Someone Like You

Chapter Twenty-six

I can feel everyone's sharp gaze on me. It doesn't hurt me but somehow, I want to melt down to the ground and disappear. It's like this since I showed up this morning. Almost all of the girls are giving me dirty looks everywhere I go. Now I regret going to school today.

I walk slowly along the corridor while looking down on the floor, carefully calculating every step I am taking. I'm still figuring out how to properly walk with crutches. It's hard but I think I'm getting the hang of it.

I could hear murmurs. I know you could always hear murmurs in corridors but this one feels different. It seems like they are all talking about the same thing.

I raise my head and find out that everyone is staring at us – at me and at the guy straight across me.

"Alexander." I gasp. I stop walking as I look at him walks closer to me.

Everything changes. All the people disappear and all that are left are me and Alexander. The whole moment turns into a slow motion – he is approaching me slowly.

I could hear my heart beating so loud.

Badump.

Badump.

Badump.

Except from that, I could not hear anything else. It feels like we are in another world where only the two of us exists. It's my world.

He walks closer and closer.

My eyes are following him. They don't blink even for a second. They are just following him.

On the other hand, he is also looking at me but he looks at me as if I am someone he doesn't know. He hadn't looked at me like that before.

He is so near to me that I could even reach him if I stretch my arm out. He continues to walk. He takes a step forward and walks pass me ... away from me.

That drags me back to reality.

I could see everyone is smiling teasingly. I could hear them laughing at me.

My world brakes down into pieces. I was mistaken. He was not walking towards me – he was walking away from me.

I am stun for a couple of seconds looking at him, but then I recover immediately. I take a deep breath and continue to walk forward opposite him ... away from him.

In times of hardship, sometimes all you got to do is to move forward and act like it's not hurting even when you're dying inside. You need to move forward and move on because that is how the world goes.

"What was I expecting?" I smile to myself.

* * *

It's around six when I find myself going to the basketball gym to see if how the basketball team is doing. I think it's because this had been how my schedule used to be for quite some time. It's hard not go. My body is really aching to go there. Though Coach Mark has already informed me that I don't need to be on duty for at least two weeks, I still feel like I need to go there today. My day wouldn't be complete if I won't go there.

"Hey." Coach Mark immediately notices me standing by the door. He is smiling as he approaches me. "What are you doing here?"

"Am I not allowed to be here anymore?" I answer sarcastically.

"Of course not. How's your foot?"

"Better, I think." I shrug. "Coach, can I stay here for a while? I'm going to meet someone at seven and I don't know where else to go." My class ended earlier than usual, Erika and Toni are also busy with their own things and I am waiting for Zac to pick me up by seven. I don't know where to go alone.