Walkman [Lashton AU]

Chapter 1

October, 1991 I bubble, bubble, toil and trouble.

Halloween was just around the corner and Luke couldn't be more excited. It was his favorite holiday, along with autumn being his favorite season. He always thought it was beautiful, watching the leaves fall and everything turn to a bright, orange color. He got to wear sweaters and hats. Everyone was happier due to the holidays coming up.

That's why he wasn't letting his grounding ruin his mood. Instead, he happily walked into school with a big smile on his face and his bag on his back. The bus ride was tense like always. He didn't see the boy named Ashton in the morning time. He assumed he just didn't take it at that time, but how did he get to school? Luke wasn't sure why, but he was curious about the guy.

Luke shook the thoughts away, unable to think about a boy this way. Let alone a guy he barely even knows. Ashton was nothing but a stranger on the bus who somehow captured his attention.

With that in mind, he walked over to his locker and spotted Calum and Michael laughing about something. They were sat on the ground, writing in their notebooks. Michael kept looking at Calum's paper, who didn't notice and was speaking rapidly about something. Luke chuckled in amusement.

"Wow, copying enough?" Luke commented, opening his locker. "You know, we have a quiz today in math."

Michael gaped,"We do?"

At the same time, Calum asked in exasperation,"You're copying me?!"

"Dude, I have a D- in math! I need to pass," he exclaimed and rolled his eyes. "Can I copy your quiz answers?"

Calum scoffed and shoved him,"Hell no, I'm not helping you cheat."

"Some friendship." Michael got up and pouted, tucking his paper away.

Luke ignored his words and put away his bag, taking out his books for his first few classes. They had a few minutes before the bell rang and he was not looking forward to his first class. Who decided history was allowed to be taught at seven am? The person in charge of school scheduling is obviously Satan.

"Hey," Calum spoke up, nudging his friends as they walked down the hall. "My sister is making me help her pass out candy, so I don't think I can make it to the Halloween party next week."

Michael groaned,"Are you joking? C'mon, we can't miss the party!"

"Sorry, I owe her for covering about the party Saturday," Calum shrugged.

"Yeah, lucky you," Luke grumbled. "The bus is not very fun. I don't think I'll be able to go either, my mum was very harsh with the grounding."

Michael threw his hands in the air. "Great, so I'm flying solo? C'mon, can't you sneak out? Your mum works that weekend! You can just get home before she does and it'll be fine."

"I don't know, we'll see," Luke said with a grim expression. He then remembered something and face-palmed. "Shit, I need to talk to coach about the game Friday. I'll meet you guys at lunch."

"Have fun!" Calum saluted and followed Michael to their class together.

He was always a little jealous of their friendship. He kind of joined in later and didn't have that long history like they did. However, he was grateful to be a part of the friendship circle anyways. It was better than just sitting alone at lunch and not having people to get you in trouble. It sounds stupid but they bring him out of his bubble, and if he sometimes gets in trouble along the way, it's worth it.

Checking the time, he saw he had a couple minutes and jogged down the hall to the counselor's office. He saw that coach wasn't in there, but he's usually there by morning so he decided to wait around. He walked in and noticed a lot of people weren't in the room. Since school hasn't started, he figured that was why.