apple shampoo.

a punk, a man, and hoppus.

there was a buzzing in my ears.
it was the kind that only happens when you're really tired but can't sleep. do you know what i mean? it was so loud, and it wouldn't stop. a constant buzz, like a fly.
i kept rolling over, kicking sheets of, and then yanking them back on. and then off. and then on.
i wiggled out of bed to glance out my window. dark and dim. the street lamps were on, like usual. the sky looked calming.
after what felt like a few minutes, i got up, throwing gym shorts and a sweater, rummaging a box of various things for my pack of cigarettes, almost tripping on my skateboard, and sneaking out the back door.

the wall clock on my way out said two a.m. but it felt so much earlier. definitely like midnight.
the setting was serene, though, there was a gentle hum of a lamp, and the sky was dim with stars.
it was so interesting to see, all of the constellations. it was hard from here, but it was pretty nonetheless. it felt comforting.
i hit the bottom of the cigarette pack at least twice, before one popped up.
i had to hide them from mom. kari didn't care too much though, which was cool. she promised me she wouldn't tell if i promised to let her try one and she did keep that.
the cig seemed to burn out faster than usual, and so i stomped it out on the patio and kicked the butt to the grass, and then sneaking back inside.

after stripping back down to my underwear and shoving the pack back into my box of various junk, i slid back into bed, the feeling of sleepiness coming over me.
i turned on the t.v. for background noise, and then drifted to the soft buzz.

i woke up the next morning to the sound of the news from the living room, and the smell of blueberry pancakes. it wasn't the brightest out, but the shades of my room were tugged open slightly. mom or kari must have been in here in hopes of getting me awake. they always do that in the mornings. it was cute.
i stumbled out of bed, getting dressed again in those same gym shorts and sweater from last night and staggering my way downstairs.
mom gave me a wave, and a smile from the kitchen. kari greeting me with "g'mornin, tommy." from the couch, and the smallest smile.
i sat beside her, slumped over slightly and she took this as her chance to turn so her back was against the armrest and then threw her legs over mine.
the news was soon switched to the simpsons, which made kari groan in annoyance and gently throw a pillow at my arm.
"oh, c'mon kar," i frowned to her, "you picked yesterday." i whined, earning a huff of agreement from my sister.
"tom." mom warned, causing the argument to break.

it wasn't long until mom walked out carrying two plates for kari and me, and then asking what we wanted to drink, and then returning with orange juice and a cup of coffee.
the breakfast at the coffee table went by fast, and quietly. the only real noise was from the t.v. that hadn't been changed since i moved to do it.
i was done last, walking to the kitchen to put everything in the overflowing sink.

"tom, do you have plans for today?" mom asked as i walked in. this started me thinking.
"i don't really, i can drive now so i guess take kari wherever she plans to be and then drive to get scott if he's not too busy?" i shrugged, my eyebrows furrowing.
this made kari sit up, "tommy, take me to the mall later?" she said, though more like a question than a statement.
"let me shower, kar, and then we'll talk, yeah?" i told the girl, glancing to her spot on the couch. and she nodded.

after stepping out of the shower and getting dressed and then discussing plans over with my little sister, we ended up in the truck on our way to the mall.
"tom, remember that promise you made?" she asked, her voice going higher in tone. she wanted something, i knew that much from her fucking voice.
"in the dash," i sighed, earning a big toothy grin from the girl who was leaning into the dashboard to search for whatever pack of cigarettes was in it. "lighter is in one of the cup holders." i informed. she nodded and took it, coughing at the first hit.
"god, how do you do that?" she asked, earning a chuckle from me. "you get used to it, kid."

after dropping kari off i'd learned scott was busy, which was much of a disappointment on my end. having nothing to watch, nothing to do, i drove myself home.
pulling into the driveway i could hear my parents, which made me sigh of annoyance.
they've been doing this more often. now it was a game of my parents hate each other, and i hate my parents, my parents love me.
i made the decision now to climb up into my window and grab my skateboard. it would give me something to at least get my mind off of everything happening.
i'd managed to wiggle in through the small crack in the window, grabbing my phone, headphones, and board, before shoving everything and myself back out.

skating downtown to a mexican restaurant, eating, and then doing tricks in a parking lot wasn't planed, but it's what felt right.
feeling the ground through a board gave me something, i appreciated it so much.
i'd had my phone blaring music in my ears and the last thing i recall hearing was the line 'i'll never be the same again now, no way!'. the descendants.
this kept running through my head until i started paying attention to whatever else i had playing, at least up until i got a call from my good ol' friend antony.
he was a weird kid, but i wouldn't pinpoint him as bad. our relationship wasn't the best, and it felt to be wavering. he had a really sweet girlfriend, and i only know her by her last name. but he was a good person, and she was good for him.
all
to be back on track, antony said was he'd be at the restaurant in fifteen to see me.

the all too familiar "heya, punk!" was heard behind me, causing me to turn around with a goofy grin on my face.
"hey, man." i greeted, pulling the other boy in for a hug.
"and hoppus." i smiled. he could've told me he'd bring his girl, it would've made me feel a lot less awkward.
"tom, please. call me anne." the girl shook her head, giving a faint smile.
"anne, right," i nodded to her, glancing down at the slightest. it felt weird being the tallest friend. god.
this felt like it was dragging on and on and on. and of course i enjoyed being around ant, just it felt as if he didn't care. aside from scotty, ant was all i had, as cheesy as it sounds. anne, i learned that's her name, seemed to be really nice, to me especially. i appreciated this a lot, considering that it wasn't often this happened with girls. they tended to hate me for some reason.
after what felt like hours anne finally said something.
"do you both want to come to my house? mom is out of town and my brother isn't home yet," she offered, to which i agreed reluctantly. ant agreed rather fast, of course. and with that, we were off to her place.

anne's house was nice, i'm not saying mine was bad or anything, but it was neat.
the house was smaller than mine, and it was a simple layout, but nice nonetheless.
ant and anne slithered off into what i assumed was anne's room, so the entire situation just grew awkward on my part.
god if someone came home now i was fucked. i was fucked up the ass and took one in the mouth, even.
this let me stay alone in my thoughts for a while. the house was clean, and the walls were nice. there was the distinct smell of cherries and vanilla from somewhere in the house, and if you had looked you could've known one of the rooms belonged to a teenage boy.
i made my way back into the living room, deciding against exploring the house any further, just keeping my attention on whatever was left playing on the tv when ant and anne left. i learned pretty soon it was star wars, which was cool. space always interested me.
i didn't give much thought in, because the movie really didn't make sense to me.
that's when i heard the door open.
god, was i about to make a fool outta myself.
"hey, i'm tom, i'm antony's friend. ant is dating anne," i'd rambled on. god, i hated this already.
the new person in question sighed.
"yeah, yeah. i know about the two, kid, what are you doin' here?"
"i got dragged over by ant. didn't wanna be home. hey, what's your name again?" i pried
"didn't say." the boy grinned. "i'm anne's brother."
"okay, anne's brother," i teased. this guy had a personality. i enjoyed.
"oh cut that out." he countered, a grin plastered to his cheeks like a doll.
"gimme a name."
"i'm mark." he introduced, sitting down at my side. "nice to meet ya, tommy boy."