weak × leafycynical

one

"I could take you to see the new Suicide Squad movie," Niall offers, about ready to take out his phone to look up movie times.

"You shouldn't," Calvin replies.

"I heard that most first dates end well when one takes the other out to a movie," Niall says.

"They shouldn't," Calvin says.

"I love you, Calvin," Niall says quietly.

"You shouldn't, Niall," Calvin says, equally as quiet.

He saw him in walking alongside the beach sometimes. Seeing them wearing a snapback and graphic tee shirt. Then he'd see that they had blond hair instead of dark brown, they wore shorts instead of skinny jeans, and he realized that isn't who he had been with one time long ago.

He saw him in the way that people would talk and argue. How they would use sarcasm and certain words to display their point. However, they never were him and they never would be him. The person with the same behavioral antics and choice of clothing and certain unpopular opinions. They wouldn't ever be close to displaying an exact depiction of Calvin.

He tried, he really did try, to keep him close. Bring him back. Take him out of the fucking house. After awhile, he realized that he should have stopped trying, and that's what he did.

Why did he think that was a good idea?

××

For the longest time, two years, Niall lived next door from Calvin in a busy neighborhood in California. Moving here from the UK years prior to come to this state wasn't exactly his plan for the future, but he ended up in Newport Beach in California living next door to a beautiful boy. The only problem is, Calvin didn't know his name or who he was at all. They only saw each other if they happens to visit the same shop that day alongside the beach, which happened quite commonly, since the small island they live on was closely sectioned together and didn't give a lot of options to the people living there.

It wasn't common for people to drive around in this area, unless they lived on the island sectioned off just across the line of shops. Small boats would be constantly making rounds from one pier across the section of water, taking the people who lived there along with their cars if need be, then the family would drive off. And really, everyone had a car in Newport Beach, specifically the Balboa area, but they'd hardly use there expensive car unless they wanted to go to a popular store or mall that wasn't avaliable in their area. Such as Adidas and Gucci. They had knockoff brands for that kind of shopping here. Usually Niall's car just took up the limited amount of space parked in front of his small two bedroom house, he'd use it once every other week and pray that no one would have taken his spot when he came back.

Other than the loud neighbors who constantly had parties every night and drank tequila until they hit the floor, the constant busy traffic between slim streets, and the fucking drought, Niall liked it in California.

It's not like he didn't have friends, because really, he did. Well, not friends, exactly. Rather friend. The only time they ever hung out was when they spotted each other on the beach or they conversed when one of them was walking down the pavement, passing by the other's house. Roman, that's his name, who claims to Niall that he came to California for a 'mysterious' reason when Niall knows that he wanted an excuse to come live walking distance from the ocean.

Everyone was always doing something whether it be walking down the busy streets to go sit by the shore or going shopping to make dinner for their family. With the absence of a family, relationship, and lack of close friendships with people around him, Niall stuck to just ordering food and going for a ten minute walk to pick it up. He would sometimes go as far as inviting Roman over, but that itself was rare.