sour ⇒ jeff atkins

v

I'm a fake fan I keep spelling zach/Zack wrong so plz don't be mad ily

i wipe away the tears that were now staining my cheeks before walking outside to meet zach. bruises were already starting to replace the red marks around my right wrist. i pull down the black sleeves of my top to cover them as i walk out of the apartment complex quickly, just in case tom was chasing after me. why does he care where i go, anyway? he's never cared about me before. i doubt he even remembers my name.

my phone vibrates, indicating that i have a message. i fish it out of my pocket, wiping my eyes again just to make sure there were no more tears. i unlock my phone to see that i have a message from zach. he tells me he's running late. normally, i would be slightly annoyed, but i'm just relieved. at least this will give me a reason to calm down.

i decide to fill the time by calling justin, as he hasn't been home recently. i quickly type in his number, the only number i've ever bothered to memorise. i put the phone up to my ear and patiently wait for him to pick up. just as it was about to go to voicemail, i hear muffling and loud music coming from the other end.

"danny, what's wrong?" he says over the loud music. the music eventually becomes more quiet and muffled as i assume he moved into another room or outside.

"justin? where the hell are you?" i ask, annoyed. for some reason, the fact that he's out having fun while i was just attacked by our step-father irritated me.

"i, uh, I'm at bryce's," he slurs. i shut my eyes tightly and take a deep breath. can he not just come home for one night?

i open my mouth to say something more, probably yell at him for drinking on a tuesday, but i'm interrupted by a playful and flirty voice that i didn't recognise. "who was that?" i interrogate, growing more and more annoyed. i don't know why i'm so irritable. what tom did wasn't justin's fault.

"her name's jessica," he quickly responds, "danny, what's this about are you okay? aren't you supposed to be with zach?" the concern in his voice relaxes me slightly. the voice belonging to jessica comes through the line again before i get the chance to speak. "is this to do with tom? did he hurt you again?"

i nod, despite that he can't see me. "yeah," i sniffle. the tears sting my eyes again.

"okay, i'm coming home," justin says urgently. suddenly, i feel bad about interrupting justin's evening. i don't have to drag justin into this, especially if he's having fun right now.

"no, justin, don't. i'm fine plus zach's here now," i lie. zach still wasn't here, but i'm sure he'll be here shortly.

"are you sure?" justin asks. i hear people calling his name in the background, inviting him back into the party.

"justin, honestly. i'll see you later," i say, reassuring him.

"if he lays another hand on you i swear i'll fuck him up," he defends. i can hear anger in his tone, which gives me a sense of reassurance and makes me feel safe.

"love you, justin," i say, a cheesy smile plastered on my face.

"love you too, danny," he replies. i hear everyone cheer justin's name once more before the line went dead. and at that moment, i see zach pull up in front of me in his black car with the windows rolled down, dressed simply in a red t shirt and washed out dark jeans.

"hey, danny," he cheerfully greets me as i climb into the passengers seat. i brush through my hair one more time with my my fingers as zach starts the engine again. "sorry about making you wait. i know that's not the most ideal thing to do on a first date," he chuckles glancing over at me.