It wasn't me

Chapter 16

Rose

Today went better than I expected. I got Felix to go out of the hospital and he made some small talk with the elderly woman that we met. It was a win for me. Ever since I have opened his file I was a bit scared, I can’t lie. I think that anyone would be scared if they learned that they were spending quite some time with a man that was accused of murder and arson, but today’s event proved me that it wasn’t that bad as my mind was making it up to be. Sure I was still cautious but I wasn’t paranoid.

After my shift finised later than usual today, because someone was refusing to eat his dinner so I’d be able to give him his medicine, I decided to take a walk whilst going home. I didn’t want to rush home, not that I wouldn’t have what to do but I guess that a part of me was a bit guilty for still living with Jay. I know how he is, he likes freedom, living, partying and a part of me couldn’t stop worrying about how I felt like I was taking those things from him and how I am a burden.

I didn’t have a destination in mind when I started walking aimlessly after work but somehow I ended up in a place where I haven’t been in a long time. Sky park. Nestled in the heart of a bustling district, it unfolds like a hidden gem awaiting discovery. I take a few steps through the enterance and the world seems to fade away, replaced by a oasis full of memories.

The park’s enterance gate is adorned with intricate patterns. The air carries a faint scent of blooming flowers, cherry trees are placed here and there. The path ahead me splits into several trails, each leading me to a different memory. I take the third trail and begin to walk down it, the last rays of sun filtering through the leaves, dappling the ground. To my left I can see an unused badminton court that now sits abandoned, waiting to fall, for me it’s a testament to past matches that I used to play when I was a child.

As I ascend the slope, the view expands. The cityscape peeks through the foliage, a mosaic of glass and steel. I pause in front of the pavilion, examining it’s wooden beams weathered by time. I rest and look around, gazing out over the park’s undilating terrain. Benches line the edges, inviting weary sould to linger for a minute longer.

The playground comes into view, a riot of colors that once used to be vibrant, now faded to mute. I remember how I used to swing on the swings. As if in a movie I can see the little version of myself doing that, laughing while I begged for my friend to push me harder so I could swing higher. The laughs we were letting when we were playing ‘catch me if you can’t , the races along the rubberized ground.

I take a seat on one of the swings and look at the pavilion next to me. It too, brings me so many memories. They were somehow coming back but not all of them. I knew I had a best friend but not even until today I could pinpoint who he is exactly. Sometimes I dream him but I never see his face. This park is like my second home, a place where time slows, memories bloom and the ordinary becomes extraordinary.

Someone clearing their voice is breaking me from my daydream and I get startled. When I look to my right I see a man dressed in a black bomber jacket with the Warriors logo on the chest and the hood is covering his head, a mask on his face. There he is again…but why is he here? I’m not in danger am I?

“Can I sit?” He asks in his deep voice, pointing at the vacant swing next to mine.
I nod but say nothing.

He proceeds to take a seat and puts his hands in his pockets.

“You’re not in danger Rosie so chill.” He says oh so casually.

“You know my name…” I mutter bewildered by his action.

“Of course. I have to know the name of the girl I have to constantly save.” He smirks to me.

“Thanks…for all those times but…do I know you from somewhere or why are you saving me? No one in this city would ever blink an eye to save someone.” I questioned him.