"Well, it's been a few days since the school event, and.. uh.. I know I've been the narrator of this story up until now, but it looks like you're all caught up on my life, so far. What happens next? I'd like to know too.."
As Miles gets up from his bed, pushing the sheets off of him as he rubs his eyes and stares at the ceiling, thinking of what happened at the school event. Naya's heartbreak, Chelsea's situation, everything. They plague his mind as he thinks to himself "Fuck..", as he reaches for his phone, only to remember that he had smashed it.
Miles gets into the bathroom, removing his clothes and looking at himself in the mirror. He sighs, taking in his disheveled appearance, saying "Come on, Miles..". He takes a shower, simply standing under the spray, silent. But, suddenly, he snaps back to reality when he hears the sound of Mallory knocking on the bathroom door. "Come on, Miles. Hurry up in there!", she says. Miles turns off the shower, saying "Oh! My bad, haha..", as he finishes getting ready, but he catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror, asking himself "Is something.. different?"
Later, as Miles steps downstairs, he is greeted by his stepmother, Mary and his father, Richard. "Morning, son.", Richard says cheerfully, to which Miles brightly responds "Morning dad, mom..". Mary smiles softly at the gesture, and asks "Hey, um.. son? Can we talk?", and Miles sits down on the couch, saying "Sure. What's up?".
"Listen, son. I know our lives have been.. eventful, to say the least. But, I want you to know that no matter how much things change..", Richard says, but Miles says "It's okay, dad. It may take some time, but I'm learning to accept change. Slowly.", offering a warm smile. Richard's eyes well up, as he emotionally mutters "Son..", before he and Mary hug Miles tightly, Miles enjoying their warmth. "So, where are you headed today, son?", Mary asks, and Miles says "I dunno.. I guess I'm just going for a bit of fresh air.", before walking out of the house."
Miles walks out of his house, walking to the park, the former playground from his childhood, and taking a deep breath, and looking longingly at the area where the swings used to be. "Yup. Something is definitely different.", he says before turning to head to the bus stop. As he waits for the bus, he looks at the road ahead, slowing walking away from the bus stop, his walk turning to a sprint as he starts to pick up the pace, panting. He lets out a light chuckle, as he runs faster and faster, deviating from the path he'd always take, taking a new route.
As he passes by unfamiliar routes and neighborhoods, he feels tears on his face as he continues running, but not wiping them away. He finally reaches a playground, one he doesn't recognize, getting on one knee, in exhaustion. "Phew..! Man, I.. really got far, huh?", he says breathlessly, wiping his brow. He catches sight at a lake behind the playground, taking a deep breath before walking towards it, a fox passing by his feet as he approaches closer. "Whoa..", he says, in awe at its size and beauty. He looks at his feet, hesitating to get closer, before finally saying to himself "Oh, what the hell?", as he takes off his shoes and folds his pants higher up on his legs.
He sighs, a slight shiver in his breath before he walks into the shallow part of the lake, the water barely reaching his knees as he looks up at the sky. He closes his eyes as tears stream down his face and his smile fading and turning into a peaceful expression. He lets out a sigh, as the wind blows, the birds chirp around him and the distant sound of children playing in the playground. He thinks of Mallory, Richard Chelsea, Naya, Shane, everyone. But nobody specific, only uttering "Thank you..", as the sky turns from blue to orange, as the sun starts to set.
Elsewhere, Chelsea sits on her bed, in a one bedroom motel room, marking down the 16th of August on a calender, writing down Miles' name. "Okay, he wants to patch things up.. You can do this, Chelsea..", she whispers to herself, as she holds a box of cigarettes, before throwing it into the rubbish bin. She looks up at the darkening sky, as nightfall begins, a feint smile that just barely reaches her eyes, appears on her face. "Maybe I'm not that much of a fuck-up..", she says, crumbling up a photo of her and one of her exes.
At a library, Naya lays on a massive science book, asleep, drooling. Suddenly, she is jolted awake by the sound of her tea cup falling off the table, "Ah! No, no! Not my favorite cup!", she says, annoyed, as she tries to pick up each piece, cutting her fingers picking up each piece. "Shit..", she sobs, as she winces in pain, but refusing to let go of the broken shards. But, just then, Naya is tapped on the shoulder by a girl she has never seen before. An older beauty, with striking blonde hair and brown eyes, it's Mallory. "Hey, are you.. okay..? Lemme help you with that..", she says, as Naya stays on her knees, a blush creeping up her neck, as Mallory continues "Come on, I think there's an urgent-care around here. Your hands.. that looks painful..", leading her by the hand. Naya scrambles to pack her book bag and follows her, asking "Hey, thanks by the way. What's your name?", to which Mallory says, with a bright smile "Mallory. Nice to meet you..". Naya looks up at her, smiling, despite the wounds on her hand, saying "I'm.. Naya.".