Jump In (boyxboy)

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

    "Your change will be fourteen dollars and five cents. Would you like your receipt?" I ask the lady in front of me.

    "No, it's fine." She says, looking around and not paying attention to me. I've began to notice people in New York act very differently than people in Louisiana. If this were down south, she'd be asking me how my parents are and what I'm taking in college. Here, she won't look at me longer than she has to.

    Everyone is caught up in the hustle of the big city.

    She walks away and I don't bother telling her to have a good day.
   
    "Hey man," Finn says, I didn't even notice him behind her in line. I beam at him, a big smile across my face.

    "Ten minutes," I say, letting him know how much time I have until I get off work.

    "Okay, I'll wait outside." He says, after he pays for the three chocolate bars he's placed on the counter.

    "Be safe," I warn him, weary of the big city. This causes him to roll his eyes with a chuckle.
    "Atlas, I've lived here my whole life." He smirks and I shrug innocently. "Nice shirt by the way."

    I finally had the chance to pick up some Hawaiian shirts for work, and lets just say they do not look cute on me. They look awkward on me. I tried tucking it in but then I just looked like a dad. The beige pants I have paired with them don't flatter the shirt in any way either.

    "Shut up," I mutter with flushed cheeks as he walks away.

    He walks away laughing and I can't help but grin to myself as I help the other customers. I only have to help three other people in line before Marleigh, a fellow NYU student comes up to me behind my counter.

"You're good to go, Atlas." She says and I look down at her with a smile.

Marleigh is rather cute. She's short, probably around five foot two and she has extremely long, curly red hair and matching freckles. She could be Brian Toldo's twin but in girl form a swear. Except for the fact that she's actually a sweetheart.

"Thanks Marleigh," I say with a smile. She smiles up at me and I watch her cheeks turn red. I can't help but smirk a bit as she shyly looks away. "Have a good night."

"You too!" She smiles, before turning to the next customer.

I walk to the back quickly to clock out before meeting Finn outside. As I walk towards him, I watch him snack on his chocolate while mindlessly scrolling through his phone.

For a few seconds, I decide to watch him from afar as he does this mundane task.

He's wrapped up in a hoodie and a denim jacket with black jeans and a black beanie. His dark hair sticks out from underneath his hat. His jaw is sharpe and defined but his face isn't menacing or intimidating. He looks like the perfect mix of a hockey and skater boy, which he basically is.

Over the past few weeks, I've come to see his face as homey and comforting before anything else.

He looks up from his phone at me and my heart feels like it glitched in my chest. As soon as he sees me he smiles.

"Finally!" He says as he approaches me. His voice is deep and full but nothing too crazy. It's like at the perfect pitch and tone.

"You good, Atlas?" He asks as he notices that I am once again, staring at him.

"Just tired," I sigh and he nods.

"At least we only got hockey once a week," He says.

"The scheduling is bittersweet," I say.