The water was not hot enough.
Leila dipped her finger into the tub filled with water, but it wasn’t as hot as she wanted it to be.
Her skin was red from too much scrubbing, but she needed another bath to wash away Charles’ touch from her body. His smell. His existence. She got into the tub, pushing her head under.
Bubbles floated to the top of the water. Her eyes blurred, and her lungs burned from a lack of oxygen. She pinched her nose, counting the seconds.
Twenty seconds was her highest under the water, but she was counting thirty now. If she stayed here long enough, she might forget.
A knock on the bathroom door had her head shooting out. She gasped for air, mouth wide open as she tried to suck in as much air as she could.
New record. Forty seconds.
“Leila?” It was Kelvin
