Flicker -NH

Part 39

It felt like it has been too long. The day Lexi left the graduation was the last time in five months that he has ever seen or heard from her. His calls are denied, his texts are read but not replied, and soon aren't even read anymore. Her social medias are inactive. He has no idea where she is.
Lauren tried to reach out to him a lot, sometimes showing up on his house out of the blue, which made him develop a habit of checking the security cameras to see who's at the door first before opening.
Today was the hundred and fifty sixth day that he has to go through without Lexi, and sometimes he wonders if she keeps count too, wherever she is now.
Niall releases his stress and regret by jogging now, too often it's because it gives him a reason to pass by Lexi's house, not that she lives there anymore now that she's graduated and disappeared.
Niall lets out a huff as he finishes his afternoon run, walking slower in front of her old home. He turns and walks upward to where his house is after a good five minutes of staring. He stops for a second as he sees a figure standing outside of his gate, squinting his eyes to see if it's Lauren.
The figure slowly turns around to his direction, making his body goes stiff of worry before a flood of relief and surprise hit him.
He breaks into a run without even thinking, recognizing the figure as the woman he waited for months. She didn't move as she watches him getting closer, he was too excited to see her after so long.
His wet, sticky presses on her cold, smooth skin, wrapping his arms around her as tight as he can. "Lexi." He mutters her name over and over again, almost forgotten how her name rolls off his tongue so easily. "You're back." He cries in her hair hugging her even tighter than possible.
He lets go of her, his eyes scanning on the features he's memorized too well. He's so angry at her for disappearing, confused on where they're standing now, sorry for how they said goodbye.
But most of all, he misses her, too much. He brings her in his arms again, inhaling her scent as much as he can as if she is air and he couldn't breathe. And in that moment, it's true.
When she left, he was dead.
He felt dead, until now.