A/N: Hey! I'm back again, with a new chapter ;) It's long, again, and I hope you will all enjoy it! Also sorry for the crappy ending, it was getting long so I just stopped. haha XD enjoy, & review anyways? :)
Disclaimer: I do not own CR. Just my little insane plot ;)
We continued running, the stranger's hand still holding my own tightly, and for that I was grateful. Without him, I would've stumbled many times, doubtlessly, or accidentally run into something, and I was grateful for his firm grip on my arm, because I surely couldn't have gotten away on my own. Hence, I kept a death grip on him, glad that since he was leading, I didn't have to worry about tripping over or running into something. It would've been the worse for me then.
The shouts from the group of boys slowly faded away, and I briefly wondered if we really - a blind girl and a... stranger - were able to outrun them. It seemed unlikely, but at the same time I couldn't hear their taunts or yells from behind us. And slowly, cautiously, I allowed myself to believe we'd lost them.
The stranger seemed to think the same as me, for a moment later his running slowed, and his grip on my hand loosened slightly. I could hear his winded breathing, and my own, mixed with his as we gasped for breath, and finally, his hand dropped from mine. I was glad to be able to stop - glad to be able to breath, glad that now, my aching legs could rest.
"Thank you." I managed to say, in between breaths, to the stranger. I was so grateful, so happy, so ecstatic that he'd decided to help me, words couldn't have expressed how I was feeling, so I settled with a simple thank you. The stranger didn't seem to mind, though - he was probably too busy trying to catch his breath, and probably watch for the group of boys. Or, maybe he thought I was - too bad he didn't know that I couldn't.
"I think we've lost them." He spoke up, and I nodded, deciding that since he thought we were safe, I probably should too. However, it still seemed hard to believe that two people had managed to 'loose' a group of five boys. Could it really have been that easy? "Just in case though, we probably should keep moving." He continued again, and I agreed quickly, because I felt the same way.
We started up the road again, at a much slower pace, and without the stranger's firm, guiding grip, I noticed how much harder it was to simply walk without either hitting something, or tripping, or placing my feet wrong. It was frustrating - to be going so slow, unable to go any faster without falling, and hardly getting anywhere. If we continued at this pace, they would surely catch up to us.
"Come on, we have to hurry." The stranger seemed to think the same, and I knew he was slowly growing impatient at my clumsy slowness. "Do you want them to find us?" He snapped, sounding more worried than angry at me, but despite that fact, I still couldn't help my growing anger - towards myself.
I let out a groan of frustration as I tried to pick up my pace and felt my leg smack into something - probably a chair, I would guess, from the way it hit me. I couldn't go any faster, not without hurting myself. With a sudden burst of anger, I balled my palm into a fist and slammed it down onto my free hand at my own weakness.
"Whoa," The stranger's voice was now even more worried, and I could feel him as he stepped closer, oblivious to my frustration. "What's wrong?" He asked, and I felt his hand reach out and grab my own, probably only to prevent me from hitting myself again. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry, I wanted this horrible blurriness in my head to go away.
I snatched my wrist away from him and sat down on the street, in the middle of the Los Angeles sidewalk, and, curling my legs up so I could bury my head, I began to cry. Anyone who saw me must think I was insane and a hopeless cause - surely, even the stranger had walked away when he'd discovered I was crazy.
I didn't get what was going on - why was I even in Los Angeles? Last time I remember... no, I couldn't even remember what city, or worse, state that I had been in before today. That wasn't normal, to not remember anything but walking... and this headache was worse. What normal person felt as if they had their own personal thunder storm going on in their head?
A hand on my arm made me jump, and I scooted backwards, away from the touch, my first thought being that the group of boys had found me. A second later, a voice proved me wrong.
"What's wrong?" The stranger's voice was gentle, yet concerned, as I realized that it was his hand I'd felt. He hadn't abandoned me after my momentary breakdown - I smiled at the thought that he'd stayed, despite how it must have looked when I lost all my dignity and plopped down on the middle of a random Los Angeles sidewalk. I'd doubt many people did that very often.
"I... I can't go any faster," I told him quietly, and I could imagine him raising his eyebrows as he stared at me, probably confused out of his mind at my strange words. "Even if I want to, which I do, I just can't." I broke off with a sob, pushing my sleeve across my face to wipe away my tears before I continued. "And this stupid headache..." I moaned in frustration, my hand pressing on my temples, as I tried to calm down.
The stranger was quiet, his hand resting unconsciously on mine, and it was only the fact that I could feel him that I knew he hadn't left. I don't know why he stayed, when he could see what a mess I was.
"I have a question," The stranger spoke up again, as if I hadn't even spoken. He sounded confused, and as if he was thinking. "Where did you get all those cuts?" I stiffened - what was he talking about? I didn't know... or at least, I hadn't felt any pain, so I hadn't thought...
"What?" I asked, dumbfounded, before the stranger's hand moved, his finger running along a section of my arm gently.
"The cuts. Where did you get them?" He repeated patiently.
"I don't know," I admitted, "I didn't even know I had any." I continued, which was the truth, because before this I hadn't even noticed it. I could have been beaten senseless, and, I'll admit that I was too preoccupied with my head and sight that I probably wouldn't have even noticed. When the stranger spoke next, however, he sounded slightly angry.
"Seriously? You're going to lie, after everything?" His tone was harsh, and I instinctively pulled away, shaking my head in desperation.
"I don't know, I swear." I could hear the pleading note in my own tone, and I could only hoped that he decided to believe me. I'd heard him when he was facing the group of boys - if he could defeat them, he certainly could do the same to me, much easier. I flinched when he reached out and pulled me back towards him, his grip firm.
With a sigh, he stood, and I felt him tug on my arm, pulling me into a standing position. I caught my balance quickly, wishing he'd release my wrist, because I couldn't stand to be so close to him.
"How can you not notice? It looks like you got into a major cat fight, and lost." His voice was calmer now, I noticed with a bit of relief, and I took a deep breath before I answered him. I wondered how he would react when I told him - would he pull away and leave me, like I'd been worried he would earlier? Or would he understand?
"Because," I sucked in my breath, trying to calm my racing heart, "I'm blind."
I heard him suck in a deep breath, and I felt him stiffen in shock. I pulled away, while he was distracted, and he didn't try to stop me. I knew it. He was going to leave, he was going to avoid me because I was 'weird'... I stepped back, away from him, and I noticed he didn't come after me. With a half-choked sob, I turned and ran.
Later on, I'd be the first to admit that was probably the stupidest thing I could have done, because without my sight, I was groping around in the darkness, with no way to know if I was headed in the right, or wrong, direction. I had acted on the spur of the moment, and it was something I would never do again.
My feet slipped on the slick sidewalk, but I steadied myself before pushing through the crowd of people, just wanting to get away from him, from the group of boys, from everything. I wanted to leave this cursed city, and find a place to lay my head down.
"No!" I heard his panicked voice a moment later, but I ignored him as I fled, my heart pounding in my head and my breath coming in short gasps. I tripped as the sidewalk dropped suddenly, and I fought to keep my balance.
"Stop!" He cried, and now I could hear the sound of his feet pounding against the sidewalk, and the loud blare of a horn right beside my ear, accompanied by the sound of screeching tires. In a dizzied rush, my head spinning, I fell, my hands instantly moving to protect my head.
I hit the ground with a thud, pain shooting through my body as I realized what had happened, and how I'd almost gotten killed. Tears flowing down my cheeks, I placed my hands on the ground, attempting to push myself back up and get out of the road, as quickly as possible.
Before I had the chance to move, however, I felt strong hands grasping my waist, pulling me up and back, back to the sidewalk and safety. I was trembling, sobbing, shaking, dizzy, and terrified, and I could tell from the stranger's breathing that he was just as winded as I was.
His hands loosened around me as he set me down gently, his hand on mine as I began to cry, just from the sheer terror of how stupid I had been.
"What the heck were you thinking?" He yelled furiously at me, and I could feel his rage as if it was my own, it was so strong. Shuddering, my breath still coming in gasps, I shook my head, horrified by what had almost happened. I could've been killed. "Or were you even thinking at all?" He continued, his voice shaking, and I realized that most of his anger was coming from the fact that he'd been terrified by what I'd done.
"I'm sorry." I choked out, my heart in my throat as I thought about how stupid I had been. I could feel some of his tension melt away, and I ached to know that I'd put us both at risk today - twice. "I'm so sorry."
His arms wrapped around me, and with a small surprise, I realized he was hugging me. I relaxed into his gentle embrace, still sobbing, and his hand moved up and down my back as he tried to comfort me. Somehow, it managed to work, because my breath was no longer coming in huge gasps and my heart wasn't racing insanely.
"Can we just go?" I asked, pulling back from him as I stood, my legs feeling like Jello, and I wobbled. His hand caught hold of my arm to steady me, and I gave him a small smile gratefully.
"Of course," He replied, his grip on my arm firm as he began to walk, and I followed closely, afraid that if he let go of me, I might make some other stupid decision and end up causing us both more trouble, so instead I followed him meekly, my head still reeling from what had happened.
"Where are you staying?" He asked, and I frowned, because I didn't even know how I'd ended up here, much less where I was supposed to be staying, or live, or anything of the sort. I shrugged, feeling hopeless and stupid, and he sighed.
"I don't know," I answered honestly, and he didn't reply right away. "I don't even know how I got here, in Los Angeles, I mean." And then I heard him release the breath I didn't know he'd been holding.
"You'll have to come with me, then," He reasoned, and although the thought of going anywhere with a stranger should've scared me, it did the opposite. Comforted, I was thankful that he was willing to help me. "However," He continued, and I stiffened, wondering what he was going to say. "I think we should get you to a doctor before we do anything else. You at least need to get those cuts checked out. And maybe he'll be able to help you with your headache." He offered, and I nodded, a smile on my face.
"I know this is a stupid question," He laughed, and the sound was like music to my ears. "But what's your name?"