Mark ran. He didn’t know why or what he was running from, all he knew was that running cleared his mind. Why doesn’t this feel right, he thought to himself. He didn’t know where he was, he just let his feet carry him. When he finally decided to stop and take a look around, he glanced at his watch, realizing he had been running for a few hours. “Where am I?” he ask aloud. He wasn't expecting an answer but got one anyways. “The park we use to go to when we were younger when we wanted to escape the real world.” Mark looked up and around to find the source of the familiar voice. A familiar figure sat atop the tallest slide in the playground inside of the park. Of course she would be here, he thought. Great minds think alike, and the greatest mind he knew was his best friend. “What are you doing here, Rae?” She looked down with sadden eyes then back at him. “My roommate and I got into a fight and I didn’t know where to go. I kind a just ended up here.”
    They were both similar in many ways. Whenever they were upset, they would both walk and just end up in mysterious places because neither paid attention to what was going on around them. Mark waved Rae down from the playground to come sit and talk with him. Both sat in silence neither needing to speak. “Rae, do you ever wonder why we’re here? Like, do you ever feel out of place or like you don’t belong?” The question slipped from Marks mouth. Rae looked back at him and just stared. Rae wondered if something was off with him, but instead of pressing the issue, suggested something else.  “You’re just out of it, Mark. Let’s head back to my place and Kokorana can fix us something to eat.” Mark eventually agreed and followed Rae back to her place, shifting his eyes along the street as they went. Things seemed darker somehow, but he brushed the thought off. It been a while since he had eaten and perhaps that was affecting his train of thought. 
They finally reach Rae's house when she turned suddenly and looked Mark dead in the eyes. “To answer your question from earlier; yes, sometimes I do...but then I realize I have a good life. You took me by surprise with that question so I had to think about it.” Mark grin and pushed Rae aside playfully, entering the house. The place was almost a second home to him. He had his own room there and had spare clothes if he ever spent the night. He saw Kokorana in the kitchen cooking and went up next to her and just watched over her shoulder, wondering how long it would take till she noticed him. As if she had known the whole time, she said shortly "Grab the pasta, will ya." 
“What are you making anyways?” Mark asked, even though he knew her answer. “I don’t know, I just know it will taste good when Im done.” She almost seemed to whisper. Mark wondered if maybe she was upset. She didnt seem to be acting upset, but Kokorana was good at hiding her emotions. He put his arm around her slim waist and rested his head on her shoulder. “You know you can talk to me, I won’t tell and you know I won’t judge, and maybe I can help.” She let out a small groan, shifting her eyes to him. “Mark I know you want to help, but I don’t know if you can.” She accidentally let a small cry out, and fell to the ground. Mark wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. He might have not have known her as long as he knew Rae, but she was an open book for him to read. He never judged her but he was always there when she needed someone.