Forty-five: the choice between staying and leaving

Temperance

Kenli dabs a wet cloth against my bloody lip as I reposition myself on the countertop.

"How does your eye feel?" She glances at my swollen eye before taking the rag away from my lip and rinsing it out with cold water.

I don't answer her question as I adjust my ears to the sound of Austin's footsteps.

His steps echo in the living room before the door opens and then slams, signaling that he's left.

She stops for a few seconds, listening for the sound of the foot opening back up. Once it's been a few seconds and she's sure he's gone she relaxes. Her chest rises, signaling her sigh of relief.

My head spins as my body violently throbs. I stare at the wall behind us, letting Kenli dab my blood away. Through the closed door, I hear ice clanking in the freezer.

"Maybe I'm not supposed to be alive," I state, not thinking much about the words I'm spouting for Kenli's ears. I feel her tense up, her eyes darting to my eyes and the back to the cloth.

"I have had this thought sever