Page 69 of Glass Jawed

---

My knees hit the ground before I even realize I’ve moved.

The grass is damp but mostly mud. I don’t care. I sit there. On the dirt. On theshame. On the ruinIcaused.

I can’t breathe.

Fuck—I can’t breathe. But I force myself to look at her.

Eventually, I press my head between my knees, trying to suck in enough air, but it’s not working. Every breath is a gasp. Every second, a reminder of what I did. Of who I became.

And somehow, even in this agony, I know I deserve this.

Because I wasn’t just cruel.

I wasdeliberate.

And now I’m here. Knees in the dirt, lungs collapsing, watching this beautiful woman unravel across from me.

Not because of fate. Not because of some horrible accident.

But becauseI did this.

After what feels like a century, my breathing levels out. The pain dulls, only because I’m too numb to feel it anymore.

I lift my head—

And she’s gone.

Just... gone.

I scramble to scan the park. Nothing. She must’ve gone back to her building. At least I hope she has. That she’s safe.

I don’t even know if that should bring relief or more despair.

But I know one thing.

She left me in this park.

And I’ll be crawling through the dirt for a long time before I ever feel clean again.

But I can’t move.

My legs won’t respond. My arms are limp at my sides. I’m just sitting here like a shell of a man.

I pull out my phone with shaking fingers. My vision swims.

I scroll to my favorites and hit call.

“Lucian?” Liam answers almost immediately, his voice groggy.

I swallow, but it scrapes like glass.

“Come g-get me,” I rasp. “P-Please.”

He’s instantly awake. “Where are you? What happened?”

I press my palm to my face, trying to keep it together. “J-Just... just come. I’ll s-send you my location.”

“You sound—fuck. Okay, I’m on my way. Are you okay? Is Aarohi okay?”

---