~ Close as Strangers ~ // Cashton Fanfiction

1.

"Six months since I went away
And I know everything has changed.
But tomorrow I'll be coming back to you."

***

"And you really think this will work?" I mumbled into my pillow, my face crushing the soft fabric of cotton and bird feathers. "Of course it will work... It's not my first time doing this. Just relax and let me do the work, okay?" I tried nodding my head, which was quite uncomfortable since I couldn't breathe properly.

I could feel my muscles clench under the weight pressing down on me. I moaned quietly and clenched my fist, breathing felt even harder. "Shit, that hurts..." I whispered through the pain that coursed through my body.

"Don't be such a wimp Calum, it's not my fault you're always working overtime." "But you know I need the damn money- FUCK LUKE!" My body convulsed in pain after my best friend found that one spot that made me cry out.

"Maybe you should see a doctor again, this seems to be something more serious." The blonde pressed his hands on my lower back again and leaned his full body weight on my spine.

A loud crack echoed through the room and I inhaled sharply. It felt like someone stuck a dull knife in my back and pulled it out very slowly. I shook my head and tried to sit back up. This turned out to be very difficult as the weight sitting on my thighs was around 75 kilos and around 6.2 feet tall. When this load moved off me by itself, I was able to sit up and braced myself with my forearms into the mattress. Finally I could breathe again. I stretched my arms up and there was another soft crack. This time it came from my shoulder region.

"You should really think about seeing a doctor. Otherwise you can mess up your job." "Yes, Mr.I'm-always-right-and-know-what-to-do. I'll take your advice." I answered with an annoyed undertone and put my shirt back on. "Maybe you should take massage lessons from Sierra, too, because she's better at it than you." I grinned provocatively as Luke narrowed his eyes darkly. "It's not my fault that she won't be back for another 2 weeks."

He answered with a sigh and lowered his gaze. I grabbed my shirt next to me and stood up. I patted his shoulder encouragingly. "She'll love you just as much as she did before, believe me." I tried to smile and then pulled my shirt on with a tug. I still felt like shit, because my back was still hurting. maybe I should really talk to my boss and start working less. After all, it wasn't just my body that was suffering. I also had been neglecting school a lot lately.

"Are you hungry? I would order us something from that Italian restaurant, that you like so much." I asked my roommate while leaving the room to walk over to our living room. "Sure, why not." He answered and followed me.

It had now been almost 6 months since I moved in with my best friend. Maybe it was even longer. I had developed a really bad sense of time ever since we went to college together and I was only concerned with school and work. I had no real thought for other things. And even if there were some reasons why you shouldn't move into an apartment with Luke Hemmings, there were enough things that spoke in favor of it.

Like the fact that if it weren't for Luke, I'd probably have to move back in with my parents and hear them say they were right. Unfortunately, this time I had to admit that it was the truth. I should have listened to my mother's words for once, but as always I remained stubborn and had my own mind. It was even sadder that I was too cowardly to admit it.

Luke's apartment was quite large, maybe almost too big for us. Since his parents owned their own company, he could never complain about financial problems. It had been since elementary school that Luke always had the latest and greatest things, unlike me. To this day I wonder how it happened that he chose me as his best friend.

"Salami or tuna pizza?" I asked as I typed down the restaurant's telephonenumber into my cellphone and tapped the green button. "Salami please." The blond boy replied and let himself fall onto the couch with a loud sigh. He grabbed the remote control and turned on the TV with a push of a button. I forgot today was Tuesday, which meant we were going to continue watching one of Luke's series. I instinctively hoped it wasn't „13 Reasons Why" because that show was way too mentally draining for me. I've had enough to worry about on my own.

"Frederico's Pizzaria, what can we get for you?" I winced as the deep Italian accented voice on the other end boomed through my phone's speakers, snapping me out of my thoughts. A slight hissing could also be heard, the reception had never been the best in the pizzeria. "Hello, I'd like to order two large salami pizzas and a Coke Zero to 54 Baker Street." I said after I'd recovered from my brief shock and was able to raise my voice again. It still sounded a bit shaky and as if it wasn't me who just squeezed out this sentence. "In what name?" I could hear the gentleman on the phone typing on the keypad to enter the order and looked at Luke. "For Hemmings, please." "Thank you, your order will be there in about half an hour." "Thank you, nice evening." I replied and hung up.

"We, and by that I mean you, should start getting my name on the doorbell." I mumbled after sitting down on the couch next to Luke. I looked at the monitor, we seemed to be watching Supernatural. "Yeah, I'll take care of it soon, but you should do your laundry too. It already accumulates in the bathroom and overflows the basket." He gave me a crooked grin and knew he could tease me about it. I hated doing housework. That was probably another reason why I was forced to live with Luke.

"I'll do that tomorrow after school." I replied, leaning back. The pain in my back slowly went away and I was able to relax for a moment. I checked my phone, no new messages.

"Have you heard from her again?" Luke asked a few moments later and his question sounded muffled in my ears. And how I knew myself, I was stupid enough to ask Luke who he meant. Even though I knew exactly who he was talking about. "Amber? Maybe it will still be-" "No. It won't Luke and I told you I don't want to hear that topic and that name anymore." Because it still hurt. Just like it hurt that day when I stood on Luke's front door and asked if I could stay with him for a while. "A while" became a week...a month...half a year. More or less. I didn't know how long ago it was. At least I didn't want to know anymore.

"Okay, you're right. Excuse me, you know I never liked her anyway, but seeing you like this and knowing there's nothing I can do about it worries me Calum." He looked over at me, but I avoided his gaze. "Just don't mention it anymore. It's over and it will be over forever." I answered and could feel how much this sentence still hurt. Even more than my back pain ever would. I wouldn't wish that to anyone, not even my worst enemy. Apart from the fact that I had no enemies. At least that's what I think. Maybe I had some, but no one has told me about it yet.

Luke started to say something again and straightened up a bit when the doorbell rang. Before he could even begin the next sentence, I got up and walked into the hallway. I buzzed the bell and dug the rest of the money out of my jacket pocket, which I had received as a tip the day before. Meanwhile, the café I've worked at since it opened has had a few regular customers who occasionally left a few bucks for me.

"That'll be 15.25 please..." said the supplier and I handed him 17 dollars. "It's alright." I replied, he thanked me and pushed the food into my arms. "Pizza is here!" I called to my roommate and ran to the kitchen to put down the boxes there. Luke didn't like eating out of the boxes, so everything had to be neatly arranged on plates. While Luke was doing this, I filled two glasses with the Coke i ordered and we took it all back to the living room.

"Well then, enjoy your meal." Said Luke, while I had already bitten into my first piece of pizza. "Thanks, you too." I replied with my mouth full and soon ate the piece in one breath. Out of the corner of my eye, all I could see was the blond shaking his head.

***

Hey Folks,

I hope you are all doing well! This is my first try on an english fanfiction

Please keep in mind that I sometimes still make a few mistakes. Please be welcome to correct me if you witness some of them.

Anyway i hope you might enjoy this Fanfiction... I still dont have much of a plan where this is all going haha. So I will be just as surprised as you sill be.

See ya

~Nike