nicotine // h.s. au {uncompleted; editing}

Chapter 1. {edited}

Lyla

I couldn't feel the cold fall air, at least anymore. My cheeks were numb and somewhat tingly; probably a bright red color. My lips were chapped and in pain, and would probably start bleeding if I moved them at all. I cursed myself for not planning ahead at all. All I had with me was my phone and the 20 dollar bill I kept in my phone case for emergencies. I didn't think about bringing a jacket at all. In my hometown, it would still be somewhat warm.

It was the first weekend in October, and, where most people were going through their first year of college already, I was taking a year off. Not everyone has the money to go to college right out of highschool. I was living with my aunt, Autumn, who was still stuck in the 60's with her hippie attire and attitude.

I looked around as I walked, trying to get familar with everything. My boots softly crunched a few leaves and twings whenever they would land on them, and I tried to keep a nice pace. Every now and then, I would step on a rock and it would make me trip a little. I could barely move my fingers, but I managed to reach my fingers into my pocket to retrieve my phone. It was 6:37, yet I had no calls from Autumn.

I left at 5:50...ish. I should probably get home...

But my mind couldn't make my body sway the other way, and so I just kept walking. She would call me soon, and I could tell her my surroundings, and she would pick me up then. This had happened once before, right when I moved in.

I stared at my feet, making sure that I didn't trip over any rocks. My fingers were stuffed in my armpits to so I could keep them warm. I glanced up when I realized there was someone else on the path. A man, roughly 6 feet from a distance, was walking in my direction. I kept my eyes on his figure as we walked towards each other. As he came closer, I could see small details of him. He had his head tucked into the collar of his jacket, silver jewelry in his eyebrow and nose.

That reminded me of a someone I used to know.

As we got closer, I noticed his hair was brown, a little curly, halfway pulled up into a bun. The curls felt familiar, but I couldn't think of any names. His eyes were glued onto his feet. I softly moved away from him as we passed.

I could smell cigarettes on him. Healthy.

"Wait," I heard him speak from behind me in a deep voice. I noted the British accent. My phone buzzed in my pocket as I turned. It was Aunt Autumn. I held up one finger to pause him, answering the call.

Harry

I tried not to roll my eyes when she held up her pointer finger. All I wanted to do was ask her which way to go. I switched from foot to foot, looking up. I noticed her glance at my neck and arms. She was looking at the tattoos.

That made me smirk a bit.

It would be a lie if I said she wasn't cute. Boots, ripped blue jeans, black sweatshirt with some band on it. She had gingery blonde hair, closer to ginger than to blonde, and closer to curly than to straight. Blue eyes with tints of green in them, a weakness of mine.

"Yeah, ok. Thanks, Autumn," she said into the phone, pressing the end button and shoving it back into her back pocket. She looked at me, one eyebrow raised. I was staring at her lips.

"Um," I started, "do you know which way is which?"

The girl instantly shook her head, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "I've been going straight this whole time, so if you go straight down the way I was coming you end up at the park with the creek behind it."

That was Oaks Park.

I nodded softly, looking that way and thinking about it. "I took too many turns and ended up lost."

She also nodded, pursing her lips. There was a pause. "If you go straight that way," she pointed, "the way you were coming, you apparently end up at the elementary school and the law office."

"Apparently?"

"Yeah, I didn't know until my aunt called."

"New around here?" I asked, moving my hand up to brush hair out of my face. The girl's eyes moved to my hand, trying to read the etched writing scribed into my skin, I guessed.

She nodded and plastered her eyes to my mouth. "Uh - yeah, I'm living with my aunt for a while."

"Why?" she didn't answer, I tried a different question, "What's your name?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Lyla...yours?"

"Harry," I leaned against a tree, head back against it, eyes on her. Lyla stood with her toes pointed in, arms dangling by her side, hands covered by the sleeves of her sweatshirt.

"I should probably get going," she said quietly, starting to turn the other way.

I nodded. "Don't want to keep your aunt waiting."

She slowly nodded, flashing a smile. I watched her start walking the way she was originally going before I stopped her. The trail turned a little curve and I lost sight of her.

I decided to go that way, since the elementary school was closer to my apartment. It was totally silent now, I couldn't even hear the footsteps of Lyla, she was too far up.

My friend, Zayn, and I hadn't lived here for too too long, maybe for about a year. About when we both finished college. He works with a shady company who made him move out here, and I wanted a fresh start. I had the upstairs of the house and he had the downstairs.

The "fresh start" didn't come into my mind until about 3 months after we moved in. I used to be a much worse person than I am now - now I only curse and smoke and try to seem cool. Back before I moved here, and a little after, I was a horrible human added to humanity.

Stepping out into a semi-crowded school park pulled me out of my mindset. I stopped for a second to collect my thoughts, and then headed to the road to make my way home. A car passed, and I noticed Lyla in the passenger seat.

At the end of the day, change was a good thing.