☽ ▬▬ at nung niyakap mo ako, tila'ng
bang  nawala  ang  mga  problema  sa
mundong puno ng kasakiman. wag ka
munang  bumitaw,  aking  sinta  ▪  and
when    you    embraced    me,    all    the
problems  in  this  world  full  of  greed
disappeared. don't let go yet, my love

Runa was spending too much time deep in thought. She felt because it made her feel like she was dependent on Kalinda. They didn't want to be dependent on anyone. Bailey had told them that being dependent on her wouldn't be healthy since they hadn't even seen Kalinda in person in years.

Runa knew it wouldn't be, but she kept clinging onto the memory of her anyway. It was pathetic, honestly. She was lying to herself, making a version of Kalinda in her mind then tying her lifeline to it. The worst part was that she was aware of it all and she wasn't planning on stopping.

They spent more and more time at Bailey's house, curled up with their knees to their chest while Bailey lay on his stomach, both of them on his porch.

He broke the silence. "It's been two hours since you spoke. Aren't you hungry?"

She shrugged. "No, not really."

"Yeah, well, I'm getting you food, anyway." He got up, left, and then returned after a few minutes holding four slices of bread. Runa hesitantly took one but Bailey forced the other slice into her hand. "Eat or else I take your guinea pig."

"Don't you have sandwich spread? And Henry isn't even mine."

"We ran out and there's only peanut butter." He gave her a knowing look. Nothing to do about that. Runa was allergic to peanuts.

Bailey didn't eat peanut butter either. Not because he was allergic as well, it was because he promised not to eat it either after learning Runa was allergic to it. Runa stopped eating things with dairy in them for the same reason, just the other way around.

"How's school? I heard Miss Stevenson's pregnant."

"Yeah, she's going on a leave. Dunno who our substitute adviser's gonna be."

"Hmm."

"I'm bored," Runa whispered. Her eyes traveled to Bailey's mailbox. Then she got an idea. Letters always felt more personal, in books, movies, little notes her mom puts when packing her father's lunch. Now it was Runa's turn. "Do you have stationery?"

"For like, writing letters?"

"Exactly."

"Yeah, it's somewhere in my room—argh—" Bailey slipped as he stood up. He led Runa through his house, past wind chimes and plants and his cousin Liz's drawings. He and his mom lived alone, and Liz would come over a lot. She was a really talented artist.

Bailey's room was powder blue and it smelled like him, and the sun. The big window explained that.

He rushed over to his study table, then looked through it for a few seconds. there was the sound of objects being moved around a wooden box, and then silence. Bailey's face fell.

"What?" Runa asked. Bailey sighed and raised a few pieces of paper, all colored and with designed borders. They had bite marks and looked like they could barely be written on.

"I'm sorry, V."

"Wait, don't apologize! Um, how long have you kept that in there? We lost Henry in here like, almost a year ago." She remembered how they found the guinea pig in his drawer after 30 minutes of her little siblings crying.

"I don't write letters much, and I keep some stuff I get for Christmas in here," Bailey replied. "Oh, but wait!" He held up a finger, causing a bit of paper to fall to the floor.

"What do you have in that big brain of yours now?" Runa asked, brushing her hair back.

"Big brain? Not really..." Bailey muttered, putting a hand on the back of his neck as his face reddened.

She chuckled and lightly punched his shoulder. "Yes really. So what's your idea?"

"I know a place..." Bailey said, smirking.

Runa took a step back. "What does that mean?"

"There's an abandoned warehouse...oh my God, V, I'm kidding. You know that school supplies store near the gas station?"

"...No, what about it? I mean, yes."

"It's pretty old, well, super old, but I think we can find a few good things there." 

It was a surprisingly short walk there. Runa hadn't realized how long it had been since she visited the rickety old store, with its paint chipped and shelves dusty. The sign hanging from the overhanging roof was barely readable. 

Bailey did his best to assure her. "Trust me, V, nothing will fall apart here. I-I mean whatever we're buying," He said, walking backwards toward the store. Then he tripped over some uneven ground.

Runa gasped and was plunged into another memory.

"Finders, keepers!" 

Runa's older brother ran back home, leaving her and Maria with an empty basket and two rain-soaked Halloween masks lying in the street's canal. 

Some kid in their neighborhood had hosted a party and were giving out goodies bought from the store. Runa's brother got the last one. 

6-year-old Runa stomped her foot, unknowingly splashing water on her best friend behind her.

"I hate you! Stupid...jerk..." She looked for more hurtful words to shoot at someone who was already far away.

They quite literally looked around, doing a 180 to find Maria with the front of her dress spattered with dirty water. 

Runa gasped. "Oh no, Ria, I'm sorry—"

"No, no, it's okay, Runa! I didn't get anything either." Maria put on her best smile for them. 

All Runa could do was nod, and then sigh. "I'll still say sorry. Your costume looked really good."

"Thanks," Maria said, watching Runa tug on then smooth out her Wednesday Addams dress.

Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around Runa, giving a quick hug. 

"I gotta go." Maria ran off to join her parents in the nearby party venue. While doing so, she lost her balance and almost fell when she stepped on the raised part of the sidewalk. She turned back to Runa, and did a thumbs up, signaling she was okay.

Runa stood there, starstruck. She hadn't been hugged by Maria, ever, and it was something she didn't know she needed. It was like their anger for their brother had disappeared into thin air.

And then everything else disappeared into thin air. They were pulled back into the present by Bailey yelling.

"I'm not—listen! I'm not like that anymore, I was 10! I would have done anything for a pack of Oreos back then!"

"That was a week's worth of crayons, you know that? I said I'd never let you near this store ever again and I mean it! Now go!"

A scrawny woman chased Bailey onto the street, and Runa had to pull him back as a truck sounded its horn. 

"What's going on?" Runa tugged on Bailey's shirt. 

"Um, something that happened a few years ago, I stole a basket of crayons because my classmates told me they'd give me Oreos—"

"Get out!"

The two friends ran back to Bailey's house, empty-handed.