Roller Coaster | SwaggerSouls

PROLOGUE

A familiar ringtone from your phone catches your attention, and you immediately drop the folded laundry in your hands to race towards it. It was a text from Eric, telling you to meet him at the park. He never really does anything before 11 in the morning so him texting you at 6 was worrying. You had an inkling that something bad was gonna happen. You ask him when you should head down and he responds quickly, saying he was already there. Immediately, you shove your phone in your pocket and exit your hotel room. Leaving the building quickly, you walk down the street to where you remember the park was.

It was the definition of autumn, the trees burdened with red and orange leaves that disappeared at a moment's glance. Even with the Sun's glowing rays, it would still be unbearable without a jacket of any kind.

Looking around, you find Eric sitting on a bench overlooking the murky lake. He was leaning on his knees, playing with his fingers. You walk up to him slowly, your chest tightening and your hands beginning to shake. Anxiety is building up, and you cross your arms. Eric looks up as you stop a couple steps away from him. He blinks slowly before standing up, shoving his fists deep in his pockets.

"I..." He stops, his throat tightening. Eric takes a deep breath and looks at you in the eyes. "I've noticed how much the distance has hurt us, how many fights we've had. Like, extremely petty fights with no real end. I've noticed us becoming distant," He says, watching as you nod, dropping your head to avoid eye contact with him. You bite your lip, sniffling as you look back up at him.

"I think... I think we need to b-break up," Eric stutters, the words coming out of his mouth scaring him. He really didn't want this to happen, but he didn't want to hear that dial tone after a fight ever again. He clenches his jaw as you slowly close your eyes, looking off at the pond. You tighten your arms around your chest, and not just because of the chilled air seeping into your bones.

"Yea... yea, I think that'll be best," You whisper, nodding. Your eyes were still on the trees behind the water, watching a crimson leaf drift fall, carried off in the wind. Eric opens his mouth, almost taking back his words, he knew how you worked —you were about to cry, but didn't want to say anything. He knew that. He knew a lot of things about you, and they all made his heart ache.

"I'll see you later," You manage to mumble, spinning on your heels and walking off. Eric watches you as you leave, noticing your hand rise towards your face every now and then. His chest tightens as he realizes you were crying.

"Fuck me," He whispers to himself, turning and watching as his feet hit the ground. He doesn't realize his eyes fill with tears until his vision is disrupted, blurry neon spots replacing the traffic lights. Eric stops in his tracks, wiping under his eyes. He turns his head just in time to see you disappear behind a hay bale with a cartoonish scarecrow on it, leaning against the red brick building. He turns back, ignoring his burning chest as he walks back to his parents house.

How fucking pathetic, he thought to himself, you still live with your fucking parents and can't even keep a girlfriend. Eric shakes his head, focusing on his feet crunching the red and yellow leaves on the concrete rather than his mind trying to hurt him.

Lost in his thoughts and the sound of autumn around him, he makes it back to the house without realizing it. Eric didn't even know if he wanted to go inside yet. After standing at his doorstep for a few moments, contemplating going to his smoke spot to calm himself, he jumps up the brick stairs. Ignoring the ghost animatronic who sings loudly, he unlocks the door and heads in, kicking off his shoes immediately.

"Hey son, were you out with your girlfriend? Have a fun date?" Eric's dad smiles as he notices his son pulling off his coat. He loses his smile when Eric freezes before slowly starting to hang up his parka again. Eric feels his chest tingle, his stomach burning as he finalized that it was over by telling his dad.

"We.. we broke up," Eric mutters, barely audible, before retreating to his room. His dad deflates, watching as Eric silently shuts his bedroom door behind him.

~

You sink into your seat, staring at your phone, the sound of people walking into the plane becoming white noise. You knew he wasn't going to text you, but your hope for this relationship was far too big. Disappointment seeps into you as you realize that it's completely over, he wasn't going to try and get you back and you shouldn't try to either. You turn off your phone, shoving it in your backpack and tossing that under your chair, wanting to ignore it for the rest of the trip.

An older woman, maybe 65, sits in the seat next to you. You smile politely at her, not noticing her head tilt in worry as you turn your head away. Your eyes were dull, and you were way too young for them to be empty. The woman glances around, finding that everyone was beginning to be seated and the flight attendants were walking down the aisle. She turns to you, tapping your shoulder. You spin, looking at the woman with a startled expression.

"You look sad," She whispers, looking at you worriedly. You open your mouth, about to give a bullshit lie about just being bored but knew you wouldn't be able to pull it off. "What happened? You can tell me, you most likely won't see me again," The woman winks, causing you to smile softly. After thinking it over, you turn completely to her, starting your story.

As you tell it, she turns sorrowful, watching as your eyes fill with tears. You end the story with a small, "I didn't want to break up with him but it's the best thing for us right now," as you wipe your eyes and nose with your sleeve. You look over at her, regretting that you had even opened your mouth as you see her worried look and sad eyes.

"Oh no, I shouldn't have said anything. I don't want pity, I just—" You get cut off by the woman patting your leg with a smile.

"You'll get better soon hon, you just need the right friends," She mutters, glancing at the top of the aisle where a flight attendant was getting ready to start the safety precautions. You bite your lip and nod, chuckling quietly.

"Yea... yea, I think I have the right friends. Thank you for letting me rant," You whisper, the flight attendant starting the video. The woman nods, leaning towards you.

"The sooner it's out, the sooner it'll get better," She whispers, patting your leg as she leans back to sit correctly in her chair. You nod, smiling to yourself as you think about what you're going to tell your friends when you get back.