“Jo, just make sure Jays not driving by looking for me, when you get here” I sob
“Yeah ok, stop panicking.... Don't let him get you into his car if he does come along, just hang up and call the police if you need to, love you, the phone will cut out when the blue tooth kicks in but I’m still here okay, it will just drop out for a few seconds” It takes about 30 seconds before I hear her again.
“Right I’m back, how far from the shops are you?”
“About five minutes”
“Okay, hurry up, don’t talk, just get your arse there, I am about 6 minutes away”
It takes me about three more minutes to get to the shops and I stand back in a door way, out of sight of any one driving by. I tell Jo I’m here and she reassures me she won’t be long. As I wait I start to shake uncontrollably and my legs start to give way. I crouch down and try to breathe deeply but start to sob, I vomit again and don’t hear Jo pull up and jump with fear when I hear my name called, and without meaning to, I cry in complete panic. She moves towards me, using her phone as a torch. I know that I’m on the verge of hysteria but I just can’t calm myself. I'm so pleased to see her I can barely breathe between sobs and I launch myself at her.
“Jo, Jo he kicked me out of bed, I'm bleeding, I didn't know what to do so I just ran and I don't know if he's looking for me”
“Okay, shush shush, let's get you in the car, I don't want to hang about out here, in case he does come looking for you... Can you stand up babe?”
I stand up on shaky legs and start to walk to the car. Jo helps me in. She runs around to the driver’s side and jumps in locking the doors behind her.
“Right, let's get out of here, and then we can get you cleaned up, alright?”
She drives quickly to her house, helping me out when we get there. As we walk into the bright lights of the kitchen, I hear her gasp.
“What the fuck has he done to you Lauren?”
She shakes her head and tells me to sit down at the kitchen table. The first thing she does is pour us both a drink. I think it's brandy or whiskey, I'm not sure but it’s horrible and burns my throat on the way down, I drink it anyway, anything to help numb how I'm feeling right now .
“Right, let's see what damage that fuckers done under all this blood, what's wrong with your arm?”
“I think I've dislocated my shoulder”
The adrenalin is slowing and the pain is really kicking in now. Jo looks at my shoulder
“Oh God Lauren” Is all she says and I suddenly feel like I’m going to pass out.
“Shit I think we need to get you to hospital Hun that gash in your head is pretty big and it's still bleeding and I have no idea how to put that shoulder right”
I am numb now, I think shock is starting to kick in and I simply nod as I start to sob again. Jo gives me a cuddle as she calls a cab. She has had far too much to drink to risk the drive to the hospital, especially as she has poured herself a couple more while we wait.
I'm seen pretty quickly at the hospital considering its Friday night/Saturday morning and as much as it pisses Jo off I tell them that I fell over whilst drunk but I have a sneaking suspicion she tells one of the nurses what really happened as they start asking questions, rightly or wrongly, I don't want to press charges and get the police involved, it would just cause too much trouble all round.
It’s eight in the morning by the time we leave the hospital. I have a hair line fracture to my cheek bone and a couple of badly bruised ribs. They glued back together the gash in my head, which luckily is within my hairline so there won’t be a visible scar; my shoulder has been popped back into place and feels surprisingly okay.
My phone shows forty seven missed calls, all from Jay. Right now I have nothing to say to him, I will, eventually, but I'm not ready yet. I will save it, I want to get it right, I actually have so much I want to say. I have written a whole fucking speech in my head. Jo and I are both exhausted. We head back to hers in silence. Once there, she helps me shower and gives me some clothes to wear.
As Jo makes us bacon sandwiches, my phone vibrates again and makes me jump, it's Jemma, before I get a chance to speak, she asks
“What the fuck is going on, where are you?”
“And good morning to you too Mrs Wilson”
“Cut the crap Day, why is your husband ringing me looking for you and then turning up at my door, like I've got you hidden away in a cupboard, what’s happened?”
She’s ranting and I feel bad for not ringing and giving her the heads up.
“I'm sorry for my husband’s behaviour” I reply “we had a fight last night and I got Jo to come pick me up once he went to sleep, I didn't want to ring you and wake Max and the kids, so I called Jo instead”
“Well, are you okay?” she asks, sounding concerned. Before I can reply, Jo, who's standing over my shoulder listening to our conversation, shouts