insomnia - hemmings au

Chapter 2.

2.

My name's Luke Hemmings.

I don't know what to say about myself. I'm pretty unextraordinary.

I like video games, I like music, I like books, I like clothes, I like pizza, I like playing the guitar, I like girls, I like running, I like my little sister and my older brother, I like my mum, and I like things 17 year old guys like.

I'm just like everybody else.

Or at least I think I'm like everybody else.

"Are you sure you don't want to come over to play FIFA or something?" Michael asked for the nth time since we started walking. I shook my head. "I really can't, Michael." he rolled his eyes but kept on talking.

"I don't get it, every Monday you're unavailable when we literally have nothing to do at home because you're," he made air quotations with his hands. "Busy."

"Your point?"

"Dude, are you screwing someone behind my back?" he asked suspiciously with no trace of joking at all in his voice. I laughed at him and hit him on his left shoulder.

"I will find her, you know. This is adultery. We are Luke and Michael. Michael and Luke." he gestured back and forth between both of us, "We're exclusive." I laughed again even harder. God, thank You for Michael Clifford.

"Whatever, Michael." I scoffed. "Wait, so you are screwing someone?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Jesus, I'm not, you'd be the first I'd tell if I did, you know that." I told him and he shrugged. "Point made. But if I do find out you have an STD from someone other than whoever you were supposed to be screwing, I'm calling an offense of the bro code."

"Yeah, whatever. I'll text you if I change my mind." I replied as we neared the intersection we were going to separate ways in. "You better." he said and walked the other direction from where I was going and then I was alone.

I pulled out my phone and checked the time. It was 3:49 p.m.

Eight more hours.

I unlocked my phone and browsed through my messages. I got a new one from an unknown number and a new one from this girl named Jackie. I'll reply to them later.

I pulled out a pair of earphones from my jean pocket and plugged it in. I scrolled through my music library passing different albums by Blink 182, the Rolling Stone, Nirvana, Green Day, etc.

Instead of choosing from my usual type of music, I found myself listening to the first movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata No, 14.

The first few notes filled my ears and a sense of calm relieved me. I continued walking in the spring air and tried to appreciate my surroundings.

When that failed, I just appreciated the music.

It held emotion that was barely there yet at the same time, it was all you could hear. It was slow and paced but it wasn't too rich, it was calm. Its pitches going up. Going down. Repeating itself. Sounding similar to each other.

It was consistent.

Maybe it was weird that I could listen to people screaming into my ears and listen to symphonies and sonatas because they were both so opposite of the other and I guess people usually assume if you like one, you can't like the other because they're too different from each other. But I beg to differ.

I got to my house just before the piece finished. I kicked off my shoes, took out my earphones and went straight to the kitchen.

"Lukey, you're home." my mum said as I set my backpack on our kitchen island. "No shit." I replied and she laughed. She kissed my cheek and quickly hugged me. "How was school?" she asked. "Educational."