Page 75 of I’m The Worst

This is a problem.

A bad one.

Because this isn’t just her trying to survive anymore.

It’s me wanting to ruin her every chance I get.

I drag my pants back up and force myself to turn away before I do something worse. The door clicks shut behind me, but I can still hear her shaky breaths through the wood.

My fists curl at my sides.

I press my forehead against the wall for a second, eyes squeezed shut, trying to get my shit together.

It doesn’t work.

“The grumpy bastard is even grumpier today,” Savva mutters, dropping a crate of supplies beside me as he loads the truck.

Viktor lets out a short laugh and says something in Russian.

Savva shrugs. “Who knows? K9 never talks. Just grunts and scowls.” He keeps muttering under his breath as he reaches for another crate.

“Smoke?”

I glance up. Viktor is holding a cigarette out to me. I take it, and he steps in close enough to light it.

“Don’t tell the volk it came from me,” he says with a snort. “I like having my head attached.”

A reluctant smile tugs at my mouth.

He drops down beside me on the step. “You look tired. Not sleeping?”

I take a drag and blow the smoke out slowly.

“I don’t sleep well.”

That’s putting it lightly.

Most nights, I just lie there with my eyes closed, trapped in that awful space between waking and dreaming, my mind racing too fast to let me rest.

Viktor nods like he understands.

We sit in silence for a moment, the cold morning air biting through my coat. The sun is barely cresting over the mountains, pale and weak behind thick gray clouds that look ready to dump more snow on us at any second.

“Shit,” Viktor mutters suddenly before ducking off to the side of the truck.

I turn and see why.

Wolff is coming toward us.

His eyes lock on me immediately, face set in its usual scowl.

He looks worse than yesterday—dark circles under his eyes, his body wound tight with tension.

“Smoking?” he questions, anger edging his tone.

I flick ash into the snow and take another drag, lifting an eyebrow.

“You going to tell me not to?”