Flicker // johnmark

three

Light is slowly disappearing from the cloudy sky, curse this fall weather for making the sun set earlier and earlier every day.

"Wanna get dinner?" Johnny offers, and Mark blinks.

"Um, sure." he still agrees, knowing that he'll have to force something down in order to keep his physical body functioning.

Nicotine's an appetite suppressant. Mark's glad that it is.

He doesn't have to buy much food, and can use that money to feed his cigarette addiction.

They stop by a local grocery store on the way to Johnny's apartment.

"We need to look less shady." Johnny gently tugs Mark's hood off his head, fingers combing through the messy strands to make him look more presentable.

Mark hates that his heart flutters at the simple gesture.

Johnny smiles a little, taking Mark's hand and leading him into the store. There's a bunch of people roaming the aisles and shopping, and Johnny keeps Mark close, tightening his grip as they walk around.

They end up in the freezer section.

"Want bagel bites?" Johnny asks, eyes skimming over the selections. Mark nods, he doesn't really care about what he eats.

Johnny looks around them, before opening the freezer door and making sure it fogs up. Mark sees him slip the box under his hoodie, before closing it and entwining their fingers again.

"Let's go." Johnny simply says, and they walk casually out of the store, getting away with shoplifting their dinner. Mark's lips form into a closed mouth smile, it's as if he can feel the dophime being released from his brain.

Damn, it feels so good to do such wrong things with Johnny.

Back at Johnny's apartment, Johnny throws the bagel bites into the shitty microwave, as Mark lights a cigarette for them. He lets Johnny take the first inhale, a way of saying thank you for stealing their dinner.

A silence settles between them as they take turns smoking, eating their bagel bites. Mark doesn't eat much, he feels like the cigarette is satisfying enough.

Mark's sprawled out on the carpet, Johnny laying not too far from him. The cigarette hangs off his fingertips, and he's already lost count of how many they've smoked.

His phone lies dead in his pocket. His roommates are probably calling and texting him excessively.

He almost misses the sounds of the vibrations whenever he gets a text or a call. Almost misses the physical reminder that people care about him.

"I don't know how much longer we have here." Johnny exhales smoke, breaking Mark out of his thoughts.

Mark only closes his eyes, his fingers grasping onto the cigarette that's being passed to him. "The landlord was pretty pissed at you."

"I know." Mark hears him audibly sigh. "I'll probably end up rooming at the dealer house when worse comes to worse."

Mark turns his head, eyes opening back up to stare at Johnny's side profile. He looks so attractive from this angle.

"I mean, free cigarettes, right?" Mark chuckles, masking the bitterness in his tone.

He doesn't want Johnny to live with that whore.

"I guess." Johnny replies.

Mark stays the night.