Shutter ❋ Joe Sugg AU

9 ❋ Amelia/Joe

One month later

***

Amelia

The particular day on which I met Joe Sugg was unextraordinary - the weather was miserable, with overcast skies that held the looming threat of rain. I had a long shift at Tesco's that day, made tolerable by brief hugs and kisses from Dan throughout my shift. I guess you could say we were 'dating' at that stage. As I left the store for the evening I felt no better or worse than I usually did.

When I look back on it now, I realise just how easily I could've not caught the tube home. I could've gotten a ride with my boyfriend, who so generously offered it to me every time. However, that day I walked the short distance to the underground station and took my usual route.

The train was crowded with commuters, because it was early evening and people had to get home. I gazed absentmindedly at the window as we rumbled down the tracks - the occasional lit up advert flashed by, breaking the stream of constant darkness. I plugged in my earphones and put my phone on shuffle - one of Troye's weird indie artists started to moan through the speakers.

Sometimes when I caught the tube home I liked to look at people - not in a weird way, I just liked to guess their story. Nearly everyone in this carriage was dressed in a business suit, except for a few scruffy looking students going home for the day. There was two old ladies sitting further up, a mother with a young baby and a guy who just looked like he was taking the tube for the fun of it. There was also a boy - well, more like a young man of my age - who was staring at something on his phone.

I stared intently at his structured jaw line, and soft luxurious hair that fell over his forehead in a perfect mess. His pink lips were pressed into a hard line, and I could just about see the bluey grey colour of his irises. He was undoubtedly small, but probably still taller than me because I was tiny. His tanned skin wasn't perfect, however that somehow added to his charm. It was fair to say I was captivated as I stared at the nameless boy, my heart thumping gently in my chest.

It only started pounding when he looked up from his phone and connected his gaze with my own.

Joe

For an entire month, I looked for the girl with brown hair and brown eyes. I showed her photo to people on the street, I asked in stores, I even asked to place a banner in the newspaper. My request was declined but it didn't deter my spirits. Finding her became something of an obsession for me - I would be out for days at a time, walking around the city, scanning the crowds in case I caught a brief glimpse of her.

Caspar couldn't understand my obsession, and Zoe started to get worried about me. She kept telling me to wake up and find a job, because this little hobby was a waste of time. I accepted her point of view but I just couldn't stop searching for the girl in the photograph, which was starting to become permanently creased and smudged with any number of substances.

Of all the places I could've found my photo girl (Caspar and I referred to her as this), I did not expect it to be on a train.

I stared at her, with her now familiar brown eyes and wavy auburn hair. I saw the sensitive consideration in her irises, just like I imagined. I had been studying her face for the last month, and now that she was here in front of me everything about her felt like home. Her red lips were parted slightly, and the creamy skin of her cheeks blushed softly. My pulse was thrumming at a faster pace as usual, because she was staring at me quizzically from across the carriage. I looked away from her, embarrassed to be caught staring so much. I wanted to stand up and move to the empty seat next to her, but my legs refused to move. I could feel her eyes still looking at me, and I felt my throat go dry with sudden nerves.