Circles - Post Malone

Four

Dahlia wakes up with a fright and clutches her chest as Gina squeals and bounces in her seat. "Oh, look Dahlia! There he is!" she screeches with all the fucking excitement in the world. Dahlia can't bring herself to look out the window. Her stomach is swirling and she just knows her knees are going to feel like jelly when she sees him. He always had that effect on her and even though she hasn't seen him since he left the day before graduation when she was just eighteen and he was nineteen she just knows the last nine years were probably good to him. They also did nothing to soften her crush on him. She is fucked.

Gina jumps over her as the bus comes to a halt and is already halfway down the aisle when Dahlia shouts out to her, "Gina, your bags! I will leave them on this fucking bus! I swear." Gina does a three-sixty and runs back to Dahlia. "Oh gosh! I am so silly. I am just so excited. I have not seen him in so long," she giggles and grabs her bags then dashes toward the bus exit. Dahlia feels sick. She does not know if she can handle seeing them cuddling each other. She cried for a week solid when she saw that prom picture of them in the school yearbook. They looked so good together. It was gross.

Dahlia drags her feet and slowly makes her way off the bus, getting off even after the bus driver. "Dahlia! Dahlia! Over here!" she hears Gina's gleeful voice shouting from behind her. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Here goes fucking nothing. Please be old and greasy. She turns around slowly until she is looking at Austin and Gina. Aww fuck.

She is well and truly fucked. He looks better, way better than he did in his school. In high school he was delicious but now he is just scrumptious. Dahlia can't move. She knows if she tries - her knees will buckle. Fuck how does he look even better with age? Shit. He has cut his hair although it is still an unruly mass of curls on the top of his head. His jaw has a serious amount of hair on it making him look mature but not old. He is also covered in tattoos, from what she can see, they cover him head to toe. Face and neck tattoos often look like overkill, but on Austin they just work. They add to his presence rather than take away from it. But then again she is inlove with him so she may be a tiny bit biased. Austin is looking directly at her with a slightly furrowed brow. Does he recognize her? Did Gina tell him she was coming? She is sure Gina said she had.

"Dahlia, come here," Gina says walking over to Dahlia and grabbing her elbow then tugging her toward Austin. "Picking up strays already, Gina?" Austin asks when they get to him. "Oh Austin, you can be so silly sometimes," Gina hits his chest softly and he grabs her hand, holding it to his chest while he continues to stare at Dahlia. "This is Dahlia. Remember? From school..." Gina explains. Dahlia just stands in front of Austin like an idiot as he looks her up and down.

"Dahlia...isn't that a stripper name?" Austin asks. She can see he is trying to contain a smirk. Great, she has pined over him for over a decade, and the first chance she gets to talk to him she has gone mute while he makes a throwaway comment. If it was anyone else she would have been quick with a comeback, maybe even a zap in the face. But instead, she just shrugs and mumbles, "maybe," under her breath.

"Oh don't tease her, Austin. She is not a people person," Gina says. Austin makes her jump by reaching out to take her bag. What the fuck? Honestly, she has never been skittish a day in her life but Austin makes her feel like she is balancing on a ledge. "Whoa there, little lady, I was just taking your bag," he says with a grin. Ok, that's enough. First the stray comment then the stripper comment now the little lady comment. He has insulted her three times. "I can carry my bag," Dahlia says batting his hand away, making sure not to touch him though. She would not be able to deal with that. Austin takes a step back and looks at her with surprise. "Oh, she speaks!" Austin announces. Gina giggles, "Yay, Dahlia!" she says and claps. To anyone else Gina may sound condescending but Dahlia knows she is being genuine.

Dahlia hates New York already.

Austin takes Gina's bags and then puts out his elbow for her to take. Gina giggles again and takes his elbow and they start walking. After a few strides, Austin looks over his shoulder at Dahlia who is following them like a stray puppy. "Come on little lady, don't want to get lost on your first day in the Big Apple," he says. Dahlia groans and rolls her eyes, keeping at a safe distance behind Gina and Austin. But regrets the perfect view she has of their fluffy little happy bubble.

Austin points out things as they walk that he thinks Gina would like. Gina clings to him and gasps at all the pretty things he is showing her. The only time he acknowledges Dahlia is when they walk past a closed strip club. "Just a short walk from the apartment...Dahlia," he says with a smirk and a wriggle of his eyebrows. Dahlia ignores him and rolls her eyes again.

"Oh is that a coffee shop?" Gina asks, "can we stop there? I am starving." Austin nods and walks her across the street. Dahlia trailing behind. Has she said she regrets coming to New York? Well, she does. Very much. Austin opens the coffee shop door and waves Gina in but lets go of it as Dahlia steps in. She flinches and braces for impact but Austin catches it just before it hits her. She looks up at him. "You are welcome," he says. "for what?" she asks. "For saving you...twice," he says then walks past her. Twice? What the fuck is he talking about?

Dahlia slides into a booth with Gina and Austin, looking over a menu. Nothing looks good. "What would you ladies like?" Austin asks. "I will have a hot coco with mini marshmallows," Gina says looking over the menu, "and a chocolate swirl bun, please." How is she a real person? Austin nods and turns to Dahlia. "Just coffee. Black," she says. "You want milk and sugar?" Austin asks. Dahlia looks at him like he is stupid because he is stupid. "No. I do not want milk and sugar in my black coffee."

"Do you want something to eat?"

"Did I order something to eat?"

"No."

"Well, there is your answer."

Austin chuckles then walks off to the counter to place their order. Dahlia groans internally. This is not how she pictured her encounter with Austin to go. She would daydream all the time at school about him finally noticing her and him being so taken with her that he falls in love at first sight...like it was for her. Instead, he seems to find joy in poking fun at her. Dahlia looks over at him and then sighs. They are a sorry sight. He had been looking longingly at Gina but quickly looks away when he makes eye contact with Dahlia.

New York was a shit idea.