POISONOUS//lashton au

One

15 minutes.

14 minutes and 50 seconds.

14 minutes and 30 seconds.

Time was passing. It wasn't any slower or any faster than what was normal.

But with every second that ticked by, it felt like an eternity. That had seemed to become a regular occurrence at this point.

And for what? 14 minutes and 5 seconds to what? Another day passed? Another end to another day to signify it's time to go home? What was even the point in keeping track of time if every excruciatingly long minute that passed just seemed to hurt more than the last? Time could be frozen and it wouldn't seem to make a difference.

To Luke, every second and every minute felt the exact same way as the last. Every day for the past 3 years seemed to move by just as slowly as the previous day. No day had appeared to move any faster or any slower than the one before it. It didn't seem possible for it to go any slower.

5 minutes.

Luke looked around the room. A couple dozen college students filled the quiet space. Many holding a coffee in one hand and a book in the other. Some sat alone, some sat in small groups talking quietly. Luke appreciated his job. It was always quiet. A library would seem to be an odd choice for a 20 year old boy but Luke enjoyed it. He didn't have to talk to many people and he could sit in a comfy chair all day and get to tell people to shut up if necessary. It was the perfect environment for him.

The clock read 5pm. Luke gathered up all his things and stood up from his chair, nodding at the girl a few years older than him who sat behind the desk with him, letting her know he was leaving. As he made his way out, he put in his headphones and played his music. He stepped outside into the rain and put up his hood while keeping his head down. Luke didn't like attention. He didn't like people looking at him. He didn't deal well with people. They bothered him. Being shy had always been a problem for Luke but it had gotten much worse in the past few years. At one point he had gotten tested for social anxiety but ended up being told he was probably just shy. Nothing he didn't already know. Besides being shy, he didn't like having to deal with too many people. He easily got annoyed in conversations and for the most part couldn't keep one up with people he didn't know. The only people he had real conversations with was his family and his friends. Everyone else, he just tried to avoid.

Luke pushed past people as he walked down the slightly busy street. Most people were going home which was what Luke hated about having to work until 5; it was always busier when he went home. The rain continued to fall at a steady pace as Luke continued to walk. He stopped in front of a small building at the corner of the block and pushed through the doors. The building was cozy and warm. There was a fake fireplace in the corner, which Luke thought was unnecessary but never said anything about it because it wasnt his place and that would draw attention to himself. He stepped up to the counter, pulling out one of his earbuds and gave a fake smile to the barista. Who smiled for real.

"One black coffee right?" She asked to which Luke nodded. She turned around, making Luke's coffee, then turned back around and handed him the steaming drink. Luke handed her the correct amount of change then turned back around and walked out of the coffee shop, back into the rainy day in Sydney.

Luke kept a tight grip on his coffee in one hand and had his backpack hanging off of one shoulder. Vehicles drove past him on his right while people walked around him like he was invisible. He was, of course, used to this. Similar to who he had conversations with, the only people that actually took a notice to him was his family and friends. And he was okay with that. He hated attention. He hated people who he didn't know looking at him. He didn't even really like when the people he did know looked at him. So he continued walking.

The closer he got to his part of town, the quieter the streets got. There were very few people walking around him. Luke finally decided to look up. The only people he could see on his side of the street were walking in the opposite direction and there was very few. Luke glanced to the other side of the street. Not many people there either. He looked back forward. Then back to the other side. And he froze. He blinked a couple times. The rain blurred his vision a little but it was impossible to miss. Luke blinked again to clear his vision. Maybe he was seeing things. He blinked once more. But he was there. Clear as day. The coffee in Luke's hand seemed to go ice cold. His body felt physically stuck and he got chilled. Luke continued to stare with wide eyes. And as he stared, from across the street, he looked up at Luke. His eyes widened when he spotted Luke. It was Ashton. Ashton was back in Sydney.

~

Soooo here it is!! The first chapter. Honestly I am so so excited about this. I have actually already finished writing this entire thing and I'm in love with it.

I hope you guys love it as much as I do

Have a great week

Love,

-ash