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“I know you’re capable, but I’m also your big brother. I don’t know what else to say. I want to protect you,” I said.
She sucked on her tongue and tilted her head from side to side. “Ja— sorry, Mr. Crawford said you’ve known each other for over ten years. Is that right?”
“Yes.” I nodded.
“Have you also known the other guys just as long?” she asked.
“Yes,” I said.
“Would you say you guys were pretty close?” she asked.
At my agreement, she continued, “Means you would’ve seen them in all types of settings and situations, is that right?” she asked.
“That’s right,” I responded, studying her and taking a breath.
“So, you should be able to answer this question. In all the years you’ve known these men, have you ever seen them force a woman to be with them or have sex with them?”
My head could have spun off my body with how fast and instinctively I shook it. “No. Never. Even with as many women Anthony had slept with, they always seemed to want him just as much as he wanted them. He had that way about him,” I said, recalling my ex-girlfriend and scowling at the memory. “Of course, I couldn’t know everything but no, I never witnessed anything like that.”
“And have you ever heard any of the women your friends slept with complain about being coerced?” she asked.
I didn’t rush to answer. Instead, I sat and thought on the question for a while, going through as many memories as possible over the past fifteen years. “No,” I responded.
My mother was biting her bottom lip so hard, it was a deeper shade of red from her top lip. I wasn’t sure what she wanted me to say. I wouldn’t lie about what I didn’t see.
Tiffany sighed and nodded in relief. It was as if she were also holding her breath and was just given confirmation on her belief about my three former best friends.
“Thank you, Mr. Levine. There has been doubt around when the guys and I met, so maybe you can help to clarify something for the court and the opposition. Can you confirm when the guys and I met?” she asked.
Gulping, I nodded. “Yes. On the night of your graduation party was the first time I’d ever introduced you to Anthony and Mario.” A heaviness hit me in my ribs, and I took a deep breath, trying to get past this unnecessary sense of guilt I felt, for what I now realized was absolutely no reason. “And you met Jared Crawford on the day of your interview, I assume, because I set up that interview for you. But you would know better than I would.”
My mother’s veins were bulging from her forehead, and she shoved my father’s hand away from her when he tried to offer her some comfort. Getting Mom upset was hardly anything new, so I honestly didn’t even feel affected by her reactions. I had a few realizations over the past few days, which prevented my wounds of rejection and abandonment from being triggered.
“Thank you, Mr. Levine. Take us back to my graduation night. As Mario mentioned, you were a bit wasted. Do you recall much of that night?” she asked.
“Yes, I do. I can handle a few drinks,” I said, defensively.
“Okay, great. That serves us well. Can you confirm whether or not you asked Mario to keep an eye on me that night?” she asked.
“Yes,” I responded. Not that it gave him an excuse to use to get into her pants.
“Why is that? Had I ever been reckless or given you the impression that I couldn’t take care of myself?” she asked.
“Before that night, no. You had never been reckless. You’d been next to perfect. And you were soft, sweet, and agreeable. I asked him to keep an eye on you to protect you from Mom and Dad. I wanted you to have fun that night, be twenty-one. They were treating you the same way they treated me when I graduated from law school. I knew the burden of their expectations, and I just wanted you to be twenty-one for one night. So, yes, I remember asking him to keep an eye on you, so that our parents wouldn’t ruin your night,” I admitted.
There was no way in hell I was taking a look at my parents after having said that. Their eyes must have been shooting laser beams at me, trying to turn me into ashes on the spot.
“Would you agree that a person should feel the safest with their parents?” she asked.
I nodded. “One hundred percent.”
“So why would you feel the need to protect me from them?” she asked.
Damn, I had to give it to her. She was brave as hell. Super brave.
“Our parents have a way of um… hm… being controlling. Wanting to decide our lives for us. It can be damaging,” I said as emotion threw a blockage in my throat. “And to escape that, I’d abandoned you and left you to deal with it on your own. I was desperate to fix that and be your big brother again. Protecting you from them was one of the ways in which I could do so,” I said.
I was on the verge of saying that was the reason why I got her the apartment, and the realization ran through me like a truck. The words, ‘I’m sorry’ were on the tip of my tongue. Sorry for taking her apartment away and failing to protect her from our parents, no matter what.
