18: Running

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A/N: Are you ready? I don't know if I am, but I'll try not to make it too bad. Angst or fluff? Angst. Les go-
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=Alexander's POV (again)=

"Where's the nearest drugstore?"

       "Searching for drugstores in your area..." the robotic voice replied back. It sounded just as cold and heartless as all of my so called 'friends', those liars. I knew I shouldn't have trusted them. No one loves me. No one ever will, and I can't even change that. Again that feeling of helplessness washes over me- and not the good kind- and I just want it to end. I'm so sick of feeling this feeling, but this may be the only way to make it stop. I mean, if all I'll ever feel is bitterness and heartbreak, then what's the point in feeling anything at all. I just can't keep going like this.

I Follow the map pulled up on my phone screen. As I enter the drugstore, I didn't bother looking at the name, the electronic bell chimes a bright happy tune. "Welcome!" a worker addresses me happily. I don't greet him back. My vision is so blurry from tears that I don't even know how I found my way into the right aisle. I'm not sure if this is the same store I bought them in the last time, but I spot the same bottles of Melatonin I had picked up before. Same price- $6.24 -so I must be in the same store.

I dig around in my backpack for a little, searching for my wallet to see if I had enough, when I hear the bell on the door chime again. That's weird...people normally don't come to this store. I stand up from where I'm squatting in front of my bag until I see a group of teenagers walking up to the man at the register. I could recognize them from a mile away. John, and everyone else, had come for me. No. No, they're all liars. They wouldn't willingly come for me.

       Thomas wants me. Yeah, that's it- they're just doing it for Thomas's sick little game. I see them split up. I can't actually believe they came for me, it just doesn't make any sense! Maybe they weren't lying..? No. There's no way anyone could actually love me. They're actually looking through the store for me. I can't let them catch me. As quietly as possible, I grab the bottle of pills and crouch behind the shelves, praying they don't know I'm here.

       To my right, there's Angelica, Hercules, and Lafayette. To my left I see John, Peggy, and Eliza, all of them quickly making their way through the aisles. Don't tell me I'm gonna have to James Bond this shit. I have to think fast though; they're coming. I'm going to have to use all of the skills I gained from Uncharted. Shit- no tall grass. Well, it's not like I could snap their necks anyway. So I decide to sneak around the left side of the store.

Right as John's about to pass me I slip through an empty space in the bottom shelf, using my small body as an advantage. Thank god the shelves are just like the ones in the library; in one side, and out of the other. I don't think I got by completely unnoticed though, as he turned around right as I dove through the shelves. Whipping his head around, he calls, "I think I heard something!" He looks around for a few more seconds before asking, "Did you guys hear it?" When a series of 'no's' and noises of repudiation answer him, he keeps walking in that direction.

       Thank god. Maybe I can make it to the register! As Peggy starts to walk towards the isle I'm in, I grab my bag and duck behind the end of another shelve, scraping my elbows slightly and praying I haven't been heard. Let's just hope I make it out of here without getting carpet burn. But how the hell do actually make it to the register? I don't have time to sit here and think though, I'm bound to get caught. So, as quickly as possible, I silently crouch my way over to the front of the store and pull out my wallet. I dig out a $10, knowing I won't be able to receive the change silently, and walk up to the man behind the counter.

       Thank god you can't see through the shelves at the checkout. I'm slightly taller than them though, so I duck down slightly to make sure they can't see me. "Je don't think he est here, guys!" I heard Laf call exasperatedly behind me. "He could be anywhere, John! We should probably move on from this store." Angelica frowns. "No," I heard John say back, "I swear I saw him come here right before us! There's no way he's left without us noticing." Watch me.

       I see that the cashier is  about to ask me a question, so I push my finger up to my lips as if to say 'sh', or 'shut the fuck up.' He gets the message, apparently, and takes the pill bottle from my hands without question. What I didn't account for, though, was that loud beep! That came from the scanner in his hand. "There he is!" Followed by a series of heavy footsteps come towards the front of the store, so I do the only thing I can fast enough: I run. I snatch the bottle of pills out of the cashiers hand, looking around frantically at the people approaching me.

       I'm not gonna make it. I toss the $10 at the register, Lin's face landing upward on the counter, and sprint through the front doors as fast as my short legs can carry me. "Keep the change!" I shout. "Alex!" I hear behind me, "Stop! Please!" I know that I'll never be able to outrun them, but I could at least try. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I look at the time. 4:10. Perfect. I start to pick up my pace as I see the school come into view again, trying to get to the front as quickly as possible.

       I'm so close, I can't stop now. I can hear the footsteps behind me start to draw nearer, but I can't stop. George's car begins to come into my sight, I run even faster. In my peripheral view, I see him walking down the front steps, fishing the keys out of his pants pocket. I run from the grass to the sidewalk, and from the sidewalk onto the parking lot. "OH MY GOD ALEX STOP!!" I keep running.

Big mistake.
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