Minnesota

Insult

Connie opened the window. A light summer wind blew in fresh air, picking up half a dozen used tissues on the nightstand.

            “Great.” She bent to pick them up. One of tissues was defiant and kept blowing away, leaving Connie no choice but to chase it.

            “What are you doing?” Nena had left her temporary bed on the living room couch while Connie straightened out her bedroom. Now, she stood in the doorway, watching her roommate chasing tissues. Nena laughed. It's a good sound to hear. Connie, still bent over while trying to catch the last elusive tissue, looked up. Nena laughed harder.

            Connie frowned. “I am happy you're this easily amused.” She finally managed to catch the renegade. Victorious, she stood up, stretched and glanced at her friend again.

What just happened?

Nena's face had gone pale.

“Maybe you should rest, sit down. Finish your pineapple pizza. I'll fluff up your bed and then I’ll join you.” Connie turned down the bed and reached for the pillow.

            Nena's large, dark, eyes closed for a moment.  She puffed out a few heavy breaths. When she opened her eyes again, staring fiercely. “Will you stop fussing around? It's driving me crazy, what are you, OCD?” Nena screamed.

Connie didn't flinch at the outburst. Well, Monique warned us about unprovoked anger outbursts. Guess she was right, again.

            “Seriously? “She threw the pillow onto the bed, hands on hip, head tilted to the right, eyebrows raised.

            “I am sorry, oh, please, I am sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me. The anger, it just comes out of nowhere.” Nena slumped over, tears streaming.

            Connie walked over, hugging her. “It doesn't come out of nowhere; it comes from what these assholes did to you.”

            Nena nodded, sniffling. “Do we have any more tissues?”

***

“Are you feeling any better?” Connie looked across the small living room table. Nena's face had regained color and she was on her third slice.

Since her release from the hospital, Connie had been waiting for the right time to ask Nena for details, no matter how minute, that would confirm her suspicion that Mark was indeed present. Connie no longer doubted Nena in her assertion that there had been a second man. But there never is a right time to talk about rape, is there?

            Nena glanced up. “You’ve done so much for me.” Tears began streaming again.

Connie sighed. “I know you’re not angry with me, so forget about it, I …”

Nena interrupted her. “I’m angry because I got a huge hospital bill this morning. I’m angry because I don’t understand how I can be billed for this. I have insurance.” Nena reached under the sofa cushion and pulled out a thick envelope. She put it on the table.

“May I?” Connie reached for it. Nena nodded and Connie began reading.

“Wow.” Connie leaned back. “It doesn’t look like they billed your insurance. Do you have your insurance information?”

“It’s in the safe, downstairs, with the rest of the important stuff.” Nena’s teeth anxiously worked their way over each fingernail.

            Connie glanced at her. How is this fair? She has to pay for being raped? But she didn’t tell Nena this. Instead, she focused on the good news.

“We haven’t told you this yet, but we started crowd funding for you. Thomas did it, mostly. I don’t know how much it is, last time I checked it was at about $50,000.00 …” That’s as far as she got.

Nena squealed. She clapped her hands, stomped her feet, and kept asking. “What? How?”

Connie couldn’t help it, she smiled. At this moment, Nena’s childlike joy at the unexpected news felt right.

            Nena needed another minute. And more tissue. She had begun crying again.

            “Now,” Connie said when she was sure Nena could hear her, “I’m going downstairs to see if Lars needs help. Would you be okay if I ask him for your insurance card? And if Thomas is in, can I show the hospital bill to him, ask him if he’d look it over?”    

Nena stared at her. “You think he'd help?”

            Connie sighed and stood up. “I am sure he will. If he has time, I’ll bring him up here, we’ll have some coffee and pastries. Sound okay?”

Nena nodded, then looked down on herself. “Oh, I better clean myself up and put on fresh clothes.”