Run Away

Recall

Chapter 9

Sohinki had started running in the past week. It definitely wasn't something he was used to, or even good at, but it had substantially improved his mood.

He got back around eight that morning. He liked running before the sun was completely up. The world was bathed in a grey haze, there was nobody else on the roads, and he loved watching the clouds over the mountains gradually clear as the hours went on.

He made his way back into the house, still breathing slightly heavily, the screen door smacking shut behind him. He pulled his sweaty shirt over his head, shed the rest of his clothes, and stepped into the shower. The cold water had been a shock to him at first, but he really enjoyed it now. When he was done, he dried off and put on his flannel and jeans.

"Crap," he sighed, smacking the coffee maker like he did every morning. It never worked the first time around, but several minutes later he was finally able to get a decent cup of coffee. He took it out on the back porch, closed his eyes, and exhaled slowly.

And then he heard a knock on the door.

He sighed again, not so calmly this time, pushing himself off the railing and stopping when he saw the face through the screen door. "Lasercorn," he lamented. Seriously, that hair could be seen from space.

Lasercorn waved awkwardly, unsure of what to say to his friend.

"How'd you find me?" Sohinki asked, not unkindly, opening the screen door but not moving out of the way.

Lasercorn held up his phone, displaying a series of messages. "Your phone has a GPS signal, and you're forgetting who the best detective in the office is."

"That's a violation of privacy," Sohinki frowned.

"You didn't really leave me much choice," he replied. "Come on, man. You can't just run off and disappear for weeks at a time whenever something happens."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure I can," Sohinki sighed. "I'm not coming back with you."

"Why'd Mari hit you?" Lasercorn asked bluntly, nudging the shorter man aside and entering the house.

"That's none of your business," he narrowed his eyes. "And did I say you could come in?"

"She told me," Lasercorn ignored him, turning to meet his gaze. "Apparently, you said something about her being stupid enough to marry Peter and she snapped. Not that I'm excusing it. But you can't completely blame her here."

"Oh, for the love of God. I don't blame her," Sohinki sighed. "I know I shouldn't have said what I did. Although, still. Did she really have to make me bleed?"

"No. And she feels awful," Lasercorn replied. "She's a complete mess. She's been fighting with Peter too and I know she's not taking care of herself."

"So what?" he asked. "Am I just supposed to go back, pretend like nothing happened, and try and help her?"

"Well, we all want you to come back, but it's not really our decision." Lasercorn sat down on the couch. "What's keeping you here?"

Sohinki sat across from him on the coffee table, refusing to meet his gaze. "I don't know."

"If you didn't know, you wouldn't be here," he leaned back on the couch. "Don't lie to me."

Sohinki sighed, letting his head fall. "I'm afraid that I might have feelings for her...Mari. And-"

"And you're afraid that's the reason you told her about Peter," Lasercorn finished. "Oh, Sohinki."

"I didn't even realize that was how I felt until I got here," Sohinki looked up at him. "She'd never forgive me if she found out. I'd never forgive me."

"God, would you listen to yourself?" Lasercorn stood and put a hand on Sohinki's shoulder. "You just said it. You didn't know you had feelings for her. And yeah, I guess, maybe on some level your feelings may have influenced your decision to tell her. But that's not really something you can control if you're not aware of it. You did the right thing by telling her. You're honestly going to sit there and tell yourself that your decision would have been different if you felt absolutely nothing for her?"

Sohinki thought about that, staring out the window. "No. No, I guess not. I would have made the same decision either way. It just feels wrong, though."

"I'll take that to mean she has no idea about all of this." Lasercorn said. "Not that you should tell her. It's better if you don't, especially if you're not sure. It would just confuse her."

"I wasn't planning on it," he replied, snorting. "Look, I appreciate you coming down here to talk things out with me, but I really have no desire to see Mari right now, let alone work with her. It just feels wrong."

"Well, then don't come back for her. Come back for us," Lasercorn pleaded. "Wes is going crazy trying to edit everything with just Joven helping him, and people are starting to notice that you're missing. And we need you! You keep Joven and I grounded. We've been a total mess since you left."

Sohinki grinned in spite of himself. "Wow. I didn't realize it was such a big deal to you."

"So?"

Sohinki sighed, pushing himself up. "Fine. I'll lock up here and be back in the office tomorrow. Just... please don't tell Mari about it. And don't make a big deal, okay?"

"Promise," Lasercorn put up his hands in a gesture of peace. "We won't mention it until you get in. But you know Wes is going to make you stay tomorrow night and catch up on your editing."

"Yeah, I kind of figured. I'll manage. Not like I've got anything else to do," he shrugged. "I'll get my stuff together and head out in about an hour, yeah?"

"Cool. Don't make me come back here and drag you out, though," Lasercorn raised his eyebrows as he headed out the door. "See you tomorrow."

"Yep," Sohinki waved and shut the screen door behind him. Then he sat back down on the couch and sighed.

This was really not something he wanted to have to do. He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

And he realized it was the first time since he'd met Mari that he didn't want to see her.