Family Competition

Mark wasn't really a runner. He could sprint, but only for a short period of time. He could jog, as long as the pace was slow and and the ground was flat. Uphill, that was a battle he could barely win, but downhill, he would probably fall on his face. 

It's unfortunate that now, with his hands swinging frantically at his sides in the same manner as his feet running across the grass, he is forced to run as if his life depended on it. Perhaps his life does depend on it; who knows what she'll do if she catches him. 

The woman chasing him gave him a head start, smiling sadistically as she did so. Barely ten seconds he ran before he heard her laugh and begin chasing him. She wasn't as fast as him but, with his ever growing heart rate and his weak legs, she would surely catch him soon. 

He saw the witnesses off to the side, pointing at him and smiling, clearly not noticing his predicament. The field he ran on was large, possibly as large as a football field, but it was right next to a park with the dim street lights the only brightness to this stuffiness in his chest. As he ran farther and farther away, his vision grew darker. He began to wonder if it was lack of oxygen or the lack of light on the field. 

Suddenly, he heard the women say behind him, "You can't run forever, Mark!" 

But he was stubborn, so he said back, "I can if I try hard enough!" 

She only laughed and he heard her footsteps slow behind him. She shouted something else but the blood flowing through his veins pumped so loudly he couldn't hear her. 

He ran a little farther before he slowed his feet to a stop. He looked behind him and saw her standing in the middle of the field. Her gaze was pinned right on him, sending shivers down his spine. Her dark hair in the late hour made her look almost demon-like. At that moment, Mark wished he didn't have 20/20 vision. 

She began walking as they caught eyes. Mark needed a moment to catch his breath, so he watched her menacingly walk towards him. 

Mark swore as she started jogging again. His feet moved faster than his brain and he darted to the side, running back the way he came. 

She yelled angrily at him, "I changed my mind, let's just talk this out!" 

"Talk what out?" Mark huffed as he ran. "The kids are watching, Diana." 

Diana stopped running, with hands on her hips and head hanging back, she said, "who cares? My lungs will explode at this rate." 

Mark would've laughed under different circumstances. His own lungs felt ready to burst. He slowed his pace to catch his breath, and turned, so he was jogging backwards. He watched Diana huff and groan before beginning to chase him again. 

He ran with all his might back to where it all started. He finally reached where the park met the open field, with a few blankets laid out on the ground and kids playing with bubbles as they watched him. 

"Mark!" Diana shouted, "Don't think you can hide behind everyone else." 

"I'm not hiding, I'm evading." Mark said. "There's a difference." 

The kids giggled and the other adults lounging on the blankets, eating sandwiches and chatting with each other, all wished him luck as he passed. He would've replied 'Thank you!' if he wasn't out of breath. 

As Diana also reached the picnic area, Mark grew a bit worried. This battlefield would stop Diana for a bit while she tried to maneuver around all the people, but it would also slow him down. 

They watched each other, huffing and puffing until Diana made the first move. She stepped sideways and watched as Mark stepped in the opposite direction, ready to run that way if she stepped any closer. But then she moved the other way, and Mark was sure to follow in the opposite direction. 

"Mark, don't you think you've been running long enough?" Another woman said from beside him. This woman was an angel, a god descended to grace his mortal eyes with her beauty and kind soul. This woman was also known as his wife, Eugene. And usually, he listened to his wife's advice. But this situation was beyond her understanding. He couldn't give up. 

"Honey, I can run for however long she runs." Mark said, with his eyes still stuck on Diana moving back and forth. 

"Are you sure?" Eugene laughed. "You already seem tired, dear." 

"Ha!" Mark said, "you're mistaken, honey. This is me fighting for my life. This is not tiredness, no, no, no. It's manliness." All while he was speaking he waved his hand, gesturing to his face and clothes. 

"But daddy looks sweaty!" A young child said. "Not very manly." 

Mark was so offended he laughed, "Greggory, this is manly sweat." 

"You should listen to daddy," Eugene giggled, "he's fighting hard to win money!" 

"Shh!" Mark looked at her, "if my brother hears of the prize, he may try to steal it! You know he's money crazy.." 

And just a moment with his eyes separated from Diana's figure left him defenseless, when he glanced back she was nowhere to be found. 

A second later, he heard laughs from behind him and felt a tap on his shoulder. 

"I caught you, Mark!" Diana's sadistic laugh appeared once more. "That's fifty bucks in my pocket." 

Mark almost yelled in frustration. If only he was a little faster, his sadistic little sister wouldn't be winning the family money pool! 

All day he had competed in various games with his family, and he was one final game away from winning the last prize from his dad. All he had to do was run away from Diana until his dad's alarm went off, about ten minutes. But if Diana caught him, she would win instead. 

"Dang it!" Mark sighed. 

When Diana held out her hand and said to him, "Good game," he almost didn't accept. But a second later he gripped her hand and said the same. 

Tom, Mark's brother, came around a second later and said, "fifty bucks? Why didn't anyone tell me we could win money?" 

Diana said, "We all know you would be butthurt if you lost and cry to dad, so we didn't mention it. You didn't even want to participate anyway." 

"But.." Tom's eyes squinted, "but the money.." 

"It's mine, I won." Diana laughed proudly. She skipped down the tiny aisles between blankets to smile angelically at their father. 

Mark huffed a small laugh and plopped onto his own blanket with Eugene and their son. "Who would've thought, after all that running, I still lost." 

"Better luck next time, dear." Eugene sighed. "You did your best. Do you want some water?" 

She handed him a water bottle and he thanked her, "alright, but next time you should join instead." 

"No way." She laughed. "Running isn't my thing."