Six Sentence Sunday: SPLINTERS #4
August 12, 2012 17 Comments
I had to do research on rohypnol or “the date-rape drug” for Splinters and it was really not fun. Just imagining someone so sick as to make another person completely helpless and then use them while they can’t do anything to save themselves absolutely hurt my heart. Trying to be in the head of someone that was done to, even though it’s fiction here, was just as painful to imagine. This, though, is part of the result of that imagining.
I start reading about rohypnol and how much more effective it is when administered with alcohol. Something called anterograde amnesia, victims under the effects for hours, victims acting drunk, the potential for victims to die if administered too much of the drug. Then I scroll down, reading the reference links and…“Oh, Christ.”
“What?”
“There are…” Half—more than half—of the links are to rape crisis resources. The seriousness of this slams into me like a fist to my chest.
“What is it, Al?”
I can’t quite take a deep breath. I’m shaking. “Links.”
He takes his phone, looks, and then says, “Goddamn,” like he’s as distraught as I feel. “Do you think…? That is, can you tell if you were…? If someone…?”
I shake my head because I’d definitely know, and I don’t feel like I was fucked last night. Raped. I wasn’t raped last night. “I wasn’t, but…”
He squats down in front of me. “Tell me,” he whispers and rests a hand on my knee.
It’s the whispering that does it. I swallow hard, catch a stuttering breath, and have to just take a moment to get a grip while I look into those whiskey eyes and all the concern in them.
“I don’t remember. I don’t remember anything.” I am so not going to fucking cry now. Not. Now. I manage to whisper, “I know I wasn’t…raped, but I don’t have any idea what was done to me besides what you saw. They could’ve done anything to me. Was I unconscious the whole time? Was I a little bit there? Could I talk? Did I try to stop them? I don’t know!” My voice cracks, and I clench my jaw.
He nods and gets up to sit on the bed beside me. A second later, he’s tugged me around and into his chest. One solid arm is around my back, and his other hand cups my head like he wants to protect me. I cling. I have to. The comfort, the solidness of him, the warmth and sense of safety… I have to hold on to all of it.
“We’ll find out what happened,” he says into the stubble of my hair. “We’ll figure it out and I’ll make sure nothin’ happens to you while you’re here. Nothin’ bad while you’re here with me, Al. Nothin’.”
I nod into his shoulder and add leaning to my clinging. He can save me, protect me, mother and smother me. I hope he’s one of those armed-to-the-teeth, don’t-you-worry-‘bout-a-thing-little-darlin’ Texans who’s a light sleeper, prays to the NRA, and has a hair-trigger. That’s what I need right now.
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Oh wow, you captured his fear and sense of helplessness beautifully. He has a right to cry, if he needs to. This is going to be one amazing book, Sunshine.
(((((Thorny)))))
No matter how many times I read this, the impact never lessens.
Wow. That’s all. You make me feel it. When is this coming out again?
Uh, sometime in 2042? LOL!
I’m only about halfway done.
Well written, Thorny! You really show us Alan’s emotions through his physiological responses -he’s shaking, having trouble breathing normally, his voice is cracking – and also let us see the physical placement of Alan and Duke- Duke squatting down, his moving to the bed, the way he holds Alan – allowing us to picture this key scene clearly.
I’ve read scenes where I’ve been thrown out of the story when an author describes a character being in one position and then doing something which isn’t possible unless they’ve altered position. Or says a character is feeling something but because they don’t show it, it doesn’t feel real. You, on the other hand, totally write great pictures!
And this scene is so different in mood from the last one… this is going to be a great book
As horrific as this drug is, your ability to write about it is amazing. So much emotion. Such finesse. I love the way you put words together. The book, when finished and published, will be spectacular. Cannot wait!
Makes me so sad to think of someone having to deal with that. I can’t even imagine how frightening it would be.
Very emotional scene, Thorny. Great writing!
That was…it got me in the feels. I had to go get a big hug from my brother who is big and solid and squeezed me tight. It’s weird to say thank you, but I love it when reading something makes me emotional.
I wrote it and the feels still get me, Kris! Glad we both had someone big and strong to hug it out of us
What a great scene with heartfelt emotion! Really looking forward to reading this when it’s done.
Really looking forward to you finishing this story. I know its going to be good!
Very moving scene, Thorny – touching, emotional, and deftly done (not always easy to ride that fine line between drama and melodrama, but you do it here).
This is timely as there was just a report here in the news this week that a man was drugged at a local bar. They didn’t say rohypnol specifically, but probably. They said most men don’t report it, and this was not done at a gay bar. Nothing happened to him, he collapsed with his friends before anyone could do anything. I would imagine for some men it might be for robbery purposes. If a guy is zonked out (this guy was a hockey player so I’m sure pretty big and strong), he’d not going to fight you for his wallet/phone, etc. It’s a shame it’s not reported though, because the perpetrators can count on that embarrassment to let them continue. Ugh. And to use it for sexual assault is just sick.
God, that poor guy, Tam! It’s not that I can’t imagine that happening, but I really really don’t want to. I read a lot of statistics about how many cases aren’t reported and a lot of them were because the victim felt guilty! Just made me want to cry.
Sending you a *BIG HUG* *sniff*