process her out and we could take her home with us.

We entered together, I went first, then Ru Shi and Tanisha bringing up the rear. The moment I entered, I was tackled by a semi-naked Karen, just wearing a hospital gown, covering her front.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you…” she rapidly blabbered, without even taking breath as she spoke. Feeling a little awkward, I placed my arms around her, holding her while she clung to me. After a moment, she realised that there were other people in the room and blushed scarlet. She let go and moved back to the bed, sitting to cover her nude rear. Ru Shi handed her the clothes we had brought and we collectively turned around to give her privacy.

Once she was dressed, we went to the front, getting her processed out and leaving the hospital, all much happier once we were outside and going back to our dorm. On the way, I noticed how the three of us, Ru Shi, Tanisha and I, would almost instinctively take Karen in our mid, shielding her from the surroundings.

Back at the dorm, we just sat down together, not talking, just being together. After some time, Karen spoke up.

“I want you to know what happened, what really happened. I think it started yesterday, after the movie. I was a little annoyed before the movie but when we got there, I enjoyed the movie and I thought David did, too. Afterwards, Ru Shi and her date were being all adorable, so I didn’t want to disturb them and we split.” Ru Shi blushed fiercely at that and I had to hide an inappropriate grin.

“David and I were talking about, you know, stuff,” she flinched at that but continued, “and I told him that I thought the movie was really sexy.” she stopped for a moment, fidgeting. I simply waited for her to continue, curious how the saga went on.

“We both have a really light day tuesdays, I only have two classes, one from nine to ten-thirty, the other later, from three to four-thirty and we have used that time to enjoy some privacy here, when you are all in class. Today, I was not really in the mood and told him to stop after we had been making out a bit. He just didn’t and when I told him again, he suddenly got angry. He pushed me back onto the bed, saying that if I did not want the nice guy, if I wanted a bad boy, he would just have to be bad. He…” she paused, before taking a deep, shaky breath. When she continued, her voice was almost too soft to hear, only a whisper. “He said that he would show me, I tried to get away, but he held me down, on my bed and ripped some of my clothes apart to tie me down. I tried screaming for help but he gagged me. He...” she stopped again, shutting her eyes tight, shaking a little.

Previously, I had some curiosity about the initial attack, how it had happened but now, it was sated and I felt no need to listen to Karen talk further. I had little interest in the details of the events between the initial attack and my entrance into the situation, I could imagine enough of it. What I had seen when entering the room had told me more than enough, maybe even more than I really wanted to know, the red marks all over her skin, the fluids and even now, the raw skin on her wrists and ankles, they all made the events far too apparent.

What I was rather curious about was why he had the knife with him. Unless he was carrying it all the time, which I rather doubted, what he had done was premeditated. The police would undoubtedly follow that line of inquiry, as it made quite a bit of difference.

My silent plea went unanswered and Karen continued her story. It was pretty much what I had expected and had feared, only with more details. Ru Shi managed to listen in the beginning before getting even more pale than normal and rushing into the bathroom. From the common room, we were able to hear her retching, something that triggered Tanisha into following her. I waited with Karen for them to return and when they did, her tale simply jumped to the end of her ordeal.

“I heard something outside and hoped one of you was back, hoped you could call for help. He hit me for trying to make noise and when Diana knocked, he tried to grab her. But she was amazing, there was a hiss and he doubled over and she kicked him in the face. He just went down and she pulled some sort of ties and a knife from somewhere, tying him up and freeing me.”

I had left most of the details out, only telling Ru Shi and Tanisha that I had called the police who had taken David away. Now, all three of them were looking at me wide-eyed.

“Who are you, Diana?” Ru Shi asked, with awe in her voice.

“I’m just me. Do I have to be more to help a friend in need?” I gave a non-answer.

“And your equipment? I mean, that hiss, the ties and the knife?” Tanisha jumped in.

“There is a company, selling quite useful bracelets.” I jiggled mine.

“You wear those all the time, I noticed. You are telling me that you never leave the room unarmed?” Tanisha asked.

“I wear them everywhere but into the shower, yes. And now, please stop asking about me, I cannot answer you.” I told them, my voice friendly but commanding.

The three of them looked at each other for a moment, their gazes switching back and forth and all nodded, dropping the topic.

“So, where can I get bracelets like yours?” Ru Shi asked, smiling slightly. With a snort, I gave them the same answer I had given the police officer earlier.

Following that, our conversation went deliberately into lighter territory, until there was a knock at the door. I sat closest, so I went and answered.

“Yes?” I asked the guy in front of me.

“Hi, I’m a student reporter for the Cluster-Newspage. I heard the rumors and wanted to hear the story.” he asked me, holding his phone towards me. I almost punched him on the spot, but refrained, just looking over to Karen, asking if she wanted to talk with a reporter. She just went pale and shook her head, so I turned back to him and grabbed his phone, holding the microphone closed.

“No comment. If you pester either of my roommates, I will make sure that you will spent some time in traction.” I told him in a whisper, staring into his eyes, just daring him to test me.

He went almost as pale as Karen had and scuttled off.

We ordered food from a nearby takeout and ate together while watching a movie together. The last challenge of the day came at bedtime, when Karen asked if either Tanisha or I would switch beds with her, at least for the night.

Both, I just shrugged while Tanisha voiced she would do so, so we just flipped a coin, leaving me in my normal bed and Tanisha in Karens’.