||Pretenders||☄️

(127).

"Run Away"

         An ache in Maxwell's wrist got him turning himself on the bed. His blood had stained the duvets and his stubborn self did not allow him to get the help he needed. He rather put bandaids on it and tried to force himself to sleep. He was hurting without a doubt and even in the cold room, he was sweating on his body. The pain numbed his body as well. The lights in the room had been turned off and he suffered alone.

       A while later, he heard the door open and he opened his eyes on the bed. The lights turned on and footsteps approached the bed. He remembered the familiar smell that got closer to the bed and he closed his eyes again.
"Max," Alicia called for him. "Hey, wake up."

      "Why are you here?" He asked. Alicia held his hand and touched his bruised wrist. Maxwell turned around to her and she had a sad look on. "You shouldn't look at me like that."

      "Can you sit up?"

      "For what?" She pointed to the first aid set before her and he sighed. "I'm fine. Leave."

      "Stop being stubborn. This can kill you."

     "And do you care?" He asked and she gulped. "You're getting married. Don't be entertaining the guy who still has feelings for you. I can tie you up right here and fuck you up." Alicia went ahead to sit and he was looking at her. "Alicia,"

      "I'm not leaving. I can't sleep like this knowing you're in pain..."

Maxwell scoffed at her. "You've been sleeping okay for weeks now. This isn't compared to what you've been doing to me. Stop acting like I mattered to you!"

      "You do." She gulped again. "I have never cared about anyone the way I do for you..."

     "The way you did for me." He corrected her and she shook her head. "Alicia, if I knew you were working here, I wouldn't have stepped a foot in here. I want to avoid you. I want to strangle you sometimes and I just stop because I know it'll hurt me instead. I know I'm supposed to be acting like I'm fine without you and I'm bad at that. I can't fake shit anymore. I really can't." He said to her and she looked down. "Alicia..."

      "It's getting late. He'll be up soon." Alicia said, held his hand and picked up the first aid box to clean up his wound. Maxwell kept mute because he knew she didn't want what they had anymore.

     "This is it?" He asked and she dampened the cotton with a disinfectant. "What did he say to you?"

     "Everything." Alicia answered. "He finally opened my eyes." She looked up at him and smiled. "What you have for me is an obsession. Get over it."

       Maxwell slapped her hand off and pushed the cotton and first aid set out of the bed. "Leave." He gritted his teeth. Alicia took in a deep breath and he glared at her. "Fucking leave Alicia!" He screamed at her and she stood up from the bed. She bent down and packed everything back into the box. "And let me make this clear to you. I am not obsessed with you. I was in love with you and that fucking ends this second." He bickered at her.

       "You're out of your fucking mind Maxwell. I'm really worried about who will stick around for your bullshit and take all this anger."

       "Someone will, Alicia. Someone better and someone who actually loves me."

       She chuckled at him. "Dream on Maxwell. Dream on." She eyed at him and walked out of the room. Maxwell sat up on the bed, bowed his head down and he shed another tear at this ache in his heart. He wondered if it will ever heal and when it does, what will be the next thing to do? He didn't want to love like this anymore. He wanted to love himself more than he's ever done for her.