Turn Away | c.h

Chapter 4 - Close I've Come

(Can we just take a bloody second to admire this photo??? His hands????  His fingers???? The cigarette???? The hat?????? His smoll ear????? His gOOFY SMILE???? Ashton???? WHAT THE FRICKING FUCK I DID BOT SIGN UP FOR THIS SHIY))

I kicked the pebble along the path, hands in my pockets as we walked in complete silence. The moon was bright above us, alongside bright neon signs and street lights. The city was well lit.

Calum's eyes were wandering all over the place, every detail catching his attention. He looked lost- slightly intimidated by all the flashing signs, and I could see why. I remember walking these streets at night in Woodlends for the first time, and it was nothing but terrifying. Dark alleyways crept on you every corner you took, and there always sat a stereotypical drug addict situated in the dark, in every hallway.

By now, I wasn't scared of them. But Calum was new to this, and I understood why he might've felt overwhelmed by it all.

"So... This is the first time you've been to Woodlends?" I asked, glancing over my shoulder as I heard a voice behind me. Two other people followed from afar, turning off into a small diner, hand in hand.

"Uh, yeah, I guess. Why?" Calum replied, giving me a slight shrug.

"Just asking," I shrugged back. "You just seemed a little scared."

This caused Calum to laugh, looking back up at the street ahead of us.

"Scared?"

"Yeah." I quietly said.

"I'm not scared. Far from it." He said, quite rudely if you'd ask me. I nodded, looking back ahead of us.

"I've been in worser places than this, trust me. You won't believe some of the stuff I've seen." He said, voice softer than before. My eyebrows furrowed as I tried to make sense of what he's just said. Canberra couldn't have been that bad?

"Canberra's worse than Woodlends?" I asked, looking at him. He turned his gaze to me, cashing my heartbeat to quicken. Those eyes... They still did something so powerful to me.

"Where I came from, it is."

"Well what was it like back there?" I asked, my voice coming out shakier than intended. Calum's lips curved upwards, eyes trailing down to my lips as we continued down the path. Silence fell between us, I grew even more nervous by the complete absence of words.

"Cold." Was all he said.

I nodded, looking back out at the path. Obviously, he didn't want to talk about it. And I didn't press on it, because that would've been invasive of me, but I did want to know more about his hometown. I wanted to know what brought him here to this town- to this school, and to me. Why has he chosen me?

I was interrupted by the grumble if my stomach, causing me to shyly look up at Calum. He glanced down at me, a small, amused smile on his lips. I smiled back.

"R'you hungry?" I asked, gesturing to me favourite diner in town. Calum shook his head.

"No, I ate before."

"Do you mind if I eat now? I'm starving." I light-heartedly laughed, wrapping my arms around myself.

"No, that's fine."

I smiled, leading the two of us to the diner, pushing the door open and walking in. The warm room caused me to groan in delight, finding the table closest to the heater. Calum looked around the place, eyes wandering every corner of the small shop. I watched him out of curiosity.

He looked so on edge tonight, and it made me wonder if it was my presence that made him so uneasy, or the city at night. Either way, he couldn't sit still.