Black Waters (Frank Ocean Love Story)

Chapter 七

Ajahni’s View.

I’ve never been so scared in my life. My heart felt like a time bomb in its last few seconds; it was beating harder and faster than ever before.  Ironically, the more I ran the slower it got. But I couldn’t keep running like this. I was getting tired, and I still had a long way to go.

I breathed in, shivering from the feel of the cold air in my lungs. It was reviving.  Without wanting to, I stumbled to the ground, sighing in satisfaction from the feeling of my legs finally getting some rest. They were so sore. But the dirt beneath me was still tight and hard which wasn’t so convenient for my butt, and it was pitch dark so anything crawling around me right now would remain unseen.

A car passed, its headlights lighting up the area for a few seconds. Something flashed when the car passed. I ignored it though; I was so tired and on-edge that I was probably making things up in my head. But then a truck passed, and I saw the flash once again. I walked toward it.

There, in the midst of the invisible insects and plants and soil, was a legit gold chain with a tooth pendant. It was probably worth a lot of money. I picked it up, noting its heavy weight, and stuffed it in the pocket of my sweatpants (which now had way more holes than before).

I couldn’t stay in these bushes forever.  But it wasn’t safe to go out into the street yet. I mean, what if I was being searched for back home? What if the headline on the news was: Missing Teen, Now a Fugitive! Rewards Being Given!

I don’t think anyone would react though. As far as I’m concerned I don’t have a father, my mother is long dead, and…well, I’m not too sure about the rest of my family. I have no memories of them.

So if I had no family or friends to turn me in to whoever was looking for me, who would really search and find me? No one. It was completely safe for me to get up and walk into the street.  And I did just that.

Fortunately I walked out at a moment when the street was dead. I didn’t look anywhere but straight ahead. Just keep looking straight ahead. That’s the only way I could prevent myself from collapsing in the middle of the road. I don’t know why I’m so tired. But it’s not tiredness that I feel, is it? No. When you’re tired your body doesn’t sag down to the ground. Your eyelids don’t feel pounds heavy. Your heart doesn’t beat this fast…or is it slow?

“Hey, are you ok?” A voice asked. I turned to my left to see a scrawny white boy with the crooked teeth and a musty smell.

“I’m fine. Why…why do you ask?” I struggle to get the words out. My mouth has never been this dry.

“Well you were just sleepwalking…I wanted to make sure everything’s ok.” The boy said, proceeding to walk along side me. I could feel his big beady eyes staring me up and down, probably wondering whether I was homeless. “Where are you headed?” He asked.

“Somewhere…down there. By the…Frank Ocean. Concert.” I said. I coughed and spit up something slimy and yellow in a nearby bush.

“Oh, you’re going to the concert? I just came from there. It was great.” The boy laughed.

“Wait, what? The…it’s over?” I stuttered.

“Yeah, it finished about 10 minutes ago. I work with Frank. If you want I can get you an autograph from him.” He offered.

“Yes. That would be great. Get me an autogra…” I couldn’t finish the word. I bent over and threw up all over someone’s abandoned phonebook. After I felt stable enough to walk, I went back alongside the random boy.

His name was apparently Lucas. He was really talkative; although that could be annoying, right now it was probably the only thing keeping me conscious. I was drifting in and out of consciousness, stumbling and drooling…