Five Foot Four ((Zach Abels Fanfic))

Chapter Four

We walked past the wires and amps and dodged the people. Our bodies threaded through anything or anyone who would distract us. I was set on her and didn't want to space because she was so fascinating in a conserved way that I wanted to know more. I wanted to find out the little things that would keep my feet planted on the floor.

She still had a smile on her face but a more comfortable one, as if it came naturally for her to do it which was strange because her plump lips fit with a little gap in the middle- where her two front teeth would show. Her mouth looked sort of open, like the models, and it made her look younger and emotionless... They were still very plain and dull but radiant and so fucking alluring... Her eyes looked like they used to be wide all the time, as if she was enthusiastic and bright about everything but over time they had dimmed down and looked like a concentrating squint, lowering her eyebrows too. I could only imagine two different expressions as if she could either have her normal, straight, face or she could be happy with her cherry pie eyes. It was like there was no in-between. I couldn't picture Rainey with tears in her eyes, red cheeks and a quivering lip... It seemed almost impossible for that to happen.

Her head moved around in different directions as she looked around, with her mouth still slightly ajar, and felt surfaces of walls coated in tatted old fliers of the various bands that had played here in the past. She smiled at some of the big names and often looked at me surprised and amazed, but I didn't want to look at them because just by looking at her, I was in awe.

"This is insane!" She spoke.

We walked a bit further, until we were out of sight.

"This place is bigger than I thought..." I said, sitting on a black box.

There was probably more room in this little area than there was on the stage. Well definitely more room to walk around because Rainey was wandering around the empty territory. She disappeared slightly behind this leather case and then came back into sight with an old acoustic guitar that looked tatted to shit.

She held it tightly and lowered herself to the floor, where she crossed her legs and lay the guitar in her lap, gently stroking the threads.

"I've always wanted to learn guitar properly, but I've never been fully committed so..." Her voice was so smooth.

"Why not? It's pretty easy once you've learnt the basics." I said, leaning forward.

"I don't know... I have tiny hands. I can barely play an octave on piano and I've seen some chord positions that just make me ache looking at them." She shrugged and I laughed. "I can play some of the chords though, like the C chord, E, G's... You know, the super simple ones."

"It's a start."

She took the guitar off her lap and swiftly placed it on the floor next to her.

"How you finding England?" She dismissed the last topic.

I nodded my head and pouted my lower lip. "It's cool here, bit on the cold side but, nah, it's really cool."

She sat silently, looking up and me with her squinting eyes as if she was trying look through me or something.

"You don't have to say that 'cos I'm here." She smiled.

"No- no, I do like it!"

She furrowed her eyebrows and stared a couple more seconds before shaking her head.

"Well, I guess, it's alright if you're just visiting for a little while... So, yeah, I understand." She spoke quieter but with less humour in her voice. "I just want to get out."

"The country?" I asked but I was sure she would say yes.

She nodded and shivered slightly, letting out a huff of breath.

"Another cliché girl wanting something bigger than reality..." She rubbed her eyes and tugged her hair tighter in the tie at the top.

"Where would you go?"

"California." She answered quickly and confidently.

The corner of her lips starting stretching into her comfortable smile and she then put her head down, with her hand on her forehead. She looked sort of embarrassed but I don't know why because she was art.

"It's just that place." She quietly said.

"What do you mean?"

She shrugged and I had started to notice that it must had been a habit for her.

"That's thing thing, I don't know, but I want to be there because I don't know what to expect apart from the sun and the sea..."

"What about your life here?" I asked before thinking. I didn't want to talk her out of it.

"My life isn't supposed to be here." Is all she said and I kind of understood.

All these lyrics shot into my head and I just wanted to hold her.

"What time are you leaving?" She brought me out of my trance.

"Around half eleven?"

She looked at her phone and showed me the time.

11:09.

That meant 21 minutes. 21.

    Wait.

    Where the fuck did those two hours go?

"We should start walking." She spoke up again, with her facial expression back to her natural emotionless look.

    I wanted to stay.

"Smile, you punkass." I jokingly shoved her as we got up to our feet.

And she did.