blind - owen teague | ✔️

5. Cycle

Anisa came in and checked with me every hour, careful to not wake me up if I was sleeping. It was easier to sleep at any given moment when in the dark at all times.

"You're certainly starting to drink your juice every day." She told me as she wrote down my vitals, again. It was a boring everyday routine.

I flushed internally. I don't drink them. "I guess so," I chided as I shrugged. I heard the empty one fall to the trash bag and one resume its previous' position.

Owen openly invited himself every day to do his homework in my room, some blind girl's room. Some girl he slid his fingers down to her bracelet to find her name.

The girl he stole juice boxes from every morning and afternoon, the girl he read his Sunday funnies to.

"Owen been bothering you anymore?" She asked, and I made a face, shaking my head.

It was sort of like a game now. He'd come in when he got home from school, or early in the weekends, disappearing sometime later to assumably go with his friends.

I was about to ask a question about him and thought better of it, biting y tongue. It would seem weird to ask your doctor about her son with the sultry voice, would it not?

I hummed softly and laid back once I heard her pen click, and her heels click away, the annual clicking of the light switch to off, so no one bothered me.

That excluded Owen.

Counting the seconds, the door clicked it's normal one-two, and before I knew it, the flip of the switch too. "And you're back again." I spoke again, facing the wall. I knew because my fingertips touched the cool, smooth surface.

"Back in black." He joked as I rolled over to face him, and slowly sat up. There was that scent, that intoxicating light smell that reminded me of fresh spring.

"Are you really in black?" I asked, and immediately regretted it, hearing his bookbag thump to the ground as I hummed.

"I am." He said in response and I heard him ravaging the new juice box.

"Does your shirt have a design on it?" I asked as I tilted my head, hearing his bookbag unzip.

"It does. What would you want to know of it?"

"Well, it's not like I'm blind or anything." I muttered sarcastically. He chuckled again, filling my ears as he took presumably his school things from his bag.

Changing the subject, I hummed. "What are we working on?" I was beyond curious, but as they say, curiosity killed the cat.

"History."

"Oh, I love history. Mind reading the questions?" I asked, and he must have shaken his head, because he began to read the question, then began to read notes, again, presuming.

I listened about the Qing dynasty, having heard most of it before, but being so bored in this empty, silent room would make anything worth listening to. It was like when you're hungry, anything seems appetizing.

"You're not really interested in all this, this... Material, are you? What are you, some nerd?" He asked.

I snorted and shook my head. "No, but being cooped up in this room makes anything feel enjoyable, honestly." I admitted, shrugging sheepishly.

"That's... Very sad, [F/n]." I heard and laughed softly, smiling a bit.

"I guess I have a sad life." I told him, making the both of us bust up in a bit of laughter. That was the most enjoyable part of being with him, so far.

Hearing him shift, I heard a curtain slide across the metal rails and my head tilted. "Black out curtains, that you don't necessarily need but if my mom is gonna hound me to leave you alone, they'll work for me." He taunted, and I heard his quiet footsteps around the room, shutting them before he returned to me.

I took a slow deep breath and played with the cover beneath my hands, waiting for him to say something, anything.

"I'm almost done." He said after a minute and I nodded, soon hearing the shuffling of the papers being stuffed away, then a clunk let me know the recliner now was out and his feet were propped up.

I shivered from the chilliness of the room and pulled my blanket around me, settling back as well. It was quiet until I heard more shuffling, then,

"Wanna listen to music?"

Taken aback by the offer, my head tilted toward the recliner and I moved over, feeling the cold earbud slip into my right ear.

"They better be clean." I spoke in a scolding tone.

I could hear that smile again. "How dare you think I'm disgusting like that."

"I barely know you, Owen William Teague."

"Now you're starting to sound like my mother."

"I pity your mother."

"Do not, I'm a joy to be around."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Have you kicked me out yet?"

Now I was trapped and I could hear the smugness in his tone as music started to play.

"I'm starting to really hate you." I declared and he chuckled, making me roll my eyes that he couldn't see. I settled a bit more on the pillow, humming softly.

"What are we listening to today?" I asked in a posh tone.

"Two Door Cinema Club, milady." He said back in the same posh tone, making me giggle softly.

"I like it." I stated. It was new, different, but welcome. The silence that came was a bit comfortable and with him so close I could practically feel the warmth radiating off him, and the intoxicating smell was there.

My heart was fluttering and I was suddenly thankful for how I'd requested the heart monitor to be down, but if he cared enough to pay attention, he'd notice.

"Me too... Me too..."

-

It had become a habitual routine. Being so bored in a cold room with no company was time consuming and it made me count the time between whoever and whatever came to me.

I was sitting up by the time Owen came in, juice box in my hands as I sipped it. When he came in, I was greeted by a sudden bundle of soft weight hitting me.

"I noticed you were shivering yesterday." My heart shuddered and melted. He noticed.

"I didn't think anyone would notice."

"I did." It smelled like him and felt like velvet. Instinctively, my fingers worked over it as I felt it being tugged and it spread over me. What color was it? Had it been in his room?

"Thank you." I murmured, unable to find anything else. I was grateful. Who was this teenage boy?

"What are we doing today?" I asked, unable to help bringing the blanket to my face, hugging it a bit. I was excited and it showed, laying back down.

"Well, I have calculus." I almost winced. I was never really that amazing at math.

"I'm not good at that."

"That makes the two of us." He admitted and I laughed softly, hearing the recliner click out again.

"Move over." He said and I did so, and I felt the cover pull a bit, realizing now we both were sharing the blanket.

I felt the earbud again in my ear and I hummed, getting ready to hear a new song, a new beat.

This time, he told me the song was to be a song called Heartbeats. I didn't know the artist but that didn't matter.

Seeing a glimpse into him was all that did.