Fated to be yours

Chapter 50

This chapter is the continuation of the previous one.

*****

"I was the one who saved you."

*Flashback*

Gulf can feel the familiar burning in his lungs, the painful but welcome strain in his legs as he keeps running in the dark night. He loves running, it's one of his escapes. Especially, when he gets so lost in running that he is only aware of his quickened pulse, the rhythmic thudding of his heart, the air hitting his face cooling his sweat covered skin. It's the moment where his surroundings and scenery take over, and in his mind, there's no one but him, the worries about life and the day's bullshit becoming meaningless. It's the reason he doesn't use earphones, he likes the sound of silence.

It's way past midnight. Normally, he goes for his run in the wee hours of the morning, when the roads are empty and no one he has to see or greet, only fresh air and the sweet chirping of birds. But sometimes he also goes for a run at night when sleep invades him. The night runs are more intense, to make his body tired so it has no option but to sleep when he hits the bed. And today it's one of those nights, where he has to work to earn his sleep. He is aware that his Dad will have a fit if he gets to know that he is out, so late at night, but something that he doesn't know won't hurt him.

His legs slow down, easing into a light jog before halting altogether when he thinks it's enough for the day or better say night. Bending on his waist, hands on his knees, he takes his time to regulate his breathing, gulping enough lungful of air. As his eyes take in his surroundings, he becomes aware that he is too far away from his home. There's nothing but shops lined on both the sides of the road, some run-down, some new, but at the moment all closed for the night. The only source of the lights is the street lights and a board of a bar blinking on the shabby-looking brick building a few meters away.

He is familiar with the bar, not from the inside but by the name. It's one of the hangout places of his Phi when he is too tired of his medical books. But he knows his brother will whoop his butt if he went anywhere near the place, in fact, his brother steers him away from any place that has alcohol in it. "You are too young to try that shit" is what he says. He knows being eighteen years old is not too young to try alcohol but he isn't too keen to try the drink either, he knows it just makes people stupid. He has seen his brother's drunken self too many times. In fact, it was yesterday when his brother had come home drunk and barged in his room crying because he couldn't open his bathroom door and he had to pee. He was worried he was going to wet his pants. Turned out he was trying to open his bathroom door by pulling it when it clearly opened by pushing. As he said, drinking makes people stupid.

He sighs, and turns around to make his way home. Ignoring the distinct sound of footsteps behind him, he pulls out his phone to check the time. 2:46 the bright numbers stare at him. It means he had been running for about forty minutes. The run back home is going to take more time though, because he can feel the fatigue taking over him.

Just as he is about to slip his phone into his pocket, a body crashes into him from behind and his phone goes sailing a few feet away as he stumbles. He catches himself from falling flat on his face but the body that had crashed into him goes down.

"Oh crap! Are you-"

The words get stuck in his throat when he sees it's his Khun Phi, groaning in pain on the ground.

"Phi!" He immediately kneels beside him. "Are you okay?" But he realises Mew is barely in his senses, he isn't even opening his eyes and is sweating profusely. "Khun Phi, open your eyes. Are you okay?" he shakes his shoulder.

Eyes squeezed shut, Mew mumbles something and he has to lean closer to him to listen to what it is. "Help me...spiked...drug...that man."

His blood runs cold at his words. Someone had drugged him? Just then a man stumbles out from the alley, the same one he guesses Mew had appeared from.