IT'S U, ALWAYS U

CHAPTER THREE : MIDNIGHT RUN

That night, I couldn't sleep.

Thoughts of a certain black-haired boy with mischievous eyes and a matching smile filled my head, making me restless.

Eventually, I gave up on sleeping altogether and silently padded down the stairs to the kitchen.
I was careful not to make any noise as I moved-after all, I didn't want to wake my mother for something so insignificant as this.

There's nothing a cup of hot cocoa can't fix, I told myself as I reached for the cupboard.

It was still dark out, the moon peeking just a bit between the clouds.
I glanced at the wall clock as I stood by the kitchen counter. 2:36 am, it read. It was too far early for anyone to be awake.

This was the hour for musings on what-ifs and what-could-have-beens, but I didn't want anything to do with either.
I didn't have a lot of regrets in my eighteen years of existence, but the few that I had were more than enough.

Aidan.

Even the mere thought of his name sends pangs of pain in my chest.

Aidan, I wonder how you are now. I almost reached for my phone, just like in the old days when he was just one phone call or text away, but I caught myself before I did something stupid.

He probably doesn't want anything to do with you now, amara.

You told him you were sorry that you couldn't like him back.
The guy had his feelings rejected so many times, do you really think he would've waited for you to come to your senses after all this time?

I slammed the cup of cocoa on the kitchen counter in frustration, cringing when it clattered noisily on the marble.

I need to clear my head. I can't think straight in this stuffy house.

Grabbing my light blue hoodie, I pocketed my phone and laced up my rubber shoes. I was going for a run.

-*-

I ran.

I ran until my feet couldn't take it anymore.

I ran until I could hear the blood rushing to my head, blocking any coherent thought from forming.
I ran until I fell short of breath.

"hey, hey, hey! Watch where you're going!" I slammed onto the hard pavement, as my foot tripped over someone else's.

I bit back a sharp cry as I landed, scraping my hands and knees on the unforgiving ground. "I'm sorry ," I whispered. "I'm sorry . I was not looking."

I heard the scuffle of feet followed by a string of curses, before silence ensued.
I did not dare to look around, embarrassment would only make me feel worse. It was best that I stayed ignorant of the world, at least even for a while.

"darn it -what are you still doing down there? Get up, you stupid .
" I cringed as I realized that the person I ran into-a man, judging from his voice-was still there with me. A hand grabbed me by my shoulders and started to pull me up, when I cried out.

"don't, stop it ! It hurts." My ears were ringing. I could feel the sharp edges of the cement digging into my skin, but I couldn't bring myself to get up just yet.

His grip on my shoulders slackened, and I heard his sharp intake of breath before he took a step back. "I'll be fine," I muttered, squeezing my eyes shut. "please , go on your own way. I just need a moment."

"hey, hey hey, amaraa"

I opened my eyes in surprise what I saw almost made me fell over.

"a-aidan? "