save (joshler)

AH

tyler got out of the hospital in a week.

seven days.

in the same place.

the same goddamn place.

but he was out now. and he was in the grass. and he was in a car and he was going home. and it felt weird. not weird because it was different, but weird because it felt normal. it felt like the world paused while he was in the hospital and now it was unpausing. he knew it should feel weird to go home, to ride in a car, to be outdoors. but it didn't. it felt like the past seven days were a dream.

tyler looked to his left, to his mother driving the car. she was welling up with tears.

"i'm so glad you're back." she whispered. she squeezed his hand.

•

when tyler got home, he took the white plastic bags full of his clothes to his room and sat down. he picked up his phone and texted josh he was home.

he decided to take his first hot shower in seven days. as it was warming up, tyler stared at himself in the mirror, stared into his own hollow eyes. he felt so unseeing, as if they had missed too much. he had deep circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. finally, tylers eyes started to water up from being open too long, and he hopped in the shower. 

it felt nice. very nice. it embraced him. and he was at peace.

•

three pounds on the door signaled that josh was here. tyler ran excitedly to the door in a floofy oversized sweater that only made him look smaller. he swung open the door and josh immediately pressed their lips together. when they broke apart, josh had the biggest grin.

"you're home." he was bouncing on his toes. "oh my god tyler i love you so much." he said, grabbing tylers face and kissing it again and again.

tyler giggled and grabbed josh's wrists. "i love you too joshie." he broke into a beaming smile. and it was really fucking cute. he noticed josh had a black eye. he touched it, and josh winced.

"tyler-- i know this is all of a sudden but-" josh paused to scratch the back o his neck.

"yes?" tyler said, feeling the mood change suddenly. tyler squeezed josh's hand.

"do you wanna run away with me?" josh laughed. "i really fucking hate my family."

tylers face slipped as josh pulled two pieces of card stock out of his jeans pocket. he waved them in front of tylers face.

"i got two train tickets. and i reserved a hotel in LA. i could get a job, and we could live together." josh was bouncing on his toes when he said this, and had that cute genuine smile of his where his tongue perched between his teeth.

"okay." tyler said. he smiled. wasn't this what being a teenager was about? making bad decisions?

he jumped on josh and kissed him all over his face. "let me pack my things." he whispered into josh's ear.

•

inside, tyler basically grabbed a duffel bag and emptied his entire dresser into it. he scraped everything off his bathroom counter into his bag, stuffed all his money into the side pocket, grabbed his wallet and ran out the door.

outside, josh was waiting on the sidewalk. he extended his hand and tyler grabbed it. this was all he wanted.

josh and freedom.