Not my fault

Sometimes, the things we thought would never appear in our lives again, would come rushing toward us. A mere coincidence or if fate has already planned it, no one could tell. 

“Do you like staying in my arms this much?” He smirked, as I remained in the same position without even attempting to move. 

Immediately, I stood straight and asked “Were you following me?” 

He gave me a deadly stare that made me think I was not even worth being followed by anyone. 

“I… didn’t mean to be rude.” I scoffed. “Of course, why would anyone follow me?” 

“What are you doing alone here? Aren’t you aware of the crime rate or are you not scared of people, who commit crimes?” 

Not just his words but his eyes were commanding. Who could he be? He seemed as if he were a walking mystery. 

“I… I was with my friend and…” I stopped speaking. “W-wait! Why am I even explaining to you?” 

“Because I asked you a question.” He rolled his eyes. 

I stepped forward to leave but he stopped me, saying “Don’t go that way.”

“Why?” 

“What’s your name again? Selena?” 

“SERENA!” 

“Whatever! If someone tells you to do something, be a good girl and listen to them.” 

Ignoring him, I walked forward after pushing his hand that was trying to hold me. 

“If you meet drunk guys or strange men out there, don’t scream because no one is going to help you.” He said in his calm tone. 

My walk halted abruptly as soon as I heard him. There was no reason for him to lie so I chose to listen to him. Slowly, I turned around to face him, and I saw his bleeding palm, which he was ignoring carelessly. 

Then my gaze fell on the nail that was hammered into the wall. His hand was hit to the wall when I pushed it. It seemed the cut was already there and when I pushed his hand, it got worsened. “I… I’m sorry…” 

I could see the flow of blood but he seemed unbothered. I took a step toward him, and said again “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to push like that…” 

Before I could finish my sentence, he dragged me with his other hand and pinned me against the wall, caging me with his one hand. Suddenly, his face turned serious which frightened me, a little. 

He spoke in his serious tone “Listen, I never give a shit about others. Instead of considering yourself lucky because I told you something, you chose to go against me.” 

He was thinking so highly of himself, I could understand it. He was angry because I ignored him not because of the cut on his palm. But, how could he give a blind eye to his cut? 

I ignored his glare and took his hand, saying “It must be hurting. Let’s treat this wound.” 

He took his hand away, saying “It’s not because of you. Don’t feel guilty about it.” 

“But, the pain is real, isn’t it?”

He didn’t reply anything and the seriousness on his face faded. 

From my bag, I took out the water bottle and kerchief to treat his wound. 

“Don’t sympathize with the people. It takes you nowhere.” He scoffed. 

After placing the kerchief on his wound, I told him “You should treat it properly…” 

His deep stare was making me a little uncomfortable. I left his hand and turned around to leave but I halted my walk as I couldn’t stop feeling guilty. Again, I looked at him and gave him a small smile. “I’m Serena.” 

“I know.” He shrugged his shoulders. 

“I’m just introducing myself formally.” I bit my lips. “I don’t know if I am the sole reason for your wound or not. But, I wasn’t wrong. For your action, I pushed your hand.” 

He kept his gaze on the kerchief that I tied around his palm. 

If someone introduces themselves, they expect others to do the same. Like all others, I waited for him to speak but he didn't speak anything. 

“Take care of your wound,” I said. 

As if he read my mind, he looked at me and said “I’m Hayden.” 

“So Mr. Hayden, nice to meet you.” 

He let out a sarcastic chuckle. “Not everyone, who meets me, says that.” 

We both kept silent for a few seconds. Then I said, breaking the silence “I have to go.” 

I didn’t bother to hear his reply and walked away taking another route. 

____ 

Taking off my dirty shoes, I entered my house. It was a tough day as we had to take care of an event. If there held a competition for leading a boring life, I would be the prize winner. Work and home. Home and work. Every day was the same.

I took a hot shower, changed into my shorts, and fell on the bed. As usual, I started to scroll through my I*******m, and I saw Eric posted new pictures of himself. A small smile appeared on my lips and I pressed the like button below the post.

When I was in high school, we used to be good friends and I had a crush on him. Then he left for abroad. I couldn’t even get the chance to express my feelings. Then everyone became busy with their lives. 

Hey Serena! – Eric 

I jump to a sitting position as soon as I received his text. My mouth dropped wide open and it took me a few seconds to realize he texted me. 

Hey! How are you? – I texted. 

It had been many years since we talked to each other. My teenage crush on him might have disappeared, but he would always be a special person to me. 

“As always, amazing. How are you?" 

It felt unreal. Chatting with him after so long felt weird. 

Want to catch up sometime? – Eric 

I narrowed my eyebrows as I saw the text. I asked him where he was and he said he’d come back in a few days. 

That’s awesome. Let’s meet for sure – I replied to his text. 

My smile widened. The excitement of meeting him after many years wouldn’t let me focus on anything. Though there was no story between us and I could understand he must be having a girlfriend already, the thought of I could at least get a chance to be with my first crush elated me. 

After talking to him for a few minutes, I went offline. I headed to the kitchen to cook dinner. Quickly, I prepared oatmeal and turned on N*****x. I knew it was a breakfast recipe but I had no energy to prepare anything else so I decided to fill my stomach with it.

As I was about to fill my mouth with a spoonful of it, someone rang the doorbell.  

Irritated, I stood from the bed. I knew it must be my irritating neighbors, who never let me stay in peace. I walked towards the door and decided to start quarreling with my nosy neighbors. They were here only to irritate me or to invade my privacy. 

“What now…” I opened the door, frustrated, but seeing him in front of me, I was frozen.