Glowing Eyes || Adopted by Josh Dun

homecoming and winter formal

"You'll be fine, Lynn," Josh assured me with a small laugh, handing me a plate of significantly less burnt eggs than when we started this ritual. "You've already started high school, the first day's over."

"And we all know how that went," I countered, raising an eyebrow and taking a bite of scrambled eggs, eyebrow raised.

"Okay, okay," Josh laughed, looking up at the ceiling. "Maybe not the best impression... but things'll be better now that that's behind you."

"If you say so," I exhaled loudly and finished my eggs. I went to go pick up my backpack, since I wanted to leave on time to meet up with Daniel and Dael on my way to school, but Josh stopped me.

"Hey, Lynn," he started, leaning against the counter but looking down at me. Actually, closer to eye-level now. Since I'd first met him, I'd grown to about 5'8''. Closer to his height.

"Yeah?" I turned back around to face the yellow-haired man - light coming in through the window behind him making the strands of hair poking out each direction kind of look like rays of sunlight.

"Listen, I know you're worried. Just... don't be too hard on yourself, okay? I know you give yourself a hard time for a lot of the things you've done, but I don't think you realize that people love you for it. What I'm trying to say is, just..." he laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, I'm really bad at this" -he took a breath and looked back at me with sincerity- "just enjoy being back home. Don't let your worrying get in the way. Okay?"

I smiled, "Okay." I hugged him tightly for a second, my face buried in his shoulder, and stepped back. "Alright, I've got to get going or Dael's going to kill me. Love you!"

I walked out the door as he called back, "Love you, too!"

•••••••

"I'm so happy you're back!" Dael squealed, spinning around on the cracked LA sidewalks, her black hair trailing behind her. "I've been stuck walking with Daniel every morning and he's not nearly as interesting."

"I'm right here," Daniel laughed.

"I know," Dael teased back at him.

I smiled, relishing the feeling of being back. I hadn't realized how much I missed LA until I got back. I missed the smell of cigarette smoke and gasoline, I missed the one-stop shops on the side of the street, I missed the constant sound of traffic, I missed walking to school with my friends. It was so painfully familiar that the smile on my lips was so wide it almost hurt.

"I'm happy I'm back, too," I smiled.

Walking in through the huge double-doors of our school was even more of a rush of familiarity. I walked back to my old locker, which was right next to Dael's, and even though I'd been gone for months, I remembered exactly how to open it.

3, 24, 7, 2, pull the notch outwards, slam your fist on the locker and pull the notch at the same time.

"Still have the magic touch, I see," Dael laughed, pulling out a few binders.

"Forever and always," I laughed, shutting the locker and heading to my first period.

As soon as I stepped through that door and looked back at my old history class, I had another wave a familiarity... and not a good one.