Flatmates

For your eyes only

I know Chapter 12 was titled 'Tea?' but here is the real tea time! Enjoy :D

          Luke woke up feeling a firm pillow under his head, until he realised it was Ashton's chest. He almost jumped out of the bed if it wasn't for the two arms still wrapped around him. His head still rose up in a jolting motion, but didn't woke up Ashton, who just held him tighter unconsciously. Luke took a second to take in his surroundings. It seemed like he hadn't moved at all during the night. He was in the exact same position, fully clothed and over the sheets. He wondered if Ashton wasn't cold given that his naked chest had been uncovered for this whole time. But then Luke was on his chest, so maybe he was what kept him warm. And that was a strange thing to think about.

The blonde let his head fall back gently on Ashton's chest, as he couldn't really move anyway. He also had to say it was pretty comfortable. He wondered when was the last time he had such a peaceful sleep. Since the diner they all had together at Michael and Calum's, nightmares were more frequent, almost every night, no matter if he was tired or not. They had been haunting his dreams for six solid months now, but they didn't occur this much usually. Lately though, he had been restless. It felt really good to finally have some calmness.

He wondered why he had avoided Ashton all the week, while it was actually in his hold that he had finally found the sense of security he was craving.

His heart ached when he thought that it would probably not last long. There were huge chances that Ashton wouldn't react well to what Luke had to say. He was still happy that they were able to share this moment before he would be kicked out. He wasn't ready to be rejected but he knew he had to confess all the things he never said.

         A week before, Luke was entering Alex and Jack's house with his suitcase dragged in his wake. It was a bit weird to think all his belongings could be packed in such a small space and be carried around like it didn't matter. To be honest it had been a while he was anchorless. And lost.

Luke had stepped into the house before midday in the Sunday that had immediately followed the party. There was still people crashed on the floor, half-sleeping half-fainted. There were trashes and stains of devious substance on almost all the surfaces. Jack and Alex were passed out together on the couch in a tangled puzzle of limbs. It was Zack who welcomed him inside; he seemed strangely fine compared to the rest of the décor. He was sober and smiling as if he had no hangover at all. Maybe that was the truth. Rian was woken up too but not in such a good mood.

Luke left his suitcase and backpack in the entry while he ate breakfast with the two householders that were awake. A couple of people got up and had left in the time they spent eating. After that the tree of them put the rest of the partygoers back on their feet and gently made them leave.

Alex and Jack were really hungover but that was almost eclipsed by the surprise to see Luke with his luggage. Of course they agreed on hosting him for a moment. They didn't ask too much questions. First, because they could probably not handle a serious conversation in their state. And secondly because they clearly saw that Luke didn't want to talk.

Luke participated in the cleaning of the house and was happy to have something to do and to focus on, rather than his own thoughts and memories. The rest of the day was pretty silent. Everybody needed some time and some calm to recover from one thing or another. The beginning of the following week followed the same spirit. But after a couple of days, it was more than evident that Jack and Alex wanted to know more.