Before I Forget

Air and Darkness

There were many things Hawk didn't understand.

The first one was how on Earth had that sissy dude who was half a head shorter than he was and looked like a girl, managed to kick his ass.

The second one was - why would Sky want to kiss that asshole?

Those thoughts got mixed up in his head, until they formed a cold, heavy lump, only adding to the pain and misery he was already feeling.

He stared at his reflection in the mirror, leaning hard on the sink with both hands. The water was still running, cold droplets splashing to his hands and forearms, and finally, with an angry huff, he released his death grip on the sink, grabbed the small towel nearby, and soaked it in the water.

The bleeding had mostly stopped - Thanks to the ice bag someone had tossed him in the kitchen, but he still looked like crap. There was half-dried, dark lumpy blood all over his face, especially around his nose which had taken the first and the hardest punch. There were also the bruises and wounds Cody's rings had left on his cheekbones and of course, the sharp cuts right under his chin, that were still bleeding.

Not to mention the ache on his gut, where a fierce knee kick had landed. The bruise was huge, already turning from red to blue, but there was absolutely nothing Hawk could do about it, so he didn't even try.

The nose hurt like Hell too, but as Hawk carefully started to clean it with the cold, wet towel, he concluded it wasn't broken - at least there was that. But it would be a bitch for some time, and it would look like crap too—

What the Fuck am I gonna tell Mom?

That thought was passing but left behind a cold, sickening feeling. He already knew he couldn't tell her the truth. He'd just have to add one more lie to the list that was already endless.

He hated how things were between them nowadays, but he had no clue how to fix it.

Just like he had no clue how to fix this, how to make himself look presentable enough to leave this bathroom.

He gave up on his nose - it was what it was, at least he had managed to wash off the blood - and moved to clean the rest of the cuts. The ones on his cheeks were small, the bleeding had already stopped - bruises would be big and ugly, though. He found some band-aids and disinfectant in a drawer and did what he could to the wounds on his neck. They weren't deep - thank Fuck - but they were vicious like glass cuts always were and kept bleeding, even through the band-aids.

That fucking crazy Cody Bishop—-

Hawk had seriously underestimated him, and that had come with a prize tag. But he wasn't stupid - he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.

Already, as he opened the tap to wash his bloodied hands, he was going through the fight in his mind, calculating the mistakes he had made and how they could have been avoided or turned to his advantage. He wasn't quite sure what Cody's fighting style was, but he had some guesses and he would find out, sooner or later—

And anyway, he wasn't going to fight anyone today. The couple of beers he had down and the adrenaline rushes of fucking Maya and then getting into a fight had worn off and left behind a mess of fatigue and frustration. His muscles ached, his cuts hurt. He just wanted to go home, fall into his bed and stop thinking about Sky.

The tears in her eyes kept haunting him.

When she had seen him with Maya, she had been devastated. But then, she had rushed to kiss Cody, had wanted nothing to do with Hawk, and finally—

It hurt even to think about it.

She had left him on the floor, bleeding and broken, to go - where? He didn't know, but apparently, she had left with Cody. And that wasn't something she would have done if she still really loved him.