My Pride & My Hero

chapter 3

Water. Too. Much. Water. Can’t. Breathe. Help! Please!
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"H-hey! Hey a-are you okay? H-hang in there!"
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"W-who. A-a-are. Y-you?"
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"I'm.........................."
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"H-how. Did. You. F-f-find. Me?"

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"Shhhh. Calm down. Please. Please, don't cry. It'll only worsen your condition."

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"W-what. H-h-happened?"

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"W-wait! Stay where you are, I-I'll get help. Here, you can have this to keep you calm. I'll come back for you. I swear to the stars tonight, I'll be back!"

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My every Sunday mornings were spent for walking ever since I had those repeating dreams. They were more like déjà vu than nightmares, I needed to clear my head from those vague memories I wished I remembered. Going for morning strolls at this day of the week seemed to have developed into a habit. I needed some fresh air for my lungs.

I had been walking for half an hour now and had passed by houses I knew of. One of the joys of strolling down this neighborhood was that all of my closest friends were there, most of them living in their respective dormitories because of college.

I was nearing the end of my route when a sudden commotion from the house I was approaching caught my attention. I had always seen this house but never its occupants, until now.

A boy was being dragged outside the house by a woman (who I can safely assume was the mother). She had one hand on the boy's clothes and the other on a huge travel bag. The boy seemed to be in his teens, surely younger than me. Maybe a year? Eighteen?.

The younger boy was in a black, worn-out, sleeveless jersey, with baggy pants and converse shoes and a oversized headphones hanging around his neck and a snapback. It's strange but the young boy looks familiar and I swear I had never seen or even known him before, especially with those  headphones adorned with stars.

I immediately hid behind a nearby tree. I watched as the boy took in every physical and verbal attack his mom gave him. He seemed to pretend he wasn't hurt but I could clearly see that he was. Finally, the boy's mother dropped her violent attempts and went back inside the house, slamming the door shut behind her.

The boy quickly looked around, searching for people who could've witnessed their embarrassing scene. He sighed in relief when he saw none. I slowly began walking again, not towards his route but to the boy's direction. I didn't know why I started walking that way but I thought maybe he felt a sudden sympathy for the boy whose back is now just a meter away from him. I reached across for the boys shoulder but the boy turned around and shoved it away with his hand. His reflex was impossibly fast. He seems to have noticed he was being followed.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean any harm. I'm from this neighborhood and I just happened to walk by your house when…" I trailed off when the boy started walking towards a bench near the bus stop.

"Do you mind if I sit next to you?" I asked, stressing the word next for no reason.

"Yeah, I mean no. I don't mind. The bench isn't mine anyway so sit wherever you like." the stranger said in a carefree tone, this time while taking off his cap.

Red. His hair was dyed blood red. Something I wouldn’t dare do it. I let my hair stay hazel brown for a long time and I'm willing to keep it as it is. Now, I could clearly see how perfectly carved the boy's features were. I could clearly see how defined his jaws were up close. His nose, from my view, was like a sketch of a 90-degree triangle. His eyes were beautiful but dull – as if he had been tired of using them. There were also dark rims circling below. His brows were thick. His lips were plump but were dark and chapped proof that he had been smoking and drinking for a long time. And, he had piercings, too many for me to pay attention to.

"You saw didn't you?" the red-head asked.

 "Ahh, y-yes? But don't get me wrong. I didn't mean to. I just happened to pass by at that time." 

There was a long silence after. I knew he sounded guilty so I decided to end the conversation and leave. As I looked to his side, I was surprised to see that the stranger already had his eyes closed with huge headphones now in his ears.

He looked so young, innocent and dangerous all at the same time. How could his mother do this to someone so beautiful?. I sat there for a while and chuckled at the thought of the word 'beautiful'. It really is not the best term to fit his description. It's pretty much obvious why he was kicked out wasn't it? 'Delinquent' was the word.

I still didn't know what to do. It's almost twelve noon and I haven't even eaten yet. My parents should be worrying by now since I've been out for too long. I try to wake the boy up. The boy yawned and blinked one too many times before finally waking up. He looked up at me, brows furrowed in confusion.

"Y-you? Why are you still here? Don't you have some other place to head to?" he asked, removing his headphones.

"No, I don't. I just go for walks every Sundays."

"You seem to have been kicked out of your house for reasons I won't ask anymore, so I've decided to help you." I waited for the boy to respond but he didn't so I continued.

"Do you perhaps go to XXX School?"

The boy just nods in answer. "I also go there and a good friend of mine is currently looking for a roommate. So I thought maybe you would want a place you could stay in?"

Once again, a long silence entered the atmosphere. Too long of a silence, that is. The boy seemed to not care in any way.

The weather is getting too hot for my lungs to handle. Heavy breaths now start to escape my lips. My chest started to ache and my heartbeat started to pace faster. I knew this was his cue to exit the scene so I let out a long, final sigh then stood up to leave.

As I was about to take a step, my surroundings spun like whirlwinds. My chest felt like it's about to explode and migraines started to attack my already aching head. My sight starts to blur and my knees were weakening.

"Oh dear God. Why now? Of all the places? Of all the times?"

I was about to pass out when a warm pair of hands grabbed me by my shoulders on time. I then felt strong arms grab me by my thighs, struggling as my hands were put around the others neck and my head was rested in the others chest. The last thing I saw was the bright sun rays piercing my eyes. A faint, panicking voice calling out my name telling me to wake up, was the last thing I heard. And the last thing I felt were the rapid heartbeats of the person carrying me. Then everything went pitch black.