Two Sinners Make a Right {+18}

7. Too Numb To Care

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     "Human behaviour is normally predictable, especially when it comes to criminals. Whatever the crime, there's normally some underlying explanation and creating an accurate criminal profile is key in narrowing down your suspect."

     My criminology professor went on, but I was barely there consciously. My mind kept straying back to last night. I still couldn't believe Alex King was out of prison.

     He was given a ten-year sentence and yet, somehow, he had only served three. For what he did, that sentence meant fuck all. I wanted him gone forever.

     Flashbacks hit me every few minutes as my mind wandered and I could feel my heart start to race. Sweat coated my skin and it felt too hot in the classroom.

     Alex's ice-cold eyes looked at me whenever I closed my eyes. I couldn't bare it. I needed it to stop.

     When the bell rang, I was the first out of my chair. I stormed out and went straight into the girl's bathroom. In a rush, I turned the tap and splashed cold water onto my face.

     It did nothing to calm the panic already nestled deep in my stomach and chest, making it almost impossible to draw in a satisfying breath.

     I threw the bag off my shoulder and chucked it on the counter, scurrying through it. "Thank god," I muttered when I found my meds. I hadn't had to take them in over a year but right now I had no choice.

     I placed two in my hands and shoved them in my mouth. It took me a few seconds to swallow them whole, followed by some tap water that I collected by cupping my hands.

     I walked into a stall and locked the door, sinking onto the floor with my knees bent. I stayed there, letting my meds kick in until my mind went silent and my body calmed.

     I didn't feel anything when the bell for lunch went. I had missed an entire period, but it barely felt like a few minutes.

     I picked myself up off the floor and walked out of the stall. Across the room, I looked at my reflection in the sink mirror; My brown eyes looked empty, and my cheeks and neck looked flushed. I was a mess inside and out and thanks to the meds, I didn't care.

     I left the bathroom and headed to the cafeteria. After waiting in line for five minutes, I only picked up a small sandwich and a bottle of water because my appetite was almost non-existent.

     Nick called me over to his table, unsurprisingly. Even with Easton already seated, I sat down. If I weren't numb because of the meds then I wouldn't have dared to sit with them, especially with Easton already looking so tense already.

     But I didn't care.

     Nick looked at my tray and frowned. "That's not a good enough lunch."

     "It's good enough for me." My voice didn't sound my own, it was cold and distant.

     Concern flashed in Nick's and Enzo's eyes. "What's wrong, Brielle?" Enzo was examining my face from where he sat, leaning back in his chair.

     I looked at him, not wanting to collaborate. "I'm tired. I didn't get much sleep last night." It was a coward's response but to hell if I was going to tell them anything so personal.

     I felt Easton's eyes burning into the side of my face and I turned to stare back at him. We held eye contact longer than I'd normally be comfortable with and he must have seen something in mine that betrayed the emptiness I felt because something flashed in his.

     That was enough.