Void {h.s. au}

chapter two

"What the hell?" Hailee exclaims, running to my side and snatching the blade from me.

"I don't understand." I mumble, squeezing my eyes shut. Why would he send this to me or try contacting me at all?

"He's being an ass like usual. He shouldn't have done this." 

"Why?"

"Do you even have to ask?" She rolls her eyes, throwing the sleeping pills into the trash, "You're in a better place in your life. You two don't need each other."

"But why did he do this?"

"Do I look like a psychic?" She shakes her head, but her eyes soften when she takes in my expression.

"I'm gonna do some homework."

"If you want to talk about it, we can." She calls as I walk out of the room, but I know better. No matter how hard she'll try to understand my emotions, she can't.

I throw myself on to my bed, closing my eyes. Instantly, Harry's face clouds my mind. My eyes snap open, removing the image from my head. I've been doing just fine without him, why would he mess everything up?

I grab my laptop from my desk, hoping to distract myself. When I log on to my email, I see the usual messages about campus events or assignments being due, but one message catches my eye. Avaline sent me all of her notes from today. That's odd. 

I send her a short thank you message, but it still makes me curious. I glance at the time. The religion class is just now getting out. Why would she send me the notes right when class was let out? 

"Why are you frowning?" Hailee asks, startling me.

"I'm gonna put a bell around your neck." I joke, but the idea doesn't sound too bad. 

"I don't like seeing you stressed out." She sits beside me on the bed, "What's wrong?"

"Some girl that I just met today, sent me her notes."

"I think that's how college goes."

"It just feels really weird. I feel like I do when..." I trail off, not wanting to say the words.

"All she did was send you her notes. She's probably just a nice person. Not everything has to do with what you've been dealing with."

"You're right. I'm just being paranoid." I close the laptop and rub my eyes, only to see Harry's face behind my eyelids.

"Do you want any lunch?"

"No, I'm okay. I think I'm gonna go for a run." I give her a small smile, and then once she's gone, I change into more appropriate clothes for running.

The weather outside has fully embraced the autumn season. The trees have transformed from having deep green leaves to bearing a burning orange color. For this, I'm grateful. The green of the leaves was too similar to Harry's eyes.

A light breeze pushes me to begin running. I smile at people in their yards, enjoying the beautiful weather on this Friday afternoon. A few adults wave at me with generous smiles, but I know that all of them wonder how I can afford to live in this neighborhood. 

I turn off my street, going deeper into the neighborhood. After a couple more streets, I see the trail that has become my regular routine. It's a part of the neighborhood, but it's in the woods, so it feels isolated. 

I slow my run into a jog. No matter how nice the weather is, my body still needs time to catch a breath. 

Behind me, footsteps come into my hearing. My heart kicks into a race, and I debate whether to begin running again. The sound of crunching leaves gets closer and closer, and I close my eyes, preparing for the worst, but they just pass me. I blink my eyes open and see a young man running ahead of me.