REALISATION

HUNTER'S P.O.V

I woke up with a skull-splitting headache which drilled behind my eyes. The room tilted, swayed, then slowly stilled as my vision adjusted. I lay there, breathing through the nausea, waiting for the world to stop punishing me.

When I finally turned my head, Vera wasn't beside me. I looked towards the bathroom, the door was shut.

*Probably showering.*

She stepped out, her body was wrapped in a white towel and her wet hair dripped onto her bare shoulders.

She moved strangely, almost floating on her toes as she headed straight for the window.

"Vera," I started to say.

She drew the curtains and sunlight flooded the room, blinding me and cutting my sentence short.

"Jesus..."

I shielded my face with my arm, blinking through the burn.

Vera didn't look at me, she didn't say anything. She just tiptoed, like she was avoiding landmines— then I saw why.

Freshly painted toenails, probably not wanting them to smudge.

"It's almost seven," she finally said, her voice flat. "Aren't you going to class?"

"Yeah," I croaked, shocked at how rough my I sounded.

Vera's eyebrow was raised, but she stayed quiet. Disappearing back into the bathroom.

The thought of leaving the comfortable position I had woken up to drained me. I needed time, a few minutes to rest, before fully beginning my day.

*I hope I have time to spare.*

I sat up, patting the sheets for my phone, I found one, but it wasn't mine. It was Vera's and mine was nowhere.

*Great.*

I had no choice but to get up anyway. I dragged myself out of bed. Every joint in me protested against it. I clutched my head, shuffling to the bathroom to ask Vera about it.

She stood in front of the mirror, now wearing her light pink bathrobe. Her towel was wrapped around her head and she dried her head with it. She watched me through the mirror, her face was unreadable.

I reached over her head, opening the cabinet that was hung just beside the mirror. I took a tub of painkillers, unscrewing the cap.

My mouth opened, wanting to talk to her, but before my words were fully formed, she was already up on her feet, leaving the bathroom.

*Weird, what's wrong with her?*

But I didn't read much into it. Vera had never been a morning person, she must be in a bad mood today.

I was already in the bathroom; I might as well take a shower. The search for my phone could wait, it's not like I lost it, or it was stolen— I just couldn't find it at the moment.

I shook out two tablets into my palm, screwing the cap back on. After playing with the tablets briefly, I threw them into my mouth swallowing hard, without water.

I got undressed, stepping into the shower. I was anticipating the relief I would feel as soon as the water touched me.

The water helped a lot, or maybe it was just the painkiller taking full effect. Whatever it was made me feel better already.

When I walked out, Vera still wasn't dressed. She sat at the dressing table, staring into the mirror as if she were searching for something in it.

Why was she suddenly staring in front of the mirrors? The one in the bathroom and now this one.

We were almost late for class, my phone wasn't with me and I didn't have a clock to look at, but I knew we didn't have much time left.

I quickly got dressed, stealing glances at Vera as I did. She kept looking at herself in the mirror. I was almost tempted to question her, ask her why she was taking so much time to get dressed.

I was all dressed up, wearing a button shirt and a pair of trousers

"Vera," I said, clearing my throat. "Have you seen my phone?"

"You didn't have it with you last night."

*Last night?*

"Are you sure?" I asked.

I hadn't given last night any thought. I could barely remember much.

"I... I can't remember where I put it," I told her.

She didn't look at me. "You didn't have it."

So I left the room to search our apartment. Tables, countertops, everywhere, but my phone was nowhere to be found.

I thought hard, but nothing jogged my memory. Nothing felt familiar. Then something clicked, causing me to walk to the front door and push it open.

I immediately saw my truck parked at a crooked angle, like I had barely managed to slam the brakes. My heart seized, shocked to see it parked that way.

*What the fuck happened last night?*

I walked quickly to it, looking through the tinted window, and there it was, sitting on the dashboard— my phone.

I sighed in relief, at least that was one question solved. What had happened the night before was the next one I needed answers to.

I headed back inside, rehearsing how I was going to tell Vera.

I pushed the door that led to our bedroom, halting immediately I saw her.

Vera was still seated in front of the mirror, staring into it, not at her hair, or bathrobe or towel— but at her neck.

Her fingers trembled as they brushed a spot just below her jaw. She winced violently, like she had been burned, and tears pooled instantly in her eyes.

"Vera?" My voice came out small and cautious. "Vera, what's wrong?"

She jerked upright, as I had startled her, her hands wiped her tears so fast it physically hurts to watch.

"It's nothing," she snapped. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not." I stepped closer. "You were crying, just now."

"I said I'm fine, Hunter."

She tried to walk away from me, but I grabbed her wrist gently, but firmly enough to stop her. Vera snatched it back, holding on to it as it hurt badly.

*What happened to her arm?*

My eyes took hold of her face. Dark circles under her eyes, like she hadn't slept in days.

"What happened?"

Vera hesitated, just for a second, then I saw the marks— dark, angry bruises bloomed around her neck. Fresh and raw and not accidental.

My breath caught painfully in my chest.

"What... what the hell is this?" My voice cracked. "Vera, what happened to your neck?"

I held her other arm, the one that didn't seem to hurt. She tried pulling away from me, but instead, I turned her slightly— just enough to see everything.

"Don't," she warned, flinching when my fingers barely grazed the bruises.

"Vera..."

My heart pounded loud and fast, and there and then, I remembered it all. Everything from last night, all of it. The realisation hit hard.

Vera's glare was sharp. I looked in her eyes and saw something I had never seen before.

The room felt small, and dread crept in.

"I did this..."