Two Sides of the Same Street (A Clouis Fic)

Chapter Two

Word Count: 1935

Summary: Clementine and Louis catch the same bus home and take the chance to get to know each other.

-

"What time does the bus usually get here?"

"Let's see, about ten minutes ago."

"Oh."

Of course, the damn bus was late. On most days it was on time, right to the minute. Louis broke his attention from the setting sun onto his cracked watch, checking it for the third time. Had the damn thing finally broken?

Clementine threw her empty Coke can into the bin beside her, smiling at her successful shot. All that time spent playing Paper Toss came in handy. "I hope there wasn't an accident." The torrential rainfall the town had been receiving the past few days had resulted in a couple collisions, arrogant assholes who thought they could make the green light in time.

Louis popped a piece of gum into his mouth, trying to keep his obnoxious chewing to a minimum. "Wilson is a safe driver, probably just some traffic build up."

Of course, this damn bus runs late the day Clementine has to catch it. Lee needed to stay behind, finish some tidying and organise the days' wages, he let Clementine go home early after her fourth yawn within three minutes.

Normally Louis would chuck his headphones on and shuffle through whatever playlist appealed to him, maybe even make up a little dance. But that seems rude in the presence of an acquaintance. And a pretty one at that.

"Do you want to play a game to pass the time?"

Wow, what a unique way to get to know this girl. Dickhead.

"Why not. What game were you thinking?"

Louis straightened his fingerless gloves like the showman he was, a chance to impress someone was a chance taken. "Well, it's not technically a game,"

She scoffed. "Liar."

"It's basically Truth or Dare but without the dares. Usually, it's played with cards, but I left my pack at home." Louis turned his pockets inside to show her.

"Fine," Clem sighed, her warm breath creating smoke that flowed out of her mouth like a dragon. "You go first."

Louis considered this a win. "Do you usually catch the bus? I just want to know if your presence will be around in the future to delight me." He sent a dramatic wink her way, his signature move.

"Not really. It's a twenty-minute drive to the shop but my car is a wreck right now, so bus it is," She shuddered at the thought of walking home alone at night. Once was enough. "My turn. How long have you been working at that music shop for?"

"Since it first opened about a year ago. I was so excited to be working there but now there's a new manager and he's making life shit." Louis remembered the day he saw an ad in the paper for a new music shop opening on the corner, his screams almost burst Marlon's eardrums.

"Ouch. I'm lucky then, my boss is actually my dad. Well, adoptive dad technically. He always wanted a family business, that's why we moved down here."

Louis leaned against the telegraph pole, his coat doing nothing to stop the cold from seeping through. "Damn, you are lucky. He seems cool."

Clementine smiled fondly. "Yeah, he is. He took me in when I was eight," She swallowed the lump in her throat at the thought of her time without Lee. "What about you? What's your family like?"

"We're not that closely knit. I moved away about a year ago with my friend Marlon, been here ever since." Now that was an exciting day. He and Marlon had been planning to live together since they were fourteen, to have the freedom to do whatever they wanted. Adulthood had taken a turn for the worse, the sore reality of work and living expenses punched them both in the gut.

"Is that our bus?" Clementine pointed to two white lights merging from the horizon, realising her suspicions were correct when she saw the elderly driver through the window. "Finally."