Jody was just returning from his karate class. He was so proud he had just made his first level black belt. When he got to the apartment building he lived in with his parents, he took the stairwell. The elevators were slow and undependable so it just conditioned his legs to quickly go up to the fourth floor.

As soon as he got in the stairwell he heard sounds he didn’t like. It sounded like laughing mixed with unhappy cries. As he got closer he slowed down and looked around corners first. On the third level he saw a group of guys standing around a female figure on the concrete floor with a guy doing that unmistakable act between her legs. She was sobbing and begging. As he watched, that guy finished inside her and the next one had his pants dropped and quickly began using her.

He quickly walked by, with them paying little attention to him, but she saw him and mouthed “Please help me”. He nodded and went up to the apartment. He knew where Dad kept his 9mm S&W so he made sure it was loaded and proceeded back down the stairs. Positioning himself carefully he said very loudly and firmly, “Get off that girl right now and get your asses out of here!”

The three guys who weren’t balls deep turned and started to move towards him until they saw the black object he had in his hand. They stopped abruptly and started saying, “Hey man, don’t shoot. We be getting out of here!” The guy on top of her wasn’t the first one who Jody saw the back of but they all cleared out pronto.

Again, carefully positioning himself as he had learned in class, he squatted down next to the sobbing girl who had pushed her cheap dress down for modesty.

“I’m Jody and I’ve seen you here in the building. What floor do you live on? I’ll help you get home.”

She turned her face slowly back to him and her tears began to subside. “I’m Molly and I live on the top floor but I can’t go home like this. My mother would be too upset and she is not well anyway. Please help me.

Jody reached out his hand and said, “I live on the fourth with my parents but they’re not home so let’s get you cleaned up and maybe it will be better.” He helped her stand and steadied her until her balance improved. He put his arm under hers and they walked slowly up the stairs.

When they got to his place he showed her the bathroom and made sure there was a fresh towel so she could shower. “We’ve got about an hour until my parents get home from work.” Before she closed the door she gave him the first smile he had seen.

He had picked up the panties that her assailants had pulled off and put them on the toilet. They were cheap and worn, much like the dress she had on. He had taken that to the kitchen and was trying to use a damp cloth to clean off some of the stains and crap from the stairwell that stuck to it. When he did all that he could do, the shower was just turning off and he called to the door, “I’ve got your dress here and I’ve cleaned it up the best I could.”

He was surprised when the door opened quickly and she reached out for the dress. She was still dripping. He got a short but full view of her body at that moment. She was not much over 5 feet and padded a bit extra, maybe pudgy but not quite plump, or however you define such a thing. Her breasts were full and so were her hips. She had an ample mass of pubic hair that was dark like the medium length on top.

“Was that flashing accidental?” He wondered. She was one of those girls who was between pretty and homely and which way it went depended a lot on her facial expression. He’d only seen her unhappy ones although there might have been a hint of something better as she took her dress from him.

She soon emerged in better spirits. He offered her a soft drink and some snacks to eat and they talked a little bit. “What the hell is going on? Do you know any of those guys?”

“Yes unfortunately. One of those guys has been dating me for a while and just the other day got my panties off for the first time in my life. I didn’t realize what a bastard he was since he was such a good actor. Doing it made me feel grown-up and like I was desirable. I wanted it every day and he would do me after school. I’m only sixteen.

“I guess he must’ve been drinking this time because he had three more guys with him. When I figured out what they were going to do, I told him “no way”. I took off and they followed me here and caught me where you saw me. Two of them had already raped me while he watched and laughed and you came when the third one was using me.”

“Do you want to file charges? I’ll have my dad help us.”

She got tears in her eyes as she looked at me, “Maybe I should but I’m too embarrassed and it would be very hard on my mother. I’m not on birth control but from what I learned I don’t think I will get pregnant.”

Jody had an older sister would gotten in a situation that he guessed was called “date rape”. She had gotten the morning-after pill so he knew about it. But how could he get one for Molly? He didn’t have much money but he probably wasn’t old enough either.

“I’ve got an idea. I think we need to get one of those pills to make sure that you aren’t knocked up and there is a free clinic about four blocks from here. Use my cell phone to call your mother and tell her that you are going to stay after school. And let’s go to the clinic and make sure. Those jerks might also have some bugs on their parts that you don’t want to get.”

She nodded and called her mother and they started walking. The clinic wasn’t too busy so she got right into see one of the staff. An hour later she came out to the waiting room and said, “Let’s go”.

She took Jody’s hand and said, “You are a pretty smart guy. I did have a bug so I’m on some pills and got that one you told me about too. Next week when I finish my prescription they are going to talk to me about birth control. Not that I have any plans but it’s probably just a good idea.”

Outside her apartment door, she give him a big hug and thanked him again. He told her he would meet her after school every day and walk her home, concerned that those guys would want to cause trouble.

Sure enough, they were waiting on the path she took. Confronting them their leader said, “Okay big hero. Now that you’re not packing you’re going to become dog shit.”

It was a short story. Jody had deliberately worn loose clothes and he took all four of them out with the minimum of his practiced moves. It was not polite karate protocol when one of his kicks left the gang leader who had seduced his friend writhing and holding his crotch. As they walked away, Molly was smiling and said, “Thanks! That makes me feel a lot better even though it was kind of mean.”

She finished her prescription and got a little implant in her arm and her psyche seem to be healing too. She seemed to really enjoy being escorted home and introduced him to her mother, a slightly built woman who seemed pretty old to have a child Molly’s age. There was no indication of any other residents of that apartment either but he didn’t pry.

She had begun inviting him in to have little treats that her mother had prepared. As Jody looked around he saw that the place was shabby but clean. He gradually found out that they were living on some form of welfare or other, just barely scraping by.

He had a Saturday job which had helped pay for his karate training and cell phone. His parents were not wealthy but at least they were working. And he had two of them.

He decided to treat Molly and her mother to a dinner out. He doubted they ever had that opportunity. There was a small family-run restaurant in their neighborhood that was affordable and so he escorted both of the women, he considered Molly a “woman” and not a girl, to a little evening out.

They both ordered hearty food and ate with gusto. When that was finished he walked them down to the ice cream stand and they refused but he insisted they enjoy one. Then they strolled through the city park to watch the birds and people before heading back.

Mother and daughter had some conversations between them that he was not supposed to overhear. When the trio got back to their little place, Molly insisted that he come in and sat next to him on the couch like she usually did. Her mother went into the bedroom and closed the door. Molly held his hand as she spoke to him, “My mother knows what happened and also what you did. She insisted I tell her what was going on when you kept showing up so much. She’s not stupid and she’s lived through a lot of things in her life so she supports what I’m going to tell you next.”

She wanted both my hands so I was turned to face towards her. She started to blush a little bit as she tried to say something she’d never done before, “You don’t seem to have a girlfriend and I know that all men like sex which is something that they often get from girlfriends. I’m not asking to be your girlfriend but I would like to have sex with you even if it is only a thank you for all you’ve done.” She dropped her eyes and Jody understood that she was fearful of rejection.