Half laugh, half wince. The movement pulls at the split. Fresh blood. He dabs at it again. White paper turning red.
Jack paces by the door, peeking into the hallway. "So far so good. No guards, no Griff."
Liam rinses another paper towel, water running pink. He reaches up, hesitates. "You didn't have to do that," he says quietly. Eyes on my lip.
"Do what?"
"Go full alpha male on Reed. We were just talking."
"Didn't look like just talking."
Jack glances at us, then slips out, something about checking the hallway, leaving us alone.
Silence. Just the drip of the faucet.
When he reaches up to dab at my lip again, I catch his wrist.
"What are you doing?" he whispers.
"I didn't like seeing you with him." It hurts to say. I keep my grip on his wrist, not tight enough to hurt, firm enough that he can't pull away easily. "He's dangerous, Liam."
"Reed's not that bad," he says, frowning.
"Yes. He is. You don't know him like I do."
"Well, after you left me hanging at MMA, he offered to pair up. Instead of leaving me there feeling like shit." His eyes are glistening. "You're the one who ignored me for days, Ethan."
He doesn't try to pull his wrist free. If anything, he leans into the contact.
"Why do you hate him so much?" he asks. "And don't give me the 'he's a bad influence' bullshit. What actually happened between you two?"
I stare at the blood on the porcelain. My jaw works. Every instinct says to deflect:don't worry about it, it doesn't matter,drop it. The same walls I always put up. But I just punched a guy in the face over this boy.I'm bleeding into a sink. He's looking at me with those eyes, and I'm so tired of carrying this alone.
"Reed showed up about six months after me," I say. Quiet. Not looking at him. "Director's nephew. Walked in with privileges I'd spent months earning. He tried to be friendly. We paired at MMA. I told him I didn't need handouts from someone who hadn't earned his place. He smiled and said okay. I thought that was the end of it. I know I was an asshole. There’s no excuse. I was just very hurt and depressed at the time. The kid was lost; he only wanted a friend."
I stop. Liam waits.
"A year in, I had a mentee. Daniel, my first one. Had just been promoted to leader. Good kid, fucked-up situation. He was using pills, whatever he could get. I found out and I should have reported it. That's protocol. That's what leaders do." My voice is flat. Controlled. Barely. "I didn't. I flushed his stash, covered for him during inspections. Told myself I could help him get clean on my own."
Liam's hand is still in mine. His thumb moves slightly against my wrist. He doesn't interrupt.
"He didn't get clean. He got worse. One night I found him unconscious in the bathroom. I should have called the guards. Called medical. Instead, I dragged him out, got him conscious, cleaned him up, put him back in bed. Handled it myself." I swallow. "Reed saw me. Saw me dragging an unconscious kid through the hallway. He didn't say anything."
Silence. The faucet drips.
"Daniel kept using. I kept covering. Until one night someone else found him, and it was bad enough that medical got involved. He got transferred to a real facility. Not like this place." I finally look at Liam. "If I'd reported it the first time, he might have gotten real help. Doctors, treatment. Instead, I playedGod, and he paid for it."
Liam's expression is open. No judgment. Just listening.
"Reed found me in the gym that night. After Daniel left. I was alone. He leaned against the doorframe and said, 'Careful, golden boy. You're not as invisible as you think.' One sentence. Never brought it up again. Never reported it. Didn't need to." I pull my hand back from Liam's wrist, gripping the edge of the sink. "He's been sitting on it for two years. Every time he smirks at me, every time he gets away with breaking rules while I follow every one, he knows I'm a fraud. One conversation with Griff and everything I've built here is gone. And it’s all my fucking fault. I did that to myself. I never apologized for being an asshole to Reed. I covered for Daniel, and he got worse. After that, we argued many, many times, but I always knew he’d get whatever he wanted. I could never say anything."
The bathroom is quiet. Liam stares at me.
"That's why you pulled away," he says. Not a question. "You lost someone before because you got too close."
I don't answer. I don't need to.
"Ethan." His voice is soft. "You were trying to help him."
