My hair is still wet from my shower, where I held my head under the stream for one hundred ninety-two seconds. That’s been my time for the last week. I haven’t improved, and I’ve grown frustrated.
I don’t know why the hell I thought getting into a pool would fix the problem. Standing over it now, practically hyperventilating just from staring at it, I’m definitely going to choke on my anxiety and die after two seconds.
“This is stupid,” I mutter, running my sweaty palms through my hair and squeezing tight. Yet, the sharp pinpricks of pain don’t unglue my feet from the cement to carry me right back out of the pool.
After the tense but somewhat pleasant lunch date with Sable, Roguedropped me off at my dorm, where I spent the rest of the day studying and finishing homework. Afterward, I took a shower and got the insane idea to come here. It’s nine o’clock at night, hours after closing.
Apparently, Rogue had previous relations with a manager at the sports center, and with one phone call, he finessed her into agreeing to let us in. But not before Rogue broke into Dread's room to grab the key to the pool, which Dread always leaves in a little bowl on his desk, so I could have the freedom to panic alone.
Rogue promised to stay right outside in the equipment area, but only after vowing to resurrect and kill me again if I drowned.
I chew on my bottom lip, my body edging away an inch. Cold sweat dampens my entire back. One cough, I’ll vomit my heart out onto the cold floor.
“Yep, this was dumb,” I sigh, pivoting on my heel toward the door behind me.
My heart lodges in my throat the same second I swallow, the muscle trapping my saliva in my windpipe. The two are at a crossroads, both trying to get past one another, all the while I hack and cough.
Dread is standing next to the exit, casually leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his broad chest and his ankle cocked over the other, wearing his usual joggers and hoodie. His ink black hair tumbles over his forehead, ending right above his icy eyes. In the dim lighting, coupled with the blue glow from the pool, they look even more intense.
His scarred eyebrow arches as I struggle to recover, feeling how inflamed my face is while I catch my breath.
I was so lost in my head, I hadn't even heard him come in.
“What are you doing?” I squeak before letting out another pitiful cough.
I knew he was coming home late tonight, but I didn’t know what time, and I hoped he wouldn't come looking for me until tomorrow.
Seeing him for the first time in a week is startling to my internal system. Like always, a potent mix of foreboding and trepidation swirls in the pit of my stomach, but beneath it all, there’s a flutter of excitement, too.
“I’m curious to know the same,” he deflects.
“Just hanging out,” I answer casually.
Dread hums, his expression frustratingly impassive and unreadable. “Why are you here?”
I shoot him an annoyed look. “I asked you first.”
“I just got home,” he says. “Rogue texted to let me know where you two were, so I came.”
What a fucking snitch.
“Oh.”
His brow arches again, but all the words have dried on my tongue. My body fills with awkwardness, and a thick tension builds in the space between us.
I don’t want to tell him why I’m here. If anything, it’ll give him an excuse to throw me in the pool again, and this time, I highly doubt he’ll feel inclined to distract me from my terror.
I can’t tell if he’s still pissed at me, but I’m not chomping at the bit to ask, considering he put me in an oven last time.
He pushes off the wall and slowly prowls toward me. My stomach clenches, my internal system desperately ringing the bell to alert me of the danger and telling me to run, but I'm too goddamn stubborn to prove I'm not scared of him.
Even though I am.
I lift my chin defiantly, which brings a cruel smirk to Dread’s lips, a simple gesture that has his namesake filling my gut.
I work to swallow, my muscles solidifying more with each step he takes, but I never move my stare from him. I’m prepared to bolt the second he reaches for me. I’ll never outswim him, but there’s a small chance I can outrun him.
Rather than approaching me directly, he changes his trajectory and walks up to the edge of the pool beside me, a few feet away. We stand side by side, him facing the pool while my back is to it.
