Just Another Sad Story

Pt.1 Seven-ish minutes in heaven

"Violet!" My best friend Lilah barrels into my bedroom and shakes my shoulders violently.
"Jesus, what?" I take off my headphones and put down my pen to give her my full attention.
"Logan Perth invited us to his house for a party." She squeals into my ear.
"You do realize he lives next door to me right?" I cock an eyebrow at her and wait for her to make the connections on her own.
"Wait." She gives me a naughty grin and punches my shoulder. "You're telling me that guy Alyx you've been drooling over for months, that's Logan's brother?"
"Ding, ding, ding. Winner." I say sarcastically. "And drooling is a bit dramatic."
"You're basically salivating just thinking about him. His dark and mysterious ass. You guys would be super cute, you know, every emo princess needs her motorcycle boyfriend." She winks at me.
"One, I'm not emo. I just happen to like the color black. And two, no way in hell he would go for me, I'm a total dork."
"You're telling me that you're not emo?" She gives me a blank look and points to my tattered Pierce the Veil t-shirt.
"I've had this since middle school. You should know, you were there when I bought it because you have the exact same one." I say dryly.
"Right-" She tries to hold a serious face but it disappears instantly and is replaced with something made of uncontrollable laughter.
Lilah is one of those 'in the middle' type of people. She's not here or there, she's not preppy, but she's also not a loser. One of the things I love her for, aside from her many, many flaws.
"How is this even supposed to be a party? The apartments are small as hell and no way it can get loud. Mr. Linderman down the hall will shut that shit down so quickly by calling the cops."
She leans close to me and smirks, "It's a party because we'll be there, and you're gonna bring your stash."
"Uh uh. Nope. I'm not forking over my weed so you can get hot and bothered with Logan. "Not happening, hoe."
She stares at me pouting for a whole two minutes before I cave in. "Fine. One blunt."
"Eeeeee! Wait, can I borrow this?" She darts toward my dresser and snatches a pair of fishnets from the drawer.
"I have like five pairs, keep 'em." I tell her as I stand, closing my sketch book. "When's this shin-dig supposed to be happening?"
"In like twenty minutes." She murmurs as she puts lip gloss on in the reflection of my TV.
"Fuck, okay." I quickly get to work on getting my fit planned and doing something with the mop of hair on my head. I pull a pair of black skinny jeans out of the closet and throw them on my bed, and accompany it with a gray loose fitting crop top.
I stumble over to the bathroom and undo the bun my hair is in, separating my hair in two parts I start to french braid it.
"Here put this on, this color looks hot on you." Lilah hands me my deep burgundy lace bralette and winks at me. "Might get lucky and someone will have the opportunity to see your tits."
"You're funny." I scoff.
"Someone needs to pop that cherry at some point. Your nineteenth birthday is creeping up on you." She jokes, but meaning it at the same time.
I push past her and get dressed, throwing my old clothes onto the floor, and doing the skinny jean dance to pull my pants up.
We both look one another over and give the nod of approval, I grab one of my pre-rolls and shove it in her purse with a lighter. "Okay let's get this shit done."
"You say that like it's a chore. We're gonna have fun, c'mon you hermit crab." Lilah grabs ahold of my wrist and drags me along with her.
"Hey Mrs. Thomas, I'm taking Vi to a friend's house." She calls out from the front room, and waits for a second.
"Okay, be careful and make smart choices girls!" My mom calls back to us from the back of the apartment.
With zero hesitation she's dragging me out into the hall and shutting the door.
"Go knock." She shoves me toward Logan's apartment.
"No! You go do it! You're the one trying to get laid." I yell barely above a whisper.
"Dude, don't be such a pussy just do it-" She pushes me towards the door again, this time i have my hand up and ready to knock, but the door is already open and I've just punched someone in the face.
Shit.
I look up and see Alyx rubbing his chin, "You punch like a girl." He jokes.
I look at him wide eyed and horrified. I just punched my crush in the face.
"I-" Jesus, I'm choking. "I am so sorry. I didn't mean to-"
"You're fine. I wasn't expecting someone out here when I opened the door." He reassures me, much kinder than someone who just got punched in the face should be.
"Yo, what're you doing?" Logan comes up behind his brother and looks down at me and Lilah. "Ohhh. Hey, what's up you two."
Alyx rolls his eyes at his brother and steps to the side to let us in. He tries to leave but Logan grabs his arm. "Where are you going man?"
"I was going to the convenience store on the corner-" He starts, but Logan cuts him off.
"Nah, stay here. Me, Lilah and Christa will go. Better yet, I have an even better idea. You two come here." Logan grabs my arm and pulls me along while doing the same to his brother.
We round the corner of the hallway and that's when I see Christa grinning like she's had this idea cooked up for a while. She opens the door to the coat closet and Logan pushes us in and locks the door.
"Logan, not cool man. Open the damn door." Alyx hits the door, but it doesn't budge.
"Cool it little bro, we'll be back in no time. Enjoy the company, oh, and don't break the door. Mom would have a stroke if you did."
I instantly become aware of how cramped the space is with Alyx in here. He's not a small guy, definitely not scrawny, and he's like 6 '3.
"You're stepping on my toes." I push him slightly, trying to get some distance in this small ass closet.
"Oh, sorry. Here let me mo-"
"No. Ow, not helping. You're on my whole foot now." I wince from the pressure on my foot.
"Hold on, let me-" He shuffles and sits on a box and in the commotion I fall into his lap. "Well I guess that works too."
"That is not what I meant to do." I try to stand but he puts his hand around my waist and holds me in place.
"There aren't very many comfortable options for us right now, so just sit still and chill out." He's obviously frustrated, probably not with me, but I listen anyway.
"Okay." I mumble and start to fidget with my thumb, picking at a hangnail.
A few moments of silence go by and he starts to say something but stops himself. "I-"
I bite my lip and look around nervously, becoming more and more aware that I am stuck in a tight space with Alyx Perth.
"So, you uh, wanna play twenty questions or something while we wait? I'd offer to watch Tiktok or something but Lilah has my phone." I chuckle nervously.
"Oh, yeah sure." He says as he leans back against the wall to give me some more room.
I think for a moment and then come up with the most generic question ever. "What's your favorite color?"
"Black." He answers dryly.
"Neat-o, me too. Your turn." I move a little to try and get comfortable, but he puts his hand on my thigh and the other on my waist and pulls me up.
"Better?" He asks calmly.
"Yeah, thanks." I say quietly, trying to hide my awkwardness.
"What kind of music do you listen to?" This time his voice holds more interest.
"I listen to a bunch of stuff, but mostly in the metal genre. You?" I answered that way too eagerly.
"Pretty much the same, I hate pop and country though." He admits.
"I'm going to try and ask you this without making it super awkward, but what is poking my leg right now." I shift my weight trying to avoid something sharp poking my thigh.
"Shit, my bad. Lean up and hold still for a sec." He puts a hand on my lower back and pushes lightly. I do as I am told and stand up as much as I can while he lifts his hips and reaches into his pocket and grabs something. He grabs my waist and pulls me back down onto his lap.
"Sorry about that, it was my keys in my pocket." He laughs awkwardly, which makes me laugh just as awkward.
"Right. That would have been so awkward if it wasn't keys..." I immediately bring my hand up to the bridge of my nose and pinch it in frustration. What the fuck Vi, what am I saying, why am I so weird?
"I'm not my brother you know." He scoffs.
"I wasn't insinuating or anything, I-" I stop and breathe in deep. "Sorry."
"So, who's question is it now?" He asks, trying to change the topic.
"I lost track, you can go if you want." I tell him, avoiding any and all eye contact.
"Favorite band?"
"Hm, that's a tough one. Probably Ghost, but I've really been into Sleep Token lately. You?"
"Greenday."
"My brother really loved them, he actually got tickets for his fifteenth birthday and brought me with him." I tell him, my voice wavering slightly at bringing up my brother.
I start to pick at my thumb again out of nerves and he notices and grabs my hand.
"I'm not going to ask, and I'm guessing you don't want to talk about it, so how about we don't make ourselves bleed."
"Yeah, sorry." I apologize for the millionth time. "If it was your last day on earth, what would you want to do?"
"Probably skydiving or something like that. What about you?" He looks at me and raises an eyebrow.
"Don't make fun of me, okay?" I look at him and squint jokingly.
"I won't make fun, promise." He raises his hand and swears.
        "I wanna go to Disney World."
        He chuckled at my answer but then stops himself, remembering his promise.
        "Heh, that's cute... I won't make fun of you for that. But why Disney?" He smirks at me, and reveals a dimple.
        "I like rollercoasters and Disney movies. Best of both worlds." I start to fidget with my hands again, getting increasingly nervous the longer I'm locked in here with him. He looks down and grabs my hand again, stopping me.
        "You fidget a lot, huh?" He asks, still looking at my hands.
I look at him like a deer in headlights, nervous by his touch. "Only when I'm anxious."
        He smiles at my admission and he gently runs his finger over my hand that he's holding still. He runs it over the scar I have there from frequent anxiety episodes. "Yeah, you fidget a lot." He guides my hand up to his mouth and kisses it lightly. "And it's kind of annoying." His tone changed completely, and I don't know if I'm dumb or what but I can't tell what's up.
        "Look, they'll be back soon, so you don't have to worry about me being annoying anymo-" I start to get frustrated and word vomit, but he pulls me close and his face hovers in front of mine, catching me off guard entirely.
         I go so still, and stare into his dark gray eyes. It's dark in here already so I'm not able to make much out, but I see the face he's making. I can basically see his thoughts. He looks at my lips for a moment and then back to my eyes, looking right into me.
I move my face closer to his, ever so slightly, hoping for him to make the first move.
          Kiss me, damnit.
          And as if he read my mind, his lips are on mine in an instant. I lean into him, letting his warmth engulf me. He runs his hands around my waist and up my back, underneath my shirt. His touch alone makes me shiver, and each movement makes me gasp lightly. And each time, his lips twitch upwards into a smirk.
          He pulls me closer to him, leaving no space between the two of us, and deepens the kiss, running his tongue along my bottom lip. And I let him in.
          I run my fingers through his dark hair and immerse myself in the moment, slowly losing any control I have. He takes my lip between his teeth and nips it, I gasp and he chuckles deeply.
He pulls away from me and looks into my eyes for a split second before venturing to my neck. Leaving kisses and gentle nips all the way down to my collarbone, where he bites and sucks softly. Not softly enough though, I just know that's going to leave a hickey.
His hand travels up the front of my shirt and he rests it under my breast, rubbing circles with his thumb.
           And the closet door flings open without any warning. Logan starts hollering like a giddy child and taking pictures. I pull away from Alyx and rush out of the closet, speed walking out of apartment, not looking back once. I brisk to the end of the hall and go up to the roof.
           What the actual fuck? Those assholes had to have planned that shit.
           Embarrassment and fear start to rush through me and tears threaten to fall from my eyes. I go over to my hiding spot on the roof and move a brick and pull out a joint I had tucked in there and light it up. I take a few heavy hits and toss the brick to the floor. It thuds and rolls a couple times before stopping by the ledge of the rooftop by a chair. I sit down and prop my feet up, staring out over the lit up city.
           I hear the door open and expect it to be Lilah, but when I don't hear her big mouth I turn to investigate.
Alyx.
          "What do you want? Come to grope me again for your brother's snapchat story?" I take another hit and blow it up into the night sky.
          "No, Jesus. When I told you I wasn't like Logan, I mean that shit. I came to check on you and tell you I made him delete them." He huffs out.
          I say nothing and wait for a moment, contemplating whether or not to believe him.
I stick my hand up and behind me, offering him the J, he takes it and pulls up a chair next to me.
          He takes a hit and coughs right after, basically choking, and that makes me laugh.
         "Well you took that like a bitch." I giggle.
          He catches his breath, "I haven't smoked weed since Jr. high." and coughs a couple more times.
          "Fair." I take it back from him and flick the evidence over the edge of the roof.
           I tilt my head up to the sky and sigh. "Your brother is an asshole."
          "Agreed. He has only child syndrome, even though we're literally ten months apart." Alyx laughs at his own words.
          "You guys are Irish twins?" I look at him surprised.
          "Yup." He sits silently, looking up at the night sky. "What do you think is out there?"
          "I don't know, probably aliens, watching us make huge fuck ups and destroy our own planet."
          He straightens up and looks at me, "Can we start over?" His voice is sincere and gentle.
          I look at him for a moment, silently, and then stand up to face him. He gives me a puzzling look and stands too. I stretch my hand out to him, "I'm Violet, my friends call me Vi. I like art, music, and I'm an introverted hermit."
         He takes my hand in his and shakes it. "I'm Alyx. I like my motorcycle, hiking, and I am also a hermit, surprisingly." The corners of his mouth turned upward into a contagious smile, one that was easily reciprocated.
         "So, I'm gonna go home. I'm like really stoned right now." I laugh awkwardly and slowly let go of his hand.
         "I'll walk you home, neighbor."
          I follow him to the door and he opens it, letting me walk in first. When I open the door to the hallway of our floor the fluorescent light is almost blinding in comparison to the darkness of the rooftop. In a few short and quiet moments we're both facing the doors to our individual homes.
          "I'll see you tomorrow." He says, a certain promise lingering in his tone.
          "Yeah, see you." I open my door and disappear inside.