Securing You (Little Gathering Series)

Chapter 11 - Another Runner

Leo pov

"You are enjoying yourself too much." I am hell shock when she speaks to me suddenly.

"I'm sorry." I fluster by her unexpected conversation.

"Have you lost someone important to you before?"

"I..have." I asnwer honestly.

"Does it make you happy?"

"Of course not. How can you be happy when they left you."

"You are right. How can you be happy." Her voice full with hatred its troubling me.

The hatred and pain show clearly in her eyes the more I look at her. Her facial features keep remind me of Ryan. They have the same dark brow eyes and same black hair.

I find myself recalling Ryan personal pharse. He keep mumbling that since he was accepted. I didn't care about it at first. But later his words help me went through the hard times. I feel like I need to help Aries.

"You can't keep griefing and mouring forever. The death can't be revive. But the living need to survive." I tell her Ryan favorite sentence.

But she raise from her seat and leave me cluelessly. I look back and meet Choel worry eyes. I shrug imediately.

"Where are you going?" Choel shouts while she gesturing me to go  follow Aries.

"Night time walk." She answer shortly and speed up.

"I'll go with her." I raise and run after Aries.

"I don't want to walk with you." She speak bitterly but I ignore it

"Have a nice night time walk. Leo, take care of her."

"I will. Don't worry." I smile at Choel.

Aries walk faster trying to ditch me. I just tail behind her before she stop and turn to me coldly.

"Leave. I don't want to walk with you." She annoys and irritated.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious. I hate you." She speaks harsly.

"Yeah. But why?"

"What why?" She shouts.

"Why you hate me." We rarely meet each other. I don't remember anything that make her hate me this much.

"I just hate you." That doesn't sound so convinsing to me.

"How can you hate me when you didn't even know me?" I'm curious.

"I was born to hate you." That is a sarcasm. I know.

"That wound me." I try to sound funny.

But she turn to me disbelief. "I hate you."

"That the fourth times you said your hate me in 5 minute." I just want to clear the tense air.

"I. Hate. You." But seem like she hate me more now.

"You just make it 5."

"Argh. Just leave." She screams again.

"I can't. Choel ask me to take care of you remember." I shrugs.

"If she didn't would you leave?"

"No." I would not leave.

"Why?"

"Because I decide to walk with you." I smile but she get even furrier.

"Just leave." She lost her patient and push me right on my chest but I didn't move an inch.

"Just what did I offence you, you hate me so much." I ask seriously. She hates me and Phantom hates me. Why does everyone suddenly hate me.

"I was born to hate you remember." Another sarcasm.

"I didn't know Aries was born to hate a Leo." I smirks

"Now you know. So fuck off." She shoves me again but I still didn't budge.

"Let just walk." I sigh and lead the way.

"I hate you." She shout behind my back.

"I know." I try to sound strong but it didn't go as it plan.

As I walk I am lost in my deep thought. Phantom wanted my life and Aries hate me. Phantom remind me about Ryan and Aries use to have a brother. Are they connected or its just a mere coincident?

We walk in the night with her behind my back. I stop and look back to wait for her. When she reach my spot then I walk again with her beside me. But she distant herself again.

"Just how much you hate me?" I begin the conversation again.

"I hate you enough to kill you."

I freeze when I heard that. What is this..? Some kind of secret message or what. I heard it clearly she wants to kill me.

"Well good luck. But you need to compete for that." I keep my guard up just in case she really kill me here.

"Why? Did someone already book to kill you." She smirks.

"Yeah." I answer shortly

"Don't you afraid to die?"

"What is there to be afraid about dying? Nobody know what happen after you die. School didn't teach you that, and you can't even prepare for that. Well not it physical way. Dying is easy. Its living that hard." I speak casually with my hand in my pants.

I glance at her when she didn't reply. She is looking down the ground as she walk much slower that before like trying to match up my step.

"Being left behind is hard. Didn't meet your expectation is hard. Break up is hard. Family issue is hard. Work stress is hard. Living is full with hardship and challenge. But when you die.. you're free." I continue as we keep walking further from the camping site.

But she still didn't respond to me. It is night and I can hear the bird and insect sound clearly. The night breeze is cold but its refreshing.

"But you should not give up just because it was hard. You don't like it, change it. You can't change it, accept it. You can't accept it, then leave it." I speak again.

Suddenly she stop so I stop along. I turn to her and see her unreadable expression. She mumble out something but shut her mouth again. Then she run aways leaving me freeze on the ground.

"Aries..." I call her but she didn't turn back.

I run after her before she disappear in the night. I run and call her and run and call her again but she didn't respond to me. I search like a mad man but still didn't find her.

Fuck.. Choel ask me to take care of her, is this what she mean. Why does there always a runner in this group.