Without The Words

Chapter 26

A smile was glued to my face as I sprinted down the path. The faint sound of people chattering and shoes against ground faded as I practically flew.

However, the more I ran, the more an unfamiliar feeling etched itself into my chest. My anxiety level raised slightly and I stopped. My breathing and the sounds of nature was the only thing I heard.

I was completely and utterly alone. I was ahead of everybody, so ahead that I lost track of where I was going. I hadn't turned the right away, for sure. I noticed blue lines on the trees, which wasn't what I was supposed to follow.

Mr. Lee said that someone was going to be on my tail. He was wrong. I was so fast that I got too far ahead, and because of that I turned the wrong way. I didn't know where I was.

Tears pooled at the corners of my eyes and I slowed down and began to pant. My knees dropped into a puddle of mud and I felt myself drifting out of sanity.

I began to breathe heavily; my oxygen was thinning. I gripped onto the asphalt and attempted to steady myself, for the ground was starting to feel as if it were moving. As if I could fall through any second, and part of me wanted to. It would have been better than a panic attack on an unfamiliar path.

Count to ten, I thought.

One. I shut my eyes and rested my cheek against the ground. I felt the mud all over my body, but I couldn't care less about how idiotic I probably looked.

Two. I slowly placed my shaking hand on my pounding heart. It thumped like the vibrations of a music speaker.

Three. I thought of Mr. Lee. I wanted him here with me to put me back together like he always did when a panic attack arrises.

Four. I focused on the sounds of the nature. The steady rustle of the branches decorated in withering leaves.

Five. The wind was getting colder; a clear reminder that October was only days away. It breezed through my matted down hair and caressed my face as I remained pressed against the ground. Little pieces of rocks left indents in my palms and cheeks.

Six. I thought of my mother. I still couldn't shake the feeling that she was probably so disappointed in me. I was the reason for her death. She had a whole life in front of her and I took that away.

Seven. My eyes slowly opened and my heart was back at its steady pace. I could do this. I raised myself from the ground and wiped the asphalt pebbles off my face, for which they had left awful indents in my skin.

Eight. I felt my body swaying. I looked straight ahead at the unfamiliar path and raised my head.

Nine. An echo of thunder rumbled in the distance and I jolted in surprise. There wasn't supposed to be a storm until tonight.

How far had I gone? What time was it?

Ten. As if this was all planned, a sheet of cold rain cascaded down onto the ground. It splashed against the ground and created tiny puddles within each one. Water trickled down my leg and down my arms.

Realization dawned on me like the soon-to-be storm did. I was fucking lost.

I couldn't control myself. I sprinted down the path in hopes to find my way back. Mud soaked my shivering legs and strands of hair stuck to my face. Tears blended in with the rain and trickled down my cheeks. My sobs were muted by the pelts of the crying clouds.

My heart furiously pulsed in my chest as my sneakers pounded against the asphalt. I was on the brink of being scared to death. Another rumble of thunder echoed and the trees shook with great force. I heard myself whimper, but I was no longer in control of my bodily reactions. My hands were uncontrollably shaking. My whole body shivered against the cold rain and my sobs were coming out faster than I could control it.

The clouds were quickly rolling and the trail grew fairly dark. All sources of light began to fade. A zap of lightening appeared in the sky, but a second later its color drifted and I found myself helplessly staring where it had been.

My clothes began to stick to my frame. My cross-country shorts stuck to my thighs, and as I ran they rubbed together and created a burn that caused me to whimper the more it rubbed.

"Poppy?!" His voice. He was here.

"Mr. Lee!" I screeched, the sound of the rain drowning out both of our voices. My voice was unfamiliar and strained, but for the first time, I wasn't thinking of my mother. I was thinking of my history teacher.

My pace grew quicker and I sprinted to where his voice came from. Tears streamed down my face as I scampered down the trail. Amidst the burning pain, I pushed through. Mr. Lee was more important than my physical being at this very moment.

The rain began to make the path in front of me unclear. Everything looked foggy and secluded. I pushed my fears to the back of my mind and continued to focus on the fact that he was here. And he was here for me.

"Mr. Lee!" I shrieked again, my arms pumping quickly at my sides.

His form appeared in the path in front of me. He was sprinting so fast, and although the rain created a foggy mist, I managed to make out his features perfectly.

He was sprinting towards me so swiftly that I feared we might collapse. His wet hair stuck to his forehead. The rain glistened against his skin and his shirt was completely and awfully see-through. I stopped mid-way and literally gaped at how unbelievably sexy he looked.

His steps slowed and he came up to me. Before I knew it, both of his hands coated in rain made contact with my cheeks.

"Poppy," he breathed, his eyes dancing with mine. "You spoke."

Tears began to pour down my cheeks again. I began to uncontrollably sob and his thumb gently caressed the spot under my eyes, switching back and fourth from each eye.

"Come here," he whispered. He wrapped his strong arms around my soaking body.

"You're bleeding," he said quietly. He bent down and his face was leveled with my stomach. His hand traced a spot on my leg, and it was now that I realized I had a gash pooled with blood on my knee. "Does it hurt?" He asked me quietly. I muttered something incoherently.

The only thing I could see right now was the way the raindrops dripped from his eyelashes and splattered onto his top lip. I couldn't stop staring at his lips.

"Poppy," he repeated, snapping me out of my mental ordeal. Concern outlined his face, but I noticed that his eyes were glued to my lips.

"I-I'm fine." I whimpered, unable to process anything. The rain had numbed my body.

"Let's go." Before he could tell me what he was doing, his hands dug into my hips and I was immediately lifted off the ground.

His arms were wrapped tightly around my body. I was looking up at his face as he walked, the rain coming down in sheets on the both of us.

And then his warm lips were on mine, and it was like every other sense that I once had seeped away. His hand touched the back of my neck and I let him guide me upwards. His lips molded into mine and everything, every sound of the pelting rain, every tree and cloud and leaf evaporated. It was just me and him.

My lips were blazing with heat. Every emotion in my body exploded into a million little pieces. My skin was scorching with desire and every inch of me wanted him to guide me into lust. I didn't care how wrong this was, because it was the greatest thing I had ever felt in the world.

When our lips parted, I let my hand drift up to his neck and trace his jawline. We were both breathing heavily and our kiss had only lasted three seconds. I could hardly see straight- my body was reacting to what just happened.

"I shouldn't have done that." He said quietly. "I'm sorry." He squeezed his eyes shut for a few seconds, as if trying to erase what just happened.

But I didn't care. I was glad he did it. I would deal with the consequences later, if there was going to be any.

I hadn't realized that I was drifting out of consciousness until we reached an actual field with very few people. Through my glazed eyes I spotted our coach bus, but my eyelids fell shut and I fell into darkness as the sounds of the rain and the feeling of Mr. Lee's arms around me became my only senses.