Chapter 117: Stepping Up

I step out of the shower and squint into the steam clouded mirror, lean over the sink, and drop my head down between my arms. Watching the water drip from my hair to the drain, the weight of everything I learned last night presses down on me until I feel like I am suffocating. So many things brought me to this day. My lack of courage, the choices I made, my failures... The weight feels heavier. The question now is, what the hell am I going to do about it? I could sit here and feel sorry for myself and continue down this path of self-destruction, or I could stand up and take my life back and fight for my mate like I should have from the beginning. I glance up at the mirror and have the overwhelming urge to see myself. I need to look in my own eyes and determine what I see there. I wipe the mirror with a hand towel and study my reflection carefully. If I’m honest with myself, I hate what I see. I glower at the coward that stares back at me. I look lost and broken because I am. I squeeze