Far Away From Here

Worship

When the clock hit five, it was time for you to depart for the day. Louis was still in the back with Harry and Liam had joined them a little while ago. I had barely seen them except to pop in and confirm an appointment time slot with Louis about an hour ago. He barely acknowledged my presence, despite not tattooing anyone in that moment. Shrugging me off, I scurried to the front the awkward tension suffocating me. I was a constant over-thinker and you spent the majority of your shift drowning in worry bubbles that were floating around your head. Were they talking about me? Why did Louis seem mad at me?

I start to wrap the navy scarf that was gifted from Jonas' mother a few birthdays ago and slip my exposed arms into the fluffy coat. Bush appears out of nowhere in front of you, for being so large he is quite silent – creeping around the building often scaring the living hell out of you. He takes his spot in the warmed chair and bids you a goodbye. I tipetoe out with a whispered farewell; twisting the knob before shutting the door behind me. The tangerine and apple colours that paint the sky like a canvas. I did not mind one bit how early it darkened in the winter; I found it peaceful and quite romantic. The more time you spend walking within the winter night, I feel the more you crave for someone else's company – someone else's warmth. Before you fully were able to walk away from the store, the sky started to descend to nightfall. The winter breeze brushes across my face, while I walk down the path home. Men, women and children rush around me – hopping into the warmth of stores and restaurants on either side of me. While there were so many people surrounding me, the only noise I was concentrated on was the wind that was piercing my exposed skin. It sent soft whistles past my ears, tickling the tender skin.

The shrill ringing of my phone echoes through the air around me. Studying the pixelated screen I am surprised to see Louis' name.

Before I could even say hello, his gruff voice bayed out "Where are you?"

"Uh, going home?"

"Hm? You did not think to say goodbye." I became irritable in a second, he is going to say this after being weird all afternoon.

"You're the one who makes the schedule; you should have known I was leaving at 5." I snipped out, a bit too aggressively I realized as I made eye contact with a woman who gave me a raised eyebrow look.

He matched my annoyance "I am quite aware but I don't see why you wouldn't come in and say goodbye. I would have given you a ride home."

"Thanks anyways but I am good. See you tomorrow." I pressed end on the call and stuffed my phone roughly in my coat pocket. I could hear my phone ring again but without looking I pressed decline in my pocket. Concentrated on the sound of my feet crunching in the snow, I was just about to loop off the long street that Sin's was located on and my transit station was placed, when my phone rang again. Realizing he would probably keep calling, I picked up once again.

"Yes?"

"I don't know why this is all about. Come back to the shop and I will give you a ride home."

"I am almost home." I lied and in Louis fashion he could see right through it.

"Oh, I didn't realize the city invested in those hyper-speed trams; very cool." I rolled my eyes, not being able to come up with a better comeback.

"You are working anyways; I will just take the tram home. Thank you though Louis."

"Don't hang up." My stomach, as well as my heated core clenched at this demand, damn him for having this effect on me. "Please come back."

Louis, arms crossed and bruiting, absorbs my appearance as I walked down the street. A wave of self-awareness washed over me, I became very aware of the way my arms were swaying and how big my steps were. Unable to handle his gaze, I diverted my attention to the salted sidewalk. He did not say anything just opened the door for me, allowing the heat of the shop to swarm around me. Harry and Liam were leaned against the front of the desk. All of the blood in my body rushed from my face to my feet; I waved a small hello to them and stood awkwardly by the doorframe as Louis started sorting through his stuff probably grabbing his keys.

"Let's go; see you later mates." I followed Louis back out into the nippy air; deciding to be snotty I bid both a farewell but added 'See you Sunday' to Harry as I departed.

The air in his car was filled with a tension but not an awkward one. No, just one so thick I'm surprised he could see the road through it. I tried to defend off the suffocating stiffness, brutally blurting out "Well, are you going to even mention why you were so weird today?"

"Weird?" He finally spoke, almost tasting how the word taste on his tongue; the corners of his lips quirk, as he runs his inked fingers through his floppy hair. "One of my favourite things about you is your innocence." My cheeks deepen to a dark crimson shade, as he continued "But asking my best mate to hang out without even mentioning it to me, is where I find your innocence....irritable." My eyebrows furrowed and I juggled between being angry and very confused.

"What do you mean? He asked me two weeks ago to run and you didn't have a problem? I was just looping back to the offer."

"Yes, well I would have had an issue but then you declined. Now listen baby, I'm not really some possessive fuck and I would love to have my best mate and my girl getting along but at least include me in those conversations. How would you feel if your best girl friend and I got together for coffee or something?" I brushed over the 'my girl' comment and would go back to it later to squeal into my pillow.

I thought about what he was saying, yes it did make sense but I did not want him to realize that so early on. "Well that would be different, first off we are going running. There will not be much talking like a coffee would entail; I doubt I'll even have the strength to breathe. Secondly, I don't have a best girl friend. So sure, you and Jonas' can go out for coffee." He snorted in response, taking his eyes off the road for a moment to give me a snippet of his bright eyes.

"Always poking holes into my defense."

"I won't go running with him if it's that big of a deal."

"No, no never think you have to change plans because of me. I just want to at least have a bit of a warning next time is all. Maybe even an invite, I would have politely declined because I hate running, but an offer would have been nice." I giggled in response, thankful the air was finally clearing. He reached across the console, grabbing ahold of my hand.