Honey Buns

8

"Fucking hell!" I whisper/ scream as I quickly shove my cut finger in my mouth to stop the bleeding.

It's almost two am on a Saturday morning and I'm currently working on Andre's bike in the driveway with John Legend on repeat on my phone. The bikes' been giving me a whole bunch of headaches this past week and I feel like I'm getting nowhere near to finishing it. The muffler has a bunch of broken glass stuck inside of it, which is what I just found out unfortunately, and the engine cover is dented so bad, it looks like I'll have to order in some new parts. 

What the hell happened to this bike?

As I take my finger out of my mouth and grab my bottle of cold water from the ground, I notice how messed up my hands look. 

Blisters, old and new, cover my palms with slashes all across my knuckles, most probably from all the repairs I've been doing these past two years. I haven't even noticed how cut-up they've looked all this time. And he fight with Seth just made my hands look worse. There's still a bit of swelling with light bruising across my knuckles but at least the cuts have started to scab and heal.

I take a long drink from my bottle then wipe the sweat on my forehead. 'Save Room' by John Legend comes on through my headphones and my initial frustration with the bike instantly melts away. The calm intro of the song is so soothing that my eyes close automatically while I sway slightly from side to side. The first verse hits and I can't help but sing along.

Say that you'll stay a little

Don't say 'bye-bye' tonight.

Say you'll be mine

Just a little bit of love, is worth a

moment of your time

Knocking on your door just a little

So cold outside tonight

Let's get a fire burning

Oh, I know I keep it burning right

If you stay, won't you stay, stay?

As the song continues, my eyes shut as I softly sing along, imagining I'm alongside John Legend at one of his concerts. I let the music consume me as I focus on the muffler, tuning everything else out.

Oh, come on

Make time to live a little

Don't let this moment slip by tonight

You'll never know what you're missing till you try

I'll keep you satisfied

If you stay, won't you stay, stay

Once the song is over, I become nostalgic, thinking of all the times I would catch my mother and father dancing in the kitchen whilst making dinner for the four of us. They would waltz across the tiles, my mother laughing into my father's shoulder as he attempted a fancy dip to the ground, then the both of them laughing even harder after realising that the stove hadn't even been switched on. Jason would call them 'a bunch of teenagers' but I always loved how fond of each other they were.

 I turn away from the muffler to grab one of my tools and yell in surprise as I see a dark figure.

"Fuck!" I exclaim and stumble backwards, with my palms landing on the pavement. I hold my hand to my chest and look up to see Andre standing at the foot of the driveway.