This is Me Trying ⭑ Rafe Cameron

fifty two pt. ii

CHAPTER FIFTY TWO PART II
[52 pt. ii]
song: petals by hole

Cassie grit her teeth together as she dragged herself toward the rusted fishing boat at the edge of the dock. It was small, only used by people who were scrubbed the sides of the yachts, but its keys were usually left in the ignition.

She clung to the sides of the boat, almost toppling over at the pain in her ribs, and the dizziness that ate at her. Leaning over the side, she spat out a bitter mouthful of blood, her body convulsing with the effort.

Dragging herself over to the back of the boat, she fumbled with the keys on the outboard motor, clinging onto it to keep her steady as she twisted the keys to the right.

It sputtered a few times before the water below it started to bubble. Cassie ignored the 'no wake zone' signs, pulling the motor into its quickest gear as she pushed out of the marina.

Her heart was thundering, her body was too sidetracked with pain and fear to muster up the energy to cry any further.

Even with the rush of pain that surged through her, the blood still dripping from her nose, there was something overwhelmingly isolating about this moment. The water was calm, the stars distant and uncaring, and all she had were the quiet, harsh breaths of her own body to keep her company.

She hadn't seen him in years. Her father, the man who had broken her and shaped her in ways she couldn't undo, the man whose name was stained with memories of violence and cruelty.

'He won't judge you,' she thought. 'He's the only one who won't judge you for what you've done.'

Cassie's breath caught in her throat as the memories of her father flooded her mind. The way he could break her with a word, the way he could make her feel so small, so worthless.

But no matter how much she feared facing him, there was no one else who could help her. This was just the beginning, and she didn't know where to go from here. Didn't know if she could even keep going.

The faint lights of the Old Oak trailer park reflected on the shore line as she pulled the little fishing boat in.

She listened to the chatter of frogs and cicadas, the quiet hum of music and chatter from the neighbors up ahead. As the motor came to a halt, and the bubbles of the water with it, she took a breath.

She could see him, Luke, up and around the bonfire that sat in the middle of four rusty trailers. She could see the dip in between his cheeks, she could hear his hearty laughter, smell the alcohol off his breath.

Cassie climbed from the boat, one arm cradling her ribs, the other gribbing the dock as she lifted her legs over and onto it.

The scent of blood lingered in the air around her, the steady pulse of pain in her bones seemed to quiet all other thoughts. Not a single part of her was aware of the chaos she was walking into, of the rowdy group around the bonfire, or the way her clothes clung to her skin, stained with her own blood. Her swollen eyes barely registered the confused stares as she trudged forward, as though the world had gone mute,

"Hol-y crap." Garrett said. Cassie didn't even flinch, didn't acknowledge his presence as she forced her battered body forward to her dad.

It took a moment for Luke to register her, and another heartbeat for him to understand what had happened. His face morphed from confusion to something deeper. His eyes widened, his body tensing as he stood up abruptly, his chair clattering to the ground behind him.

Cassie trembled, like she was freezing, despite the burning fire that stood in between her and her father.

"What the hell happened to you?" Garrett asked.