stars will fall - byler

.26

i attempted to do my homework upstairs in my room, aggravated i had some at all. who gives homework on the second day of school? but it was hard to focus on it when i could hear mikes band practicing in the garage. the sound of them playing was beaming through the walls. i like watching them play, but it's different when i'm trying to focus on something else. i finally understand hollys aggravation. i reached for my headphones in my bag and put them on, playing the mix that was already in them which seemed to help. this was the mixtape that mike made me the other day.. i realized that when i heard Put Your Head on My Shoulder by Paul Anka. it was an older song, but a good one.

i turned my head when i felt a hand on my shoulder, seeing mike hovering over me. i turned the music off and flipped the headphones around my shoulder.
-"sorry if we were loud." he apologized.
-"it's fine, i'm almost done with this anyways." i put my pencil down and faced towards him.
-"as much as i'd like to stay home with you, i have to go to work." he groaned.
-"really? for how long?" i groaned.
-"just until 6."
-"ugh, that's like 2 hours." i whined while resting my head back. he grabbed onto my hands and pulled me closer so i was looking at him.
-"no extra shifts, i'll be back as soon as i can so we can spend some time together." he kissed me briefly, making me want to pull him into my arms. i would kiss him forever if i could.
-"fine, go." i rolled my eyes, blushing as he let go of my hands and walked out of my room.

i finished up my homework before putting it all back in my bag when i heard the front door closing, assuming mike had left. i plopped down onto my bed and reached for the book on my nightstand, flipping through the pages until i reached my bookmark.

as i was reading, i jumped as the peaceful silence in my room was interrupted by my phone ringing at the nightstand. i shut the book and reached for the phone.
-"hello?"
-"will, have you done the algebra homework yet?" max asked from the other end.
-"yeah, i just finished up."
-"can you come over and help me?"
-"cant i just help you over the phone? i'm comfy in bed right now." i groaned.
-"no, you owe me. i could've gotten you a job."
-"you didn't even-"
-"please, please, please!!" she begged.
-"i'm on my way, you're relentless." i scoffed before hanging up. i groaned, gathering the strength to drag myself out of bed to leave. i made sure to grab my application before i left so i could drop it off on my way home.

...

-"can you check my answer?" max nudged the paper over to me. i scanned the paper and read the questions and her answer.
-"no, try again." i nudged it back to her.
-"can you please just give me the answers?" she whined.
-"no, you're only cheating yourself!"
she erased her answer and sat there while staring at the wall blankly.
-"i'm taking a break." she put her pencil down and rolled out of bed.
-"so, i saw you and troy talking in the parking lot the other day. what was that about?" she asked.
-"nothing, he just wanted to apologize. he wants to get back together" i mumbled and looked down.
-"are you guys going to?"
-"no! i'm not putting myself through that again.."
max didn't know everything about what happened between troy and i.. she just knew about his drinking problems. mike was the only one that knew everything.
-"is there anyone else you're showing interest in maybe?" she asked, obviously referring to mike but i'd never admit that.
-"break time over, get to work!" i slapped on her paper and forced her to lay back down.

-"i shouldn't have taken accelerated algebra, i'm going to transfer." she groaned before writing on her paper.
-"it's not that hard you're overthinking it." i scooted over and started explaining.

after she had figured it out, i put my shoes on and began to leave.
-"alright, i'll see you tomorrow." i announced while grabbing my keys off her desk.
-"later!"

i walked out to my car and pulled my seatbelt on. i picked up the job application from my passenger and scanned it, making sure it was fully filled out before beginning to drive towards the mall.

i parked my car and walked inside, noticing the mall wasn't as busy on a weekday. i made my way towards the foodcourt and didn't have to wait in a long line to hand it in. on my way out, i passed the theater, where mike worked. i often came in to surprise him, so i decided to do it again. i walked past the empty ticket booth and made my way towards the surprisingly empty front desk. mike was usually back here, so where was he?
-"mike?" i called from the front desk, walking around to check where he was. i saw the storage office door to my right, remembering that's where we usually go when i come here. i decided to check it and surprisingly, he was there.
-"mike?"
he spun around looking shocked to see me.
-"will? what are you doing here?" he frantically approached me.
-"i just wanted to see you.. is that okay?" i chuckled at his expression before closing the door behind me and kissing him.
he let me kiss him briefly before quickly pulling away.
-"you can't be here right now, i don't want my boss to catch us. i'm supposed to be out there."  he mumbled.
-"that's never stopped you before." i laughed quietly.
-"i'm sorry, i'll be home in an hour and we can do whatever you want." he assured me.
-"fine." i whined as he followed me out of the closet. i waved goodbye to him before walking out of the theater, a little annoyed.

as i made it up the escalator, i reached for my pocket to grab my keys but they weren't there. i must've dropped them in the theater or something.
i began to walk back and when i entered, mike still wasn't at the front desk like he said he was going to be. i looked around the ground for my keys and couldn't find them anywhere. they must be in the closet. i opened the door and my eyes scanned the ground but my attention was quickly caught when i saw my boyfriend kissing his ex girlfriend.
-"mike?"
el and mike both jumped when i realized i was standing there, el didn't understand why i was so emotional but mike did.
i stood there and prayed i was dreaming.. there's no possible way this could be true.
but it was, and troy was right.
i never thought i'd say that, but troy was completely right this whole time.