Hidden Hearts

05 - Troubling Clarity

Max

I could hear crunching from beneath but I knew it was only from the small pebbles and dirt that occasionally manage to get on the track. Running has always been something therapeutic to me. It allowed my mind a moment of clarity where the world was not so troubling and the only thing I could focus on was regulating my breathing as my feet carried me forward.

Sure, running can be exhausting but that is only if you focus on the negatives. When you ignore the pain and the exhaustion, everything else just blends together in the background, becoming only white noise that can be occasionally heard when I stop running.

"Okay, team! That's time! Take a breather, drink some water! Today's session is over!", the coach yells out.

I take a few steps towards the bleacher before deciding to just go with it and head towards the malamute that had been watching. I did not decide to sit down and instead wanted to just talk to the husky. Yet words fail me as I stare at him, not knowing just what to say to him as my memory began to come back to me. That feeling of familiarity I had felt with him had come back but I just couldn't remember where I had seen him.

Blurred flashes of a fur briefly crossed my mind at time but whether it would be him or just someone else remained a mystery to me as I tried hard to remember.

"So, how was the run?", I heard a voice ask.

Looking to the source, I take notice that the husky, Josh, had asked me that.

"It was great", I had replied, though it lacked the enthusiasm that I tried to express.

Maybe he didn't notice or maybe he did and he decided to ignore my slip up as he continued the conversation.

"So, when's the next meet?"

"About two weeks from now. The coach needs to plan it according to our schedules so we don't miss out on classes."

"Makes sense."

Quiet. The conversation had died down once again as there was nothing we could talk about to further what we had started. A part of me wanted to ask Josh if I knew him from somewhere but I felt it a bit insensitive to ask in case he does know me and I just forgot about him. Then again, he's not really telling me if he knew me but still, we went to the same school in the same city in the same state. He's either a stalker or he's telling the truth.

But, if he was a stalker, then how would he know I'm attending Winterwake? I never really discussed it with anybody but my mum. Only with my mum? A faint memory elicits itself from the depths of my mind as I see a blurred figure yet again but this time, I could remember that I had said I am attending Winterwake to someone else.

Could it have been Josh? God, why is everything so confusing?!

"Uh, Max?"

I snap back into reality as I look towards the source of the voice. Yet again, I see Josh sitting there, this time he held his bag in his hands.

"Uh, yeah?"

"Everyone's already left."

I look around and confirmed that everyone had indeed left. Only us two remained here.

"Oh. Uh, let's go, then", I said, yet there was uncertainty in my mind that hadn't left. Just why can't I remember anything about high school?

I sigh as I grab my bag and slung it over my shoulder. I look towards the husky who is patiently awaiting for me. I start walking as he does, too. The walk was relatively silent, only the sounds of our footsteps filled the air. Occasionally, we would past by other students that I noticed would steal glances over to us. I could hear them whispering but I couldn't discern just what they had said before they walked away.

"So, any classes after this for you?", the silence was broken by the husky yet again. It's rather strange that he would be so...talkative to me. To me, he seemed like someone who's rather shy and would rather stay quiet than be in the spotlight. Yet, he has broken the silence that had been lingering whenever conversation had died down. Frankly, I appreciated it when he would do that as it helped clear my mind from what has been troubling me.

"No, I'm free for the rest of the day."

"Lucky. I've got a night class after this. Thank god, my class tomorrow doesn't start till afternoon."

I let out a slight chuckle at that. Yeah, early morning and night classes really sucked. I would have picked for all my classes to have  times that would let me sleep in a bit but ultimately, my course didn't allow that. Thankfully, I only got only one early morning and one night class.

Although Josh's familiarity to me has troubled my mind, I couldn't help but be curious by why he is so familiar. Maybe, if I get to know him better then I'd be able to put my mind to rest on the matter. This lingering feeling of unease did not want to go away until the mystery has been solved. So, I take one glance at him before deciding to speak up.

"So, are you...free on the, er, weekends?", I ask. I mentally facepalm as I realised it sounded as if I were asking him out on a date.

He seems to tilt his head, which considering he's a canine, made him look adorable. I could see his eyes moving about as he bites his lips and occasionally, his tongue.

"Saturday, I got a class in the afternoon but on Sunday, I'm free the entire day."

I make a mental note of that as I thought of which day would be better to pick. Ultimately, I picked Sunday as it seemed to make the most sense since we both would have a lot of free time then because there were no classes.

"Sunday. Do you want to...hang out?"

Yes, I know. I realised how stupid I sounded when I asked that. Still, he gives me a soft smile as he nods his affirmation.

"Sure, what time and where?"

Ooh. I didn't think of that. Uh...

"I'll...text you the details later", I improvised, hoping he wouldn't catch my sudden nervousness.

Whether he noticed or not, he made no mention.

"Okay. Well, I'll see you later, then."

"Y-yeah. See you later."

We head off to opposite directions. Me, back to my dorm room. He, er, somewhere.

God, just one husky and my body has started to malfunctioned. Just who is this husky?