Page 151 of Psycho Pack

An attendant appears at my elbow.

She reaches for my empty glass.

The sudden movement startles me.

I flinch violently.

Arm jerks out to protect myself from false threat.

The delicate crystal glass shatters.

Dark red wine spreads across the white tablecloth.

Like blood.

Like so much blood I've spilled.

Silence falls.

All eyes on me again.

Shame burns through me, hot and choking.

I want to disappear.

To sink into the floor and never resurface.

I brace myself for the disgust.

The anger.

The rejection that always follows me.

But it doesn't come.

Then Whiskey moves.

His elbow hits his glass.

Spills it everywhere.

"Fuck!" he hisses. "These things knock over easily."

Stare at him.

He stares back at me.

He grins a little.

Why?

Did he do that on purpose?

"It's quite alright."

The queen's voice cuts through the silence.

Her tone is gentle.