Six Years After The Bet

8. Abby

It's been a while since I've heard from Jordan. I feel relieved yet worried at the same time. Relieved that I don't have to worry about him nagging me all the time, but at the same time I kind of miss his presence. Lately I've been lonely and he's made things not so boring. Shawn and I rarely talk because he's always stuck working with his client. Whenever we do talk, it's usually about the wedding. The wedding is starting to stress me out because I'm the only one planning it. I'm honestly ready for this camping trip with Alyssa and Jake. It'll be nice to see them and catch up. God knows I haven't been much a friend these past years to them.

I tie the laces on my shoes before putting my Bluetooth headphones in. I click on my running playlist and press shuffle, starting my run. I usually do a two mile run four times a week, but lately I haven't had the chance. I don't want to get out of shape, so I might bump it up to three miles just for this week and next.

My steps fall in rhythm with the beat of the song. I focus on my breathing, making sure to keep it as steady as possible. That's the key to running if you want to last long. Pace yourself and keep your breathing steady.

I pass by a couple of people that I recognize from my previous runs. These same people usually have some place to go around the time that I'm running. I wave to them and they wave back or give a slight head nod. I cross the street, making sure to look both ways. My muscles are starting to burn and I can feel the effect of not running like I should have been. Maybe I'll just do two miles today.

I pass by this news stand, looking at the magazines on the racks. I stop running, stopping in front of one with Jordan on it. He's advertising our clothing and he's shirtless while having a football in his hand on the cover. I'm sure plenty of woman have bought this magazine. He's smiling that boyish grin that I used to love and I find myself smiling a little at a memory of us. It's of when we were hanging out at the arcade, asking each other a series of questions. I was doing it to actually know more about him; he was doing it for a bet. The smile on my face slowly vanishes and I turn away from the magazine, continuing my run.

I was serious about forgetting about the whole bet, but it's not as easy as I want it to be. My heart still aches when I think about it. He's apologized for it and I forgive him, but I still can't shake that feeling of anger and sadness that I get when I think about the bet. No one should ever be treated like that. Be someone's game. If he was so bored and wanted to play a game, I could have sent him my monopoly board game.

I'm so lost in my thoughts that I end up running into someone. I end up knocking the woman down and I take my headphones out, resting them on my shoulder, apologizing to her.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry." I stick my hand out for her to grab. She grabs my hand and I help her up.

She smiles a little, dusting herself off. "It's fine. I've been there before. Emotional runs are a good way to get whatever you're feeling out of your system, but it's usually better to do it when no one is around."

I let out a embarrassed laugh, "Yeah, I can be a klutz sometimes. If I'm not being the one knocked down, then I'm knocking the person down."

She laughs at me and I notice her green eyes shining. She looks like one of those Victoria Secret models that I've seen before. She's stunning and she reminds me of Virginia. Just thinking of Virginia makes my skin crawl. I would say I wonder what she's doing, but I don't wonder. She's out of my life and that's good enough for me. This girl is nicer than Virginia though. If it had of been Virginia, she'd be clawing my eyes out right now.

"I'm Eleana." She reaches her hand out to me and I shake it.

"I'm Abigail, but my friends call me Abby." I introduce myself.