Cut and Run

The third of May. A month and a day until Alex graduated. Twelve weeks and three days until he left for college. Until I could no longer see him every day, talk to him in person every day, kiss him, hug him, every day…

Sighing, I laid my pen down beside my unfinished homework. I glanced at the clock, noting I had a good two hours until I had to leave for therapy. So I tossed on an old pair of Alex’s basketball shorts, a sports bra, and a tank top. I tightened the laces on my running sneakers evenly, to fit comfortably snug as I ran. Grabbing my iPod and phone, I slipped a hair-tie onto my wrist and headed for the door.

“You going running?” Aiden called from the kitchen. “Yeah, I have my phone and I’ll be back in time for therapy,” I replied, and hurried outside. It was a warm spring afternoon, and I was happy to once again be running. Turning on my iPod, I started off walking, warming up my muscles for running. About two minutes into the song, I started to run.

Think light, I reminded myself, softening my footsteps to a point where I couldn’t hear them. I kept my arms at less than a ninety degree angle, swinging them only slightly so not to waste energy. Every minute or so I’d glance at my feet, making sure I was running straight. The more I ran, the more my heart beat sped up and I was breathing in beat with the music to try and keep it even.

Inhale, one, two. Exhale, three, four. Inhale, one, two. Exhale, three, four.

I focused on matching my light footfalls to my breathing, allowing my mind to drift away from the slight pain on my calves as I ran steadily up a rather steep hill, already looking forward to when I would be running back down it.

The sun was currently hiding, both clouds and trees between us. I let myself enjoy the shade and the cool breeze as I ran, all of my senses more aware of my surroundings as I ran. What seemed like too soon I could see my apartment building approaching, and I knew that meant getting ready for therapy. I didn’t no how long I had been running for, or how far I had gone, just that I felt amazing as I stopped in front of my building.

I began to stretch, using a nearby tree for balance as I stretched my calves. Thirty seconds, then switch. I finished stretching and just laid there on the ground, staring at the sky. I searched the clouds for pictures, something I hadn’t done since I was little. “It looks like a dinosaur!” I said to myself, racing the shape of the cloud with my eyes.

“Nah, it looks more like a dog,” an unfamiliar voice said. I sat up, and look to my left. There stood dumpster boy, otherwise known as Camden. “I’m Camden,” he said holding out a hand for me to shake.

“Andrea, though I tend to go by Andi,” I told him. There was a moment of awkward silence, which he broke be asking, “That blonde girl you always hang out with, what’s her name?”

I laughed, hard, and Camden gave me a funny look. “Oh, no, don’t mind me. I just find that you asked what her name was funny, because she named you Camden the other day. Then we found out your name is Camden when Alex told me. He knows your brother Eddie.”

He just looked at me oddly and shook his head. “You never told me her name,” he told me. “Oh, yeah, I didn’t. Her name’s Freddy.”

“Freddy?”

“Short for Winifred. I wouldn’t call her that though.”

“Why’s that? Winifred’s a nice name.”

“Tell that to Freddy. She hates it. No one calls her it.”

“Well, I’m gonna.”

“Just cuz she stalks you doesn’t mean she won’t hurt you for calling her Winifred.”

“She stalks me?”

“Pretty much. Like I said, she named you Camden.”

“…I don’t get it.”

“She saw you at the dumpster and thinks you’re hot. Started referring to you as Camden Hills because of the apartment complex. And then she found out it really is your name.”

Camden paused, a thoughtful look on his face. “I’m not sure if I should run away every time I see her, or ask for her number.”

“I’d ask for her number,” I told him, a smile on my face. “Okay. What’s her number?” he asked, whipping out his cell phone. I rattled off the all too familiar number, and saw Justin coming over to us.

“Andi, come on. You’re gonna be late if we don’t leave now,” he told me, tossing his keys and catching them. “Okay. Bye Camden, it was nice meeting you. Now, if you’d excuse me, I have to go to therapy,” I said, offering a small wave.

“Therapy?” he asked.

“‘I'll tell the saddest story of how we made it through this past year,’” I told him as I walked towards the car with Justin.

“Quoting A Day to Remember?” Camden called back, and I waved before climbing into the passenger’s seat of Justin’s car.

“Well,” my brother said as he pulled out onto the road. “Looks like you made a new friend.”

“Yeah, I did. And now it’s gonna be so much easier for Freddy to stalk him.”