58 Days With Parker

Day 18

Day 18

"Parker. Parker! Parker, listen to me." Margret said, raising her voice with each word. 

Parker didn't reply. He simply grabbed his keys and ran out the door. 

"Parker, come back!" Margret tried yelling, but her tiny voice couldn't be heard over the engine. 

She watched him as he peeled out of the drive way and barrelled down the dark road. Now the only sound that could be heard for miles was the sound of Margret's old heart breaking. At first a few tears tumbled from her forlorn eyes, but all of a sudden, tears streamed down her face like a cascading waterfall.

***

Parker didn't know where he was going, but he knew he couldn't stop driving. Because if he stopped, the emotion would catch up to him and engulf him in a whirlwind of pain, sorrow, and guilt. Before he knew it, tears were pooling in his eyes. 

"No. No, don't fucking cry." He mumbled to himself.

But, sheer willpower wasn't going to stop the tears this time. 

His salty tears slowly rolled down his ashen cheeks. He was determined to stop his traitorous tears, but they just kept coming and coming. The emotion was catching up to him and he succumbed to it. 

He left himself feel what he was running from this whole time. Everything he had bottled up inside came pouring out. The constant tears were blurring his vision. Tremors shook through his hands making it difficult to drive. 

The air around him seemed to get heavier and heavier as he fell deeper within the sorrow. Trying to drive away from his problems was not helping. Still, he pushed the pedal down farther until it touched the floor. Everything outside the car became a blur as he accelerated. The faster he drove, the clearer things became. 

He knew where he was and he knew he had to stop. Because there was a girl crossing the road; her eyes downcast, earbuds shoved in her ears, and a hood over her head. She was halfway across when she suddenly looked up and saw Parker's car coming closer and closer, not decelerating at all. 

He knew that he had to stop or he would hit this innocent girl. He tried to get his foot to move, but it was glued in place. Just as he was about to hit her, he pushed his foot down on the brake, but it was too late. 

The car scarcely made contact with the girl, throwing her back a few feet. 

"Shit." Parker gasped as he pushed open his door and ran over to the shaking body sitting on the pavement. 

"Are you okay?!" Parker shouted as she pulled herself to her feet. 

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Aspyn screeched as she looked up at her assailant. "Parker?!"

"Aspyn?! Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me." Parker grumbled. 

"That's all you have to say to me? You just hit me with your car!" Aspyn yelled as she balled up her fists. 

"You should've been paying attention to the street!" Parker retorted. 

"Don't blame this on me!" 

Parker angrily ran a hand through his already tousled hair. "Fine. I'm sorry." 

Aspyn took in his appearance. His hands were shaking and his eyes were red and puffy. He looked disheveled and on edge. Unlike his usual cool, stony appearance. 

Aspyn narrowed her eyes. "Have you been doing drugs?"

He scowled and shot her a look. "I may be a lot of things, but a druggie is not one of them." Anymore, he thought fleetingly.