the city || bill skarsgård [DISCONTINUED]

fifteen: a home far from home

He got the chips and Pop Tarts as he promised.

Just a few minutes from his place is a 24-hour store and luckily he was able to get the last two boxes of Pop Tarts available. Miran had just texted him her address and after purchasing the food and two large bottles of water, he set off to her place.

Once he was there, he saw her outside her building waiting. She was wearing a black hoodie, gray sweatpants, and flip-flops. She wore the hood and puffed her cheeks as she was typing away on her phone. He chuckled and rolled down the window.

"Hey," he called her.

Miran raised her head and put away her phone. "Hey," she said as she entered the car.

When Miran closed the door and put on her seatbelt, Bill drove off. The only question that was running through his head now is how to talk to her. Even if they did spend time together a lot now, he always finds himself in this awkward silence with her and he always needed to muster up the courage to say something.

"So..." said Bill. "You couldn't sleep?"

Wow, Bill. Some talker you are.

"Yeah," answered Miran. "It's just that on most nights, I tend to overthink."

"What do you think about?" asked Bill.

Miran shrugged. "If I left the stove on, the iron, if there was some tea."

"Tea, huh?" chuckled Bill.

"That's why I told you it's nothing to worry about," chuckled Miran. "I've tried a lot of methods to put me to sleep. Some worked and some didn't."

"Even counting sheep?" asked Bill.

"That's the worst. It may have worked for most but counting sheep was just annoying," answered Miran.

While Bill drove, Miran took out her phone and unlocked it. She opened the Spotify app and scrolled through the list of songs. She tapped on the screen and then turned off her phone, setting it on her lap.

I'll give you one night only for your eyes only. Oh, oh, oh...

While keeping his eyes on the road, Bill was smiling seeing Miran jam to the song in his peripheral vision. She was nodding her head, mouthing the lyrics, and doing the air guitar. She was just too adorable enjoying the song and he ended up tapping the steering wheel to the beat as he was driving.

The car went up on a hill and then stopped at the top. Bill went out first and then opened the door for Miran. He then took the food from the back seat as well as a blanket. He laid out the blanket on the ground and sat down. Miran looked at the breathtaking view of the city lights, eyes wide and mouth opening and then closing in awe.

"It's amazing, right?" asked Bill.

"Yeah," answered Miran. "How did you find this place?"

"I found it when I went on a trip with a friend from back home," answered Bill. "The first time we went here was during the day but the second time I went here, it was night and it's a lot better at this time."