Monday, 6 July 2009

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Rihanna's pal: She's a wreck

Friends fear she’ll be tipped over the edge now that she can’t see Chris

Rihanna misses Chris Brown

She may have imagined that her worst nightmare was facing former lover Chris Brown across a courtroom. But that now seems the least of Rihanna’s worries.

Chris made a deal last Monday to escape jail time and admitted assaulting Rihanna, 21, in February. That means she’ll have no more contact with him for five years – a ‘devastating’ prospect according to friends. Even her lawyer Donald Etra said she was ‘unhappy’ with the ruling.

‘It’s so hard for her,’ says a friend. ‘She knows her family would freak out if she told them she wants to get on with Chris, so she has to hide her feelings.’

‘She’s been a nervous wreck for weeks as she was so terrified that Chris would hate her after she testified. Whenever she starts crying, she has to pretend that she’s been having flashbacks to the attacks. But it isn’t that.

'It’s because she misses him and can’t believe it came to this after everything they had going. She’s mad with him, but at the same time she blames herself.’

Rihanna’s been seen with other men, including rapper Drake and basketball star Andrew Bynum, since splitting with Chris. She’s even told friends that she plans to get her revenge by writing songs about him and spreading rumours that Chris, 20, was a bad lover. But the reality is that she’s secretly contacted him and can’t accept that the assault was his fault.

‘She couldn’t eat in the days before the trial,’ adds the source. ‘Her stomach was in knots and she was shaking.

‘Whenever I see her out, she always has a drink in her hand – mostly champagne, but sometimes beer or shots. She’s in pain and is trying to numb it out to the best of her ability.’

But her family and friends are delighted at new rules banning any contact between the pair, including preventing Chris from going within 50 yards of his ex girlfriend.

One friend tells : ‘He’s lucky he didn’t go to jail for a very long time after what he did. Now Rihanna can finally move on and find a guy who treats her right.’

See the latest photos of Rihanna in Now magazine dated 6 July 2009 - out now!