Purpose | Josh Dun (ON HOLD)

Kitchen Sink

It was Monday morning and for the first time in a long time, I was actually excited to go to school. Usually I would be moping around and hating every minute of my life. But today, I woke up with a smile on my face, and that never happens. Maybe it was the fact that my mom made chocolate chip pancakes. Or the fact that the local library was getting new books today. Or maybe I just couldn't wait to see Josh today, even if I only got to see him during second and fifth period. Josh had invaded my thoughts the entire night. There was something about him that made me feel safe, he made me feel comfortable in my own skin.

The sound of a car horn and the buzzing of my phone interrupted my thoughts. Picking up my phone, I saw that I had just received a text message from Josh.

DJ Spooky Jim👽💫:
Hey Elle, Tyjo and I r outside. We're giving u a ride to school, get in

Elle✨:
Hold on, im coming.

DJ Spooky Jim👽💫:
Alright Babygirl, hurry up or we're gonna be late!

My cheeks heated up when I thought back to the last time he called me 'Babygirl.' I thought of how close his body was to mine how warm his breath was against my ear. Shaking those thoughts out of my head, I grabbed my backpack and headed out the front door.

I walked over to the passenger seat of Tyler's car and opened the door.  Hearing the car door open, Tyler pointed to the backseat without even looking at me. I gave Josh, who was sitting in the back seat, a confused look.

"Tyler's not talking to us. He's still mad about yesterday," Josh explained, fiddling with the hem of his black hoodie. It was then I realized that I had never seen him without that hoodie.

"Oh, right," I said simply. I had forgotten that we left the poor boy stranded in the middle of the street. I closed the door and sat myself in the backseat, along with Josh.

No one talked on the drive to school. Josh and I were too afraid to utter a single word to each other, fearing the wrath of Tyler. The only sound that could be heard was the hum of the engine, not even the radio was on. When I suggested turning on the radio, Josh said that Tyler's car radio had been stolen. I found that piece of information very odd. Why would anyone want to steal somebody's car radio?

About ten minutes later we arrived at the school. I jumped out of the car the second Tyler parked; the tension was killing me.

The day went by surprisingly fast. Before I knew it, fourth period ended and it was time for lunch. Since Tyler and I both had fourth period English, we walked to the cafeteria together. We maneuvered ourselves through the sea of people, careful not to run into anyone. We made our way into the lunch line, grabbing our food and then walking over to Josh, who was already seated at the table.

I still couldn't believe that these two boys wanted to hang out with me. No one at this school spent any attention to me since sophomore year, the year everything went downhill. So why would two normal boys take interest in me? I was a "freak," according to my ex- best friend. Maybe they took pity on me, seeing how I spent most of my days alone. But something told me that they understood me, that maybe, they were just like me.

"Hey Josh," I said with a grin, taking a seat directly in front of him. Tyler followed my lead, wordlessly sitting next to Josh.

"Hiya, Elle," he replied, his lips stretching into a smile that made his eyes squint up. "Tyler. You're still not talking to us, I see." Tyler kept his head down, shoving his sandwich into his mouth.  "Tell you what, Ty. If you start talking to us again, I'll buy you Taco Bell for lunch tomorrow."