Danilo
The cold outside hit me like a hand to the face.
It was sharp, bitter, and it pulled the air straight out of my lungs. The lake in front of me was black and endless, and the only sound was water lapping against the dock in a rhythm that didn't care what was happening inside me.
My head felt like it was going to split open.
I dug into my jacket pocket with shaking fingers and pulled out a cigarette. The lighter took three tries. When the flame finally caught, the first drag burned all the way down my throat, and I welcomed it. I needed something to hurt that wasn't my chest.
The house behind me felt suffocating. The walls were too close, the air was too thick, and even the silence in there felt loud. Kolli had gone upstairs to get a breather. I couldn't follow him. Not yet. Not when I felt like I might shatter if I opened my mouth.
So the lake would have to be enough.
