Neil looks from me down to the mess he made, and he straightens a little. “I’m sorry that you had to see that.”
The wildness dims from his eyes. He is in more control. But now that I can see him from a better angle, he looks like absolute hell. Somehow even worse than before. He’s still standing straight though. He’s hiding the pain from me, but I’m not an i***t. I can see the dark shadows under his eyes and how gaunt his cheeks are.
“You don’t have to apologize to me for that,” I say. Uncaring of the mess, I move closer to him. He inches back a little, so I stop a couple of feet away. The mess must really bother him. “Let me help you clean it up.”
He nods, and I go into his bathroom. I return with some paper towels and a trash bag. Together, down on our knees, we do our best to clean u
