Coming Up For Air

2.4

"Oh give it a rest, I could persuade you"
"I'm not your typical, stoned 18 year old
Give me a night I'll make you"
"I know you're looking for salvation in the secular age, but girl I'm not your savior."
-The 1975, 'Girls'

☂Ashton☂

Ashton was woken by his phone loudly blaring Tighten Up by The Black Keys. Seven o'clock in the morning--too early to enjoy the song that served as his alarm tone. He flipped his phone over and turned off the alarm, trying to move slowly so he wouldn't wake up Luke.

"Awake. Awake." Luke yawned sleepily and turned over in the curve of Ashton's left arm, bringing them chest to chest breath to breath close close close.

"Hi." Luke said with drowsy eyes and a lazy smile and a gentle hand tracing up Ashton's side. Luke's hair was all flat on one side and he had the indent of a pillow on one of his cheeks and he was beautiful.

And

and

and all of a sudden, Ashton was falling in love with him.

It happened quickly and surprisingly in the slowest and most obvious kind of way, a sort of melted sugar feeling creeping up his ribcage and then sneakily stealing his heart by means of a not entirely unpleasant siege. Ashton's chest felt ripped open and hot and messy and he realized quietly to himself that falling in love was kind of painful.

"Hey." Ashton responded after way too long.

"You have the greatest eyes in the whole world." Luke reached up and brushed a thumb across his cheek. "I don't know if you know that, but you do. They look like springtime and happy."

Ashton leaned in to Luke's gentle touch and felt rather magenta.

"I want to kiss you." He said instead of thank you, and then he leaned the approximately four inches to Luke's mouth and softly softly tried to tell him what he'd just realized without words.

Everything was crystal for a few seconds until Luke pulled away slightly, grinning and shaking his head.

"Mm. You have a test to take, Mr. Irwin. We can't have all that studying go to waste now."

Ashton rolled his eyes and hauled himself up, and he tried to leave, really he did, but his gaze got hooked in Luke's stitching and it took him a minute to pull it away.

"What?" Luke asked, all blue eyes and light skin and perfect perfect perfect lips.

"Nothing. You're just flawless."

x

Ashton got dressed and left, kissing Luke goodbye on the jawbone because he was in too much of a rush to aim. He went to his class and took his test and thought of Luke's cool metal lip ring pressed against his shoulder and he shivered.

When Ashton got back to his dorm, it was empty as he knew it would be because Luke had to work the afternoon shift at the music store and it was 11:32. He sat down and soaked in the silence and listened to the lingering aura of Luke for a few moments before his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"I--woah. Didn't think you would actually answer."

Ashton blanched.

"Liv?"

"Unless you have any other bitchy ex-girlfriends with a massive apology to make, yeah. It's me." Her voice was softer on the phone than when she talked in person. Ashton laughed a little.