The Box
By Kawaii Cherry Blossom
Notes:
I just wanted to say…I’m
so, so sorry for not updating in so long. I guess my readers should be used to
it by now. I only hope you guys haven’t forgotten about this fic. I hope this
chapter is worth the wait, although it is quite short. Sorry… Hehe. There’s one
chapter left. And I promise it won’t take as long as this one did.
Please review if you
have a comment, or just to tell me you’ve read it. I really appreciate any
comments. :)
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Time
11:25 pm
‘A kiss.
Just one kiss, and it all came flooding back. It felt as if someone was literally taking an axe and driving it through me, through all of the resistance that I had built up against him, against loving him. It was painful, but somehow, also relieving. Loving him was a feeling that I’ve missed…
It was a feeling that made me feel safe, even
though I didn’t know if he returned the same emotions. Now I just feel alone…
As much as it pains me to admit, I’ve known it
all along… I love him. I do… I don’t want to. But I do.
But all of this just means one thing. It’s going to be even harder to walk away. It would have been so much easier if I felt nothing…
Or…maybe there is a way. Perhaps I can learn to open my heart again, to love him openly and let him love me back.
No.
Don’t be such a fool.
There is no way.’
‘You are
leaving Pallet Town. Please visit again soon.
Sea Route 21 –
12 m ahead’
With its old,
rickety wooden frame and fading ink, the sign couldn’t have been any simpler
than a black dot on a white page. And yet, to Misty, its complexity was
immobilising.
She had stood
on this spot countless times before, the dusty path beneath her and the vast
open space ahead. Only this time, it was different. This time, she was alone,
and would continue to be alone, forever… The screeching echo of the fate she
had chosen calling to her was almost unbearable. It seemed so much easier to
run back into Ash’s arms, and feel safe and protected, and loved… But she knew
that she never could.
Why? There were
so many reasons. Each one took the form of a lightening bolt, shooting across
her mind simultaneously, crashing into her thoughts and causing an explosion
within her head. It was brutally painful, and hard, oh so hard, to ignore…
Misty glanced
ahead warily. The sky seemed darker tonight than it ever had before; a menacing
shade of pure black rather than the deep blue, satin curtain that usually lined
the sky. The road ahead led towards the sea, her sanctuary, though she doubted
whether it could heal her this time.
She had that
feeling in her heart. The one you get when you’re walking away from the love of
your life, from your true chance at happiness. The feeling that, slowly but
surely, your heart is breaking. And the knowing that it will continue to break
forever.
If I stay, I will only hurt him more in the end.
And ever.
It’s better to hurt him a little now, rather than a lot later.
And ever.
There’s someone else out there for him, someone who can truly love him, someone’s who’s a good person, a better person…than me…
And ever.
I just wish that…it could have been different.
And ever.
As her head
exploded with thoughts, Misty ran. She sprinted blindly and wildly, a fallen
spirit attempting to outrun her life, her responsibilities, her thoughts. As
her legs pumped, her muscles grew sore, but she didn’t notice. Sweat poured
down her face, mixing with tears of regret and leaving sticky, wet tracks, but
she didn’t care. Her heart was racing like crazy, but not even its thundering
beats could shake the paralysis that had frozen her brain. She couldn’t feel
anymore, she was just a lost soul in a world of spirits who knew their path,
knew exactly where they were going. She was the odd one out, the one that
didn’t fit in, the red amongst the sea of white. Her soul was cold and numb,
and she didn’t expect to feel ever again.
Misty had lost
control now. As she bolted onwards, she drowned further and further into the
sea of despair that was pulling her down into its endless darkness. Without any
resistance to give, she was trapped, and doomed to fall forever. She was caught
between the waves. The walls were closing in. There was no way out…
12:59 am
By the time
Misty hit the ground, she had no idea where she was or how far she’d run.
Unable to think or fathom anything, she collapsed in a heap. Her breathing was
heavy as she gasped for the sweet feeling of air filling her lungs. Tears of
regret shot into her eyes as she realised that she’d done it, it was over. She
had left the one person that she loved, the only person she knew who’d ever
felt something real for her. Once again, she was alone. Misty curled up into a
ball, her arms holding her legs tight to her body, trying to wash away the
insecurity she felt, but failing. And then, like an aftershock to an
earthquake, the sandbags holding back her tears were swept away.
And she cried.
For all she had
lost. And all she had run from.
All she could
do was cry.
4:01 am
“Ash?” her
voice was barely audible as she spoke into her mobile phone, holding it up with
a shaky hand.
“Where are you?
I’ve been so worried…”
“Um…”
“Are you
alright? Are you hurt? What happened…?”
“I’m on Sea
Route 21, Ash… Please…can you come and get me…? I’m sorry…”
“I’m coming,
don’t move. Misty-“
“Yeah…?”
“I love you,”
even through the telephone, his words were so poignant and honest that they
melted Misty’s heart.
“I…” Misty
wanted to say it; she yearned to say aloud the three words that had been
contained within her heart for so long. Yet, all of a sudden, her breath seemed
to have caught up in her throat, and she was barely able to speak at all.
“I’ll see you
soon,” Ash said a few moments later, his tone edgy, as if warning her not to
move.
Misty closed
her cell phone, ending the phone call.
She felt so
numb, that she wasn’t sure if she had just made the right decision. Any reason
identifiable within the mess of thoughts scattered in her mind was split down
the middle. Yearning for a sign, she gazed up into the dark sky. But her only
thoughts were centered around one question, which brought tears to her eyes as
it burned through her thoughts.
How did my life come to this point…?
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