Hands Stained Red

Sixteen ~ Rya

I look around the hotel room not entirely sure how I got here. The strap of the bag is clutched so tightly in my hand that my fingers ache. There's two beds in this room so it's not mine.

"Rya?" I turn and see Mylo crouch down in front of me, "What happened?"

I drop my gaze away from him and down to my hands. One is covered in dried blood and the other has the bag.

The door opens and we both look around and see Kaden walk in with a bag from the fast food restaurant down the road, "Shit, shes here."

Mylo nods, "She appeared here about an hour ago. Hasnt said a word."

An hour? Is that how long I've been here? It doesnt feel like that long.

"Everyone is looking for her," Kaden says and dumps the bag on the bed I'm not sitting on, "I mean everyone."

"They killed him," I say softly, "He's dead."

Kaden shakes his head, "The guy's still alive. He had lost a lot of blood when the cops showed up but he's in hospital and recovering."

I stand up and glare at him, "I dont give a shit about him," I snap and thrust the bag in his direction but still dont let it go, "He's dead Kaden."

He steps slowly towards me and gently grabs my wrist, unfurling my fingers from the strap and taking the bag from me. He puts it on the bed and opens it.

I know what's inside and feel the tears fill my eyes as he pulls out the box. I wrap my arms around myself and sit back down on the bed, curling up.

"Holy fucking shit," Kaden says as he realises what it is, "Who's is this?"

He takes one look at me and it dawns on him, "Shit Rya."

I choke on a sob and Mylo immediately wraps his arms around me, "They killed him, they killed him because of me."

I feel myself being pulled up and Mylo leads me into the bathroom and turns on the shower, "Get yourself cleaned up, we'll deal with that."

I nod and watch him go out and close the door behind him. The silence engulfs me and I turn to look in the mirror. My hair is a mess and theres a streak of dirt on my mascara covered cheek. I lift my bloody hand and feel my heart clench as I remember who the blood belongs to.

The steam from the shower obscures my reflection and I strip off my clothes and step under the hot water. I watch as it turns red around my feet.

I stand there until it runs clear and then I find I cant move. I dont want to move.

He's actually gone and theres nothing I can do to bring him back.

But there is something I can do to make sure the person who did this doesnt get away with it.

I step out of the shower, dry myself and quickly dress. When I go back into the room, Mylo is gone but Kaden is still sitting on the bed, rubbing his head.

"I need your help," I tell him, "I'm going to find out who did this and I'm going to destroy them. I'm going to make them regret ever fucking with me."

He nods and crosses the room, "Then I think I might have a start for you."

He takes my hand and leads me to the bed. He sits down and I climb up beside him, watching as he opens up his laptop to a list of files, "What is that?" I ask.

He smirks, "Its the files on every computer drive connected to the university wifi. It's all been leaked. There's photos, documents, internet history, everything. If it was someone at the school, we'll find something here."