Torn into Pieces(Rewritten)

Chapter 31-Ace

TW: ATTEMPTED SA

It had been months since the incident with Robert. I'd tried to bury the memories, to push past the headspace it forced me into, but it lingered in the back of my mind, waiting to swallow me whole if I wasn't careful. Lately, something else had been gnawing at me—Bobby. For some reason, it seemed like he had been following me around the camp every day, lurking just outside my field of vision. I couldn't prove it, and part of me thought maybe I was just being paranoid. But whenever I caught him watching me from a distance, I felt that same chill in my spine I'd felt around Robert. I hated that feeling.

It was scorching hot one day, the kind of heat that pressed down on you and made it hard to breathe. The lieutenants, merciful for once, had let us strip down to just shorts so we could stay cooler. I didn't mind it, but the air was so thick with heat that even a breeze didn't help. After some drills, I walked into the bathroom, dripping with sweat and exhaustion. I bent over the sink, splashing cold water on my face to clear the fogginess from my mind, staring at my reflection in the mirror. My thoughts were scattered, like pieces of a puzzle that didn't quite fit.

Then, through the mirror, I saw him—Bobby, standing behind me. He was leaning casually against the doorframe, his eyes locked on me like a predator. A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. I froze for a second, feeling my pulse quicken. The bathroom suddenly felt much smaller, the air heavier.

"You got a nice body for someone who used to be such a mess," Bobby said, his voice low, but it was clear what he meant. His eyes were trailing over my bare chest, and it made my skin crawl.

I swallowed hard, trying to keep my face neutral. "I don't want any trouble, Bobby," I muttered, turning off the faucet and wiping my face with the back of my hand. I was ready to leave, get out of there, but he didn't move.

"You think you can just walk away?" His voice was slick, like oil, and he pushed himself off the doorframe. Before I could react, his hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, yanking me back toward him. I stumbled, my back hitting his chest as he pulled me against him.

I tried to wrench my arm free, but his grip tightened. "Bobby, let go!" I growled, panic seeping into my voice as I felt his breath on the back of my neck. My other hand came up to push him off me, but he caught it mid-air and twisted my wrist, forcing a gasp of pain out of me.

"Hit me, and I'll break it," he hissed in my ear, the threat sharp as glass. "I know what you're capable of, Ace. But you know what I can do, too." His grip on my wrist tightened even further, and I felt a crack. The pain shot through my arm like fire.

I froze. All the fight left my body in an instant, my mind going blank. That old familiar fear came rushing back, that helplessness I'd felt with Robert, and I couldn't move. Bobby's voice lowered to a disgusting whisper as he started talking inappropriately, his words vile and laced with intention.

"You've got such a nice body. The things I could do to you. The things I will do to you. You know, with a body like this, you're practically begging for it."

I shuddered as his free hand roamed over my stomach, trailing lower. My breath hitched, and that same suffocating fear from all those years ago came crashing down. I was falling back into that headspace, the one where I was utterly powerless, submissive to every twisted thing Robert had done to me. I could feel Bobby's hand moving lower, and my body reacted with terror, my muscles locking up. I felt paralyzed.

Just as Bobby's fingers slipped beneath the waistband of my shorts, something in me snapped. I tried to pull away, jerking violently, but he only twisted my wrist harder until I felt another crack. The pain was blinding, and I screamed, the sound ripping through my throat. My legs buckled beneath me, and Bobby shoved me to the floor. His foot connected with my ribs, knocking the air out of my lungs as he kicked me repeatedly.