Clear Lake Academy holds the worst of the worst delinquents from around the country. Each and every student there holds a notorious background that led them there and almost everyone avoids them.
After setting the tenth building on fire, which just...
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The car's wheels crunched above gravel as it rolled to a stop. I dove out, slamming the door shut behind me. My heart strained under the pressure of the pain, my eyes tearing with barely contained tears despite having cried for so long.
I didn't focus on the night sky that showcased its darkness like a blanket of truth; easy to see but hard to see through. I didn't focus on the the moon's reflection or the scatter of stars overhead as I crossed onto the bridge. I didn't focus on the stillness of the bridge above the silent river, giving me a shred of stability as I stood at the edge, overlooking the water.
I only focus twisting in my stomach and the dull, stubborn thud of my heart, out of place in the serenity of a world where no one else existed.
I eased myself down, inching toward the edge until my legs dangled over the side. My hands gripped the bridge's wooden ledge, fingers pressing into its rough surface.
The night was cold and relentless as goosebumps travelled up my arms and all over my dirty skin. My gaze stayed locked on the water below, hoping—desperately—for some kind of relief, or release, or anything at all.
I'd cried for most of the drive, and even now I couldn't stop. It was instinctive, a human reaction to things that never should've happened. A response I didn't want, yet the only one my body knew.
The coarse asphalt beneath my fingertips scraped and bit into my palms.
Another car door slammed in the distance, telling me Bentley had left the car but I paid no heed to him or anything else. I angled my tear stained face down towards the lake and stared into its never-ending darkness beneath.
Bentley slowly lowered himself down beside me, letting his legs swing over the edge His shirt-clad arm brushed against my bare one before it disappeared and a weight landed around my shoulders. Without a word, he wrapped the suit jacket around my shoulders and without disturbing my train of thought, he softly placed my arms through the sleeves until it was snug.
Everything was still cold though. Unbearably, numbingly cold.
Bentley didn't speak at first. The quiet between us stretched out, thin as glass. The river murmured beneath the bridge, its surface shifting, catching bits of moonlight. He sat quietly beside me, his leg occasionally brushing mine as they swung above the water.
What I would do right now to joke to Laken about his name at this moment.
I felt him glance at me, but I kept my eyes on the water. I didn't want to see pity. I didn't want to see concern. I didn't want to see anything that might crack the fragile shell just barely holding me together.
"You shouldn't be out here alone," he finally said, his voice low, steady—not scolding, just... present.
I swallowed hard. "I wasn't looking for company."
"I know." His feet rocked slowly over the drop. "Still showed up anyway."
I let out a breath that trembled on the way out. He didn't reach for me, didn't try to pull me back or touch my arm. He simply sat there, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating from him, grounding me against the cold.
