RHYS’ POV
The water was too hot. I kept it that way.
The burn was the only thing that worked. Not ice, not running, not the bag in the corner I'd punched until my knuckles split last week and taped up before she could see. Hot water on my shoulders, my back, my neck. Skin turning red. And for three, maybe four minutes the noise went quiet enough to breathe.
The noise sounded like my father.
You're a disappointment. You're dangerous. You're exactly like me and that's the part you can't stand.
I braced my hands on the tile. Water down my face. Tried not to think about the freshman. Thought about him anyway.
The check was too hard. I knew it the second my shoulder connected. He went into the boards and the sound echoed and I felt nothing. That's the part. Not guilt. Not remorse. Nothing
