tipsy tease ! tysh

THE PASSIVE SIDE

CHAPTER SIX

✖︎

josh stumbled home, exhausted after a long night. he idly looked around the empty apartment, a heaviness in his either his limbs or heart. it doesn't quite matter at the moment, the difference is all the same.

he kicked his shoes off not bothering with maintaining the cleaness of the apartment anymore. perhaps that's what was bugging him wrong. he expected a mess every time he came home and there never was. never will be any time soon either.

he flicked the lights to his bedroom on. bed made nicely and curtains drawn out. the view of the city with lights dotted around like manmade constellations. he flopped down on his bed, burdens wrapping around him as his gaze fixated on the view outside to distract from the quietness of his home.

he imagined the noises he could hear if his if his apartment hadn't been so high up. maybe he could hear the faint sound of red and white sirens rushing to the next disturbance. or maybe the honk of horns when cars move too slow because people have got places to be. possibly get rid of the silence in his humble abode because josh has places to be other than to just sit here in a house he didn't even earn.

his parents handed him off a random place one night. they thought their children deserved to live the most luxurious life possible. and as considerate as that may be, it wasn't humble of them. at least that's what josh thinks.

the dun's were financially well off. very well off. owning multiple companies offers that to people. it also offers them thick skin and a cold heart because thats how you got to play the game in life. manipulation and being better than the next just to be the highest hierarchy. and his parents always tell him, "maybe if you had been stronger like us, that wouldn't have happened to you."

josh wasn't like that though. josh was well grounded on the outside with a stance that burned everyone else's confidence away because his own flames overpowered others. it was merely to hide the fact that he was the polar opposite.

faking his confidence only makes matters worse but it was all he had going for himself at the moment.

josh turned his head and noticed a white teddy bear sitting on top of his nightstand. he jolted up quickly, looking at it as if processing it being really there.

he reach out for it carefully, the soft fur nursing the nerves at his finger tips. he could almost vividly imagine the faint giggles and cheesy smiles like it was yesterday. his heart twisted painfully and a shaky sigh left his lips. watery orbs look towards the city view and breathed in... and out.

josh held the teddy bear close to his chest. he attempted to calm his beating heart. mentally he was there, he was fine, but his heart was still rattled up inside.

the phone rang and he thought about leaving it. let it ring and drown out the sound of only his breathing in the room. let it ring and forget that perhaps there were people that cared or maybe it was just another scam call, phoning people into giving credit card information in not-so-sly ways. he didn't plan on answering either way.

the automatic voice messaging system went off and the emotionless tone could be described the same way a drunk sounds while drowning out their regrets. it'd be ironic one day.

"new voicemail message from: ashley"

"hey, bub, it's ashley... so, you haven't been answering the phone in ages and family's kind of worried. just call back and let us know you're still alive." a laugh. "the kids miss you too. we all do. hope you're doing good though, i was-" there was crying in the background. "oh god, i've gotta go, y'know how the kids are." another laugh. "miss ya, call back!" beep.

josh softly closed his eyes and the tears slipped from beneath them.

and silence.

✖︎