BETRAYAL’ S SHADOW

Coral Miller

     "Coral, please wait, I can explain," Kai Turner said, Chasing after me.

"There's nothing to explain, it's quite obvious what you really want" I said loudly, walking straight ahead on the alley.

"So stop following me and just stay away from me" I shouted out in frustration.

I felt his hand wrapped around my wrist tightly, stopping me from walking any further. I turned to face him, my gaze meeting him.

"What?!" I screamed out loudly, my voice laced with frustration and anger.

"You've got it all wrong coral, I can explain!" Kai said, trying to defend himself.

"Really? My best friend?" I said, scrunching my eyebrows, my voice laced with sadness and anger altogether. Tears welled up in my eyes clouding my vision.

"Let me explain!" He said, his hands stretched forward a silent signal telling me to calm down.

"Okay, go on. Say whatever goddamn thing you have to say Kai," I began, the tears streaming down from my eyes.

"Because I'm sick and tired of all your bullshit" I declared, my arms outstretched in exasperation.

"Coral, you've got to understand, with me okay?" He said, holding my arms, looking into my eyes.

I stood motionless, my arms crossed over my chest, as silent tears streamed down my face.

Kai and I had been in a relationship for over two years. He was my first love, first kiss, first sex, unfortunately for me he was my first everything. I'm seventeen now and I must I've been a fool to think that this teenage so-called love would amount to anything. Can I call it love or just teenage infatuations?

Recently whenever we hang out, his phone keeps buzzing all the time. I've told myself countless times that I wasn't ever going to check my boyfriend's phone no matter the situation and I stood by my word. I trusted him and believed every word he said.

     Lately I was beginning to not believe in my belief anymore, I did not want to believe him anymore or anything else he had to say. I always had the urge every now and then to check his phone, I always wanted to know where he went and wherever he was, I literally became like an overprotective hawk watching over its chick. For some reason I felt he was cheating on me, but I didn't know who he was cheating on me with.

I would leave his place, come back home and cry over the phone with my best friend all night long not knowing that she was a conniving snake behind my back.

All I wanted to do was to just crush her underneath my grip, I could imagine her in between my hands…..

"Are you even listening to me coral?" Kai asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"What?!" I asked, confused, wiping the tears off my face.

"Were you even listening to me at all?" He asked again, searching my face for an answer.

"Kai, it's late. I have to go home now" I said, walking away from him.

"I'm sorry, coral," he shouted from behind me.

I ran as fast as my legs could carry, My vision blurred with unshed tears as I fled the arena, my heart pounding a chaotic rhythm against my ribs. Each footfall was a desperate attempt to escape the confines of that suffocating arena, the weight of betrayal pressing down on me like physical force. The familiar  walkway seemed to stretch on endlessly, the sterile brick walls mocking my anguish.

A sharp intake of breath halted my frantic escape as a car horn blared, its incessant sound piercing through the fog of my despair. A silver sedan, its headlights blinding in the twilight, careened towards me with a terrifying speed. Time seemed to slow down as I registered the impending doom. My body reacted instinctively, propelling me into the grassy verge just as the whizzed car passed, a mere inches from my outstretched hand. 

A strong arm encircled my waist, pulling me away from the edge just as the car sped past. A surge of adrenaline coursed through me, a potent cocktail of fear and relief. I was alive, miraculously unscathed.But the shock of the near-miss was quickly replaced by a surge of gratitude towards my rescuer.

Turning to face him, his face was illuminated by the soft glow of a nearby streetlight. I met the intense gaze of a young man, his eyes etched with concern. His eyes, a deep shade of brown, held a comforting warmth that soothed my rattled nerves. He was tall, body-built, with a protective aura that made me feel safe in his arms. 

A silence stretched between us, broken only by the soft cry of a stray cat that was passing by. I was drawn to him, a strange familiarity with this stranger who had just saved my life. It was as though I had known him for years, a sense of belonging washed over me. 

He released me slowly, his hands lingering on my arms for a moment longer than necessary. Our eyes met, and in that brief exchange, something ignited between us, a spark of something unknown but undeniably powerful. 

"Are you okay?" He asked, his husky voice filled with genuine concern. I watched as his Adam bopped up and down as he spoke.

I nodded, my voice barely a whisper.

"Thank you," I managed to say, my heart still pounding in my chest if not even faster as my gaze remained on him.

When Ed Sheeran said in his lyrics we fall in love in mysterious ways, this was it and it definitely did feel like a fairytale. I must be crazy to be in love right now right? I'm just human right? Or am I just being delusional?

The song thinking Out loud by Ed Sheeran kept singing loudly in my head. This felt too much of a Fairytale or I guess being into too many romance sit-coms has got me thinking I'm in love right now with a total stranger.

"I'll….. I'll…I'll be going now" I stuttered, flashing a weird smile at him.

And he gave me the sweetest smile ever.

Had it not been for this stranger's quick action, the outcome would have been tragic. A wave of gratitude washed over me, mingled with a sense of vulnerability.

I turned to walk away. I was too nervous to stand there any longer, With trembling steps, I began to walk away, my gaze fixed on the ground. The young man's voice called out to me, but I couldn't bring myself to turn around.

Suddenly my vision became a blur of colors and sounds and all I wanted was to disappear.

I found myself falling to the ground, the impact jarring my senses.

"Hey ....hey" a voice called out to me, faint and distant.

My world was titled, then spun into oblivion. A sickening thud echoed in my ears as consciousness retreated into black abyss. Fear, cold and sharp, clawed at my mind as I plummeted into darkness. Was this the end? A final unceremonial curtain call? Panic surged through me, a desperate plea for survival. My vision flickered, a Kaleidoscope of colors before plunging into utter darkness.

A muffled groan escaped my lips as consciousness slowly reclaimed me. My head throbbed like a relentless drumbeat, each pulse a jarring reminder of the fall. As my senses gradually sharpened, I became aware of a soft glow emanating from somewhere nearby. 

With an Herculean effort, I forced my eyelids open. The world was a blur of color and shapes, gradually coming into focus. My vision settled on a figure silhouetted against the soft glow. It was a man, his face etched with concern. His hands, large and calloused, gently cradled my head.

As my vision cleared, I took in his features, it was the man from the street.

"You're okay," he said, his voice a soothing balm to my rattled nerves.

"You're going to be alright."

I stood up abruptly, looking around the house. It didn't look familiar.

"Where am I?" I asked, my voice hoarse from disuse with a hint of nervousness.

He smiled gently.

"You're safe, we're at a rented motel." He said softly.

"A motel? Are you kidding me? I have to leave now, my mom is going to kill me" I said panicking, rubbing my hands on my hips.

"You need to relax, and breathe. I'm not going to harm you" he said, stretching his hands before him in surrender.

"How I'm I supposed to believe that? You took me to a goddamn motel in the middle of the night!" I shouted loudly, scanning the room to know if it's truly safe.

"That's all I could think of," he said, shrugging his shoulders innocently.

His dark skin under the light was truly alluring, his eyes that were a deep shade of brown, held too much comforting warmth that soothed my rattled nerves, just urging me to calm down. His body-built body was evident through the gray tank top he was wearing that hugged his body tightly, his right arm having a big tattoo on it that looked like a dragon. I shook my head from all the details I was taking in of him, he sure was irresistible. I tried to focus on the present situation about why he fucking brought me to a motel.

"Seriously?" I asked, giving him a questioning look.

"You couldn't think of the goddamn hospital? You had to bring to a fucking motel?" I added, expecting an answer.

"You've got to chill okay? I ain't trying to hurt you or anything like that. I want you to know that you're safe. Do you understand?" He asked, his full black brows furrowed in question expecting an answer.

I looked around the room one more time, the deer head hanging on the wall was eerie and weird. I never understood what people liked about taxidermy decorations, they always seemed so scary and not so cute at all. I noticed the motel room had two beds, I guess he took a room with two beds so I wouldn't feel unsafe. The lamp on the old table allowed me to  see the first aid box that was opened on the table. He probably was taking care of me while I was asleep.

The crashing waves coming from outside drew my attention. I looked out the window to be sure I heard tightly. I cursed underneath my breath. I wasn't only in a motel, I was also near the beach. This was becoming too much to handle. My house was a bit far from the beach, thoughts of me returning back home flooded my mind.

"I'll get you home safely, you don't have to worry. I can take you home now" he said, after seeing the reaction on my face after seeing the beach.

"Okay," I said, lost for words.

There was something about him, that just pulled me to him, a force that makes me still stand in this room and not run out of the room.

This must be a dream! Wake up coral!