Chapter Text
The faint humming of the coffee machine in the kitchen brought a gentle smile to her lips as she glanced over from her pantry. It was just an average day to Ava. There was nothing that could change the rhythm she had created since living alone in her apartment. No way could someone knock her out of balance and change her from wanting a solitude for a flashy life. She strayed away from her parents to the point it felt impossible to reconnect back without loosing her beat. She gathered her coffee before sitting crisscrossed in front of her desk. Ava loaded up a video online of her favorite influencer before continuing her routine. Drinking her coffee, eating cookies, and watching the lives of others through their lens. Knowing most of them are faker than the trees that were planted in the alleyway leading to the dumpsters.
This is how Ava sees life everyday, not a reason to go outside and see it herself. She can watch others explore while she safely sees it in the comforts of her home. Underneath the twenty blankets and endless supply of coffee and cookies. Both of which are a reoccurring purchase of her from the local grocery store. It amazes her how much things she can get from the comforts of her bed or sofa. Nothing could ever get her to leave the comforts of her home. Her parents tried and failed countless times to lure her out and find someone to grow old with. The possibility of having to live a life with someone else, even if solitude brought her more happiness than with people. She just couldn't see it for herself.
Ava's friends were all married away and with many kids. It has gotten to the point where she finds comfort in being by herself nowadays. She knows one day she'll get there but the chances are slim. She doesn't see the point in living life with someone who possibly couldn't understand her the same way she did. There were certain things she could never tell someone, especially her parents. She couldn't find the specific words to describe how she felt when it came to having someone who understands her. She's the only one who knows how it is when it comes to things that annoy her. Just how much it took to irritate her to the point of no return. It's been so long since she has had someone who understands how she feels. Maybe she's easy to love, just complicated to understand.
Ava turns to grab her phone and plops down on her couch. Time for her daily routine of scrolling online till she becomes tired or something strikes her interest. It doesn't matter what it is or what it is about. She just needs something to keep her busy till tomorrow. She continues to scroll on her phone as her positions on the couch switches. From lying upside down to lying sideways, she couldn't remain still as she searches for something to keep her interest alive. She was going to close out of the app when it scrolled to the next video.
Her mind was already shutting down as she dozed on the couch. Her left hand fell against her chest as her right was keeping her phone upright. The voice of a man screaming out in agony and some people yelling at him to calm down, made Ava look right back at her phone. She watches as the video replays again, this time with her now focused on what is going on. She finds the man everyone was yelling at, to be hit by a truck and tossed like a bag of potatoes to the other side of the road. Everyone was running around and trying to help the man, yet every time someone got close to the man. He ran from them, nearly tripping over his own two feet as he shook his head. He looked dissatisfied with something, could it be that the accident that has happened, left him with feeling like an idiot for walking onto a car?
It doesn't take long for something to come along as she comes across a video and some people in search of a name for a man who was seen running from a hit and run. He looked lost and confused as Ava continued to let the TikTok video replay. She couldn't get her mind off of it. No matter how many videos or people came after, her mind went back to the man in the video. From his disheveled hair down to his ripped shirt, he remained in her head as she finally scrolled away from the video. Her eyes gazed over at her windows as she sat on her sofa. That road looked familiar to her yet she couldn't pinpoint where she has seen those signs. Throwing her phone against her stomach, she let out a deep sigh as she laid her head back. Half an hour has passed since she sat on her bed, yet the trash in her apartment wasn't going anywhere if she was going to sleep in again.
Getting up from the couch, she made her way over to her front door. By the wall there were three bags of trash. One was the main kitchen trash bag that holds most of her trash. The other two were small white grocery bags that are acting like trash bags for her small trash cans. Picking up the three bags, she made her way over to her door. Unlocking the door and locking it afterwards, she made her way out the door and towards the stairs. Since she has to throw out her own trash. It usually collects over the days she acts like a couch potato. It isn't a task she likes to do. Throwing out the trash, ugh, how she wishes someone would do it for her. Then she could just relax on her sofa for more hours in the day. Tugging along the three bags, she made her way down the stairs. With each step she took, she wished that she never stuffed the bags to the brim. The fact that she lives on the sixth floor and has to take her own trash out is bullshit. By the time she made it down the stairs to the first floor, half an hour has passed.
Now it was just the final part of taking out the trash, throwing it in the dumpster and forgetting it ever existed for three days again. Ava is humming a tune as she pushed the door open. It was one of many that led out to the dumpsters that pertained to the apartment building she lives in. Hearing the loud creaking noise of the door and a thud afterwards, she continued her journey towards the dumpster. It should be just around the corner and in the small alleyway. Nothing out of the ordinary for now as she continued her way to the big bins. She was most likely going to take a shower after this as she shook her head in disgust of how the bags were starting to reek. She sighed in relief as she saw someone left the bins opened, it saved her from having to touch the filthy edges of the dumpster. Setting the big bag on the ground, she tossed the two small ones in before bending down and grabbing the last one.
She was simply just throwing the trash out, there shouldn't be nothing to come out of this. Her hands held a firm grip on the bag as she picked it up from the ground. Turning around and ready to throw it away. Her eyes fell to the ground beside the dumpster to find legs that led to behind the trash. Tilting her head as she sets the bag down, her curiosity took the better side of her mind that moment as she inched closer to the body. Not even caring if they were friendly or not. She picked up a small stick that laid beside the dumpster to then start poking the body, flinching slightly as she heard a barely audible groan. Her eyes gazed at the body's clothes were in rough shape. Her concerns for the trash were no longer an issue as she dropped the stick and kneeled closer to the mysterious body hidden behind the dumpsters. There were newspapers that covered the upper half of the body yet it didn't seem to draw fear from her as she moved her hands closer to the object coverings the face.
The sudden movement of a hand roughly grabbing her hand and pulling it away from his face. The so called unconscious person on the ground has sent her landing flat on the space beside the building. She yelps as she felt herself hitting the wall. Her eyes shut closed as she felt a sharp pain arise from being shoved off of the other's body. Ava could feel the lightweight feel of the newspaper landing on her face as she was now the one on the ground instead of it being the other way around. Who the heck is this person and what are they doing? Ava was about to speak up when she heard someone shouting out her name.
"Ava! Did you need help with your trash?"
She was about to scream out for help when the person's hand rested firmly against her mouth. Disgusting yet why does it bring some excitement from being held down on the ground? She could hear Jake yelling out for her as she tried to get out of this situation she stupidly threw herself in. After a few minutes, she could hear the noise of her trash being thrown inside of the dumpster and a very loud sigh. Jake is probably disappointed that he didn't find Ava struggling with the trash. Yet, unfortunately for her, she is struggling with something that isn't trash.
She opened one of her eyes as she took a glimpse at who was holding her down on the ground. They still however had one of her hands in their hand as she glanced to find her left hand still pinned above her head. Slowly gazing at the person who is holding her against her will at this point. She couldn't believe her eyes as she gasped at the man in front of her. Her mind slowly drifted back to the video she saw an hour ago. That man is in her city, sheltering right by her apartment. Her eyes trailed to the dry blood around the ripped black shit he had on. Along his arms held a bruise that must have been left by the truck that hit him. Her eyed raced down his chest, trailing down the blood that was flowing slowly out of an open wound.
"What are you? How did you find me!"
Her eyes stopped right above the man's belt along his waist as she stared at the man's face. He was roughed up from the hit he took from the truck. Ava has been left speechless as she couldn't find words to express how she even managed to get in this situation. All she was supposed to do was throw the trash away and get back to her apartment and fall asleep for the rest of the day. How the heck did she end up here? Right below a man she saw in her phone getting hit and thrown like a sack of potatoes across the road.
"I—" the only thing she could let out was a small whimper as she winces as the man gripped her wrist more than before at how long her response was taking. Ava's mind was racing as her breathing began to pick up at the sudden pain in her hands. She was just trying to be a good samaritan and help someone out from behind the dumpsters on this hot day. She was starting to regret coming out this time in the day as she started to bit the inner edge of her lips. She was running out of ideas as to why she actually took herself out of her schedule to look at someone resting behind the dumpster.
"Answer me, you—"
Ava watches as the man held his other hand against his chest as he winces at the pain he has been trying to overcome. No longer feeling pressure against her wrist, she eyed as the man tried to stop the blood from flowing out of his wound that must have opened again. She knows running away in this situation was not a good idea but staying and waiting for her untimely demise wasn't how she wanted to go out. At the hands of some cosplayer, Ava closed her eyes as she balled her hands into a fist. What is she supposed to do in this moment? Either way she looked at it, she could be horribly killed by a man. Which is worse than talking to people at this point! She looked around to find the man tending to his wound, leaving a small slither of opportunity to run from this space.
Her eyes gazed once more over the man to find herself intrigued at how far he has made it without bleeding out to death from the wounds he endured from the hit. Her heart was telling her to take him home to mend those wounds, yet, her mind was yelling at her to pushed him off of her and take a gamble at running from him. She stopped breathing as she watches the man rip off a piece of his already torn clothes. From the slight rise of his shirt, she spotted the man had a toned body. One she didn't know could be achieved in this part of town. She has already forgotten why she even left her apartment at this point as she remained glued to the man. With only one thing swirling in her mind, would he let her mend those wounds enough to let her go? It's a gamble of her life she was willing to throw all her cards in as she spoke up, "it's you."