eunoia ; malum

01

"I CAN'T FUCKING BELIEVE IT!" Ashton stormed in to the warehouse where Calum was watching TV peacefully.

He picked up the table and threw it at the cemented wall, watching the wood break into shards. Reading the angry boy's mind quickly, he got up and pushed him against the wall. He was lucky Ashton didn't like hurting people, because he would gone if he did.

"I get that he broke up with you, I fucking get it! But that doesn't mean we need to destroy the furniture."

Ashton picked him up and took him out of his way. "I fucking want to!"

Calum watched helplessly, back against the wall as his best friend destroyed all the furniture in the house. He even broke some plates, and Calum covered himself the best he could, but he still got ceramic pieces in his arms.

He hissed, but knew there would be no wound as soon as he took them out. He waited until the curly-haired boy calmed down, puffing as he put his hair up in a bun.

"Look what you did!" Calum yelled, gesturing to the trashed house. "Now we have nothing."

Except each other. Ashton thought, and Calum pretended he didn't hear it as he picked out the parts of plate in his skin. He dropped them to the floor and saw his skin was healing already, but everything internal wasn't.

He gave his best friend one last look before heading to the shower. The angry boy had broken the glass of it and the window as well, so the Maori stood naked and cold. He knew the blond-brunette didn't mean to do it. He could hear him whining mentally a mile away.

He got dressed and went back out to the living room, seeing Ashton making pasta in one of the pots he bent. Calum couldn't help but laugh at how weird it looked.

"Let me handle it." Ashton mumbled. "I'm sorry."

"I know you are; you have loud thoughts."

"It's just . . . Luke dumped me."

Calum shook his head, sighing as he swept up the broken pieces. "It's because he has no idea who you are, Ash. He's never seen me, this house and you've never told him anything."

Ashton and Luke had had a long history of an 'off again, on again' relationship, but the past few months, they'd seemed to be going good. But Luke always brought up the topic of meeting Ashton's parents, and it got them into a fight every time.

"Could you blame me?"

Calum shook his head. "It's not every day your boyfriend is an orphan with super-strength."

By the time dinner was ready, the mess on the floor was swept up and there was a Johnny Cash poster over the hole in the wall. They sat down on the ground, their legs crossed as they ate their pasta.

"I saw you broke the bed," Calum laughed. "Must've been some break-up."

Ashton tried to laugh, but the giggle ended up coming out sad. "I think Luke means it this time."

Calum rolled his eyes because no matter how many times the two broke up, they would get back together again. Luke would never mean what he said, and would forgive Ashton every time.

"I gotta go to work." Ashton said with utter distaste, hating every second of his job.

"Okay, I'm gonna come." That's what she said. "You're so immature."

Usually – to anyone ever – it would be weird bringing a plus-one to work, but not to those two. They barely went anywhere without each other, and Calum worked as a waiter there sometimes, so the people in the kitchen had gotten used to him.

When they got there, Calum changed into a different shirt that always hung proudly for him on the back of the door and Ashton went to wash dishes right next to where they cooked.

He hated working at the seafood restaurant. He didn't even like seafood. The smell of it made him sick, but it was the only place that let him work despite how inexperienced at literally everything he was.

Meanwhile, the Maori waited tables with a smile. He liked doing it, and he felt more useful than he ever would hiding in that warehouse. He also liked listening to people's reactions to the food. It ranged from oh my god what the fuck is this to there are god's tears in this soup.

People had weird thoughts.

"Are you ready to order?" Calum asked without even looking up from his notepad as he wrote down the table number.

"Uh . . ." holy fuck, say something Michael. You are not gay. With these confusing thoughts, Calum looked up to address the thinker.

He looked at the parents who were pretty much thinking the same thing. The mother shooed him off, and Calum felt almost guilty that the guy was attracted to him as he walked away. The redhead was probably going to get into some serious shit.

"Ashton says he needs to talk to you." Kelsey, another waiter, said in an annoyed tone like she always did.

Fuck you, you sack of potatoes. He thought as he walked past her. He was glad nobody could hear thoughts but him.

He went into the kitchen and to where Ashton was washing dishes. He looked on edge. More than he usually did, anyway. The blond-brunette looked up at the black-haired boy and pushed out a pensive breath.

"Luke's out there, Calum. He's the blond boy on twenty-three."

Calum looked over to see a lanky blond boy sitting in a booth, his eyes bloodshot like he was either high or crying. His thoughts radiated stress. Calum pulled a hand through his slightly wavy hair as he watched the guy.

"He's still thinking about you. I'm gonna go tell him that you want to get back with him." Calum said before Ashton could stop him.

Calum walked out and stood in front of the blond, half-smiling. "Ashton's sad too."

The blond obviously wasn't expecting someone to know him in the restaurant. "H-How do you know Ashton?"

"He's my best friend."

Of course, I don't even know his fucking best friend.

"I – uh – gotta go do my job, but I can tell him to meet up with you after work?"

Luke nodded, smiling a little, even though he was still pissed off. Calum walked away, back to the table with the redhead, and he finally knew what to order. Carbonara.

An hour later, Calum was done, but the redhead and his family hadn't left. They weren't talking. They weren't eating. His parents were on their phones, and he was looking at his lap. Calum watched from the empty kitchen, confused.

His eyes rolled over to where Ashton and Luke sat, talking to each other quietly with tear-filled eyes.

"I didn't even know your best friend until tonight, Ash; we've been doing this for almost a year."

"I-I'm sorry."

That was the only thing Ashton could say. He couldn't offer to let him know more, because he knew what Luke would do if he knew the truth. The blond would get scared and run away, or try to help him like he knew how to help.

Luke didn't know how to help because he didn't know what was wrong.

Calum texted Ashton that he was leaving, and that he didn't mind if he didn't go home that night. He walked down the dark streets and walked away from the people's loud thoughts. But, unfortunately, there was one mind he just couldn't shake;

The redhead's.

thoughts?