No prompt used. Although, I seem to be going chronologically backwards in Raiyo and Levi’s story as the month progresses, haha.
Raiyo ran.
He did not want to stop running.
He never wanted to stop.
If only he had a place where he could stop; his body was no perpetual motion machine. It was only a matter of time before he collapsed on the hard, wet asphalt.
The rainfall was getting heavier, so if someone came to him after he collapsed, they would not have good intentions.
He could not afford losing his wallet or anything in his backpack.
His life, on the other hand? Perhaps, if it went out while he was unconscious.
Eventually, Raiyo found that his legs had propelled him all the way to the mall at the city center. A security guard eyed him as he took shaky steps further in, dripping streams of water onto the floor with gratitude that he had managed to get a waterproof backpack for his things. Otherwise, his laptop and phone would have been goners after the rain.
Raiyo only barely had the presence of mind to take his backpack off before half-sitting, half-crashing onto the closest bench. His eyes fluttered shut and the world went blank for a while.
“Young man,” a male voice pierced the blankness. “Wake up, young man.”
Raiyo forced his eyes open. “What?”
“Are you all right?” The voice belonged to the security guard who had been eyeing him before.
He probably suspects that I’m drunk. “Yes… I… I’m just exhausted. I tried to get here before the rain did.” Raiyo let a weak laugh out of his mouth and straightened his back. Hopefully, that would reassure the security guard that he was not going to cause trouble. “No need to worry. I’ll recover in a while.”
“Are you entirely sure? That bruise on your forehead looks bad. Do you need ice for it?”
Raiyo jumped and put his hand on the bruise, then winced when the touch hurt. “Oh, right… No, it’s fine. It looks worse than it is.”
The security guard did not seem to believe him. “Where did you get it?”
“I hit my head on a corner of a closet at home. I bent down to get some items from a bag and straightened myself too fast and at the wrong angle.” Raiyo chuckled to cover his lie. “It’s not my best day with that blunder, forgetting to buy a couple of things and the rain, haha.”
If the security guard doubted him, he did not voice it. “Very well. Take better care of yourself. I hope you didn’t catch a cold from that rain.”
“I hope so too. Thank you.” Raiyo finished the act with a grateful smile.
The security guard nodded and left him alone. Raiyo took a few more moments to regather his strength before he stood up, slung his backpack over his shoulder and headed towards the dollar store to get something as the couple of things he “forgot to buy”. Waterdrops left a trail behind him.
The rain was bound to last longer than his extempore shopping trip, so he could rest and plan his next move in peace.
The only thing he knew about his next move was that he could not go back home that day.
If only he could afford a tent to spend nights like this in…
WindySilver 