I loved the early hours of the morning where it seemed like I was the only person awake. It was always chilly when it was dark, but the good kind of cold, like a breeze rushing past your face and keeping your tired eyes open for a few more minutes. No cars were driving and nobody was walking, and the only thing illuminating the pavement was the moonlight with a little help from the stars.

        I started sneaking out of my bedroom window some night last winter after a fight with my dad and a minor panic attack. I spent an hour on the cold tile of the bathroom floor, my eyes burning red and my head full of confusing thoughts. I didn't understand what was going on then, but I felt so nervous I locked myself in the bathroom and starting shuddering and sobbing like I never had before. I stayed there for an hour, then went over to my windowsill and waited for some sign of life to pass, but when I saw nothing, I realized that's where I wanted to be. I quietly jumped down and jogged down the street where I spent hours before deciding I needed some sleep if I was going to survive school the next day.

        I snuck out more frequently now as I started getting more nervous and afraid of everything that came my way. I made it an almost-nightly trip and I hadn't once been caught.

        I walked through my favorite park, letting the dew on the grass fly up and dot my legs and feet. I glanced around at the trees standing perfectly still and the giant fountain that hadn't been turned on yet. I used to come with my mum a lot and play by the fountain, but that didn't happen much anymore. Yes, I was nearly seventeen, but I still missed it.

        Suddenly, I heard a muffled cry coming from somewhere in the park, nearly causing me to scream. It was dead silent until then, but I knew someone was there. I spun in a circle, glancing around to try and find the source of the noise, letting my eyes wander around the park and notice things that I didn't see before. Like the shadows covering the ground and the sound the light wind made when it whooshed past my ears. My eyes landed on the newly-empty swimming pool that was locked up and I heard another sound, this time a cough.

        "Hello?" I asked from the pavement beside the pool, hoping I wouldn't get a response. I was too afraid if I peered over the edge, some lunatic would pull me in and I'd be done for. I was an athlete, but I wasn't built like one.

        "James? That you? Come down!" A voice called out from inside the deep part of the pool. Whoever it was didn't sound much older than me.

        "I'm not James... and if I fucking die my mum will sue," I warned the voice before poking my head out from the edge. Curled up in a ball right next to the drain was a boy with hair so dark it blended in with the night and pyjamas, but lacked any sort of trainers. He looked tall and lean, but still quite muscular, even when he was hunched over. I realized I recognized the boy, which wasn't unusual. We lived in a pretty tight knit town where there weren't many new people, so I was sure I knew him from school or something.

        The boy squinted up at me and hastily rubbed under his eyes when he realized I was not who he thought I was. "I'm not going to kill you," he chuckled, taking out the headphones in his ears, "probably."

        I rolled my eyes and went to slide down into the pool, but hesitated when my head started to spin. "What's your name? Also... do you not own any socks?" I called down instead, figuring yelling would be a bit better than tumbling into the dark, filthy pool.

        "I'm Adam. And I do, I just had to get out of my house really quick," he explained, only making me more confused. "Don't ask," he told me before I got the chance to. There was a hint of sadness is Adam's tone that made my heart hurt. Instead of pressing further, I nodded and tried to think of a reason to leave.

        "I'm Elijah," I called down instead of waving goodbye. I wondered why I did that. I was tired and could feel my eyelids slowly getting heavier. I was afraid if I blinked, I would fall asleep and stay that way until morning.

        "Elijah... like Elijah Rosen? You're close with Blake Montgomery and those guys on his football team, right?" He pointed out. Blake was my best mate and had been since we were young and our parents became close. I was on the football team too, but I wasn't good enough to be known as the star player or anything. Instead, I was popular by association. Everyone knew me as Blake's tiny friend, which I didn't mind much. I didn't like the spotlight unless it was when I played football.

        "Are you coming down?" Adam asked after a few seconds of silence.

        I took another step towards the bowl, then jumped back. "Nope," I decided.

        "I've got crisps."

        "You've got crisps but no jacket?"

        "...yes?"

        "I'm coming."

        I took a deep breath, then put one foot over the ledge until I was nearly standing on air, then I let myself slide down the concrete wall, burning the skin on his back the entire way down. I screamed "shit!" In different pitches with my eyes squeezed shut until I could feel my Adidas hit the bottom.

        "Hi," Adam said.

        I opened one eye, then both, with a giant smile. "I did it!" I said happily.

        He chuckled. "You sure did."

       It seemed like a pretty minor accomplishment— or honestly, nothing to be proud of at all— to slide down three metres into a pool with a stranger at two in the morning, but to me, that meant something. I had a terrible fear of heights (and strangers, for that matter), but I didn't feel nauseous when I got down. Instead, I felt excited as the adrenaline in my blood rushed to fill up my body.

        I wondered if I was dreaming.

        I hoped I wasn't.

        "So... why are you out of the house this early?" Adam asked, offering the bag of crisps to me.

        I took one and plopped down next to Adam, making sure to put a space in between us big enough for an overweight adult, just in case he pulled a knife on me or something. I'd seen it on the news before. "Just clearing my head a bit," I told him with a shrug, oversimplifying the amount of thoughts that wouldn't let me sleep at night.

       "Can't you do that in the morning? Or when you come back from school?"

        I hesitated. "Yes... I guess so. I just like this time better," I lied. I wanted to let it all out and completely spill everything to this near-stranger, even though there's no sure way he could be trusted. The only reason I didn't run away at first was because I recognized him, and he seemed almost frightened. So why would I tell him everything? Everything about how I don't like to leave the house because so many things can go wrong that are completely out of my control, or how I stick with Blake's friends who aren't very nice because it's easier to be with people that forget you're there rather than have a panic attack over not having anyone to sit with at lunch. I preferred the safe route... so why, then, was I eating a stranger's crisps in the bottom of a claustrophobic bowl, three long metres into the ground where no one could hear me scream if something happened to me?

        My hands shook.

        I scratched at the palm of my hands, but the pain of my skin tearing was being drowned out by the thoughts rushing through my mind.

        one two three four... I counted slowly in my head, trying to calm myself down.

        "You alright?" Adam asked.

        five six seven

       A tear escaped my eyes which were tightly squeezed shut and rolled down my freckled cheek. I gripped my arm so tightly I could feel crescent-shaped dents from my fingernails starting to form, but I ignored the stinging.

        "You're freaking me out."

        eightnineteneleven

        "Eli?"

        twelvethirteenfourteenfifteensixteen

        "Elijah!" Adam yelled, snapping me out of my trance. I popped one eye open to find Adam gripping my shoulders and shaking me like crazy, concern in his eyes.

        I ripped myself out of Adam's grip and stood up quickly, spilling the bag of crisps all of the ground. "I-I-I'm sorry," I stumbled over my words as I slowly back away from Adam, who was still sitting on the ground, panicked and extremely confused by what he just witnessed.

        "Wait!" Adam called from where he was frozen on the floor as I sprinted back to my house, choking back sobs and speeding up when my lungs begged me to stop. I wanted to be in my bed. I wanted to be home.

        I wanted to stay inside forever.

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Woooo its a new story yayyyyy.

I'm really excited about this one. If you know me, you know I'm very good at giving up when I get writers block, but I'm pretty confident with this one because it's reallllyyyy relatable and so it just kind of flows out of my brain. Also I've already got like 10 chapters written, so I'm not going anywhere anytime soon.

Anyway thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed! Make sure to comment and favourite if you liked it!

~Teddy