Valentina couldn't sleep.
Her eyes, wide open, stared at the ceiling. She didn't even go through her phone for fear it would signal someone about what was to happen.
The pace of her heart surged at intervals, hammering so loudly her ears twitched to accommodate the sound.
When the time finally struck 5am in the morning, she rolled out of bed and began to prepare herself.
There wasn't any slowing down now. Her movements matched her heartbeat.
Heavy, thumping, pounding, with nerves firing all over the place.
All packed, she sat on her bed, and waited.
"Choose yourself first this time, Val. You can do it," she kept on telling herself to justify her departure.
"You're not leaving, you're running," an opposing voice in her head said.
"No. You can't say that to me. Go away. I have always sacrificed. I've always put myself last. No more." She fought it off.
It only laughed at her mockingly. Making her second guess her decision.
