River:
The door shut behind me with a soft thud as I entered my room, sealing me off from the rest of the world...or at least for tonight.
My limbs were aching and my neck was stiff from sitting through endless meetings at the company. Too many numbers. Too many people. Too many damn eyes watching me, waiting for a single crack in the image I had spent years perfecting.
Without turning on the main lights, I made my way to the bathroom, tugging off my tie and tossing it somewhere near the chair. My clothes were gone in no time. The shower hissed to life, its warm spray fogging up the glass. I stepped under it, letting the water beat against my skin, hotter than it probably should have been. But I welcomed the sting. It cut through the stiffness in my muscles and the deeper, darker tension buried beneath my skin.
