Page 175 of Broken Pieces
Silence stretches with all the things I can’t say.
It’s been there for years. All the nights I spent with blood in my mouth from fights in alleys, the sting of bone meeting skin, the way pain reminded me I was still alive. Every swing was a prayer, every bruise proof I hadn’t disappeared yet. And the mornings, lying on a mattress, counting the seconds before the world started demanding something from me again. Wondering if anyone would ever see me and find something other than a body built to take hits.
Rainer goes quiet for a while.
He stands there, the hum of the light above catching the silver in his hair.
When he finally moves, he steps closer and sets one hand on the edge of the hood of the car.
“You’ve been nothing your whole life. Is that what you think?” His voice cuts through the noise in my head.
I shrug, but my chest twists so tight I can barely breathe. “Feels that way sometimes.”
“Bullshit.” His tone sharpens. “You’re something to me. You’re—fuck, Zane.” He blows out a rough breath, shaking his head. “You’re the closest thing I’ve got to a son.”
The words land deep, somewhere I don’t let anyone touch.
I keep my eyes on the engine, on the bolts and grease, as my throat burns.
He keeps going. “And you sure as shit mean something to that girl.”
My heart stutters. Skylar.
“She needs you,” Rainer says, voice low. “Whether or not you see it. She needs you just like I do. For fuck sake, Zane, you don’t have to keep fighting. You don’t have to do it all alone anymore.”
That’s the part that gets to me.
The way he gives a fuck when he doesn’t have to. This man isn’t blood, but he’s stood in every place my father should’ve been. He’s patched me up, yelled at me, and fed me. My own fucking mother couldn’t give two shits if I lived or died, and for the life of me, I can’t figure out why he sees something worth saving. Why Skylar does.
Maybe they’re both blind, or perhaps they see something in me I’ve never been able to find.
Rainer doesn’t just care; he sees me. Not the fists, not the temper, not the fuck-ups.
Me. The kid who didn’t get a chance to be anything else.
I drag my hand across my mouth, the split in my lip pulling, a sting that feels earned. I stare at the floor because I owe him the truth. Especially after everything he’s done for me, the least I can do is not lie to his face.
“I’ve got one more,” I mumble.
He blinks, confusion flickering in his eyes. “One more what?”
“Fight.”
Rainer’s face goes still. His eyes lock on mine, and I can see the disappointment flicker there before he masks it.
“Are you serious?”
I nod once. “Yeah.”
Rainer exhales through his nose.
“You sure it’s just one?” he asks finally, voice low.
“Yeah,” I mutter. “It’s just one.”
“Have you told them that?”
“I told them.”
